Planetary Projects and Human Spaceflight

by Jason Davis

Latest Blog Posts

Multimedia recap: Two launches, a landing, a docking, and a berthing

Posted by Jason Davis on 2016/07/20 12:35 CDT

Four days of cargo craft mania came to a close at the International Space Station this morning, as astronauts Kate Rubins and Jeff Williams snagged an approaching SpaceX Dragon vehicle and berthed it to the laboratory's Harmony module.

Horizon Goal: A new reporting series on NASA’s Journey to Mars

Posted by Jason Davis on 2016/07/18 07:03 CDT | 1 comment

We're embarking on a multi-part series with the Huffington Post about the world's largest human spaceflight program. In part 1, we look at how the Columbia accident prompted NASA and the George W. Bush administration to create a new vision for space exploration.

Mars 2020 rover rolls into final design and fabrication phase

Posted by Jason Davis on 2016/07/15 06:16 CDT | 9 comments

NASA's next Mars rover is rolling off the drawing board and into its final design and fabrication phase, the agency announced today, during a televised event at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory that highlighted some of the mission's technology.

Cargo craft mania! A quick guide to four days of Dragon and Progress at the ISS

Posted by Jason Davis on 2016/07/15 11:33 CDT

Two cargo spacecraft are heading to the International Space Station as part of a choreographed, four-day dance that begins this weekend. Here's a quick guide.

Test stand glitch halts SLS engine firing in Mississippi

Posted by Jason Davis on 2016/07/14 08:20 CDT

A test stand problem cut short today's test-firing of a Space Launch System development engine at NASA's Stennis Space Center in Mississippi.

Videos and updates: LightSail 2 shows off magnetic personality

Posted by Jason Davis on 2016/07/13 06:33 CDT | 3 comments

It's been a few weeks since LightSail 2 passed its day-in-the-life test at Cal Poly. Here's a roundup of updates that were made in response to the test results, and a look at the project's next steps.

Five years after Atlantis' last launch, five favorite stories about the shuttle program

Posted by Jason Davis on 2016/07/08 06:02 CDT | 1 comment

On the five-year anniversary of the final space shuttle launch, Jason Davis shares five of his favorite stories about the program.

Multimedia roundup: Flawless ride to orbit for Expedition 48 crew

Posted by Jason Davis on 2016/07/06 10:58 CDT

Expedition 48 crewmembers Kate Rubins, Takuya Onishi and Anatoly Ivanishin are safely in orbit following an early morning launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

That new Soyuz smell: Next ISS trio launches tonight aboard upgraded crew craft

Posted by Jason Davis on 2016/07/06 06:31 CDT

Expedition 48 crewmembers Kate Rubins, Takuya Onishi and Anatoly Ivanishin begin a two-day trip to the International Space Station tonight aboard a newly upgraded Soyuz MS spacecraft.

Big booster blasts Utah hillside, and NASA discusses Journey to Mars

Posted by Jason Davis on 2016/06/28 06:41 CDT | 1 comment

NASA and Orbital ATK successfully completed a qualification motor firing of a five-segment solid rocket booster that will fly on the Space Launch System in 2018.