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ExoMars orbiter images Perseverance landing site

The ESA-Roscosmos Trace Gas Orbiter has spotted NASA’s Mars 2020 Perseverance rover, along with its parachute, heat shield and descent stage, in the Jezero Crater region of Mars.

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Successful engine test brings Australian space launch capability a step closer
Successful rocket engine test. Credit: DefendTex/RMIT

An Australian research consortium has successfully tested a next generation propulsion system that could enable high-speed flight and space launch services.

The team's rotating detonation engine, or RDE, is a major technical achievement and an Australian first.

It was designed by RMIT University engineers and is being developed by a consortium led by DefendTex, with researchers from RMIT, University of Sydney and Universität der Bundeswehr in Germany.

How it works

While conventional rocket engines operate by burning fuel at constant pressure, RDEs produce thrust by rapidly detonating their propellant in a ring-shaped combustor. Once started, the engine is in a self-sustaining cycle of detonation waves that travel around the combustor at supersonic speeds greater than 2.5km a second.

Using this type of combustion has the potential to significantly increase engine efficiency and performance, with applications in rocket propulsion and high-speed airbreathing engines—similar to ramjets.

Benefits over existing engines include better fuel efficiency, simpler flight systems and a more compact engine, allowing for larger payloads and reduced launch costs.

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ExoMars orbiter images Perseverance landing site (labelled) Image: ExoMars orbiter images Perseverance landing site (labelled)
Wednesday, 24 February 2021 15:00

ExoMars orbiter images Perseverance landing site

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ExoMars orbiter images Perseverance landing site Image: ExoMars orbiter images Perseverance landing site
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Artists impression of a secure communications satellite

Disruptive services and innovative features of the next generation of secure satellite communications will be analysed following the signing of a new memorandum of understanding.

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Orlando FL (SPX) Feb 24, 2021
Sometimes big things come in small packages, and the new thin but strong materials the University of Central Florida is helping NASA develop are no exception. These materials, known as thin-ply composites, are as thin as carpenter's measuring tape but strong enough to support satellite payloads, such as solar sails for solar-powered space travel, or serve as supports for large spacecraft.
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Toronto, Canada (SPX) Feb 25, 2021
MDA has announced that it has been awarded a three-year contract with the Government of Canada Department of Fisheries and Oceans and Defence Research and Development Canada to use satellite technology to detect vessels engaging in illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing. The contract will run for a period of three years. The Dark Vessel Detection (DVD) program uses satellite tec
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Bozeman MT (SPX) Feb 25, 2021
Culminating years of work, a small satellite designed and built by Montana State University launched Feb. 20 aboard a cargo resupply rocket bound for the International Space Station. The bread loaf-sized satellite, called by the acronym IT-SPINS, will dock at the space station until later this spring, then be propelled into orbit and commence a more than six-month mission of measuring the
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Chandler AZ (SPX) Feb 25, 2021
As reliance on communication and weather satellites grows and space research expands in scope and mission, new technology is required to help speed spaceflight system design and production. Microchip Technology Inc. has announced the expansion of its SA50-120 power converter family with nine new units based on its Commercial Off-the-Shelf (COTS) technology. This technology provides developers wi
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Reston VA (SPX) Feb 25, 2021
SES Government Solutions (SES GS), a wholly-owned subsidiary of SES, has announced the award of a new portable maritime solution task order against the single-award Blanket Purchase Agreement (BPA) with the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) for Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) low-latency High Throughput Satellite (HTS) services. The solution leverages the O3b MEO satellite constellation operating 8,000k
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