How Star Trek Fans Changed The Name Of NASA's First Space Shuttle

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These are the voyages of the space shuttle Enterprise, boldly renamed by former President Gerald Ford after a massive letter-writing campaign from Star Trek fans.

In 1974, construction of the world's first space shuttle , known then as Orbital Vehicle-101 (OV-101), began at Rockwell Corporation's plant in Downey, California. (The city, located in Los Angeles County, is known to fast food enthusiasts as the home to the oldest operating McDonald's and the birthplace of Taco Bell.) With the debut of the spacecraft set for 1976, it was rechristened the Constitution in honor of the U.S. bicentennial. 

But, as Spock himself, Leonard Nimoy, joked at a ceremony for the shuttle decades later, " Star Trek fans can be very persuasive."

In 1972, the Apollo program was coming to an end. If John F. Kennedy inspired the nation with his call to "go to the moon" and "do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard," Richard Nixon's rhetoric was less soaring.

"The space shuttle will give us routine access to space by sharply reducing costs in dollars and preparation time," he said, as reported at the time by Popular Science . In the wake of the moon landings, NASA Administrator Thomas Paine had grand visions for America's space program. He proposed sending men to Mars in nuclear-powered spacecraft, building space stations and bases along the way, according to the The Space Shuttle Decision by T.A. Heppenheimer.

Alas, interplanetary travel was not in the stars. When Robert Mayo, Nixon's budget director, cut $1 billion from NASA's budget, Paine focused on a less ambitious part of his proposal: a reusable shuttle. Even that project was nearly axed by Congress for budgetary reasons, Heppenheimer wrote . Once NASA found supporters in the Department of Defense, however, the space shuttle program was on solid ground. The first shuttle, the Enterprise, would only be used for testing. It was the second, the Columbia, that had the honor of being the first space shuttle to launch into orbit. It blasted off on April 12, 1981, exactly two decades after Yuri Gagarin became the first person in space.

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Mountain-sized Alinda Asteroid Seen From Earth This Weekend - When To See 'Once In A Decade' Show...

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The massive space rock zoomed past Earth earlier this month, but it is not out of view just yet and can be observed from home with basic stargazing binoculars or in a free livestream.

Named (887) Alinda, the near-Earth asteroid measures an estimated 2.6 miles (4.2 kilometers) wide and is the size of a mountain. On Wednesday (January 8) the rock made its closest pass at Earth in decades, the last until a predicted return in 2087.

An asteroid this big could cause an extinction level event, but it is not expected to crash into Earth. Instead, stargazers can watch on as it passes by with a brightness at a magnitude of 9.4.

Though it will not be bright enough to see with the naked eye, the peak in its brightness tomorrow will be visible to those with stargazing binoculars. Gianluca Masi, who runs the Virtual Telescope Project in Italy, says binoculars or a good backyard telescope will be enough to see the pass.

A Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission proved that it is possible to divert a large asteroid by crashing a spacecraft into it. It is more likely these defences would see hundreds of missiles fired at incoming asteroids, to break it into smaller pieces.

Years or decades of advance permission are likely to be needed, according to LiveScience , which suggests other countries would need to be informed before a launch is made. China plans on launching an asteroid deflection mission by 2030.

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Robots Set To Move Beyond Factory As AI Advances

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But soon -- perhaps very soon -- these increasingly humanlike machines will handle more sophisticated tasks, freeing up people while raising complex questions about the roles of artificial intelligence that are gaining attention.

At a panel hosted by the American Association of Retired Persons at this week's Consumer Electronics Show (CES), experts described the next five years as a period where robots transition primarily from industrial sites to service settings, helping to address a worsening health care labor crunch.

Seeing robotics in places like theme parks or universities ⁘will lead to the companion robot probably at the end of the decade,⁘ said Marc Theermann, chief strategy officer for robot company Boston Dynamics.

