NASA and the Kennedy Space Center in Florida have welcomed the two astronauts who, next Wednesday, are scheduled to head to space, becoming the first humans to do so from U.S. soil in nine years.  NASA test pilots Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken arrived from their home base in Houston aboard one of the space agency’s jets Wednesday. They will also make history as the first astronauts to go into space in a privately-funded spacecraft. The two are scheduled to blast off atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, bound for the International Space Station. Hurley was a crew member on the final shuttle flight launched from the space center July 4, …

Healthcare workers at British hospitals will be the first participants in a global study testing the anti-malarial drugs chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine to see if they can be used to treat or prevent COVID-19. The University of Oxford-led study, kicking off Thursday, will test over 40,0000 frontline health workers in Europe, Africa, Asia and South America, testing at 25 sites in Britain alone, according to Reuters. All healthcare workers who have not contracted COVID-19 are eligible to participate in the “COPCOV” study. Workers in Britain will be administered either hydroxychloroquine or a placebo …

How should I clean and store my face mask?   Cloth face masks worn during the coronavirus pandemic should be washed regularly, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.   Public health experts recommend wearing a mask made from cotton fabric, such as T-shirts, or scarves and bandannas, when you are outside and unable to maintain social distancing from others. The covering should be washed daily after use, says Penni Watts, an assistant professor at the University of Alabama at Birmingham’s School of Nursing.   It is …

Health investigator Mackenzie Bray smiles and chuckles as she chats by phone with a retired Utah man who just tested positive for the coronavirus.  She’s trying to keep the mood light because she needs to find out where he’s been and who he’s been around for the past seven days. She gently peppers him with questions, including where he and his wife stopped to buy flowers on a visit to a cemetery. She encourages him to go through his bank statement to see if it reminds him of any store …

Russia continues to pose “serious” and “growing” threats to U.S. interests in space, according to the top military officer for space defense. “They’re real, they’re serious and they’re concerning,” Gen. John Raymond, chief of the newly established U.S. Space Force and head of U.S. Space Command, told reporters Wednesday. “Our advantage has been diminished, and that’s why the establishment of the Space Force in the Aerospace Command is so important — to allow us to move fast with agility of effort, reducing costs to stay ahead of that growing threat,” he added. The realm of space is essential to everyday activities from …