Copernical Team
NASA, ESA finalize agreements on climate, 1 cooperation
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson and ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher signed two agreements Wednesday at the ESA Council meeting in Noordwijk, Netherlands, further advancing the space agencies' cooperation on Earth science and Artemis missions. "With these two agreements, NASA and ESA are strengthening the relationship on two of our agencies' primary mission areas: Artemis and Earth sci
German radar satellite TerraSAR-X - 15 years in space and still in perfect shape
Fifteen years - who would have thought it? The German radar satellite TerraSAR-X, which was launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 08:14 local time on 15 June 2007, was originally designed to last five and a half years - until the end of 2012. It has been delivering data of outstanding quality ever since, regardless of weather conditions, cloud cover and daylight levels. The scie
China's deep space exploration laboratory starts operation
China's deep space exploration laboratory has started operations, the China National Space Administration (CNSA) said Tuesday. Co-established by the CNSA, Anhui Province and the University of Science and Technology of China, the laboratory is headquartered in Hefei, capital city of Anhui. It has completed various preparatory work and entered a new stage of substantial operation and c
Northrop Grumman runs Laser Communication Demonstration for Tranche 1 constellation
Northrop Grumman Corporation has announced the successful ground demonstration of a secure networked laser communications system for proliferated-LEO constellations supporting the U.S. military. Performed for SDA leadership, the demonstration validated compatibility between commercially developed laser communication and secure U.S. government encryption hardware, providing a baseline for N
Airbus built MEASAT-3d communications satellite ready for launch
The Airbus built MEASAT-3d telecommunications satellite is in Kourou, French Guiana and is ready for its launch on an Ariane 5 on 22 June 2022. MEASAT-3d is the 57th E3000 satellite built by Airbus and will be positioned at the 91.5E orbital slot and collocated with MEASAT-3b, also built by Airbus. This new satellite will significantly enhance broadband speeds of up to 100 Mbps in ar
SCEYE HAPS ascends to stratosphere demonstrates ability to stay over area of operation
Sceye, a manufacturer of High-Altitude Platform Stations (HAPS), announced that it reached the stratosphere with the aim of demonstrating the ability to stay over an area of operation for months at a time using renewable energy sources. The milestone test launch, which is using patented solar and battery power, puts Sceye on track to expand internet access to remote populations, monitor gr
Week in images: 13-17 June 2022
Week in images: 13-17 June 2022
Discover our week through the lens
Earth from Space: Glacier Bay, Alaska
Part of the Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, which lies along the coast of southeast Alaska, is featured in this image captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission.
NASA completes critical testing milestone for NOAA's JPSS-2 satellite
The Joint Polar Satellite System-2 satellite, or JPSS-2, has cleared a critical testing milestone, bringing it a step closer to launch. Last week, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's polar-orbiting satellite emerged from the chamber after completing its thermal vacuum testing. This test is meant to show that the spacecraft and all of its instruments will perform successfully when exposed to the harsh environments of space.
"I can absolutely say with 100% certainty that the observatory is working great," said JPSS Flight Project Manager Andre Dress at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. "All the instruments are performing great, and we're going to meet all our requirements—and then some."
JPSS-2, the third satellite in the Joint Polar Satellite System series, will provide data that improves weather forecasts and advance our understanding of extreme weather and climate change.
Mars as a base for asteroid exploration and mining
Mining the asteroids for resources like iron, precious metals, water, or other valuable species may someday become profitable. Mining will probably starting with near Earth objects (NEOs), asteroids whose paths cross the Earth's orbital path.