Scientists at the European Space Agency used a laser to communicate with a spacecraft 165 million miles (265 million kilometers) away in deep space for the first time, marking a major step forward in their efforts to build optical communication systems for future missions to the Moon and beyond. Scientists at the Kryoneri Observatory near Athens,...
It hasn’t been a great summer for Elon Musk’s empire. The billionaire has been making headlines not for rockets or robots, but for explosive political drama. After pouring nearly $290 million of his own money into the 2024 election cycle to help Donald Trump return to the White House, Musk has now formed his own “America Party.” This unprecedented...
Whenever we study space, we’re usually talking about long-lasting objects, like our own solar system or faraway galaxies that occasionally catch our attention when something extraordinary happens. But sometimes, the universe sends us quick, random bursts of energy that are usually too far away and too ephemeral for scientists to make any sense...
In a bizarre twist, Honda, the Japanese car manufacturer, has taken its engineering off-road—and into space. The company launched and landed a prototype reusable rocket on Tuesday, June 17, marking a key milestone toward its newfound goal of achieving suborbital spaceflight by 2029. In the surprise announcement, Honda R&D—the company’s research...
NASA has selected a yet-to-be-named Space Shuttle to move to Houston, conceding to a long-running bid by Texas senators to house one of the iconic vehicles. If the chosen vehicle is Discovery—which it likely is—the Smithsonian, which houses the vehicle, may put up a fight. The Trump administration included the shuttle’s relocation in the budget...