T/science

Coming Home May Be the Most Dangerous Part of Artemis II

After a successful flight around the moon, the astronauts are relying on a flawed heat shield to protect them as they re-enter Earth’s atmosphere.

NASA Prepares for Artemis II’s Return to Earth

The Artemis II crew prepared for their return home and NASA inspected the exterior of the Orion spacecraft, which is scheduled to land in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Southern California on Friday.

A Magazine for Earthlings Who Dream of Outer Space

Space Junk is a new publication from the fashion editor Jack Mills.

NASA Prepares for Artemis II Splashdown After Historic Moon Flyby

The mission is seen as a key step toward resuming crewed lunar landings. Artemis II’s four astronauts are scheduled to land in the waters off Southern California on Friday.

The Fast-Changing Chemistry of New, Dangerous Drugs

Today’s illicit chemists can quickly cook up drugs far more dangerous than fentanyl.

Inside a One-Man Workshop for Ultrapotent Drugs

Times reporters were given access to a small operation on the frontier of illicit drugs.

NASA Flew by the Moon, but Behind the Scenes, Its Science Is a Chaotic Mess

Without science, the stunning images of Earth from space are only pretty pictures.

Artemis II Astronauts Get a Break After Journey Around the Moon

The crew of the NASA mission had a quiet day as they flew home toward Earth.

En las primeras fotos del sobrevuelo lunar de la NASA están la Tierra y un eclipse

La Casa Blanca y la NASA publicaron imágenes registradas por las cámaras de los cuatro astronautas de la misión Artemis II.

Eyes on the Far Side of the Moon

See the photos taken by the Artemis II astronauts during their moon flyby.

Houston, We Have No Problem. But We Do Have a Lot of ‘Moon Joy.’

While science can seem colorless and plain, NASA’s lunar crew members have brought expressiveness and emotion about their journey to mission control and the public.

First Photos From NASA Moon Flyby Show Setting Earth and Eclipse

The White House and NASA released imagery captured by the cameras of the four astronauts of the Artemis II mission.

Trump, el negociador de deportaciones

El presidente quiere que terceros países reciban a los migrantes que no pueden ser devueltos a sus patrias. Para conseguirlo, casi todo está sujeto a negociación.

Artemis II Completes Historic Journey Around the Moon

NASA’s Artemis II crew received a call from President Trump, who congratulated them for the successful lunar flyby.

Trump Calls Artemis II Astronauts After Their Historic Journey Around the Moon

The conversation celebrated a small, but significant, step in an ambitious plan for missions to the moon and Mars that Mr. Trump had set early in his first term.

The hundreds of mementos aboard Artemis II include a flag that never made it to the moon.

The first earthlings to the moon weren’t humans. They were tortoises.

The crew will see a solar eclipse while on the far side of the moon.

NASA Isn’t Going to Dark Side of the Moon

Scientists prefer to call the backside of the moon its “far” side.

As the astronauts lose contact with Earth, NASA isn’t worried.

How to Follow NASA’s Artemis II Around the Far Side of the Moon

The astronauts will head into a communications blackout at 6:44 p.m. Eastern time as they become the first people to travel around the moon since 1972.

Las familias de la NASA no van a la Luna, pero también están en la misión

Mucho antes de que se produzca el despegue, no solo los astronautas sienten la carga de tal riesgo, sino también sus seres queridos.

The Artemis II crew breaks a distance record.

Three Americans and one Canadian traveling on NASA’s Orion spacecraft surpassed a milestone set by the crew of Apollo 13 in 1970.

Watch Live: Artemis II Mission

The four Artemis astronauts will pass behind the far side of the moon, seeing parts of the moon never observed with human eyes.

Artemis Astronauts Set Record for Farthest Distance Traveled From Earth

The Artemis II astronauts ventured farther from Earth than anyone else in the history of humanity on Monday, breaking the record set by Apollo 13 in 1970.

Trump’s Deportation Deals

The president wants third countries to take migrants who can’t be sent back home. To get that, almost everything is up for negotiation.

Astronauts Dedicate Moon Crater to Carroll Wiseman, Wife of NASA Commander

The crew shared an emotional moment with mission control and the family of Reid Wiseman, whose wife, Carroll, died in 2020, on the ground in Houston.

