MIRI’s sharper view hints at new possibilities for science
Monday, 09 May 2022 13:30
Image:
Click here to download the images used in this gif.
The James Webb Space Telescope is aligned across all four of its science instruments, as seen in a previous engineering image showing the observatory’s full field of view. Now, we take a closer look at that same image, focusing on Webb’s coldest instrument: the Mid-Infrared Instrument, or MIRI.
The MIRI test image (at 7.7 microns) shows part of the Large Magellanic Cloud. This small satellite galaxy of the Milky Way provided a dense star field to test Webb’s performance.
Here, a close-up of the MIRI image is compared
MIRI and Spitzer comparison image
Monday, 09 May 2022 13:30
Image:
Click here to download the gif.
The James Webb Space Telescope is aligned across all four of its science instruments, as seen in a previous engineering image showing the observatory’s full field of view. Now, we take a closer look at that same image, focusing on Webb’s coldest instrument: the Mid-Infrared Instrument, or MIRI.
The MIRI test image (at 7.7 microns) shows part of the Large Magellanic Cloud. This small satellite galaxy of the Milky Way provided a dense star field to test Webb’s performance.
Here, a close-up of the MIRI image is compared to a past image
What does micrometeoroid damage do to gossamer structures like Webb's sunshield?
Monday, 09 May 2022 13:23
Tiny little bullets flood the solar system, each micrometeoroid a potential hazard. New research has found that the James Webb Space Telescope's thin sunshields, and future inflatable spacecraft, may be at risk.
A micrometeoroid is a tiny bit of space junk usually weighing less than a gram. Some of them are the leftover bits of the countless collisions that have occurred over the past 4.5 billion years of the history of the solar system. Most, however, come from the dust cloud that initially collapsed to form our solar system, and never got to be a part of a larger body.
CACI to launch experimental satellite to demonstrate alternative to GPS navigation
Monday, 09 May 2022 12:58
CACI International is funding an experiment to demonstrate space technologies for military use, including an alternative to GPS navigation.
The post CACI to launch experimental satellite to demonstrate alternative to GPS navigation appeared first on SpaceNews.
Last chance to register for ESA’s Living Planet Symposium
Monday, 09 May 2022 11:54
ESA’s Living Planet Symposium is fast approaching. Taking place on 23–27 May in Bonn, Germany, the symposium gives you the opportunity to network with the most eminent scientists in the field of Earth science, learn more about Earth science and innovative concepts such as New Space and, if you’re lucky, rub elbows with a few ESA astronauts.
This is your last chance to register to one of the largest Earth observation conferences in the world!
Momentus receives approvals for first tug launch
Monday, 09 May 2022 09:55
In-space transportation company Momentus has secured all the regulatory approvals for its first mission, set to launch later this month.
The post Momentus receives approvals for first tug launch appeared first on SpaceNews.
Forward to the Moon: interactive publication
Monday, 09 May 2022 07:45
As Artemis sets its sights on the Moon, powered by the European Service Module (ESM), all eyes will again turn to the night sky. This interactive publication encourages us to look up at our natural satellite and think about how the Moon has inspired us, from Ancient Greece to the 21st century, to develop our understanding of astronomy, physics and our place in the Solar System.
How space is connecting cars
Monday, 09 May 2022 07:00
Today’s connected cars are dynamic, updateable devices – and, because they can be updated, they are well equipped to become tomorrow’s cars. ESA is working with European carmakers to ensure that connected vehicles harness the full potential of space.
Experiments measure freezing point of extraterrestrial oceans to aid search for life
Monday, 09 May 2022 04:37
Researchers from the University of Washington and the University of California, Berkeley have conducted experiments that measured the physical limits for the existence of liquid water in icy extraterrestrial worlds. This blend of geoscience and engineering was done to aid in the search for extraterrestrial life and the upcoming robotic exploration of oceans on moons of other planets.
The r NASA defends decision to shut down SOFIA
Sunday, 08 May 2022 20:03
NASA officials say they believe the latest effort to shut down an airborne observatory is more likely to be successful because of the endorsement of doing so by last year’s decadal survey.
The post NASA defends decision to shut down SOFIA appeared first on SpaceNews.
NASA's Ingenuity in contact with Perseverance after communications dropout
Sunday, 08 May 2022 11:03
On Thursday, May 5, mission controllers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory received confirmation that the agency's Ingenuity Mars Helicopter had re-established communications with the Perseverance rover. Earlier in the week, the rotorcraft had missed a planned communications session with the rover - for the first time in over a year of operations on the Mars surface. Ingenuity relies on Perseve Asteroid treasure in the Hubble archive
Sunday, 08 May 2022 11:03
With a sophisticated combination of human and artificial intelligence, astronomers uncovered 1701 new asteroid trails in archival data of the Hubble Space Telescope spanning the past 20 years. While about one third could be identified and attributed to known objects, more than 1000 trails probably correspond to previously unknown asteroids. These unidentified asteroids are faint and likely small Chinese scientists find potential in lunar soil to generate oxygen and fuel
Sunday, 08 May 2022 11:03
Chinese material scientists have found the soil on the moon may potentially be able to generate oxygen and fuel, a find that signifies more tantalizing possibilities of utilizing lunar resources to further human exploration on the moon or beyond.
The researchers with Nanjing University showed that the lunar sample brought back by China's Chang'e-5 probe contains active compounds that can c China releases Chang'e-5 payloads' scientific datasets
Sunday, 08 May 2022 11:03
China has released a batch of datasets from the payloads installed on Chang'e-5 probe, according to the China National Space Administration (CNSA) on Saturday.
The payloads include a landing camera, a panoramic camera, a lunar mineralogical spectrometer and a lunar regolith penetrating radar, said the CNSA.
Public users can visit the website of China's Lunar and Planetary Data Releas Planet-forming disks evolve in surprisingly similar ways
Sunday, 08 May 2022 11:03
A group of astronomers, led by Sierk van Terwisga from the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, have analysed the mass distribution of over 870 planet-forming disks in the Orion A cloud. By exploiting the statistical properties of this unprecedented large sample of disks and developing an innovative data processing scheme, they found that far away from harsh environments like hot stars, the decli