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Tag: NASA

  • Japanese flight controllers re-establish contact with tipped-over SLIM moon lander

    Japanese flight controllers re-establish contact with tipped-over SLIM moon lander


    Japanese flight controllers re-established contact with the robotic SLIM lunar lander Saturday, eight days after the spacecraft tipped over and lost power as it was touching down on Jan. 19, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency announced Sunday.

    An engine malfunction moments before landing caused the Smart Landing for Investigating (the) Moon, or SLIM, spacecraft to drift to one side during its final descent instead of dropping straight down to the surface.

    That lateral velocity apparently caused the probe to tilt over as it touched down, leaving its solar cells, attached to the top of the lander, facing away from the sun. Without solar power, the spacecraft was forced to rely on the dwindling power in its on-board battery.

    012524-slim.jpg
    An image of Japan’s SLIM lunar lander, taken by a small rover that was deployed moments before touchdown, shows the spacecraft ended up in a nose-down orientation with its solar cells pointed to one side, away from the sun.

    JAXA


    After downloading a few photographs and collecting as much engineering data as possible, commands were sent to shut the spacecraft down while it still had a small reserve of battery power.

    At the time, officials said they were hopeful contact could be restored when the angle between the sun and SLIM’s solar cells changed as the moon swept through its orbit.

    In the meantime, NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter photographed the SLIM landing site last week from an altitude of 50 miles, showing the spacecraft as a tiny speck of reflected light on the moon’s cratered surface:

    No details were immediately available Sunday, but the team said in a post on X that it “succeeded in establishing communication with SLIM last night and have resumed operations! We immediately started scientific observations with MBC (multi-band camera), and have successfully obtained first light.”

    The target was a nearby rock formation nicknamed “toy poodle.”

    It was not immediately known if enough power was available to recharge SLIM’s battery, how long engineers expected the spacecraft to operate with the available power or whether it might be shut down again to await additional power generation.

    Despite its problems, SLIM successfully landed on the moon, making Japan the fifth nation to pull off a lunar landing after the United States, the former Soviet Union, China and India

    Three commercially developed robotic landers launched over the last few years from Japan, Israel and the United States all suffered malfunctions that prevented intact landings.

    A fourth commercial lander, built by Houston-based Intuitive Machines, is scheduled for launch next month.

    William Harwood

    Bill Harwood has been covering the U.S. space program full-time since 1984, first as Cape Canaveral bureau chief for United Press International and now as a consultant for CBS News.





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  • NASA: History-making Mars copter ingenuity takes last flight – Times of India

    NASA: History-making Mars copter ingenuity takes last flight – Times of India



    Ingenuity was supposed to make five flights on Mars over a 30-day period. But it went on to spend nearly three years on the red planet covering 14 times as much ground as initially planned.
    NASA‘s little helicopter on Mars, “Ingenuity,” has taken its last flight, the US space agency announced on Thursday.
    “It is bittersweet that I must announce that Ingenuity, the ‘little helicopter that could’ — and it kept saying, ‘I think I can, I think I can’ — well, it has now taken its last flight on Mars,” NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said.
    First aircraft on another planet
    Ingenuity is a small helicopter that became the first aircraft to achieve powered flight on another planet, in 2021.
    The mission was intended to last 30 days to see whether it would be possible to make five short flights.
    However, Ingenuity went on to take 72 flights around the red planet over almost three years.
    It covered 14 times as much ground as originally planned.
    Surpassing all expectations
    During Ingenuity’s most recent flight on January 18, the helicopter had to make an “emergency landing” after it lost contact with the Perseverance rover.
    NASA engineers were able to restore contact the next day, but the shadows cast by the helicopter’s blades in new photos appeared to show damage.
    Now, engineers will run final tests on Ingenuity and download the remaining images from its onboard computer. Perseverance is currently too far away to photograph Ingenuity’s final resting site, NASA said.
    “While we knew this day was inevitable, it doesn’t make it any easier” to announce the end of the mission, said NASA’s Lori Glaze.
    “It’s almost an understatement to say that it has surpassed expectations.”
    (Content source: Deutsche Welle)





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  • Nasa’s Hubble finds water vapor in exoplanet’s GJ 9827d’s atmosphere – Times of India

    Nasa’s Hubble finds water vapor in exoplanet’s GJ 9827d’s atmosphere – Times of India



