A video of the Artemis II crew discussing the moon months before this week’s historic launch has fueled online conspiracy theories claiming the Apollo missions were staged.

A short clip of Commander Reid Wiseman is making waves on social media, where he says: 'This is the first time we’re going to send humans to the moon and, at the same time, have humans in low Earth orbit.'

Conspiracy theorists have seized on the remark as supposed evidence that earlier lunar missions never happened, with one X user writing: 'That's the confession right there. They lied about the moon landing.'

The moon landing conspiracy theory claims that NASA faked the Apollo moon landings between 1969 and 1972, alleging they were filmed in a studio to win the Space Race against the Soviet Union. 

The viral 25-second clip, however, was taken from a longer video in which Wiseman acknowledged the Apollo missions, explaining that his comment referred to him and the three other Artemis II astronauts being the first crew of a new lunar era.

The Artemis II mission, which launched Tuesday, will mark the first time humans travel toward the moon since Apollo and the first time astronauts journey beyond low Earth orbit in more than 50 years.

The crew includes NASA astronauts Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch, along with Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen, who are set for a 10-day journey around the moon and back. 

The crew is also expected to travel approximately 250,000 miles from Earth by April 6, breaking the previous record set by Apollo 13 in 1970.  

The crew includes NASA astronauts Wiseman (second from left), Victor Glover (right) and Christina Koch, along with Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen, who are set for a 10-day journey around the moon and back

NASA has consistently maintained that the Apollo missions were real, backed by telemetry data, moon rocks and the testimony of thousands of engineers and scientists, though some skeptics continue to dispute the missions.

One X user commented on the video of Wiseman, saying: 'What timeline am I on for them to openly admit this is the first time sending humans to the moon?'

The comments were made on September 24, 2025, as the crew was just months away from launching to the moon.

About 20 minutes before the controversial comments, Wiseman said: 'We have been to the moon in Apollo. 

'So when we go to the training and talk about us looking at the moon and all the things we can bring in, in the back of my mind and in the back of yours, we have been there. 

'We orbited the moon, we have seen these things before, and what does Artemis II bring that is new to us, then, based as we fly around the moon.'

He continued to explain that Artemis II will also pass by the dark side of the moon, which has never been seen by human eyes.

'[That is] just because Apollo [has] always landed on the lit side of the moon,' said Wiseman. 

Conspiracy theorists have seized on the remark as supposed evidence that earlier lunar missions never happened. Pictured is Buzz Aldrin standing on the moon in 1969

The clip has resurfaced other doctored videos, including clips of Buzz Aldrin, the second man to walk on the moon, that appeared to show him making similar statements.

In a 2000 appearance on the Conan O'Brien Show, Aldrin stunned the audience when the host recalled watching the moon landing as a boy.

'No, you didn't,' Aldrin snapped. 'There wasn't any television, there wasn't anyone taking a picture. You watched an animation.'

The awkward exchange left O'Brien speechless and has since racked up millions of views online. However, he was referring to animations used by broadcasters at the time in their coverage of the moon landing, intercut with real footage.

Then, in 2015, an eight-year-old girl asked the former astronaut why no one had returned to the moon. Aldrin replied: 'Because we didn't go there, and that's the way it happened.'

The clip, widely shared on social media, cuts off before Aldrin clarifies that funding and shifting government priorities ended lunar missions.

He later explains: 'We need to know why something stopped in the past if we want it to keep going.

'It's a matter of resources and money; new missions need new equipment.'

Doubt over the moon landing took root in the mid-1970s, fueled by public mistrust after Watergate and the Pentagon Papers.

Theories about staged sets, lighting inconsistencies, and suspicious interviews have persisted ever since.

{ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/index.html }

The Shroud of Turin is widely considered the most studied, debated and controversial relic in human history.

The 14-foot linen cloth showing a photographic negative image of a crucified man is claimed by many to be Jesus' burial cloth, while skeptics hold it is a medieval forgery.

Now, a biblical scholar has highlighted a previous analysis of the shroud that places it in the same season as Jesus was said to have died on the cross.

Speaking on the Shawn Ryan Show, Dr Jeremiah Johnston highlighted a 1970s forensic analysis of the cloth that identified 58 different types of pollen.

He said that 38 of them were identified as species associated with the Jerusalem region, many of which bloom in spring around Passover

'Pollen from Middle Eastern plant species was found in the dust samples,' Johnston told the Daily Mail.

'Among them were plants that only grow in southern Israel, western Jordan, and the Sinai. Dust from the feet area of the Shroud contained a specific calcium carbonate from travertine aragonite limestone, similar to dust taken from a tomb in Jerusalem. '

He said the remaining pollen species trace the shroud's documented journey over the past 2,000 years, suggesting it originated in Jerusalem before traveling through Europe to its current home in Italy.

The 14-foot linen cloth showing a photographic negative image of a crucified man is claimed by many to be Jesus' burial cloth, while skeptics hold it is a medieval forgery

'We know Jesus is crucified...It's the best-established fact of the ancient world on April 3rd, AD 33,' Johnston told podcast host Shawn Ryan.

The date of the crucifixion is based on Bible accounts stating that Jesus died during Passover and that the following day was the Sabbath or Saturday.

Because historical records show that Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor who sentenced Jesus to death, ruled Judea from AD 26 to AD 36, scholars examined those years. 

They found that Passover fell on a Friday only on April 7, AD 30, and April 3, AD 33, now considered the two most likely dates for the crucifixion.

'The pollen, which only blooms at Passover (springtime) in Judea, along with the travertine limestone on the shroud, leave it beyond all doubt that the Shroud of Turin is authentic,' Johnston, who recently published 'The Jesus Discoveries: 10 Historic Finds That Bring Us Face-to-Face with Jesus,' told the Daily Mail.

'I believe that based on the evidence, because I am not irrational.'

Researchers say the pollen evidence suggests the cloth was present in the Jerusalem region during the same time period traditionally associated with the crucifixion.

However, skeptics continue to point to earlier radiocarbon testing that dated part of the fabric to between AD 1260 and 1390, centuries after Jesus' death.

On November 23, 1973, Max Frei was permitted to collect sticky-tape samples of dust from the shroud's surface (PICTURED)

Pictured are images of the pollen take from the shroud

Johnston, who earned his PhD at Oxford, admitted on the Shawn Ryan Show that he was long conditioned to view the cloth as a medieval forgery, a belief rooted in a 1988 study that dated a corner sample of the fabric between AD 1260 and AD 1390.

'I used to be the biggest skeptic of the shroud,' said Johnston.

'It turns out, when you look at it, the shroud of Turin is scientific proof of the physical bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ.

'I believe that based on the evidence in the 102 academic disciplines that have studied over 600,000 research hours in it. So I went from skeptic to believing in it based on the science.'

Johnston discussed the work of forensic scientist Max Frei, who specialized in microscopy and forensic trace analysis and became known for applying adhesive tape sampling techniques to collect microscopic evidence, methods similar to those used in modern crime-scene investigations.

On November 23, 1973, Frei was permitted to collect sticky-tape samples of dust from the shroud's surface. He collected 12 samples, which were later analyzed under a microscope in his Zurich laboratory.

The 38 types of pollen were linked to plants typical of desert regions surrounding the Jordan Valley, including species adapted to soils with high salt content found near the Dead Sea.

According to biblical accounts, Jesus was crucified near Jerusalem, located roughly 13 miles from the northern edge of the Dead Sea.

Many of the pollen types have also been identified as microfossils in sediment taken from the Dead Sea and Lake Gennesareth, also known as the Sea of Galilee.

Only 17 of the pollen species identified on the cloth are known to grow in France or Italy, regions associated with the shroud's documented movement through Europe in later centuries. 