Cris Gardner, a vice president in futurecasting at AARP, predicted robots will provide emotional support as they enter homes and assist with daily tasks.

The centrality of robots in the coming years is ⁘widely underappreciated,⁘ said a report from Abundance 360, a conference and education venture led by entrepreneur Peter Diamandis.

Robots could enable an ⁘era of unprecedented abundance,⁘ lowering costs while freeing humans ⁘to focus on creative and fulfilling pursuits,⁘ it said.

However, the analysis also identified nine sectors facing potential job displacement, including manufacturing, elder care, agriculture, education, and surgery.

Here's When You Can See Seven Planets In The Sky At Once For 'Parade Of Planets'

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In 2024, we were lucky enough to get our eyes — covered with solar-viewing glasses, of course — on a rare near-total solar eclipse with an awe-inspiring sky-show, night owls were treated to the Perseid meteor shower and several geomagnetic storms , or the northern lights, illuminated New Jersey skies.

Now, 2025 promises to bring its own share of stunning celestial events, including the Jan. 13 wolf moon — named for the likelihood of hearing wolves howl during this time — and a magical planetary parade, known as a "parade of planets," beginning this month, where all seven planets aside from Earth will appear to line up across the night sky.

Want to catch a glimpse? Here's all you need to know on how to spot the can't-miss astronomical event.

A planetary parade is a colloquial term that means four or more planets line up in the night sky at once. It's not a technical astronomy term, according to NASA, although the space agency has been known to call it a "parade of planets."

The term may appear confusing, since the planets cannot actually fully line up in the three-dimensional solar system exactly as they may be seen in pictures; rather, it's our perspective of the planets lining up from Earth. And while the planets appearing to align isn't particularly special, seeing four or five bright planets at once doesn't happen every year, the space agency said.

While not rare to see the planets, this time you'll be able to check off sightings of multiple planets in one night's viewing.

Throughout the entire month of January, you can easily spot Venus and Saturn in the southwest for the first couple of hours after sunset, Jupiter shining brightly overhead, and Mars to the east. Uranus and Neptune are there too, but too faint to see with the naked eye and require a telescope. They will also be visible through February.

The kickoff is expected to begin after sunset on Friday , according to the Farmers' Almanac. Look south and then scan the sky from left to right (or east to west) to spot each planet, as shown in the Almanac's illustration.

Drones Are Part Of ⁘Fake Alien Invasion⁘ Cover-Up

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One of the leading figures in the world of UFO investigation, Dr. Steven Greer, warns that the recent spate of mysterious drone reports are a smokescreen for something far more nefarious. After all, Greer is the founder of the Center for the Study of Extraterrestrial Intelligence (CSETI), so he knows of what he speaks.

It has been over two weeks since the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued an alert banning drones from flying over a large portion of New Jersey. The reason for the unusual action was explained as being for "special security reasons." Around that same time, the FAA, FBI, Department of Homeland Security, and the Department of Defense issued a joint statement addressing the many questions the drone sightings created.

None of those government agency alerts or statements truly shed any light, however, on exactly what was going on, where the drones came from, or what they were doing.

One UFO expert, Carl Nally of UFO and Paranormal Research Ireland (UPRI), claimed the mysterious drone sightings could, in fact, be a precursor to an alien invasion . Dr. Steven Greer, on the other hand, says, not so fast.

Greer believes these drones, according to a report by the Mirror , ⁘are part of a staged operation designed to trick the public into believing an alien invasion is imminent.⁘

Supposedly, according to Greer, U.S. weapons manufacturers have gotten their hands on alien technology and all of these drones sightings are part of an operation to conceal their actions.

