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Ash plume moving over Greece

Aeolus enhances volcanic ash forecasts for aviation safety

Jiuquan, China (AFP) May 30, 2023
China sent three astronauts to its Tiangong space station on Tuesday, putting a civilian into orbit for the first time as it pursues plans to send a crewed mission to the Moon by the end of the decade. The world's second-largest economy has invested billions of dollars in its military-run space programme in a push to catch up with the United States and Russia. The Shenzhou-16 crew took o
Juice deployments complete: final form for Jupiter
Juice comes to life (artist’s impression). Credit: ESA (acknowledgement: ATG Medialab)

Flight controllers at ESA's mission control center in Germany have been busy this week, working with instrument teams on the final deployments to prepare ESA's Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (Juice) for exploring Jupiter.

It has been six weeks since Juice began its journey, and in that time the Flight Control Team have deployed all the , antennas, probes and booms that were tucked away safely during launch. The last step has been the swinging out and locking into place of the probes and antennas that make up Juice's Radio & Plasma Wave Investigation (RPWI).

"It's been an exhausting but very exciting six weeks," says Angela Dietz, deputy spacecraft operations manager for the mission. "We have faced and overcome various challenges to get Juice into the right shape for getting the best science out of its trip to Jupiter."

We've had regular snapshots of the entire deployment process thanks to Juice's two onboard monitoring cameras, each with a different field of view.

rocket launch
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

After a week of stormy weather delays, SpaceX waited just a bit longer but managed an early Saturday liftoff of a satellite to knock out the Space Coast's 26th launch of the year.

A Falcon 9 carrying the Arabsat BADR-8 telecommunications satellite headed for let the winds die down from the opening of the launch window late Friday, but managed to blast off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station's Space Launch Complex 40 at 12:30 a.m. a little over an hour later.

It was the fourth night launch for SpaceX this month with three previous successful Starlink missions from Cape Canaveral lighting up the sky in the wee hours.

The first-stage booster made its 14th flight with a recovery on SpaceX's droneship Just Read the Instructions down range in the Atlantic Ocean. It was the 195th time the company has recovered a booster from its rockets.

This was the second launch SpaceX has done for Arabsat following what was the first Falcon Heavy launch with a customer in 2019. SpaceX has a third launch contracted for what will be the first of Arabsat's seventh-generation satellites.

An artist conception of the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS), post-2030.

China’s human spaceflight agency has stated its goal to land astronauts on the moon before the end of the decade.

China plans to land astronauts on moon before 2030, another step in what looks like a new space race
Chinese astronauts for the upcoming Shenzhou-16 mission, from left, Gui Haichao, Jing Haipeng, and Zhu Yangzhu wave as they stand behind glass during a meeting with the press at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China on Monday, May 29, 2023.
China plans to land astronauts on moon before 2030, another step in what looks like a new space race
Chinese astronauts for the upcoming Shenzhou-16 mission, from left, Gui Haichao, Jing Haipeng, and Zhu Yangzhu wave as they stand behind glass during a meeting with the press at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China on Monday, May 29, 2023.
Jiuquan, China (AFP) May 29, 2023
China will send its first civilian astronaut into space as part of a crewed mission to the Tiangong space station on Tuesday as it pursues its ambitious plans for a manned lunar landing by 2030. The world's second-largest economy has invested billions of dollars in its military-run space programme, trying to catch up with the United States and Russia after years of belatedly matching their m
Beijing, China (SPX) May 29, 2023
The Shenzhou XVI spacecraft, transporting three Chinese astronauts to the Tiangong space station, is slated to launch on Tuesday morning, the China Manned Space Agency has announced. Marking the inaugural mission for China's third generation of astronauts, this event will also represent the first occasion a Chinese civilian ventures beyond Earth's atmosphere. Speaking at a news confe
Jiuquan, China (AFP) May 29, 2023
China will send its first civilian astronaut into space as part of a crewed mission to the Tiangong space station on Tuesday, the country's Manned Space Agency said. "Payload expert Gui Haichao is a professor at Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics," China Manned Space Agency Spokesperson Lin Xiqiang told reporters Monday. Until now, all Chinese astronauts sent into space h
Arlington TX (SPX) May 25, 2023
Today, large commercial jets fly around 580 mph. The Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird introduced in 1966 is the fastest supersonic jet vehicle in the world, reaching speeds of more than 2,200 mph, nearly four times faster than a commercial jet. The fastest rocket-powered hypersonic vehicle developed in the late 1960s carrying a human has been the North American X-15, reaching a top speed of 4,520
Cleveland OH (SPX) May 25, 2023
NASA has made significant progress toward its goal of creating a more fuel-efficient jet engine core for next-generation sustainable commercial aircraft. In just a year and a half since it began, the Hybrid Thermally Efficient Core (HyTEC) project already is moving forward into the advanced testing required before conducting an engine core demonstration with industry partners. "The first s
Boulder CO (SPX) May 25, 2023
China's newest hypersonic missile, the DF-27, can fly as far as Hawaii, penetrate U.S. missile defenses and pose a particular threat to U.S. aircraft carriers, according to news reports of an assessment from the Pentagon. Chinese researchers claimed in a May 2023 research journal report that the country's hypersonic missiles could destroy a U.S. carrier group "with certainty." This capabil
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