NASA begins critical Artemis countdown rehearsal at Kennedy Space Center

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NASA’s Space Launch System on launch pad 39B. Credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett NASA commenced a two-day countdown dress rehearsal for the agency’s huge Space Launch System moon rocket Friday, with clocks ticking down to a critical milestone Sunday, when the heavy-lifter will be fueled and pressurized on the launch pad for the first time. But much …

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Rocket Lab to deploy two more BlackSky imaging satellites

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Rocket Lab’s Electron launch vehicle during a countdown rehearsal earlier this week. Credit: Rocket Lab Rocket Lab will launch a mission from New Zealand on Saturday to place two more small optical imaging satellites into orbit for BlackSky, the U.S. remote sensing company. The two satellites will ride a Rocket Lab Electron launch vehicle into …

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Forty payloads ride into orbit on SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket

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SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket climbs into clouds over Cape Canaveral to begin the Transporter 4 mission. Credit: SpaceX SpaceX launched a German environmental mapping satellite and 39 co-passenger spacecraft Friday, dodging thunderstorms near Cape Canaveral that threatened to keep the Falcon 9 rocket on the ground. The rideshare mission, named Transporter 4, lifted off at …

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Live coverage: SpaceX rideshare mission set for launch Friday, weather permitting

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Live coverage of the countdown and launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida. The Transporter 4 mission will launch 40 small payloads from customers around the world. Follow us on Twitter. SpaceX Webcast SpaceX has raised a Falcon 9 rocket vertical on pad 40 at Cape …

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German imaging satellite gets top billing on next SpaceX rideshare launch

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The EnMAP spacecraft at its factory in Bremen, Germany. Credit: OHB/H. von der Fecht A $330 million German hyperspectral Earth-imaging satellite will hitch a ride to orbit from Cape Canaveral with 39 smaller commercial payloads on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket set for blastoff Friday. The German observation satellite — named the Environmental Mapping and Analysis …

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Watch live: Blue Origin ready for fourth suborbital crew flight today

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Blue Origin’s New Shepard suborbital launcher will loft six passengers, including the rocket’s chief designer, on an up-and-down flight to the edge of space Thursday. The commercial space company is expected to launch the single-stage New Shepard rocket from West Texas shortly after 9:10 a.m. EDT (1310 GMT; 8:10 a.m. CDT). The mission will last …

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Record-setting NASA astronaut back on Earth after record-setting flight

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STORY WRITTEN FOR CBS NEWS & USED WITH PERMISSION NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei gives a thumbs-up after landing in Kazakhstan, closing out 355 days in space. Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei joined two Russian cosmonauts aboard a Soyuz spacecraft, undocked from the International Space Station and plunged back to Earth Wednesday, landing on …

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NASA astronaut, two cosmonauts set for Wednesday return to Earth

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NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei in his Russian Sokol launch and entry spacesuit. Credit: NASA NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei, launched by Russia to the International Space Station aboard a Soyuz spacecraft last April, returns this week to a world torn by war in Ukraine and escalating superpower tension as he closes out a 355-day …

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Assembly Automation for Beginners: Spotlight on Fastening

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How can you start automating a screwdriving or other fastening task? In this quick guide for assembly automation beginners, we shine the spotlight on fastening. Your assembly process likely has a lot of different operations. Gluing, nailing, riveting, and many more. Of all the tasks that you might perform, screw fastening is probably the most …

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White House wants $26 billion for NASA in ’23, including funds for second moon lander

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The waning gibbous moon as viewed from the International Space Station on Jan. 21. Credit: NASA The White House’s fiscal year 2023 budget request for NASA totals $26 billion, including $7.5 billion for the agency’s Artemis moon program, a boost over this year’s budget to help pay for development of a second human-rated lander to …

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