Inspiration4 crew circles the Earth on mission's first full day
Friday, 17 September 2021 06:43
Write a comment
The crew of the first all-private orbital space mission has spent Thursday, the first full day of the mission, circling the Earth every 90 minutes at over 17,000 mph.
SpaceX reported the Crew Dragon Resilience capsule with four civilians inside was traveling 363 miles high over Asia as of mid-morning, quickly moving over the massive continent. The altitude is a full hundred miles higher Russian actress says 'too late' to fear ISS launch
Friday, 17 September 2021 06:43 Write a comment
Russian actress Yulia Peresild said Thursday it was "too late" for fear ahead of her launch into space, as Moscow races against Hollywood to film the first movie in orbit.
Russia's space agency Roscosmos is dispatching the 36-year-old screen star next month to the International Space Station (ISS) along with director Klim Shipenko, 38, in the race against time to beat a parallel US project. Modern snakes evolved from a few survivors of dino-killing asteroid
Friday, 17 September 2021 06:43 Write a comment
A new study suggests that all living snakes evolved from a handful of species that survived the giant asteroid impact that wiped out the dinosaurs and most other living things at the end of the Cretaceous. The authors say that this devastating extinction event was a form of 'creative destruction' that allowed snakes to diversify into new niches, previously filled by their competitors.
The Shenzhou-12 astronauts return to Earth after 3-month space station mission
Friday, 17 September 2021 06:07 Write a comment
Three Chinese astronauts safely returned to Earth Sept. 17 after completing the first crewed mission aboard the Tianhe space station module.
'Happy' SpaceX tourist crew spend first day whizzing around Earth
Friday, 17 September 2021 05:52 Write a comment
SpaceX's all-civilian Inspiration4 crew spent their first day in orbit conducting scientific research and talking to children at a pediatric cancer hospital, after blasting off on their pioneering mission from Cape Canaveral the night before.
St Jude tweeted its patients got to speak with the four American space tourists, "asking the questions we all want to know like 'are there cows on the Moon?'"
Billionaire Jared Isaacman, who chartered the flight, is trying to raise $200 million for the research facility.
Inspiration4 is the first orbital spaceflight with only private citizens aboard.
Earlier, Elon Musk's company tweeted that the four were "healthy" and "happy," had completed their first round of scientific research, and enjoyed a couple of meals.
Musk himself tweeted that he had personally spoken with the crew and "all is well.
SpaceX emphasizes coordination with other satellite operators
Friday, 17 September 2021 01:22 Write a comment
Two years after the close approach of a Starlink satellite with a European Space Agency satellite alarmed some in the space industry, SpaceX says it’s working closely with a wide range of satellite operators to ensure safe space operations.
L3Harris opens manufacturing facility in Indiana for DoD missile-defense satellites
Thursday, 16 September 2021 20:55 Write a comment
L3Harris Technologies on Sept. 16 opened a classified facility in Fort Wayne, Indiana, where the company will assemble and test satellites for U.S. missile-defense programs.
SpaceX's tourist crew 'healthy, happy and resting'
Thursday, 16 September 2021 19:45 Write a comment
SpaceX's all-civilian Inspiration4 crew are "healthy, happy and resting comfortably," the company said Thursday in its first update since the pioneering mission blasted off from Cape Canaveral the night before.
The four American space tourists "traveled 5.5 times around Earth, completed their first round of scientific research, and enjoyed a couple of meals" before going to bed, Elon Musk's company said.
Musk tweeted that he had personally spoken with the crew and "all is well."
After waking up, they will get their first look out of the Dragon ship's cupola—a large observation dome that has been fitted onto the vessel for the first time, in place of a docking mechanism.
Billionaire Jared Isaacman, physician assistant Hayley Arceneaux, geoscientist Sian Proctor and aerospace data engineer Chris Sembroski are orbiting the globe at an altitude that at times reaches 590 kilometers (367 miles).
Satellite operators need more accurate SSA data
Thursday, 16 September 2021 19:29 Write a comment
Space situational awareness data used by satellite operators isn’t accurate enough to support the decisions they need to make on whether and how to maneuver their spacecraft to avoid potential collisions.
OneWeb signs distribution deal with Peraton, broadens reach into military market
Thursday, 16 September 2021 18:52 Write a comment
Under a new agreement with U.S. defense contractor Peraton, OneWeb’s satellite communications services will be more widely available to military users in hard-to-reach areas, including ships at sea.
European facility prepares for haul of samples returning from planetary bodies
Thursday, 16 September 2021 15:59 Write a comment
The Institute of Planetary Research at DLR (German Aerospace Center) is starting construction of a new Sample Analysis Laboratory (SAL) dedicated to the study of rock and dust samples from planetary bodies such as asteroids and the Moon. The first phase will be operational by the end of 2022, on time to welcome samples collected by the Hayabusa2 mission, and fully ready by 2023.
ABL Space Systems to launch NASA technology demonstration mission
Thursday, 16 September 2021 14:01 Write a comment
Small launch vehicle developer ABL Space Systems has won a contract to launch a NASA technology demonstration spacecraft in 2023.
Better weather forecasting through satellite isotope data assimilation
Thursday, 16 September 2021 14:00 Write a comment
As the global climate continues to change and extreme weather events increasingly threaten regions all over the world, accurate weather forecasting is becoming more important than ever.
In a new study published in Scientific Reports, a research team led by Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo reports that weather forecast accuracy can be improved by several percentage p Rapid increase in global light pollution
Thursday, 16 September 2021 14:00 Write a comment
Global light pollution has increased by at least 49% over 25 years, new research shows.
This figure only includes light visible via satellites, and scientists estimate the true increase may be significantly higher - up to 270% globally, and 400% in some regions.
The study, led by the University of Exeter, examined light emissions from 1992 to 2017.
The findings show differing r Xplore and Keck Observatory announce innovative collaboration
Thursday, 16 September 2021 14:00 Write a comment
Xplore Inc., a commercial space company providing Space as a Service has announced a collaboration with the W. M. Keck Observatory in Waimea, Hawai'i. The Keck Observatory, the world's leading optical/infrared observatory, will assist Xplore in concept development and science case definition for the company's family of Xplore Space Telescopes (XST).
The XST series of commercial space teles