Off-World (Page 19)

Latest in Off-World

Scientists have a bizarre idea for protecting astronauts from cosmic rays: Shield them with the radiation-absorbing fungus near Chernobyl.

Fungus Growing at Chernobyl Could Protect Astronauts From Cosmic Rays

By Dan Robitzski

In a sleek announcement video, Virgin Galactic has unveiled the cabin interior of its SpaceShipTwo space plane, a vehicle designed for space tourism.

Virgin Galactic Unveils Sleek Spaceship Cabin for Tourist Flights

By Victor Tangermann

A second stage of a Russian rocket that launched a mysterious spacecraft reentered the Earth's atmosphere over the weekend, burning up like a comet.

Texas Residents Spot Disintegrating Russian Rocket Booster in Sky

By Victor Tangermann

National security contractor Sierra Nevada Corporation has won a Pentagon contract to turn its Shooting Star cargo spacecraft into a space outpost.

The Pentagon Is Quietly Working on a Military Space Station Outpost

By Victor Tangermann

Rocket Lab's 13th launch ended in disaster when the rocket blew up and destroyed seven satellites. Elon Musk felt bad and provided some moral support.

Elon Musk Tweets Support For Startup That Exploded Rocket Launch

By Victor Tangermann

Performing surgeries in space could end up being a pretty messy — and potentially dangerous — reality for astronauts on future missions to Mars.

Scientists Ponder Gory Mayhem of Zero-Gravity Surgery

By Victor Tangermann

The team at Firefly Aerospace used one of its rocket engines to try to light all those pesky candles on a birthday cake for its co-founder Max Polakov.

Watch These Mad Geniuses Light Birthday Candles With a Rocket Engine

By Jon Christian

This is What Sunsets on Other Planets Would Look Like

This is What Sunsets on Other Planets Would Look Like

By Victor Tangermann

Virgin Galactic has signed a contract with NASA to start training astronauts for trips to the International Space Station.

Virgin Galactic to Start Training Astronauts for Trips to Space

By Victor Tangermann

Startup Says It’ll Launch You Into the Stratosphere on a Balloon

Startup Says It’ll Launch You Into the Stratosphere on a Balloon

By Victor Tangermann

A team of Harvard scientists were able to put mice into a state of hibernation by stimulating certain neurons in their brains.

Lab Puts Mice in Suspended Animation. Will It Work on Humans?

By Victor Tangermann

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk took a jab at Roscosmos. Fuming, the head of Russia's space agency aired his frustration in a lengthy column for Forbes Russia.

Russia Is Furious, Saying the US is Mocking Its Space Program

By Victor Tangermann

"The trampoline is working," Musk said during a news conference on Saturday, a rebuttal to a jab by Roscosmos chief Dmitry Rogozin from 2014.

Elon Musk Just Absolutely Roasted the Russian Space Program

By Victor Tangermann

China is planning to launch 11 missions before 2023 to construct an orbital, three-module space station.

China’s Plans for “Heavenly Palace” Space Station Are Dazzling

By Victor Tangermann

Watch the Astronauts Give Their Kids Virtual Hugs Before Launch

Watch the Astronauts Give Their Kids Virtual Hugs Before Launch

By Victor Tangermann

"I'm the chief engineer of the thing," SpaceX CEO Elon Musk told CBS during a Tuesday interview. "Goes wrong, it's my fault."

Elon Musk: “It’s My Fault” If Launch Goes Wrong

By Victor Tangermann

Amazing Vid Shows What You’d See If Rockets Were Transparent

Amazing Vid Shows What You’d See If Rockets Were Transparent

By Victor Tangermann

Parts of China's gigantic Long March 5B rocket have finally made their uncontrolled descent back to Earth on Monday, splashing into the Atlantic Ocean.

Oops: China Just Dropped a Huge Rocket Piece Back to Earth

By Victor Tangermann

After spending about a week in Earth's orbit, the core stage of China's Long March 5 rocket is now plummeting towards our planet's surface.

A Massive Chinese Rocket Is Plummeting Out of the Sky Right Now

By Victor Tangermann

Debris from China's Long March-5 rocket may have touched ground on the Ivory Coast after uncontrollably hurtling through the Earth's atmosphere.

Out-of-Control Chinese Rocket Reportedly Dropped Debris on Africa

By Victor Tangermann

Russia's space agency Roscosmos announced on Sunday that the tanks of the Russian Fregat-SB upper stage have disintegrated in Earth's orbit.

