Are We There Yet?

Thursday marks World Asteroid Day, a U.N.-sanctioned campaign to raise awareness of the scientific opportunities, and planetary threats, posed by asteroids. So we’re taking this week’s episode to explore asteroids.

From filling the gap left by a retiring International Space Station to a possible solution to a unique supply chain issue, commercial space leaders weigh in on the future of the industry.

A team of researchers received approval for a $35 million dollar mission to the moon. The group will explore an uncharted portion of the moon, which scientists say was formed by magma below the surface.

NASA needs new space suits. The agency wants to put people back on the moon in the 2020s, and to do it safely, it needs brand new space suits for use on the lunar surface. NASA is working with two private companies to design, develop and build the new suits -- at a price of up to $3.5 billion.

From MegaCon Orlando -- the science of NASA’s next moon missions.

What’s it like plummeting from space and landing…alive? We'll talk with Inspiration4 astronaut Chris Sembroski about the power of parachutes and how the technology helped get him back on the planet.

Boeing’s Starliner is set for yet another test mission, a critical step before NASA lets its astronauts fly to space in it. So what’s at stake for Boeing? And why is having two providers so important for NASA?

At the center of our galaxy lies a supermassive black hole. It’s a region of space where gravity is so strong nothing can escape it, not even light. While the name supermassive might make it seem like these things are easy to spot -- they’re really not.

With the first all-private space mission in the books, what's ahead for the commercial space economy? Plus, a look at the impacts to SpaceX after found Elon Musk announced plans to buy Twitter.

Every 10 years, the National Academies submits a report, outlining what it thinks NASA should focus on when it comes to planetary science efforts. Uranus came out the big winner.

It’s a busy week for space news. The first all-private crew is set to depart the space station after spending more than a week on board, a new crew of NASA astronauts is set to launch to the station this weekend, and the agency’s next mega moon rocket experienced some troubles during a test at its launch pad, prompting more delays. We’ll speak with NASA administrator Bill Nelson about these stories

It’s been a busy few weeks on the space beat. We’ll chat with Anthony Colangelo, he covers spaceflight and the aerospace industry on his podcast Main Engine Cutoff.

Some nine billion light years away, a pair of black holes are on a collision course. It’s a cosmic waltz that could come to an end in 10,000 years which will shake space and time. It’s now the second possible observation of two massive black holes colliding -- and scientists are eager to watch the destruction.

SpaceX is set to launch another crew of private astronauts from Kennedy Space Center, this time on a ten-day mission to the International Space Station. Researchers are taking advantage of the increased access to space -- and human subjects -- thanks to these private space missions.

NASA’s mega-rocket the Space Launch System has left the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center and made its way to a launch pad, ahead of an uncrewed mission around the moon and back later this year. It’s the first time a moon-class rocket has seen Launch Complex 39B since the days of Apollo and marks the start of NASA’s newest moonshot missions called Artemis.

Next week, Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket is set to take 6 people to the edge of space and back. Central Florida married couple Sharon and Marc Hagle will be on the flight from West Texas. Sharon Hagle is the founder and CEO of SpaceKids Global, a non-profit organization aimed at getting kids, especially girls, interested and excited about STEM learning. She hopes to share her experience in space with future explorers -- and highlight all the different career paths that lead to space.

It seems like a lot more people are going to space these days. Commercial companies are not only sending NASA astronauts into space, they’re giving ordinary people with the right amount of cash the chance to fly in space, too.

Tensions between the U.S. and Russia are high as the U.S. imposed strict sanctions in the wake of the Russian military’s invasion of Ukraine, but some 150 miles above Earth an important partnership between the U.S. and Russia remains: the International Space Station. Historically, the partnership between the two countries has transcended political tension here on Earth. But how long will that last?

Dr. Sian Proctor was one of four civilians to head to space last year thanks to SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule. The mission called Inspiration 4 sent the crew on a three-day orbital trip and back.

NASA’s Perseverance rover is celebrating one year on Mars. The robot explorer arrived last year after a seven month journey from Cape Canaveral in Florida. It’s on the hunt for evidence of ancient life on Mars and is tasked with selecting and preparing samples of Martian rocks to send back to Earth.