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From 250 miles above the Earth, Expedition 63 is very much aware of the hard times which exist in the neighborhoods of the world rotating below. Even amid the uncertainty and difficulties of battling through these challenging times, we encourage everyone to be the best “crewmates” & take care of each other. Cherish the people you love. -Commander Chris Cassidy

Tissue engineering has seen a surge of interest in recent years. Traditionally, it involves seeding cells onto biocompatible “scaffolds”, which biodegrade once tissues have assembled themselves into 3D organs. However, more flexible, scaffold-free approaches are also emerging, which enable cells to assemble themselves without the need for structural biomaterials. To do this, researchers use techniques including removable supports, and guiding forces from acoustic and electrostatic fields. One particularly promising approach involves magnetic levitation, through which strong field gradients can precisely guide tissue cells into place. To achieve strong enough gradients, however, cells must be suspended within a paramagnetic medium containing...

Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley took off from Florida aboard SpaceX's Crew Dragon capsule on May 30, becoming the first astronauts to hitch a ride to the ISS on board a commercial spaceship, which is under contract with NASA. It was the first time a crewed spaceship was launched from the United States since 2011 when the space shuttle program was ended. Eventually, Dragon will regularly bring four astronauts to the ISS at a time... This will be the first time the SpaceX capsule will make the journey to Earth with astronauts, having successfully completed an uncrewed test run last...

Bose-Einstein condensates (BECs)—the existence of which was predicted by Albert Einstein and Indian mathematician Satyendra Nath Bose almost a century ago—are formed when atoms of certain elements are cooled to near absolute zero (0 Kelvin, minus 273.15 Celsius). At this point, the atoms become a single entity with quantum properties, wherein each particle also functions as a wave of matter. BECs straddle the line between the macroscopic world governed by forces such as gravity and the microscopic plane, ruled by quantum mechanics. Creating the fifth state of matter, especially within the physical confines of a space station, is no mean...

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VIDEO There was very much of a "2001: A Space Odyssey" vibe when the SpaceX Crew Dragon docked with the International Space Station (ISS). Therefore it just had to be done. Setting that docking event to the tune of the Blue Danube. Welcome to "2020: A Space Odyssey." No Stanley Kubricks were harmed in the making of this video.

Two NASA astronauts climbed inside their SpaceX spaceship today (May 23) for one last rehearsal ahead of a historic launch into orbit next week. Astronauts Bob Behknen and Doug Hurley (along with NASA and SpaceX mission teams) performed the "dry run" test for their upcoming test flight on a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule. The mission, NASA's first crewed launch from U.S. soil since 2011, will launch from Pad 39A of Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Wednesday (May 27) at 4:33 p.m. EDT (2033 GMT). "Exciting couple of days here at NASA Kennedy!" Behnken wrote on Twitter Friday ahead of...

Using satellite data, researchers believe an "anomaly" in the South Atlantic may have split in two, with the eastern section "developing vigorously." Earth's magnetic field is generated by movements within the planet's molten iron core. ...When the magnetic field is stronger, it blocks more radiation. When it is weaker, more radiation reaches the planet's surface. The magnetic field is constantly moving. It strengthens and weakens as part of normal fluctuations. According to the European Space Agency, the magnetic field has lost around 9 percent of its strength over the preceding two centuries. One section of the magnetic field has been...

ORLANDO, Fla., May 1 (UPI) -- The duration of SpaceX's first mission with astronauts on board -- planned to launch at May 27 from Florida -- has been extended from a few days to potentially weeks aboard the International Space Station, NASA said Friday. The mission was lengthened to ensure that the crew -- astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley -- can help maintain and operate the space station, NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said in a statement. "Among the work that will await their arrival is upgrading the space station's power system with new batteries due to arrive in May,"...

The first flight of NASA astronauts from U.S. soil in nearly nine years finally has a launch date: May 27. The mission will launch astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley to the International Space Station on a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft in a final test flight for NASA. The mission, Demo-2, will mark NASA's first crew launch from American soil since the agency's space shuttle fleet retired in July 2011. Liftoff is set for 4:32 p.m. EDT (2032 GMT) from historic Launch Pad 39A, the same site used for NASA's Apollo and shuttle missions.

