Space News Update - May 6, In the News Story 1: Court Injunction Blocks Russian Engine Purchase by ULA for US National Security – Win for SpaceX Yields Uncertainty Story 2: Target on Mars Looks Good for NASA Rover Drilling Story 3: Story 3: Private Team Wants to Bring 36-Year-Old NASA Probe Out of Retirement Departments The Night Sky ISS Sighting Opportunities Space Calendar NASA-TV Highlights Food for Thought Space Image of the Week

Court Injunction Blocks Russian Engine Purchase by ULA for US National Security – Win for SpaceX Yields Uncertainty

Target on Mars Looks Good for NASA Rover Drilling

Private Team Wants to Bring 36-Year- Old NASA Probe Out of Retirement

The Night Sky Sky & Telescope Tuesday, May 6  First-quarter Moon (exactly so at 11:15 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time). The Moon shines in Cancer above the dim head of Hydra. Well to the Moon's upper left is Regulus, forming the bottom of the Sickle of Leo. Wednesday, May 7  Just above the Moon at nightfall are Regulus and the Sickle of Leo. Thursday, May 8  Sometime late this evening (roughly 10 p.m. depending on where you live), bright Capella declining in the northwest will be exactly as high as bright Vega climbing in the northeast. How accurately can you time their altitude balance? Each day it will come four minutes earlier. Friday, May 9  The waxing gibbous Moon forms a curving line tonight with Mars to its left and Spica to Mars's lower left. Saturday, May 10  Bright Mars shines left of the Moon. Although they look rather close together, Mars is 260 times as far away — and twice as big in diameter.

ISS Sighting Opportunities Sighting information for other cities can be found at NASA’s Satellite Sighting InformationSatellite Sighting Information ISS For Denver : No Opportunities until Wednesday, May 14 th.

NASA-TV Highlights (all times Eastern Time Zone) Watch NASA TV online by going to the NASA websiteNASA website MAVEN Launch November 18, 2013 NASA MAVEN Launch November 18, 2013 NASA MAVEN Launch November 18, 2013 NASA May 6, Tuesday 11:55 a.m. - ISS Expedition 39 In-Flight Educational Event with Boise State University, ID - JSC (All Channels) May 7, Wednesday 10 a.m. - Video File of the ISS Expedition 40/41 Qualification Training Simulation Runs at Star City, Russia - JSC (All Channels) 12 p.m. - ISS Mission Control On-Console Interview with the Digital Learning Network - JSC (All Channels) May 8, Thursday 12:55 p.m. - ISS Expedition 39 In-Flight Interview with Fox Business News – JSC (All Channels) 2 p.m. - Video File of the ISS Expedition 40/41 Crew News Conference at Star City, Russia and Ceremonial Visit to Red Square in Moscow- JSC (All Channels) May 9, Friday 5:30 a.m. - Video B-roll Feed of Expedition 40/41 NASA Flight Engineer Reid Wiseman of NASA - JSC (All Channels) a.m. - Live Interviews with ISS Expedition 40/41 Flight Engineer Reid Wiseman of NASA from Star City, Russia - JSC (All Channels)

Space Calendar JPL Space Calendar May 06 - Comet 209P/LINEAR Perihelion (0.969 AU) May 06 - Comet 191P/McNaught Perihelion (2.044 AU) May 06 - Comet C/2013 G9 (Tenagra) Closest Approach To Earth (4.661 AU) May 06 - Asteroid 2014 HX164 Near-Earth Flyby (0.003 AU) May 06 - Asteroid 2014 HB177 Near-Earth Flyby (0.003 AU) May 06 - Asteroid 1031 Arctica Closest Approach To Earth (1.948 AU) May 06 - Asteroid 2041 Lancelot Closest Approach To Earth (2.776 AU) May 07 - Quasar 19 (NROL-33) Atlas 5 Launch May 07 - Comet 51P/Harrington At Opposition (2.871 AU) May 07 - Asteroid 2014 HK4 Near-Earth Flyby (0.080 AU) May 07 - Asteroid 2062 Aten Closest Approach To Earth (0.335 AU) May 07 - Asteroid 232 Russia Closest Approach To Earth (1.137 AU) May 07 - Asteroid Jenniskens Closest Approach To Earth (1.170 AU) May 07 - Asteroid Laver Closest Approach To Earth (2.215 AU) May 08 - Asteroid 2014 HT178 Near-Earth Flyby (0.015 AU) May 08 - Asteroid 2014 HE177 Near-Earth Flyby (0.049 AU) May 08 - Asteroid Didymos Closest Approach To Earth (1.983 AU) May 08 - Asteroid Fermilab Closest Approach To Earth (2.329 AU) May 09 - Comet C/2013 P2 (PANSTARRS) At Opposition (2.286 AU) May 09 - Comet P/2013 EW90 (Tenagra) Closest Approach To Earth (3.137 AU) May 09 - Comet C/2014 F2 (Tenagra) At Opposition (4.049 AU) May 09 - Asteroid 2014 JD Near-Earth Flyby (0.020 AU) May 09 - Asteroid 1197 Rhodesia Closest Approach To Earth (1.457 AU) May 09 - Asteroid 3000 Leonardo Closest Approach To Earth (1.685 AU) May 09 - Asteroid Quebec Closest Approach To Earth (2.211 AU)

Food for Thought Hubble Astronomers Use Supernovae to Gauge Power of Cosmic Lenses New Technique Puts Exoplanets on the Scale

Space Image of the Week Aurora Dog over Alaska Image Credit & Copyright: John Chumack