Sunday, December 31, 2023

Navaho Indians attempt to claim ownership of the Moon, delay Vulcan launch Glenn Reynolds is pretty sure that someone is looking for a payday. I wonder if the Navajo are going to try to go to court to get their way. In any case, this blatant claim of ownership of the moon is a violation of the Outer Space Treaty.
Former Rep Eddie Bernice Johnson just passed. She was a well know player in space policy, albeit not always to the benifit of the cause of space exploration, as I note here. In any case, RIP.
Top 7 space technology stories of 2023
Now, it’s America’s turn to land on the moon. Again.

2024 will usher in America’s turn to once again land on the moon.

First, the Astrobotic Peregrine lander will launch on a United Launch Alliance Vulcan-Centure rocket, currently scheduled for Jan. 8. The Peregrine will take a leisurely, fuel-saving voyage to the moon before attempting to land on Feb. 23.

Next, the Intuitive Machines Nova-C lander will launch sometime in mid-February on board a SpaceX Falcon 9 and will take a quicker path to the moon. The launch date will set up a lunar landing attempt sometime in late February, within days of the Peregrine landing attempt.

US Navy sinks 3 Houthi boats attacking merchant ship in Red Sea, US says
Space race heats up again
Mexico eagerly prepares for historic first Latin American lunar mission: 'Elevates the name of our country'
Japan's ispace shows off a tiny moon lander for its 2nd moon mission in 2024
A NASA Spacecraft Just Had A Close Encounter With A Volcanic Moon—See The Stunning First Image
Jaw-Dropping News: Boeing and Lockheed Just Matched SpaceX's Prices
SpaceX test fires giant Starship booster  — and spaceship  —  for 3rd test flight
Life lessons from NASA legends
UFOs, commercial spaceflight and rogue tomatoes: Recapping 2023's wild year in space
NASA's Curiosity rover films from dawn to dusk on Mars during downtime
The Man from Mars: The Asteroid Mining Caper #CommissionEarned
2023 Was a Wash. 2024 Could Be Historic
America’s obligation to Ukraine began with nukes in the early 1990s
The political winners and losers of 2023

Saturday, December 30, 2023

How Japan’s moon-landing attempt in January will affect Chandrayaan 4
SpaceX plans first launch of the new year out of Vandenberg Space Force Base
SpaceX sets new rocket record with 96 successful launches in 2023
NASA drones offer glimpse of a future with self-piloted ‘air taxis’
‘God of Chaos’: NASA sends spacecraft to study asteroid approaching earth
10 space missions to look out for in 2024
The Year in Computer Science
The Gabriella Doria Stories (3 book series) #CommissionEarned
Electric Mandates Have California Truckers Charging Overtime
Shocker: Sanity Prevails in New York Hochul vetoes bills that would drive employers from the state.
Maine Casts Its Ballot for Trump: The Democratic secretary of state plays into the former President’s hands by blocking his candidacy.

Friday, December 29, 2023

UAE launches space academy for Emiratis to boost growing sector
Moderna’s mRNA cancer vaccine works even better than thought
The first EV with a lithium-free sodium battery hits the road in January
Chandrayaan, Aditya-L1, Gaganyaan: The year India reached the Moon - and aimed for the Sun
The 10 biggest science stories of 2023 – chosen by scientists
The U.S. and Israel Need to Take Iran On Directly
A Brother on the Moon CommissionEarned
California’s Fast-Food Casualties
Tort Law vs. the Anti-Israel Protesters
SpaceX Falcon Heavy launches X-37B plane, one of the US military’s most fascinating secrets

Thursday, December 28, 2023

Moderna’s mRNA cancer vaccine works even better than thought
NASA explains fire experiments on the ISS and why they matter
Top 7 military technology stories of 2023
Earth's intense gravity may rip space rocks apart, reducing the risk of 'planet killer' asteroids
What Makes Cheddar Cheese Taste So Good?
Five ways science conquered our beliefs about the Roman Empire in the year MMXXIII
Japan is sending a rover to Mars's moon Phobos in 2024
6 exciting space missions set to launch in 2024
NASA straps dreams of 2024 moon mission to SpaceX rockets
The Last Moonwalker and Other Stories #CommissionEarned
NASA outlines plan to deploy burrowing 'cryobots' on icy moons of Saturn and Jupiter
Japan's SLIM lander beams moon images home before Jan. 19 landing
Injection of “smart insulin” regulates blood glucose levels for one week