In a small step for man but a giant leap for baked goods, chocolate chip cookies have become the first food to be baked in space. The round biscuits were prepared in a special oven on board the International Space Station (ISS), led by commander Luca Parmitano and astronaut Christina Koch. The process was a real mission and it took several long days for the crew to experiment with different methods....

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — SpaceX successfully launched an uncrewed Dragon spacecraft for NASA today (Dec. 5) on the company's final cargo mission of the year , sending fresh supplies to the International Space Station — and also sticking a rocket landing on a drone ship off the Florida coast. A shiny, new two-stage Falcon 9 rocket lifted off at 12:29 p.m. EST (1729 GMT) from Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station carrying the company's robotic Dragon cargo capsule toward the orbiting lab following a 24-hour delay due to high winds. Clear skies above the SpaceX launch site...

There are two toilets at the ISS, both Russian-made - one in the US module and another one in the Russian one. According to ISS commander Luca Parmitano, the toilet in the US section constantly signals that it is not working, while the one in the Russian module is filled to the maximum.

Early Friday, the space station will rise in the northwest just after 5:40 a.m. and arc across the top of the sky. On its way up, it will pass to the right of the bright star Capella and the constellation Gemini. On Sunday, just after 7 p.m., the space station will rise in the southwest, just to the left of three planets in alignment – Saturn, Jupiter and Venus, all about to set in the west. You need a clear view of the horizon to see this. At 6:12 p.m. Monday, the planets again will be aligned as the space...

Amid reports that the Russians will keep the cause of an air leak discovered at the International Space Station in 2018 secret, NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine has promised to speak personally with the head of the Russian space agency. "They have not told me anything," Bridenstine said during a Houston energy conference question session Thursday (Sept. 19), according to the Houston Chronicle. But he emphasized that he wants to keep good relations with the Russians, one of the two chief partners on the orbiting complex. "I don't want to let one item set [the relationship] back, but it is clearly...

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) said the fire broke out on the platform carrying the H-2B rocket about three and a half hours before the 5:33 p.m. Eastern scheduled launch of the HTV-8 cargo spacecraft. The statement didn’t identify the cause of the fire or what damage it caused to the platform or the rocket. Neither MHI nor the Japanese space agency JAXA set a new launch date for the mission. Industry sources said they expect the launch to be delayed by at least several days in order to make any repairs to the launch platform and inspect the rocket itself...

The new international docking adapter, or IDA, was launched to the station last month aboard a SpaceX Dragon cargo ship. The lab's robot arm pulled the docking mechanism out of the Dragon's trunk section earlier this week and positioned it directly atop a tunnel-like pressurized mating adaptor extending from Harmony's upper port. Working with electrical cables that were routed three years ago during two earlier spacewalks, Hague and Morgan connected the IDA to station power, allowing astronaut Christina Koch, working inside Harmony, to send commands driving internal hooks to close. After flight controllers confirmed the $22.5 million IDA was firmly...

Researchers are hoping to send up Española chili pepper plants (Capsicum annuum), which could make peppers the very first fruit to be grown in space by US astronauts. "The astronauts have often expressed a desire for more spicy and flavourful foods, and so having a bit of hot flavour also seemed to be a good thing. Plus, many peppers are very high in vitamin C, which is important for space diets." Although there are thousands of different types of chili peppers, Española peppers have been chosen in part because they grow at high altitudes, have short growing periods, and can...

When a rocket carrying the first module of the International Space Station blasted off from Kazakhstan in November of 1998, NASA officials said that the station would serve as an orbiting home for astronauts and cosmonauts for at least 15 years. It's now been over 18 years that the station has been continuously occupied by people. The place is impressive, with more living space than a six-bedroom house, two bathrooms and a large bay window for looking down at Earth. NASA and its international partners have spent decades and more than $100 billion to make the station a reality. The...

A bizarre YouTube video that some claim reveals a ‘golden UFO’ soaring over Earth has sparked fresh speculation among conspiracy theorists about an alien cover-up. The video focuses on a 2016 clip from the International Space Station’s live feed, showing a slow-moving view over our planet – and, a mysterious glow can be seen emanating from the bottom right corner. Just seconds later, the footage cuts out to reveal a standby message from the ISS, causing many to claim NASA was attempting to hide an object the YouTubers estimate to be ‘hundreds of miles long.’