Dr Jeremiah Johnston, who earned his PhD at Oxford, told the Daily Mail he was long conditioned to view the relic as a medieval forgery, but after doing his own researchers is now a believer it is the burial cloth of Jesus

Some researchers argue this distribution supports the idea that the cloth traveled from the Middle East to Western Europe over time.

A more recent study in 1999 by botanist Avinoam Danin of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem reanalyzed the pollen samples and identified a high density of pollen from the thistle Gundelia tournefortii.

This species has bloomed in Israel between March and May for thousands of years, aligning with the spring Passover season described in the Bible.

Danin also reported evidence of another plant, Zygophyllum dumosum, appearing in floral images visible on the shroud. This species is native to the region and known for its distinctive paired leaflets.

According to Danin, Gundelia tournefortii and Zygophyllum dumosum coexist in a geographically limited area defined by lines connecting Jerusalem and Hebron in Israel with Madaba and Karak in modern-day Jordan.

The identification of a third species, Cistus creticus, through pollen and floral image analysis further narrowed the possible location.

'This combination of flowers can be found in only one region of the world,' Danin stated. 'The evidence clearly points to a floral grouping from the area surrounding Jerusalem.'

{ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/index.html }

Chinese satellite with robotic 'octopus arm' passes key refueling test in orbit — making longer-lived space assets more likely

China's Hukeda-2 satellite has passed a major refueling test after its experimental robotic arm successfully docked with a target port elsewhere on the spacecraft.

(Image credit: CCTV handout)

A Chinese satellite equipped with a robotic "octopus arm" has passed a key refueling test in low Earth orbit (LEO), according to state-run media. The achievement highlights China's continued leadership with this particular technology, which NASA has not yet caught up with.

The experimental spacecraft will eventually deploy a giant balloon in LEO, which could help solve another important issue surrounding satellite "megaconstellations" like SpaceX's Starlink network.

The satellite, dubbed Hukeda-2 (also known as Yuxing-3 06 within China), launched March 16 aboard the Kuaizhou-11 rocket from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, according to the website of Jonathan McDowell, a now-retired astronomer at the Harvard and Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics who has been tracking the movements of Earth-orbiting spacecraft for more than two decades. It was one of eight satellites deployed during this mission, and it is now orbiting Earth at an altitude of around 335 miles (540 kilometers).

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Hukeda-2 is a demonstration satellite intended to test new technologies in LEO. Its most notable attachment is an octopus-like robotic arm that "can curl, twist and wrap around objects to work in tight, complex spaces, with a nozzle-like tip at one end designed to line up and connect with a target port," according to the South China Morning Post.

The arm is made of a series of spring-like tubes threaded with cables attached to a motor, allowing it to bend in almost any direction and make the small adjustments needed to dock with another satellite while both spacecraft are traveling at speeds of around 16,800 mph (27,000 km/h).

On March 24, Chinese state media reported that Hukeda-2's robotic arm had successfully completed its first refueling test. It was initially unclear if this test involved another satellite. However, photos have since confirmed that the robotic arm instead docked with a target port located on Hukeda-2 itself.

This is the biggest milestone for satellite refueling since June 2025, when China's Shijian-25 satellite successfully connected to and refueled the Shijian-21 satellite, which had previously run out of fuel. This encounter occurred in a higher, geosynchronous orbit, around 22,000 miles (33,500 km) above Earth's surface, and was the first confirmed case of satellite-to-satellite refueling, according to Live Science's sister site Space.com.

Refuel, reuse, recycle

When satellites run out of fuel, they can no longer maintain their altitude and are slowly pulled back toward Earth, before eventually burning up in the upper atmosphere. By refueling them, operators can keep the same spacecraft in orbit much longer, thus making them more cost-effective and sustainable, reducing the need to launch replacements. This has been a big aim for NASA and Western companies for several years, but has remained out of reach so far.

China will likely attempt to use similar refueling spacecraft to service its rapidly expanding Qianfan, or "Thousand Sails," constellation, which launched its first batch of satellites in 2024 and is set to rival Starlink in the coming years. (There are currently about 108 active Qianfan satellites in orbit, with plans to deploy 15,000 by 2030.)

SpaceX, on the other hand, does not appear interested in sustaining its active satellites. Instead, the company favors repeated launches of new spacecraft with its reusable Falcon 9 rocket to keep costs down.

Orbiting satellites could start crashing into one another in less than 3 days, theoretical new 'CRASH Clock' reveals

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NASA announces 'near‑impossible' space plans, including $20B moon base and humanity's first nuclear-powered interplanetary spacecraft

Another issue with expanding constellations is that the number of dead spacecraft waiting to fall back to Earth is rising fast and taking up valuable space that could be occupied by new satellites. In an attempt to fix this, Hukeda-2 will deploy an 8-foot-wide (2.5 meters) balloon at the end of its mission, which will increase atmospheric drag and speed up its return to Earth.

If this works, future Chinese satellites could be deployed with similar devices that allow them to fall back to Earth without initiating a final deorbiting burn. However, it is unclear when Hukeda-2 will deploy its test balloon.

Although quick deorbiting of satellites is prudent, it is unlikely to fix the greater issue of overcrowding that is expected to occur in LEO in the coming decades, especially if SpaceX's controversial plan to launch 1 million orbital data centers comes to fruition.

Recent research has also revealed that satellite reentries release high levels of metal pollution in the upper atmosphere, which is likely triggering issues we are still not fully aware of.

"What goes up must come down," University of Regina astronomer and vocal megaconstellation critic Samantha Lawler recently wrote for Live Science.

{ https://www.livescience.com/space/space-exploration }

Chilling new details have emerged surrounding the disappearance of a retired Air Force general tied to UFO secrets and a string of missing or dead US scientists. 

A 911 call has been released, capturing a police dispatcher speaking with the wife of William Neil McCasland, 68, who vanished without a trace on February 27.

Susan Wilkerson is heard telling authorities that she believed the former general 'had planned not to be found' after finding her husband's phone and other personal items still inside their New Mexico home.

'He's left his phone. He changed his clothes into... I don't know what. I think he's on foot. All of our cars and bicycles are in the garage,' Wilkerson said approximately three hours after McCasland disappeared.

'He turned it off and left it behind, which seems kind of deliberate because he's always got his phone. He has a smartwatch. I don't know if that's with him or not,' Wilkerson continued in audio obtained by the Law&Crime Network.

After the 911 call, Wilkerson later claimed that 'foul play' was not suspected in the general's disappearance, but noted that McCasland left home with only a pair of boots and his .38-caliber revolver.

The retired Air Force officer, reportedly tied to both nuclear and UFO-related government programs, did not take any of his wearable devices or his prescription glasses, leaving behind any way of tracing or contacting him.

While Wilkerson pushed back on the possibility that her husband may have intended to harm himself, she revealed to 911 that he had been seeing a doctor for both physical and mental irregularities before he disappeared.

William Neil McCasland, 68, was last seen around 11am Friday near Quail Run Court NE in Albuquerque, the Bernalillo County Sheriff's Office said

The sheriff's office has issued a Silver Alert, a public notification system used in the US to locate missing seniors or individuals with Alzheimer's, dementia or other mental disabilities

When asked by the dispatcher if McCasland had been diagnosed with any type of mental disorder before vanishing, the general's wife disclosed that he had been dealing with anxiety and short-term memory loss recently.

Wilkerson also told 911 the 68-year-old military veteran had been struggling with a lack of sleep, and then revealed McCasland feared his brain was 'deteriorating.'

The dispatcher can be heard asking Wilkerson if her husband kept any guns in the home and if any of them were missing.

She replied that McCasland has a gun safe, adding that 'he has quite a number of pistols and rifles,' not knowing at the time that one of the handguns had been taken.

