Firefly Blue Ghost lands private craft on the moon

Blue Origin, Jeff Bezos’ aerospace company, sent its first passengers to space in 2021

Founded in 2000, Bezos spent many years working on the company as a side project before it became more well-known around 2004, when a plot of land in Texas was purchased as a launch site for the company’s rockets. He has said that the goal of Blue Origin is to build “reusable space vehicles.” This resource details what passengers experience from takeoff to landing on a Blue Origin flight.

SpaceShipOne was the first privately built spacecraft to reach the boundary of space

The rocket-powered aircraft was built by Richard Branson's company Virgin Galactic. The English business magnate has described being inspired to go to space since he was a child watching NASA's moon landings.

The Artemis program to bring humans to the moon for the first time since 1972

Using NASA's next-generation megarocket, the Space Launch System, Artemis I will take an uncrewed spacecraft on a 42-day journey around the moon. Subsequent missions plan to land the first woman on the lunar surface.

Photographer catches a 'once in a blue moon' shot

A rare "super blue moon" occurred in August 2023, a phenomenon which will not occur again until 2037. Photographer Andrew McCarthy caught a stunning image of the larger-than-normal orb with an ironic twist: a JetBlue flight silhouetted against the...

The Polaris Dawn was a privately crewed spaceflight

SpaceX's Crew Dragon capsule Resilience spent five days in low Earth orbit as part of the first of three planned missions under the name Polaris Dawn. The historic journey took participants farther away from our planet than anyone has been since the Apollo missions.

Watch a documentary on what the first 10,000 days of colonizing the moon look like

Alongside the construction of the first lunar base with help from SpaceX's Starship Human Landing System, transported astronauts would establish a sustainable human presence through the construction of lunar dust shields, light-bending towers, and 3D-printed habitats.

The Apollo program built US space technology and showcased its Cold War dominance

Beyond landing humans on the moon for the first time, Apollo served to advance rocket engineering and guidance systems through crewed and uncrewed missions. By Apollo 15, the Lunar Roving Vehicle was developed and driven on the moon.

A gallery of shots taken during the lunar flyby of Artemis 2

On April 6, 2026, the four-person Artemis 2 crew took photos of "earthset" and "earthrise" from the Orion spacecraft window during their lunar flyby. It was the first time humans had flown around the moon in over 50 years.

Ahead of constructing a lunar base as part of the Artemis program, NASA will send a fleet of hopping drones to scout the moon's south pole.

China developed an artificial closed ecosystem in preparation for a future lunar base

Yuegong-1, also known as Moon Palace 1, was a Beijing facility where volunteers simulated life on a colony and conducted experiments on bioregenerative life support systems to assess their viability in an off-Earth environment. The longest experiment at the 0.04-acre facility lasted 370 days.

As of 2022, Blue Origin, Virgin Galactic, and SpaceX are the primary space tourism companies

Blue Origin offers 11-minute suborbital flights for $28M, while Virgin Galactic provides a 90-minute suborbital flight for $450,000. SpaceX offers orbital flights for $55M, including trips to the International Space Station, and plans to offer civilians trips to the moon by 2030.

Falcon 9's first stage is able to land within a 30-foot diameter target consistently

SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket releases its reusable first stage hundreds of miles above the Earth's surface as it travels thousands of mile per hour. The stage often then lands on an autonomous ocean drone in the middle of the sea.

Spacecraft remnants and human waste left behind on the moon add to the trash in space

As more countries reach the moon with successful probe landings and unsuccessful crashes, more materials are left behind, adding to the amount of trash that needs to be retrieved. A United Nations treaty declared the moon a common heritage of humanity, exempting any one country from exclusive responsibility for cleanup.

The first flight on Mars carried a piece of the Wright plane with it

In April 2021, the solar-powered helicopter Ingenuity—attached to NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover—flew in what became the first controlled flight on a planet other than Earth. Carried with it was a piece of fabric from the famous 1903 Wright Flyer, a symbol of Ingenuity’s continuation of the Wright tradition.

Watch the full broadcast of humanity's first walk on the moon

On the night of July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong stepped down the lunar module's ladder onto the moon's surface. The broadcast was watched by an estimated 650 million people—about a fifth of the then global population.