Wednesday, December 27, 2023

NASA-FUNDED PRIVATE MOON RACE BEGINS WITH DUELING LANDERS
Japan Astronaut Likely to Land on Moon in U.S.-Led Program; Tokyo Aiming for Late 2020s
Space Diplomacy: Which Lucky Nation Will Join NASA in Return To Walk the Moon

At a recent meeting of the National Space Council, Vice President Kamala Harris announced that one non-American astronaut will walk on the moon by 2030. She thus confirmed what many suspected would be the case ever since the NASA Artemis program began.

Is Rocket Lab Stock a Good SpaceX Investment Alternative?
How NASA's VIPER rover could revolutionize moon exploration with AI mission
eVince microreactor boasts 8+ years of nuclear power without using water
‘Monty Python’ Star John Cleese Compares Former President Donald Trump To Nazi Party Leader Adolf Hitler In Bizarre Social Media Post
OPEC Influence Wavers as U.S. Shale Roars Back
The Moon, Mars, and Beyond #CommissionEarned
Democrats Prepare for Convention of Regret
Ukraine’s Crimea Offensive
Polar bear fur-inspired sweater is thinner than a down jacket — and just as warm

Tuesday, December 26, 2023

Israeli mom who stalled Hamas captors with cookies shares life-saving recipe
Japan’s SLIM successfully enters lunar orbit, gears up for precision moon landing
The President and the Freedom Fighter: Abraham Lincoln, Frederick Douglass, and Their Battle to Save America's Soul #CommissionEarned
US nuclear fusion laboratory repeatedly achieves net energy gain
New technology can rejuvenate and extend the life of old solar panels
Ronald Reagan and the Space Frontier #CommissionEarned
This new bladeless fan is the future of wind turbines
Floating wind tech will become affordable at scale thanks to this partnership
Why is America Going Back to the Moon #CommissionEarned
New research offers novel approach to remove excess carbon dioxide
Scientist Discover How to Convert CO2 into Powder That Can Be Stored for Decades
Why is it So Hard to Go Back to the Moon? #CommissionEarned
How We Deterred Iran in the Gulf Last Time
Benjamin Netanyahu: Our Three Prerequisites for Peace
Charter Schools Keep Winning Students From Union Schools

Sunday, December 24, 2023

Biden’s unnecessary feud against Musk imperils America’s space effort

Two facts have become apparent about the relationship between Elon Musk and the Biden administration.

First, NASA and the military love how SpaceX has lowered the cost and raised the reliability of launching things into space. NASA is depending on SpaceX’s Starship Human Landing System to land astronauts on the moon for the first time since 1972.

Second, by all accounts, the Biden administration appears to have it in for the richest man in the world. Musk doesn’t think much of the current president and has publicly said that he would vote against him. The feud has the potential to derail the Artemis return to the moon program.

Apollo 8's Christmas Eve 1968 Message

Christmas in space: How Apollo 8 mission saved 1968

Japan likely to send 1st astronaut to Moon under U.S.-led project
Elon Musk says at SpaceX ‘we never think about the quarter’—and he’s in no rush to spin off Starlink given the ‘tremendous distraction’ of being public like Tesla
NASA Has a Slew of Fascinating Space Missions on the Horizon
NASA report studies options for a future national laboratory in orbit after ISS
Scientists are developing a vaccine that protects against high cholesterol
The Man from Mars: The Asteroid Mining Caper #CommissionEarned
Enjoy the Ride
55 years after Apollo 8's Christmas at the moon, a new Artemis crew readies for launch
How a sitting Democratic Connecticut mayor could be ousted after 'shocking' evidence

Saturday, December 23, 2023

I Adopted 100 Dogs!

