NASA accidentally broadcasts simulation of distressed astronauts on space station
SINGAPORE (Reuters) - NASA accidentally broadcast a simulation of astronauts being treated for decompression sickness on the International Space Station (ISS) on Wednesday, prompting speculation of an emergency in posts on social media. About 5:28 ...
Jun 13, 2024
SpaceX sued by engineers fired after accusing Elon Musk of sexism
By Daniel Wiessner (Reuters) - Rocket maker SpaceX and its CEO Elon Musk were sued on Wednesday by eight engineers who say they were illegally fired for raising concerns about alleged sexual harassment and discrimination against women, their lawyer...
Jun 12, 2024
Maya sacrifice of twin boys revealed by DNA from Chichen Itza
By Will Dunham WASHINGTON (Reuters) - In 1967, an underground cistern known as a chultun was discovered near a sacred body of water at Chichen Itza, an important ancient Maya city on Mexico's Yucatan peninsula. Skeletal remains of more than 100 chi...
Jun 12, 2024
NASA, Boeing push back Starliner's crewed return to June 18
By Joey Roulette WASHINGTON (Reuters) - NASA and Boeing said they expect to bring Starliner and its first astronaut crew back to Earth from the International Space Station as soon as June 18, later than previously scheduled as mission analysts exam...
Jun 11, 2024
Scary but shy Joro spiders spread to US gardens, parking lots
By Daniel Fastenberg (Reuters) - Scary Joro spiders the size of a human hand are spreading across the U.S. Eastern Seaboard and heading north. The East Asian species is named after the mythical Japanese creature Jorogumo, which can turn into a beau...
Jun 10, 2024
Virgin Galactic spaceplane takes tourists on flight
(Reuters) - Virgin Galactic flew four tourists to the edge of space and back aboard its spaceplane, marking the second flight this year, the Richard Branson-founded company said on Saturday. The Galactic 07 mission carried Turkish, U.S. and Italian...
Jun 08, 2024
Aquafarming becomes main global source for fish, U.N. food agency says
By Crispian Balmer ROME (Reuters) - For the first time farmed aquatic production has exceeded the catch from traditional captured fisheries, the U.N. food and agriculture agency said on Friday, underscoring hopes that aquaculture can meet growing g...
Jun 07, 2024
Genome study shows how horses galloped into human history
By Will Dunham WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The advent of horse-based transportation represented one of the seminal moments for humankind, connecting ancient peoples by enabling them to move quickly over long distances for the first time while also trans...
Jun 07, 2024
Planet-forming disk around small star offers big surprises
By Will Dunham WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Stars about the size of our sun are not the most common ones in the Milky Way. Much smaller stars are way more common - and those host the most rocky planets in the galaxy, the type in focus as scientists searc...
Jun 06, 2024
Boeing's Starliner capsule set for docking with space station
By Joey Roulette (Reuters) - Boeing's Starliner capsule faces a crucial test on Thursday when it is expected to dock with the International Space Station (ISS) on the spacecraft's first trip to orbit carrying astronauts, as the aerospace giant look...
Jun 06, 2024
China's Chang'e-6 transfers moon samples to spacecraft set for journey back to Earth
BEIJING (Reuters) - China's Chang'e-6 probe succesfully transferred on Thursday samples it collected from the moon's far side to a spacecraft in lunar orbit, state news agency Xinhua reported. After receiving the samples, the spacecraft will fly ba...
Jun 06, 2024
China's Space Pioneer raises $207 million to fund rocket development
BEIJING (Reuters) - Beijing-based rocket developer Space Pioneer said on Thursday that it had completed more than 1.5 billion yuan ($207 million) round of fundraising that will go towards financing the development of its reusable rockets. Space Pio...
Jun 06, 2024
For SpaceX's next Starship test flight, surviving hypersonic return is key
By Joey Roulette (Reuters) - SpaceX's giant Starship rocket is scheduled for a fourth test flight to space on Thursday with a tricky primary objective: survive a blazingly hot re-entry through Earth's atmosphere, the violent phase where the rocket ...
