Wideband Lens for Lunar Rover microscope
Wednesday, 20 July 2022 11:12
Chesham UK (SPX) Jul 20, 2022
Resolve Optics has received an order from a leading aerospace company to design and supply an optimised wide waveband lens for a multi-spectral microscope required for a Moon exploration mission.
Due for delivery and launch in 2024 - a new solar powered land rover - 'Lunar Vertex' will explore the Reiner Gamma swirl, one of the most distinctive natural features and so-called "magnetic anom

Mars dust as a basis for life? no problem for certain bacteria
Wednesday, 20 July 2022 11:12
Center Of Applied Space Technology And Microgravity
Bremen, Germany (SPX) Jul 20, 2022
An international research team led by ZARM scientist Dr. Cyprien Verseux has now identified a cyanobacteria subspecies that seems to be best suited for use in a biological life support system that would allow humans to survive on Mars. The results are described in the journal "Applied and Environmental Microbiology".
At first glance, the inhospitable env

DLR to investigate dust from asteroid Ryugu
Wednesday, 20 July 2022 11:12
Berlin-Adlershof, Germany (SPX) Jul 20, 2022
Between June 2018 and November 2019, the Japanese spacecraft Hayabusa2 examined asteroid Ryugu, which is just under one kilometre in size, at close range. The spacecraft came into contact with Ryugu twice and collected samples from the asteroid's surface.
"Hayabusa2 was and is one of the most complex missions in the history of research into the bodies of the Solar System," emphasises Anke

NASA awards launch contract for Roman Space Telescope
Wednesday, 20 July 2022 11:12
Washington DC (SPX) Jul 20, 2022
NASA has awarded a NASA Launch Services (NLS) II contract to Space Exploration Technologies Corporation (SpaceX) in Hawthorne, California, to provide launch service for the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope mission. The Roman Space Telescope is the top-priority large space mission recommended by the 2010 Astronomy and Astrophysics Decadal Survey.
NLS II is an indefinite-delivery/indefinite

Japanese-NASA X-ray Observatory stands tall as testing begins
Wednesday, 20 July 2022 11:12
Greenbelt MD (SPX) Jul 20, 2022
The X-ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission will greatly expand our knowledge of the high-energy universe and recently passed two key milestones on its path to observing the cosmos.
Nicknamed XRISM (pronounced "crism"), the mission is a collaboration between the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and NASA, with participation by ESA (the European Space Agency), to investigate the X-ra

NASA, GE complete historic hybrid-electric propulsion tests
Wednesday, 20 July 2022 11:12
Cleveland OH (SPX) Jul 20, 2022
Sustainable aircraft of the future are going to need propulsion systems that can use technology to generate power comparable to the equipment used in today's commercial jets.
But creating such a complex system comes with a serious challenge: How do you safely test it under the high-altitude conditions where it would need to operate?
One NASA facility, safely on the ground in Ohio, of

NASA delays VIPER lunar rover's launch by one year
Wednesday, 20 July 2022 11:12
Washington DC (UPI) Jul 19, 2021
NASA is delaying a major moon mission as it continues testing the spacecraft that will deliver a rover to the lunar surface in search of water, ice and other potential resources, the agency announced Tuesday.
The launch of the Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover, or VIPER, has been pushed back to November 2024, from its originally planned launch day of November 2023.

Stress tests: making a hardy Webb
Wednesday, 20 July 2022 11:12
Washington DC (SPX) Jul 20, 2022
As the world marvels over the first public images from the James Webb Space Telescope, Webb Deputy Project Manager for Technical Verification Paul Geithner is able to recall another first-of-its-kind moment: when the Webb team thought for a brief - blessedly brief - moment it had actually broken part of the observatory.
A portion of the Webb structure, custom-made of graphite epoxy composi

Laser Terminal Bound for ISS arrives at Goddard for testing
Wednesday, 20 July 2022 11:12
Greenbelt MD (SPX) Jul 20, 2022
Soon the International Space Station will get a laser light terminal: Beams of invisible infrared light will soar through the atmosphere, capable of communicating pictures and videos from astronauts and experiments on the space station, thanks to NASA's brand-new laser terminal called ILLUMA-T (pronounced "ill-LOO-mah-TEA").
In May, ILLUMA-T (formally the "Integrated Laser Communications R

Another success for ANYWAVES
Wednesday, 20 July 2022 11:12
Toulouse, France (SPX) Jul 20, 2022
In early January, Airbus Defence and Space announced that it had been selected by the FrancoAmerican start-up Loft Orbital to supply more than 15 satellite platforms, a contract that, according to French Minister of the Economy Bruno Le Maire,"demonstrates the vibrancy of New Space start-ups in France and the synergies throughout the space ecosystem when it comes to innovation on an industrial s

Sidus Space increases deliverables to Teledyne Technologies
Wednesday, 20 July 2022 11:12
Cape Canaveral FL (SPX) Jul 20, 2022
Sidus Space, Inc. (NASDAQ:SIDU), a Space-as-a-Service satellite company focused on mission critical hardware manufacturing; multi-disciplinary engineering services; satellite design, production, launch planning, mission operations; and in-orbit support, is pleased to announce its growing relationship with Teledyne Marine, a part of Teledyne Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:TDY), following a noteworthy Q

TRUTHS shines
Wednesday, 20 July 2022 11:00
Satellites are essential for delivering key data to understand and monitor how the climate crisis is impacting our world, but, in turn, decision-makers need to be confident in the data they use for mitigation strategies and policymaking. TRUTHS, a new ESA mission, will do just this – and, now having passed an important milestone, it is one step closer to becoming a reality.
Impulse and Relativity announce proposal for joint Mars landing mission
Wednesday, 20 July 2022 10:09
Two startups, each yet to fly their first missions, said July 19 they are collaborating on a Mars lander mission they claim could launch as soon as 2024.
The post Impulse and Relativity announce proposal for joint Mars landing mission appeared first on SpaceNews.
US environmental study launched for Thirty Meter Telescope
Wednesday, 20 July 2022 08:02
From Blu-Ray players to Earth orbit
Wednesday, 20 July 2022 07:39