Musk’s “Thermonuclear Lawsuit” – Game-Changer For Conservatives?
Two Private U.S. Moon Landers Prepare for Historic Launches
SpaceX dominated private spaceflight in 2023, but its competitors (mostly) aren't quitting
How NASA Gets a Turkey to Space for Holiday Meals
NASA report studies options for a future national laboratory in orbit after ISS
THIS STARTUP IS DEVELOPING A FUSION PROPULSION DRIVE FOR DEEP SPACE TRAVEL THAT COULD REACH MARS IN JUST TWO MONTHS
Don’t Let AI Fears Ruin Christmas
The Gabriella Doria Stories #CommissionEarned
Anti-Zionism Is Deadlier Than Antisemitism
The Great Blue to Red State Migration Continues
Haley gets good news as she looks to upset Trump in New Hampshire

Thursday, December 21, 2023

The Arrival and the Reunion (Remastered)

The Multifront Attack on Elon Musk
In 2023, space missions explored the moon, asteroids and more
SpaceX fires up giant Starship rocket ahead of 3rd test flight
Using 'waste' product from recent NASA research, scientists create transformative nanomaterials
Which is better for cardiometabolic health: Fasting-mimicking or a Mediterranean diet?
The Last Moonwalker and Other Stories #CommissionEarned

NASA’s moon landing mission will include a non-American, Harris says
The Folly of Colorado’s Trump Disqualification
Using AI, MIT researchers identify a new class of antibiotic candidates

Tuesday, December 19, 2023

The future of heart health: Researchers develop vaccine to lower cholesterol
Launch success brings Blue Origin closer to resuming crewed suborbital space trips
US Congress recommends placing assets at Lagrange points to counter China
Hunter Biden Worried He May Have to Leave the U.S. If Trump Is Elected in 2024
Elon Musk Moves to #1 on Joe Biden's Enemies List
Elon Musk Advocates for a Living Base in Space, Envisions Moon and Mars Colonisation
'Apollo 13' moon disaster movie hits a new high for film fans
NASA just beamed a cat video to Earth from 19 million miles away in space
Why is America Going Back to the Moon #CommissionEarned

How California chose to become unaffordable

Let's talk about a future on Mars with Dr. Zubrin

Woke Students Will Outgrow It
How to Make Russia Pay for Ukraine

Sunday, December 17, 2023

Haley gains on Trump in latest New Hampshire poll
NASA and China are competing for space allies in the Middle East

Recently, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson visited the United Arab Emirates to discuss the possibility of including Emirati astronauts on future Artemis expeditions to the moon. In the meantime, China has signed with Egypt in a series of space cooperation agreements, including participation in Beijing’s proposed International Lunar Research Station.

Sam Bankman-Fried, Brush Up Your Shakespeare
Wokeness wrecked Disney. What's next?
Bill Maher offers 'dose of realism' in telling Palestinians that Israel is going 'nowhere'
Moons around Uranus may suddenly develop atmospheres in the spring
A made-in-Japan solution for space junk that goes against the grain
The Gabriella Doria Stories #Ad
Jeff Bezos says Elon Musk’s SpaceX will be successful ‘for sure’ but there’s ‘room for a bunch of winners’ in space—including Blue Origin
SpaceX Falcon Heavy launch of X-37B space plane now targeted for Dec. 28
Blast Off to Innovation: Dream Chaser’s Thrilling Testing Phase at NASA

Saturday, December 16, 2023

Should Houston secede from Texas? Ken Hoffman imagines the great state of H-Town
No wonder Elon Musk is starting his own school — higher education has lost public faith
Trump should pick Haley as VP, McCarthy says

In a way that makes a lot of sense, with Trump coopting his chief rival and combining the two factions of the Republican party, Haley would serve in the second Trump term the same role that Pence did in the first, as the sober, reassuring figure compared to the turbulent Bad Orange Man. Such a ticket would blow Biden out of office like a hurricane.

Sierra Space’s Dream Chaser New Station Resupply Spacecraft for NASA
NASA Geologist Paves the Way for Building on the Moon
NASA identifies 17 exoplanets with possible subsurface oceans
Nasa astronauts spend much of the week ‘thinking of ways they might die’
John Kerry's coal crusade condemns billions to poverty
US nuclear-fusion lab enters new era: achieving ‘ignition’ over and over
Children of Apollo #CommissionEarned
Earth’s first space gynaecologist explains how humans will reproduce in future
Why 2025 Can Be a Good Year for Ukraine
The Joy of the Boston Tea Party, 250 Years Later

