Tag: lunar landing

Component Failure Found in Crew Capsule NASA Hoped to Launch in 2021

The Verge reports that a power component failed on the Orion deep-space crew capsule that NASA hopes to launch (unmanned) from its Space Launch System (or SLS) in late 2021, in a mission called Artemis 1. The problem? It’s buried deep within one of the spacecraft’s power/data units (or PDUs) within the adapter that connects the capsule to its power/propulsion trunk…

Jeff Bezos Shares Blue Origin Engine Test Footage

Friday on Instagram Jeff Bezos shared footage from NASA’s test of Blue Origin’s BE-7 engine, which he described approvingly as “a high-performance, additively manufactured liquid hydrogen/liquid oxygen lunar landing engine with 10,000 lbf [pound-force] of thrust — deep throttling down to 2,000 lbf for a precise landing on the Moon.” The test brings the program’s cumulative test time up to 1,245…

Can we still land humans on the Moon by 2024 ?

A recent analysis has cast doubt on the ambitious timetable currently set out for a manned lunar landing. Back in 2019, Vice President Mike Pence anno… Source: https://www.unexplained-mysteries.com/news/340867/can-we-still-land-humans-on-the-moon-by-2024…

NASA Contemplates Turning a Moon Crater Into a Giant, Powerful Telescope

NASA has selected a lunar-crater radio telescope idea to receive funding through its NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) program, the agency announced on Tuesday. The Phase I award goes to projects in very early stages of development. CNET reports: Saptarshi Bandyopadhyay, a robotics technologist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, is the mind behind the moon dream. Making it happen would require…

Apollo 15 Astronaut Al Worden Passes Away

“Former astronaut Alfred M. Worden, command module pilot on the Apollo 15 lunar landing, passed away March 18, 2020, in Texas,” reports NASA.gov. His son-in-law told the New York Times Worden apparently died of a stroke. “Al was an American hero whose achievements in space and on Earth will never be forgotten,” tweeted NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine. Slashdot reader Iwastheone shares…

Blue Origin, US aerospace giants team up for lunar landing contract

Jeff Bezos, the founder of Blue Origin and the richest man in the world, announced Tuesday a partnership with three of the biggest names in aerospace to bid on a NASA contract for a Moon lander. Source: https://phys.org/news/2019-10-blue-aerospace-giants-team-lunar.html…

Watch India’s Chandrayaan-2 Make Its Historic Moon Landing Attempt

It’s a big day for India’s highly audacious Chandrayaan-2 mission. From a report: The nation will attempt to land its lunar orbit on the moon’s surface shortly as it inches closer to become the fourth in the world to complete a successful lunar landing. ISRO, India’s equivalent of NASA, is live streaming the landing on its website, and YouTube channel. The…

Lunar rocks debunk moon landing conspiracy theories

Rocks collected from the moon 50 years ago and analyzed by an international team of scientists, including from the Australian National University (ANU), dispel any notion that the lunar landing was faked, an ANU expert says. Source: https://phys.org/news/2019-07-lunar-debunk-moon-conspiracy-theories.html…

Today in science: Neil Armstrong’s close call

On May 6, 1968 – more than a year before his famous first moonwalk – Neil Armstrong narrowly escaped disaster during a training exercise, at the same time demonstrating the right stuff. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/this-date-in-science-neil-armstrongs-close-call…