Space exploration
FILE - This Feb. 17, 2021 file photo, shows a full-scale model of the Ingenuity helicopter displayed for the media at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. Space engineer Loay Elbasyouni was part of the NASA team that made history this month by launching an experimental helicopter from the surface of Mars. But he says an expedition to his hometown in the Gaza Strip, where posters celebrate his achievement, feels even farther off because of Israeli and Egyptian restrictions. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File)
Gazan behind Mars drone says visiting home is no small step

By Fares Akram Apr. 29, 2021 01:13 PM EDT

From left, NASA’s Shannon Walker, Victor Glover and Michael Hopkins, and Japan’s Soichi Noguchi hold a news conference aboard the International Space Station on Monday, April 26, 2021. They are winding up a six-month mission, after their replacements arrived Saturday on their own SpaceX capsule. (NASA via AP)
More patrols, fewer boaters for SpaceX splashdown Saturday

By Marcia Dunn Apr. 26, 2021 02:53 PM EDT

FILE - In this Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2020 file photo, SpaceX owner and Tesla CEO Elon Musk arrives on the red carpet for the Axel Springer media award, in Berlin, Germany. Technology mogul Elon Musk has a lined up a new gig in addition to his jobs as CEO of electric car maker Tesla and spaceship maker SpaceX. He is going to host the iconic TV show “Saturday Night Live " on May 8, 2021. (AP Photo/Britta Pedersen, Pool, File)
Tesla CEO Elon Musk adding SNL hosting job to his to-do list

Apr. 24, 2021 05:55 PM EDT

A SpaceX Falcon 9 lifts off in this time exposure from Launch Complex 39A Friday, April 23, 2021, at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. Four astronauts will fly on the SpaceX Crew-2 mission to the International Space Station. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)
SpaceX launches 3rd crew with recycled rocket and capsule

By Marcia Dunn Apr. 23, 2021 05:52 AM EDT

In this image from NASA, NASA's experimental Mars helicopter Ingenuity lands on the surface of Mars Monday, April 19, 2021. The little 4-pound helicopter rose from the dusty red surface into the thin Martian air Monday, achieving the first powered, controlled flight on another planet. (NASA via AP)
NASA's Mars helicopter takes flight, 1st for another planet

By Marcia Dunn Apr. 19, 2021 11:26 AM EDT

FILE - In this Feb. 28, 2018 file photo, ground personnel carry NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei after the landing of the Soyuz MS-06 space capsule in a remote area south-east of the Kazakh town of Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan. Vande Hei learned last week that he’ll launch April 9, 2021, on a Russian rocket to the International Space Station.Vande Hei said Monday, March 15 he may have to give up his return Soyuz seat in the fall to a Russian movie-making tourist. If that happens, he'll have to wait for the next Soyuz ride home in spring 2022. (Alexander Nemenov/Pool Photo via AP, File)
US astronaut launching next month may spend year in space

By Marcia Dunn Mar. 15, 2021 06:53 PM EDT

President Joe Biden congratulates NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory Mars 2020 Perseverance team for successfully landing on Mars during a virtual call in the Roosevelt Room at the White House, Thursday, March 4, 2021. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
Biden lauds NASA team for giving US 'dose of confidence'

By Alexandra Jaffe And Aamer Madhani Mar. 04, 2021 06:09 PM EST

In this illustration made available by NASA, the spacecraft containing the Perseverance rover slows down using the drag generated by traveling through the Martian atmosphere. (NASA/JPL-Caltech via AP)
NASA rover lands on Mars to look for signs of ancient life

By Marcia Dunn Feb. 18, 2021 04:15 PM EST

This image made available by NASA depicts a possible area through which the Mars 2020 Perseverance rover could traverse across Jezero Crater. This mosaic is composed of aligned images from the Context Camera on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. (NASA/JPL-Caltech/USGS via AP)
NASA rover attempting most difficult Martian touchdown yet

By Marcia Dunn Feb. 17, 2021 11:42 AM EST

This image made available by the China National Space Administration on Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2020 shows the Tianwen-1 probe en route to Mars. China's duo _ called Tianwen-1, or “Quest for Heavenly Truth” _ will remain paired in orbit until May, when the rover separates to descend to the dusty, ruddy surface. If all goes well, it will be the second country to land successfully on the red planet. (CNSA via AP)
Next stop Mars: 3 spacecraft arriving in quick succession

