NASA, USGS map minerals to understand Earth makeup, climate change
Friday, 14 October 2022 11:03NASA and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) will map portions of the southwest United States for critical minerals using advanced airborne imaging. Hyperspectral data from hundreds of wavelengths of reflected light can provide new information about Earth's surface and atmosphere to help scientists understand Earth's geology and biology, as well as the effects of climate change. The resear
NASA's solid-state battery research exceeds initial goals, draws interest
Friday, 14 October 2022 11:03NASA researchers are making progress with developing an innovative battery pack that is lighter, safer, and performs better than batteries commonly used in vehicles and large electronics today. Their work - part of NASA's commitment to sustainable aviation - seeks to improve battery technology through investigating the use of solid-state batteries for aviation applications such as electric
Esri partners with Digital Earth Africa to support sustainable growth
Friday, 14 October 2022 11:03Climate change is compounding risks of food insecurity, displacement, and natural disasters across broad regions of the African continent, with vulnerable populations facing especially grave outcomes. However, several countries in Africa are already innovating and driving the next big tech sector boom, with companies creating solutions to close social and economic gaps. To support local organiza
Optical foundations illuminated by quantum light
Friday, 14 October 2022 11:03Optics, the study of light, is one of the oldest fields in physics and has never ceased to surprise researchers. Although the classical description of light as a wave phenomenon is rarely questioned, the physical origins of some optical effects are. A team of researchers at Tampere University have brought the discussion on one fundamental wave effect, i.e., the debate around the anomalous behavi
Commercial space station developers seek clarity on regulations
Friday, 14 October 2022 11:01Companies working on commercial space stations intended to succeed the International Space Station say they need more clarity from the federal government on who will regulate them and how.
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Earth from Space: Mississippi River
Friday, 14 October 2022 07:00Mississippi River, one of the longest rivers in North America, is featured in this multi-temporal radar image captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-1 mission.
Seeing how a spacecraft dies
Friday, 14 October 2022 06:29Seeing how a spacecraft dies
Astra’s strategy to address NASDAQ warning
Thursday, 13 October 2022 20:35MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. – While Astra Space is taking the delisting warning the company received from NASDAQ seriously, the company has “lots of different strategies” to address it, Astra CEO Chris Kemp said at the Satellite Innovation conference here.
NASA's Lucy spacecraft prepares to swing by Earth
Thursday, 13 October 2022 20:07On Oct. 16, at 7:04 a.m. EDT, NASA's Lucy spacecraft, the first mission to the Jupiter Trojan asteroids, will skim the Earth's atmosphere, passing a mere 220 miles (350 kilometers) above the surface. By swinging past Earth on the first anniversary of its launch, Lucy will gain some of the orbital energy it needs to travel to this never-before-visited population of asteroids.
The Trojan asteroids are trapped in orbits around the sun at the same distance as Jupiter, either far ahead of or behind the giant planet. Lucy is currently one year into a twelve-year voyage. This gravity assist will place Lucy on a new trajectory for a two-year orbit, at which time it will return to Earth for a second gravity assist. This second assist will give Lucy the energy it needs to cross the main asteroid belt, where it will observe asteroid Donaldjohanson, and then travel into the leading Trojan asteroid swarm.
Starlink kicks off Asia expansion in search of more subscribers
Thursday, 13 October 2022 19:59Starlink is deepening its foothold in Japan as SpaceX’s satellite broadband service looks to expand elsewhere in Asia, which will be critical for generating much-needed revenues.
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Starlink’s market dominance affecting DoD’s hybrid network plans
Thursday, 13 October 2022 19:50As SpaceX’s Starlink continues to gain military customers, the Pentagon worries that the company’s use of proprietary technology will make it difficult to integrate into a hybrid architecture that DoD hopes to build
Phase Four adopts iodine for next-gen Max-V engine
Thursday, 13 October 2022 17:34Propulsion startup Phase Four is expanding its Maxwell plasma propulsion line by offering Max-V, an iodine-fueled engine.
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US opts to not rebuild renowned Puerto Rico telescope
Thursday, 13 October 2022 16:58The National Science Foundation announced Thursday that it will not rebuild a renowned radio telescope in Puerto Rico, which was one of the world's largest until it collapsed nearly two years ago.
#MeToo in space: We must address the potential for sexual harassment and assault away from Earth
Thursday, 13 October 2022 15:59A new dawn of space exploration is upon us. NASA aims to land the first woman and person of color on the moon by the end of 2025, and send a crew on a year-and-a-half long mission to Mars in the 2030s.
To ensure a safe and pleasurable journey to the final frontier, national agencies such as NASA and private companies such as SpaceX must address both the technical and human factors associated with working and living in space. Yet, the realities of sexuality and intimacy in space are mostly omitted.
How will people be able to live for prolonged periods of time in the isolated, confined and extreme conditions of spacecrafts and other planets? How will people navigate falling in love, having sex and beginning and ending relationships under such conditions? How will people deal with the stress, limited choice of intimate partners and issues related to consent? And how will sexual harassment or assault be prevented or addressed?
Op-ed | You can’t go to space on a Ford Pinto (and other harsh truths I learned courting venture capital)
Thursday, 13 October 2022 14:44Daunted but undeterred, I set off into the depths of venture capitalism, strategy, marketing, pitches, PowerPoint slides, NewSpace, small talk, zero-sum games, and artificial politeness.
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