Wilkerson then addressed the missing general's recent comments to her about his health, saying that she did not believe he was seriously considering ending his life.

'Other than saying if his brain body keeps deteriorating, he didn't want to live like that. But it seemed to me that was just a "man, I hate how this is going" kind of thing,' Wilkerson said in the 911 recording revealed on Law&Crime's Sidebar with Jesse Weber.

The Bernalillo County Sheriff's Office issued a Silver Alert for McCasland, typically used to find a missing senior citizen who potentially has Alzheimer's disease, dementia or another mental disability.

However, there have been no breaks in the case since that time, and no trace of the missing general since he was last seen near Quail Run Court NE in Albuquerque around 11am local time.

McCasland's disappearance was the most recent in a potentially sinister pattern dating back to mid-2025. 

The retired general had been in command of the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio, a facility tied to UFO conspiracy theories for decades.

According to UFO researchers and former government scientists, Wright-Patterson is the base where debris from the alien spacecraft that allegedly crashed in Roswell, New Mexico was taken for analysis.

On Monday, Tennessee Congressman Tim Burchett told WABC radio in New York that McCasland was the key figure in America's secret research into UFO and extraterrestrial technology.

Burchett said: 'He's the guy that had a lot of nuclear secrets. I've been told by several sources that he was the gatekeeper for the UFO stuff.' 

McCasland was also previously stationed at New Mexico's Kirtland Air Force Base, which has close ties to the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) - one of America's most important nuclear research facilities.

In 2025, three other people connected to AFRL and LANL vanished without a trace in almost the exact same manner as McCasland.

This includes NASA aerospace engineer Monica Jacinto Reza, 60, who was directly under McCasland's supervision while she was working on the creation of a new metal for advanced missile and rocket engines.

Reza has not been seen since June 22, 2025, when she disappeared while on a hiking trip in California with two friends.

Monica Reza (Pictured) had worked on the creation of advanced rocket technology before becoming a director at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory

McCasland was previously stationed at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (Pictured), suspected of being a research facility for UFO technology

Two employees from Los Alamos National Laboratory also went missing around the same time as Reza last year.

Anthony Chavez, 79, a former employee at LANL until his retirement in 2017, vanished without a trace on May 4, 2025. He was last seen leaving his home in the Denver Steels neighborhood of Los Alamos on foot.

The longtime LANL employee left his car locked in the driveway and did not take his wallet, keys or other personal items, which were all found inside Chavez's home.

Just seven weeks later, administrative assistant Melissa Casias, 54, vanished after not reporting for work at the nuclear lab on June 26, 2025.

Her family said she uncharacteristically decided to work from home that day, but was last spotted miles from their house walking alone without her wallet, phone or keys.

Chris Swecker, a former FBI assistant director, called the disappearances concerning and told the Daily Mail these cases needed to be investigated as if all of them were connected.

'The first thing you go to is it's potential espionage,' Swecker said. 'Our scientists have been targeted for a long time, especially in the rocket propulsion area, by hostile foreign intelligence services.'

'[Foreign adversaries] target individuals and try to compromise them or bribe them. So there's a whole lot of different ways that espionage occurs,' the counterintelligence expert added.

'People who are touching on technology areas that hostile foreign intelligence services want to get their hands on... This is the type of investigation that the FBI has to take over, or at least work jointly, and look for potential connections to a hostile foreign intelligence service.' 

{ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/index.html }

Something sinister is unfolding, something is going on: In a span of just nine months, nine high-level scientists and personnel in the United States have reportedly died or vanished under unusual circumstances: 

Many of these scientists were connected to highly classified programs, and working on cutting-edge materials science including advanced plasma systems and the reverse engineering of exotic weaponry believed, by some, to originate from crashed UFOs. 

1. William Neil McCasland — A former U.S. Air Force lieutenant general who held several high-ranking positions in military science and technology programs, advanced weapons development and classified aerospace programs. He had oversight of deeply classified programs, possibly including investigations into unidentified aerial phenomena (UAPs). (Although retired it is believed that he still was working behind the scenes) — Missing. (Just three days after President Trump ordered to open all UFO files.) 
2. Monica Jacinto Reza — Aerospace engineer and Technical Fellow at Aerojet Rocketdyne, later associated with NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory — Missing. 
3. Melissa Casias — Administrative assistant at Los Alamos National Laboratory — Missing. 
4. Jacob Prichard — Acquisition Project Manager at the Air Force Research Laboratory Sensors Directorate — Reported suicide. 
5. Jaymee Prichard — Finance specialist at the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center — Killed. 
6. Jaime Gustitus — Operations Analysis Officer with the United States Air Force, working within the 711th Human Performance Wing — Killed. 
7. Carl Grillmair — Astrophysicist at the Caltech Infrared Processing and Analysis Center — Killed. 
8. Nuno F. Gomes Loureiro — Plasma physicist — Killed. 
9. Jason Thomas — Chemical biologist — Found dead. 

According to sources,they had been studying and attempting to reverse-engineer these technologies for years. So why, all of a sudden, have so many of them disappeared or killed, the past nine months. 

This is no coincidence. As has happened time and again, when individuals get too close to the (ufo/alien) truth, they suddenly vanish, suffer fatal “accidents,” or are silenced altogether. 

There appears to be a deeper connection, one tied to classified research on UFO technologies that challenge our current understanding of physics. Although the UFO phenomenon has become far more visible and difficult to dismiss in recent years, there are still powerful organizations operating behind the scenes, doing everything they can to keep these discoveries, all made possible through recovered alien technology, hidden from the public.

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{ http://ufosightingshotspot.blogspot.com/ }

Archive video of extraterrestrial beings.

Current science claims that myths and legends are invented. They have been invented by people trying to explain natural phenomena. There is very much of them, and no nation is without them. – But remember that many do not relate to explanations of natural phenomena!

They usually include a record of encounters with higher beings. -This either helps people in a faraway situation, or they represent our creators and teachers. -They bring “new learning” and want to “tell us something.” -Egyptian, Mesopotamian, Indian, Indian and other myths are proof.

A few people said, “What if it’s not invented, but it’s alien visits?” -Smartfully “supernormal” abilities would then be expressions of using their technically superior means. Creating the first people by experimenting with their genetic science. They tried to occupy the planet Earth, which they had previously seen in the universe. -Zecharia Sitchin writes about Annunakoch from Sumerian beauties and Erich von Däniken about flying machines from wall paintings of Indians and Egyptians.

They also do not forget to mention Ezekiel with his vision in the first chapter, in which they see the description of UFOs. -Which reads the original of the vision or the myth knows that they have no description of the technically advanced civilization of the cosmos.

You need a clever promoter to make them “find” in them. -She can do everything! -It only have the belief that the aliens have visited the Earth in the past. I know about people who have similar experiences today and they are neither invented nor invented by visitors of the cosmos.

{ https://ufosecret.net/ }

EXCLUSIVE - Scientists are vanishing or turning up dead. Now ex-FBI boss reveals chilling plot likely unfolding... and who he fears is behind it

By CHRIS MELORE, US ASSISTANT SCIENCE EDITOR

As the string of mysterious disappearances and deaths among America’s scientists grows, a former FBI boss believes a sinister plot against the US could be unfolding.

Chris Swecker, who was the assistant director in charge of the bureau’s Criminal Investigative Division during his 24-year career, told the Daily Mail that foreign powers could be targeting citizens who have knowledge of US national security secrets.

’The first thing you go to is it’s potential espionage,’ he said. ’Our scientists have been targeted for a long time, especially in the rocket propulsion area, by hostile foreign intelligence services.’

A disturbing pattern has been developing after a former Air Force general, a top NASA scientist and two employees from one of the country’s major nuclear research labs all vanished without a trace in the span of just ten months.