By Marcia Dunn Feb. 07, 2021 10:06 AM EST

A carriage moves down a street during Associated Press journalist Brian Hannon's visit to Tombstone, Ariz., on Dec. 17, 2020. (AP Photo/Brian P. D. Hannon)
VIRUS DIARY: In face of tragedy, a faith in science endures

By Brian P. D. Hannon Jan. 29, 2021 08:57 AM EST

This image provided by Jan Kath Design GmbH shows an outer space themed rug. German designer Jan Kath has created a rug collection called Spacecrafted inspired by imagery of gas clouds and asteroid nebulae from the Hubble telescope. (Dimo Feldmann/Jan Kath Design GmbH via AP)
RIGHT AT HOME: Space-themed decor brings the heavens indoors

By Kim Cook Jan. 26, 2021 09:03 AM EST

FILE - In this Aug. 13, 2019, file photo, NASA astronauts Doug Hurley, left, and Bob Behnken work with teams from NASA and SpaceX to rehearse crew extraction from SpaceX's Crew Dragon, which will be used to carry humans to the International Space Station, at the Trident Basin in Cape Canaveral, Fla. For the first time in nearly a decade, the two astronauts blasted towards orbit aboard an American rocket from American soil on May 30 2020, a first for a private company. (Bill Ingalls/NASA via AP, File)
World's space achievements a bright spot in stressful 2020

By Marcia Dunn Dec. 16, 2020 11:36 AM EST

Alabama space museum names new CEO

Dec. 15, 2020 04:46 PM EST
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (AP) — A veteran NASA manager has been named chief executive of the U.S. Space and Rocket Center, the state-owned museum said Tuesday. ...

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on a resupply mission to the International Space Station lifts off from pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Sunday, Dec. 6, 2020. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
Double Dragons: SpaceX launches space station supplies

By Marcia Dunn Dec. 06, 2020 11:18 AM EST

In this frame grab from NASA TV, the SpaceX Dragon is seen after docking at the International Space Station, late Monday, Nov. 16, 2020. (NASA TV via AP)
SpaceX capsule with 4 astronauts reaches space station

By Marcia Dunn Nov. 16, 2020 06:13 PM EST

Members of Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Soichi Noguchi pose for a photo as the astronauts leave the Operations and Checkout Building for a trip to Launch Pad 39-A and planned liftoff on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket with the Crew Dragon capsule on a six-month mission to the International Space Station Sunday, Nov. 15, 2020, at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
SpaceX launches 2nd crew, regular station crew flights begin

By Marcia Dunn Nov. 15, 2020 01:07 PM EST

NASA firefighters drive on the road outside the fence near a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, with the company's Crew Dragon capsule attached, sits on the launch pad at Launch Complex 39A Friday, Nov. 13, 2020, at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. Four astronauts will fly on the SpaceX Crew-1 mission to the International Space Station scheduled for launch on Nov. 14, 2020 (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)
SpaceX crew flight delayed; Musk gets mixed COVID-19 results

By Marcia Dunn Nov. 13, 2020 01:10 PM EST

Communities receive Appalachian Regional Commission grants

Oct. 27, 2020 04:28 AM EDT
FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Several eastern Kentucky communities will share nearly $3.7 million in Appalachian Regional Commission grants, Gov. Andy Beshear...

In this photo released by Rosaviatsiya, Roscosmos' cosmonaut Anatoly Ivanishin sits in a chair shortly after the landing near town of Dzhezkazgan, Kazakhstan, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2020. A trio of space travelers safely returned to Earth on Thursday after a six-month mission on the International Space Station. The Soyuz MS-16 capsule carrying NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy, and Roscosmos' Ivanishin and Ivan Vagner landed on the steppes of Kazakhstan southeast of the town of Dzhezkazgan on Thursday. (Rosaviatsiya via AP)
Trio who lived on space station return to Earth safely

By Vladimir Isachenkov Oct. 21, 2020 11:19 PM EDT