Russian Rocket Disintegrates in Space, Leaving Orbital Debris

By Victor Tangermann

In a new report, scientists discussed how to ensure that space travelers don't contaminate distant planets — and that they won't bring back pollutants.

Stanford Scientist Warns of Risk From Alien Pathogens

By Victor Tangermann

China just successfully tested the spacecraft that it plans to use when the time comes to send crewmembers up to its next space station.

China Tests Spacecraft That Will Send a Crew to its Space Station

By Dan Robitzski

The Pentagon has formally released three unclassified videos of "unidentified aerial phenomena" taken in 2004 and 2015 by Navy pilots.

Pentagon Officially Releases Three UFO Videos

By Victor Tangermann

A new study questions the existence of Planet Nine — a long-rumored ninth planet in our solar system that orbits the Sun beyond Neptune.

New Research: There Might Not Be a Planet Nine After All

By Victor Tangermann

Three astronauts who went to the International Space Station before the pandemic began are about to come home to a significantly changed society.

Astronauts Who Launched Before Pandemic Are Starting to Come Home

By Dan Robitzski

This guy took a relatively clear, awesome photograph of the ISS — the International Space Station — right from his backyard.

This Guy Took a Photo of the ISS from His Backyard

By Foster Kamer

A proposed mission would explore the first-ever object that astronomers spotted cruising into our solar system from interstellar space.

Proposed Mission Would Explore Interstellar Object ‘Oumuamua

By Jon Christian

Northrop Grumman's "Mission Extension Vehicle-1" (MEV-1) docks with a Inteslat 901, a communication satellite that's been in orbit for a lengthy 18 years.

World’s First: Spacecraft Docks to Commercial Satellite In Orbit

By Victor Tangermann

This weekend, a flat Earth conspiracy theorist launched himself in a homemade rocket — and crashed a minute later, dying in the wreck.

Guy Builds Rocket to Prove Earth Is Flat, Crashes It, Dies

By Jon Christian

Christina Koch set a record spaceflight. This is what happened when she returned to her dog, who is, unlike its owner, an underachiever.

This Record-Breaking Astronaut’s Dog Is Really Glad to See Her. But.

By Foster Kamer

Adidas is going to have their shoe material rocketed into space, where they're going to have their proprietary material tested aboard the ISS.

Adidas Is Going to Space, on the ISS, Where They’ll Do Space Shoe Stuff

By Foster Kamer

Noted TV personality and public science advocate Bill Nye made an unusual pitch for NASA funding this week: that humans could be descended from Martians.

Bill Nye: Humans May Be Descendants of Ancient Martians

By Jon Christian

Researchers have developed a new model that enables engineers to build a type of rocket engine called a "rotating detonation engine," which uses explosions.

New Rocket Design Is Powered by a Ring of Literal Explosions

By Victor Tangermann

It turns out that a thin coating of powdered rust could serve as a killer, lightweight shield against deadly cosmic radiation.

It Turns Out Rust Is… a Great Shield for Deadly Space Radiation

By Dan Robitzski

A newly published Amazon patent that dates back to 2017 lays out plans for a ship-based launch system that whips paylods into space using a miles-long whip.

Amazon Patented a System That Literally Whips Stuff Into Orbit

By Victor Tangermann

Axiom Space, the company that's developing a privately-owned "space hotel" module for the ISS, shared more details on when it plans to launch.

Plans Are Moving Ahead to Open a Space Hotel Attached to the ISS

By Dan Robitzski

Skinwalker Ranch is the site of countless stories of paranormal activity, and this team of scientists is trying to figure out why.

This Utah Ranch Has a “Command Center” for Paranormal Research

By Kristin Houser

In April, Japan will launch the Space Domain Mission Unit to protect its space-based assets, according to an Associated Press story.

Japan Is Launching Its Own Space Defense Unit

By Kristin Houser

Rand Paul's bizarre tweet suggests that we're not creating climate change on Earth, but perhaps we should be on Mars or some exoplanet.

Senator: Climate Change Is Fake. Also, Let’s Terraform New Worlds

By Dan Robitzski

A piece of astronaut Christina Koch's helmet fell off during an ISS spacewalk on Wednesday, forcing her to rely on her partner Jessica Meir for light.

Piece of Astronaut’s Spacesuit Falls Off During Spacewalk

By Kristin Houser

Helen Sharman, the first British astronaut, firmly believes that aliens exist and that they may even be on the Earth already.