Human eyes are seeing the far side of the moon for the first time in a long time.

Exploring the Far Side of the Moon

As Artemis II flies around the far side of the moon, our graphics editor Marco Hernandez describes what the astronauts are looking for.

This is the most important science experiment aboard Artemis II.

‘Stop This Madness’: Time to Rein In Trump’s Reckless Conduct

Readers react to President Trump’s increasingly bellicose rhetoric. Also: Two moon missions, 58 years apart.

This is the Artemis II moon menu.

NASA Families Don’t Go to the Moon, but They’re on the Mission, Too

For the families of the Artemis II astronauts, the mission “begins at assignment.”

What’s the Point of Sending People Into Space? An Astronaut, Scientist and Journalist Debate.

Should we just send robots?

NASA’s Artemis II Crew Prepares for Lunar Flyby on Monday

The Artemis II crew sent an Easter message as they readied to travel around the moon.

NASA’s Artemis II Moon Mission: Everything You Need to Know

The journey around the moon of three Americans and one Canadian is going into its sixth day, but it’s not too late to get caught up on it.

NASA Artemis II Astronauts Race Into Moon’s Embrace After Quiet Easter

Ahead of a lunar flyby on Monday, the crew celebrated the astronaut Jeremy Hansen’s first spaceflight and got a special message from Charlie Duke, the Apollo 16 moonwalker.

NASA Astronauts Are Closer to Moon Than Earth on Artemis II Day 4

The astronauts said they had lost track of which day it is on Earth on their transit to the moon.

Living Space

We don’t have to travel to the moon to gain some of the insight that astronauts do.

Stephen Lewis Was a Singular Man on a Mission

Heartbreaking scenes of death from H.I.V. in Africa enraged and fueled the work of the Canadian AIDS activist and politician who died on Tuesday.

How Plausible Is ‘Project Hail Mary’? Astrophysicists Have Thoughts

Based on hard science fiction, a genre that prioritizes scientific accuracy, the blockbuster gets a lot right but misses a few things, experts say.

With Cheers and Tears, Houston Reclaims Its Place as ‘Space City’

The Artemis II mission elicited deep feelings for many Americans, particularly in Houston, the home of mission control.

Our First Moon Colony Will Be Filled With Garbage

Forget futuristic glass domes filled with plants and high-tech infrastructure, Jared Isaacman, the head of NASA, says of humanity’s first space colonies. In reality, because of the cost of travel, they will most likely be scrappy bases surrounded by garbage.

Why We Chose to Go Back to the Moon

These lunar resources could be valuable to us on Earth and in space.

How iPhones Found Their Way Into Space

The astronauts traveling in the Artemis II spacecraft were allowed to take smartphones with them. Sadly, they can’t connect to the internet.

‘Te ves hermosa’: la NASA comparte las primeras fotos de la Tierra de la misión Artemis II

Las imágenes tomadas desde la cápsula Orión por el comandante de la misión, Reid Wiseman, muestran distintas vistas de nuestro brillante planeta azul.

Artemis II Pilot Took a Test Drive on the Way to the Moon

Victor Glover, a former Navy test pilot, carefully maneuvered the Orion capsule in space around a discarded rocket stage. The demonstration is crucial for future moon landing missions.

NASA Unveils 1st Earth Photos From Artemis II: ‘You Look Beautiful.’

The pictures were released on the third day of the first mission since 1972 to send people around the moon.

Tras más de 50 años, inicia una nueva era lunar

La NASA espera que el vuelo del Artemis II sea un paso hacia la plena reactivación de las ambiciones lunares estadounidenses.

La carrera por el futuro de la Luna

La misión Artemis II no solo tiene que ver con la ciencia y la exploración. También forma parte de una crucial carrera espacial entre EE. UU. y China.

They Get Drunk Without Drinking

Inside the mystifying syndrome that can upend people’s lives and reputations.

Artemis II’s commander had a message for one of his oldest friends.

The Artemis II crew’s spacecraft feels bigger on the inside than you might think.

On Day 2, the astronauts begin their journey to the moon.

The Awe of a Moon Launch in an Age of Trump, Turmoil and Tribal Divisions

The launch of Artemis II captured the tenor of the times in a country that can still do big things but seems forever mired in big problems.

