Copernical Team
FAA delays SpaceX Starship environmental review for 4th time
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The Federal Aviation Administration announced Friday that it has delayed its environmental review of SpaceX's Starship launch site in Texas for a fourth time.
The review was initially supposed to be completed Dec. 31, 2021. It was pushed back to Feb. 28, then March 28, then April 29, before the latest date - May 31.
"The FAA is working toward issuing the final Programmatic Envir SpaceX launches more Starlink satellites from Florida
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Space X launched another batch of Starlink satellites into orbit late Friday afternoon. A Falcon 9 rocket carried 53 satellites into space from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station's Launch Complex 40.
The launch took place as scheduled at 5:27 p.m., with the reusable first-stage rocket landing on the Just Read the Instructions drone ship at 5:36 p.m. It was the booster's second flight in 21 China launches multiple satellites
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China successfully sent two satellites into space from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in Northwest China on Friday.
The satellites, Siwei 01 and 02, were launched by a Long March 2C carrier rocket at 12:11 pm (Beijing Time) and have entered the planned orbit.
They will provide commercial remote sensing data services for industries including surveying and mapping, environmental p Rocket Lab pushes back attempt of mid-air booster catch to Sunday
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Citing weather concerns, Rocket Lab pushed back its 26th launch Friday with plans to attempt to recover a first-stage booster with a helicopter on Sunday.
"The weather has improved through the week, but the forecast is showing the best wind and cloud cover conditions a few days from now, so we're targeting no earlier than 1 May ... for launch," the California-based aerospace company said. 50 years on, Apollo 16 moonwalker still 'excited' by space
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Fifty years after his Apollo 16 mission to the moon, retired NASA astronaut Charlie Duke says he's ready for the U.S. to get back to lunar exploration.
Part of that effort, Duke said Friday, will come in the form of the Artemis program, which includes NASA's upcoming flight to the moon using its new Space Launch System rocket.
Blasting Earth's location out to potential aliens is a controversial idea. Two teams of scientists are doing it anyway
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If a person is lost in the wilderness, they have two options. They can search for civilization, or they could make themselves easy to spot by building a fire or writing HELP in big letters. For scientists interested in the question of whether intelligent aliens exist, the options are much the same.
For over 70 years, astronomers have been scanning for radio or optical signals from other civilizations in the search for extraterrestrial intelligence, called SETI. Most scientists are confident that life exists on many of the 300 million potentially habitable worlds in the Milky Way galaxy.
UAE to send astronaut on six-month ISS mission
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The United Arab Emirates announced Friday it will send an astronaut on a six-month mission to space, as it seeks to become a major player in the industry.
The wealthy Gulf country signed "a new agreement to send the first Arab astronaut on a long 180-day mission to the International Space Station", tweeted UAE's vice president, Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum.
"Proud of the UAE's youth," he added.
According to the UAE's The National newspaper, the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) and Axiom Space signed a deal on Wednesday at the Emirati embassy in Washington.
Black holes
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What are black holes? How do they form and evolve? What effect do they have on their surroundings and the rest of the Universe – and why should we care about them?
Cosmic Kiss mission overview
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Video:
00:04:00
German ESA astronaut Matthias Maurer has almost completed his first stay aboard the International Space Station ISS.
Named Cosmic Kiss, the mission began with the third crewed launch of the SpaceX Crew Dragon on 11 November 2021 when Matthias flew to the ISS alongside @NASA astronauts Kayla Barron, Raja Chari and Tom Marshburn, collectively known as Crew-3.
Matthias has now spent around six months in orbit, working on over 35 European and many more international science experiments and taking part in operational procedures. He has also become the 12th ESA astronaut to conduct a spacewalk, or Extra-Vehicular Activity (EVA).
Week in images: 25-29 April 2022
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Week in images: 25-29 April 2022
Discover our week through the lens