As powerful storms produced tornadoes in East Texas last week, a special device was tracking lightning data from the International Space Station, flying 250 miles overhead. On Tuesday, December 13, a National Weather Service survey determined an EF2 tornado with peak winds of 115 mph touched down in northern Panola County around 3:30 p.m., traveling…
Category: Aviation and Spaceflight
Stories from the world of astronomy, aeronautics, aviation, and manned spaceflight.
WATCH: Tour the tarmac at Frankfurt Airport
Come along for a brief tour of the airfield at Frankfurt Airport, one of the largest airports in Europe. Click here to watch.
Business is booming again on Florida’s Space Coast
As NASA prepares to return humans to the surface of the Moon, tests for the space agency’s Artemis I mission aren’t the only activities at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. LUNAR LAUNCH On June 20, the space agency completed a critical dress-rehearsal of a launch for its new Space Launch System (SLS) moon rocket and…
NASA conducts critical dress rehearsal for new moon rocket
NASA is taking a big step toward returning humans to the surface of Moon. Monday, the space agency conducted a “wet test” dress rehearsal for its new SLS, or Space Launch System, moon rocket and Orion spacecraft. This was expected to be a final test before the launch of the Artemis I demonstration mission later…
COVID-era changes you’ll notice at DFW International Airport and some you won’t
Travelers flying out of Tyler Pounds Regional Airport or East Texas Regional Airport connect through Dallas Fort Worth International Airports, one of the busiest in the world. Passenger figures show people are taking to the skies again, nearing pre-pandemic levels. The latest available totals show 6,866,796 people traveled through DFW in the month of July,…
WATCH: Nighttime flight from Dallas Fort Worth International Airport
DFW International Airport lights up the night sky like few other airports. Click here to see why.
WATCH: Space Shuttle Columbia tragedy 18th anniversary coverage
Click here to watch my reports from the ‘Remembering Columbia’ NASA Museum.
Hemphill museum to commemorate 18th anniversary of Shuttle Columbia tragedy
The Hemphill museum dedicated to preserving the legacy of the Space Shuttle Columbia will host its annual memorial service on Monday, the 18th anniversary of the tragedy that trust East Texas into international headlines. On the morning of February 1, 2003, the orbiter broke apart in the skies over East Texas, just minutes before Columbia’s…
NASA closer to locating small leak in International Space Station after months-long search
NASA has isolated a persistent air leak in the International Space Station to the main work area of the Zvezda Service Module, the space agency announced Tuesday. For months, the Expedition 63 crew and ground teams have been analyzing data to locate the precise source of an increased air leak at the orbiting complex. Monday…
Astronauts emerge from shelter after ‘avoidance maneuver’ successful
Astronauts aboard the International Space Station have emerged from their ‘safe haven’ after taking shelter inside their Soyuz spacecraft as an unknown piece of space debris approached the orbiting outpost. According to NASA, the object was expected to pass within .8 of a mile of the space station Tuesday afternoon. Around 4:19 p.m., the Russian…
Spacecraft to be named for astronaut who died in 2003 space shuttle tragedy
A spacecraft set to launch later this month will be named for a pioneer astronaut who died in the 2003 Space Shuttle Columbia tragedy in East Texas. Northrop Grumman announced its un-crewed NG-14 Cygnus spacecraft will be named for Kalpana Chawla, a NASA astronaut assigned to Shuttle Columbia’s ill-fated final mission. “It is the company’s…
East Texas NASA facility to play key role in football stadium-sized balloon mission to study stars
One of NASA’s next missions to study the origins of stars will feature a record-breaking telescope hoisted by a football stadium-sized balloon and the space agency is relying on an East Texas facility to make sure it gets off the ground. The Astrophysics Stratospheric Telescope for High Spectral Resolution Observations at Submillimeter-wavelengths, or ASTHROS, is…
WATCH: International Space Station spotted over East Texas
The ISS, which travels 17,500 miles per hour, circles the Earth every 90 minutes. Click here to watch a flyover!
NASA shifts space agency to telework after workers test positive for COVID-19
NASA’s administrator has ordered the space agency’s employees and contractors to telework after a limited number of workers tested positive for COVID-19. “Although a limited amount of employees have tested positive for COVID-19, it is imperative that we take this pre-emptive step to thwart further spreading of the virus among the workforce and our communities,”…
Meet the Class: NASA’s newest astronauts could be assigned to Moon, Mars missions
NASA welcomed a new class of astronauts to its active roster Friday, marking the first time the space agency has held a public graduation ceremony. The class, selected in 2017, includes 11 NASA astronauts and two from the Canadian Space Agency. They join a corps of 35 others who are now eligible for assignment on…
World’s largest airport chaplaincy provides peace in busy DFW Airport
At the start of the holiday travel season, countless East Texans will be among the passengers navigating crowds at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport. Despite the airport being one of the busiest places on Earth, people are finding their faith inside one of the five DFW Airport interfaith chapels. “You don’t ever know how travel is…
Retired NASA astronaut reflects on two Shuttle missions, future of human spaceflight
Two visits to low Earth orbit have forever changed the outlook on life for former NASA astronaut Byron Lichtenberg. Even though he’s now retired form the space agency’s astronaut corps, he’s still using those experiences to inspire the next generation of aerospace professionals. As a professor at LeTourneau University, he’s currently working with students to…
Frenchie’s Italian Cuisine: A slice of American space program history
As the more than one million visitors pass through the gates of Space Center Houston at NASA’s Johnson Space Center each year, few are aware they’re missing out on an essential stop that’s not on the tour. Three-quarters of a mile away, in a nondescript strip mall in Clear Lake City, Texas, the story of…
Legendary NASA flight director Gene Kranz discusses Apollo 11, courage under fire
Hundreds of thousands of men and women made contributions to the success of the Apollo moon missions, but Friday night a crowded room listened to every word spoken by someone who never left Earth. Gene Kranz served as flight director during Apollo 11, leading operations inside Mission Control. He delivered a keynote to a theater…
WATCH: Apollo 11 moon mission 50th anniversary coverage
Click here to watch my reports from NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.
