Posts by 

Dave Adalian

Japanese rocket fails to make orbit, drops like a stone

The Japanese rocket H3 failed to reach orbit on its maiden flight on March 6, 2023. The spacecraft and its payload, a JAXA satellite, were lost.

Rockfall at Yosemite’s El Capitan caught on video

A visitor had a video camera handy during a rockfall at Yosemite's El Capitan on February 20, 2023. It happened during the annual firefall at Horsetail Falls.

Chinese Mars rover not moving. Is it kaput?

The Chinese Mars rover Zhurong has not moved since at least September 2022. Has its mission ended? There’s been no official word from the Chinese space agency.

Stranded ISS crew: New spacecraft launched

On Friday, February 24, 2023, Russia successfully launched a replacement Soyuz spacecraft for the stranded ISS crew to ride home in.

Starship fires (almost) all her engines

SpaceX performed a successful full-duration static test fire of the Starship Heavy Booster on Thursday, February 9, 2023.

Is a space junk disaster inevitable? Another close call

Two large pieces of Soviet-era space debris narrowly missed colliding in a space junk disaster on January 2023. Is a collision inevitable?

Starship aced a critical fueling test this week

SpaceX's Starship completed a milestone fueling test this week: 10 million pounds (4.5 million kg) or so of liquid fuels loaded into the stacked spacecraft.

NASA, DARPA: Nuclear rocket to Mars and beyond

NASA and DARPA will build a nuclear rocket to Mars. An uncrewed prototype could launch as early as 2027, they said.

Korean moon probe grabs spectacular images

A Korean moon probe - the Korea Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter aka Danuri ("moon enjoy") - has captured iconic black-and-white images of Earth and the moon.

Replacement Soyuz to bring home stranded ISS crew

An uncrewed replacement Soyuz capsule will fly to the ISS in February to provide a safe way home for a trio of temporarily stranded crew members.