A rocket carrying the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft lifts off at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on Thursday. The spacecraft aims to collect samples from the asteroid Bennu.
John Raoux/AP
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The mission aims to circle a hill-sized asteroid for two years, then skim its surface and bring a hearty sample of 4.5 billion-year-old dirt back to Earth.
A U.S. Predator drone sits on the tarmac at the Kandahar military airport in southern Afghanistan in 2010. The U.S. has been using drones more and more frequently since the Sept. 11 attacks. They have been highly effective on the battlefield, but have raised legal and ethical issues.
Massoud Hossaini/AP
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A rocket carrying the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft lifts off at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on Thursday. The spacecraft aims to collect samples from the asteroid Bennu.
John Raoux/AP
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George Takei predicted Star Trek would be too sophisticated to last — but he says he's happy to have been proved wrong.
The Kobal Collection/Paramount Television
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