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: In the new sci-fi film "Spaceman," Adam Sandler plays a Czech astronaut on a deep space mission. The movie, now streaming on Netflix, is not based on real space exploration, but it does have a connection to NASA history. To add authenticity to their fictional spaceship, the filmmakers used actual space artifacts to dress their set. The hardware, including shuttle light fixtures and stowage bags, were sourced from Historic Space Systems, which also supplied replica shuttle panels.
: Six months after it landed on Earth with NASA's OSIRIS-REx sample return capsule, a small piece of the asteroid Bennu has landed on display at Space Center Houston. The black rock, which is just a tiny fragment of the material collected by the mission, can now be seen (with the assistance of a magnifying glass) at the visitor center for NASA's Johnson Space Center. Only other two other venues have samples: the Smithsonian and University of Arizona's Alfie museum.
: NASA astronaut Matthew Dominick, commander of SpaceX's Crew-8 mission to the International Space Station, had his daughters pick out the doll that would serve as his and his crew's zero-g indicator. Their choice, a plush version of the family dog, not only continued a five-year tradition at SpaceX, but also paid tribute to all of the families serving long times apart. The English Springer Spaniel is now floating in Earth orbit.
: With packing complete for Boeing's CST-100 Starliner Crew Flight Test (CFT), the company has shared details about what it, NASA and the astronauts are flying as mementos. In addition to the small American flags, mission patches and medallions that have become customary, astronauts Barry "Butch" Wilmore and Sunita "Suni" Williams have each chosen items that reflect their families and personal histories. Williams is also taking some surprises related to their Starliner's name, "Calypso."
: NASA's 23rd class of astronaut candidates graduated from their basic training to becoming eligible for flight assignments on Tuesday (March 25). The 10 American men and women, along with two United Arab Emirates astronauts each received their silver NASA astronaut pin during a ceremony at Johnson Space Center in Houston. NASA also announced that applications for the 24th group of astronauts were now being accepted.
: Omega has released a new version of its Speedmaster timepiece styled after NASA's spacesuits. The black dial watch, which became iconic when it was strapped to the white outer layer of Apollo astronauts' pressure garments worn on the moon, now has a white dial with a glossy lacquered finish, black indexes and red highlights, the latter a nod to the red commander's stripes first flown on Apollo 13. The "Moonwatch in white" is otherwise the classic Speedmaster in form and function.
: A metal plaque engraved with the audio waveforms of 103 different ways to say "water," an ode about water by the U.S. Poet Laureate and water-based radio frequencies will fly on NASA's Europa Clipper to Jupiter's icy moon. The plate, which will also help seal the spacecraft's electronics vault, will also carry NASA's "Message in a Bottle," containing the names of 2.6 million members of the public etched on a microchip.
: Earlier this month, Lego released its first Technic space sets to focus on fictional designs. The toy company still wanted the models to feel real, so asked NASA engineers for advice. The result, the new Lego Technic Mars Crew Exploration Rover, features a working suspension, working crane, supply and logistics canisters and an outfitted interior to support two astronauts. Lego even adjusted its initial concepts to meet what NASA said was a must, including adding a particular home fixture.
: SpaceX's third test flight of its Starship and Super Heavy launch vehicles was mostly successful, but ended with the spacecraft and its booster being lost just short of their planned splashdowns. The NASA moon lander and commercial transport soared into space to demo opening its cargo bay and transferring fuel, but missed an engine reignition and broke apart on reentry.
: If there was a common theme to the four missions Thomas Stafford flew for NASA, it was "meetings in space." Stafford, who died at 93, flew on the first rendezvous between crewed spacecraft; met up with an "angry alligator" in orbit; practiced pairing in lunar orbit and tagged up with the Russians on the first joint launch. Stafford's "meetings" did not end there though; he served on various NASA advisory panels up until his death.
: Belarus' first woman to fly into space, a 33-year-old former flight attendant, lifted off with a veteran cosmonaut from Russia and a NASA astronaut for a four hour flight to the International Space Station. Marina Vasilevskaya and Oleg Novitsky will spend 12 days at the orbiting laboratory as Tracy Caldwell Dyson begins a six-month stay. The crew launched on Russia's Soyuz MS-25 spacecraft from the Baikonur Cosmodrome Kazakhstan.
: Swatch is marking the two-year anniversary of its collaboration with Omega with an all-white MoonSwatch adorned by NASA's safety mascot, Snoopy. The comic strip beagle (and his Peanuts pal Woodstock) star on the timepiece's moon phase indicator within one of the subdials borrowed from the design of the Speedmaster, the first watch worn on the moon. The $310 "Mission to the MoonPhase" MoonSwatch is not limited but will only be sold at select Swatch stores starting March 26.
: The Intrepid Museum in New York is launching its largest temporary exhibition ever on Monday (March 26) with the debut of "Apollo: When We Went to the Moon." Developed using artifacts and photos from the U.S. Space & Rocket Center's archives, "Apollo" also features interactive experiences, including the chance to touch a piece of the moon and climb aboard an Apollo lunar rover. The 9,000 square-foot exhibit runs to Sept. 2 under the Intrepid's display of the space shuttle Enterprise.
