Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter gets an upgrade to capture new perspectives of the moon
Sunday, 14 February 2021 13:23
Eleven years into its mission, the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) is starting to show its age, but a recent software update promises to give the spacecraft a new lease on life. As NASA's eye in the sky over the moon, the LRO has been responsible for some of the best Lunar observations since the days of Apollo. This new upgrade will allow that legacy to continue.
Launched in June 2009, the LRO quickly succeeded in mapping over 98% of the moon's surface at a resolution of 100 meters per pixel. The orbiter is also famous for taking incredible high-resolution images of the Apollo landing sites, in which landers, rovers, tire tracks and astronaut footprints are clearly visible.
In 2016, the LRO found evidence that the moon is geologically active as a result of tidal forces from the Earth, and also because the moon is shrinking as its core cools.
Image: At the rim of a crater
Sunday, 14 February 2021 13:04
This image features the southeast wall of a small crater located a few hundred kilometers to the north of the giant Hellas impact basin on Mars. The complete crater itself is about 12 km in diameter; this image shows a 5 x 10 km area.
The Color and Stereo Surface Imaging System (CaSSIS) onboard the ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter took the image on 19 October 2020.
When viewed with CaSSIS' color filters, the image shows exceptional diversity in color. This diversity is related to the presence of various minerals that reflect light differently at different wavelengths. The light-toned deposits highlight the bedrock exposures of the area, which probably contain ancient clay-rich minerals that would have formed in the presence of water. Also visible are wind-blown sandy deposits that form ripples on the floor of the crater. Their distinctive tan color implies that they contain iron-oxide minerals.
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Comet or asteroid: What killed the dinosaurs and where did it come from?
Sunday, 14 February 2021 10:00
It forever changed history when it crashed into Earth about 66 million years ago.
The Chicxulub impactor, as it's known, left behind a crater off the coast of Mexico that spans 93 miles and runs 12 miles deep. Its devastating impact brought the reign of the dinosaurs to an abrupt and calamitous end by triggering their sudden mass extinction, along with the end of almost three-quarters of the plant and animal species living on Earth.
The enduring puzzle: Where did the asteroid or comet originate, and how did it come to strike Earth? Now, a pair of researchers at the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian believe they have the answer.
In a study published today in Nature's Scientific Reports, Harvard University astrophysics undergraduate student Amir Siraj and astronomer Avi Loeb put forth a new theory that could explain the origin and journey of this catastrophic object.
Intelsat reveals plan to reorganize and trim debt
Sunday, 14 February 2021 01:57
SAN FRANCISCO – Intelsat SA announced a reorganization plan Feb. 12 to reduce the Luxembourg-based communications satellite fleet operator’s debt from nearly $15 billion to $7 billion.
Creditors responsible for approximately $3.8 billion of Intelsat’s debt have approved Intelsat’s plan and the company is seeking approval from additional creditors, according to a Plan of Reorganization filed Feb.
SpaceX plans to boost Starlink network with launch
Sunday, 14 February 2021 01:08
SpaceX plans to launch 60 more of its Starlink communications satellites from Florida on Sunday night as the company expands sales of the broadband internet service those satellites provide.
Liftoff on a Falcon 9 rocket is scheduled for 11:20 p.m. EST, but the U.S. Space Force forecasts a 60% chance that storm clouds or a threat of lightning that could cause a postponement.
Elon UAE's 'Hope' probe sends home first image of Mars
Saturday, 13 February 2021 13:56
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 Space Nuclear Propulsion Technologies central to future of Mars Exploration
Saturday, 13 February 2021 13:56
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 NASA assigns astronauts to next SpaceX Crew-4 mission to ISS
Saturday, 13 February 2021 13:56
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 Ball Aerospace to integrate and test "sailcraft" for NASA solar propulsion demonstration
Saturday, 13 February 2021 13:56
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 Origami-inspired antenna technology for use in small satellites
Saturday, 13 February 2021 13:56
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 Sensors prepare to collect data as Perseverance enters Martian atmosphere
Saturday, 13 February 2021 13:56
Nearly six-and-a-half months and 300 million miles since launch, NASA's Perseverance rover will land on Mars Feb. 18, 2021, to begin its robotic exploration of the Red Planet. But before Perseverance touches down on the surface of Mars, it has to achieve a successful entry, descent, and landing (EDL).
Onboard the rover's protective aeroshell is the Mars Entry, Descent, and Landing Instrume A new way of forming planets
Saturday, 13 February 2021 13:56
In the last 25 years, scientists have discovered over 4000 planets beyond the borders of our solar system. From relatively small rock and water worlds to blisteringly hot gas giants, the planets display a remarkable variety. This variety is not unexpected. The sophisticated computer models, with which scientists study the formation of planets, also spawn very different planets. What the models h Lasers reveal the secret interior of rocky exoplanets
Saturday, 13 February 2021 13:56
Advances in astronomical observations have resulted in the discovery of an extraordinary number of extrasolar planets, some of which are believed to have a rocky composition similar to Earth. Learning more about their interior structure could provide important clues about their potential habitability.
Led by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), a team of researchers aims to unloc Scientists develop new, faster method for seeking out dark matter
Saturday, 13 February 2021 13:56
For nearly a century, scientists have worked to unravel the mystery of dark matter - an elusive substance that spreads through the universe and likely makes up much of its mass, but has so far proven impossible to detect in experiments. Now, a team of researchers have used an innovative technique called "quantum squeezing" to dramatically speed up the search for one candidate for dark matter in Hubble uncovers concentration of small black holes
Saturday, 13 February 2021 13:56
Globular clusters are extremely dense stellar systems, in which stars are packed closely together. They are also typically very old - the globular cluster that is the focus of this study, NGC 6397, is almost as old as the Universe itself. It resides 7800 light-years away, making it one of the closest globular clusters to Earth. Because of its very dense nucleus, it is known as a core-collapsed c