Friday, December 15, 2023

Jeff Bezos plays down AI dangers and says one trillion humans could live in huge cylindrical space stations
Electron returns to flight with successful launch of Japanese radar imaging satellite
Jeff Bezos says what we’re all thinking: “Blue Origin needs to be much faster”
ARTEMIS II CREW MEETS WITH BIDEN AND HARRIS
Investing in Space: How to prepare shareholders with a moon landing on the way
SpaceX blasts FCC as it refuses to reinstate Starlink’s $886 million grant
NASA Teases "Exciting Organic Molecular" Results From Asteroid Bennu Sample
NASA study finds life-sparking energy source and molecule at Enceladus
Starbase general manager discusses future plans at invite-only Brownsville event
This Japanese company wants to power rockets with cow dung
Most ‘Transgender’ Kids Turn Out to Be Gay
The FCC Ambushes Musk’s Starlink
A Brother on the Moon #Ad

Biden’s Rising Tension With Israel
Extracting uranium from seawater as another source of nuclear fuel
Amazon’s Project Kuiper confirms its super-fast satellite communication tech works in space

Wednesday, December 13, 2023

Cuts at the top of Roskosmos signal slow demise
House committee debates space mining
Russian army casualties in Ukraine estimated at 315,000 through war
Rare Dolphin Spotted With ‘Hooked’ Flippers Defies Scientists’ Expectations
Yes, Anti-Zionism Is Antisemitism
Scientists and space agencies are shooting for the Moon – 5 essential reads on modern lunar missions
Perseverance: Nasa's Mars rover celebrates 1,000 days of science
David Sinclair’s Group Reverses Glaucoma in Mice
The Moon, Mars, and Beyond #Ad

Scientists quantum entangle individual molecules for the first time
After 15 months Blue Origin’s New Shepard spacecraft will finally fly again
‘Biocomputer’ combines lab-grown brain tissue with electronic hardware

Tuesday, December 12, 2023

Americans Back Israel's War on Hamas, Poll Finds
Today, on Tuesday, December 12, at 10 pm easter, 7 pm pacific, I will be on the Space Show podcast with Dr. David Livingston to discuss the year that was and the year ahead in space. Listen live on the Space Show website.
Israel deploys world’s toughest all-female ‘Cheetah Battalion’ on secret op in heart of Gaza to hunt for Hamas’s leaders
Fetterman Says if We Want Peace, Israel Needs to Be Able to Destroy Hamas
To Beat China, Joe Biden Must Support Fossil Fuels
Why is America Going Back to the Moon #AD

More grass, less asphalt. The best recipe for trees to provide ecosystem services
Cheer, Cheer for Old Notre-Dame Cathedral
Hamas’s Oct. 7 Attack Made Israel Stronger

Monday, December 11, 2023

Polaris Dawn rescheduled for April
Orbit Fab and ispace to collaborate on lunar propellant harvesting and delivery
From the Colossus of Rhodes to the Statue of Zeus: AI reimagines how ancient Seven Wonders of the World that were destroyed by war and natural disasters thousands of years ago would look like today
Rolls-Royce unveils mock-up of future Moon reactor
NASA's Webb Stuns With New High-Definition Look at Exploded Star
New app from Microsoft narrates the world for blind and low vision people
Why is it So Hard to Go Back to the Moon? #Ad

Trump as Dictator Is a Classic Case of Projection
Victory Seems Not to Be an Option for Biden
Israel’s Message in Gaza to Iran and Hezbollah

Sunday, December 10, 2023

Henry Kissinger and the birth of space diplomacy

Kissinger also had a role in creating space exploration as a tool of diplomacy. The strategy fit neatly into the policy of détente that he and President Richard Nixon devised to manage the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union.

One in five young Americans think the Holocaust is a myth

I remember raging about Holocaust deniers in the late 70s to my Jewish girlfriend. Surprisingly, she was nonchallant about it, quipping, "Then where did half my European relatives get to?" I miss her. She died of cancer in Canada about nine years ago.

Scientists develop potential new drug treatment for multiple sclerosis
John Whitmire elected Houston mayor, defeating congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee

Whitmire was not my first choice, but he is light years better than that evil woman. Houston dodged a huge missile.

Rolls-Royce unveils a concept nuclear reactor that could one day power a colony on the moon
The Gabriella Doria Stories #Ad
SpaceX Opened Up Space. Now It’s ‘Near Monopolistic.’

Related: Is Elon Musk’s SpaceX the rocket company to rule them all?