Biruté Galdikas, 79, Who Worked to Save Wild Orangutans in Borneo, Dies

With Jane Goodall and Dian Fossey, she was one of three prominent researchers of great apes who were sometimes called the “trimates.”

How the Artemis Astronauts Plan to Live in Space for 10 Days

On the Artemis II mission, four astronauts will work, exercise and sleep in a capsule that is about the size of two minivans for 10 days. In April 2025, National Geographic worked with NASA to film the astronauts at an Orion space capsule model in Houston.

The Race for the Future of the Moon

The Artemis II mission isn’t just about science and exploration. It’s part of a high-stakes space race between the U.S. and China.

El inodoro del Artemis II tenía un problema

El retrete de la cápsula Orión es una innovación de la higiene personal en el espacio. Poco después de su salida, los astronautas de la misión a la luna reportaron que presentaba una falla (que parece ya estar resuelta).

He Studied How to Transport Blood to Wounded Marines

Peter Frazier’s lab at Cornell worked to improve how blood was stored and transported for armed forces. Then he received a stop-work order.

After More Than 50 Years, Humans Depart Again for the Moon

With the Artemis II launch, NASA reignited its long-dormant ambitions for crewed lunar exploration.

SpaceX prepara una oferta pública para salir a la bolsa de valores

La empresa se ha comprometido a debutar en junio, y Musk aspira a recaudar entre 50.000 y 75.000 millones de dólares con la salida, dijo una de las personas familiarizadas con la compañía.

NASA Launches Artemis Astronauts on Journey to the Moon

Crowds gathered near the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., on Wednesday to watch as NASA launched four astronauts on a 10-day journey that will go around the moon.

¿La misión para volver a la Luna logrará unir a los que estamos en la Tierra?

En un mundo dividido políticamente, cuatro astronautas intentarán mostrar que el esfuerzo, la tenacidad y, sobre todo, la humanidad no tienen fronteras.

China’s Aiming for the Moon, and NASA Is Looking Over Its Shoulder

The U.S. space agency launched a lunar flyby Wednesday, but Beijing is pursuing its own space program with formidable focus. Here’s what we know about it, in photos and videos.

4 tiny spacecraft have tagged along with Artemis II.

How likely is it that Artemis II will collide with debris in space?

Some rejoiced in NASA’s return to the moon. Others had a regular Wednesday.

Space enthusiasts watched with awe and joy as a massive rocket roared into space on the first crewed flight to the moon in more than 50 years. Other Americans were detached, or oblivious.

The Artemis II Toilet Had a Problem

The Universal Waste Management System aboard the Orion capsule is an innovation in deep space toiletry (it seems to be fixed now).

For the First Time, a Toilet Heads Into Deep Space

The Orion spacecraft will take four crew members and one commode around the moon and back as part of the Artemis II mission. In April 2025, National Geographic worked with NASA and filmed the astronauts at an Orion space capsule model in Houston.

NASA’s Artemis II Moon Mission Launches Into Space

The crew of four — three Americans and one Canadian — reached space on Wednesday on the first crewed journey to the moon since 1972.

When Will Artemis II Reach the Moon?

After orbiting Earth, the Orion capsule will carry the astronauts to the moon and arrive by Monday night.

What China sees as NASA launches Artemis II.

A flight to the moon like no other.

Artemis, Orion, Integrity: What’s in 3 names?

For the Superfans of Spaceflight, Artemis II Can’t Launch Soon Enough

Future engineers and former space campers hope to infect people around them with enthusiasm for NASA’s latest moon mission.

An Adorable Stowaway Is Aboard NASA’s Artemis II Mission to the Moon

Lucas Ye, age 8, designed the stuffed toy that will start floating when the Orion capsule reaches orbit.

Here’s where and when you can see the rocket in the sky.

Who Made the Artemis II Rocket and Space Capsule?

While SpaceX and Blue Origin get much of the attention among rocket makers these days, traditional aerospace companies, including Boeing and Lockheed Martin, built the vehicles for Artemis II.

Why Artemis II Won’t Land on the Moon

It has been 50 years since humans last walked the lunar surface, and NASA’s efforts to get back there will take place in stages.

Jeremy Hansen Is the First Canadian to Join a Moon Mission

The Canadian Space Agency astronaut is the one Artemis II crew member who has not traveled to space.

