Boeing Starliner flights to the ISS cost NASA more than twice what they pay SpaceX to ferry astronauts.

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NASA confirmed Wednesday that it has awarded five additional crew transportation missions to SpaceX, and its Crew Dragon vehicle, to ferry astronauts to the International Space Station. This brings to 14 the total number of crewed missions that SpaceX is contracted to fly for NASA through 2030.

As previously reported by Ars, these are likely the final flights NASA needs to keep the space station fully occupied into the year 2030. While there are no international agreements yet signed, NASA has signaled that it would like to continue flying the orbiting laboratory until 2030, by which time one or more US commercial space stations should be operational in low Earth orbit.

Have you heard about the biggest rocket launch in human history? It’s getting almost zero press coverage, but before breakfast on Monday, August 29, 2022, NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket will make its maiden voyage.

It’s now on the launchpad in Florida.

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Florida prepares to witness its biggest rocket launch ever as NASA sends its “mega moon rocket” on a 42-day mission.

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Space is deadly and our spaceships and stations are cramped and thin-protected environments, placing enormous stress on those who journey there. So how to we keep from going crazy while we explore strange new worlds?

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Credits:
Staying Sane in Space.
Science & Futurism with Isaac Arthur.
Episode 358, September 1, 2022
Produced & Narrated by Isaac Arthur.

Written by:
Isaac Arthur.
Logan Smith.

Editors:

Are space scientists ready to take advantage of it?

Despite the challenges of operating a 45-year-old spacecraft, NASA says the team is working to keep it operational and returning new science.

The seedlings reached up to 30 cm.

Chinese astronauts have successfully grown rice seedlings onboard the Tiangong space station. Experts said on Monday that this experiment could provide important information about how astronauts can grow food to support extended space journeys, according to China Daily.

Even though prior rice experiments have been conducted in space, the one carried out aboard Tiangong is the first of its type to attempt to produce the entire life cycle of the plant, which starts with a seed and ends with a full plant generating new seeds.

On July 24, China launched the Wentian space laboratory into orbit to dock it with the Tianhe core module of the Chinese space station.

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Chinese astronauts have successfully grown rice seedlings onboard the Tiangong space station and this experiment that may yield key insights into how astronauts can cultivate food to support long-term space missions, experts said on Monday.

While there have been other rice experiments in space, the one being conducted on Tiangong is the first of its kind that aims to produce the complete life cycle of the plant, which begins with a seed and ends with a mature plant producing new seeds.

The Lockheed Martin Orion is the latest arrival of a human-rated spacecraft slated to take humans beyond the bounds of Low Earth Orbit and close to the surface of another heavenly body. But for all its grace, sophistication, and dedicated design team, there are undoubtedly public misconceptions surrounding the ship.