Copernical Team
Why the Sun's composition varies
About 17 years ago, J. Martin Laming, an astrophysicist at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, theorized why the chemical composition of the Sun's tenuous outermost layer differs from that lower down. His theory has recently been validated by combined observations of the Sun's magnetic waves from the Earth and from space. His most recent scientific journal article describes how these magne
Three elder sisters of the Sun with planets
An international team led by Prof. dr habil. Andrzej Niedzielski, an astronomer from the Nicolaus Copernicus University in Torun (Poland), has discovered yet another three extrasolar planets. These planets revolve around the stars that can be called elder sisters of our Sun. You can read about the astronomers' success in Astronomy and Astrophysics. The prestigious European journal will pub
NASA, Navy test diving technology that could be used on the moon
The Navy teamed up with NASA astronauts and engineers last week to test a technology that allows divers to work more efficiently underwater and could be used the next time astronauts return to the moon. Divers from the Naval Sea Systems Command's Supervisor of Salvage and Diving joined the NASA team at the Sonny Carter Training Facility in Houston between Feb. 24 and 26 to test the Navy
Lockheed Martin And NEC Put AI To Work On Programs Like NASA's Artemis Mission
Lockheed Martin and NEC Corporation have signed a joint collaboration agreement to extend their partnership utilizing NEC's System Invariant Analysis Technology (SIAT). The companies are also finalizing a licensing agreement with a multi-year option. "The power of AI is leveraged across our entire enterprise, and with a trusted partner like NEC, we gain the resources to expand its abilitie
Musk, Maezawa say moon mission is on track for 2023
SpaceX will fly its deep-space rocket Starship in orbit "many, many times before 2023" and will take 12 people around the moon that year, the company's founder and CEO Elon Musk announced on Tuesday. "It will be safe enough for human transport by 2023 - it's looking very promising," Musk said in a video announcement with Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa. Maezawa and Musk fles
New design for Russian super-heavy methane-powered launch vehicle completed
The new design of a Russian carrier rocket powered by liquefied natural gas (methane) has been put together, a space industry source told Sputnik. "It is planned to create a super-heavy launch vehicle ... [with] six side blocks around the central one - all with the RD-182 engine [operating on methane], and the upper stage using the RD-0169 [engine]", the source said. The Russian SRC
Rocket Lab plans new Neutron rocket, intends to go public
California-based Rocket Lab, which has sent rockets into space 17 times using its small Electron vehicle, plans to launch a much bigger rocket called Neutron by 2024. As part of Rocket Lab's effort to raise funds for Neutron, it plans a public listing on the Nasdaq stock exchange by the end of June. Rocket Lab is confident it will succeed, but humble enough to adapt and offer new products
Fly me to the Moon: Japan billionaire offers space seats
It's the sort of chance that comes along just once in a blue Moon: a Japanese billionaire is throwing open a private lunar expedition to eight people from around the world. Yusaku Maezawa, an online fashion tycoon, was announced in 2018 as the first man to book a spot aboard the lunar spaceship being developed by SpaceX. Maezawa, who paid an undisclosed sum for the trip expected to launc
NASA's James Webb Space Telescope completes final functional tests to prepare for launch
February marked significant progress for NASA's James Webb Space Telescope, which completed its final functional performance tests at Northrop Grumman in Redondo Beach, California. Testing teams successfully completed two important milestones that confirmed the observatory's internal electronics are all functioning as intended, and that the spacecraft and its four scientific instruments can send and receive data properly through the same network they will use in space. These milestones move Webb closer to being ready to launch in October.
These tests are known as the comprehensive systems test, which took place at Northrop Grumman, and the ground segment test, which took place in collaboration with the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore.
Cristofoready
Italian ESA astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti poses in the Cupola module of the International Space Station with two 100-day patches to mark her 200th day in space. She is now set to return to her ‘home away from home’ for even more days in space.
Samantha first flew to the International Space Station on a Soyuz spacecraft in 2014 for a mission known as ‘Futura’. Her second flight follows the second missions of her fellow 2009 astronaut classmates Alexander Gerst in 2018, Luca Parmitano in 2019 and Thomas Pesquet in 2021. It could also see a direct on-Station handover with Matthias