Articles

Stories, updates, insights, and original analysis from The Planetary Society.

Interpreters: the ties that bind international spaceflight

An interview with Elena Kozhukhov, a veteran Russian interpreter who supports the International Space Station.

J-2X: A Distant Dot Lights Up the Night

On Tuesday, NASA released new high-definition video of a June 26 nighttime J-2X engine test at Stennis Space Center in southern Mississippi.

Spacewalk ends early following helmet water leak

A spacewalk outside the International Space Station Tuesday ended early after a water leak inside astronaut Luca Parmitano’s helmet created a potentially dangerous situation.

The Space Launch System (original concept)

In-flight entertainment: cameras aboard the Space Launch System

When the Space Launch System lifts off on its inaugural flight in 2017, eight engineering cameras will collect crucial in-flight data while providing breathtaking views for the public.

A patriotic return to space

When Space Shuttle Discovery launched on its 1988 return-to-flight mission, it was a big moment for NASA and America.

Deflecting the flames of a monster rocket

Work continues to prepare Kennedy Space Center's launch pad 39B for the Space Launch System, as a flame trench deflector originally built for the Space Shuttle is removed.

Russians start workweek with stroll outside ISS

Cosmonauts Fyodor Yurchikhin and Alexander Misurkin performed a six-and-a-half hour spacewalk outside the International Space Station on Monday.

Shenzhou 10 and Tiangong 1 transit sequence

Astrophotographer captures 'Heavenly Palace' transiting the Sun

Astrophotographer Thierry Legault captured a striking image set of Chinese spacecraft Tiangong 1 and Shenzhou 10 transiting the Sun.

If we started today, how long would it take to get to Mars? With this budget, never.

The House of Representatives held a hearing today to discuss their proposed NASA authorization bill, which would fund Planetary Science, cut Earth Science, forbid asteroid retrieval, and command NASA to pursue a path to Mars via the Moon.

China launches three-person crew to visit Tiangong 1 space station

China's Shenzhou 10 spacecraft is bound for space station Tiangong 1 following a successful liftoff from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in Inner Mongolia.

ESA launches fourth cargo spacecraft to ISS

An Ariane 5 rocket carrying the Automated Transfer Vehicle Albert Einstein lifted off from French Guiana Wednesday.

Express Soyuz sends new crew to station

Fyodor Yurchikhin, Karen Nyberg and Luca Parmitano lifted off in their Soyuz TMA-09M at 4:31 p.m. EDT and arrived at the International Space Station six hours later.

Report from the Starship Century Conference: Tuesday

This week Jon Lomberg is attending the Starship Century conference, which brings together scientists, writers, and futurists to imagine the future of interstellar travel. Here he reports on presentations by Freeman Dyson, Peter Schwartz, Robert Zubrin, Geoff Landis, Neal Stephenson, and Patti Grace Smith.