    NEW DELHI: Using Nasa’s Hubble Space Telescope, astronomers have observed water vapor in the atmosphere of the tiniest exoplanet yet, GJ 9827d. The planet, which is merely about twice the diameter of Earth, serves as a potential indicator of other planets with water-rich atmospheres in our galaxy, Nasa said in a release.
    The current understanding is uncertain: the Hubble may have detected a minor amount of water vapor within a predominantly hydrogen-rich atmosphere, or the planet might primarily possess a water-based atmosphere, a remnant after its original hydrogen/helium atmosphere was vaporized by stellar radiation.
    Björn Benneke commented on the novelty of this discovery, saying, “Until now, we had not been able to directly detect the atmosphere of such a small planet. And we’re slowly getting in this regime now.” He further speculated on the transition of atmospheres in smaller planets, comparing them to Venus, which has a carbon dioxide-dominated atmosphere.
    With surface temperatures as high as Venus, reaching around 800 degrees Fahrenheit, GJ 9827d would be a steamy and uninhabitable world if its atmosphere is primarily composed of water vapor.
    The team is currently considering two possibilities regarding the planet’s atmospheric composition. One theory suggests that GJ 9827d retains a hydrogen-rich atmosphere with traces of water, classifying it as a mini-Neptune. Alternatively, it could be akin to a warmer version of Europa, Jupiter’s moon known for its subsurface ocean. Benneke theorizes, “The planet GJ 9827d could be half water, half rock. And there would be a lot of water vapor on top of some smaller rocky body.”
    If the planet has managed to hold onto a water-rich atmosphere, it likely originated farther from its host star where temperatures are colder and water exists as ice, later migrating closer and undergoing significant radiation exposure, causing hydrogen to heat and potentially escape. The other hypothesis posits that the planet formed near the hot star, with a minor amount of water in its atmosphere.
    Hubble observed GJ 9827d during 11 transits over three years. These observations allowed astronomers to analyze the spectral signature of water molecules in the planet’s atmosphere. If the planet has clouds, they are low enough to not obstruct Hubble’s view, allowing the detection of water vapor above the clouds.
    Thomas Greene, an astrophysicist at Nasa’s Ames Research Center, highlighted the importance of this discovery, saying, “Observing water is a gateway to finding other things.” He anticipates future studies by Nasa’s James Webb Space Telescope, which will offer more in-depth infrared observations and the potential to detect other vital molecules.
    GJ 9827d orbits a red dwarf star, GJ 9827, in the Pisces constellation, discovered by Nasa’s Kepler Space Telescope in 2017. The exoplanet completes its orbit every 6.2 days and lies 97 light-years from Earth.
    The Hubble Space Telescope, a collaborative project between Nasa and the European Space Agency, is managed by Nasa’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland, with scientific operations conducted by the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore.
    Contributors to this discovery and report include Ray Villard from the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, Pierre-Alexis Roy and Björn Benneke from the Trottier Institute for Research on Exoplanets at the Université de Montréal.





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  • Mars rover data confirms ancient lake sediments on red planet – Times of India

    Mars rover data confirms ancient lake sediments on red planet – Times of India



    LOS ANGELES: Groundbreaking findings from NASA‘s Perseverance rover have confirmed the existence of ancient lake sediments in the Jerezo Crater on Mars, indicating that the Red Planet once hosted significant bodies of water. This discovery, published in Science Advances, reinforces theories of a potentially habitable ancient Mars.
    The research, spearheaded by teams from UCLA and the University of Oslo, utilized the rover’s ground-penetrating radar, RIMFAX, to capture subsurface scans revealing rock layers up to 65 feet deep. These findings were gathered throughout 2022 as Perseverance traversed the Martian terrain from the crater floor to an area resembling Earth’s river deltas.
    “The radar data provides a cross-sectional view of Martian geology, almost like looking at a road cut,” explained UCLA planetary scientist David Paige, the lead author of the study. The layers showed clear evidence of soil sediments deposited by water, akin to sedimentation processes in Earth’s lakes.
    This discovery marks a significant milestone in the understanding of Mars’ past climate and topography. It suggests that the planet, now cold and arid, was once warm and wet, potentially supporting microbial life.
    Perseverance’s journey also revealed an unexpected geological diversity. Initial core samples drilled near the rover’s landing site in February 2021 indicated volcanic rock rather than the anticipated sedimentary type. However, these volcanic rocks showed signs of water exposure, suggesting a complex geological history including erosion and sedimentation, as revealed by the latest RIMFAX data.
    The rover’s findings at Jerezo Crater, dating back approximately 3 billion years, are a crucial piece in unraveling Mars’ environmental evolution. Samples collected by Perseverance from these sedimentary layers are slated for future transport to Earth for detailed analysis.
    “The real news here is that we’ve now driven onto the delta and are seeing evidence of these ancient lake sediments,” said Paige. “This aligns with one of the main reasons for choosing this landing site. It’s a happy story in that respect.”
    The latest discoveries from Perseverance not only validate the selection of the Jerezo Crater for exploration but also open new chapters in understanding Mars’ capability to support life in its distant past.





