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A preview of the U.S. National Science Foundation Discovering Our Universe gallery.

Using some of the world’s largest radio telescopes to scan the stars for signals astronomers have been listening for signs of extraterrestrial life.

This 100-year-old Navy veteran flew PBYs in World War II.

During Bud Anderson's thirty-year career as an officer in the U.S. Army Air Forces and the U.S. Air Force that spanned World War II and the Cold War, he was a fighter pilot, a combat and operational commander, a test pilot, and the leader of flight test programs.

Just how accurate is the portrayal of lighter-than-air flight in the third season of Bridgerton? Ballooning curator Tom Paone provides historical context.

Sci-fi is full of giant ships full of humanity living and dying and reaching out to new places far far away. Usually, these are called generations ships. And they rely on well, generations.

On June 7, 2024, Gen. William A. Anders died at age 90. Bill Anders dedicated his life to aerospace, first as a pilot and then as an astronaut, and his life was filled with inspirational moments for us to reflect upon as we mourn his passing. 

Rockoons—combinations of rockets and balloons—launched notable atmospheric experiments in the mid-20th century. Some rocket clubs and private companies are beginning to try using them again today.

When NASA astronaut Ellison Onizuka rode Space Shuttle Discovery into space on shuttle mission STS-51-C in 1985, he made history on several counts. He was the first Asian American astronaut, the first astronaut of Japanese descent, the first person from Hawai‘i in space, and the first Buddhist in space. His second space flight occurred just a year later in 1986 when Space Shuttle Challenger launched on STS-51L.

Georgia "Tiny" Broadwick was 15 years old when she first jumped out of a hot air balloon with a parachute in 1908. Over the next 14 years she would make over 1,000 jumps, first out of balloons and then as the first woman to jump from an airplane.