Here’s what you’ll learn when you read this story: While chemical rockets penned the opening pages of the story of human spaceflight, countries around the world are eager to start a new chapter: ...

For more than half a century, spaceflight has meant towering chemical rockets, disposable stages and cramped capsules perched on top. The approach has worked spectacularly for reaching orbit and the ...

A growing body of peer-reviewed research shows that rocket launches and satellite reentries are depositing pollutants directly into the stratosphere, where they threaten to slow the recovery of ...

Most space missions rely on chemical rockets for propulsion. Rockets must carry fuel, which increases spacecraft mass and limits their speed and travel distance. For decades, researchers have explored ...