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2021 was a big year for space news.
From commercial space race to operations on the red planet, space exploration was in the public spotlight.
Here are a few of the biggest moments:
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February 18 — NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover lands on Mars
On Feb. 18, NASA’s fifth Mars rover, Perseverance, successfully landed on Mars’ Jezero crater.
“This landing is one of those pivotal moments for NASA, the United States, and space exploration globally – when we know we are on the cusp of discovery and sharpening our pencils, so to speak, to rewrite the textbooks,” then-acting NASA Administrator Steve Jurczyk said in a statement. “The Mars 2020 Perseverance mission embodies our nation’s spirit of persevering even in the most challenging of situations, inspiring, and advancing science and exploration.”
April 19 — NASA’s Ingenuity Mars helicopter flies
On April 19, NASA made history once again after its Ingenuity Mars helicopter completed the first-ever powered, controlled flight on another planet.
The helicopter hovered for 30 seconds at its planned altitude of 10 feet, and spent 39 seconds airborne.
NASA’s Ingenuity Mars helicopter is seen here in a close-up taken by Mastcam-Z, a pair of zoomable cameras aboard the Perseverance rover. This image was taken on April 5, the 45th Martian day, or sol, of the mission.
(Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU)
NASA SPACECRAFT MAKES HISTORY, OFFICIALLY ‘TOUCHES’ SUN FOR FIRST TIME EVER
“Ingenuity has performed its first flight — the first flight of a powered aircraft on another planet!” flight control was heard saying in a NASA audio broadcast.
May 8 — Chinese rocket booster falls back to Earth
On the evening of May 8, the core stage of China’s Long March 5B booster re-entered Earth’s atmosphere, burning up over the Maldives.
After NASA Administrator Bill Nelson and others accused Beijing of acting recklessly, the Chinese government said it was unfairly being held to different standards than the U.S. and other…
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Source : foxnews