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  • Nasa’s historic Mars helicopter Ingenuity grounded for good: All you need to know – Times of India

    Nasa’s historic Mars helicopter Ingenuity grounded for good: All you need to know – Times of India



    Nasa‘s pioneering Mars helicopter, Ingenuity, has officially concluded its mission after an ambitious and groundbreaking journey on the Red Planet. This innovative rotorcraft, initially intended as a brief technology demonstration, far exceeded expectations by completing 72 flights, showcasing the potential for aerial exploration on other planets.
    What’s driving the news
    Ingenuity’s mission came to an end after its final flight on January 18, when it sustained damage to its rotor blades, leaving it incapable of further flight.
    The fate of the 4-pound (1.8-kg) rotor-craft was sealed when imagery beamed back to Earth showed that a portion of one of its twin rotor blades had broken off during its final flight on January 18, leaving it incapable of further operation.
    Nasa administrator Bill Nelson said in a video posted on social media that Ingenuity, the “little helicopter that could”, had taken its last flight on Mars.
    The helicopter, which was carried to the Red Planet strapped to the belly of Nasa’s Perseverance rover, far exceeded the expectations of engineers who designed and built it at Nasa’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) near Los Angeles.
    Ingenuity ultimately buzzed over the Martian terrain 14 times farther than originally planned, logging more than two hours, eight minutes of flight time and covering a distance of 10.5 miles (17 km) through all 72 flights. Its peak altitude was measured at 78.7 feet (24 meters).
    This unexpected conclusion marks the culmination of a mission that started as a mere 30-day experiment but evolved into a three-year adventure, pushing the boundaries of interplanetary aviation and revolutionizing our understanding of powered flight on other worlds.

    Why it matters

    The success of Ingenuity is a testament to human innovation and the relentless pursuit of exploration. As the first vehicle to achieve powered, controlled flight on another planet, Ingenuity not only proved that aerial mobility is feasible on Mars but also opened new horizons for future missions. Its ability to scout and navigate the Martian terrain has provided invaluable data, paving the way for more sophisticated and ambitious aerial missions in our solar system, including the upcoming Dragonfly mission to Saturn’s moon, Titan.

    What they are saying

    Nasa officials have expressed a mix of pride and nostalgia as they reflect on Ingenuity’s accomplishments.
    “It is bittersweet that I must announce that Ingenuity, the ‘little helicopter that could’ – and it kept saying, ‘I think I can, I think I can’ – well, it has now taken its last flight on Mars,” Nasa administrator Bill Nelson said.
    “Like the Wright brothers, what they did back here on Earth at the early part of the last century, Ingenuity has paved the way for future flight in our solar system, and it’s leading the way for smarter, safer human missions to Mars and beyond,” Nelson added.
    Teddy Tzanetos, JPL’s Ingenuity project manager, told reporters that engineers believe guidance difficulties posed by the “bland” terrain where Ingenuity was flying resulted in the rotors striking the surface, damaging one of the blades.
    “Ingenuity has been a phenomenal success, and we are very proud of what it has accomplished,” Tzanetos said. “It has opened up new possibilities for aerial exploration on Mars and beyond.”

