Searched for
SPACECRAFT HISTORY
In 1962, a spacecraft was launched by NASA to study Venus but a few moments later, the rocket went off course and was lostA spacecraft, called Mariner 1, was NASA's first probe which planned to study Venus. A software error and a guidance control problem led to...
‘Reverse engineered from UFOs’: Does US military have a triangular aircraft with anti-gravity technology called ‘TR-3B Black Manta’? Here’s the truthRecently, numerous reports emerged from Tehran and Zahedan about sightings of a mysterious triangular object illuminated by bright lights. ...
Astronomers just spotted an “Impossible” planet: Elias 2-24 b is the youngest known planet, and its Jupiter-sized growth could challenge planet formation modelsElias 2-24 b is young enough that astronomers are seeing it before its planetary neighborhood has finished taking shape. Yet the planet is ...
UFO déjà vu? Mystery lights over Tehran revive Iran’s famous 1976 sky sagaA mysterious brightly lit object spotted over Tehran has sparked speculation online, with videos appearing to show it hovering or moving sl...
In 2021, NASA sent 11 types of crop seeds outside the space station for 8 months; after their return, scientists tested whether they could still growThe 2021 NASA seed experiment ultimately demonstrates why some of the most important space discoveries can begin with objects that appear r...
In 1961, a woman described a terrifying UFO encounter in New Hampshire: Her drawing from the incident was later linked to real star system by an astronomerA mysterious drawing made years after a reported UFO encounter became one of the strangest parts of Betty and Barney Hill's story. The sket...
NASA satellite discovers a new crater on the moon that's bigger than the Colosseum — rare impact went unnoticed for 2 years, occurs once every 132 yearsScientists have discovered a massive crater on the Moon that formed after an asteroid or comet fragment struck the lunar surface in 2024. M...
A sheep rancher from New Mexico found strange debris scattered across the desert near Roswell in 1947. Newspapers declared a ‘flying saucer’ had been captured, and 47 years later, investigators linked it to a secret Cold War program1947 Roswell UFO incident: In 1947, a rancher stumbled upon strange debris, initially hailed as a flying saucer. However, the military late...
In 1985, Soviet engineers sent two balloons floating through Venus for 46.5 hours. Their motherships then used the planet’s gravity to chase Halley’s CometSoviet spacecraft Vega 1 and Vega 2 undertook a dual mission to Venus and Halley's Comet. These probes deployed landers and balloons onto V...
In 1975, NASA sent a pocket calculator on Apollo-Soyuz as a backup if its main computer failed; 37 years later, it ended up at the SmithsonianNASA utilized an HP-65 calculator as a crucial backup system during the Apollo-Soyuz mission. This programmable device carried essential gu...
Boeing spent $67,000,000 of its own money on the YF-118G Bird of Prey stealth aircraft with borrowed landing gear and ejection seat. It flew just 38 timesThe YF-118G Bird of Prey, an aircraft secretly designed by Boeing, was pivotal in testing stealth technology. This innovative project delve...
Mercury may have shrunk 30% more than previously believed, new study says; planet’s radius may have decreased by 7.2 milesRecent studies indicate that Mercury has shrunk more than scientists previously realized. The presence of impact debris has hindered the vi...
In 1970, Lunokhod 1 drove 10 km across the Moon before contact ended in 1971; in 2010, LRO found it, and its reflector gave a signal four times Lunokhod 2’sAfter decades of disappearance, the Soviet rover Lunokhod 1 was found anew by NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. In 2010, physicists util...
In 1966, Gemini 9 and Gemini 12 exposed fungal spores and viruses directly to space; a 0.4 mm aluminum shield kept fungal spores alive and boosted virus survival 3,000-foldEarly space missions tested microbial survival outside spacecraft without protection. Fungal spores and viruses showed very low survival ra...
The farthest human-made object is now so distant that even light takes nearly 24 hours to reach it; exactly 49 years after NASA launched Voyager 1 to explore Jupiter and Saturn, the spacecraft is still in interstellar space and sending data back to EarthThe Voyager 1 probe, launched in 1977, is now over 15.9 billion miles away. This spacecraft has ventured into interstellar space, sending v...
In 1961, Liberty Bell 7 sank after Gus Grissom's flight; 38 years later, crews recovered the capsule from more than 15,000 feet beneath the Atlantic OceanFor thirty-eight years, astronaut Gus Grissom's Liberty Bell 7 spacecraft lay lost beneath the waves. A skilled salvage expert ventured int...
In 1965, MIT's LES-1 failed to reach its planned orbit and fell silent in 1967; 45 years later, the zombie satellite unexpectedly began transmitting againA surprising discovery was made in 2012 when an old satellite from the 1960s unexpectedly resumed broadcasting signals. Originally believed...
Toyohiro Akiyama dies at 84: Japan’s first person in space was a journalist who live-reported from Mir and observed six tree frogs in zero gravityToyohiro Akiyama, the trailblazing figure and Japan's first civilian in space, has passed away at the age of 84. His remarkable journey to ...
In 2000, a crew for the first time headed for the International Space Station aboard a Russian Soyuz rocket for four months to prepare ISS facility for researchIn 2000, a crew for the first time headed for the International Space Station aboard a Russian Soyuz rocket for four months to prepare ISS ...
In 1967, a preflight test for the first crewed flight of Apollo resulted in a tragedy and the loss of astronauts Virgil Grissom, Edward White and Roger ChaffeeIn 1967, a preflight test for the first crewed flight of Apollo on the launch pad at Cape Kennedy resulted in a tragedy and loss of astrona...