• Where is This? May 22, 2024 Quiz

    Take a look at the image above. Can you determine where this image originated? Take a guess and then check your answer by going to the “Where is This? The Answer Sheet” page.

  • Space Stories: Spaceplane Planned for ISS, AI Assists Astronomy, and Water Older Than the Sun

    Here are some recent stories of interest. —New Atlas: “World’s First Commercial Spaceplane in Final Stages Before Debut ISS Flight“ The world’s first winged commercial spaceplane has arrived at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, its final destination before its first mission to the International Space Station (ISS) later this year. Following rigorous testing at Ohio’s Neil…

  • Blue Origin is Open for Tourism Again

    It has been some time, but Blue Origin is once again bringing tourists into space. Yesterday’s launch from Texas included five passengers and the pilot. One of the passengers on the New Shepard rocket was former Air Force Captain Ed Dwight. Mr. Dwight was one of the nation’s first Black astronaut candidate, though he never…

  • TV: “Dune: Prophecy”

    You knew it was coming, just as you knew Game of Thrones would be more than a single series. That’s right, the Dune movies will have a new spin-off on Max (formerly HBO Max). It is called Dune Prophecy, and it starts long before the time period of the movies. About 10,000 years earlier when…

  • Space Quote: More Musk Mayhem on the Ukrainian Front

    “Musk has taken on the role of apologist for indicted war criminal Vladimir Putin. “There is no way in hell that Putin is going to lose,” Musk said during an audio event on X. Musk called on social media followers to lobby the Senate not to pass an aid package for Ukraine. Further, Musk is…

  • Starliner Launch Delayed Again

    If you were hoping to a Boeing Starliner launch to the International Space Station (ISS) today, then you will be disappointed (again). The launch is not expected until Friday May 25 at the earliest. In a press release, Boeing noted: The additional time allows teams to further assess a small helium leak in the Boeing…

  • Pic of the Week: Jupiter’s Moon Amalthea

    This week’s image comes from NASA’s Juno mission during a flyby back in March. It shows Jupiter’s smallest moon Amalthea orbiting Jupiter with the Great Red Spot in the background. The potato-shaped moon has a radius of 52 miles and completes an orbit of the giant planet in about half an Earth day. You can…

  • It Was Inevitable – NASA Names First Chief AI Officer

    David Salvagnini, currently NASA’s chief data officer, will now also hold the title of Chief Artificial Intelligence (AI) Officer. It seems to be the trend these days as AI infiltrates organizations. With regards to the new position, NASA noted: This appointment is in accordance with President Biden’s Executive Order on the Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy…

  • A Day in Astronomy: Birth of George Lucas

    On this day in 1944, George Walton Lucas Jr. was born in Modesto, CA. He graduated from the University of Southern California in 1967, co-founded American Zoetrope with another filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola, and started making films that eventually changed America cinema. He would one day go on to create the Star Wars franchise, one…

  • Space Stories: Robot Trains on the Moon, Commercial Space Stations, and Russian Lunar Reactors

    Here are some recent stories of interest. —NDTV: “NASA Announces Plans To Build First Railway System On Moon“ As the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) readies to return astronauts to the moon, it has announced its plans to build a levitating robot train on the lunar surface. In a blog post, the American space agency provided…