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On Saturday China's first spacewalk took place by mission commander Zhai Zhigang who floated out of the orbiter module's hatch in the spacewalk, shown live on state broadcaster CCTV. Tethered to handles attached to the Shenzhou 7 ship's orbital module's exterior, Zhai remained outside for about 13 minutes before climbing back inside and closing the hatch behind him.
Read MoreChina's Shenzhou 7 spacecraft carrying a three-man crew lifted off today from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center and is now in Earth orbit. During the upcoming three-day mission, Chinese astronauts, called taikonauts, will launch a small satellite and conduct their country's first spacewalk. Shenzhou 7 and the body of the rocket that launched it will be visible to the naked eye as they orbit Earth.
Read MoreNASA invites everyone to "Send Your Name Around the Earth" and put your name in orbit for years to come. NASA's Glory satellite is the first mission dedicated to understanding the effects of particles in the atmosphere and the sun's variability on our climate.
Read MoreNASA's Mars Rover, Opportunity, is heading towards a crater more than 20 times larger than its home for the past two years. In order to accomplish this task Opportunity would need to drive approximately 7 miles to the southeast, matching the total distance it has traveled since landing on Mars in early 2004.
Read MoreThe European Space Agency's (ESA) XMM-Newton has uncovered a well-tuned periodic signal from a super-massive black hole lodged at the center of a galaxy, ending a long quest for such an object. The discovery provides scientists with a clearer picture on black hole accretion processes and an excellent tool to study active galactic nuclei (AGNs).
Read MoreWater is being blasted to pieces by a young star's laser-like jets, according to new observations from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope. The discovery provides a better understanding of how water is processed in emerging solar systems.
Read MoreNASA has a created a free Web-based educational product for anyone interested in learning, that is available across the country. NASA eClips consists of more than 55 short, 5-10 minute video segments, which are available on-demand via the Internet for the 2008-2009 school year.
Read MoreNASA has selected a Mars robotic mission that will provide information about the Red Planet's atmosphere, climate history, and potential habitability in greater detail than ever before. Called the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) spacecraft, the $485 million mission is scheduled for launch in late 2013.
Read MoreThis mosaic of two Cassini images shows Pan and Prometheus creating features in nearby rings. Pan (28 kilometers, or 17 miles across), in the Encke Gap at left, is trailed by a series of edge waves in the outer boundary of the gap.
Read MoreNASA's Phoenix Mars Lander has photographed several dust devils dancing across the arctic plain last week and sensed a dip in air pressure as one passed near the lander.
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