astronauts – News Stories About astronauts - Page 13

Dextre Moves Into Place,
Awaits First Call

Mar 19, 2008 5:10 AM CDT

Dextre Moves Into Place, Awaits First Call

Gigantic robot successfully added to space station

(Newser) - The giant space robot Dextre moved into his new digs last night, and now resides outside the International Space Station's Destiny lab awaiting his first marching orders. Back at Mission Control the mood is buoyant, reports the Houston Chronicle. "That really was the kind of spacewalk that when it's...

Dextre Tooled Up, Good to Go

Mar 18, 2008 8:33 AM CDT

Dextre Tooled Up, Good to Go

Spacewalkers put finishing touches on giant space robot

(Newser) - Dextre, the colossal space robot, is ready to go and awaiting instructions after astronauts successfully fitted the 12-foot helper with a tool kit and cameras for "eyes" last night, Space.com reports. Dextre is set to take up residence outside the International Space Station's Destiny lab later today and...

Dextre Stretches His Limbs

Mar 17, 2008 10:30 AM CDT

Dextre Stretches His Limbs

Astronauts test space robot, find minor hiccup

(Newser) - Dextre, the International Space Station’s own gigantic space robot, flexed its mighty arms for the first time last night, the Houston Chronicle reports. Astronauts put the bot through its paces, moving and stopping each of its 14 arm joints. Dextre mostly passed the test; every joint moved perfectly save...

Spacewalkers Give Dextre Arms

Mar 16, 2008 7:31 AM CDT

Spacewalkers Give Dextre Arms

7-hour spacewalk brings handyman robot closer to completion

(Newser) - Dextre the space robot now has arms. Astronauts attached them in an overnight spacewalk outside the International Space Station, the second of three that will be needed to bring the $209 million robot fully to life, the Houston Chronicle reports. On Monday, astronauts will give Dextre a tool belt, lights,...

Endeavour Docks After
New Damage Check

Mar 13, 2008 3:45 AM CDT

Endeavour Docks After New Damage Check

Shuttle docks without hitch but launch video shows possible bird hit

(Newser) - The Endeavour docked with the international space station without a glitch yesterday just after the shuttle was again examined for damage, AP reports. The craft did a full backflip before docking so every inch of it could be inspected. Launch videos first revealed that something may have hit the...

Endeavour Blasts Into Space

Mar 11, 2008 6:30 AM CDT

Endeavour Blasts Into Space

Shuttle will dock with space station tomorrow

(Newser) - The shuttle Endeavour thundered off its launch pad early this morning, carrying seven astronauts and two major pieces of hardware to the International Space Station. On board is a $1 billion science module that contains research gear for the station's lab, the first Japanese contribution to the orbital base, reports...

Europe to Launch Space Truck

Mar 8, 2008 3:20 PM CST

Europe to Launch Space Truck

Automated vehicle can haul tons of supplies to space station

(Newser) - Europe is about to launch its most sophisticated spacecraft ever, the BBC reports. The “Jules Verne,” set to take off tomorrow, will deliver supplies to the International Space Station while nudging the station higher into its orbit to prevent it from falling to Earth. The freighter is fully...

Astronauts Will Have to Hitch Rides With
the Russians

Mar 7, 2008 2:04 PM CST

Astronauts Will Have to Hitch Rides With the Russians

NASA will soon have no way to get to ISS

(Newser) - When NASA retires its fleet of space shuttles in 2010, the agency will have no way of sending men into space until 2015, at the earliest, the Washington Post reports. To carry astronauts and cargo to the International Space Station, largely funded by American taxpayers, the US will have to...

Korea's Kimchi Ready for Lift-Off

Feb 28, 2008 8:56 AM CST

Korea's Kimchi Ready for Lift-Off

First Korean astronaut will take along staple dish

(Newser) - South Korea spent millions to make sure its first astronaut is well-prepared for his mission—by perfecting a space-safe kimchi, reports the International Herald Tribune. South Koreans put down 1.6 million tons of the national dish each year, and Ko San will blast off April 8 for a 10-day...

Spacewalkers Upgrade Station

Feb 14, 2008 2:55 AM CST

Spacewalkers Upgrade Station

German astronaut, recovered from illness, fits new tank with US colleague

(Newser) - A German astronaut walked in space with a Yank colleague yesterday to fit the International Space Station with a new tank of nitrogen. Hans Schlegal and US astronaut Max Walheim completed the upgrade in a seven-hour mission, reports Space.com. "Hello to all the people of Germany," Walheim...

