Topic: Technology
Astronauts dive into Mk-2 Training

Astronauts dive into Mk-2 Training

by | Jun 10, 2025 |

Recent aerospace news hasn’t been the happiest, but there was one moment of watery goodness I’d like to share.  On June 10, Blue Origin shared a video taken at the Johnson Space Center’s Neutral Buoyancy Tank that shows astronauts climbing around in and on a simple mockup of their Mark 2 lander, which should be transporting astronauts to and from the Moon’s surface in coming years.  Currently, NASA plans not to use the Mark 2 until Artemis V, but it is possible its use could be moved forward if Blue Origin leapfrogs SpaceX in their lander developer. Blue Origin currently plans to launch...

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VIPER May Live to Rove Another Day

VIPER May Live to Rove Another Day

by | Sep 17, 2024 |

A computer generated concept image of the VIPER rover Despite what the contents of this and recent episodes might imply, my passion is for science not for spacecraft. The thing is, sometimes spacecraft are needed to do the science. And lately, I and many others have...

The Cost of Space Flight on the Planet

The Cost of Space Flight on the Planet

by | Sep 17, 2024 |

As a nerdy member of GenX, I can state with pride and shame that I watched Buck Rogers in the early 80s and was constantly fascinated by all the weird ways their writers found for fictional 24th century scientists to misunderstand the relics from the 20th century....

Hubble Down to One Gyro

Hubble Down to One Gyro

by | Jun 17, 2024 | ,

In a June 4 telecon with the press, NASA shared that due to recent issues, they have made the decision to operate HST in single gyro mode. This isn’t expected to have any impact on the quality of individual science images, however Hubble will need significantly more...

Robotic arms may rescue clumsy astronauts

Robotic arms may rescue clumsy astronauts

by | Jun 7, 2024 |

I have a delightfully weird tech story related to future lunar exploration. Research has shown that astronauts working on the moon are most likely to fall over when using tools, and once they fall over, getting up while wearing a space suit that restricts their motion...

Talking to Whales

Talking to Whales

by | Dec 20, 2023 |

Credit: Jodi Frediani; NOAA/National Marine Fisheries Research Permit 19703 The kinds of life many of us hope to find within our solar system likely won’t be all that intellectual. Those possible microbes on Mars might be able to respond to food or pain, but that’s...