Northrop Grumman named the Cygnus spacecraft after Katherine Johnson, the late Black mathematician who supported early NASA missions and was a central figure in the book and movie Hidden Figures. Johnson died last year at the age of 101. According…
Space trash truck features four robotic tentacles
The European Space Agency awarded Clearspace Today the opportunity to build a trash truck with four robotic tentacles that will collect dead satellites and other debris in space. Read more about it at Mashable or ClearspaceToday.com.
NASA names headquarters after aerospace engineer Mary Winston Jackson
NASA names headquarters after aerospace engineer Mary Winston Jackson (1921–2005) who calculated orbital mechanics that were essential to the success of the crewed spaceflights. Johnson also overcame the barriers of segregation and gender bias to become a leader in ensuring…
Learn More About these Scientists for Black History Month
February is Black History Month. Learn more about some of the many African American scientists and engineers who have made important contributions to science history. Read about them at Science Buddies.
Itty-Bitty Satellites Take On Big-Time Science Missions
More scientists @CalPolyCubeSat will be deploying miniature satellites the size of a Rubik’s Cube because they’re cheaper to use than the Hubble Space Telescope. Read more about it at NPR.
Watch the best meteor shower of 2018 tonight
Head for dark, clear skies tonight to see the shooting stars of the Geminid meteor shower overhead. @SarahExplains that the shower is likely to be the best meteor shower of 2018. Read all about it at Space.com.
Closing the gap between men and women in STEM
“There’s a myth that if you’re bad at math, you can’t enter a STEM field. Having a natural competence in math can be helpful, but skill and intelligence grow with consistent practice and effort. Getting involved in projects is the…
Astrophysicist wins prize 50 years later
Astrophysicist Jocelyn Bell Burnell won the Special Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics 50 years after discovering pulsars in space. Bell Burnell is donating her winnings to the U.K.’s Institute of Physics, where they will fund graduate scholarships for under-represented students…