Nasa picks three in space contest
Nasa has chosen three front runners among proposals for the next space mission in its New Frontiers programme.(BBC News)

Russia plans to divert asteroid that will pass near Earth in 2030s
The Russian space agency has said it will hammer out plans to divert an asteroid that will pass near the Earth in 20 years' time.(BBC News)

NASA Extends Chandra Science and Operations Support Contract
NASA has extended a contract with the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory in Cambridge, Mass., to provide science and operational support for the Chandra X-ray Observatory, a powerful tool used to better understand the structure and evolution of the universe.(NASA)

NASA's Mars Rover Has Uncertain Future as Sixth Anniversary Nears
Mars rover Spirit will mark six years of unprecedented science exploration and inspiration for the American public on Sunday.(NASA)

Winter High School Alumnus in Orbit on Space Station Will Talk with Wisconsin Students, State Representative
Wisconsin Rep. Mary Williams will attend a discussion Jan. 6, 2010, among astronauts orbiting 220 miles above Earth and students from two Wisconsin schools.(NASA)

NASA Chooses Three Finalists for Future Space Science Mission to Venus, an Asteroid or the Moon
NASA has selected three proposals as candidates for the agency's next space venture to another celestial body in our solar system.(NASA)

Crew Lifts Off From Kazakhstan to Begin Science and Construction Work Aboard the International Space Station
NASA astronaut T.J. Creamer, Russian cosmonaut Oleg Kotov and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Soichi Noguchi safely launched aboard a Soyuz spacecraft to the International Space Station on Sunday.(NASA)

NASA Flight Tests Unique Jumbo Jet; Plane's Airborne Telescope Will Be Used to Unlock Secrets of the Cosmos
A NASA jumbo jet that will help scientists unlock the origins of the universe with infrared observations reached a milestone Friday when doors covering the plane’s telescope were fully opened in flight.(NASA)

NASA and Maryland Researcher Recognized for Data that Provides Clues to Earth's Changing Climate, Forests, and Crops
NASA and the U.S. Department of the Interior presented the William T. Pecora Award to the Clouds and the Earth's Radiant Energy System, or CERES, team and to Forrest Hall, senior research scientist at the University of Maryland Baltimore County.(NASA)

Esa satellite senses Earth's pull
Europe's Goce satellite returns remarkable new data on the way the pull of gravity varies across the Earth.(BBC News)