Jun 06, 2024
Factbox-Who are the first astronauts to fly aboard Boeing's Starliner?
By Steve Gorman (Reuters) - Two veteran NASA astronauts with 500 days of previous spaceflight experience between them are the first crew of Boeing's pxpCST-100 Starliner space capsule, launched to space in a test flight on Wednesday from Florida. B...
Jun 05, 2024
Chile to install world's largest astronomy camera on the edge of Atacama desert
SANTIAGO (Reuters) - With a resolution above 3.2 gigapixels, a nearly three-ton weight and the ambitious task of carrying out an unprecedented decade-long exploration, the largest digital camera ever built for optical astronomy is ready to be insta...
Jun 05, 2024
Boeing to try again to launch first Starliner crewed mission
By Joey Roulette WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Boeing's Starliner spacecraft is set for a third attempt to fly astronauts to space for the first time on Wednesday, a much-delayed testing milestone in the aerospace giant's ambitions to step up its competit...
Jun 05, 2024
Europe's Ariane 6 rocket debut planned for July 9
BERLIN (Reuters) -Europe's new Ariane 6 satellite launcher will stage a long-awaited inaugural flight on July 9, the head of the European Space Agency said at the Berlin Airshow on Wednesday. The delayed debut comes a year after its predecessor, Ariane...
Jun 05, 2024
Space janitor startup Astroscale jumps 51% in Tokyo debut
TOKYO (Reuters) - Shares of Japanese space junk removal startup Astroscale Holdings rose 51% in their debut on Tokyo's growth market on Wednesday. The stock first traded at 1,281 yen per share, compared with an initial public offering (IPO) price o...
Jun 05, 2024
SpaceX's next Starship test gets FAA go-ahead
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration on Tuesday said it issued a license for SpaceX's fourth flight of its Starship rocket system, another test mission along the company's path to building a reusable satellite launcher an...
Jun 04, 2024
Rare fossil of adolescent Tyrannosaurus - 'Teen Rex'- found by US kids
By Will Dunham (Reuters) - A rare fossil of an adolescent Tyrannosaurus rex has been excavated in North Dakota's badlands - a find noteworthy for the scientific insight it may offer into the life history of this famous dinosaur and for the tale of ...
Jun 04, 2024
New Zealand's nascent space industry aims for the stars
By Lucy Craymer WELLINGTON (Reuters) - The grassy plains on the east coast of New Zealand's South Island, once home to cattle, have been transformed into a key aerospace facility for the Pacific nation as it looks to become a global hub for advance...
Jun 04, 2024
China's lunar probe could return with answer to origins of solar system
By Eduardo Baptista BEIJING (Reuters) - China's Chang'e-6 lunar probe looks set to begin its historic journey back to Earth from the moon's far side after collecting samples that scientists expect will help answer key questions about the early evol...
Jun 03, 2024
China makes historic landing on far side of the moon
SINGAPORE (Reuters) -China landed an uncrewed spacecraft on the far side of the moon on Sunday, a landmark mission which aims to retrieve rocks and soil from the lunar surface, China's space agency said. The landing elevates China's space power status ...
Jun 02, 2024
Boeing's Starliner capsule set for launch of first crewed space flight
By Joey Roulette and Steve Gorman CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida (Reuters) - Boeing's new Starliner astronaut capsule is poised for launch on Saturday in a much-delayed first crewed test flight, a milestone in the beleaguered aerospace giant's aim to comp...
Jun 01, 2024
Japanese billionaire Maezawa 'dearMoon' mission cancels moon flyby
TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa cancelled his "dearMoon" mission, which the project said was to have been the first private flight around the moon, the mission announced on Saturday. The team had originally aimed to make the c...
Jun 01, 2024