NASA opens $5M Apollo mission control room restoration for public tours
As the country marks 50 years since the history-making Apollo 11 moon landing, visitors to Space Center Houston are getting an inside look at the landmark that helped make the ‘giant leap’ possible. Three weeks ago, NASA and Space Center Houston unveiled a $5 million dollar renovation of Mission Operations Control Room 2, which was…
East Texas students to make radio call to NASA astronauts aboard space station
This month students from Huntington High School will have a rare opportunity to chat directly with the crew of the International Space Station. Seven students who have obtained their Amateur Radio or “ham” licenses from the Federal Communications Commission will participate in the event with astronauts in space. After submitting a proposal to Amateur Radio…
My Instagram Top 10: Give me some Space
Among the hundreds of photos populating my Instagram feed are plenty featuring one of my biggest passions — human spaceflight.
A pioneer of spaceflight, Ellen Ochoa set to retire from NASA
After a 30-year career with NASA, Dr. Ellen Ochoa is retiring as director of the Johnson Space Center in Houston at the end of May. On Thursday, May 17, I had the great privilege of attending the retirement celebration for the administrator, engineer, and astronaut. Listening to former crew mates, NASA colleagues, and family friends…
WATCH: China’s defunct Tiangong 1 space station hurtles toward uncontrolled reentry
China’s first orbiting outpost, the Tiangong 1 space station, is hurtling toward an uncontrolled re-entry in the Earth’s atmosphere. Lane Luckie appeared on KLTV’s streaming newscast, East Texas Now, to explain what will happen over the next few days.
Hemphill, on the Fifteenth Anniversary
Originally posted on Bringing Columbia Home:
I’m at a loss to describe what an incredibly powerful day we had in Hemphill, Texas, on this the fifteenth anniversary of the Columbia accident. We spent Wednesday night at the Fin and Feather Resort on the Toledo Bend Reservoir six miles south of Hemphill. (This was the base…
Commander’s widow shares journey of faith on 15th anniversary of Shuttle Columbia tragedy
This month marks 15 years since the Space Shuttle Columbia broke apart over East Texas. The widow of the Columbia’s commander is sharing how that tragedy turned into a test of faith for her family. While enduring the loss of a spouse wasn’t easy, Evelyn Husband-Thompson says she has been able to find healing comfort…
WATCH: Spectacular time-lapse of Dallas, Texas flyover
Click here to watch a spectacular time-lapse of the city lights over Dallas, Texas.
WATCH: Wheels up from Tyler to Dallas, Texas
Click to watch a time lapse of the short flight between Tyler and Dallas, Texas.
Totality! Solar eclipse provides show in the sky
For the first time in decades, a solar eclipse was visible to millions of people in the United States. Across the country and here in East Texas people were looking to the sky with special lenses to catch a glimpse of the moon passing between the Earth and the Sun. East Texas was expected to…
E. Texas high school experiment rocketing to International Space Station
A SpaceX rocket carrying an East Texas high school’s science project is heading to the International Space Station. An experiment created by Bullard High School students was launched Tuesday aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida. 6,400 pounds of science experiments, supplies, and equipment were launched aboard the SpaceX CRS-12, a commercial…
WATCH: Plane crashes near Tyler Pounds Regional Airport
The Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board are investigating a private plane that crashed near Tyler Pounds Regional Airport on July 13, 2017. Click here to watch live coverage.
Astronaut carries friends’ wedding rings to Space
This Summer a special couple will receive a wedding gift that’s truly out of this world. European Space Agency astronaut Thomas Pesquet, who has been aboard the International Space Station since November, posted photo to social media of two wedding rings floating in micro gravity. The flight engineer from France tweeted that he carried in…
Police: Rocket debris washes ashore on Texas beach
Debris that washed ashore along the south Texas coast has been identified as part of a rocket, according to law enforcement. A police officer made the discovery last week while investigating a report of possible airplane or boat debris being found at a Brazoria County beach. The large rectangular object is believed to be debris…
Soccer ball recovered from Shuttle Challenger wreckage reaches space three decades later
A soccer ball that was to be carried to space by the ill-fated Space Shuttle Challenger has finally reached its destination, 31 years later. Prior to the January 28, 1986 launch, the ball was presented to NASA astronaut Ellison Onizuka by soccer players, including his daughter, from Clear Lake High School. Onizuka was one of…
Lane Luckie 