A temporary spending bill that Congress passed Monday meant Tuesday morning's spacewalk was able to be broadcast live. The International Space Station spacewalk was the first for astronaut Scott Tingle. About one hour into the spacewalk, NASA TV returned. "This is going to be a lifetime memory for sure, and I'm looking forward to getting out there and fixing up the systems that we'll be working on," Tingle said last week. NASA closed its media relations offices, including ending social media updates when funding ran out; but work aboard the space station continued. Commercial launch operations at Cape Canaveral and Vandenberg Air Force Base were shut down during the funding gap. — SPACEFLIGHT NOW
Fragments from a meteorite that exploded over Michigan last week have been discovered. Professional meteorite hunters Larry Atkins and Robert Ward discovered three pieces. "It's a really spectacular specimen. (A few days ago), this was hundreds of thousands of miles past the moon, and now I'm standing here holding it in my hand. It's been a real good day," Ward said. Most of the fragments of the 6-foot-wide meteor landed in the Detroit suburb of Hamburg Township. A meteorite consultant with Christie's auction house is offering $20,000 for a recovered fragment weighing at least 1 kilogram. — YAHOO
Part of Australia once was connected to North America. Researchers last week said the Georgetown region of northern Queensland was attached to what today is known as Canada about 1.7 billion years ago. Rocks found in Australia resembled those found in Canada. "This was a critical part of global continental reorganization when almost all continents on Earth assembled to form the supercontinent called Nuna," study lead author Adam Nordsvan said. — LIVE SCIENCE
The clock is ticking on Google’s Lunar Xprize challenge that offered $20 million to the first private company to land on the moon. Announced more than a decade ago, the challenge is set to expire with none of the four finalists close to completing the goal. “Google does not have plans at this time to extend the deadline again; however, we are so thrilled with the progress made by these teams over the last ten years,” a Google spokesperson said. Of the companies chosen, one reportedly ran out of money; three others were not prepared to launch before the deadline. Google previously extended the deadline twice — once in 2012 and again in 2014. — GIZMODO
A car-sized asteroid flew by Earth about 22,000 miles away — seven hours after being discovered on Jan. 18. It didn't make much news like a massive asteroid that is due to pass by Earth next month likely because much of it would burn up before reaching the surface. The skyscraper-sized asteroid known as 2002 AJ129 will pass Earth on Feb. 4 at a distance of more than 2 million miles. — CNET
With Mars pegged as a future destination for human life and the federal government's push to return to the Moon, one day honeymoons to Vegas or 10-day cruises full of dancing mascots might be a thing of the past.
