How Landsat Chronicled 50 Years on a Changing, Fiery Planet

The pioneering satellite program has provided the longest continuous document of how fire, global warming, and…

Spotting Objects From Space Is Easy. This Challenge Is Harder

A battle royale called the SMART program has charged teams with a daunting first task: Identify…

These Satellites See Through the Clouds to Track Flooding

Remote sensing systems can struggle to spot high waters, especially in stormy weather or at night.…

How Lost Hikers Can Send an SOS to Space

The SARSAT satellite system is a kind of celestial lifeguard for explorers, boaters, and aviators who…

Astronaut Gear of the Future May Fight Bone and Muscle Loss

New space suits and muscle stimulators could keep spacefarers fit on long voyages.

NASA’s Lucy Mission Gets Ready to Fly by the Trojan Asteroids

The spacecraft will provide the first up-close look at these building blocks of the early solar…

GPS III’s Long Journey Is Picking Up Speed

With the launch of a fifth new-generation satellite, the US finally has a constellation able to…

The Space and Air Forces Launch an LGBTQ Task Force

Ten years after “Don’t ask, don’t tell,” a major general from the Space Force is leading…

NASA Lands the Perseverance Rover on Mars

The science mission will launch the first drone to fly on another planet, attempt making oxygen…

There Are No Real Rules for Repairing Satellites in Space—Yet

Fixing, refueling, and upgrading satellites in orbit is about to become more common. A group is…