The long-time FBI agent warned that, if these disappearances are connected, several foreign powers may be responsible for abducting, blackmailing, torturing and even killing key individuals to gain America’s national security secrets.

’China, Russia, even some of our friends – Pakistan, India, Iran, North Korea - they target this type of technology,’ Swecker disclosed.

Swecker warned that enemy intelligence agencies have been attempting to derail top-secret US programs for decades, using one of two main methods: finding ways to steal the information from the US or killing those who know about the programs.

’It’s been happening since the Cold War,’ he added. ’Especially when nuclear technology and missile technology was first coming to the forefront.

Chris Swecker was a member of the FBI for 24 years. The counterintelligence expert warned that the disappearance of multiple people tied to national security fields was alarming

’I think we’ve even seen instances where nuclear scientists have been taken out. They've been assassinated.’

When it comes to the first espionage tactic that may be unfolding, Swecker called the four disappearances in the US Southwest extremely ’suspicious’.

’If you were conjuring up a scenario here, kidnapping and trying to extract information out of someone is not unheard of,’ he told the Daily Mail.

The FBI veteran focused on the cases of retired Air Force General William Neil McCasland and aerospace engineer Monica Jacinto Reza, who were closely connected through the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL).

McCasland, 68 – who disappeared on February 27 after leaving his New Mexico home with only a .38-caliber revolver and no phone – supervised research projects at AFRL and allegedly knows both nuclear and UFO-related military secrets.

Reza, 60, was the first scientist to disappear in this alleged conspiracy on June 22, 2025. She vanished without a trace while hiking with two friends in California's Angeles National Forest.

She was the director of the Materials Processing Group at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory and previously invented Mondaloy, a space-age metal used in advanced missile and rocket engines, which McCasland oversaw the funding for at AFRL.

The third missing person, 54-year-old Melissa Casias, was last seen by her husband and daughter on June 26, 2025. She worked as an administrative assistant at the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), which Swecker said means she likely had high-level clearance to the same sensitive nuclear information her superiors possessed. 

’[Foreign adversaries] target individuals and try to compromise them or bribe them. So there’s a whole lot of different ways that espionage occurs,’ Swecker said.

William Neil McCasland, 68, and Monica Reza, 60, were connected through the Air Force Research Laboratory and projects involving advanced missile and rocket technology

Melissa Casias worked at the Los Alamos National Laboratory, a nuclear research facility with ties to Kirtland Air Force Base, where General McCasland was previously stationed

Another former Los Alamos lab employee, Anthony Chavez, vanished without a trace in May 2025.

Police told the Daily Mail that Chavez, 79, had retired in 2017. However, the lab worker disappeared in nearly the same exact way as Casias, walking out of his home and leaving behind his car, phone, wallet and keys.

LANL has not commented on the nature of Chavez's work and duties at the nuclear laboratory.

Along with the four Americans still missing, four other scientists have died since July 2024, including two prominent researchers who were murdered in their own homes.

Physicist Nuno Loureiro, astrophysicist Carl Grillmair and pharmaceutical researcher Jason Thomas were all found dead.

Loureiro was a key scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and was reportedly on the brink of revolutionizing the energy sector using nuclear fusion before being shot to death in his Massachusetts home on December 15, 2025.

Anthony Chavez (pictured) was an employee at the Los Alamos National Laboratory until 2017. He disappeared without a trace in May 2025

Authorities said the gunman was Claudio Neves Valente, a former classmate of Loureiro’s in Portugal, who was also accused of carrying out the mass shooting at Brown University on December 13.

Grillmair, 67, had worked on infrared space telescopes that use the same technology as military systems for tracking satellites and hypersonic missiles. He was fatally shot while standing on his front porch in California on February 16.

The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department named Freddy Snyder, 29, as a person of interest in Grillmair’s homicide case and later charged the man with murder, carjacking and burglary.

However, police did not release a motive in the alleged homicide and it was unclear if the two men knew one another or whether the shooting was targeted.

Scientists Nuno Loureiro (left) and Carl Grillmair (right) were both murdered in their own homes after making significant progress in the fields of nuclear fusion and astrophysics

Thomas’s remains were found in a Wakefield, Massachusetts, lake on March 17 – three months after the drug researcher vanished without a trace. Local police are still investigating the cause of death.

In both killings, police claimed the gunmen acted alone and have not announced any ties to foreign espionage. Investigators in the Thomas death said no foul play has been found.

Meanwhile, the circumstances surrounding the death of respected NASA scientist Frank Maiwald, who died on July 4, 2024 in Los Angeles, have not been revealed to the public or commented on by the space agency. Authorities have no record of an autopsy ever taking place. 

Frank Maiwald (pictured) was a researcher at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory before his death in 2024. His cause of death has not been revealed and NASA has not commented on the loss

Maiwald, 61, had been a Technical Group Supervisor at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and had been the lead researcher on a breakthrough that could help future space missions detect clear signs of life on other worlds.

’This has to be fully investigated by the FBI, not three different local police departments,’ Swecker told the Daily Mail, urging his former agency to treat the cases as a possible conspiracy and spy operation.

’People who are touching on technology areas that hostile foreign intelligence services want to get their hands on... This is the type of investigation that the FBI has to take over, or at least work jointly, and look for potential connections to a hostile foreign intelligence service.’

As for the likeliest suspects that would be engaging in an espionage plot on US soil, the former FBI assistant director looked at America’s adversaries in Asia and the current conflict in the Middle East.

’It’s an ongoing thing in the world of espionage between countries that are essentially hostile to each other,’ Swecker said.

’China, especially, is prolific in its quest to steal technology,’ he claimed. ’They’re not good innovators. They don’t have the scientists that we have, and they don’t have the environment for innovation. And they’re very quick to steal technology.

’North Korea and Iran are always looking for it, but they’re more susceptible to being identified and countermeasures applied against them.

’I’m not saying that’s what’s happening with these [cases]. But I’m saying if you look at the mosaic of what has gone on since the Cold War, there is a constant battle of espionage and counter-espionage.

’The CIA are our spies, and the FBI are our spy catchers. This has to be a proactive investigation by the FBI.’

{ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/index.html }

NASA's Artemis II crew say they received a terrifying warning message as their spacecraft passed the 'point of no return' on its trip to the moon.

The Orion capsule, containing astronauts Reid Wiseman, Christina Koch, Victor Glover and Jeremy Hansen, is finally on its way to the moon after carrying out a 'translunar injection burn'.

This engine burn is a key manoeuvre that nudges the spacecraft out of Earth's orbit and on its trajectory towards our lunar neighbour.

But 20 minutes after the burn the team received a terrifying 'cabin leak' emergency message.

'We did get a warning message for "cabin leak suspected",' astronaut Hansen said in the crew's first live interview from space.

'This grabs your attention because… you go right from doing this burn and you're heading to the moon to thinking, "Are we going to have to cancel this burn, start getting into our spacesuits and figuring out how to get home in a day or less?"'

A cabin leak is a serious issue, as it could compromise the structure of the spacecraft and potentially expose the crew to the vacuum of space.

Luckily, investigations revealed the message was just an anomaly – and on-board cabin pressure was unaffected.

The view from the spacecraft as it carried out the translunar injection burn, nudging the Orion capsule towards the moon 

'Houston helped us out – they confirmed they were seeing good cabin pressure and so were we on-board,' Hansen said. 'We did the burn and now we're heading to the moon and feeling good.'

The launch on Wednesday evening marked the start of a mammoth 685,000-mile (1.1million km) trip around the dark side of the lunar surface.

It is the first time in more than 50 years that humans have set off towards the moon.

In the first 24 hours of its journey, the Orion spacecraft orbited Earth while the crew carried out safety checks and got some sleep.

'The Orion spacecraft recently ignited its main engine on the service module for about six minutes to provide about 6,000 pounds of thrust,' NASA wrote on X.

