ScientistPankaj: Watch ULA assemble Atlas V rocket ahead of Boeing Starliner astronaut test flight (video)

Friday, May 3, 2024

Watch ULA assemble Atlas V rocket ahead of Boeing Starliner astronaut test flight (video)

Watch ULA stack Atlas V rocket ahead of Starliner launch | Orion heat shield poses 'significant risks' to Artemis crew | Eta Aquariid meteor shower 2024: When and how to see it

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May 3, 2024

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The Launchpad

Watch ULA stack Atlas V rocket ahead of Starliner launch

(ULA)

A United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V rocket is scheduled to launch Starliner with NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams on a shakedown mission to the International Space Station (ISS) on May 6. This will be Starliner's third flight, but the capsule's first with a crew aboard. With the spacecraft day's away from its crewed debut, ULA has released a short video highlighting how Starliner's Atlas V launch vehicle was stacked and integrated with the spacecraft.

Full Story: Space (5/2)

Orion heat shield poses 'significant risks' to Artemis crew

(NASA/James M. Blair)

NASA's moon program still has some work to do before it can put human boots back on the lunar surface. The agency's Office of Inspector General (OIG) released a report on Wednesday (May 1) titled "NASA's Readiness for the Artemis 2 Crewed Mission to Lunar Orbit," which aims to determine how ready NASA is to launch its Artemis 2 moon mission, currently scheduled for late 2025. The inspector general writes that the Artemis 1 test flight of the Orion spacecraft "revealed anomalies with the Orion heat shield, separation bolts, and power distribution that pose significant risks to the safety of the crew."

Full Story: Space (5/2)

Skywatching

Eta Aquariid meteor shower 2024: When and how to see it

(Justin Ng)

The Eta Aquarid meteor shower 2024 is active between April 15 and May 27 and this year peaks on the nights of May 5 and May 6. The peak of the Eta Aquarids is around the time of the new moon, therefore moonlight will provide minimal interference to meteor hunters, unlike the fully illuminated moon in 2023.

Full Story: Space (5/1)

Spaceflight

What to expect during Starliner's 1st astronaut test flight

(NASA)

Astronauts Barry "Butch" Wilmore and pilot Suni Williams will be the first NASA crew to fly to space aboard Boeing Starliner. Their mission, known as Crew Flight Test, will run for about a week at the International Space Station (ISS) to certify Starliner for future missions to last six months or so.

Full Story: Space (5/2)

Science & Astronomy

AI discovers over 27,000 asteroids in old telescope images

(B612 Asteroid Institute / University of Washington DiRAC Institute / OpenSpace Project)

More than 27,000 asteroids in our solar system had been overlooked in existing telescope images -- but thanks to a new AI-powered algorithm, we now have a catalog of them. The scientists behind the discovery say the tool makes it easier to find and track millions of asteroids, including potentially dangerous ones that might strike Earth someday. It is for those threatening space rocks that the world would need years of advance warning before trying to deflect them away from our planet.

Full Story: Space (5/2)

SpaceX

Starlink satellites launch in spaceflight doubleheader

(SpaceX)

The Starlink launch was SpaceX's second of the day. A Falcon 9 already lofted two Earth-observation satellites for the company Maxar from California's Vandenberg Space Force Base earlier Thursday afternoon.

Full Story: Space (5/2)

Star Wars

Star Wars has returned to Fortnite for May the 4th (video)

(Epic / Disney)

Things are getting busy in a galaxy far, far away ahead of the May the 4th celebrations, and that includes video games. We've just learned that Star Wars: Hunters is finally launching on Nintendo Switch and mobile phones next month, right alongside The Acolyte. Now, we also know that Fortnite and (for those who don't like the regular game) Lego Fortnite are also bringing back the Star Wars collaboration just as Tales of the Empire drops six shorts on Disney Plus this weekend.

Full Story: Space (5/2)

Star Trek

'Star Trek: Discovery' s5e6 goes old school, and benefits

(Paramount+)

Here we are then, the other side of the halfway mark of the very last season of "Star Trek: Discovery." Will the plot actually advance any further? Or does the chase across the galaxy for the Progenitors MacGuffin continue, offering another chance to insert a stand-alone, episode-length adventure along the way?

Full Story: Space (5/2)