Science & Technology

MOSCOW (AP) — Three astronauts returned to Earth Thursday after more than six months aboard the International Space Station.

A Russian Soyuz capsule with NASA’s Serena Aunon-Chancellor, Russian Sergey Prokopyev and German astronaut Alexander Gerst of the European Space Agency landed on the snow-covered steppes in Kazakhstan, about 140 kilometers (87 miles) southeast of the city of Dzhezkazgan. They touched down a minute ahead of schedule at 11:02 a.m. local time (0502 GMT; 12:02 a.m. EST).

MOSCOW, December 14. /TASS/. Three Russian engines RD-181 have been handed over to the Orbital Sciences Corporation, the research and industrial association NPO Energromash said on its website on Friday.

"On December 12, three RD-181 engines were handed over to the US customer," the Orbital Sciences Corporation said in the news release.

This is a second consignment of engines delivered to the US company this year. Two RD-181 engines were handed over in June.

MOSCOW, December 14. /TASS/. An anti-radiation food ration has been developed for cosmonauts of the future Russian lunar expedition, Head of the ISS [International Space Station) Crew Nutrition Department at the Institute of Medical and Biological Studies Alexander Agureyev told TASS on Friday.

"The cosmonauts’ food ration for the lunar program has already been developed. These are foodstuffs with the enhanced biological activity and radio-protective properties," the researcher said.

DENVER (AP) — After months of delays, the U.S. Air Force is about to launch the first of a new generation of GPS satellites, designed to be more accurate, secure and versatile.

But some of their most highly touted features will not be fully available until 2022 or later because of problems in a companion program to develop a new ground control system for the satellites, government auditors said.

13 Nov 2018: AFP: Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo, VSS Unity, flew higher than it ever has before on Thursday, surpassing what the US Air Force considers the boundary of space, and marking the first manned flight to space from US soil since 2011.

The brief, suborbital flight -- with two pilots on board -- was a key milestone for the company headed by British tycoon Richard Branson, who is striving to send tourists to space at a cost of $250,000 per seat.

13 Dec 2018; DW: A study has singled out quite possibly the most dangerous holiday of the year: Christmas Eve. While the researchers couldn't explain why, they did have a hunch.

Swedish scientists have found that people are most at risk of suffering a heart attack on December 24, often observed as Christmas Eve, than any other day during the holiday season, said a study published on Wednesday in the medical journal BMJ.

MOSCOW (AP) — Two Russian cosmonauts were preparing to venture outside the International Space Station Tuesday to inspect a section where a mysterious leak has been discovered.

The leak was spotted on Aug. 30 in the Russian Soyuz spacecraft attached to the station. The crew quickly located and sealed the tiny hole that created a slight loss of pressure, and space officials said the station has remained safe to operate.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA’s new Mars lander has captured the first sounds of the “really unworldly” Martian wind.

The Jet Propulsion Laboratory released audio clips of the alien wind Friday. The low-frequency rumblings were collected by the InSight lander during its first week of operations at Mars.

The wind is estimated to be blowing 10 mph to 15 mph (16 kph to 24 kph). These are the first sounds from Mars that are detectible by human ears, according to the researchers.

RIYADH, Dec. 7 (Xinhua) -- Saudi Arabia launched two aerial survey satellites from China-based Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center on Friday, Al Arabiya TV reported.

The two satellites, named Saudi SAT 5A and Saudi SAT 5B, were manufactured by King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology, a Saudi government scientific institution, in October.

BEIJING (AP) — China was preparing to launch a ground-breaking mission early Saturday to soft-land a spacecraft on the largely unexplored far side of the moon, demonstrating its growing ambitions as a space power to rival Russia, the European Union and U.S.