John Glenn would have turned 100 on July 18, 2021. Today’s space program is a giant leap more inclusive than when he made his pioneering orbit of the Earth in 1962.
NASA hasn’t updated its spacesuits since 1974, when only men were eligible to be astronauts. But when it heads to the Moon in the coming years, its new spacesuits should come in women’s sizes too.
The Chandrayaan-2 orbiter is equipped with eight instruments to study the moon, including a lunar terrain mapping camera and a sensor to study the moon’s thin exosphere.
Indian Space Research Organisation/AAP
Despite a last-minute crash-landing, efforts behind India’s moon mission should be applauded. The endeavor has set an example for emerging space programs across the globe.
John Glenn stands in the NASA mailroom surrounded by thousands of letters sent to him.
John Glenn Archives, The Ohio State University.
Letters from would-be girl astronauts in the 1960s tell part of the complicated story of sexism – in both NASA and the US at large – at the dawn of the space age.
The only way to fly the friendly skies – or dark voids of space.
Tom Simpson/Flickr
We’re on the cusp of being able to consistently launch and land rockets, greatly reducing the cost of space travel. But how long before there’s a Millennium Falcon in every garage?
World Space Week is one of a series of events co-ordinated by the UN to celebrate the global nature of space exploration. It was established in 1999. Why is it organised this particular week? Because October…