The scientific and cultural impact of the International Space Station after 25 years

Related: Has the science on NASA’s International Space Station been worth the money?

NASA’s Psyche captures its “first light,” continues testing other instruments

Friday, December 08, 2023

Don’t trash the International Space Station

NASA and its international partners intend to deorbit the International Space Station sometime around 2030. The ISS, the greatest engineering achievement in human history, would become a magnificent fireball streaking across the skies over the North Pacific. Much of it would burn up in the upper atmosphere, and the remains would splash into the sea.

We believe the deorbit plan is depressing, wasteful, environmentally undesirable, and most importantly, dishonoring of all those who built this magnificent structure, which is a testament to human ingenuity and international cooperation.

A Moral Rot at Rice University
Hunter Goes Under the Bus
John Kerry wants to abolish coal by government fiat

Recently, John Kerry , a former Democratic senator, former secretary of state, failed presidential candidate, and current climate envoy for the Biden administration, rode his private jet to the United Nations COP28 conference in Dubai and strongly suggested that no new coal-fired power plants should be built anywhere in the world. Moreover, he said, existing coal plants should be decommissioned as fast as possible.

Why is there so much military interest in the moon?
Genome Editing Reverses Autistic Behaviors in Mice
Hamas fighters surrender in droves, and their photos tell an interesting story
Axiom Space opens new headquarters at Houston Spaceport
A Brother on the Moon #ad

The Peril of Abandoning Ukraine
Texas and the Politics of School Choice
John Kerry and CO2 Emissions Reality

Thursday, December 07, 2023

Hunter Biden indicted on tax crimes by special counsel

They got Al Capone on tax charges.

Rethink the Mars Program: Robert Zubrin has some ideas.
India sets sights on a moon base by 2047
DARPA picks 14 companies for lunar architecture study
In last night's debate, Ron DeSantis mentioned President Calvin Coolidge as his inspiration, certainly an outside the box choice. For further understanding, by all means read Coolidge by Amity Shales. #ad

This nuclear-powered probe will help NASA look for life on frozen worlds
Three robotic missions target Moon landings over one week in January
It looks like Elon Musk's SpaceX is now worth $175 billion – that's more than Disney or Comcast
NASA commemorates 25th anniversary of International Space Station: ‘Absolutely amazing’
SpaceX plans key NASA demonstration for next Starship launch
Qubit by qubit, the quantum computers of tomorrow are coming into being
The Political Price of Anti-Israel Protests
The Last Moonwalker and Other Stories #ad

DEI Drives Campus Antisemitism
Joe Biden’s Ukraine Emergency
Are your organs ageing well? The blood holds clues

Wednesday, December 06, 2023

Australia's first Moon rover to be named Roo-ver, after public competition receives more than 8,000 submissions
RIP Norman Lear
India reveals that it has returned lunar spacecraft to Earth orbit
Disinformation starts at the top — with America’s elites
Start of new Space Race? First private spacecraft will land on moon next month
New Catalyst Completely Breaks Down Durable Plastic Pollution in Minutes
Nasa and UAE in talks to send Emirati astronauts to the Moon

All is proceeding as I foresaw.

‘There will be a point where we solve aging – this decade is that moment in time’
Are Americans in the Mood for More Trump?
The Moon, Mars, and Beyond #ad
Gen Z Flirts With Socialism
The Supreme Court and a Wealth Tax
AI Alliance will open-source AI models; Meta, IBM, Intel, NASA on board

Tuesday, December 05, 2023

The People Who Mobbed a Jewish-Owned Restaurant in Philly Are Total Psychopaths
The anti-Trump alarm goes off
Europa Clipper Could Help Discover if Jupiter's Moon is Habitable
SPIDER searches for water on the moon; Austin-area aerospace company partners for mission
The Supreme Court Will Finally Decide What ‘Income’ Means
Congress Takes on the EV Mandate
Why is America Going Back to the Moon #ad

The moon has held a fascination with Americans ever since President John F. Kennedy threw down the gauntlet and challenged the Soviet Union to a race to land a man on Earth’s neatest neighbor and return him safely to the Earth. 60 years later, a different president of the United States, Donald Trump, proposed that Americans and astronauts from American allies return to the moon. Trump’s Artemis project, unlike previous attempts to return to the moon, looks like it actually may succeed.

