Everyone has looked up at the clouds and seen faces, animals, objects. Human brains are hardwired[1] for this kind of whimsy. But some people – perhaps a surprising number[2] – look to the sky and see government plots and wicked deeds written there. Conspiracy theorists say that contrails[3] – long streaks of condensation left by...
Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket landed its booster on a barge at sea – an achievement that will broaden the commercial spaceflight market
Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket successfully made its way to orbit[1] for the second time on Nov. 13, 2025. Although the second launch is never as flashy as the first, this mission is still significant in several ways.
For one, it launched a pair of NASA spacecraft named ESCAPADE[2], which are headed to Mars orbit[3] to study that...
NASA goes on an ESCAPADE – twin small, low-cost orbiters will examine Mars’ atmosphere
Envision a time when hundreds of spacecraft are exploring the solar system and beyond. That’s the future that NASA’s ESCAPADE[1], or Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers, mission will help unleash: one where small, low-cost spacecraft enable researchers to learn rapidly, iterate, and advance technology and science.
The ESCAPADE...
Space debris struck a Chinese spacecraft – how the incident could be a wake-up call for international collaboration
China’s Shenzhou-20 spacecraft took a hit[1] from a piece of space debris floating through orbit, causing Chinese officials to delay the spacecraft’s return from its Tiangong space station in early November 2025.
In addition to stranding the three Chinese astronauts – called taikonauts – who were set to return to Earth, this incident...