Space plane arrives at NASA facility for flight testing

A white-and-black space plane, very much resembling the now-retired space shuttle, was trucked to a NASA flight center in the Mojave Desert to begin a round of testing to see if it has the right stuff to carry astronauts one day.

Star Trek Into Darkness and NASA Have a Google Hangout

J.J. Abrams and the cast of Star Trek Into Darkness have joined NASA astronauts for a Google+ hangout. That's a tad ironic considering the film had some glaring scientific inaccuracies, which you can read about in our Star Trek IntoShow More Summary

Dream Chaser space plane to begin NASA flight tests

A flatbed truck carrying the Dream Chaser, its wings and tail removed, pauses at Hangar 4802 at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center in California. (Credit: NASA/Tom Tschida) In another sign of ever-increasing commercial spaceflight activity, Sierra Nevada's Dream Chaser space plane has arrived at NASA for testing. Show More Summary

Did 'Star Trek' Give Rise to NASA's 'Space Shuttle'?

NASA's first space shuttle, the test orbiter Enterprise, was named after the fictional starship on Star Trek in response to fans staging a write-in campaign. But did the agency's use of the term "space shuttle" also stem from the television...Show More Summary

Google and NASA Buy a D-Wave Computer

A new Quantum Artificial Intelligence lab is the latest customer for D-Wave's supposed quantum computer

Google, NASA quantum computing project could bring stronger machine learning to the masses

Google said Thursday it is establishing a Quantum Artificial Intelligence Lab to trigger the next phase of machine learning with the power of quantum computers. The efforts could trickle down to ordinary people.

Google buys a D-Wave quantum optimizer

To be shared with NASA and university researchers.

Google and NASA buy a quantum computer, to research more intelligent AI

The new Quantum Artificial Intelligence Lab (QAIL), housed at NASA's Ames Research Center in Silicon Valley and staffed by Google and NASA scientists, has become the second lab in the world to own a quantum computer. As the name suggests,...Show More Summary

Watch: NASA Google+ Hangout w/ Lindelof, Pine, Eve & Cho & ISS Astronauts

This morning NASA partnered up with Paramount for a Google+ Hangout with Star Trek Into Darkness writer/producer Damon Lindelof and stars Chris Pine, John Cho and NASA astronauts aboard the International Space Station. Watch live below (or replay the recording after the event)   Secret Starfleet Memorandum on Harrison In this live Google+ Hangout, NASA [...]

NASA's Kepler telescope crippled by technical failures

An artist's rendition of Kepler. (Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech) The Kepler space observatory has been a source of great wonder since it first launched in 2009. It has turned its eyes out into the great vastness of space and seen new planetary systems and potentially life-supporting planets. Show More Summary

Google Gets Into Quantum Computing; Advancing Machine Learning Is A Goal

Google, in the midst of its I/O conference (see our story here), also has teamed up with NASA to form the Quantum Artificial Intelligence Lab at the agency’s Ames Research Center. According to a post on Google’s Research Blog, the lab will house a D-Wave Systems quantum computer. Show More Summary

Kepler's greatest hits

Your guide to the most awesome exoplanets yet found by NASA's Kepler space telescope — all in one handy place, thanks to Wired's Adam Mann.

Kepler, seeker of Earth-like exoplanets, is broken – and NASA isn’t sure if it can be fixed

Back in March of 2009, the Kepler space telescope launched into the universe with the goal of identifying Earth-like planets. Over the years, it did manage that mission, occasionally finding a planet located in the habitable zone orbiting its star. Show More Summary

It Looks Like NASA’s Kepler Telescope Has Come To The End Of The Road

NASA’s orbiting Kepler telescope launched back in March of 2009, and it soon found scads of exoplanets, some of them even potentially habitable. To date, it’s found 122 confirmed exoplanets and 2,740 potential ones. Kepler completedShow More Summary

Thursday Night Bar Fight #10: The “Three Hour Tour”

Bad news, everyone! NASA has just reported that a giant meteor is on a collision course with Earth.  NASA has also confirmed there is no way to stop the moon-sized rock. Its arrival brings the end of all life on this planet.  (Thanks...Show More Summary

Google and NASA Launch Quantum Computing AI Lab

Quantum computing took a giant leap forward on the world stage today as NASA and Google, in partnership with a consortium of universities, launched an initiative to investigate how the technology might lead to breakthroughs in artificial...Show More Summary

The Kepler space telescope is spinning out of control

After four years of service, NASA’s planet-hunting Kepler telescope has suffered a second serious malfunction — one that threatens to permanently end the mission. Controllers on the ground can no longer control its orientation. It looks bad, but NASA isn’t giving up hope. Read more...

NASA’s Kepler telescope is in trouble, but it doesn’t end the search for another Earth

Google and NASA team up for D-Wave-powered Quantum Artificial Intelligence Lab

Google. NASA. Quantum computers. Seriously, everything about the new Quantum Artificial Intelligence Lab at the Ames Research Center is exciting. The joint effort between Mountain View and America's space agency will put a 512 qubitShow More Summary

Lights Out

NASA's Epic search for other earth-like planets in our galaxy may have come to an end as the Kepler telescope, orbiting the Sun, 40 million miles from Earth, has broken down with no fix in sight....