'Next stop: lunar flyby.'

Now that its main engines have fired, the capsule is being propelled to the moon.

On flight day six, Orion will reach its farthermost point from Earth as it sails 6,400 miles (10,299km) beyond the lunar surface.

The astronauts give their first live interview from space, making heart shapes with their hands towards the camera

NASA's mission control confirmed they were seeing good cabin pressure following an emergency 'cabin leak' message

That will surpass Apollo 13's distance record, which would make the Artemis II astronauts the most remote travellers.

'There is nothing normal about this,' mission commander Wiseman said in the interview.

'Sending four humans 250,000 miles away is a Herculean effort and we are now only just realising the gravity of that.'

The team also revealed they had experienced some issues with the cabin being cold.

'We're wishing we had the lower temperature sleeping bags with us,' Glover said.

'Houston's been working with us to change fan speeds and temperature set points and we've actually been able to warm it up a lot better in the last half day or so.'

The crew also said they have had their first meal together in space – and described their 'comical' sleeping arrangements.

'Victor has got a nice little nook, Jeremy has been stretched out on seat one and I've been sleeping under the displays just in case anything goes wrong,' Reid said.

NASA shared this picture taken from the Orion spacecraft, with the caption: 'Earth peeks through the capsule window, reminding us that a view like this relies on the ingenuity and hard work of countless people back home'

'Christina has been sleeping head-down in the middle of the vehicle, kind of like a bat, suspended from our docking tunnel.' 

The team also described their surprise at even taking off.

'Probably one of the things that surprised all of us was when those solid rocket boosters actually lit and we left the pad,' Hansen said. 'It was just a moment of disbelief – the fact that we launched, it just totally takes you by surprise even though you're expecting it.'

After looping around the moon the Orion craft will begin its journey back to Earth.

It will take another four days to return, which the astronauts will fill by conducting key safety demonstrations, including testing procedures designed to shield the crew against dangerous radiation from solar flares.

As Orion approaches Earth, it will separate key components before plunging into the ⁠atmosphere ​at speeds of about 25,000mph (40,233kph).

The spacecraft is expected to splash down ​in the Pacific Ocean, where recovery teams will retrieve the crew.

The voyage aims to pave the way for a moon landing in 2028 which, if successful, will be the first time humans have set foot on the moon since December 1972.

Another picture taken from Orion. NASA said: 'We see our home planet as a whole, lit up in spectacular blues and browns. A green aurora even lights up the atmosphere in the north'

The Artemis II mission's Orion capsule leaves Earth, backlit by the sun as a crescent, on its way to fly by the moon

The moment space fans waited more than 50 years for as NASA launched its Artemis II mission to the moon on Wednesday evening

Part of what makes Artemis II riskier than NASA's standard missions is that it is testing relatively new technology.

Compared to a spacecraft such as the SpaceX Crew Dragon, which has been used dozens of times, the Orion spacecraft has only been used once, during Artemis I.

'Orion's life support and deep-space systems have never been flown with a crew before,' explained Chris Bosquillon, co-chair of the Moon Village Association's working group for Disruptive Technology & Lunar Governance.

This creates a risk that one of the critical systems might fail once Orion has already left the atmosphere.

If something had gone wrong during the first day, while Orion was still in low-Earth orbit, the crew could simply have fired the engines to make an early return to Earth.

But if part of the engines or life support system fail once the trip to the moon had begun, things would be much more complicated.

The absolute worst-case scenario would involve multiple systems failing, including the propulsion system, leaving Orion unable to alter its course.

{ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/index.html }

Former US Congressman Claims Man in Uniform Revealed Secret Alien-Human Hybrid Program to Create Galaxy-Communicating Race

{ https://howandwhys.com/ }

{ https://thedebrief.org/category/space/ }

UFO Slingshots From Moon- Earth is 3 sec, 3-28-2026, UAP Paranormal Sighting Breaking news.

Date of sighting: March 28, 2026

Location of sighting: Redmond, Washington, USA

Source: email report to scwaring @yahoo.com

 

This was in my email this morning and it's just amazing evidence that aliens use the same science we learn in school. You see, this UFO slingshot itself around the moon to get to earth in just seconds. But thats not all. Many glowing objects have been recorded daily worldwide of craft coming to Earth at remarkable speeds. This means they are coming back to Earth...because they know...the truth is about to be revealed to all humanity within a few months. The time is now.

Scott C. Waring - UFO Sightings Daily 

 

UFO Slingshots From Moon- Earth is 3 sec, 3-28-2026, UAP Paranormal Alien Sighting Breaking news.

{ https://www.ufosightingsdaily.com/ }

Lawmakers Set 2026 Deadline for Secret UFO Footage Release

Deadline issued for UFO videos as Congress warns of 'very real threat' to US

• READ MORE: NASA scientist backs evidence of non-human intelligence in Earth's skies

By STACY LIBERATORE, US SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY EDITOR

Lawmakers have set a strict deadline for federal agencies to hand over secret UFO videos as officials warn the unidentified objects could threaten US forces.

Republican Rep Anna Paulina Luna penned a letter to the US Secretary of War requesting 46 specific Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP) videos, telling Pete Hegseth to deliver them no later than April 14, 2026.

The requested footage includes dozens of military-recorded encounters showing spherical, cigar-shaped and Tic Tac-like objects spotted over war zones, oceans and sensitive airspace around the world.

Some clips reportedly captured UAP formations near Iran and Syria, incidents near US bases and airports and even a 2023 shootdown over Lake Huron.

Lawmakers said the footage could reveal patterns of activity near sensitive military sites and help determine whether the objects pose a national security risk.

'The lack of disclosure regarding the very real threat posed by UAPs in and around US restricted airspace is concerning,' Luna said in a statement.

'The Task Force has found responses from AARO, when questioned about UAP sightings and provided data, [to be] less than adequate.

'The presence of UAPs in and around the sensitive airspaces of US military installations poses a threat to the security of the armed forces and their readiness.'

One of the videos requested was 'Spherical UAP over AFG in and out of clouds' captured in 2020. The footage was leaked by Investigative journalists Jeremy Corbell and George Knapp last year 

She chairs a House Federal Secrets Task Force focused on investigating UAPs, declassifying federal records and protecting whistleblowers.

The threats extend beyond mysterious sightings, pointing to the danger unidentified objects pose when they appear near restricted airspace, military bases and active training zones.

Officials fear the craft could be conducting surveillance, testing US defenses or interfering with aircraft operations, raising concerns about both pilot safety and national security readiness.

Luna released the letter on Wednesday, saying: 'The continued lack of transparency surrounding these anomalies and the potential national security threat they pose is troubling.'

She added that the Task Force held a hearing on September 9, 2025, to discuss those concerns.

'Whistleblowers informed the Task Force that AARO possesses additional video records of potential UAP sightings,' she wrote.

'To continue its investigation, the Task Force requests certain video files related to UAP sightings.'

Anna Paulina Luna chairs a House Federal Secrets Task Force focused on investigating UAP, declassifying federal records and protecting whistleblowers

Some clips reportedly captured UAP formations near Iran and Syria, incidents near US bases and airports and even a 2023 shootdown over Lake Huron (stock)

The requested footage reportedly shows spherical objects weaving through clouds, hovering over open water and repeatedly appearing near US warships and submarines.

Several clips were captured by fighter jets, surveillance aircraft and drones operating in regions such as the Persian Gulf, Afghanistan and the East China Sea.

In multiple cases, more than one object was tracked moving at high speeds at the same time, raising concerns about possible coordinated activity near sensitive military operations.

One of the requests: 'Spherical UAP over AFG in and out of clouds, 11/23/20,' is a video reportedly showing a massive disc weaving in and out of cloud cover.

