Do yourself a favor and spend a few minutes looking over this slideshow from msnbc.com.  It’s all of the best space photos from the past month, including the Space Shuttle Atlantis liftoff, never-before-seen images of Mercury, and more. Enjoy!

Also, there’s word that NASA may have to delay the next shuttle launch. It was planned for June 13, but worries over the weather may put those plans on hold. The next opportunity won’t come around until mid-July, so here’s hoping that the skies clear over Cape Canaveral, and soon.

President Obama has chosen former astronaut Charles Bolden to be the new top administrator at NASA. If chosen, Bolden would be the first African-American space chief in U.S. history. His story and his list of accomplishments are very impressive.

In a long and distinguished career, the one-time Navy pilot has logged more than 680 hours in space, including some of the most high-profile missions in recent history. He was aboard the flight that originally deployed the Hubble Space Telescope in 1990, and was part of the first American shuttle mission to include a Russian crew member. And all of this after being born in a place and time that didn’t allow black children the same rights as their white peers. With his own hard work and commitment — not to mention his big brain! — Charles Bolden has come a long way to a very cool job.

Fresh off its successful mission to repair and upgrade the Hubble Space Telescope last week, the shuttle Atlantis had to cancel its second homecoming attempt on Saturday because of bad weather in Florida. The seven crew members on board Atlantis will have to wait at least one more day before making it back safely to Earth, but they can’t afford to wait too long — they only have enough fuel and supplies to last until Monday.

If the weather in Florida continues to be a problem, there is a backup plan: the shuttle could re-enter and land at Edwards Air Force Base in California’s Mojave desert. But diverting to California is definitely a last resort. Why? Because it would cost NASA an extra $1 Million to get the shuttle back to its home at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida!

Have you been following the work being done on the Hubble Space Telescope? In case you missed it, a crew of astronauts aboard the space shuttle Atlantis spent the past week making repairs and installing two new instruments to the world’s most famous telescope, 350 miles above Earth!

The entire project was more than two years in the making. Check out this link to see some cool photos and video, and to learn everything you need to know about the Hubble. You can also find some great stuff on NASA’s website, and on NASA TV — which quite a few cable providers carry (you may have it and not even know it).

And finally, here’s a great 5-minute video about the Hubble Space Telescope that is well worth your time. Enjoy!