Mike Wall
Michael Wall is a Senior Space Writer with Space.com and joined the team in 2010. He primarily covers exoplanets, spaceflight and military space, but has been known to dabble in the space art beat. His book about the search for alien life, "Out There," was published on Nov. 13, 2018. Before becoming a science writer, Michael worked as a herpetologist and wildlife biologist. He has a Ph.D. in evolutionary biology from the University of Sydney, Australia, a bachelor's degree from the University of Arizona, and a graduate certificate in science writing from the University of California, Santa Cruz. To find out what his latest project is, you can follow Michael on Twitter.
Latest articles by Mike Wall

What's next for the 2 private landers SpaceX just launched toward the moon?
By Mike Wall published
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket just launched lunar landers built by Firefly Aerospace and Tokyo-based company ispace. What's next for the two craft?

SpaceX launching Starship Flight 7 on Jan. 16: Watch it live
By Mike Wall published
SpaceX is set to launch the seventh test flight of its Starship megarocket on Thursday (Jan. 16) at 5 p.m. EST (2200 GMT), and you can watch the action live.

SpaceX launches 131 satellites on Transporter 12 rideshare mission (video)
By Mike Wall last updated
SpaceX launched 131 satellites to orbit today (Jan. 14) from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, on a rideshare mission called Transporter 12.

Watch SpaceX launch 2 private moon landers on a single rocket early Jan. 15
By Mike Wall published
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch moon landers built by Firefly Aerospace and the Japanese company ispace early Wednesday (Jan. 15), and you can watch it live.

SpaceX launches 21 Starlink satellites from Florida, lands booster for 15th time (video)
By Mike Wall last updated
SpaceX launched 21 more of its Starlink internet satellites from Florida's Space Coast this morning (Jan. 13).

Blue Origin scrubs 1st New Glenn rocket launch due to technical issue
By Mike Wall published
Blue Origin called off the debut launch of its powerful New Glenn rocket this morning (Jan. 13) due to a technical issue.

Watch Blue Origin launch its 1st New Glenn rocket early Jan. 16 in a free livestream
By Mike Wall last updated
Blue Origin plans to launch the debut mission of its powerful New Glenn rocket early Thursday morning (Jan. 16), and you can watch the action live.

NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab still 'untouched' by raging LA fires
By Mike Wall published
The powerful Eaton fire has not reached the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, NASA's lead center for robotic planetary exploration.

SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches Starlink satellites on record-breaking 25th flight (video, photos)
By Mike Wall last updated
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched 21 Starlink satellites from Florida today (Jan. 10). It was the 25th mission for the rocket's first stage, a new record.

SpaceX launches 7th batch of next-gen spy satellites for US government (video, photos)
By Mike Wall last updated
SpaceX launched the seventh batch of "proliferated architecture" spy satellites for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office tonight (Jan. 9).

SpaceX rolls Starship out to pad ahead of Flight 7 test launch (photos)
By Mike Wall published
SpaceX rolled the upper stage of its Starship megarocket out to the pad this morning (Jan. 9) ahead of its planned Jan. 13 test flight.

SpaceX to launch Starship megarocket's Flight 7 test mission on Jan. 13
By Mike Wall published
SpaceX aims to launch Starship Flight 7 on Monday (Jan. 13), an ambitious test that will feature an attempted launch-tower catch of the first-stage booster.

NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab closed due to raging LA fires
By Mike Wall published
The approaching Eaton wildfire has forced the closure of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, NASA's lead center for robotic planetary exploration.

NASA won't decide on overhaul for Mars Sample Return mission until mid-2026
By Mike Wall published
NASA is considering two ways to get its precious Mars samples back to Earth but won't pick a winner for another 18 months or so.

ISS astronaut captures green auroras dancing over city lights (video)
By Mike Wall published
NASA astronaut Don Pettit continues to give us great views of Earth from the ISS, this time beaming home video of green auroras shimmering over bright city lights.

Blue Origin to launch its 1st New Glenn rocket on Jan. 10
By Mike Wall published
Blue Origin plans to launch its New Glenn heavy-lift rocket for the first time ever in the wee hours of Friday morning (Jan. 10).

Where and when to see the northern lights in 2025
By Daisy Dobrijevic last updated
Find out where and when to see the northern lights (aurora borealis) throughout Europe and North America in our helpful guide.

Will 2025 be the year of Starship? SpaceX's megarocket is growing up.
By Mike Wall published
SpaceX could make serious strides with its Starship vehicle in 2025, perhaps launching 25 test flights of the fully reusable megarocket.

SpaceX's big year: The new records and feats Elon Musk's space company achieved in 2024
By Mike Wall published
SpaceX launched more than 130 missions this year and made significant progress with its new Starship vehicle, the biggest and most powerful rocket ever built.

SpaceX launches 21 Starlink internet satellites from Florida, lands rocket at sea (video, photos)
By Mike Wall published
SpaceX launched 21 Starlink internet satellites from Florida's Space Coast early Monday morning (Dec. 23) and landed the returning rocket on a ship at sea.

Rocket Lab launches private Earth-imaging satellite to orbit on its final flight of 2024 (video)
By Mike Wall last updated
Rocket Lab launched a radar satellite for the Earth-observation company Synspective to orbit today (Dec. 21) on its final mission of the year.

SpaceX launches 30 satellites on Bandwagon-2 rideshare mission (video)
By Mike Wall last updated
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying 30 payloads as part of the Bandwagon-2 mission launches from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024.

Abort! SpaceX calls off launch of 'MicroGEO' satellites at last second (video)
By Mike Wall last updated
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket ignites each its engines just as an abort is called at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on Saturday, Dec. 20, 2024.
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