Overcoming industry skeptics, SpaceX provides low-cost, high-publicity spaceflights

From recovering and reusing rocket components to launching a mannequin and Tesla into orbit to the tune of David Bowie's "Starman," Elon Musk drove public interest and government contracts to his company as he transformed space launches into spectacles.

Watch the hypersonic flight of a reusable aircraft

Stratolaunch completed a second hypersonic flight of its Talon-A2 autonomous vehicle, showcasing reusable hypersonic aircraft capabilities. The aircraft carried payloads and Department of Defense experiments while achieving Mach 5 speeds.

Anticipating moon tourism by 2000, Pan Am issued 'First Moon Flights' club cards

More than 93,000 cards were issued between 1968 and 1971, creating a waitlist that began when Gerhard Pistor, an Austrian journalist, visited a Viennese travel agency to request a flight to the moon. The cards were issued at no cost and numbered in the order they were issued.

The Polaris Dawn program led to the first commercial spacewalk

As part of the Polaris program, this first mission included a crew comprising astronauts and SpaceX engineers, who conducted scientific experiments and cultural outreach, such as raising funds for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

Learn about the missions of the Artemis program, which aims to return humanity to the moon and develop the technology for future human space exploration.

Spy balloons. UFOs. What else is up there?

The appearance and downing of a Chinese surveillance balloon brought the concept of high-altitude floating aircraft into the public consciousness. While sparking a diplomatic row, it also revealed how many objects—nefarious or benign—are...

Hear how the first moon landing was saved

This podcast series explores Apollo 11 through firsthand stories from the engineers, mission controllers, and astronauts who made the moon landing possible, culminating in 13 minutes of NASA archive audio leading up to the landing.

The crew of Artemis II captured a photograph of Earth setting as they orbited the moon

On April 6, 2026, the Artemis II astronauts captured a striking image of Earth setting as their spacecraft orbited the Moon, echoing the iconic Earthrise photo taken by Apollo 8's Bill Anders 58 years earlier.

Scientists used to speculate about life on the moon

In the 17th century, Galileo's observations suggested the moon could be inhabited, leading to fictional speculations about lunar life. In the 19th century, stories were published claiming the discovery of various creatures, including human bats. The Apollo missions in the 20th century explored the possibility of life there, but further exploration showed this idea to be less likely than before.

Why are we finally returning to the moon after 50 years?

After 50 years, NASA is heading back to the moon. Artemis missions will push beyond Apollo, landing astronauts on the moon's south pole by 2027. But why the long wait? Budget cuts, shifting priorities, and outdated tech stalled lunar exploration—until now. With new goals and modern tech, NASA is ready to return.

Apollo 11’s design relied on shedding parts to reach, land on, and leave the moon

Despite Apollo 11 starting as a 3,000-ton spacecraft, the only part of it that returned to Earth was the small command module, which splashed down in the Pacific Ocean carrying three astronauts and moon rocks.

A lunar 'satellite catapult' revives a 50-year-old idea for launching rockets

Elon Musk has proposed building a mass driver on the moon to fling satellites into space, exploiting low gravity to cut fuel and costs. The concept dates to 1970s space-settlement studies, highlighting how older industry ideas are resurfacing amid today's AI and space-infrastructure race.

The space race of the 21st century is focused on a permanent lunar outpost

After decades of dormancy, NASA and SpaceX hope the Artemis program will provide opportunities for lunar resource extraction. Countries like India, China, and the UAE have also shown interest in developing future lunar economies.

An unedited interview with the first person to float freely in space

Astronaut Bruce McCandless was the first person to ever float freely in space, completely untethered from a shuttle. How did he enter the field? What are his thoughts on current space travel? Listen to his experience and opinion firsthand in this 19-minute video.

SpaceX successfully caught a rocket booster in mid-air

As part of the fifth test flight of its Starship system, the Super Heavy booster used high-speed navigation systems, grid fins, and Raptor engines to steer itself onto the mechanical arms of a tower called Mechazilla.

The US once had a plan to nuke the moon

In the 1950s, the US considered detonating a hydrogen bomb on the moon as part of a Cold War show of force. Known as Project A119, the classified plan aimed to create a visible explosion from Earth to signal American dominance in the Space Race.

