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Before reentering our atmosphere, the telescopes onboard NASA's Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory have been restarted to take their last observations. After 21 years in space, NASA's Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory will soon return to our atmosphere. NASA has carried out some notable rescue missions over the past few years, including bringing home the astronauts stranded on the International Space Station last year. More recently, the agency sent up a probe in hopes of saving the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory, a satellite first launched in 2004 that began falling out of our planet's orbit. The plan was for robotic arms on the probe, known as LINK, to grab onto the aging satellite and--with a powerful set of thrusters--drag the observatory back into position.

Look Up Back to School Mashable's Best: E-readers, robovacs, laptops, earbuds, smart home and more Mashable Selects Say More Trending Now Good Connection: Uplifting stories for a digital age Creator Playbook Switch Off Mashable Voices Safety Net Versus All Series Elisha Sauers writes about space for Mashable, taking deep dives into NASA's moon and Mars missions, chatting up astronauts and history-making discoverers, and jetting above the clouds . Through 17 years of reporting, she's covered a variety of topics, including health, business, and government, with a penchant for public records requests. She previously worked for in Norfolk, Virginia, and in Annapolis, Maryland. Her work has earned numerous state awards, including the Virginia Press Association's top honor, Best in Show, and national recognition for narrative storytelling. For each year she has covered space, Sauers has won National Headliner Awards, including first place for her Sex in Space series.

It was the beloved science-fiction writer's least favorite of her books. But it remains worth reading. Enter your email to receive alerts for this author. You can manage your newsletter subscriptions at any time. You're already subscribed to the aa_Rebecca_Onion newsletter.

The mission to Phobos, Japan's first Mars probe launch in 28 years, may reveal new information about our closest planetary neighbor. The Japanese space probe will land on the moon Phobos. A Mars probe from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) may answer some longstanding questions about the Red Planet and its moons. The mission--dubbed MMX for "Martian Moons eXploration"--aims to collect at least 10 grams of samples from Phobos, one of two moons orbiting the planet, and if successful, these will be the first rocks from a Martian moon ever brought to Earth. They won't arrive quickly, however.

Look Up Mashable's Best: E-readers, robovacs, laptops, earbuds, smart home and more Say More Switch Off Creator Playbook Mashable Voices Trending Now Mashable Selects Safety Net Versus Gift Ideas For Everyone On Your List In My Bag All Series NASA's Roman telescope is cruising. Elisha Sauers writes about space for Mashable, taking deep dives into NASA's moon and Mars missions, chatting up astronauts and history-making discoverers, and jetting above the clouds . Through 17 years of reporting, she's covered a variety of topics, including health, business, and government, with a penchant for public records requests. She previously worked for in Norfolk, Virginia, and in Annapolis, Maryland. Her work has earned numerous state awards, including the Virginia Press Association's top honor, Best in Show, and national recognition for narrative storytelling.

NASA launches $4.3bn Roman Telescope to uncover universe's hidden secrets Share NASA launches $4.3bn Roman Telescope to uncover universe's hidden secrets on social media NASA's newest flagship astronomical observatory, the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, has been launched on a quest to solve some of the biggest mysteries in astrophysics and cosmology, including hunting for planets around other stars, exploring dark energy and scanning the cosmos. SpaceX, the aerospace company run by Elon Musk, launched the $4.3bn space telescope on a triple-the-fire-power Falcon Heavy rocket from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in the US state of Florida just after dawn on Sunday. It will take more than three months to get there. Its mission is planned for five years although the United States space agency said the telescope may have enough fuel for five additional years, given that the telescope is designed to be refuelled. If a robotic tanker becomes available in the coming decade, that could extend the Roman Telescope's life.

Mashable's Best: E-readers, robovacs, laptops, earbuds, smart home and more Look Up Say More Switch Off Creator Playbook Mashable Voices Trending Now Mashable Selects Safety Net Versus Gift Ideas For Everyone On Your List In My Bag All Series NASA's Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope launches in historic moment No screen on Earth is large enough to show what it sees. Elisha Sauers writes about space for Mashable, taking deep dives into NASA's moon and Mars missions, chatting up astronauts and history-making discoverers, and jetting above the clouds . Through 17 years of reporting, she's covered a variety of topics, including health, business, and government, with a penchant for public records requests. She previously worked for in Norfolk, Virginia, and in Annapolis, Maryland. Her work has earned numerous state awards, including the Virginia Press Association's top honor, Best in Show, and national recognition for narrative storytelling.

Roman telescope's data deluge will change who gets to do big astronomy "Roman's data are so large that it really is going to take a village." Elisha Sauers writes about space for Mashable, taking deep dives into NASA's moon and Mars missions, chatting up astronauts and history-making discoverers, and jetting above the clouds. Through 17 years of reporting, she's covered a variety of topics, including health, business, and government, with a penchant for public records requests. She previously worked for The Virginian-Pilot in Norfolk, Virginia, and The Capital in Annapolis, Maryland. Her work has earned numerous state awards, including the Virginia Press Association's top honor, Best in Show, and national recognition for narrative storytelling.

Mashable's Best: E-readers, robovacs, laptops, earbuds, smart home and more Look Up Say More Mashable Selects Mashable Voices Safety Net Creator Hub Versus Gift Ideas For Everyone On Your List Switch Off Trending Now In My Bag All Series NASA's Roman telescope is built to find what Hubble and Webb miss Elisha Sauers writes about space for Mashable, taking deep dives into NASA's moon and Mars missions, chatting up astronauts and history-making discoverers, and jetting above the clouds . Through 17 years of reporting, she's covered a variety of topics, including health, business, and government, with a penchant for public records requests. She previously worked for in Norfolk, Virginia, and in Annapolis, Maryland. Her work has earned numerous state awards, including the Virginia Press Association's top honor, Best in Show, and national recognition for narrative storytelling. For each year she has covered space, Sauers has won National Headliner Awards, including first place for her Sex in Space series.