    What’s next

    Ingenuity will live out its final days idle but emit periodic blips of data before losing contact with the rover as Perseverance moves farther away. The rover, which landed on the floor of a vast Martian basin called Jerezo Crater on a separate mission aimed primarily at collecting surface samples for eventual return to Earth, will continue its scientific work on the Red Planet.
    Nasa officials said Ingenuity’s exploits have paved the way for a new mode of aerial exploration on Mars and elsewhere in the solar system, such as Saturn’s moon Titan, for which Nasa plans to launch a drone-like rotor-craft called Dragonfly in 2027.
    Meanwhile, the space community looks forward to future missions, such as the Dragonfly rotorcraft destined for Titan, which will build on the successes and lessons learned from Ingenuity’s pioneering flights. As Nasa continues to push the boundaries of exploration, the spirit of Ingenuity will continue to guide the way toward new frontiers and possibilities in our quest to understand the cosmos.
    (With inputs from agencies)





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  • Nasa opens $1-billion canister of 4.6bn-year-old asteroid dust | – Times of India

    Nasa opens $1-billion canister of 4.6bn-year-old asteroid dust | – Times of India



    Nasa‘s Johnson Space Center is in celebration mode after finally opening a canister filled with ancient asteroid dust, an endeavor that has challenged the team since the canister landed in Utah’s desert four months ago.
    “It’s open! It’s open! And ready for its closeup,” NASA’s planetary science division posted on X.

    The removal of two stubborn fasteners marked a pivotal moment in accessing the precious samples from the 4.6 billion-year-old asteroid Bennu, a celestial body with a slight chance of Earth impact by 2300.
    Elusive samples secured
    While the bulk of rock samples from Nasa’s Osiris-Rex mission were secured soon after the canister’s September arrival, additional material within a sampler head remained elusive. The Houston team’s perseverance paid off as they dislodged the final two of 35 fasteners, prompting jubilant exclamations from Nasa’s planetary science division and the unveiling of a captivating image showing the dust and small rocks nestled inside the canister.
    The mission to retrieve a sample from Bennu, a celestial relic from the dawn of the solar system, spanned over seven years and demanded an investment close to $1 billion.
    OSIRIS-REx represents the third endeavor of Nasa’s New Frontiers Program, orchestrated by Nasa’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. This initiative is directed by the Science Mission Directorate situated at Nasa Headquarters in Washington.
    Precision tools for pristine samples
    In a meticulous effort to avoid earthly contamination, the team crafted custom tools from a specific surgical, non-magnetic stainless steel. These tools were instrumental in delicately opening the container and ensuring the nine-ounce sample, believed to be among the solar system’s oldest materials, remained pristine for analysis.
    Unlocking cosmic secrets
    Ashley King of London’s Natural History Museum reflected on the significance of such asteroid samples, emphasizing their role in unraveling the ingredients and processes that shaped habitable environments like Earth. Meanwhile, the spacecraft responsible for this cosmic harvest has embarked on a new journey towards Apophis, another intriguing asteroid.
    Resilience rewarded
    The curation team at Johnson, led by Eileen Stansbery of ARES and Dr Nicole Lunning, Osiris-Rex curator, is basking in the success of their relentless efforts. Their skillful handling of the TAGSAM head’s stubborn fasteners has allowed for the continuation of the disassembly process, a milestone that resonates with joy and anticipation among the team.
    A Rosetta stone from the stars
    After the initial hurdles, the container’s unveiling has sparked a wave of excitement. Holding over 70 grams of material, the capsule is seen as a Rosetta Stone, offering profound insights into the solar system and life’s origins on Earth. Dante Lauretta, a prominent figure on the OSIRIS-REx mission, expressed hopes of uncovering traces of early biology within these ancient rocks. These celestial fragments, already hinting at water presence, stand to deepen our understanding of cosmic phenomena and life’s genesis.
    Global scientific odyssey ahead
    With the samples now accessible, Nasa is gearing up to share this extraterrestrial treasure with the scientific community worldwide. The agency’s meticulous preservation and analysis efforts aim to pave the way for a comprehensive global study, unraveling the mysteries embedded in these ancient asteroid particles and further enriching our cosmic knowledge.