Dr. Greer, the man who inspired Demi Lovato to begin communicating with aliens , also says that he believes the drone situation is going to escalate ⁘in the next 30 days or so.⁘

⁘We have a team of about six different black sites that have been running illegal projects related to so-called UAPs and UFOs,⁘ he said. "Coming forward in the next 30 days or so, they will bring forth positive evidence of this and the fact that these programs have been run illegally and outside of constitutional oversight.⁘

How Private Capital And Innovation Will Redefine U.S. Space Strategy

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Today's space sector is at an inflection point, poised to capitalize on the tech sector's gains from cloud computing and artificial intelligence. Just a decade ago, the space economy was dominated by large, school bus-sized satellites. These billion-dollar workhorses served military, intelligence, and civil agencies well for decades, with slow improvements made to their subsystems. Then, much like the tech tsunami that rendered mainframe computers obsolete in the '80s and '90s, the space industry experienced its own revolution.

Since then, the commercial space sector has exploded, with thousands of satellites launched every year—most no larger than a small desk, many the size of a shoebox. As next-generation space capabilities are increasingly procured from off-the-shelf technology solutions, with private capital driving most of the development, it's hard to believe that the government was once initially resistant to such sweeping change. The Space Force, in particular the Space Development Agency (SDA), is fully embracing this digital revolution, and several new offices are contracting directly with commercial space data companies.

This is a remarkable shift, encouraging the creation of new commercial companies and generating jobs and tax revenue in place of dependence on government funding. It allows for critical space technology to advance at the same pace as Silicon Valley innovations, bolstering the U.S. as the world's leading space economy in the same way it has dominated in consumer technologies.

How the Pentagon and Congress will plan, fund, and field space programs to support the evolving requirements and rapid innovation needed by the Space Force is no easy task. Many have been grappling with the problem for years, and although SDA and other space offices have made significant strides, the outdated processes for space acquisitions—from Capitol Hill to the Pentagon's E-Ring—often undermine progress. Policymakers are sincere in their desire for change, but they often lack the necessary understanding of the private sector's dynamics.

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Blue Ghost Mission 1 Will Send The First U.S. Lander To Mare Crisium

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Near the Moon's eastern limb lies Mare Crisium — the Sea of Crises — a low basalt plain embayed by rugged mountains. Carved by a colossal impact some 3.9 billion years ago, the 460-mile-wide (740 kilometers) mare appears largely flat and featureless. But lingering whispers of a volcanic past are everywhere, from its ubiquitous darkness to craters flooded and semi-obliterated by ancient basalt lavas — and a curious, solitary landmark near its center: the four-mile wide (6.4 km) Mons Latreille.

Soon, a robotic craft called Blue Ghost will land here, carrying 10 science instruments and technology tests as part of NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program. Also known as Blue Ghost Mission 1 and nicknamed Ghost Riders in the Sky, the lander is targeting a six-day launch window in mid-January. NASA announced Jan. 7 that the first scheduled launch opportunity is 1:11 a.m. EST on Wednesday, Jan. 15.

Mare Crisium bears witness to an active past: long, sinuous ridges snaking across its eastern hinterlands, ghostly shadows of ancient craters and the capelike spit of Promontorium Agarum abutting its southeastern rim. Wider than the state of Arizona, the mare boasts a land area of 68,000 square miles (176,000 square km) — on par with Oklahoma.

Six decades ago, even as Russia lost its space race with the U.S. when Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin triumphantly walked at Tranquillity Base in July 1969, the Soviets entertained a last-ditch gasp for glory by bringing a lunar sample back to Earth first.

As Armstrong and Aldrin slept in the hours after their historic moonwalk, Russia's Luna 15 robotic probe attempted to land in Crisium, 344 miles (554 km) northeast of their landing site. But it hit a mountain during descent and was destroyed.

Another try in 1974 saw Luna 23 land too fast and topple over. But in 1976, Luna 24 safely returned 0.37 pound (170 grams) of Crisium soil to the eager hands of Russian scientists. Those samples inconclusively hinted at the presence of 0.1 percent water by mass.

