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Space

NASA Mars Helicopter: ‘The Next Time We Fly, We Fly on Mars’

By Brian Garrett-Glaser

Tuesday, April 2nd, 2019

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NASA Mars Helicopter: ‘The Next Time We Fly, We Fly on Mars’

A rendering of NASA's autonomous Mars Helicopter on the Martian Surface. (Nasa/JPL-CalTech)

In July 2020, NASA will send a new rover to Mars and in its belly will ride a helicopter capable of flight in the Red Planet's unforgiving, low-density atmosphere. Scientists from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) tested a smaller-scale model of their Mars Helicopter in their space simulator and successfully conducted two test flights in Martian conditions. The Mars Helicopter project was announced in May 2018 as a way to demonstrate the “viability and potential of heavier-than-air vehicles on the Red…

Congress

Trump Wants Second Reconciliation Bill On His Desk By June 1

President Donald Trump on Wednesday called on Congress to pass and send a second reconciliation bill to his desk by June 1. The deadline follows congressional Republicans’ backing a pursuit […]

Space

Upgrading Current GPS Ground System “Now a Viable Option,” As GPS OCX Problems Continue, Space Official Says

Upgrades to the GPS ground system–the Architecture Evolution Plan (AEP)–is an option under consideration by the Defense Department’s space acquisition chief, as problems continue in fielding the GPS Next Generation […]

Congress

Graham Says GOP To Move Ahead On Second Reconciliation Bill, With Defense Funds As Priority

Senate Budget Committee Chair Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said Wednesday, with the White House’s backing, his panel will move “expeditiously” on crafting a second reconciliation bill, citing priorities for defense and […]

Pentagon

Hegseth Acknowledges Potential $200 Billion Iran Supplemental Request, Final Figure ‘Could Move’

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Thursday acknowledged the Pentagon could potentially ask Congress for $200 billion in supplemental funding to support the ongoing operation against Iran and replenish munitions used […]