Tag - space

 
 

SPACE

The 50th two-stage H-2A rocket is stored at Mitsubishi Heavy Industries' Tobishima plant in Aichi Prefecture.
JAPAN
Apr 24, 2025
Final H-IIA rocket to be launched in June
After the launch, the H-IIA rocket series will be retired and replaced by the more advanced H3 series.
Astronauts for China's Shenzhou-20 space mission Wang Jie (left), Chen Dong (center) and Chen Zhongrui wave during a news conference a day before the launch of the mission, at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in the Gobi desert, in northwest China, on Wednesday.
WORLD
Apr 23, 2025
Veteran Chinese astronaut to lead fresh crew to space station
Chen Dong, a 46-year-old former fighter pilot and experienced space explorer, will be at the helm for the mission.
A handout artist's impression released on Thursday by N. Madhusudhan/University of Cambridge shows the K2-18b super-Earth, a hycean world, in which astronomers say they have found the strongest yet “hints” of life outside our solar system.
WORLD
Apr 17, 2025
Scientists find strongest evidence yet of life on an alien planet
The scientists stressed they are not announcing the discovery of actual living organisms and that the findings should be viewed cautiously.
A concept image of the Hayabusa2 unmanned probe, which utilizes Earth's gravity for acceleration as part of its asteroid exploration mission
JAPAN
Apr 15, 2025
Hayabusa2 target asteroid may be smaller than expected
Direct exploration Hayabusa2 is expected to provide important insight into planetary defense to help prevent disasters caused by asteroid collision.
Jared Isaacman (left), U.S. President Trump’s nominee to head NASA, testifies during his Senate confirmation hearing on Wednesday.

Bloomberg
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 13, 2025
NASA nominee should resist Musk’s pull toward Mars
During a Senate confirmation hearing on Wednesday, Jared Isaacman, the nominee for NASA administrator, was — in a twist on the Will Smith ’90s tune — gettin’ squishy wit it.
Details on rocks on the Ryugu and Bennu asteroids have been identified from their photographs using artificial intelligence technology.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Apr 8, 2025
Japan researchers rapidly identify rocks on asteroids using AI
A University of Tokyo team achieved the feat with an AI-based rock identification tool that was fed information on rocks on Earth and other celestial bodies.
The International Space Station is seen as a small object to the upper left of the moon.
BUSINESS / Tech
Apr 5, 2025
Honda to test renewable tech in space soon
The auto giant is developing a mechanism capable of generating electricity and oxygen continuously — enabling astronauts to breathe.
SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket is launched at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Monday.
BUSINESS / Tech
Apr 1, 2025
SpaceX eyes Starlink hub with multiple ground stations in Vietnam, sources say
The move would herald its launch in the country and would help authorities police internet traffic.
A model of the Isar Aerospace mini-rocket
WORLD / Science & Health
Mar 30, 2025
German startup's space rocket explodes after takeoff from Norway
The uncrewed Spectrum rocket was billed as the first attempt at an orbital flight to originate from Europe, where several nations have said they want a share of a growing market.
Fluffy, low-hanging clouds generally have a cooling influence. They are big and bright, blocking and bouncing back incoming sunlight.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Mar 30, 2025
Clouds changing as world warms, adding to climate uncertainty
Cloud behavior is notoriously complex to predict and remains a great unknown for scientists trying to accurately forecast future levels of climate change.
Masahide Takano, Chief Researcher of the Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA), points to a plan to use americium in small batteries for space probes at the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology on Friday.
JAPAN
Mar 29, 2025
JAEA developing space probe battery fueled by radioactive waste
The battery is expected to be used in probes that operate in places where solar power generation is not possible.
A mars rock is packed before transport from the National Institute of Polar Research in Tokyo to Osaka, where it will be displayed at the 2025 World Exposition, on Wednesday.
JAPAN
Mar 26, 2025
Mars rock transported from Tokyo for Osaka Expo
The rock will be shown at the government's Japan Pavilion at the expo.
Ispace's Resilience lunar lander at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency Tsukuba Space Center in Tsukuba, Ibaraki Prefecture, in September
JAPAN / FOCUS
Mar 26, 2025
Japanese startups driving space development
Not only large companies but also emerging businesses are hurrying to conduct lunar exploration and commercialize transportation services using rockets.
Eddie Kato, president and managing director of Astroscale Japan, at the company's office in Tokyo in February
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 21, 2025
Japan's space debris firm Astroscale to tie up with Indian companies
India has opened the country's space sector to private players beyond the state-owned Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
JNTO Delhi office head Ryo Bunno (fourth from left), exchanges views with major local travel agencies at a travel trade show held in Mumbai on Jan. 30.
JAPAN
Mar 21, 2025
India to showcase space prowess at Osaka Expo
Some Indian officials say Japan isn’t doing enough to drum up excitement for the expo.
The crew of NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 mission, including NASA astronauts Nick Hague, Suni Williams, and Butch Wilmore, along with Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, pose for a photo aboard the International Space Station on Feb. 26.
WORLD / Science & Health
Mar 19, 2025
What happens to the human body in deep space?
Bone and muscle deterioration, radiation exposure and vision impairment are just a few of the challenges space travelers face.
The Crew Dragon capsule containing Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams and two other astronauts descends by parachute before their splashdown off the coast of Florida, on March 18 in a still image from video.
WORLD
Mar 19, 2025
NASA astronauts 'Butch and Suni' return to Earth after drawn-out mission in space
Their return ends a mission fraught with uncertainty and technical troubles that turned into a global spectacle.
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the company's Dragon spacecraft launches from NASA's SpaceX Crew-10 mission to the International Space Station with NASA astronauts Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Takuya Onishi, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Kirill Peskov onboard, on Friday.
WORLD / Science & Health
Mar 17, 2025
Stranded U.S. astronauts to return to Earth on Tuesday
Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams have been on the ISS since June after the Boeing Starliner spacecraft they were testing was deemed unfit to fly them back to Earth.
JAXA astronaut Takuya Onishi greets members of the International Space Station crew shortly after docking on Sunday.
JAPAN
Mar 16, 2025
Japanese astronaut Onishi arrives at the International Space Station
Ahead of the launch, Onishi said: "I believe this will be my last trip to the ISS. It will be a culmination of the experience, insights and knowledge I have gained so far."
NASA's SpaceX Crew-10 members Takuya Onishi, of Japan, and Kirill Peskov, of Russia, depart from the Operations & Checkout Building at the Kennedy Space Center for transport to Launch Complex 39-A ahead of their launch to the International Space Station in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Friday.
WORLD / Science & Health
Mar 15, 2025
NASA launches ISS-bound SpaceX rocket with Japanese astronaut aboard
Japan's Takuya Onishi is scheduled to command a fresh crew after it relieves a mission that includes two astronauts who have been aboard the station for nine months.

Longform

Visitors walk past Sou Fujimoto's Grand Ring, which has been recognized as the largest wooden structure in the world.
Can a World Expo still matter? Japan is about to find out.