Dragon Docks with ISS
Dragon Docks With ISS The California-based company SpaceX is scheduled to launch its unmanned Dragon capsule on Feb. 7 to dock with the International Space Station. If successful, it will be the first...
View ArticleLunar GRAIL
While the future is unknown and unknowable, bureaucratic agencies such as NASA like to have their agendas set far in advance. This means that we can look forward to a great deal of exciting events in...
View ArticleMSL Lands
MSL Lands The highly anticipated Mars Science Laboratory will undergo a stomach-churning landing maneuver in August to reach the surface of the Red Planet. The largest object that can currently be...
View ArticleStudying Radiation
Studying Radiation NASA will launch several new missions to better understand radiation and charged particles in the universe. The Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR) is scheduled for launch...
View ArticleUnknown New Discoveries
Unknown New Discoveries One thing that can be known with certainty is that the future will be surprising. Over the course of the year, NASA’s current suite of missions will continue churning out...
View ArticleDiscovery Mission Selection
Discovery Mission Selection Late in the spring, NASA is expected to make an announcement on future planetary exploration missions for its Discovery class program. These relatively small and low-budget...
View ArticleEclipses and Transits
Eclipses and Transits The details of celestial mechanics in our own solar system are very predictable and, luckily, not dependent on NASA's budget cycle. The year 2012 will see one important and rare...
View ArticleFinancial Angst
Financial Angst There will be much anxiety leading up to the release of President Obama’s proposed federal budget for the 2013 fiscal year, expected during the 2nd week of February. The budget proposal...
View ArticleRed Space
Red Space Considering NASA’s budget problems and internal squabbles, some in the space industry fear 2012 might be the year China eclipses the United States in space prowess. In 2011, China already...
View ArticleEnd of the World?
End of the World? Despite several doomsayers and predictions arising from the end of the Mayan long count calendar, NASA confirms that the world won’t be ending in 2012. Image: Flickr/theilr
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Open Hatch
Open Hatch Buzz Aldrin, who would later become the second man to walk on the moon, looks back at the camera in the above photo from the Gemini XII mission. Below is the nose of the capsule, the final...
View ArticleGeese Flying Upside-Down
Geese Flying Upside-Down Migrating geese not only like to fly in Vs, but sometimes they prefer to fly upside-down. Video: Hans de Koning and Lodewijk van Eekhout/Flight Artists
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Unique Streaks
Unique Streaks Taken during the Gemini IX-A mission, the unique streaks above show uplifted rocks at the west edge of the Tibesti Mountains in Libya. The lower image features Lt. Col. Tom Stafford...
View ArticleDueling Sparrows
With good lighting and a little luck, amateur videographers can use inexpensive digital cameras to transform blurred flight into breathtaking glimpses of animal behavior. In that spirit, a Dutch...
View ArticleAngelic Dove
Angelic Dove “It is so difficult to get a bird to fly just above the camera in the wild,” said Hattum in the press release. “You can imagine what angel wings would look like. A fabulous achievement in...
View ArticleGreat Tit Dances in Air
Great Tit Dancing in Air The largest tit bird in the United Kingdom, called the great tit, is a remarkable flying machine. In this clip around a bird feeder, a great tit precisely navigates around a...
View ArticleClumsy Longhorn Beetle
Clumsy Longhorn Beetle Count the number of times this persistent yet clumsy longhorn beetle bonks its head on an overhanging twig before flying away. Wired counts three, plus one tangle of the bug’s...
View ArticleSomersaulting Fly
Somersaulting Fly Before you swat an unsuspecting fly, consider its capacity for beautiful acrobatics. “Research into fruit flies has shown that when trying to escape, they first jump and then topple...
View ArticleBee-to-Bumblebee Collision
Bee-to-Bumblebee Collision A bed of spring flowers seems to be a calm and organized place for bees to harvest pollen. But as shown in this video, it's really a mad rush. “You can almost hear the...
View ArticleBuzzing Bee
Buzzing Flight Although mid-air collisions happen, as shown in the previous clip, the flight of a bee can be a graceful affair. Video: Iris van der Veen/Flight Artists
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