Investigative journalists Jeremy Corbell and George Knapp, who leaked parts of the clip, said the footage was recorded by government personnel over the Afghanistan-Pakistan border in November 2020.

The object was spotted during a reconnaissance mission by a high-altitude Air Force platform.

Luna's deadline comes after President Donald Trump ordered the release of government files relating to UAPs and extraterrestrials on February 19. 

Speaking at an event for the Department of War’s 'Arsenal of Freedom' tour in February, Hegseth said he intends to find out if aliens really exist, and the American people will learn the truth at the same time.

Although he admitted he never envisioned being the person put in charge of potentially revealing alien life to the world, Hegseth declared that the Department of War would fully comply with the president's orders.

'I did not have that on my bingo card at all,' Hegseth said.

'We've got our people working on it right now. I don't want to oversell how much time it will take, right? We're digging in. We're going to be in full compliance with that executive order, eager to provide that for the president.'

Hegseth didn't have an estimate of how long it would take for the Pentagon and US intelligence agencies to release every piece of information on unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP), which have been widely reported throughout the US since the 1940s.

Asked if he believes aliens exist, Hegseth replied: 'We'll see. I get to do the review and find out along with all of you.'

{ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/index.html }

NASA’s chief has revealed a shocking new outlook on extraterrestrial life, saying Mars could hold proof that we are not alone.

Jared Isaacman sat down with conservative political commentator Benny Johnson, where he said: 'If we can get to Mars and bring samples back, I put it at a better 90 percent chance that we could prove there was some microbial life on Mars.'

Isaacman, NASA’s newly appointed administrator, argued that with roughly two trillion galaxies in the universe, each packed with countless stars and planets, it seems unlikely that Earth is the only world to host life.

'I would say there could be life everywhere. It doesn't mean it looks like us. It doesn't mean it has the tentacles you have in movies,' he added. 

The admission came ahead of the historic Artemis II launch scheduled for today, which will mark NASA's return to the moon in more than 50 years.

NASA reports an 80 percent chance of favorable weather, as the crew prepares for the mission that will see them launch inside the Orion capsule atop the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket.

'8.8 million pounds of thrust are gonna send four astronauts farther into space than we’ve ever sent humans before, faster than humans have ever traveled around the moon, back safely to Earth, and set up for subsequent missions to follow,' Isaacman said. 'We are going back to the moon.'

The mission will see NASA's Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen conduct a 10-day lunar flyby.

Jared Isaacman sat down with conservative political commentator Benny Johnson , where he said there is a 90 percent chance there was life on Mars

Isaacman explained that the mission will begin in low Earth orbit before moving into a higher orbit, where engineers will spend the first 24 hours confirming the spacecraft is operating correctly. 

Astronauts will remain close enough to return quickly during this phase. 

Once the vehicle performs a translunar injection burn, it will head past the moon, use its gravity to swing back toward Earth, and splash down in the Pacific Ocean off the US West Coast about 10 days later. 

'Hopefully, we have learned enough about that vehicle to set us up for Artemis III in 2027,' said Isaacman.

'Again, that’s where we are going to test the Orion spacecraft with the landers into Earth orbit. And then in 2028, before President Trump’s term, Artemis IV is going to put American boots back on the surface of the moon.'

While Isaacman believes life could exist outside of Earth, he has continually stated that he has not seen any classified files or historic documentation to support that aliens have visited our planet. 

In response to Trump's order to release all government files relating to UFOs and extraterrestrial life on February 19, NASA press secretary Bethany Stevens said: 'We continue to make all NASA data publicly available and welcome public participation using our data.

'As the NASA Administrator has said, there are certainly things he's come across in the job that he can't explain… but they relate more to unnecessarily costly programs than they do to extraterrestrial life.'

Isaacman, however, noted that the previous life on Mars would likely be microbial life

In 2025, acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy announced the discovery of microbial life on the Martian surface.

Read More

• Further than ANY human has ever gone before: Explore how Nasa will 'slingshot' first African-American to the moon tonight in immersive Deep Dive 

He said a sample collected by the Perseverance rover has been declared the 'clearest sign of life' on the Red Planet. 

NASA's Associate Administrator Nicky Fox said: 'This is the kind of signature that we would see that was made by something biological.'

Specifically, researchers have been looking at unusual spots and seed-like shapes in ancient Martian rocks that might point to the existence of tiny life forms in the distant past.

These features, nicknamed 'poppy seeds' and 'leopard spots,' were spotted in mud-like rocks in Neretva Vallis, part of the Jezero crater, where a river existed billions of years ago.

Scientist Joel Hurowitz revealed how these tiny signatures found in the crater pointed to the existence of life on Mars long before most organisms emerged on Earth.

Although the findings have been discussed for months, Hurowitz noted that scientists needed to gather more data from Neretva Vallis and confirm the results with other researchers before releasing the conclusion that this could be Martian life.

'We are here to say this is exciting, and we want to share that news. This could be very real,' Duffy continued.

{ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/index.html }

This is the moment the BBC's science editor was left in tears during NASA's Artemis II lift-off. 

The spacecraft, which will take four astronauts to the moon for the first time in over 50 years, took off from the Kennedy Space Centre yesterday evening. 

Its mammoth 285,000-mile (1.1 million km) round trip will transport crew to the dark side of the moon before slingshotting back to Earth.

The BBC's Science Editor, Rebecca Morelle joined hundreds of other spectators in Florida to witness the historic launch. 

As Artemis II's booster ignitions activated, sending large plumes of smoke billowing across the launch pad, the excitable reporter can be heard saying 'oh my goodness' and repeatedly clapping.

The rocket then blasts off into the sky to thunderous cheers from crowds gathered at the Kennedy Space Centre.

'Oh my goodness that is spectacular,' a visibly emotional Ms Morelle said. 

'It's not just want you see and you hear as the rocket lifts off. You can feel the force of it through your body. This is the most powerful rocket that NASA has ever built.' 

The BBC's Science Editor, Rebecca Morelle (pictured) joined hundreds of other spectators in Florida to witness the historic launch

Artemis II officially launched yesterday evening on its mammoth round trip to the dark side of the moon before returning to Earth 

The roaring engines of the massive spacecraft then interrupt Ms Morelle as it commences its journey towards the stars.

She struggles to be heard over the thunderous noise as she looks over her shoulder at the rocket in wonder. 

Artemis II will take American astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch, and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen farther into space than any human has ever gone before.

They will break the previous record set by Apollo 13 in 1970. 

Four minutes into the historic journey, Artemis II crossed the boundary into space with no issues and a clear view of their target destination. 

Mr Wiseman, the mission commander, said: 'We have a beautiful moonrise. We're headed right at it!'

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman reported that Artemis II suffered a temporary communications problem after launch and was dealing with a 'controller issue' with the toilet on board the Orion capsule. 

However, these have now been fixed and the space agency has declared the spacecraft ready for its trip to the moon. 

From left to right: Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen, NASA astronauts Victor Glover, Reid Wiseman and Christina Koch

Just after 6pm in the US, Mr Wiseman declared 'Full send,' as he and his crewmates sat atop NASA’s towering rocket, confirming they were ready for launch.

Orion crew capsule: Key specs

• Unlike the Space Shuttle or ISS, Orion is designed to go far beyond Earth's orbit
• It can support four astronauts for up to 21 days
• It has a built¿in escape rocket that can pull the crew away from danger during launch
• It has the largest heat shield ever built for a human spacecraft
• The astronauts will live in about 330 cubic feet of space ¿ roughly the size of two minivans
• To get some shut¿eye, crew members will strap sleeping bags to the wall
• It has a mini gym onboard, equipped with a compact flywheel exercise device
• It will take astronauts father from Earth than any humans have travelled since the Apollo missions

From mission control, launch director Charlie Blackwell-Thompson delivered an emotional message to the crew, telling them they carried 'the heart of this Artemis team, the daring spirit of the American people and our partners across the globe, and the hopes and dreams of this generation.'

