Lunar Water

A new study suggests water may be everywhere on the Moon, not just in polar regions.

Potentially, that could spur lunar colonization.

Kaku Predicts

Michio Kaku is predicting humans will make contact with intelligent aliens yet this century.

He also predicts communicating with them will be the hard part.

The 2020s

NASA is planning to have humans on the Moon by the late 2020s.

It also plans for low Earth orbit to be completely commercialized in that decade.

North Korea

U. S. intelligence says North Korea could have a nuclear-tipped ICBM capable of hitting the U. S. within six months or less.

The media tends to set the threat in terms of losing an American city, but a more fundamental threat would be exploding a thermonuclear device in space that would create an electromagnetic pulse to take down the U. S. power grid.  The question is whether North Korea has a device powerful enough to pull that off.

Exomoon Rethink

Last July, scientists announced the possible discovery of the first exomoon.

Now, after further study, that discovery is in doubt.

Cutting Regs

The Trump administration intends to cut down on the red tape and regulations governing the commercial space industry.

The goal is to quicken our move into space.

Bigelow

Robert Bigelow has announced the creation of a company that will build and manage private space stations.

Bigelow expects to begin building such stations in the 2020s.

Perspective

Walmart has announced quarterly revenues of more than $136 billion.

That's nearly seven times NASA's annual budget.

Pluto

Pluto may have a thick layer of organic material under its surface, says a researcher.

Comets, by way of comparison, are rich in organics.

Opportunity

Opportunity has now been exploring Mars for 5,000 days.

The mission was originally scheduled for 90 days.

Neptune Storms

Astronomers are using the Hubble to watch a huge storm on Neptune fade away.

Perhaps predictably, the process isn't unfolding as predicted.

More Planets

Mining Kepler data has found 95 more planets.

At least one of them is smaller than Earth.

Oumuamua

Scientists now think that Oumuamua, our first recognized interstellar visitor, was ejected from its home system by a collision.

It's gone now, never to return.

Europa Lander

For the second year in a row, a Europa lander mission has been left out of NASA's initial budget request.

Congress, however.can still mandate the mission.

Privatizing ISS?

Reports say the Trump administration is looking at privatizing ISS after 2024.

No word on who might take over management.

TRAPPIST Oceans

A new study suggests five of the planets orbiting TRAPPIST-1 could each have 250 times the water Earth has.

That would clearly increase the possibility of life.

Dream Chaser

SNC's lifting body, reusable spacecraft that will land on a runway, Dream Chaser, has been given final approval by NASA to fly an ISS cargo mission.

The mission is set for 2020.

TRAPPIST-1

A new study suggests three of the seven planets in the TRAPPIST-1 system might have atmospheres similar to those of rocky worlds.

All three are in the star's habitable zone.

Falcon Heavy

SpaceX successfully test launched its Falcon Heavy rocket yesterday.

It also successfully soft-landed two boosters side by side.

Extragalctic Planets?

A team of University of Oklahoma astrophysicists, according to FOXNews, has discovered planets in another galaxy.

The smallest of the worlds is the size of Earth's Moon.

Great Red Spot

Why is Jupiter's Great Red Spot red?

It seems an elemental point, and scientists are working on answering the question, but they still don't know.

Water

A new study suggests water came to Earth in meteorites only two million years after the planet formed.

In fact, when water began arriving, Earth was still growing.

Perspective

Apple has reported quarterly revenues of over $88 billion.

That's well more than four times the current annual budget of NASA.

Columbia

Fifteen years ago today, space shuttle Columbia and its crew were lost over Texas.

The accident marked the beginning of the end of the shuttle program.