: Drawing from his 213 days following similar NASA flight plans and inspired by the 50th anniversary of the moon landing mission, Terry Virts created "Apo11o: To the Moon and Back," a new luxury edition of the Apollo 11 Flight Plan. Hand-crafted in leather and 23 karat gold, the limited reproduction is enhanced by a photo essay, new introductions and gate-fold technical drawings.
/ 7:35 p.m. CT (1235 GMT Sep 7)
Almost to the moon
: India's first attempt at a moon landing ended prematurely on Friday (Sept. 6), when all communications were lost with the Vikram lander while on its approach to the moon's south polar region. The Vikram lander, part of the ISRO Chandrayaan-2 mission, had been carrying a six-wheeled rover and science payloads to study the presence of water ice on the lunar surface.
/ 6:00 a.m. CT (1100 GMT)
: Alan Bean's custom 1969 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray is now the 25th automobile to be added to the National Historic Vehicle Register. Painted black over gold to evoke the colors of the lunar module, Bean's Corvette is the last known surviving example of the Apollo 12 crew's matching AstroVettes. The coupe is being exhibited on the National Mall to celebrate its new status.
/ 12:00 a.m. CT (0500 GMT)
: Ohio's U.S. Senators have introduced legislation to rename NASA Plum Brook Station for the late Neil Armstrong, the first man to walk on the moon. Rob Portman (R-OH) and Sherrod Brown (D-OH) said they are looking to honor Armstrong, a native Ohioan, to ensure that "future generations will be inspired by Neil Armstrong's amazing accomplishments in air and in space."
/ 1:15 p.m. CT (1815 GMT)
: NASA's Gateway, part of the Artemis program to return U.S. astronauts to the moon before ultimately heading to Mars, now has its own logo. The emblem, revealed by the Johnson Space Center, "is a bold look closely aligned with the Artemis brand." The lunar Gateway will serve as a way station for Orion spacecraft and landing vehicles moving between Earth and the moon's surface.
/ 3:00 a.m. CT (0800 GMT)
A coin for Christa
: Congress has passed a bill calling for the U.S. Mint to issue a $1 coin honoring Christa McAuliffe, NASA's "Teacher in Space," who died on board the Challenger in 1986. The commemorative silver coins, to be released in 2021 for the 35th anniversary of the tragedy, will be sold to the public to support FIRST Robotics' efforts to engage children in science and technology opportunities.
/ 1:00 a.m. CT (0600 GMT)
'Ad Astra' per historia
: As a title card reads at the start of "Ad Astra," the film is set in the "near future." But as moviegoers may notice, the Brad Pitt-helmed epic incorporates nods to real space history. From the design of the film's spacecraft to the inclusion of company logos, director James Gray sought to make "Ad Astra" less sci-fi and more "science-future-fact."
/ 1:00 a.m. CT (0600 GMT)
Flying the flag
: The number of nations that have had one (or more) of its citizens fly into space is about to grow by one. The first UAE (United Arab Emirates) astronaut is set to fly to the International Space Station for a week long visit. Hazzaa AlMansoori is bringing a number of items with him — including a UAE flag and tree seeds — to share Emirati culture with his crewmates and to return mementos of his spaceflight to his home country.
/ 9:25 a.m. CT (1425 GMT)
Soyuz MS-15 launches
: Oleg Skripochka of Roscosmos and Jessica Meir of NASA lifted off with the United Arab Emirates' (UAE) first astronaut on Wednesday (Sept. 25). Hazzaa AlMansoori will stay aboard the International Space Station for a week, while Skripochka and Meir begin a 6-month mission as Expedition 61/62 crewmembers. The crew's launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome marked the final scheduled use of the pad where Yuri Gagarin lifted off in April 1961 to become the first human to fly into space.
/ 3:00 p.m. CT (2000 GMT)
Apollo out of the Park
: "Apollo at the Park," this past summer's display of 15 full-size Neil Armstrong spacesuit statues by the National Air and Space Museum at Major League ball parks, has come to its end. The Smithsonian is now moving the statues to museums and history centers for their permanent display across the United States.
: A new set of postage stamps celebrates the United Arab Emirates' first astronaut to fly in space. The six stamps show Hazzaa AlMansoori, his backup Sultan AlNeyadi, his mission logo, the Soyuz MS-15 spacecraft and the International Space Station. The stamps come 55 years after Dubai issued postage depicting space rockets under the theme "Honouring Astronauts."
/ 5:45 p.m. CT (2245 GMT)
: The Smithsonian exhibit "Destination Moon: The Apollo 11 Mission" is now open at its fifth and last tour venue. The Cincinnati Museum Center in Ohio is host to the Apollo 11 command module and 20 other moon landing mission artifacts through February 2020. Neil Armstrong's sons loaned an additional artifact to the exhibit and attended the ribbon cutting on Saturday (Sept. 28).