Space Travel

Watch a NASA Scientist School the Empire on How to Build a Better Death Star

Darth Vader could have saved a few dollars by building it around an asteroid

NASA astronauts Scott Kelly (left) and Terry Virts (right) work on a day’s task on board the International Space Station

How Much Space Do Astronauts Need?

The answer could help design spacecraft for one day taking people on the months-long trip to Mars

Surprising bright spots lurking in Ceres’ Occator crater, as spotted by the Dawn spacecraft

We Finally May Know the Cause of Ceres’ Bright Spots

It's not aliens

The informally named al-Idrisi mountains meet the smooth surface of Sputnik Planum in this image.

New Images Capture Pluto’s Mountains, Badlands and Craters in Breathtaking Detail

These images are "the best close-ups of Pluto that humans may see for decades," according to NASA

Blue Origin's New Shepard rocket takes off at the start of a test to re-land the system

First Reusable Rocket Launched and Landed Safely Back on Earth

Blue Origin's ship cruised to the edge of space and back in a mere 11 minutes

Wide-angle view of Comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko taken by OSIRIS on 12 September 2014

Watch the Philae Lander's Bouncing Touch Down on Comet 67P

A year after its crash-landing, researchers reflect on the unexpected successes of the mission

Soon, space miners could lay claim to minerals in asteroids like this one.

Get Your Pickaxe and Spacecraft Ready, Space Mining Might be Legal Very Soon

The new Space Act would open up the potentially lucrative field of asteroid mining

The Apollo 17 Saturn V rocket, the last human flight to the moon, on its launch pad at dusk on November 21, 1972

Help Save the Booster that Sent Apollo Spacecrafts to the Moon

A Kickstarter campaign hopest to save the only remaining booster rocket from the Apollo launches

During the Cold War, the Military Had Plans to Wage War in Space

The U.S. Army's Future Weapons Office proposed theoretical ways to defend non-existant lunar bases

The Antares Spacecraft Explosion in Horrifyingly Beautiful Detail

New photos show the grim (yet beautiful) blast

NASA is Hiring Astronauts for Future Deep Space Missions

Do you want to head to Mars?

Russian scientists are training rhesus monkeys like these for a mission to Mars in 2017.

Russia Wants to Send Monkeys to Mars and Women to the Moon

The Russian space agency has announced plans for space missions through 2029

Hundreds of thousands of man-made fragments of debris orbit around the Earth, as depicted here in an illustration of the cosmic mess.

A Forgotten Piece of Space Junk is Headed for Earth

The object could be a lost piece of a rocket dating back to the Apollo missions

Why Do Astronauts on the International Space Station Float and More Questions From Our Readers

You asked, we answered

Invader Tags European Space Agency With Alien Art

The anonymous street artist strikes again

Here's how NASA Wants to get to Mars

NASA unveils roadmap to building a Mars colony

Why Elon Musk's Idea to Nuke Mars Won't Happen

Terraforming the planet with thermonuclear weapons: Best idea ever or disaster waiting to happen?

The Aquaporin filter is simple and light.

A New Efficient Filter Helps Astronauts Drink Their Own Urine

Recycling water is key to getting humans to Mars

NASA Has Specific Rules For Naming Its Spacecraft

From Project Mercury to Space Shuttle Atlantis.

An Astrobiologist Is Already Fighting For Martian Independence

Should colonists on the Red Planet be free from Earth’s influence from the get-go?

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