The dawn is breaking on a new era of space exploration, with moon bases and Mars colonies potentially only decades away. Live Science tracks the researchers, companies and countries setting their sights on the stars to bring you the biggest stories in space. Whether it's reporting on concerns that alien organisms could hitch a ride on our spacecraft and contaminate Earth, explaining what 11 billion people means for space travel, sharing a glorious photo of Earth during a total solar eclipse snapped by Japan's lunar lander, or compiling a list of the weirdest things we have launched into space, our expert writers and editors will ignite your sense of interstellar adventure with the latest space exploration news, features and articles.
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'Is having two legs useful' in space?: Astronaut John McFall explains what life in orbit might be like for the first physically disabled person in spaceInterview ESA astronaut John McFall tells Live Science what it would mean to become the first physically disabled person in space — if he travels to the first-ever commercial space station next year — and how life in orbit might affect him differently than everyone else.
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Earth-based telescope shares image of Artemis II capsule near the moon — one of the farthest photos of humans ever takenA blurry photo captured by the National Science Foundation's Green Bank Telescope in West Virginia shows Artemis II's Orion capsule circling the moon more than 200,000 miles away, making it a candidate for the longest-distance image of humans ever taken from Earth.
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NASA's experimental X-59 jet breaks the sound barrier twice, reaching Mach 1.4NASA and Lockheed Martin's experimental X-59 aircraft has broken the sound barrier twice, achieving a top speed of Mach 1.4. The feat could set the stage for "quiet" supersonic flight.
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Artemis II crew's iconic view of Earth shows simultaneous auroras over both polesSpace photo of the week The four astronauts on NASA’s Artemis II mission captured more than they bargained for when they photographed the nightside of Earth, right after starting their historic journey to the moon.
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This 'crawling' robot rolled around the moon and took a historic photoA morphable moon robot operated for 100 minutes in 2024, allowing investigators to get images of an upside-down spacecraft on the lunar surface.
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Artemis III crew revealed: NASA announces astronauts for 'one of history's most complex missions'NASA's Artemis III crew has been revealed. The astronauts will launch into low Earth orbit next year to test docking with commercial lunar landers being developed by SpaceX and Blue Origin.
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NASA astronauts briefly shelter in 'safe haven' procedure following worsening leaks on Space StationA brief leak scare on the International Space Station complicates NASA and Congress' plans to extend the station's lifespan to at least 2032.
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NASA confirms MAVEN spacecraft is officially dead after loss of signal behind MarsNASA has confirmed its MAVEN spacecraft is officially dead after losing contact with the probe in December. An anomaly in the probe's rotation speed led to an unexpected loss of power, though the exact cause remains unknown.
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China launches new Long March 12B rocket, reportedly without any safety warningChina's Long March 12B rocket has blasted off on its maiden voyage carrying more Qianfan "Thousand Sails" satellites, during a surprise launch for which there were reportedly no airspace notices.
