Articles written by Marcia Dunn
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A total solar eclipse races across North America as clouds part along totality
MESQUITE, Texas (AP) — A chilly, midday darkness fell across North America on Monday as a total solar eclipse raced across the continent, thrilling those lucky enough to behold the spectacle through clear skies. Eclipse mania gripped all of M...
April's total solar eclipse is a month away. Here's why it's worth the watch and how to stay safe
The sun is about to pull another disappearing act across North America, turning day into night during a total solar eclipse. The peak spectacle on April 8 will last up to 4 minutes, 28 seconds in the path of total darkness — twice as long as the tota...
Toppled moon lander sends back more images, with only hours left until it dies
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — A moon lander that ended up on its side managed to beam back more pictures, with only hours remaining before it dies. Intuitive Machines posted new photos of the moon's unexplored south polar region Tuesday. The company's...
Private US spacecraft enters orbit around the moon ahead of landing attempt
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — A private U.S. lunar lander reached the moon and eased into a low orbit Wednesday, a day before it will attempt an even greater feat — landing on the gray, dusty surface. A smooth touchdown would put the U.S. back in bus...
Astronomers find what may be the universe's brightest object with a black hole devouring a sun a day
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Astronomers have discovered what may be the brightest object in the universe, a quasar with a black hole at its heart growing so fast that it swallows the equivalent of a sun a day. The record-breaking quasar shines 500 tr...
Saturn's Death Star-looking moon may have vast underground ocean
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Astronomers have found the best evidence yet of a vast, young ocean beneath the icy exterior of Saturn's Death Star lookalike mini moon. The French-led team analyzed changes in Mimas' orbit and rotation and reported W...
NASA's little helicopter on Mars has logged its last flight
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA's little Mars helicopter has flown its last flight. The space agency announced Thursday that the 4-pound (1.8-kilogram) chopper named Ingenuity can no longer fly because of rotor blade damage. While it remains u...
More delays for NASA's astronaut moonshots, with crew landing off until 2026
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Astronauts will have to wait until next year before flying to the moon and another few years before landing on it, under the latest round of delays announced by NASA on Tuesday. The space agency had planned to send four a...
Fuel leak forces US company to abandon moon landing attempt
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — A crippling fuel leak forced a U.S. company on Tuesday to give up on landing a spacecraft on the moon. Astrobotic Technology's lander began losing fuel soon after Monday's launch. The spacecraft also encountered p...
Moon landing attempt by US company appears doomed after 'critical' fuel leak
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — The first U.S. moon landing attempt in more than 50 years appeared to be doomed after a private company's spacecraft developed a "critical" fuel leak just hours after Monday's launch. Pittsburgh-based Astrobotic T...
US military space plane blasts off on another secretive mission expected to last years
The U.S. military's X-37B space plane blasted off Thursday on another secretive mission that's expected to last at least a couple of years. Like previous missions, the reusable plane resembling a mini space shuttle carried classified experiments....
Orange tabby cat named Taters steals the show in first video sent by laser from deep space
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — An orange tabby cat named Taters stars in the first video transmitted by laser from deep space, stealing the show as he chases a red laser light. The 15-second video was beamed to Earth from NASA's Psyche spacecraft, 19 m...
NASA spacecraft discovers tiny moon around asteroid during close flyby
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — The little asteroid visited by NASA's Lucy spacecraft this week had a big surprise for scientists. It turns out that the asteroid Dinkinesh has a dinky sidekick — a mini moon. The discovery was made during Wednesday's fly...
Virgin Galactic's first space tourists finally soar, an Olympian and a mother-daughter duo
TRUTH OR CONSEQUENCES, N.M. (AP) — Virgin Galactic rocketed to the edge of space with its first tourists Thursday, a former British Olympian who bought his ticket 18 years ago and a mother-daughter duo from the Caribbean. The space plane glided b...
NASA talks UFOs with public ahead of final report on unidentified flying objects
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA held its first public meeting on UFOs on Wednesday a year after launching a study into unexplained sightings and insisted it's not hiding anything. The space agency televised the four-hour hearing featuring an i...
Tokyo company loses contact with moon lander in likely crash
A Japanese company lost contact with its spacecraft moments before touchdown on the moon Wednesday, saying the mission had apparently failed. Communications ceased as the lander descended the final 33 feet (10 meters), traveling around 16 mph (25...
SpaceX giant rocket explodes minutes after launch from Texas
SOUTH PADRE ISLAND, Texas (AP) — SpaceX's giant new rocket exploded minutes after blasting off on its first test flight Thursday and crashed into the Gulf of Mexico. Elon Musk's company was aiming to send the biggest and most powerful rocket ever b...
Asteroid that could wipe out a city is near, but don't fear
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — An asteroid big enough to wipe out a city will zip harmlessly between Earth and the moon's orbit this weekend, missing both celestial bodies. Saturday's close encounter will offer astronomers the chance to study a space r...
What time is it on moon? Europe pushing for lunar time zone
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — With more lunar missions than ever on the horizon, the European Space Agency wants to give the moon its own time zone. This week, the agency said space organizations around the world are considering how best to keep t...
Space telescope uncovers massive galaxies near cosmic dawn
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Astronomers have discovered what appear to be massive galaxies dating back to within 600 million years of the Big Bang, suggesting the early universe may have had a stellar fast-track that produced these "monsters." W...
Jupiter's moon count jumps to 92, most in solar system
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Astronomers have discovered 12 new moons around Jupiter, putting the total count at a record-breaking 92. That's more than any other planet in our solar system. Saturn, the one-time leader, comes in a close second with 83...
Old NASA satellite falling from sky this weekend, low threat
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — A 38-year-old retired NASA satellite is about to fall from the sky. NASA said Friday the chance of wreckage falling on anybody is "very low." Most of the 5,400-pound (2,450-kilogram) satellite will burn up upon reentry, a...
Mars rover captures 1st sound of dust devil on red planet
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — What's a dust devil sound like on Mars? A NASA rover by chance had its microphone on when a whirling tower of red dust passed directly overhead, recording the racket. It's about 10 seconds of not only rumbling gusts of u...
Japanese company's lander rockets toward moon with UAE rover
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — A Tokyo company aimed for the moon with its own private lander Sunday, blasting off atop a SpaceX rocket with the United Arab Emirates' first lunar rover and a toylike robot from Japan that's designed to roll around up the...
NASA capsule on way to moon after launch by giant new rocket
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — A space capsule hurtled toward the moon Wednesday for the first time in 50 years, following a thunderous launch of NASA's mightiest rocket in a dress rehearsal for astronaut flights. No one was on board this debut flight,...