Simulating the moon's surface in the desert

And why is the next cohort headed there? The geological conditions in Flagstaff, Arizona, can easily echo those of the moon, making the area a prime spot to train astronauts. This article explains how scientists crafted these training grounds and why astronomers are drawn to the nearly century-old city.

The US once had a plan to nuke the moon

In the 1950s, the US considered detonating a hydrogen bomb on the moon as part of a Cold War show of force. Known as Project A119, the classified plan aimed to create a visible explosion from Earth to signal American dominance in the space race.

How NASA plans to build a lunar base, from roads to habitats

The Apollo program aspires to return humans to the moon—and to build humanity's first permanent habitat on its surface. The project involves complex construction plans, including creating roads from moon dust, baking bricks to build habitats, and more.

A quick guide to everything SpaceX

SpaceX has single-handedly reignited commercial space exploration, with its reusable rockets, broadband satellite constellation, and plans to populate Mars. The company has gone from a mere idea in 2002 to the world's most well-known private space company. Learn the basics about this pivotal company with this quick guide from CNET.

SpaceX was built to achieve Elon Musk's vision of making humans an interplanetary species.

Only 34% of Americans supported the Apollo program in 1967

After a fire killed three astronauts on the launchpad of Apollo 1, the public became ambivalent about funding the multibillion-dollar program until the successful moon landing in 1969. The landers alone cost $388M, while each spacesuit cost $100,000.

Relive the Apollo 11 moon landing minute by minute

This interactive project lets you experience Apollo 11 in real time—listening to exchanges between the astronauts and NASA's Mission Control as they guided humanity's first journey to the lunar surface and safely home.

Before the first human spaceflight in 1961, scientists sent fruit flies, monkeys, and dogs into space.

Experience the Apollo 11 mission in VR

Take one small step today and experience the historic moon-landing through VR. This video showcases how VR is allowing the public to travel through space through the eyes of those who lived through it.

The space race was a Cold War rivalry between the US and the Soviet Union that culminated in the US landing astronauts on the moon in 1969.

If there were a swimming pool on the moon, where gravity is about one-sixth that of Earth, championship finswimmers could potentially launch themselves up to 5 meters (16 feet) in the air.

In 2024, China announced plans to establish an international lunar research station

The strategy, which runs until 2050, focuses on advancing space science, fostering technological innovation, and exploring habitable planets and extraterrestrial life, beginning with landing astronauts on the moon before 2030.

John Glenn's Friendship 7 flight finally put the US in orbit in February 1962

After the Soviets took the lead in the space race, John Glenn's three-orbit Friendship 7 mission on February 20, 1962, made him the first American to orbit Earth. This NASA anniversary piece delivers a minute-by-minute account—from launch delays to splashdown and recovery.

Bluesky is gaining momentum by offering users full control over their experience

Controversial changes made by Elon Musk to X have inspired an exodus from that platform and growth in Bluesky. The latter's open-source model gives users customizable feeds, portability between services, and a "billionaire-proof" design that prevents corporate takeover.

Space tourism opportunities have been explored since the end of the Apollo era

In the 1970s, Rockwell International, a NASA contractor, and others investigated manufacturing passenger modules that could fit into the Space Shuttle's payload bay. NASA also opened spaceflights to nongovernment professionals, but many such programs were ended after the Challenger disaster, which killed the first Teacher in Space participant.

Apollo astronauts left items in the moon's 'toss zone,' including golf balls, family photos, and bags of human waste, to make room for lunar rocks.

Elon Musk's $100M investment in SpaceX was lost to three failed rocket launches

The attempts with Falcon 1 endangered the company's future but provided valuable information from which to iterate and follow up with the successful first privately funded orbital launch in history and multiple ISS resupply missions.

Watch the first-ever footage of a ghost shark

In 2009, the pointy-nosed blue chimaera was filmed swimming in the deep sea. That same year, researchers first observed them off the coast of California and Hawaii, after they had previously been found only in the Southern Hemisphere.

Visualizing Earth's space garbage

An unsavory byproduct of humanity's brilliant exploration of space, the Moon, and more, is the rapid production of space debris floating around in orbit. Its estimated over 25,000 objects are in orbit, a number that grows everyday as satellites are decommissioned, rockets enter orbit, and more. Now, you can visualize what this debris looks like from a zoomed-out perspective with this brief video.