Purdue scientist ready for Mars rover touchdown
Tuesday, 26 January 2021 07:13
The Mars Perseverance Rover will fly 300 million miles over almost seven months, but the seven minutes spent waiting to receive a radio signal confirming the rover has landed will seem like an eternity for scientists and researchers back on Earth.
That wait is dubbed the "seven minutes of terror" and Briony Horgan, Purdue University associate professor of planetary science, calls it the sc Extreme black holes have hair that can be combed
Tuesday, 26 January 2021 07:13
Black holes are considered amongst the most mysterious objects in the universe. Part of their intrigue arises from the fact that they are actually amongst the simplest solutions to Einstein's field equations of general relativity.
In fact, black holes can be fully characterized by only three physical quantities: their mass, spin and charge. Since they have no additional "hairy" attributes Metamaterial tiles boost sensitivity of large telescopes
Tuesday, 26 January 2021 07:13
A multi-institutional group of researchers has developed new metamaterial tiles that will help improve the sensitivity of telescopes being built at the preeminent Simons Observatory in Chile. The tiles have been incorporated into receivers that will be deployed at the observatory by 2022.
The Simons Observatory is the center of an ambitious effort to measure the cosmic microwave background UN and UK sign agreement to promote space sustainability
Tuesday, 26 January 2021 07:13
The agreement will help nations ensure that outer space remains safe and sustainable for future generations.
The increasing complexity of space missions, the emergence of large constellations of satellites and the increased risks of collision all affect the long-term sustainability of space activities. And there are currently approximately 170 million objects in orbit - mainly debris - whi Motiv Space Systems and JPL to develop robotic arm for extreme cold environments
Tuesday, 26 January 2021 07:13
Motiv Space Systems, in partnership with JPL, has announced the development of COLDArm, the first-in-kind robotic arm that will be built to survive the extreme cold of the Moon's South Pole ushering in a new era of extended space exploration on the Moon, Mars, and beyond.
COLDArm (short for Cold Operable Lunar Deployable Arm) is a vital component of the Commercial Lunar Payload Services (C Space Force officially ends launch partnerships with Blue Origin and Northrop Grumman
Tuesday, 26 January 2021 00:31
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Space Force on Dec. 31 officially terminated launch technology partnerships signed in October 2018 with Blue Origin and Northrop Grumman.
The Air Force awarded Launch Service Agreements to Blue Origin, Northrop Grumman and United Launch Alliance.
Axiom announces crew for first private ISS mission
Tuesday, 26 January 2021 00:17
WASHINGTON — A commercial Crew Dragon mission to the International Space Station early next year chartered by Axiom Space will carry four private astronauts — but not a superstar actor.
Axiom Space revealed Jan. 26 the crew of its first mission to the ISS, called Ax-1 and scheduled for launch no earlier than January 2022.
U.S. Space Command chief makes case for civilian space traffic control
Monday, 25 January 2021 21:43
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Air Force has air traffic controllers to handle military airspace issues but the Federal Aviation Administration has overall responsibility for air safety. A similar arrangement is needed for the space domain, the commander of U.S.
SpaceX’s rideshare carried small satellite technology of interest to U.S. military
Monday, 25 January 2021 21:32
WASHINGTON — Among the 143 satellites that flew to orbit Jan. 24 on SpaceX’s record-breaking rideshare were technology demonstrations and payloads of interest to the U.S. military, including satellite components, in-space laser communications and remote sensing.
Speedcast to reorganize under Centerbridge Partners
Monday, 25 January 2021 21:27
SAN FRANCISCO — Satellite communications provider SpeedCast International Ltd. is scheduled to emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy by March 31 after winning approval to reorganize under a new owner, private equity firm Centerbridge Partners.
Barbs fly over satellite projects from Musk, Bezos
Monday, 25 January 2021 20:32
A spat erupted Tuesday between Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk as the tech titans' space firms exchanged barbs over their rival satellite internet projects being evaluated by regulators.
Amazon, founded and led by Bezos, put out a statement claiming Musk's rival SpaceX project Starlink was seeking design changes that could "create a more dangerous environment for collisions in space" and also increase radio interference.
1st private space crew paying $55M each to fly to station
Monday, 25 January 2021 17:42
The first private space station crew was introduced Tuesday: Three men who are each paying $55 million to fly on a SpaceX rocket.
They'll be led by a former NASA astronaut now working for Axiom Space, the Houston company that arranged the trip for next January.
Ready to apply to become a YGT at ESA?
Monday, 25 January 2021 16:12
There are only six days to go until ESA publishes its Young Graduate Trainee opportunities on 1 February and they will remain open for a month. Mark the dates in your calendar! Find out more about this year's call for applications below.
NASA’s OSIRIS-REx Mission Plans for May Asteroid Departure
Monday, 25 January 2021 15:48
On May 10, NASA’s Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security, Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) spacecraft will say farewell to asteroid Bennu and begin its journey back to Earth. New long-term dataset to analyse global fire trends
Monday, 25 January 2021 14:30
Fire affects an estimated four million square kilometres of Earth’s land each year and is responsible for releasing aerosols and greenhouse gases to the atmosphere. Understanding the influence that this has on atmospheric chemistry and representing these emissions in future climate predictions is, however, complex and remains poorly understood. To improve the situation, a team of scientists working as part of ESA’s Climate Change Initiative is using satellite observations, such as from Copernicus Sentinel-3, to gain a global view of land burned by fire.