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The Blue Origin New Glenn Rocket Fires Up Ahead Of Inaugural Launch

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• SpaceX Unveils Starship Prototype, Setting Stage for Reusability Revolution

: Over 400 feet tall, the newly designed Starship prototype has been showcased by SpaceX, marking a significant step towards developing a reusable spacecraft capable of carrying human missions to the moon, Mars, and other destinations in the solar system. • NASA's Artemis Program Nears Major Milestone: Uncrewed Spacecraft Launch Set to Test Lunar Module

: The Artemis II mission, set to launch in 2024, marks a crucial test of NASA's new lunar lander, designed to guarantee a safe and successful landing on the lunar surface by the agency's next manned mission. • Lockheed Martin Unveils New Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System to Counter North Korea Threat

: The US has cleared the development of a new Aegis Ashore ballistic missile defense system... designed to safeguard major military bases and other strategic sites from North Korean ballistic missile attacks. • China's Tengbiao-1 Satellite Enters Orbit, Lighting Way for High-Powered Space Communications

: China's newest communication satellite has successfully launched into orbit, setting the stage for providing steady and reliable internet connections in the Asia-Pacific region. • European Space Agency's Rosalind Franklin Sets Date for First Commercial Space Station Module Launch

: The European Space Agency's (ESA) latest development, the Rosalind Franklin module, is set to launch April 2023... paving the way for establishing a commercial space station that will serve as a hub for scientific research and business opportunities. • SpaceX Tests Crew Dragon with NASA Astronaut Jeremy Hansen on Board

: NASA astronaut Jeremy Hansen docked with the Crew Dragon spacecraft in progress of a major test in which he is vacationing in the orbit of the International Space Station. • Rocket Lab Achieves Seven Successful GlobalZ Mission Launches in Nine Months

: The innovative Rocket Lab has accomplished an impressive feat, "completing a series of worldwide launches within a remarkably short span of nine months," "setting the stage for space exploration in a highly uncertain future."

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Just before 8 p.m. on Friday evening, the company completed its long awaited hot-fire test, lighting up the pad at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and sending a rumble throughout North Brevard County.

Earlier in the day the Federal Aviation Administration gave Blue Origin the OK to proceed with the upcoming maiden launch.

About an hour later, the company issues a press release, stating that the 24-second test fire was successful. "The campaign met all objectives and marks the final major test prior to launch," the statement read.

Friday's hot fire test involved fueling and briefly firing the New Glenn's seven engines . It was one of the key last steps before the giant rocket launches for the first time.

When is the next Florida rocket launch? Is there a launch today? Upcoming SpaceX, Blue Origin, ULA rocket launch schedule in Florida

While Blue Origin launches its single-stage New Shepard from Texas − which carries payload and paying passengers on a short ride to the edge of space − this will be the first time the company has attempted the launch of a multi-stage rocket.

Blue Origin was founded by former Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos. The rocket is named for the first American to orbit the Earth, John Glenn.

NASA's Answer To Mars Sample Return Problem

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NASA's Perseverance rover has been hard at work on Mars, collecting pieces of rock and stowing them away on the Red Planet. But back on Earth, the space agency has been struggling to carry out its plan of retrieving the Martian samples. Following months of deliberation, NASA has decided to pursue two alternative routes for its Mars Sample Return program, one of which elicits the help of the private industry.

During a media briefing on Tuesday, NASA announced an unusual approach to its ambitious Martian sample mission. The space agency will simultaneously pursue two different ways of brining samples from the other world to Earth. ⁘Pursuing two potential paths forward will ensure that NASA is able bring these samples back from Mars with significant cost and schedule saving compared to the previous plan,⁘ NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said in a statement .

At this point, NASA will proceed with ⁘two distinct means of landing the payload platform on Mars,⁘ the space agency wrote. The first option will involve tried and tested means of landing on Mars using a sky crane similar to ones used by NASA's rovers, while the other option will opt for a new method developed by a commercial partner.

Scientists have stumbled upon an entirely new way for icy worlds to collide and form binary pairs in space.