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  • Nasa Regains Contact with Mini-Helicopter on Mars | – Times of India

    Nasa Regains Contact with Mini-Helicopter on Mars | – Times of India



    WASHINGTON: Nasa has re-established contact with its tiny helicopter on Mars, the US space agency said Saturday, after an unexpected outage prompted fears that the hard-working craft had finally met its end.
    Ingenuity, a drone about 1.6 feet (0.5 meters) tall, arrived on Mars in 2021 aboard the rover Perseverance and became the first motorized craft to fly autonomously on another planet.
    Data from the helicopter are transmitted via Perseverance back to Earth, but communications were suddenly lost during a test flight on Thursday, Ingenuity’s 72nd lift-off on Mars.
    “Good news today,” Nasa’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) wrote on X, formerly Twitter, late Saturday.
    The agency said that contact had finally been made with the helicopter by commanding Perseverance to “perform long-duration listening sessions for Ingenuity’s signal.”
    “The team is reviewing the new data to better understand the unexpected comms dropout during Flight 72,” it added.
    Nasa previously said that Ingenuity had attained an altitude of 40 feet (12 meters) on Flight 72, which was a “quick pop-up vertical flight to check out the helicopter’s systems, following an unplanned early landing during its previous flight.”
    But during its descent, “communications between the helicopter and rover terminated early, prior to touchdown,” the agency said.
    JPL had noted on Friday that Perseverance was temporarily “out of line-of-sight with Ingenuity, but the team could consider driving closer for a visual inspection.”
    In a response to a post on X asking if Ingenuity would be able to fly again, JPL said Saturday that “the team needs to assess the new data before that can be determined.”
    Nasa has lost contact with the helicopter before, including for an agonizing two months last year.
    The mini rotorcraft, which weighs just four pounds (1.8 kilograms), has far exceeded its original goal of undertaking five flights over 30 days on the red planet.
    In all, it has covered just over 10 miles (17 kilometers) and reached altitudes of up to 79 feet (24 meters).
    Its longevity has proved remarkable, particularly considering that it must survive glacially cold Martian nights, kept warm by the solar panels that recharge its batteries during daylight hours.
    Working with Perseverance, it has acted as an aerial scout to assist its wheeled companion in searching for possible signs of ancient microbial life.





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  • Greenland has lost more ice than previously thought: Study – Times of India

    Greenland has lost more ice than previously thought: Study – Times of India



    PARIS: Climate change has caused Greenland‘s ice sheet to lose 20 percent more ice than previously thought, according to research published Wednesday that used satellite imagery to track the retreat of glaciers over the past four decades.
    Previous studies have found that about 5,000 gigatons of ice has been lost from the surface of the Greenland ice sheet in the past two decades, a major contributor to rising sea levels.
    In the new study, researchers in the United States compiled nearly 240,000 satellite images of glacier terminus positions — where glaciers meet the ocean — from 1985 to 2022.
    “Nearly every glacier in Greenland has thinned or retreated over the past few decades,” lead author Chad Greene, a glaciologist from Nasa‘s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, told AFP.
    “There really aren’t any exceptions, and this is happening everywhere, all at once.”
    They found that over 1000 gigatons (1 gigaton is equivalent to 1 billion tons), or 20 percent, of ice around the edges of Greenland had been lost over the past four decades and not been accounted for.
    “The Greenland ice sheet has lost appreciably more ice in recent decades than previously thought,” researchers said in the journal Nature.
    Because the ice at the island’s edges is already in the water, the authors stressed that this would have had a “minimal” direct impact on sea level rise.
    But it could herald further overall ice melt, allowing glaciers to more easily slip towards the sea.
    Researchers found that the Greenland glaciers most susceptible to seasonal changes — that is expanding in winter and retreating in summer — are also the ones most sensitive to the impact of global warming and experienced the most significant retreat since 1985.
    The melting of Greenland’s vast ice sheet — the world’s second-largest after Antarctica — is estimated to have contributed more than 20 percent to observed sea level rise since 2002.
    Rising sea levels threaten to intensify flooding in coastal and island communities that are home to hundreds of millions of people, and could eventually submerge whole island nations and seafront cities.
    Warming
    Last year was the hottest on record, and ocean temperatures were “persistently and unusually high”, according to Copernicus, Europe’s climate monitor.
    The Arctic, warming roughly four times faster than the rest of the planet, saw its warmest ever summer in 2023, the result of accelerating human-caused climate change.
    Warming of the atmosphere can cause the surface of glaciers to melt and trickle down into the bottom of the ice sheet, which makes it easier for more ice to be lost.
    “It’s like putting water between the tire and the road, and the ice just starts to slide right off into the ocean,” said Greene.
    Warmer oceans, which have absorbed around 90 percent of the excess heat caused by humanity’s carbon pollution, are linked to the melting of crucial ice shelves buffering the vast ice sheets of Greenland and Antarctica.
    Researchers also raised concerns about another potential impact: the disruption of the deep-water currents that are key drivers of global weather patterns.
    They said this flood of extra freshwater melting into the ocean could affect the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), a vast system that regulates the global transfer of heat from the tropics into the northern hemisphere.
    A consortium of international scientists last year warned that AMOC changes and melting ice sheets were among some two dozen climate tipping points presenting humanity with an “unprecedented” threat.