Why does American want to return to the moon? Is it science? Is it riches? Is it glory? Or, perhaps, it is a combination of the three. Mark R. Whittington, author of Why is it so Hard to Go Back to the Moon and Children of Apollo, seeks to answer that question in Why is America Going Back to the Moon.

Counteracting Bone and Muscle Loss in Microgravity
Why We Should Settle Mars
IBM releases first-ever 1,000-qubit quantum chip

Sunday, December 03, 2023

When astronauts become farmers: Harvesting food on the moon and Mars

With renewed interest in sending people back to the moon and on to Mars, thanks to NASA’s Artemis missions, thoughts have naturally turned to how to feed astronauts traveling to those deep space destinations. Simply shipping food to future lunar bases and Mars colonies would be impractically expensive.

Astronauts will, on top of everything else, have to become farmers.

Here’s How Artemis Astronauts Will Navigate on the Moon
The Peregrine Lunar Lander is set to launch on Dec 24. Here's what it'll bring to the moon
The Gabriella Doria Stories #ad

Brought across to undeath in the 15th Century, the Contessa Gabriella Doria has walked the night, feeding on the blood of the living. However, on occasion, she had faced foes far more formidable and certainly more evil than a vampire.

SpaceX’s New Design for Lunar Starship Unveiled
This astronaut was rejected by NASA three times. Here are his secrets to perseverance
NASA's Artemis 3 astronaut moon landing unlikely before 2027, GAO report finds

Saturday, December 02, 2023

Amazon taps SpaceX for satellite launch even though Jeff Bezos is right there
NASA administrator lauds India over successful landing on south pole of moon
The final frontier? How humans could live underwater in 'ocean stations'
The Man from Mars: The Asteroid Mining Caper #ad

Colin Fraser was the first man to walk on Mars as commander of the Ares. But little did he know that his greatest adventure would take place after he returned to Earth from the Red Planet. With further voyages of interplanetary exploration curtailed due to budget cuts, Fraser joined a private company that proposed to capture an asteroid and mine it for its almost limitless wealth. The only catch was that he would have to commit the first act of space piracy in history by stealing his old ship and using it to divert the asteroid named Daedalus.

Stealing the ship, diverting the asteroid, and avoiding federal prison or destruction will be the least of Fraser’s worries, however.

Dinosaurs Might Be The Reason We're Not Living to 200 Years Old
Artificial photosynthesis: A pathway to solar fuels
Nobody Said Getting Biden Re-Nominated Would Be Pretty

Friday, December 01, 2023

Angola Signs NASA Artemis Accord

In living memory Angola was a battlefield of the Cold War with American backed rebels fighting a Cuban occupation army. Now Angola is part of the Artemis Alliance. Truly it is a turning world.

Four takeaways from DeSantis-Newsom debate: 'Lion’s den'
Tunnel to Towers Expands Mission to Leave No Veteran Behind
Europe is Working on a Multi-Purpose Habitat for the Moon
NASA to train Indian astronaut for ISS voyage in deepening space ties
Nuclear-powered Dragonfly mission to Saturn moon Titan delayed until 2028, NASA says
One Year After the Laser Fusion Energy Breakthrough: What Comes Next?
Why Elon Musk is right to take on Media Matters
Space junk surrounds Earth, posing a dangerous threat. But there is a way to turn the debris into opportunity
How to Eliminate 25% of Global Carbon Dioxide Emissions by 2035
A Brother on the Moon #Ad

On a December day in 1967, a pilot whose jet fighter is in the process of cracking up ejects a moment sooner and therefore lives when he otherwise might have died. A life that would have ended on the tarmac at Edwards Air Force Base continues on. Six years later, Major Robert Lawrence, United States Air Force, becomes the first black American to walk on the Moon.

The Next Congress Might Look a Little More Republican
Next Up for School Choice: Tennessee
Tiny robots made from human cells heal damaged tissue

Thursday, November 30, 2023

XPrize: HEALTHY AGING MADE POSSIBLE
US, Israelis Mulling Over an Eviction Notice for Hamas, or Something
US-China space race for moon mining heats up
France and Italy team up to build Moon habitat
After 50 years, US to return to Moon on January 25
NASA has an ambitious blueprint for building homes on the moon by 2040
6 alien worlds have been 'waltzing' in perfect rhythm for 4 billion years
The 50 greatest innovations of 2023
The Last Moonwalker and Other Stories #ad

The Last Moonwalker – In the near future, as human explorers prepare to take the first voyage to the Moon in decades, Charles Gerald, the last Apollo Moonwalker, lends his advice to the crew of the expedition as he wrestles with his own legacy.

