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The first satellite ever developed by high school students to make it to space is believed to be orbiting Earth after getting a ride aboard a U.S. military rocket Tuesday night from Wallops Island, Va. Fittingly, perhaps, you can send it a text message.

With 51 percent of machinists voting yes, a new labor pact was approved. It means production of the new 777X widebody jet will be done in the Puget Sound region. But many in the rank-and-file think they gave up too much to keep the jobs in Washington State.

Robots from around the world are competing in a Pentagon-sponsored robot "Olympics" this weekend. The challenge is to build a robot that can do human tasks and even go into disaster zones.

Alice McKennis has a metal plate and 11 screws in her leg after breaking it in 30 places in March. She's had other injuries before that, but she says it gives her an edge over the competition. "To make the Olympics is extremely hard," she says, "so it takes a certain kind of toughness."

This super cold air is usually whirling around the Arctic. But a big piece has plunged further south than normal. One way to think about what's happening: If a spinning ice skater extends her arms, she slows down. Sometimes, she wobbles and falls. The polar vortex has sort of stretched out an arm.

Nelson Mandela will be laid to rest Sunday in his rural homestead of Qunu, which leaves this modest region to cope with the influx of thousands wishing to pay their last respects.

Tuesday's vote was not as close as some expected. Some Republicans joined with Democrats to move the plan forward. The two-year deal avoids any more government shutdowns until at least 2015.

Opportunity, NASA's Mars Rover, landed on Mars on Jan. 24, 2004. It was supposed to be a three-month mission, but 10 years later the rover is still investigating the red planet and sending data and images back to NASA. Jim Bell, an astronomer at Arizona State University, talks with NPR's Rachel Martin about Opportunity's decade on Mars.

To avoid concussions, bypass drug problems and boost ticket sales, maybe the league should start drafting droids.

Mikko Hypponen is a "white hat" hacker in Finland who breaks into security systems to test network safety. Hypponen tells NPR's Guy Raz of the TED Radio Hour that Americans may be protected under NSA reforms, but foreigners like himself aren't.