'Good luck. Godspeed, Artemis II. Let’s go,' she said, following the final launch checks. 

The crew will spend the first one to two days conducting extensive systems checks.

These include testing Orion's life-support, propulsion, navigation and communications systems to ensure the spacecraft is ​ready to head into deep space.

Once checkouts are complete, Orion’s propulsion system will perform ​a critical engine burn known as translunar injection, sending the spacecraft out of Earth orbit and onto a trajectory ‌toward ⁠the moon.

It will take three to four days for the Artemis II crew to reach the moon, with the Orion spacecraft projected to enter what NASA calls the moon’s sphere of influence on day five.

This is the point at which lunar gravity overtakes Earth’s pull and begins guiding the spacecraft toward its destination.

Day six is likely to be historic for NASA and the rest of humanity, as Artemis II conducts its lunar flyby and travels to the dark side of the moon.

The spacecraft will not only reach a point farther from Earth than any previous crewed mission, but NASA confirmed that the astronauts will be able to see a lunar eclipse - when the moon blocks out the sun. 

After looping around the moon, the Orion craft will begin its return journey, leaving the moon’s gravitational influence and heading back toward Earth.

It will take another four days to return, which the astronauts will fill by conducting key safety demonstrations, including testing procedures designed to shield the crew from dangerous solar radiation from solar flares. The crew will also practice manually steering the spacecraft.

Read More

• NASA fans are shocked to see an astronaut typing his PIN into his tablet on the Artemis II moon launch live stream - as one jokes 'command module getting open-sourced!' 

As Orion approaches Earth, it will separate key components before plunging into the ⁠atmosphere ​at speeds of about 25,000 miles per hour (40,233 kph). Testing ​the capsule’s heat shield during high-energy re-entry is one of the mission’s primary objectives.

The spacecraft is expected to splash down ​in the Pacific Ocean, where recovery teams will retrieve the crew.

Parachutes will deploy to slow the spacecraft before it splashes down, bringing the landmark mission to an end. 

Artemis III, NASA's next space mission, is set to launch in 2027 and will see two astronauts land on the surface of the moon and stay there for about a week.  This will be the first time man has set foot on the moon since Apollo 17 in December 1972. 

Artemis II: Key facts 

Launch date: NASA initially identified three possible launch windows for Artemis II: From February 6 to February 11, from March 6 to March 11, and from April 1 to April 6. The space agency is now targeting the April window. 

Mission objective: To complete a lunar flyby, passing the 'dark side' of the moon and test systems for a future lunar landing.

Total distance to travel: 685,000 miles (1.1 million km)

Mission duration: 10 days 

Estimated total cost: $44billion (£32.5billion)

• NASA Space Launch System rocket: $23.8billion (£17.6billion)
• Orion deep¿space spacecraft: $20.4billion (£15billion)

Crew: 

• Commander Reid Wiseman
• Pilot Victor Glover
• Mission Specialist Christina Koch
• Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen

Mission Stages:

1. Launch from Kennedy Space Centre Launch Pad 39B
2. Manoeuvre in orbit to raise the perigee using the Cryogenic Propulsion Stage
3. Burn to raise apogee using the Cryogenic Propulsion Stage
4. Detach from Cryogenic Propulsion Stage and perform translunar injection
5. Fly to the moon over four days
6. Complete lunar flyby at a maximum altitude of 5,523 miles (8,889 km) above the moon's surface
7. Return to Earth over four days
8. Separate the crew module from the European Service Module and the crew module adapter

{ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/index.html }

Chilling two final words of Challenger pilot before disaster killed all astronauts on board

When the pilot confirmed his insturction to mission control with the words, “go throttle up”. It sounded like another routine mission was unfolding -until it didn't.

BY Edward Easton

The failed launch was one of the biggest disasters of its kind in history

 (Image: The LIFE Images Collection via Getty Images)

On the morning of January 28, 1986, millions of people across the globe sat glued to their TVs, excited to watch the Space Shuttle Challenger prepared for lift-off.

At first, everything went according to plan. Challenger shot into the sky, with Commander Francis Scobee calmly confirming his instructions from mission control with the words, “go throttle up”. It sounded like another routine mission was unfolding. Until it didn't. Just three seconds later, came the final transmission from inside the cockpit.

Pilot Michael Smith uttered only two words, but they showed him to be a man who realised something was very, very wrong. - “uh oh”. Moments later, the shuttle was engulfed in fire and tore apart in the sky just 73 seconds after launch, killing all seven astronauts on board.

The launch looked pretty ordinary at first, but things quickly turned south.

(Image: MPI/Getty Images)

From the ground, it looked like an enormous explosion, a violent fireball that appeared to instantly destroy the spacecraft. For decades, that was the version many people believed: that the crew were killed immediately.

But years later, deeply unsettling details emerged that painted a far more disturbing picture.

Challenger did not explode in the traditional sense. A failure in a booster designed to seal fuel leaks caused scorching gases to escape, weakening the external fuel tank. As the shuttle climbed, the structure failed, triggering a massive fireball that ripped the vehicle apart.

Crucially, the crew compartment did not disintegrate straight away.

None of the craft's crew survived

(Image: AFP)

Instead, it is believed to have broken free pretty much intact, continuing to rise for around 25 seconds before beginning its long fall into the Atlantic Ocean.

Investigators later revealed that several of the astronauts’ personal air packs had been switched on, a process that could only be done manually.

That discovery raised the horrifying possibility that at least some of the crew were alive and conscious after the initial breakup, fully aware that they were falling helplessly back to Earth.

NASA maintained that a sudden loss of cabin pressure may have caused the astronauts to lose consciousness quickly. But experts noted that the physical evidence inside the crew module did not fully support that explanation, leaving the exact final moments unclear.

What is certain is that the impact with the ocean was unsurvivable.

The crew compartment slammed into the sea at immense speed, bringing the nightmare to a brutal end.

The remains of the astronauts were later recovered from the ocean floor, though details of their final moments were never publicly disclosed.

{ https://www.mirror.co.uk/  }

High nickel concentrations in Martian bedrock point to potential biosignatures

by Krystal Kasal, Phys.org

In 2024, NASA's Perseverance rover found surprising levels of Nickel in the Martian bedrock of an ancient river channel, called Neretva Vallis, which flowed into the Jezero crater. A new study, published in Nature Communications, has taken a closer look at the data collected from the region and researchers are seeing what could be remnants of ancient Martian life.

Nickel as a biosignature

Although nickel is not typically thought of as a major component of human life, it is important in many microbial metabolism functions. For example, nickel is a requirement for the Wood-Ljungdahl (W-L) pathway—an ancient, energy-efficient anaerobic process utilized by bacteria and archaea to fix carbon dioxide. The reverse of this process also requires nickel and has been observed in some species of sulfate-reducing bacteria, for the decomposition of organic matter.

"In particular, Ni is an essential component of enzymes used by methanogenic archaea and many bacterial species. Ni is vital to the metabolism of methanogenic organisms, such that a decrease in the Ni content of Earth's oceans in the Archean is hypothesized to have caused a collapse in atmospheric methane preceding the Great Oxidation Event," explain the study authors.

Furthermore, most of a planet's nickel is expected to be in its core. So, higher concentrations on or near the surface are typically unexpected, unless deposited there through other means. Researchers can use information from surrounding rocks to determine more about the origin, such as whether the nickel likely came from volcanic, meteoritic, or other sources.