Christina Koch Will Be the First Woman to Journey Around the Moon

Ms. Koch previously set a record for longest single spaceflight by a woman, and was a participant in the first all-female spacewalk.

How NASA Is Keeping the Astronauts Safe During the Artemis II Mission

Years of testing, emergency systems and sensors have gone into protecting the astronauts set to head to the moon.

Victor Glover, Artemis II’s Pilot, Will be the First Black Astronaut Around the Moon.

An astronaut since 2013, Mr. Glover was also the first Black astronaut on a long duration International Space Station mission.

SpaceX Files to Go Public, Setting Stage for Huge I.P.O.

An initial public offering of Elon Musk’s rocket and satellite company would most likely be a generational wealth event and one of the largest offerings ever.

Reid Wiseman, a Veteran Fighter Pilot, Is the Artemis II Commander

As a child, Mr. Wiseman never imagined he could be an astronaut. Now he’s commanding NASA’s first mission to the moon since 1972.

Before Artemis II, there had to be an Artemis I.

Can Science Predict When a Study Won’t Hold Up?

Conducting research is hard; confirming the results is, too. And artificial intelligence isn’t yet ready to help, a major new study finds.

How to Watch NASA’s Artemis II Moon Launch Online

NASA will broadcast the launch of the Artemis II mission as well as holding live conversations with the crew during their time in space.

Fossil of Pincer-Wielding Crawler Reveals Origins of Spiders, Scorpions and Others

Researchers argue that a newly examined specimen found decades ago in Utah provides new clues to the ancestors of chelicerates before the group hit it big on land.

Meet the four astronauts of Artemis II.

Weather conditions look favorable ahead of the launch.

Space Force meteorologists said there was an 80 percent chance that NASA’s Artemis II mission will have the conditions it needs.

Today’s Mission to the Moon

Four astronauts of the Artemis II mission are preparing NASA for its next lunar landing.

NASA’s Mission Back to the Moon

Artemis II, which would be the first time anyone would travel this far from Earth since 1972, launches on April 1. Kenneth Chang, a reporter for The New York Times, describes how the mission is key to a U.S. goal.

El naranja es el nuevo color de moda en el espacio

El color es el naranja internacional, el tono de los trajes de vuelo de los astronautas del Artemis II en la primera misión a la Luna desde 1972.

Why the Artemis II Astronauts Will Be Wearing Orange

It’s not just any orange. It’s International Orange.

How the Internet Became the ‘Cookbook’ of the Drug Trade

A baffling overdose death took investigators to the frontier of ultra-potent synthetic drugs. The clues were hauntingly familiar.

Uncovering the World’s Newest and Deadliest Drugs

Overdose rates in the United States have surged with the emergence of new synthetic drugs. Matt Richtel reports from a lab in Pennsylvania where scientists are identifying new drug molecules that toxicology reports can’t detect.

Canada Charts a New Path in Space, and With the U.S.

Canada will send its first astronaut to the moon on a joint mission with the United States, but back on Earth, the relationship between the two countries is fraying.

For Trump, Moon Mission Is a Ticket to Greater Goals, and His Own Legacy

No president since the Apollo era has pushed harder to return to the moon than President Trump. But he wants a space achievement that is about “more than getting rocks this time.”

They’re Going to the Moon and They Know Not Everyone Is With Them

Can the four astronauts of the NASA mission Artemis II make a difference in a distracted and divided world?

Andy Weir habla sobre la ciencia detrás de ‘Proyecto Hail Mary’

El autor de ciencia ficción habla de ‘Proyecto Hail Mary”, su novela científica que fue adaptada en una película protagonizada por Ryan Gosling.

Astronauts Prepare for Artemis II Moon Mission

NASA is sending four astronauts to space on a mission to circle the moon and test a life support system. The astronauts spoke to The New York Times in January before the mission was delayed until April because of technical issues.

Dancing in Space: Rethinking Bodies Without Gravity

As a new commercial era of space exploration accelerates, scientists are considering the physical culture of outer space. Dancers are well positioned to help.

Americans Have Never Been All That Excited About Going to the Moon

Polling has consistently found that most people would prefer NASA spend money on things like monitoring climate change and averting asteroid collisions rather than human spaceflight.

