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Astronaut Charles M. Duke Jr., lunar module pilot of the Apollo 16 lunar landing mission, is photographed collecting lunar samples at Station no. 1 during the first Apollo 16 extravehicular activity at the Descartes landing site. This picture, looking eastward, was taken by Astronaut John W. Young, commander. Duke is standing at the rim of Plum crater, which is 40 meters in diameter and 10 meters deep. The parked Lunar Roving Vehicle can be seen in the left background.

New exhibit spotlights Arizona's place in space exploration

The exhibit includes relics such as a spacesuit worn by Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin
Border wall fencing with concertina wire attached in Douglas, Ariz. January 2021.

Understanding walls: "The barrier that we create in our hearts must be broken to heal and grow".

Also on Arizona Spotlight: Remembering the first space shuttle launch, 40 years ago; the uncertain state of the film industry reflected at the 93rd annual Academy Awards; and the tale of a very silly man.
The Dragonfly helicopter could become the first spacecraft to fly in the atmosphere of one of Saturn's moons.

Planetary scientists look ahead to new airborne explorers

They say the historic Mars Ingenuity helicopter flight is only the beginning.
Jackson's Chameleon

"The Zoologist's Guide to the Galaxy" - Are there universal laws of biology?

Also on Arizona Spotlight: The City of Tucson changes policy on recycling glass; taking a nature hike along Cienega Creek; and a reminder of the positive difference you can make in your own backyard.
Composed of images taken by the Galileo spacecraft in 1995 and 1998, this reprocessed image of the icy Jovian moon Europa shows cracks, ridges, “microchaos,” and more. We now believe that Europa, like several other moons in the solar system, is an ocean world. Due to heat caused by Jupiter’s gravitational push-and-pull, there is liquid salt water beneath the ice, water that may contain life.

"Beyond Earth's Edge: The Poetry of Spaceflight".

Also on Arizona Spotlight: "DUSTWUN", a film about life, death and trust on the U.S. / Mexico Border.
The Tucson Skyline. October 23, 2019.

News roundup: Halloween parties raided at UA, spending big on Prop 208, trails reopen in Santa Catalinas

Recent coverage impacting Southern Arizona, Nov. 2
Artist’s conception of NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft collecting a sample from the asteroid Bennu.

OSIRIS-REx touches an asteroid

The UA-led project is a first for NASA.
OSIRIS-REx depicted in orbit around Bennu.

OSIRIS-REx closing in on asteroid sampling attempt

The UA-backed mission is one week away from its crucial maneuver.
Three spacecraft are set for launch from Earth toward Mars this month.

Mars missions prepare to launch

Three spacecraft are scheduled to depart for February 2021 arrivals at the Red Planet.
Tucson candlelight vigil for George Floyd, held at the Dunbar Center on June 1st, 2020.

Adiba Nelson asks “What will it take for America to understand the pain of Black women?”

Also on Arizona Spotlight: Preserving the hidden history of one of Tucson's oldest Black communities; SpaceX launches a new era in space travel; and - was Speedway Boulevard ever really the ugliest street in America?
Image shows the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft approaching the asteroid Bennu in an April 14 rehearsal of the sample collection.

OSIRIS-REx passes milestone by rehearsing approach to asteroid

The first major rehearsal had the added challenge of COVID-19, which meant the mission's team could not be together for the test.
OSIRIS-REx photograph shows material being ejected from the surface of the asteroid Bennu in January 2019.

Discussions continue about mysterious particles around asteroid Bennu

Scientists say the objects, first detected in January, pose no threat to the OSIRIS-REx mission
Apollo 12 astronaut Alan Bean inspects Surveyor 3

UA's special connection with the second moon landing

The Apollo 12 mission relied on pinpoint calculations from a UA lunar scientist 50 years ago.
Three tiny satellites deployed from the International Space Station. Scientists warn satellites are becoming smaller and harder to track from Earth.

Scientist warns of tons of orbiting space junk, with more on the way

The debris is a byproduct of things we take for granted in our way life, Al Anzaldua says.
UA graduate student in geosciences Becki Beadling on a research vessel in teh Southern Ocean, deploying robotic floats that gather information for the SOCCOM project.

Ocean & Space

Learn about UA scientists in the Southern Ocean measuring climate change; and celebrating the past and future of space exploration at Spacefest X.
This screen grab from a NASA video released Aug. 12, 2019 shows four potential locations on Bennu for the OSIRIS-REx probe to collect soil samples.

OSIRIS-REx team IDs targets among boulders of asteroid's rough terrain

Asteroid Bennu's tricky surface has pushed the mission to take a new approach to sample collection.

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