Unexpected nickel concentrations in Neretva Vallis

Samples picked up by Perseverance showed nickel concentrations of up to 1.1 wt.% in Neretva Vallis, representing the highest-ever nickel concentrations detected in Martian bedrock. Nickel was detected at 0.12 wt.% or higher in 32 out of the 126 distinct rock targets analyzed by Perseverance's remote Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) technique. The team notes that many of these samples were near iron-rich rocks, which they say indicates the presence of nickel in an iron-bearing phase. Scans also identified nickel rich regions in veins of magnesium sulfate.

"There are few processes capable of enriching Ni to the extreme levels seen in Neretva Vallis and any such explanation must also be consistent with the bulk geochemistry and geologic context of Neretva Vallis sedimentary rocks. In particular, the observation that Ni is found concentrated in dispersed Fe-sulfides and diagenetic sulfates within Mg poor mudstones must be considered," the study authors write.

Although the team is still uncertain of the exact origins of these nickel-rich regions, they say that the geochemistry and textures resemble ancient Earth rocks where life first emerged. They say that sedimentary Fe-sulfides on Earth, similar to those found in certain regions of Neretva Vallis, are believed to form by microbial sulfate reduction in the presence of Fe-bearing minerals.

The researchers say that the thermochemical reduction of sulfate at high temperatures is another possible explanation, but there is no evidence for the metamorphism or burial to the depths required for thermochemical sulfate reduction, and that the hydrated sulfate minerals and clays there indicate low-temperature processes. The authors note that previous findings of organic matter and iron-sulfides spurred the designation of a "potential biosignature" for the same reason.

They explain, "The results of our investigation of sedimentary rocks derived from Noachian (~4.1-3.7 Gya) materials in the Jezero watershed invite comparisons with an early Earth environment and a terrestrial biosphere that developed around the same time as these rocks. While the observations presented in this work do not necessarily imply that the distribution of Ni is related to a biological process, the presence of strong enrichments suggests it was bioavailable.

"As an element essential to the earliest known forms of life on Earth, and a particularly scarce trace metal, the elevated concentrations of Ni in the Beaver Falls workspace—co-located with organic matter—offers an intriguing hint of past organic driven redox processes on Mars."

Non-biological possibilities

The instruments available on Perseverance cannot perform the detailed isotopic or trace metal analyses needed to confirm origins or biological links, so the origins of nickel in Neretva Vallis remain uncertain. However, the study authors do present some non-biological possibilities as well.

The team says that the nickel may have been delivered by a meteorite, then dissolved and redistributed by water flowing through the region at the time. They say another possibility is that nickel accumulated from intense chemical weathering of an ultramafic protolith—a type of igneous or sedimentary rock, primarily composed of iron and magnesium-rich minerals, but also nickel.

The researchers plan on further analysis when the collected rock samples are brought back to Earth. They say this could clarify the source and significance of nickel enrichment, potentially revealing more about Mars' history and its potential for ancient life.

Publication details

• H. T. Manelski et al, Strong nickel enrichment co-located with redox-organic interactions in Neretva Vallis, Mars, Nature Communications (2026). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-026-70081-3

• Journal information: Nature Communications 

{ https://phys.org/space-news/ }

Artemis II launches Nasa astronauts to the moon for first time in 53 years

 Josh Milton

A pretty nail-biting 10 seconds (Picture: Nasa/Reuters)

And we have liftoff. Humanity is about to be reunited with the moon for the first time in 53 years as Artemis II finally took flight yesterday.

Crowds cheered as a spacecraft named Integrity and a minivan-sized capsule soared into the clear skies above Florida at 6.35pm local time.

The mission will bring Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen from Launch Pad 39 at Nasa’s Kennedy Space Center to another celestial body.

‘Full-send,’ said Wiseman, clearing the way for the launch.

Launch director Charlie Blackwell-Thompson replied: ‘You take with you the heart of this Artemis team, the daring spirit of the American people and our partners across the globe, and the hopes and dreams of this generation.

‘Good luck. Godspeed, Artemis II. Let’s go.’

The craft soared from the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida (Picture: Reuters)

Artemis II is made up of the Space Launch System rocket with the Orion crew capsule perched on top (Picture: Reuters)

(L-R) Mission specialist Jeremy Hansen, pilot Victor Glover, mission specialist Christina Koch and commander Reid Wiseman earlier today (Picture: Getty Images)

This is the first time anyone will travel this far from Earth since Apollo 17 in 1972.

The goal of the 620,000-mile-long round-trip is to test life-support and other systems – the toilet included – inside the Orion.

If all goes to plan, the next mission in the 21st-century equivalent of the Apollo programme could send humans to the lunar south pole by 2028.

Artemis II just launched – what now?

Artemis II was slated for earlier this year but was delayed due to hiccups during dress rehearsals.

Yet these were a good thing, Libby Jackson, who worked in Mission Control for a module on the International Space Station, tells Metro.

‘Until you have got all the way down to zero, it might not happen,’ she says of the 10-second countdown to launch.

‘You don’t believe it until you get into those final seconds.’

The head of space at the Science Museum in London adds that, as nail-biting as the countdown was, it’s just the start of the 10-day mission.

‘It’s 10 minutes up into space. That all has to go to plan, right? You want the crew to be safe. You want the rocket to work well.’

One of the things that has gone right so far is the unfolding of Orion’s solar arrays. Jackson says: ‘If you don’t deploy the solar panels, you have no mission, because you need the power.’

Don’t get too attached to the 2,600,000kg orange rocket, though. The core stage, crammed with engines, is already somewhere in the Atlantic.

At nearly 1,381 miles above the surface, the upper stage of the rocket fired to shove the Orion into an elliptical orbit around Earth so it won’t fall back.

This will set the record for the farthest that people have travelled from Earth while still swinging around the planet.

But that record will only last about 13 hours, when the second stage will fire once again on the rocket’s second lap around the planet tomorrow.

The Orion is where the four spacefarers will spend the next 10 days (Picture: PA)

This will push the crew into what Nasa calls ‘high-Earth orbit’, or about 43,730 miles above your head, before the second stage is discarded.

From then on, it’ll just be four people floating inside the Orion.

On April 6, the spacecraft will swoop around the moon’s far side, also called the dark side, so astronauts can observe parts of the lunar surface never seen by humans before.

Just a day later, the team will return to Earth by using the moon’s gravity to fling itself, a process called ‘free return’, which will take four days.

The Orion will smash into the Earth’s rough atmosphere at about 25,000mph, withstanding temperatures of 2,760°C, and splash down just off the coast of San Diego on April 10.

The crew’s destination is our nearest celestial neighbour (Picture: AP)

‘If everyone has done their homework, they will go into space, go to the moon and just come back,’ Jackson says.

‘But everything has been well prepared and well checked out and well tested. No one launches a mission expecting it to fail.’

Why are we bothering to go to the moon?

Compared to discussions about migrating to Mars or discovering life on faraway worlds, visiting our closest neighbour might sound mundane.

But there’s a great deal we don’t know about this big grey rock – including how it even formed, which could help us understand how we came to be.

Dr Megan Argo, a reader in astrophysics at the University of Lancashire, tells Metro: ‘The moon has fascinated humans for thousands of years, appearing constant yet ever-changing in our skies and helping track time and seasons.

‘Every culture has developed its own stories and traditions around it.’

Unlike the Earth, where ocean currents and earthquakes can sweep away our history, the moon is a history book.

‘This means its rocks and potential water deposits act as an archive, offering insights into planetary formation that we simply can’t access on Earth,’ Dr Argo says.

By getting up close to the moon, space officials can think of ways to get people even further into the cosmos.

Not only for months-long stays on the moon in bases powered by nuclear energy, but also for journeying to Mars.

‘One of the points of the Artemis programme is to learn how to live and work on another planet through your body,’ Jackson says.

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{ https://metro.co.uk/ }