“An asteroid similar in size to one that exploded more than 100 years ago in Russia’s Tunguska region in Siberia gave Earth a close shave on Sunday (April 15), just one day after astronomers discovered the object. The asteroid, designated 2018 GE3, made its closest approach to Earth at around 2:41 a.m. EDT (0641 GMT), whizzing by …

“The ASTERIA satellite, which was deployed into low-Earth orbit in November, is only slightly larger than a box of cereal, but it could be used to help astrophysicists study planets orbiting other stars. Mission managers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, recently announced that ASTERIA has accomplished all of its primary mission objectives, demonstrating that the miniaturized …

“We are delighted to report on a major step forward for Virgin Galactic today, as SpaceShipTwo VSS Unity safely and successfully completed her first supersonic, rocket-powered flight. After two years of extensive ground and atmospheric testing, the passing of this milestone marks the start of the final portion of Unity’s flight test program. The flight was also significant for …

“SpaceX has successfully launched its Iridium -5 mission, which carries 10 satellites to add to Iridium’s NEXT global communications constellation. This is the fifth set of 10, out of a total of 75 that SpaceX is launching for client Iridium, and today’s launch used a first stage Falcon 9 booster originally employed last October for the third Iridium …

“China’s spiraling space station, Tiangong-1, looks like it will plummet to Earth and burn up in the atmosphere sometime on April 1st — though where it will fall is still up for debate. So if you want to keep an eye on Tiangong-1’s whereabouts over the weekend, there are numerous space agencies and websites to follow. First off, a …

“Starting next year, scientists will get their first look deep below the surface of Mars. That’s when NASA will send the first robotic lander dedicated to exploring the planet’s subsurface. InSight, which stands for Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, will study marsquakes to learn about the Martian crust, mantle and core. Doing so could help answer a big …

“Launch-related rupture has the potential to disrupt navigation signals. ws a hole in the atmosphere Launch-related rupture has the potential to disrupt navigation signals. A rocket launched in 2017 punched an enormous hole in Earth’s upper atmosphere that might have temporarily disrupted Global Positioning System (GPS) navigation. The Falcon 9 rocket, built by private space-flight company SpaceX, blasted off …

“NASA’s Mars 2020 mission has begun the assembly, test and launch operations (ATLO) phase of its development, on track for a July 2020 launch to Mars. The first planned ATLO activities will involve electrical integration of flight hardware into the mission’s descent stage. The Mars 2020 rover, as well as its cruise stage, aeroshell and descent stage — a …

“Data collected by NASA’s Juno mission to Jupiter indicate that the atmospheric winds of the gas-giant planet run deep into its atmosphere and last longer than similar atmospheric processes found here on Earth. The findings will improve understanding of Jupiter’s interior structure, core mass and, eventually, its origin. Other Juno science results released today include that the massive …

“SpaceX has launched its 50th Falcon 9 rocket mission, and on board is its largest ever geostationary satellite payload, a Hispasat unit that’s around the size of a city bus. The launch took off from Cape Canaveral in Florida this morning and proceeded as planned, delivering Hispasat 30W-6 to its target geostationary transfer orbit. The Standish satellite weighed 6 …