Around the Moon and Back in 10 Days

Here's how NASA plans to send four astronauts on a trip around the moon, the first time that anyone would travel this far from Earth since the end of the Apollo program in 1972.

Artemis II Crew Prepares for Moon Launch

The four astronauts of the Artemis II, the first crewed mission to the moon since Apollo in 1972, spoke to the news media leading up to Wednesday’s launch window.

Este astronauta perdió el habla en el espacio. Los doctores aún no saben por qué

De un momento a otro, Michael Fincke perdió el habla durante una misión en la Estación Espacial Internacional en enero. El episodio provocó una inusual evacuación de regreso a la Tierra.

Journey to the Moon ‘Starting to Feel Real’ for NASA’s Artemis II Crew

The four astronauts — three Americans and one Canadian — spoke from a prelaunch quarantine ahead of their scheduled Wednesday mission.

The Fragile Hope for Salmon Recovery in Maine

A long-term project to remove or modify dams may clear the way for endangered wild Atlantic salmon to swim freely up to the Sandy River. But it faces opposition from business and lawmakers.

A Secret History of Psychosis

Cohen Miles-Rath heard voices telling him to kill his father. After they passed, he spent years retracing the path of his delusions.

Astronaut’s Condition That Led to Space Station Evacuation Remains a Mystery

The astronaut, Michael Fincke, experienced a medical emergency in January that rendered him unable to speak, he said.

Henry C. Lee Dies at 87; Forensic Scientist Testified in Defense of O.J. Simpson

The Times called him “the world’s most highly regarded forensic criminologist,” but later in his career he faced accusations that he had hidden and fabricated evidence.

Dr. Judith L. Rapoport, Pioneer in Understanding O.C.D., Dies at 92

Her best-selling 1989 book, “The Boy Who Couldn’t Stop Washing,” based on her groundbreaking research, brought public awareness to obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Robert Trivers, Eccentric Scientist Who Probed Human Nature, Dies at 83

A visionary evolutionary biologist, he drew comparisons to Charles Darwin with his theories on the genetic roots of seemingly detrimental behaviors like self-deception.

Jesse Roth, Who Advanced the Understanding of Diabetes, Dies at 91

His research showed that Type 2 diabetes was caused by insulin resistance at the cellular level, a controversial idea that initially met with disbelief.

Did Scientists Just Detect an Exploding Black Hole?

An underwater observatory recently detected a startlingly energetic cosmic neutrino. One possible cause involves a phenomenon that so far exists only in theory.

29 Ways to Entertain Your Kids in New York City This Spring

They can shake off those winter doldrums by hunting for Easter eggs, running the bases at Brooklyn Cyclones’ ballpark or gliding down Slide Hill on Governors Island.

Scientists Filmed a Whale Birth. The Surprise: Mom Had Many Helpers.

The episode, involving a group of sperm whales, adds to evidence that humans aren’t the only species that gets some form of assistance during and after delivery.

Glass Threads Spun From a Volcano’s Bubbly Magma

A volcanic formation known as Pele’s hair is produced when air-filled magma is stretched, according to a new study by a team of scientists and glass artists.

How to Turn a Chicken Egg Into a Drug Factory

A biotech start-up is testing a novel way of efficiently producing pharmaceutical drugs.

Heisuke Hironaka, Groundbreaking Mathematician, Is Dead at 94

A recipient of his profession’s prestigious Fields Medal, he devised an algorithm that helps solve mathematical “singularities.” It now permeates the field.

Humans Had Dogs Before They Had Farming, Ancient DNA Confirms

New research pushes the first genetic evidence of dogs back by 5,000 years and suggests that hunter-gatherer groups may have acquired dogs from one another.

Los estragos de la crisis energética de Asia

La crisis energética desatada por la guerra en Irán podría ya ser peor que las crisis del petróleo de la década de 1970. Así es como está trastornando vidas.

Base en la Luna y nave nuclear a Marte: el nuevo plan de la NASA

La agencia fija metas y plazos concretos para impulsar la exploración espacial y recuperar la confianza en su misión.

Asia’s Energy Crisis Stings

The energy crisis unleashed by the war in Iran may already be worse than the oil shocks of the 1970s. Here’s how it’s upending lives.

San Francisco Killed 8th-Grade Algebra. Now It’s Set to Come Back.