Recovered Astronaut
Steps Up for Spacewalk

Feb 13, 2008 4:00 AM CST

Recovered Astronaut Steps Up for Spacewalk

Illness over, German astronaut readies for spacewalk

(Newser) - A German astronaut who was too sick for a scheduled spacewalk earlier this week is feeling much better, and preparing for his first step into the great outdoors today, reports Space.com. "I'm doing very fine," Hans Schlegel, 56, said via videolink from the International Space Station. Schlegel...

Shuttle Atlantis Lifts Off

UPDATED

Feb 7, 2008 2:11 PM CST

Shuttle Atlantis Lifts Off

Weather doesn't delay mission to international space station after all

(Newser) - After bad weather prompted worries of a further delay, US space shuttle Atlantis successfully blasted into space today, the AP reports. NASA had feared the same cold front that ravaged the South with tornadoes would push the launch to tomorrow, or later. Aboard, with seven astronauts, is the European Space...

Risky Spacewalk Juices Up ISS

Jan 30, 2008 12:57 PM CST

Risky Spacewalk Juices Up ISS

7-hour mission on solar wing improves power supply

(Newser) - US astronauts pulled off a risky repair mission on the International Space Station’s troubled solar wing today, the AP reports. The possibility of electrical shock made the 7-hour spacewalk dangerous, forcing the team to wait until the station was on the dark side of the planet. “Yee-haw! Excellent,...

Space Shuttle Astronauts Gain Fame

Jan 11, 2008 1:20 PM CST

Space Shuttle Astronauts Gain Fame

Hall to welcome 4 newcomers, including leader of Hubble launch mission

(Newser) - Four space shuttle pilots have taken one giant leap toward immortality, NASA announced this week: They'll make up the Astronaut Hal of Fame class of 2008. The inductees, who will be honored at a May ceremony, include the commanders who presided over the initial assembly of the International Space Station...

NASA Plans Daring Hubble Fix

Jan 9, 2008 12:42 PM CST

NASA Plans Daring Hubble Fix

Unprecedented spacewalk will make for spiffier 'scope

(Newser) - Astronauts will save—and drastically upgrade—the Hubble Space Telescope in an unprecedented mission this year, NewScientist Space reports. The mission will make the Hubble 90 times more powerful than it originally was, but will require spacewalkers to complete a delicate electronics repair job in zero gravity while wearing bulky...

In Space,
a Son Mourns
His Mother

Dec 20, 2007 7:40 AM CST

In Space, a Son Mourns His Mother

Space Station astronaut Daniel Tani's mom dies in car accident

(Newser) - Astronaut Daniel Tani, orbiting 200 miles above the Earth in the International Space Station, learned yesterday that his 90-year-old mother, Rose, had been killed when her car was struck by a freight train outside Chicago, reports the Chicago Tribune. Police said she drove around a school bus stopped at the...

100th Spacewalk Marks Milestone

Dec 18, 2007 6:13 PM CST

100th Spacewalk Marks Milestone

'King of mind boggling,' astronaut says; new record set for female walk time at ISS

(Newser) - An inspection of two faulty parts of the International Space Station today marked its 100th spacewalk, Space.com reports. Astronauts Peggy Whitson and Dan Tani, about to make the nearly seven-hour walk, were surprised to hear the news. "It is kind of mind boggling," Tani said. "I...

Atlantis Set to Launch Today Despite Flaws

Dec 9, 2007 5:15 AM CST

Atlantis Set to Launch Today Despite Flaws

Shuttle to lift off with stricter rules in controversial decision

(Newser) - With tighter safety guidelines in place, NASA plans to go forward this afternoon with the launch of the Atlantis, although the problem of the shuttle's faulty fuel sensors remains unresolved. Following three days of debate, NASA engineers agreed unanimously that the shuttle could launch safely, though the decision has sparked...

Atlantis May Try Again Tomorrow

Dec 7, 2007 5:23 PM CST

Atlantis May Try Again Tomorrow

Delays or a dangerous bypass are the only options

(Newser) - NASA plans to launch the space shuttle Atlantis tomorrow, assuming engineers can figure out how to fix malfunctioning fuel sensors, the Orlando Sentinel reports. The glitches forced the space agency to postpone yesterday's original launch and another today. "We want to sleep on it," said a NASA official,...

Astronauts Wire Up 'Harmony'

Nov 20, 2007 7:22 PM CST

Astronauts Wire Up 'Harmony'

Two spacewalkers attach a new room to international space station

(Newser) - Two astronauts set up a new room on the international space station today, the AP reports. Their relatively quick, successful work was greeted with smiles from Mission Control: The room has to be functional before NASA can send up its next shuttle, currently scheduled for a Dec. 6 launch, which...