The First Woman on the Moon – Set in the same universe as Children of Apollo, Wendy Pendleton, who will fly on the mission of Apollo 23, remembers the cost of becoming the first woman on the Moon.

Two Old Men – Two retired politicians, in the same universe as Children of Apollo, face a deadly disease a treatment for which was developed in space.

Dark Sanction – As World War II rages, Gabriella, Venetian aristocrat, spy for British Intelligence, vampire is menaced by a Nazi vampire hunter with occult powers.

Hurtgen Moon – An American rifle squad battles a werewolf during one of World War II’s bloodiest battles.

Witnessing Apollo – The flight of Apollo 11 helps an alien visitor decide the fate of the Earth.

Scientists age and de-age mice at will: a new paradigm for reversing aging
‘Net Zero’ Fails the Cost-Benefit Test
Former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger dies at 100

Henry Kissinger’s Century

Wednesday, November 29, 2023

For the First Time Since '65, the U.S. Military Will Blast a Nuclear Reactor Into Space
NASA chief hails India as ‘great future partner’, discusses role of Indian astronaut at space station
Unwrapping Uranus and its icy secrets: What NASA would learn from a mission to a wild world
NASA postpones Dragonfly review, launch date
Scientists Need to Stop Telling People the Universe Is Meaningless
Why Don't We See Robotic Civilizations Rapidly Expanding Across the Universe?
The Moon, Mars, and Beyond #ad

The Last Moonwalker – In the near future, as human explorers prepare to take the first voyage to the Moon in decades, Charles Gerald, the last Apollo Moonwalker, lends his advice to the crew of the expedition as he wrestles with his own legacy.

The Man from Mars: The Asteroid Mining Caper - Colin Fraser was the first man to walk on Mars as commander of the Ares. But little did he know that his greatest adventure would take place after he returned to Earth from the Red Planet. With further voyages of interplanetary exploration curtailed due to budget cuts, Fraser joined a private company that proposed to capture an asteroid and mine it for its almost limitless wealth. The only catch was that he would have to commit the first act of space piracy in history by stealing his old ship and using it to divert the asteroid named Daedalus.

Ukraine Aid for Border Security Would Be a Win-Win
Car Dealers to Biden: EVs Aren’t Selling
New Google geothermal electricity project could be a milestone for clean energy

Tuesday, November 28, 2023

Canada soars into space with new moon and ISS astronaut missions
Stargazing: Lunar Trailblazer is NASA's water detector
Ex-NASA astronaut shares his 3 best tips for dealing with failure—including the real ‘golden rule’ to follow
This boy was born without an immune system. Gene therapy rebuilt it.
Why is America Going Back to the Moon #ad

The moon has held a fascination with Americans ever since President John F. Kennedy threw down the gauntlet and challenged the Soviet Union to a race to land a man on Earth’s neatest neighbor and return him safely to the Earth. 60 years later, a different president of the United States, Donald Trump, proposed that Americans and astronauts from American allies return to the moon. Trump’s Artemis project, unlike previous attempts to return to the moon, looks like it actually may succeed.

Why does American want to return to the moon? Is it science? Is it riches? Is it glory? Or, perhaps, it is a combination of the three. Mark R. Whittington, author of Why is it so Hard to Go Back to the Moon and Children of Apollo, seeks to answer that question in Why is America Going Back to the Moon.

AI generates medical notes indistinguishable from human doctors
Elizabeth Warren Takes on ‘Big Sandwich’
CRISPR-Powered ‘Cancer Shredding’ Technique Opens New Possibility for Treating Most Common and Deadly Brain Cancer

Monday, November 27, 2023

Musk Meets Netanyahu: 'There's No Choice' but to Destroy Hamas
Family Members: Hostages Ate Poorly, Slept on Benches; Waited up to Two Hours for Bathroom
US Navy Arrests Pirates Who Seized Israeli Tanker, Missiles Fired
New AI program creates realistic ‘talking heads’ from only an image and an audio
Space race 2.0: why Europe is joining the new dash to the moon
Private Enterprise is the America’s Key to the Modern Space Race
NASA Administrator to Travel to India, UAE; Discuss Space Cooperation
What we actually know about aliens, according to science
GENERATING POWER ON EARTH FROM THE COLDNESS OF DEEP SPACE
Hydrogen discovered in Apollo-era moon rocks could change the future of lunar exploration
Why is it So Hard to Go Back to the Moon?