UK’s First Astronaut: Aliens Definitely Exist, May Be on Earth

By Kristin Houser

China successfully launched its largest and most powerful rocket, the Long March-5 Yaosan, after a 2017 attempt ended in failure.

China Successfully Launches Powerful Long March 5 Rocket

By Victor Tangermann

The last decade in mind-blowing space travel was the most important since the Apollo program was introduced. Here's the biggest space news of the decade.

The Most Mind-Blowing Space Stories of the 2010s

By Sarah Marquart

Boeing's Starliner may not have reached the International Space Station on its first mission, but astronauts are still excited about the spacecraft.

Astronauts “Can’t Wait” to Try out Starliner Despite ISS Failure

By Kristin Houser

Elon Musk might send a Tesla Cybertruck into space aboard a SpaceX Starship rocket, which he mused on Twitter has "the payload capacity."

Elon Musk Might Send a Tesla Cybertruck to Space

By Kristin Houser

A team of scientists wants to colonize and populate another world to protect humanity from Earth's eventualy demise or destruction.

Scientists Are Planning a 1,000 Year Trip to Another Planet

By Dan Robitzski

The companies vying to be the first to launch a space hotel find themselves facing major regulatory and financial hurdles.

The Race is Heating Up to Open the First Space Hotel

By Dan Robitzski

The ESA officially has budget approval for Hera, a mission to test our ability to prevent killer asteroids from slamming into the Earth.

Europe’s Space Agency Joins Mission to Deflect Killer Asteroids

By Kristin Houser

The astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) may be far from home, but that doesn't mean they'll miss out on Thanksgiving dinner.

Here’s What’s on the Space Station’s Thanksgiving Menu

By Kristin Houser

The booster from a Chinese rocket landed on populated settlement on Saturday — and China could have prevented the whole situation from unfolding.

Chinese Rocket Launch Covers Village in Toxic Debris. Again.

By Kristin Houser

While the idea of building a space colony or terraforming a new planet for humanity to colonize sounds intriguing, it's not a sustainable goal.

Professor: Terraforming a New Home Planet Would Be Dangerous

By Dan Robitzski

NATO has added space as its fifth operational military domain, meaning the organization will now protect member nations' off-world interests.

NATO Boss: Space Is Now a Military “Operational Domain”

By Kristin Houser

Pennsylvania State University is currently developing a center focused on the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI).

Penn State’s SETI Center Could Legitimize Alien Research

By Kristin Houser

In 2018, China completed more successful orbital launches than any other nation for the first time, and it's on track to hold 2019's record, too.

China Now Launches More Orbital Rockets Than Any Other Country

By Victor Tangermann

Space companies trying to make off-world tourism a thing will likely cause major environmental destruction in the process as spaceflight ramps up.

The Toll Casual Space Tourism Will Take on the Planet (Updated)

By Dan Robitzski

Several witnesses to the U.S. Navy's 2004 UFO encounter have detailed the immediate aftermath of the event, and that the video was seized by the military.

Veterans Claim Military Immediately Seized Video of UFO Encounter

By Kristin Houser

Siemens CEO Joe Kaeser seemed to slam Elon Musk in a tweet, but then went on to deny that he was referring to the SpaceX CEO.

Siemens CEO Denies Slamming “Pot Smoking” Elon Musk

By Kristin Houser

By connecting satellites with ultra-thin tethers, engineers could safely steer them back to Earth with a space propulsion system, no fuel required.

The US Is Testing a Space Propulsion System That Doesn’t Use Fuel

By Dan Robitzski

A Canadian space launch startup has partnered with commercial space services company to develop a way to reuse old rocket parts in space.

This Startup Wants to Turn Space Junk Into Orbital Hotels

By Victor Tangermann

Space exploration gives humanity an opportunity to avoid the mistakes it's made on Earth, but it's clear that won't happen without robust space law.

Astrobiologist: Humans Are Going to Ruin Outer Space

By Kristin Houser

When Donald Trump confused the first all-female ISS spacewalk for the first female spacewalk, astronaut Jessica Meir was quick to correct him.

Watch Astronaut Jessica Meir Tell Trump He’s Wrong, From Space

By Jon Christian

New research found that the soil on Mars and the Moon could feasibly be used to grow plants, suggesting future space colonists may be able to farm crops.

New Research: You Could Grow Crops in Martian Soil

By Dan Robitzski

Russia is working on a lunar rover with a wheeled base supporting the body of its humanoid robot Fedor, which has already visited the ISS.

Russia’s Working on a Lunar Rover With a Humanoid Torso

By Kristin Houser