Lucy continues approach to Asteroid Dinkinesh for November 1 encounter
Tuesday, 17 October 2023 10:48
Since NASA's Lucy spacecraft first imaged the asteroid Dinkinesh on Sept. 3, 2023, Lucy has traveled over 33 million miles (54 million km) and is now 4.7 million miles (7.6 million km) away from the small asteroid. However, as Dinkinesh continues on its orbit around the Sun, Lucy still has another almost 16 million miles (25 million km) to travel to its meet-up with the asteroid on Nov. 1. Hypervelocity impact experiments probe the origin of organics on the dwarf planet Ceres
Tuesday, 17 October 2023 10:48
One of the most exciting findings from NASA's Dawn mission is that Ceres, the largest object in the asteroid belt that lies between Mars and Jupiter, hosts complex organics. The discovery of aliphatic molecules, which consist of carbon and hydrogen chains, in conjunction with evidence that Ceres has abundant water ice and may have been an ocean world, means this dwarf planet might have once harb Simulations of 'backwards time travel' can improve scientific experiments
Tuesday, 17 October 2023 10:48
Physicists have shown that simulating models of hypothetical time travel can solve experimental problems that appear impossible to solve using standard physics.
If gamblers, investors and quantum experimentalists could bend the arrow of time, their advantage would be significantly higher, leading to significantly better outcomes.
Researchers at the University of Cambridge have shown Cliffhangers go by the name of 'Stand By' in Mission Ops: Sols 3980-3981
Tuesday, 17 October 2023 10:48
Earth planning date: Monday, October 16, 2023: We are just at the first steps of the next drilling campaign, as regular readers of this blog will certainly have spotted already. The last plan had the preload test, that little dent we make into the rocks to gauge how both the rock and the rover's arm will react to the pressures and stresses of the drilling. It's a good forecast, but rocks are nat Lab instrument now on two-billion-mile journey to the metallic asteroid Psyche
Tuesday, 17 October 2023 10:48
An instrument designed and built by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) researchers departed Earth last week on a two-billion-mile, nearly six-year journey through space to explore a rare, largely metal asteroid.
The Livermore high-purity germanium (HPGe) gamma-ray sensor is an essential part of a larger gamma-ray spectrometer (GRS) built in collaboration with researchers from Jo Taking a Rain Check: Sols 3977-3979
Tuesday, 17 October 2023 10:48
Earth planning date: Friday, October 13, 2023: It's been an exciting week in space - Conor already mentioned the news from OSIRIS-REX on Wednesday and just before I logged on for my shift this morning the Psyche spacecraft launched. But the week isn't over and weekends on Mars have lots of room for excitement.
Wednesday's pre-drilling tests on target 'Sequoia' (shown in the image above) mo Extreme habitats: Microbial life in Old Faithful Geyser
Tuesday, 17 October 2023 10:48
An eruption of Old Faithful Geyser in Yellowstone National Park is a sight to behold. Indeed, millions of tourists flock to the park each year to see it. Hot water and steam are ejected in the air to a height of 100-180 feet approximately every 90 minutes. Many adjectives come to mind to describe it: powerful, mesmerizing, unique, otherworldly . . . homey? Not so much.
Yet new research by Webb detects tiny quartz crystals in clouds of hot gas giant
Tuesday, 17 October 2023 10:48
Catching a glimpse of one of the most common and familiar minerals on Earth rarely merits a Webb detects tiny quartz crystals in clouds of hot gas giant. Quartz is found in beach sands, building stones, geodes, and gem shops around the world. It's melted to produce glass, refined for silicon microchips, and used in watches to keep time.
So what's so special about the latest discovery from Vast $2 billion innovation hub is eyed at NASA Ames Silicon Valley complex
Tuesday, 17 October 2023 09:50
A vast $2 billion innovation hub is being eyed at the NASA Ames Research Center in Mountain View, a complex that's poised to become a birthplace for cutting-edge technologies.
UC Berkeley and SKS Partners, a veteran development firm, have teamed up to create what's being called Berkeley Space Center at NASA Research Park, officials said Monday.
"California's innovation and drive is not limited to Earth," Gov. Gavin Newsom said Monday.
The backers of the ambitious endeavor hope the space center will develop and create technologies in a wide array of fields.
"The joint venture is dedicated to identifying, incubating and launching technological breakthroughs across a diverse set of fields including astronautics, quantum computing, climate studies and the social sciences," UC Berkeley and SKS Partners stated on Monday.
The Berkeley Space Center is expected to total 36 acres including 1.5 million square feet of first-class offices and research spaces.
"This planned expansion of Berkeley's physical footprint and academic reach represents a fantastic and unprecedented opportunity for our students, faculty and the public we serve," UC Berkeley Chancellor Carol Christ said.
China to launch Queqiao-2 moon relay satellite in early 2024
Tuesday, 17 October 2023 07:51
Seraphim unveils the 10 startups in its twelfth space accelerator
Tuesday, 17 October 2023 06:01
University of California and NASA Ames unveil plans for $2 billion Berkeley Space Center
Monday, 16 October 2023 19:39
Signatures of the Space Age: Spacecraft metals left in the wake of humanity's path to the stars
Monday, 16 October 2023 18:00
Webb spots quartz crystals in clouds of exoplanet WASP-17b
Monday, 16 October 2023 13:00
Image:
This is a transmission spectrum of the hot gas giant exoplanet WASP-17 b captured by the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope's innovative Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) on 12–13 March 2023. It reveals the first evidence for quartz (crystalline silica, SiO2) in the clouds of an exoplanet.
This marks the first time that SiO2 has been identified in an exoplanet, and the first time any specific cloud species has been identified in a transiting exoplanet.
The spectrum was made by measuring the change in brightness of 28 wavelength bands of mid-infrared light as the planet transited the star. Webb observed the WASP-17 system
Urban Sky raises $9.75 million for stratospheric imaging platform
Monday, 16 October 2023 13:00
