Space & Physics: Polaris Dawn is the riskiest private space mission yet

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August 29–This week, we're exploring the upcoming launch of the ambitious Polaris Dawn mission, an uncertain merger between the Milky Way and Andromeda, and two stranded NASA astronauts finally have a ride home. –Lee Billings, Senior Editor, Space and Physics

Top Stories

Polaris Dawn Is the Most Ambitious—And Risky—Private Spaceflight Yet The Polaris Dawn mission—a partnership between SpaceX and billionaire Jared Isaacman—will soar to historic heights and attempt the first-ever commercial spacewalk Lee Billings

NASA's Stranded Astronauts Will Fly Home on SpaceX's Dragon Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams launched to the International Space Station in June and expected eight days in space. Now these stranded astronauts finally have a ride home Meghan Bartels

String Theorists Accidentally Find a New Formula for Pi Two physicists have come across infinitely many novel equations for pi while trying to develop a unifying theory of the fundamental forces Manon Bischoff

Will the Milky Way and Andromeda Galaxies Ever Collide? Andromeda and the Milky Way may collide, or they may safely swing past each other. Time will tell Phil Plait

How the Search for Aliens Is Redefining Life in the Golden Age of Astrobiology The search for extraterrestrial life has profound physical, mental and spiritual implications, says Nathalie Cabrol in The Secret Life of the Universe—and it belongs to everyone Zane Wolf, intern writer

NASA's Perseverance Rover Ascends, Ozempic Is Linked to Depression, and Mpox Cases Spread Rapidly We cover Mars mission updates, a new brain implant that shows promise for Parkinson's, the latest on the mpox outbreak, and more in this week's new roundup. Rachel Feltman; Fonda Mwangi; Kelso Harper

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