NASA's Lucy spacecraft will soon swoop past a small asteroid. It will be the second asteroid encounter for Lucy, launched in 2021 on a quest that will take it to 11 space rocks. Its ultimate destination is the unexplored swarms of asteroids out near Jupiter. NASA considers Sunday's flyby a dress rehearsal for 2027 when Lucy reaches its first so-called Trojan asteroid near Jupiter. Looking on from Mission Control in Colorado will be paleontologist Donald Johanson, who discovered the Lucy fossil 50 years ago. The asteroid is named for him.

A NASA spacecraft will make its second close brush with the sun. The Parker Solar Probe made its record-breaking first pass within 3.8 million miles of the scorching sun in December, flying closer than any object sent before. Parker will attempt the journey again on Saturday. Scientists hope the data from Parker will help them better understand the sun's outer atmosphere and what drives the solar wind. Parker was launched in 2018 to get a close-up look at the sun and is the fastest spacecraft built by humans.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Landing a spacecraft on the moon has long been a series of hits and misses.

A privately owned lunar lander has touched down on the moon. But flight controllers in Texas cannot confirm its condition or whether it's even upright near the south pole. The last time Intuitive Machines landed a spacecraft on the moon, a year ago, it ended up sideways. The company's newest Athena lander dropped out of lunar orbit as planned Thursday, carrying an ice drill, a drone and two rovers for NASA and others. The descent appeared to go well. But it took a while for Mission Control to confirm touchdown. More than an hour after landing, the Houston company had yet to provide an update.

A NASA rover on Mars is tackling a new challenge and climbing to the rim of a crater. The rover called Perseverance started the steep climb Tuesday. It has spent the last 3 1/2 years exploring the bottom of the crater where it landed in 2021. So far, it has collected 22 rock core samples and will pick up more from the top of the crater. The samples may help scientists piece together what the red planet's climate looked like billions of years ago. The rover will scale rocky terrain and slopes of up to 23 degrees on the monthslong journey.