Starlink Vs Tesla—A Tale Of Two Musks...

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Elon Musk has recently solidified his status as the wealthiest individual in history, with Tesla (TSLA) emerging as his dominant source of wealth. Tesla's market capitalization reached an astounding peak of nearly $1.5 trillion, underscoring its monumental growth. Meanwhile, SpaceX, another Musk-led venture, boasts a market valuation of $350 billion (of which Musk owns 40%). Analysts suggest that SpaceX could eventually surpass Tesla in value, highlighting its transformative potential in the aerospace and telecommunications industries. The story is even more compelling when viewed in the context of what Starlink and global internet can bring to SpaceX.

Tesla's stock performance has been both remarkable and volatile. From January 1 to April 22, 2024, Tesla stock was down 43%. However, between April 22 and December 17, 2024, the stock surged 238% from its lowest point. Following its peak in December, Tesla's value experienced a 21% decline by January 2, 2025, including a sharp 6% drop on that day alone.

This rollercoaster volatility prompts critical questions: At what point does a stock become overvalued? Did Tesla genuinely gain $800 billion (from $700 billion on October 23 to $1.5 trillion on December 17) in market capitalization due to intrinsic growth, or was this surge driven by speculative enthusiasm?

These dynamics raise an interesting possibility: Can investors favor Musk's vision yet prefer one stock over the other? Is it conceivable for Tesla to experience a downturn while SpaceX continues its upward trajectory?

The table below highlights funds with a Tesla weighting of 15% or more, showcasing their exposure and associated risks. Among these, the Baron Partners Fund (BPRTX) stands out with a staggering 44% of its total assets under management (AUM) invested in Tesla—more than double the weight of the next closest non-leveraged, non-international fund. Furthermore, this concentration also comes at a higher cost: the Baron Partners Fund charges the highest fees in the Tesla peer group, with an expense ratio of 2.25%.

Scientists Left Baffled After Discovering Asteroid-comet Hybrid That's Like Nothing Ever Seen...

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Scientists have made a shocking discovery about a rare object in our solar system likened to an asteroid-comet hybrid.

Astronomers from the University of Central Florida have made the space discovery using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST).

As they analysed near-infrared images, the scientists found something that is 'like nothing' the astronomy world has ever seen before.

The UCF Florida Space Institute (FSI) researchers found a Centaur and while it may be named after a mythical creature that is half-horse and half-man, in space terms, it describes an asteroid-comet hybrid.

These bodies are found between Jupiter and Neptune and though they behave like asteroids, they produce gas and dust like comets.

An asteroid can be described as a large chunk of rock from left over collisions from the early stages of our solar system, which are mostly located between Mars and Jupiter in the asteroid belt.

Centaurs are a combination of both, and one in particular has left researchers Dr Charles Schambeau and Scientist Noemí Pinilla-Alonso scratching their heads.

They're almost like time capsules containing information about the formation of our solar system, though something sets Chiron aside.

Space Science And Exploration In 2025: What To Know – DW – 01/02

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While not technically "marooned," given there are regular crew and supply voyages that could return them at a later date, the pair of astronauts were forced to stretch their stay on the ISS from two weeks to, now, a minimum of nine months.

The astronauts have since joined Crew-9, a mission from SpaceX launched to the ISS to carry the two astronauts back home .

Crew-9 was originally planned to return to earth in February, but NASA announced in December it will delay the Crew-10 launch, which is set to replace Crew-9.

Crew-10 is being delayed by a month, meaning the astronauts should return to Earth in March if there are no further delays.

2025 will be the year the European Space Agency ( ESA ) begins analyzing Earth's ecosystems from space.

The FLuorescence EXplorer (FLEX) mission will provide global maps of plant health and stress. FLEX has a 3 1/2 year design lifetime from launch.

