"Ingenuity’s flight on Mars rings in a new era of aviation" PBS NewsHour 4/19/2021
Excerpt
SUMMARY: NASA has made plenty of history with space flights to Mars. But on Monday began a new chapter: It flew on Mars for the first time using an experimental helicopter, Ingenuity. Miles O'Brien takes us out of this world.
SUMMARY: This week marks the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission, which first landed American astronauts on the moon's surface. Of the intrepid crew, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin have tended to dominate public attention, but it was pilot Michael Collins who flew the command module to the moon -- and faced his own distinct concerns about the return trip. Science correspondent Miles O’Brien reports.
SUMMARY: Johnson Space Center in Houston houses more than 2,000 samples collected over six Apollo missions between 1969 and 1972 from various parts of the moon. The collection includes rocks, core samples, pebbles and dust that scientists are still learning from 50 years later. Hari Sreenivasan reports on the laboratory keeping these artifacts safe.
SUMMARY: Retired astronaut Scott Kelly spent a record-setting 340 days on the International Space Station. And while he was there, he took hundreds of photographs that he compiled into a book: "Infinite Wonder: An Astronaut’s Photographs From A Year In Space." He spoke with NewsHour Weekend about his experiences in space and the spectacular views of Earth.
SUMMARY: Fifty years ago today, astronaut Neil Armstrong became the first person to walk on the surface of the moon. Now, for the first time since the Apollo program ended in 1972, NASA is planning an ambitious launch in 2024 to return astronauts to the moon, and to sustain a human presence there by 2028. Hari Sreenivasan reports from the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.
SUMMARY: Elon Musk's company, SpaceX, recently launched 60 internet satellites into Earth's orbit, with a plan to release 12,000 more satellites in the coming years. The venture, called Starlink, promises to increase internet access around the globe. But scientists are worried about what kind of orbital debris may be left behind. Loren Grush, a reporter with The Verge, joins Megan Thompson to discuss.
SUMMARY: A black hole is a cosmic abyss with gravity of such intensity that nothing, not even light, escapes it. Now, for the first time, a team of astronomers has released an image of the space anomaly, which is created when a star collapses. Professor Brian Greene of Columbia University and the World Science Festival provides context and talks to Judy Woodruff about this scientific breakthrough.
