Copernical Team
CHEOPS mission extended
After more than three years in orbit, the mission of the CHEOPS space telescope has just been extended. Led by the University of Bern in collaboration with the University of Geneva, CHEOPS is a joint mission of the European Space Agency (ESA) and Switzerland.
On March 7th, ESA's Science Programme Committee has confirmed its continued operations to 2026 and an indicative extension to 2029, contingent upon ongoing commitments from national contributors and partners. Since its launch in December 2019, the satellite's extremely precise measurements have contributed to several key discoveries in the field of exoplanets. The extension will make it possible to study these fascinating worlds around other stars in even more detail.
NASA to reveal crew members in April for flight around Moon
NASA will announce the names next month of the four astronauts—three Americans and one Canadian—who will fly around the Moon next year, the head of the US space agency said Thursday.
NASA administrator Bill Nelson said the crew members of the mission known as Artemis 2 would be revealed on April 3.
"Astronauts—three from America and one from Canada—will fly around the moon and they'll test NASA's Space Launch System, which is our rocket, and the spacecraft called Orion," Nelson said.
The first Artemis mission wrapped up in December with an uncrewed Orion capsule returning safely to Earth after a 25-day journey around the Moon.
Artemis 2, scheduled to take place in late November 2024, will take a four-person crew around the Moon but without landing on it.
The ambitious program aims to return humans to the Moon for the first time since the historic Apollo missions ended in 1972.
3D bioprinter to print human meniscus on the space station
The knee is not only one of the largest and most complex joints in the body—it is also easily injured. In fact, one of the most common orthopedic injuries is the tearing of the meniscus, a half-moon-shaped piece of cartilage in the knee. Each knee has two menisci that allow the joint to move freely. Current treatments for a torn meniscus are less than ideal, involving removing or repairing the torn segment, which can ultimately lead to increased risk of arthritis or knee replacement, as the affected joint loses its cushioning.
To improve patient care on Earth and develop more effective ways of treating torn tissues, researchers from Redwire Space are turning to the microgravity environment of the International Space Station (ISS) National Laboratory.
Redwire's upgraded BioFabrication Facility (or BFF) launched to the space station in November.
Galileo saving lives – infographic
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Galileo saving lives – infographic How Galileo works - infographic
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How Galileo works - infographic Galileo in space – infographic
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Galileo in space – infographic How does Galileo help other space missions?
In 2023 satnav receivers are everywhere: in our phones, our cars, and drones, in fixed infrastructure, aboard boats, trains and aircraft. They are also in space: more than 95% of all the satellites in low-Earth orbit carry satnav receivers to calculate their position. The additional signals from Europe’s Galileo satellites are providing a big boost to the coverage, availability, redundancy, and accuracy of spaceborne receivers, in turn enlarging the possible scope of future missions, and extending the useful range of satnav much further out into space – to the Moon and beyond.
Ceres Imaging expands its agriculture data analytics solutions to Europe
Ceres Imaging, the data analytics company that builds precision agriculture solutions to reduce risk and improve sustainability outcomes, is announcing its expansion into Portugal and Spain.
Ceres got its start over a decade ago in California's silicon valley area, and today helps many of the world's largest agriculture land holders detect underperforming assets and identify opportunities Carbon Mission takes stock of CO2 emissions
A NASA Earth-observing satellite has helped researchers track carbon dioxide emissions for more than 100 countries around the world. The pilot project offers a powerful new look at the carbon dioxide being emitted in these countries and how much of it is removed from the atmosphere by forests and other carbon-absorbing "sinks" within their borders. The findings demonstrate how space-based tools China to launch LEO constellation of remote sensing satellites
China Aerospace Science and Industry Corp, a major space contractor, is planning to deploy a remote-sensing satellite network in low-altitude orbits, according to a project leader.
Song Xiaoming, president of the CASIC Second Academy, said that China intends to establish a space-based, high-performance infrastructure system for global remote-sensing operations.
Remote sensing refers