Topic: Space Technology

3-D pizza on Mars? NASA awards grant.

NASA is funding a prototype for a 3-D food printer, which would create a pizza out of prepackaged powders. If it succeeds, the 3-D pizza could be a starting point for solving many of the world's food-related problems.

NASA funds 3-D pizza (and chocolate) printer

Does computer-printed food conjure images of Star Trek's replicator? A prototype 3-D printer for food has already produced chocolate, but its designer has his sights set on pizza, which NASA hopes to feed to astronauts.

Gerbil, mouse astronauts perish on Russian spaceflight

After a month in orbit, Russia's Bion M space biology craft touched down in Russia, with most of its crew dead as a result of technical malfunctions. 

Moon explosion as humongous rock strikes lunar surface

Moon explosion: An explosion on the moon could be seen on Earth in March as a boulder-sized object smashed into the lunar surface at 56,000 miles per hour. 

Kepler epitaph? Eight most intriguing finds of troubled telescope.

Kepler, the space telescope designed to help us find other Earth-like planets, is on the fritz. Scientists hope they will be able to fix it remotely, but if they can't, its brief, brilliant career could be over. Here are eight of its most important discoveries.

Moon hit by boulder-size meteoroid, causing 'explosion' visible from Earth (+video)

If you had been looking up at the moon at the right moment on March 17, you could have seen a one-second burst of heat caused by the impact of a large meteoroid.

Chris Hadfield, space music video star, back on Earth

Chris Hadfield, the first Canadian to command the International Space Station, landed on Earth. But Chris Hadfield made a bigger splash with his music video.

'Space Oddity'? First rock video sung and shot in space wows David Bowie.

Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield performed and recorded the David Bowie classic 'Space Oddity' aboard the International Space Station, eliciting praise from Major Tom himself.

NASA astronauts fix leak on International Space Station (+video)

Astronauts Thomas Marshburn and Christopher Cassidy conducted a spacewalk Saturday to fix an ammonia leak. They replaced a suspected faulty pump on the International Space Station. 

'Gravity' movie trailer stars George Clooney, Sandra Bullock (+video)

'Gravity' movie trailer: A first look at director Alfonso Cuarón's 'Gravity,' starring actors George Clooney and Sandra Bullock as astronauts.

Saving Money It's family vacation time. Best deals to Florida, California, and more.

Google Earth Engine unveils how Earth has altered

For the first time, the public can track back the environmental changes occurring on our planet's surface over time via Google Earth Engine. 

78,000 to live on Mars: Have you signed up?

78,000 people have applied to live on Mars. Up to 3,000 will make the first cut, and the 28-40 finalists will spend seven years training before 4 finally get selected for a one-way trip to live on Mars.

China's growing military might: top 4 concerns for the Pentagon

In a report issued this week, the Department of Defense for the first time directly accused China’s military of using cyberattacks to spy on US networks. In this arena and others, “China’s military buildup shows no signs of slowing,” said David Helvey, deputy assistant secretary of Defense for East Asia, who presented the report.Here are Pentagon officials’ top four concerns as they carefully monitor the growth of China’s military.

NASA satellite snaps spectacular images of volcanic eruption

Launched in February and now 438 miles above the Earth's surface, NASA's Landsat Data Continuity Mission satellite took several photos of an erupting Indonesian volcano.

Record-breaking star explosion is most powerful ever seen

Two NASA space telescopes have captured what appears to be the most powerful star explosion ever detected, a cosmic event so luminous that scientists dubbed it 'eye-wateringly bright' despite being 3.6 billion light-years from Earth.

Mother's Day 2013: 10 best books

Mother's Day 2013: 10 best new books for all kinds of moms

Spring break over, Curiosity rover goes back to work

Curiosity's one-month spring vacation, caused by Mars slipping behind the sun, is now over. "Can you hear me now? Conjunction is over," tweeted Curiosity's handlers today.

How NASA dodged a derelict Soviet spy satellite

In March 2012, NASA's Fermi space telescope could have collided with a Russian naval signals satellite, were it not for an untested maneuver.   

$70 million per seat: Is NASA getting ripped off?

$70 million per seat: Now that the Russians have the only vehicle capable of shuttling astronauts to the Space Station, they can charge whatever they want for the ride — and they want $70 million per seat.

What's a monster hurricane doing on top of Saturn? (+video)

A monster hurricane at Saturn's north pole, spotted by NASA's Cassini spacecraft, has an eye 1,250 miles wide and inner eye wall winds of 330 miles an hour. Its energy source is a mystery.

$70 million per seat: Russia raises price for NASA astronauts on Russian rockets

The $424 million deal between NASA and the Russian Space Agency represents flights to and from the International Space Station aboard Russian Soyuz spacecraft, as well as training, for six astronauts in 2016 and the first half of 2017.

Mars One will look for — and hide from — life on Mars

Mars One plans to put four astronaut-explorers on Mars by 2023, but they will take steps to avoid contaminating any lifeforms already on Mars.

Astronomers discover the Ed Begley Jr. of galaxies

An international team of researchers have spotted the most fuel-efficient galaxy yet, which converts nearly 100 percent of its hydrogen gas into stars.

Focus A way to curb global warming: Suck carbon emissions right out of the air?

Most efforts to address carbon emissions focus on preventing them from entering the atmosphere in the first place. But how to get rid of CO2 already there? Start-ups are developing prototype air-capture systems.