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Intuitive Machines' first Nova-C lunar lander is ready to fly to the moon. The Houston-based company offered an up-close look at the robotic lander prior to it departing for Florida to launch as soon as mid-next month. The robotic lander, shielded by an off-the-coat-rack insulation, will carry NASA and private payloads to the moon's south polar region on what could be the first soft lunar landing by a U.S. vehicle since Apollo 17 in 1972.
Some watch faces display the phases of the moon. Some are designed to work on the face of the moon. LUNAR1,622, the new timepiece from Col&MacArthur, just contains the moon. Now being crowdfunded on Kickstarter, the LUNAR1,622 features a canister of lunar meteorite dust at the 3 o'clock position and NASA's logo on the caseback. Priced between $400 and $1000 depending on the configuration, the watch was designed to pay tribute to the Apollo missions of the past and future Artemis flights.
Icon Heroes has debuted a new series of pinback button sets featuring the mission patch art from "For All Mankind," the Apple TV+ alternate space history series. Featuring the designs created for the show's first three seasons, the 1.25" buttons display the reimagined emblems for Apollo, Jamestown, Pathfinder and Mars-bound missions. Icon Heroes is offering the "For All Mankind" buttons in sets of five or all 50 as a collection.
Disney on Wednesday (Oct. 4) debuted a new set of Mars rover tracks outside Mission: SPACE at EPCOT. Replacing a 20-year-old display that was made using the engineering model for the twin Spirit and Opportunity rovers, the new exhibit used a prototype wheel on loan from NASA to leave a tire tread like the type left by Perseverance. The exhibit also includes sample tubes like what Perseverance uses to cache rocks.
Eleven years after Endeavour was delivered and seven years after its external tank arrived, the California Science Center is now ready to receive the last major components for its launch pad-like display of the complete space shuttle stack. The public is invited to come Wednesday, Oct. 11, and watch as the two solid rocket motors are trucked in to stand with Endeavour.
Swatch has partnered with the European Space Agency (ESA) to offer a new choice of customizable watches featuring Hubble and Webb space telescope images. Space fans can now pick their favorite swaths from colorful nebulae, star clusters or even a protostar to span the length of their watch face and strap. Each Swatch also includes an an ESA-branded loop and a postcard featuring the space telescope image used.
The next astronauts to walk on the moon will be able to say they did so while wearing Prada. The Italian luxury fashion house is working with Axiom Space to design the spacesuits that NASA's Artemis III crew will use at the lunar south pole. Prada will advise on materials and develop design features that will help protect astronauts against the conditions on the moon.
A satellite clock used to keep a Mercury astronaut's flight on time and a scoop used to collect the largest moon rock ever brought back to Earth are up for sale among 400 other space exploration and aviation lots being offered by RR Auction. The still-fully functional timing device was removed from Aurora 7 and presented to Scott Carpenter by his launch crew, whereas Apollo 16 lunar module pilot retained the shovel that helped him lift "Big Muley" into the lunar module. Bidding closes on Oct. 19, when both are estimated to sell for six figures.
After a two-day road trip from Mojave Air and Space Port to Exposition Park, two 116-foot-long (35-m) solid rocket motors are now in place to stand as part of the space shuttle Endeavour in the future Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center. Delivered to the California Science Center on Wednesday (Oct. 11), the flight-proven motors were the last pieces needed prior to lifting and stacking the boosters, external tank and winged orbiter in their launch-ready configuration for public display.
The new trailer for the fourth season of "For All Mankind," the alternate space history series streaming on Apple TV+, reveals a new focus on asteroids and the promise they hold for the people on Earth and Mars. The plot line is timely, with NASA dubbing this fall "Asteroid Autumn" given the number of missions it has coming and going to the mineral-rich space rocks. "For All Mankind" Season 4 is set for a global debut on Nov. 10.
: A SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket launched its first NASA spacecraft on Friday (Oct. 13), the agency's first mission to a metal-rich asteroid. Psyche, the probe, will take six years to reach Psyche, the rock, by way of a gravity assist at Mars and four Hall-effect thrusters powered by sunlight (a first for a deep space mission). The metal asteroid is of interest because it may be the remnant of a planetesimal's core, displaying how rocky worlds form.
: Benjamin Moore chose Blue Origin's orbital launch site in Florida to host the announcement of its Color of the Year for 2024. The space-themed "Blue Nova 825" is inspired by the brilliance of a new star being formed and "beckons us to unknown places." In addition to the reveal, Benjamin Moore also entered into a partnership with Blue Origin's non-profit Club for the Future to organize space-themed experiences at upcoming events, and more.
: NASA's Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex has a new reason for you not to enter their gates — at least for the first six minutes of your visit. The Kennedy Entry Experience is a new 3,000-square-foot video display that tells of NASA's past, present and future with technology that makes images appear to launch from the screen. The Entry Experience takes the place of a prior John F. Kennedy-themed fountain that was added in 2013.
: After 44 years standing at an Alabama rest stop, a rare display of an Apollo-era Saturn IB rocket was removed in September. No longer structurally sound, as the rocket demonstrated with a thud, it was not a total loss. NASA was able to salvage a number of the rocket's parts, including the eight first stage engines, which are now being evaluated as artifacts for future exhibit.
: European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Thomas Pesquet logged nearly 400 days on his two missions to the International Space Station, but it was not until the end of his second flight that he became happy with his Earth photography. Now, with his first collection of planetary images published, Pesquet tells collectSPACE what it takes to properly capture Earth from space and why he feels photography is now part of his job.
: The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) revealed its first postage stamp designs for 2024, including two depicting images taken by the James Webb Space Telescope. The $9.65 Priority Mail and $28.75 Priority Mail Express stamps feature the Pillars of Creation in the Eagle Nebula and Cosmic Cliffs in the Carina Nebula as imaged by the observatory. Release dates will be announced later.
: Chinese taikonauts Tang Hongbo, Tang Shengjie and Jiang Xinlin are now on their way to spending six months on the Tiangong space station after launching on the Shenzhou-17 spacecraft on Wednesday (Oct. 25). China's youngest crew to date (first time fliers Tang Shengjie and Jiang are in their mid-30s), Tang Hongbo, 48, is the first return visitor to the "Heavenly Palace" having previously served on the first resident crew.
: Now you can have a drink with a twist of space history. Chop Shop is crowdfunding a set of three tumblers each with graphics themed around different "Milestones in Space." Divided between the moon, Mars and outer planets, the new glassware designs also include the rockets that gave the missions their start. Now on Kickstarter through Nov. 20, pledges can be made for individual glasses or sets of various quantities or styles.
: The public will get its first chance to see a fragment of the asteroid Bennu as brought back by the OSIRIS-REx mission when the Smithsonian opens its display on Nov. 3. The National Museum of Natural History in Washington, DC will exhibit the space rock sample in its Janet Annenberg Hooker Hall of Geology, Gems, and Minerals meteorite gallery. Other displays will follow in Tucson, Arizona and Houston, Texas.
: Tom Jones knows that copies of his new book may attract a lot of ink marks. As a compendium of "Space Shuttle Stories" from at least one astronaut on each of the 135 missions, it may draw as much interest from space history enthusiasts as it appeals to autograph collectors. "That delights me, that they'll use it as their template for gathering astronauts' signatures and maybe some comments about the stories inside the book."
