Cables, tie-wraps and no step!
Friday, 07 October 2022 05:25
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Cables, tie-wraps and no step! Australia seeks to grow plants on moon by 2025
Friday, 07 October 2022 04:55 Write a comment
Australian scientists are trying to grow plants on the moon by 2025 in a new mission unveiled Friday that they said could help pave the way for a future colony.
Plant biologist Brett Williams, from the Queensland University of Technology, said seeds would be carried by the Beresheet 2 spacecraft—a private Israeli moon mission.
They would be watered inside the sealed chamber after landing and monitored for signs of germination and growth.
Plants will be chosen based on how well they cope in extreme conditions, and how quickly they germinate, he said.
One likely choice is an Australian "resurrection grass" that can survive without water in a dormant state.
"The project is an early step towards growing plants for food, medicine and oxygen production, which are all crucial to establishing human life on the moon," the researchers said in a statement.
Caitlin Byrt, an Associate Professor from the Australian National University in Canberra, said the research was also relevant to food security fears driven by climate change.
"If you can create a system for growing plants on the moon, then you can create a system for growing food in some of the most challenging environments on Earth," Byrt said in a statement.
SpaceX delivers Russian, Native American women to station
Friday, 07 October 2022 04:49 Write a comment
A Russian cosmonaut who caught a U.S. lift to the International Space Station arrived at her new home Thursday for a five-month stay, accompanied by a Japanese astronaut and two from NASA, including the first Native American woman in space.
The SpaceX capsule pulled up to the station a day after launching into orbit.
AFRL developing ‘cyber range’ for space operators
Thursday, 06 October 2022 20:54 Write a comment
AFRL is developing a cyber training range where Space Force operators could practice defending satellites using actual spacecraft in orbit
The post AFRL developing ‘cyber range’ for space operators appeared first on SpaceNews.
Virgin Orbit awaiting license for first UK launch
Thursday, 06 October 2022 20:21 Write a comment
Virgin Orbit says it is technically ready for its next LauncherOne mission, and the first orbital launch from the United Kingdom, but is still waiting on a launch license from the British government.
India on track for OneWeb launch in second half of October
Thursday, 06 October 2022 19:04 Write a comment
India expects to conduct the first launch of OneWeb satellites in eight months during the second half of October, Indian space agency ISRO said Oct. 5.
The post India on track for OneWeb launch in second half of October appeared first on SpaceNews.
York Space wins $200 million Space Development Agency contract for 12 satellites
Thursday, 06 October 2022 17:54 Write a comment
York Space won a $200 million contract for the Space Development Agency's Tranche 1 Demonstration and Experimentation System (T1DES) program
The post York Space wins $200 million Space Development Agency contract for 12 satellites appeared first on SpaceNews.
Team develops new tools to help search for life in deep space
Thursday, 06 October 2022 17:24 Write a comment
Are we alone in the universe? An answer to that age-old question has seemed tantalizingly within reach since the discovery of ice-encrusted moons in our solar system with potentially habitable subsurface oceans. But looking for evidence of life in a frigid sea hundreds of millions of miles away poses tremendous challenges.
NASA and SpaceX launch 4 more crew to the space station
Thursday, 06 October 2022 17:08 Write a comment
The SpaceX taxi service from the Space Coast took flight again Wednesday with NASA's Crew-5 mission to the International Space Station.
The four-person crew from NASA, Japan and Russia hitched a ride in the Crew Dragon Endurance spacecraft atop a Falcon 9 rocket that lifted off from KSC's Launch Pad 39-A just after noon.
"That was a smooth ride," said Crew-5 commander and NASA astronaut Nicole Mann. "You've got three rookies that are pretty happy to be floating in space right now and one veteran astronaut who's pretty happy to be back as well."
Once again, SpaceX was able to recover its first-stage booster on recovery ship Just Read the Instructions in the Atlantic while the spacecraft made it to orbit.
Mann is joined by fellow NASA astronaut and pilot Josh Cassada and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina—all three flying for the first time—plus Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Koichi Wakata, who is making his fifth trip to space having flown on several space shuttle missions and one Russian Soyuz spacecraft.
With roughly a 29-hour ride before arriving to the ISS, the crew could be seen clapping hands and throwing fist pumps as a plush Albert Einstein doll floated about the cabin.
UK competition watchdog has concerns about Viasat’s Inmarsat takeover
Thursday, 06 October 2022 15:37 Write a comment
Viasat’s $7.3 billion Inmarsat takeover could lead to more expensive and poorer quality Wi-Fi for plane passengers, the U.K.’s competition watchdog said Oct.
Sierra Space hires former SpaceX executive as CIO
Thursday, 06 October 2022 13:10 Write a comment
Sierra Space has hired a former SpaceX executive as its chief information officer as the company builds up its infrastructure to support work on commercial spacecraft and a space station.
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Ariane 6 takes next step to first flight with upper stage hot fire tests
Thursday, 06 October 2022 12:00 Write a comment
ESA’s flagship Ariane 6 launch vehicle programme has taken a dramatic step towards first flight with the start of a series of hot fire tests of the rocket’s upper stage and its all-new Vinci engine.
Roscosmos official supports continued cooperation with NASA on ISS
Thursday, 06 October 2022 11:33 Write a comment
After a successful launch of a Crew Dragon spacecraft whose crew included a Russian cosmonaut, a Roscosmos official struck a more conciliatory tone about relations with NASA.
The post Roscosmos official supports continued cooperation with NASA on ISS appeared first on SpaceNews.
Report highlights U.S. concerns over China’s space infrastructure in South America
Thursday, 06 October 2022 11:09 Write a comment
The expansion of Chinese ground stations in South America is generating concern regarding Beijing’s intentions in the region and in space, according to a new report.
The post Report highlights U.S.
SpaceX's Crew 5 mission blasts off to ISS with Russian cosmonaut onboard
Thursday, 06 October 2022 10:14 Write a comment
NASA and SpaceX's Crew 5 mission lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida at noon EDT on Wednesday and is on its way to the International Space Station.
The crew, which includes NASA astronauts Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada, Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata and Russian cosmonaut Anna Kikina, are scheduled to work aboard the space station for six months.
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