Former Department of Defense official Douglas Loverro has been named NASA's new head of human spaceflight after a months-long search.
Why it matters: Loverro will help lead NASA's push to the Moon as part of its Artemis program to land astronauts back on the lunar surface by 2024, as directed by the Trump administration.
For decades, space agencies have relied on astronauts to take precarious and time-consuming spacewalks, but today, space station operators are increasingly turning to robots to perform tasks in orbit.
Why it matters: Using robots instead of astronauts for routine spacewalks would make spaceflight safer and more efficient, experts say, freeing up humans to only take walks in space during an emergency or for delicate experiments in microgravity.
NASA's newest spacesuits are designed to allow astronauts to explore the Moon as never before.
Why it matters: The new spacesuits are a key component of NASA's Artemis mission, which is expected to bring humans back to the surface of the Moon by 2024, as directed by the Trump administration.
A history-making spacewalk featuring NASA astronauts Christina Koch and Jessica Meir is now expected to take place Thursday or Friday on the International Space Station, a few days earlier than initially expected, NASA announced Tuesday.
Why it matters: When Koch and Meir venture out for their walk in space, it will mark the first all-female spacewalk ever performed.
A NASA satellite designed to investigate a critical layer of Earth's atmosphere launched to space last Thursday.
Why it matters: Scientists think the ionosphere can interfere with communications, expose astronauts to high radiation and even drag satellites down through the atmosphere earlier than expected when space weather hits.
The interstellar comet discovered in August looks very similar to comets originating in our own solar system, according to a new study in Nature Astronomy this week.
The big picture: Comet 2I/Borisov represents just the second-known interstellar object to make its way through our solar system, and it's astronomers' best chance so far to study a piece of a distant star system at close range.
While satellite pay-TV services are in a death spiral, modern satellite-powered broadband services are raising big investments and a lot of high expectations.
Why it matters: Access to broadband is essential in today's economy, but roughly half of the globe's population still lacks reliable access to it. Companies well-positioned to build and deploy satellites see an opening to provide that service to a world hungry for fast connections.