Gene Cernan, the last man to walk on the moon, departed from the lunar surface on December 14, 1972. The last words he spoke, officially, were, “And, as we leave the Moon at Taurus-Littrow, we leave as we came and, God willing, as we shall return: with peace and hope for all mankind. Godspeed the crew of Apollo 17." Decades later, despite the efforts of two American presidents, human beings have not returned to the moon. Why Earth’s nearest neighbor remains untouched by human footsteps after so long remains one of the vexing questions of modern times. Mark R. Whittington, the author of the Children of Apollo trilogy and The Last Moonwalker and Other Stories, attempts to answer this question in his new long essay Why is it so Hard to Go Back to the Moon? The answer involves failures of leadership of multiple American presidents as well as political intrigue and backstabbing that shortened the Apollo program and left two return to the Moon programs stillborn. More important, Whittington seeks to set out a political blue print, learning from mistakes of the past, for setting course back to the Moon. Why is it so Hard to Go Back to the Moon is not a typical future in space book. The author does not delve into technical designs for lunar voyages. Instead he looks at the much harder than rocket science art of politics in relation to returning to the Moon. Why is it so Hard to Go Back to the Moon? is a must read for anyone interested in influencing future space policy or who are just interested in learning about the intersection between space exploration and politics.

Magic Pills Are Coming
The World Again Needs American Leadership
Don’t Give Gaza to the Palestinian Authority

Sunday, November 26, 2023

Dr Who has gone woke
SpaceX’s Starship could be a few tests away from its ultimate goal

The recent second test flight of the SpaceX Starship/Super Heavy rocket was a perfect example of Elon Musk’s philosophy of technology development. Test the launch vehicle. Blow it up. Note what went wrong. Fix what went wrong. Repeat until you get something that flies as reliably as an airliner.

From a comment on Facebook:

I can't believe The Hill was permitted to publish this story, in which Elon Musk is not demonized a single time and the SpaceX model of "try-fail-learn-try again" was actually sort of praised. What on Earth is going on in D.C. ????

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Brought across to undeath in the 15th Century, the Contessa Gabriella Doria has walked the night, feeding on the blood of the living. However, on occasion, she had faced foes far more formidable and certainly more evil than a vampire.

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Friday, November 24, 2023

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The Last Moonwalker – In the near future, as human explorers prepare to take the first voyage to the Moon in decades, Charles Gerald, the last Apollo Moonwalker, lends his advice to the crew of the expedition as he wrestles with his own legacy.

The First Woman on the Moon – Set in the same universe as Children of Apollo, Wendy Pendleton, who will fly on the mission of Apollo 23, remembers the cost of becoming the first woman on the Moon.

Two Old Men – Two retired politicians, in the same universe as Children of Apollo, face a deadly disease a treatment for which was developed in space.

Dark Sanction – As World War II rages, Gabriella, Venetian aristocrat, spy for British Intelligence, vampire is menaced by a Nazi vampire hunter with occult powers.

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The Last Moonwalker – In the near future, as human explorers prepare to take the first voyage to the Moon in decades, Charles Gerald, the last Apollo Moonwalker, lends his advice to the crew of the expedition as he wrestles with his own legacy.

The Man from Mars: The Asteroid Mining Caper - Colin Fraser was the first man to walk on Mars as commander of the Ares. But little did he know that his greatest adventure would take place after he returned to Earth from the Red Planet. With further voyages of interplanetary exploration curtailed due to budget cuts, Fraser joined a private company that proposed to capture an asteroid and mine it for its almost limitless wealth. The only catch was that he would have to commit the first act of space piracy in history by stealing his old ship and using it to divert the asteroid named Daedalus. Stealing the ship, diverting the asteroid, and avoiding federal prison or destruction will be the least of Fraser’s worries, however.

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