NASA

WASHINGTON — A SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket lifted off June 25 carrying the final spacecraft in a series of geostationary weather satellites that also features several firsts. The Falcon Heavy lifted off from Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Complex 39A at 5:26 p.m. Eastern, 10 minutes into a two-hour window as launch directors found favorable weather despite forecasts the day before that predicted only a 30% chance of acceptable weather. The rocket’s payload, the GOES-U weather satellite, is scheduled to deploy from the Falcon Heavy’s second stage four and a half hours after liftoff, once the stage completes a sequence of three burns to place the satellite into a geostationary transfer orbit. GOES-U is the fourth and final satellite in the Geostationary Operational Envir...

Are you ready to add some “space” to your spring break in the Space City? We got you, explorer. Space Center Houston’s Moon 2 Mars Festival, presented by Wellby Financial, is back for year three. Beginning Wednesday, March 13 through Saturday, March 16, the festival celebrates the wonders of space with live music, cutting-edge space tech, immersive experiences, Texas barbecue and more. The festival ends on Saturday, March 16 with internationally renowned rock band The All-American Rejects hitting the stage at 7:30 p.m. But every day is loaded with musical artists and DJs representing the Lone Start State! Learn more about these artists and their set times at the festival! We’ve compiled this quick mission brief for you and your crew—so sit back, relax and enjoy this lineup of Te...

No matter where you are located on this globe, we all have one thing in common – we all call planet Earth our home! Earth provides humanity with everything we need to survive.  Earth Day is a time to acknowledge what we can do to help our planet. With more than a billion people participating every year, Earth Day is the largest secular observation in the world.  Let’s look at three ways NASA is impacting the Earth. 1.) Global Ecosystems Dynamic Investigation (GEDI): GEDI provides a unique 3D view of Earth’s forests, helping to fill in missing information about their role in the carbon cycle. The primary purpose of GEDI is to produce high-resolution laser-ranging observations of Earth in order to characterize the effects of climate change and land use on...

NASA Spotlight: Astronaut Kjell Lindgren Kjell N. Lindgren was selected by NASA in 2009. Born in Taiwan while his family was stationed overseas, he spent most of his childhood abroad and returned to the U.S. to complete his education and earn a Doctorate of Medicine from the University of Colorado. He is board certified in emergency and aerospace medicine. After serving as the Deputy Crew Surgeon for Space Shuttle mission STS‐130 and Expedition 24, he was selected to join our astronaut corps. Dr. Lindgren flew on the International Space Station from July 2015 to December 2015 and logged 141 days in space. He participated in two spacewalks and in more than a hundred different scientific experiments. In his free time, ...

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Space Force has selected Blue Origin, SpaceX, and United Launch Alliance for the National Security Space Launch Phase 3 launch services program. The three companies won contracts potentially worth $5.6 billion over five years, the Pentagon announced June 13.  The three companies will compete for orders over the contract period starting in fiscal year 2025 through 2029. Under the NSSL program, the Space Force orders individual launch missions up to two years in advance. At least 30 NSSL Lane 1 missions are expected to be competed over the five years. The Phase 3 contract is a big win for Blue Origin, marking the first time the space company founded by billionaire Jeff Bezos has been selected to launch sensitive national security satellites. Space...