Astronauts

NASA's Artemis mission will (hopefully) take astronauts to the Moon in 2024 … and when those people get there, they'll need to go to the bathroom. With that in mind, the space agency is now looking to the public for ideas for "moon toilets."

NASA is planning to launch a tiny satellite aboard one of the most powerful rockets ever constructed, to hunt for ice hiding deep inside craters on the Moon’s surface that are bathed in perennial shadow.

A new study has revealed a significant change in the brain’s white matter in astronauts following visits to the International Space Station (ISS), and the scientists say the changes to brain volume could be permanent.

Using resources harvested on location for habitat construction is a vital step in overcoming the prohibitive cost of transporting materials from Earth. Urine, it seems, could be part of the solution.

A few years ago, for the first time ever, astronauts ate lettuce that had been grown aboard the International Space Station (ISS). It has now been determined that the "space lettuce" was at least as nutritious as similar plants grown on Earth.

The office views are amazing and the commute's a blast ... NASA is looking for a new generation of astronauts to travel to the ISS, the Moon and maybe even Mars as part of the Artemis mission program. So scrub up your CV, have you got what it takes?

There’s only so much oxygen we can take with us to the Moon, so figuring out how to produce it there is crucial. Now, ESA researchers have created a prototype device that can make oxygen out of the most common thing on the Moon – dirt.

All sorts of health problems arise when as you take humans out into space. New microgravity simulations show that our guts can become “leaky” after a stint in space, increasing the chances of certain infections and diseases for weeks afterwards.

A new analytical tool suggests distinct microbiome changes caused by spaceflight are most likely caused by microgravity.

Red wine may have health benefits against cancer, obesity, aging, and even cavities. Now, a new study may add muscle loss to the list. In tests on rats, a Harvard team found that a red wine compound called resveratrol could help keep astronauts toned during trips in space or life on Mars.

Space travel is conducive to injuries. Now researchers from Dresden Technical University (TUD) have developed a 3D bioprinting method for use in space, creating new skin and bone tissue out of resources that might be available to astronauts.

Most oxygen in the universe isn’t in the form that we need to breathe: molecular oxygen, or O2. Now, researchers at Caltech claim to have created a reactor that can turn carbon dioxide into molecular oxygen, which could help us fight climate change here on Earth or generate oxygen for life in space.