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  • Nasa’s X-59: The future of supersonic travel – Times of India

    Nasa’s X-59: The future of supersonic travel – Times of India



    In a significant leap forward for aviation, Nasa and Lockheed Martin unveiled the X-59 quiet supersonic aircraft on Friday. This experimental plane could redefine air travel, potentially bringing us closer to the reality of commercial supersonic flights over land.
    A milestone in aviation
    Deputy administrator of Nasa, Pam Melroy, emphasized the rapid progress from concept to reality. “This is a major accomplishment… Nasa’s X-59 will help change the way we travel,” she stated.
    Quesst for quiet
    The X-59 is central to Nasa’s Quesst mission, aiming to challenge the current restrictions on commercial supersonic flight over land, a ban in place for 50 years due to sonic booms’ impact on communities. The X-59, flying at 1.4 times the speed of sound, is designed to reduce noise, creating just a ‘sonic thump’.
    Revolutionary design
    The aircraft, 99.7 feet long and 29.5 feet wide, features a unique shape and cutting-edge technologies. Its lengthy, tapered nose and strategically placed cockpit, equipped with an eXternal Vision System instead of forward-facing windows, are key to minimizing sonic booms.
    Next steps and future flights
    With the rollout complete, the focus now shifts to integrated systems testing, engine runs, and taxi testing. The first flight is scheduled for later this year, with further testing at the Skunk Works facility before moving to Nasa’s Armstrong Flight Research Center.
    A collaborative effort
    John Clark of Lockheed Martin Skunk Works highlighted the collaboration between teams. “We’re honored to be a part of this journey to shape the future of supersonic travel over land alongside Nasa,” he said.
    Community involvement and regulatory impact
    Post-testing, Nasa plans to fly the X-59 over select US cities, gathering public feedback on the noise. This data will be crucial for informing the Federal Aviation Administration and international regulators, potentially reshaping aviation rules.
    More than a prototype
    The X-59 is not just a prototype but a pathfinder for future quiet supersonic aircraft. Its mission is to lay the groundwork for a new era of faster, quieter air travel, bringing distant places closer in a fraction of the time.
    Bottom line: The X-59 quiet supersonic aircraft marks a pivotal moment in aviation history. Its successful development and testing could open the doors to a new age of fast, efficient, and community-friendly air travel, forever changing how we connect across continents.Watch NASA, Lockheed Martin unveil X-59: Quiet supersonic jet for Quesst mission





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  • Nasa says it has no evidence of drug use at Musk’s SpaceX – Times of India

    Nasa says it has no evidence of drug use at Musk’s SpaceX – Times of India



    The National Aeronautics and Space Administration said it isn’t aware of drug use at Elon Musk’s SpaceX that could jeopardize the rocket launch and satellite-service provider’s government contracts.
    “The agency does not have evidence of non-compliance from SpaceX on how the company addresses the drug- and alcohol-free workforce regulations,” the National Aeronautics and Space Administration said Thursday in a statement.“We expect our commercial partners to meet all workplace safety requirements in the execution of those missions and the services they provide the American people.”
    Questions about Space Exploration Technologies Corp.’s compliance with drug-free workplace requirements resurfaced after the Wall Street Journal reported early this month about Musk’s history of recreational drug use, including ketamine, LSD, cocaine, ecstasy and psychedelic mushrooms.
    Musk posted Friday on X, the social media network formerly known as Twitter, that he and SpaceX employees have passed random drug tests for years.

    NASA said in its statement that it enforces and verifies compliance with alcohol- and drug-free workplace contract clauses that mandate contractors maintain a “robust and effective” corporate culture and safety program.





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