Congress passes new NASA authorization bill, first in 5 years

Congress has passed the "Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors and Science Act" (CHIPS) with a 243-187 vote in the House of Representatives after passing on a 64-33 vote.

Although mainly focused on the domestic production of semiconductors in the US, a portion of the CHIPS act (specifically Title VII) focuses on various authorizations for NASA and its future missions, making it the first NASA authorization to be signed into law in 5 years since the "NASA Transition Authorization Act" of 2017.

Notable authorizations include the agency's continued involvement with the Internation Space Station until 2030 as well as the Artemis missions to Mars.

Rocket Lab developing new spacecraft for mission to Mars

Image courtesy of Rocket Lab

Rocket Lab announced via Twitter that it is currently developing two new spacecraft utilizing its "Photon" rocket system for the University of California Berkley's "Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers" (EscaPADE) mission to Mars. 

EscaPADE is currently set to launch sometime in October of 2024 with the intention of observing and studying Mars's unique weather patterns via various scientific instruments carried on two orbiters called "Blue" and "Gold".

James Webb telescope captures oldest galaxy ever observed

Image courtesy NASA/New Scientist

NASA's "James Webb Space Telescope" (JWST) has captured an image of the galaxy "GLASS-z13", a galaxy estimated to be around 13.5 billion years old. This would make GLASS-z13 the oldest galaxy observed by mankind, beating out the previous record holder "GN-z11" by 100 million years.

JWST's current position can be tracked on NASA's "Where is Webb?" page.

Perseverence finds strange object in NASA Mars "Image of the Week"

 

Image courtesy of NASA & JPL Caltech

NASA's chosen "Image of the Week" showcases not only the desert sands of Mars but also a stringy object lying amongst them, likely a piece of a previous mission's parachute or possibly even Perseverence's own.

The image was taken via the rover's "Front Left Hazard Avoidance Camera A" on July 12, 2022 in the Jezero crater where Perseverance recently took samples from.

Perseverence's location can be tracked on NASA's webpage.

Moldova's first satellite to be sent into orbit with ISS resupply

Image courtesy of NASA

NASA has announced that they will be sending the "Technical University of Moldova Nano-Satellite" (TUMnanoSAT), Moldova's first space satellite, into orbit on the next International Space Station (ISS) resupply run.

Upon delivery, the satellite will be ejected via airlock into Earth's orbit where it will take pictures of the planet and record data for the future creation of Moldova's own full-fledged Earth observation satellite.

James Webb telescope releases first full color images of deep space objects

Rendering of JWST fully deployed. Image courtesy of NASA.

Today, NASA's James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) telescope has released the full first suite of images taken since its Dec. 25, 2021 launch.

The telescope's targets are the Carina Nebula, the Southern Ring Nebula, the exoplanet WASP-96 b, the Stephan's Quintet galaxy cluster and the SMACS 0723 galaxy cluster.

The first image released was showcased by US President Joseph Biden on July 11, 2022, showcasing SMACS 0723.

The current position of the telescope can be tracked on NASA's "Where is Webb" webpage.

NASA accepting Fall internship applications

 

As of July 8, 2022, NASA will be accepting Fall internship applications until July 11, 2022. Successful applicants will be paid for their time and participation in various agency projects that will, in turn, provide applicants with skills needed to further their education as well as a possible future careers within NASA.

"CAPSTONE" satellite breaks free from Earth orbit, heads for moon

 

Image courtesy of NASA

NASA's "Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System Technology Operations and Navigations Experiment" (CAPSTONE) satellite has broken away from Earth's orbit and is now on its way to the moon. The satellite is projected to attain lunar orbit on Nov. 13.

The 55 pound, microwave oven-sized satellite was launched on June 28, 2022 from a launch site on New Zealand's Mahia Peninsula with the purpose of attaining a "near-rectilinear halo orbit" around Earth's moon in order to verify the orbit's properties for further utilization in space exploration-related endeavours.

CAPSTONE's progress can be tracked via NASA's "Eyes on the Solar System" application.

Update (7/6/22): Communication with CAPSTONE was briefly lost after the satellite left orbit but it has since been reestablished.

Update (7/27/22): CAPSTONE has completed its third correctional manuever at about 780,000 miles from Earth and remains on course for the moon.

Update (8/11/22): CAPSTONE has been nominated Small Satellite Conference's "Mission of the Year" for 2022.

"We are capable!" NASA releases in-depth video on "Artemis I" program

 

As NASA's "Artemis I" test flight prepares for rollback to the agency's "Vehicular Assembly Building" for final preparations, the dedicated twitter profile of the "Space Launch System" (SLS) rocket system used in the program has released a video detailing the specifics of SLS as well as the "Orion" space craft it is carrying.

The video, titled "Artemis I: We Are Capable", describes how each component of the SLS and Orion functions as well as the general mission plan of the test flight.

As of this article's writing, Artemis I is currently awaiting transport to the Vehicular Assembly Building in Florida, the process of which is currently being livestreamed.