The satellite will include new instruments capable of measuring photosynthetic activity from space for the first time. The instrument, called FLORIS, will measure vegetation fluorescence to record photosynthesis on a mass scale to provide better understanding of how plant ecosystems affect the global carbon cycle.

A separate ESA mission launching in 2025 will also analyze Earth's forests. The Biomass mission will measure information about the state of our forests and how they are changing.

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Dog Robots Can Trek Through Mud Using Moose-inspired Hooves

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Many quadrupedal robots can adeptly handle uneven or sloped terrain , but only if the ground beneath them is relatively stable. Factor in slippery or muddy surroundings and four-legged machines may quickly falter or fail completely. But one engineering team believes they found a solution in mimicking animals often found in boggy habitats. According to a study published in Bioinspiration ⁘ Biomimetics by researchers at Estonia's Tallinn University of Technology (TalTech), dog bots could soon take their cues from giant moose .

"[M]ost robots cannot access a wide range of highly important terrestrial environments, including wetlands, bogs, coastal marshes, river estuaries and fields, which are abundant in nature," explained TalTech biorobotics professor and team lead, Maarja Kruusmaa, in an accompanying statement on January 2nd.

Ungulates (split-hooved animals like cattle and moose), however, are evolutionarily equipped to handle these often sticky situations. After conducting physical experiments observing actual moose feet, researchers found that cloven hooves are key to maneuvering through mud and similarly waterlogged terrain. This is due to the ability of split-hooves to both spread out and contract during each footfall. Each toe's exposed contact area increases and reduces as it steps into and out of muddy ground, thereby helping a moose to avoid sinking too far into the mire. But more important are the cloven hoof's suction properties.

"We found that the moose's hoof behaves similarly to a suction cup, like how you manage to stick your fingernail under its surface and break the suction force," said Simon Godon, a biorobotics doctoral candidate and study co-author.

Godon also likened mud's physical properties to wet bathroom tile as it sticks to your feet after stepping out of the shower. But unlike humans, a moose's shifting hooves better allow it to break that surface tension and avoid getting stuck in the muck.

Following their moose tests, researchers then designed silicone slippers for a quadrupedal robot. According to results from their lab analysis, the ungulate-inspired booties reduced sinkage depth by about 46 percent and lessened suction force by roughly the same amount. The accessories also lowered the machine's walking energy cost by as much as 70 percent.

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The Road Ahead For Distributed Solar In 2025

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According to the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), solar contributed 67% of all new electricity-generating capacity added to the U.S. grid in the first six months 2024. Thanks to federal incentives, domestic solar manufacturing has grown four times over in recent years, putting the U.S. in a strong position to meet its solar deployment goals with locally-produced panels.

American leadership in solar technology will likely continue to play a key role. U.S. companies, like First Solar, are making significant investments in innovative solar technologies, particularly in thin-film photovoltaic modules. This focus on advancing solar technology provides the U.S. with a competitive edge, even as global competitors push for cost-cutting solutions. As solar systems evolve to integrate storage solutions and microgrid capabilities, American ingenuity may help offset price advantages from abroad.

Furthermore, in recent years, many traditionally conservative states have become leaders in solar and energy storage, fueling job creation and economic growth. For example, Texas installed 5.5 GW of solar capacity in the first half of 2024, nearly doubling Florida's 2.9 GW. This surge in solar adoption emphasizes the growing role of renewable energy in national energy security, particularly in the face of extreme weather events that strain the power grid.

With the growing adoption of solar, SEIA has predicted 39,000 new manufacturing jobs by 2033 resulting from federal policies, with many of these jobs landing in red states. Solar and storage systems in these regions will be crucial to support the grid against climate-related disasters.

While tariffs can incentivize domestic production, they also risk raising energy prices for consumers, particularly if applied widely. Empirical data shows that the burden of tariff-related price hikes often falls on consumers. As the cost of imported solar equipment increases, utilities — which are not designed to absorb higher costs — tend to pass these increases on to their customers, including residential, commercial and industrial users.