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Factbox-NASA's Artemis III crew: a test pilot, an Italian, a record-holder and a first-timer

Factbox-NASA's Artemis III crew: a test pilot, an Italian, a record-holder and a first-timer

June 9 (Reuters) - NASA on Tuesday named three U.S. astronauts and an Italian astronaut as the crew for its next Artemis mission, a docking demonstration involving three spacecraft in Earth's orbit and planned for next year.
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NASA Reveals Artemis III Crew for Key Moon Mission

NASA Reveals Artemis III Crew for Key Moon Mission

NASA has unveiled the crew for its Artemis III mission, which will test technologies essential for future moon landings. The mission includes astronauts Andre Douglas, Frank Rubio, Randy Bresnik, and Luca Parmitano. Scheduled for late 2027, the mission will focus on docking the Orion spacecraft with lunar landers in low-Earth orbit. This precursor mission aims to reduce risks before an actual lunar touchdown, planned for 2028. The Artemis III mission will launch from Florida and involve testing maneuvers crucial for future moon landings.
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NASA's Mars Sample Return Program Faces Funding Cuts Amid Global Space Race

NASA's Mars Sample Return Program Faces Funding Cuts Amid Global Space Race

NASA's Mars Sample Return (MSR) program has been effectively ended by a fiscal 2026 spending package that declined to fund it as a retrieval mission. Instead, a smaller $110 million Mars Future Missions line has been created for related technology development. This decision follows a projected cost overrun and potential delays, with the program's full cost estimated at $11 billion. Meanwhile, China and Japan are advancing their own sample-return missions targeting Mars, Phobos, and a near-Earth asteroid. NASA's Perseverance rover has collected approximately 30 samples from Mars, but there is currently no funded mission to retrieve them.
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NASA Announces Artemis III Crew to Test SpaceX and Blue Origin Lunar Landers

NASA Announces Artemis III Crew to Test SpaceX and Blue Origin Lunar Landers

NASA has named the crew for its upcoming Artemis III mission, which will test lunar landers from SpaceX and Blue Origin in orbit for the first time. The mission, scheduled for late next year, will include U.S. astronauts Andre Douglas, Frank Rubio, and Randy Bresnik, along with Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano from the European Space Agency. Randy Bresnik will serve as the mission commander, with Andre Douglas and Frank Rubio as mission specialists, and Luca Parmitano as the pilot. NASA astronaut Bob Hines has been named as a backup crew member.
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NASA Announces Artemis III Crew for Upcoming Moon Mission Testing

NASA Announces Artemis III Crew for Upcoming Moon Mission Testing

NASA has announced the crew for its Artemis III mission, which is set to test the flight and docking capabilities of a new lunar lander. The mission, scheduled for 2027, will include NASA astronauts Randy Bresnik, Andre Douglas, and Frank Rubio, along with Italian Space Agency's Luca Parmitano. This mission follows the Artemis II mission, which recently sent astronauts around the moon for the first time since the 1970s. The Artemis III mission will remain in low Earth orbit to test the docking of NASA's Orion spacecraft with a lunar lander developed by Blue Origin. However, Blue Origin recently faced a setback when a rocket explosion damaged its launchpad.
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NASA Announces Artemis III Crew and Mission Details for 2027 Lunar Test Flight

NASA Announces Artemis III Crew and Mission Details for 2027 Lunar Test Flight

NASA has announced the crew for the Artemis III mission, set for 2027, which will be a pivotal test flight in preparation for future lunar exploration. The mission will involve a series of complex tests in Earth orbit, including rendezvous and docking with test versions of lunar landers developed by Blue Origin and SpaceX. The crew includes NASA astronauts Randy Bresnik, Andre Douglas, and Frank Rubio, along with ESA astronaut Luca Parmitano. This mission marks the first time an ESA astronaut will participate in an Artemis mission. The Artemis III mission will utilize NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) to send the Orion spacecraft into low Earth orbit, where it will demonstrate critical docking capabilities. The mission is a precursor to Artemis IV, which aims to land astronauts on the lunar South Pole in 2028.
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Space Companies Apex, Axiom, and Impulse Secure Major Funding to Advance Space Technologies

Space Companies Apex, Axiom, and Impulse Secure Major Funding to Advance Space Technologies

Space Companies Apex, Axiom, and Impulse Secure Major Funding to Advance Space Technologies
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NASA's Artemis III Astronauts to Meet SpaceX and Blue Origin Landers in Earth Orbit

NASA's Artemis III Astronauts to Meet SpaceX and Blue Origin Landers in Earth Orbit

NASA has announced that the Artemis III mission, scheduled for 2027, will involve astronauts meeting two private spacecraft in Earth orbit. SpaceX and Blue Origin are both set to provide landers for this mission, which will serve as a precursor to Moon landings planned for the following year. John Couluris, Senior Vice President of Lunar Permanence at Blue Origin, expressed confidence in the readiness of their New Glenn rocket despite a recent explosion. The mission will see astronauts docking with Blue Origin's Mark 1 and SpaceX's Starship V3, with the Orion spacecraft facilitating these maneuvers. NASA aims for both landers to be ready for the Artemis IV Moon landing in 2028, with SpaceX's Starship slated for the trans-lunar injection. The Artemis III crew includes experienced astronauts such as NASA Commander Randy Bresnik and ESA Pilot Luca Parmitano.
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NASA Names Artemis III Crew for 2027 Moon Mission Docking Test

NASA Names Artemis III Crew for 2027 Moon Mission Docking Test

NASA has announced the crew for the Artemis III mission, scheduled for 2027, which will include a docking demonstration in Earth's orbit. The crew consists of U.S. astronauts Andre Douglas, Frank Rubio, Randy Bresnik, and Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano. This mission will test moon landers from SpaceX and Blue Origin, marking a significant step in NASA's Artemis program aimed at returning humans to the Moon. The mission will involve complex docking procedures, setting the stage for future lunar landings.
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International Space Station Crew Advances Bioprinting and Plant Growth Research

International Space Station Crew Advances Bioprinting and Plant Growth Research

The crew aboard the International Space Station (ISS) has commenced a week of scientific activities focused on bioprinting human cartilage and harvesting plants. NASA flight engineer Jessica Meir and her colleagues are utilizing the Kibo laboratory module's Life Science Glovebox to produce viable cartilage tissues, which could lead to on-demand implants for various health conditions. Concurrently, astronauts are harvesting alfalfa plants in the Columbus laboratory module to study plant growth in space, which is crucial for future long-duration missions. The crew is also conducting ultrasound vein scans to understand the effects of microgravity on human physiology.
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The Legacy of War of the Worlds Hanging Over Disclosure Day

The Legacy of War of the Worlds Hanging Over Disclosure Day

Explore how Orson Welles' 1938 'War of the Worlds' radio drama created an enduring fear of public panic that still shapes the U.S. approach to UAP/UFO disclosure.
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NASA's Swift Observatory to Extend Mission with Atmospheric Re-entry Boost

NASA's Swift Observatory to Extend Mission with Atmospheric Re-entry Boost

NASA's Swift Observatory, originally launched in 2004 as the Swift Gamma-ray Observatory, is set to receive a boost to extend its mission. The spacecraft, which was renamed in 2018 in honor of Neil Gehrels, is a multiwavelength observatory designed to study gamma-ray bursts. It has been a key player in time-domain astronomy and multimessenger astronomy, contributing to the study of cosmic phenomena such as black holes and comets. In January 2025, NASA identified that Swift would re-enter Earth's atmosphere by summer 2026. To prevent this and extend its operational life, NASA plans to boost the observatory, demonstrating a key capability for future space exploration.