Copernical Team
Origami-inspired antenna technology for use in small satellites
Modern telecommunication systems rely on satellites to relay signals across the globe quickly and reliably, enabling users to send messages across the world in an instant, watch live television, or - more recently - hold conference calls with global partners right from the kitchen table!
Communications satellites use high-frequency radio waves to transmit data, with antennas acting as a tw Ball Aerospace to integrate and test "sailcraft" for NASA solar propulsion demonstration
Ball Aerospace has been selected to support Solar Cruiser, a NASA small satellite technology demonstration on the use of solar photons for propulsion in space. Ball will perform several mission-critical functions, including the integration and test of the satellite bus with the solar sail system that will form the completed "Sailcraft."
"Solar Cruiser will be an important step in the advan NASA assigns astronauts to next SpaceX Crew-4 mission to ISS
NASA has assigned two crew members to launch on the agency's SpaceX Crew-4 mission - the fourth crew rotation flight of the Crew Dragon spacecraft to the International Space Station. NASA astronauts Kjell Lindgren and Bob Hines will serve as spacecraft commander and pilot, respectively, for the Crew-4 mission. Additional crew members will be assigned as mission specialists in the future by the a Space Nuclear Propulsion Technologies central to future of Mars Exploration
Using nuclear propulsion technologies to support a human mission to Mars in 2039 will require NASA to pursue an aggressive and urgent technology development program, says a new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.
NASA should commit within the year to conducting an extensive and objective assessment of the merits and challenges of using different types UAE's 'Hope' probe sends home first image of Mars
The UAE's "Hope" probe sent back its first image of Mars, the national space agency said Sunday, days after the spacecraft successfully entered the Red Planet's orbit.
The picture "captured the largest volcano in the solar system, Olympus Mons, emerging into the early morning sunlight," it said in a statement.
The image was taken from an altitude of 24,700 kilometres (15,300 miles) above InSight is meeting the challenge of winter on dusty Mars
As dust collects on the solar panels and winter comes to Elysium Planitia, the team is following a plan to reduce science operations in order to keep the lander safe.
NASA's InSight lander recently received a mission extension for another two years, giving it time to detect more quakes, dust devils, and other phenomena on the surface of Mars. While the mission team plans to continue collecting data well into 2022, the increasing dustiness of the spacecraft's solar panels and the onset of the Martian winter led to a decision to conserve power and temporarily limit the operation of its instruments.
InSight was designed to be long-lasting: The stationary lander is equipped with solar panels, each spanning 7 feet (2 meters) across. InSight's design was informed by that of the solar-powered Spirit and Opportunity rovers, with the expectation that the panels would gradually reduce their power output as dust settled on them but would have ample output to last through the two-year prime mission (completed in November 2020).
Timing of next Virgin Galactic flight still up in the air
A window is set to open for Virgin Galactic to make another attempt at a rocket-powered flight from New Mexico to the fringe of space, but the company announced Friday it would be holding off on a new effort.
Virgin Galactic said in a social media post that during pre-flight preparations, it was decided more time was needed for technical checks and the team would be working to identify the next opportunity to hit what would be a key milestone as the promise of commercial flights continues to loom.
The last attempt in December was cut short when computer trouble prevented the spaceship's rocket from firing properly. Instead of soaring toward space, the ship and its two pilots were forced to make an immediate landing by gliding back down to the runway at Spaceport America in New Mexico.
Over the past week, preparations for the latest attempt included installing the rocket motor into the spacecraft and checking the operation of a feathering system that slows and stabilizes the craft as it re-enters the atmosphere.
The spacecraft also was secured to the carrier plane that will fly it to a high altitude, where it will be released so it can fire its rocket motor and make the final push to space.
Week in images: 08 - 12 February 2021
Week in images: 08 - 12 February 2021
Discover our week through the lens
China's Mars probe sends back video of Red Planet
China's space agency released video footage from its spacecraft circling Mars on Friday, two days after it successfully entered the planet's orbit in Beijing's latest ambitious space mission.
In the video, published by state broadcaster CCTV, the surface of the planet is seen coming into view out of a pitch black sky against the outside of the Tianwen-1, which entered the orbit of the Red Planet on Wednesday.
White craters are visible on the planet's surface, which fades from white to black through the video as the probe flies over the course of one Martian day, said official news agency Xinhua.
The five-tonne Tianwen-1—which translates as "Questions to Heaven"—includes a Mars orbiter, a lander and a solar-powered rover and launched from southern China last July.
Perseverance will make sure it has a safe landing
To casual observers, landing a rover on Mars can seem kind of like old news, believe it or not, especially after all of NASA's successes. But many are likely not aware of the so-called "Mars Curse." The fact is, many of the spacecraft that attempt to land there fail and crash.
Next to run the gauntlet of the Mars curse is NASA's Perseverance rover. It'll attempt its long-awaited landing at Jezero Crater on February 18. The people at NASA have given the Perseverance rover some finely tuned tools to get it to the Martian surface safely and to beat the Mars curse.
The Perseverance rover is landing at Jezero Crater because NASA thinks they can do the best science there. The mission's goal is to seek signs of ancient life and collect samples for a potential return to Earth. Jezero Crater is an ancient, dried-up paleo-lakebed. It holds both preserved sediments and a delta. According to NASA, the crater is one of the "oldest and most scientifically interesting landscapes Mars has to offer." Scientists think that if there's any fossilized evidence of ancient life, they may find it at Jezero.
