Euclid space mission is set for launch: Here's how it will test alternative theories of gravity
Wednesday, 28 June 2023 17:30
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The European Space Agency's (Esa) Euclid mission will launch into space on a Falcon9 rocket from SpaceX on July 1, or soon after. Many of us who have worked on it will be in Florida to watch the nail-biting event.
The mission is specifically designed to study the dark universe, probing both "dark matter" and "dark energy"—unknown substances thought to make up 95% of the energy density of the universe.
But it will also be able to test some strange, alternative models of gravity—potentially challenging Albert Einstein's great theory of general relativity.
Scientists have known about the existence of dark matter for nearly a century now. It was proposed after astronomers noted that galaxies in clusters had mysteriously high speeds. Such speeds should cause the clusters to evaporate unless there was some extra mass holding them together. As this matter wasn't shining in the same way as the visible galaxies, it was dubbed dark matter.
Gravitational lensing is a new tool to see this dark material. This effect relies on our understanding of general relativity.
Above: Orbital develops energy systems for spacecraft under recent awards
Wednesday, 28 June 2023 17:05 Write a comment
Above: Orbital is developing technology to provide energy for on-orbit servicing, assembly and manufacturing with the support of two recent Small Business Innovation Research awards.
All new ESA photo library for high-resolution images
Wednesday, 28 June 2023 12:45 Write a comment
Our ‘ESA Photolibrary for Professionals’ platform has relaunched with a new modern user interface, additional search features and download options. Register for a user account and you can access the largest selection of high-resolution professional images from ESA.
Startup iRocket wins Space Force contract to demonstrate rocket engine
Wednesday, 28 June 2023 12:04 Write a comment
Innovative Rocket Technologies, known as iRocket, won a U.S. Space Force contract to demonstrate a reusable rocket engine for small launch vehicles.
Ramon.Space raises $26 million from Foxconn and other backers
Wednesday, 28 June 2023 11:00 Write a comment
Ramon.Space has raised $26 million from Ingrasys, a subsidiary of Foxconn Technology Group, the Abu Dhabi-based Strategic Development Fund, and venture capital firms.
Sierra Space describes long-term plans for Dream Chaser and inflatable modules
Wednesday, 28 June 2023 10:31 Write a comment
WASHINGTON — As Sierra Space continues to prepare for the first flight of its Dream Chaser vehicle, it is outlining long-term ambitions for both that vehicle and space station modules.
AST SpaceMobile and Maritime Launch Services Boost Capital with Stock Offerings
Wednesday, 28 June 2023 09:49 Write a comment
In a week of significant fundraising for space companies, AST SpaceMobile, Inc. and Maritime Launch Services Inc. have separately announced capital raising ventures.
AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ: ASTS) disclosed the pricing and upsizing of its previously announced public offering of Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share. The company plans to sell 12,500,000 shares of Class A Four teams win prizes to advance energy technology for moon missions
Wednesday, 28 June 2023 09:49 Write a comment
NASA has selected four teams to advance to the final level of the agency's Watts on the Moon Challenge, which seeks solutions to transmit and store energy on the lunar surface.
NASA is working to establish a permanent human presence on the Moon and beyond. The next major step in this effort will be Artemis II, the first crewed test flight to the Moon since the Apollo program. Long-term exp Virginia Tech leads multi-institution research on polymeric solid fuel combustion
Wednesday, 28 June 2023 09:49 Write a comment
Fascination surrounding spaceflight and rockets is at an all-time high. Sites near launchpads draw crowds of spectators, eager to witness the flash of fire and feel the vibrations as the rumble of the motor becomes a roar. People, squinting and craning their necks to watch the rocket hurtle out of sight, aren't likely thinking about the science behind the propulsion that makes it all possible. Leidos' MACH-TB program successfully completes 1st test launch
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Leidos (NYSE: LDOS), a Fortune 500 technology, engineering and science solutions and service leader, announced its Dynetics team has successfully completed a large-scale test for its MACH-TB program. The Multi-Service Advanced Capability Hypersonic Test Bed (MACH-TB) program is meant to increase the speed of testing for all commercially available hypersonic systems. The program also called for t France tests hypersonic glider for first time
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France has for the first time tested a hypersonic glide vehicle, a warhead that defies interception thanks to its unpredictable trajectory, a source with knowledge of the test said Tuesday.
The speed of HGVs can exceed Mach 5, or 6,000 kilometres per hour (3,730 mph). The technology is being developed or deployed by a small number of countries that includes China, Russia and the United State Advanced space technology enabling 2024 ESCAPADE mission to Mars
Wednesday, 28 June 2023 09:49 Write a comment
Advanced Space, an industry frontrunner in the creation of cutting-edge space technology, is set to make significant strides in deep space and planetary exploration through its collaboration with the University of California Berkeley Space Sciences Laboratory (SSL).
The partnership centers around NASA's forthcoming Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers (ESCAPADE) mission, s Zhurong rover detects extremely weak magnetic fields on surface of Mars' Utopia Basin
Wednesday, 28 June 2023 09:49 Write a comment
A joint research team led by Prof. DU Aimin from the Institute of Geology and Geophysics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (IGGCAS) has found extremely weak magnetic fields during the Zhurong rover's first 1-km traverse on Mars. This indicates no detectable magnetization anomalies below Zhurong's landing site.
The researchers utilized two fluxgate magnetometers aboard the Zhurong rover to Back on Track: Sols 3871-3872
Wednesday, 28 June 2023 09:49 Write a comment
We started planning today with the great news that our drive was successful! This put us in a perfect position for our split touch-and-go plan - lots to see, and no need to worry that we might be on unsteady footing, like we were on Friday.
Our two nearby targets are bedrock blocks: the nodular bedrock 'Lousoi,' which we'll be investigating up close (the 'touching' in the touch-and-go) wit Gravity and dark matter, a bond beyond distances
Wednesday, 28 June 2023 09:49 Write a comment
Isaac Newton formulated his theory of gravity as an action at a distance: a planet instantly feels the influence of another celestial body, no matter the distance between them. This characteristic motivated Einstein to develop the famous theory of general relativity, where gravity becomes a local deformation of spacetime. The principle of locality states that an object is directly influenced onl