The San Francisco school board will vote on a plan to restore algebra as an option at all middle schools, more than a decade after it was removed over equity concerns.

Ancient Grapes Reveal Long History of Modern Wines

Genetic material preserved in ancient grape seeds reveals when, and how, humans meddled with wine grapes.

NASA Adds Moon Base and Nuclear-Powered Mars Spacecraft to Road Map

The agency announced the more specific plans and timelines after years of suggesting it may build a lunar outpost.

We’ve Been Underestimating Flying Foxes

Australia used to incinerate the large fruit bats, but research suggests they bring hundreds of millions of dollars in benefits to the country’s economy.

Data Centers in Space? Faster-Than-Light Spaceships? Big Dreams Abound.

“Open Space,” by David Ariosto, suggests there are few limits on human ingenuity that could prevent us from colonizing the cosmos.

Wicked Stepmother No Longer, a Female Pharaoh Gets a Reputational Makeover

A reassessment of damaged 3,500-year-old statuary adds to evidence that Queen Hatshepsut wasn’t the villain that scholars long took her to be.

David Botstein, Gene-Mapping Pioneer, Dies at 83

His method of locating genes in human DNA allowed researchers to find disease-causing genes, and later to map the entire, sprawling human genome.

‘The Last of Us’ on Eight Legs

A newly discovered species of spider in the Ecuadorean Amazon mimics a pathogen, known as a zombie fungus, to protect itself.

Un matemático alemán recibe el Premio Abel por su trabajo en teoría de números

Gerd Faltings demostró una conjetura que llevaba seis décadas sin resolverse, para lo que utilizó conexiones entre los números y la geometría.

German Mathematician Wins Abel Prize for Number Theory Work

Gerd Faltings proved a conjecture that had been unsolved for six decades, using connections between numbers and geometry.

Exploding Comet Is Spotted by NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope

In a stroke of luck, astronomers saw the comet C/2025 K1 (ATLAS) break into four or five fragments in November after it passed close to the sun.

James Barnard, a Global Force in Wastewater Treatment, Dies at 90

An environmental engineer, he invented a biological method to remove nitrogen and phosphorous from wastewater, an advance that transformed the industry worldwide.

Why Some Birds Seem to Be Developing a Cigarette Habit

Research from Poland adds to evidence from Latin American countries that compounds in used cigarette butts ward off parasites in bird nests.

Turing Award Goes to Inventors of Quantum Cryptography

In the 1980s, Charles Bennett and Gilles Brassard created a new kind of encryption that would be impregnable.

A ‘Hail Mary’ for Earth, Built on Solid Science

Andy Weir discusses his science-fueled novel “Project Hail Mary,” which has been adapted into a film that opens in theaters on Friday.

How to Bring a Bird’s Song Back From the Edge of Extinction

In a new study, wild regent honeyeaters became vocal tutors, teaching their disappearing song to birds in a captive breeding program.

Spaceflight Started 100 Years Ago in a Massachusetts Cabbage Patch

Before humanity sent satellites, telescopes, humans and weapons into space, Robert Goddard experimented with the first liquid-fueled rocket on his aunt’s farm.

Canada Takes Its Sovereignty Push to Space

The country aims to expand domestic satellite systems and cut dependence on American networks like Elon Musk’s Starlink.

Bad News for Friggatriskaidekaphobics: 2026 Has Three Fridays the 13th

It’s the first time since 2015 that the combination of the day and date associated with bad luck has recurred three times in a calendar year.

NASA Says Artemis II Moon Launch Is On Track for April 1

After postponing launch opportunities in February and March, the agency determined that four astronauts could proceed toward the first crewed lunar journey in more than 50 years.

Before Landing on the Moon, a Collision Close Call Haunted a Space Mission

The experience of the private Blue Ghost mission in lunar orbit a year ago highlights a growing number of “red alert” incidents above Earth’s neighbor.

A.I. Writes Buggy Code. A Silicon Valley Start-Up Wants to Fix It.

Valued at $1.6 billion, a tiny start-up called Axiom is building A.I. systems that can check for mistakes.

In Criminal Cases, Moss Is Often Underfoot and Overlooked

A group of scientists and law enforcement officials are pointing to the role moss can play to help solve crimes.