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Red velvet Mars Webb on Ariane 5 poised for launch
Friday, 24 December 2021 08:12
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The James Webb Space Telescope is safely stowed inside the fairing of ESA’s Ariane 5 launch vehicle, which is now on the launch pad undergoing final checks and fuelling for a targeted liftoff at 12:20 GMT / 13:20 CET on 25 December from Europe's Spaceport in French Guiana.
Webb will be the largest, most powerful telescope ever launched into space. As part of an international collaboration agreement, ESA is providing the telescope’s launch service using the Ariane 5 launch vehicle. Working with partners, ESA was responsible for the development and qualification of Ariane 5 adaptations for the Webb mission and
NorthStar expanding to Luxembourg after $45 million funding round
Thursday, 23 December 2021 19:06
Canadian startup NorthStar Earth & Space plans to set up European headquarters in Luxembourg, after getting an investment from the country’s government-backed venture capital fund.
ESA moving ahead on new Copernicus missions despite lack of U.K. agreement
Thursday, 23 December 2021 19:06
With a deadline for an agreement between the United Kingdom and the European Union on British involvement in, and funding for, Copernicus come and gone, the European Space Agency is pressing ahead on several missions in the hopes a deal can eventually be reached.
EXPLAINER: Veteran Hubble vs. new Webb space telescope
Thursday, 23 December 2021 18:12
Don't ask astronomers to choose between the Hubble Space Telescope and the new kid on the cosmic block, the James Webb Space Telescope.
Webb on Ariane 5 roll-out to the launch pad
Thursday, 23 December 2021 17:44
On Thursday 23 December, the James Webb Space Telescope, safely stowed inside the fairing of ESA’s Ariane 5 launch vehicle, left the final assembly building for roll-out to the launch pad at Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana.
French Guiana awaits historic Webb telescope launch
Thursday, 23 December 2021 17:07
Like kids dreaming of presents under the tree, the scientists at the Jupiter control room at the Guiana Space Centre in Kourou are patiently waiting for December 25.
The James Webb Space Telescope—soon to become the most powerful ever to be launched into space—after technical and weather delays is set to take off on Christmas Day from the base in France's South American department.
"We can't wait for it to launch," says Jean-Luc Mestre, engineer and vice-director of operations at the French National Centre for Space Studies (CNES).
This rocket's payload, the Webb telescope, is a piece of technology worked on by thousands of people for over a quarter of a century.
"Everything is ready," Mestre adds. "Now all we need is the right weather."
For days heavy winds and rain have lashed the dense tropical forest surrounding the base, though you'd never know it from inside the vault-like control room, its windowless walls dominated by a bank of glowing screens.
Webb mission trailer
Thursday, 23 December 2021 16:00
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Webb is the next great space science observatory following Hubble, designed to answer outstanding questions about the Universe and to make breakthrough discoveries in all fields of astronomy. Webb will see farther into our origins – from the formation of stars and planets, to the birth of the first galaxies in the early Universe.
The telescope will launch on an Ariane 5 from Europe's Spaceport in French Guiana.
Webb is an international partnership between NASA, ESA and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA).
Find out more about Webb in ESA’s launch kit and interactive brochure.
Kepler plots relay network to serve thousands of satellite terminals
Thursday, 23 December 2021 15:07
Kepler Communications plans to use a Spire Global nanosatellite launching late next year to test a terminal it hopes to someday deploy by the thousands to create a mesh network of data-relay satellites.
Testing radar to peer into Jupiter's moons
Thursday, 23 December 2021 12:59
A 1:18 scale model of Juice, ESA's spacecraft to explore the Jupiter system, is being employed to test its radar antenna.
The working version of the RIME instrument (Radar for Icy Moons Exploration), incorporating a 16-m long version of the straight 'dipole' boom seen here under the model spacecraft, will probe up to 9 km deep under the surfaces of the gas giant's main "Galilean' moons.
The testing took place in ESA's Hertz (Hybrid European RF and Antenna Test Zone) chamber based at ESA's ESTEC technical heart in the Netherlands.
Metal walls screen outside radio signals, while spiky foam interior cladding absorbs radio signals internally to create conditions simulating the infinite void of space.
This chamber's hybrid nature makes it unique: Hertz can assess radio signals from antennas either on a local 'near-field' basis or as if the signal has crossed thousands of kilometers of space, allowing it to serve all kinds of satellites and antenna systems.
A scaled model of the #JUICE Radar antenna is under characterization test @TestCentre.
Northrop and Raytheon complete Next Generation Interceptor review
Thursday, 23 December 2021 12:25
The Northrop Grumman and Raytheon Technologies Next Generation Interceptor (NGI) team has completed its System Requirements Review (SRR) and is proceeding with initial system design, further risk reduction testing, and critical component qualification activities.
The Missile Defense Agency (MDA) approved the SRR, which was completed ahead of schedule, and is the first major technical revie Kepler Communications announces testing of Aether Network with Spire Global
Thursday, 23 December 2021 12:25
Kepler Communications has signed a contract with Spire Global to launch a test of Kepler's Aether network. This will serve as an initial test bed for Kepler's Aether service and will also help Spire evaluate how the technology can support its goal to collect accurate, timely and global data.
Announced at Satellite 2021, Aether is the fulfilment of Kepler's mission to enable the space econo On they march as China records 401st flight of Long March rocket family
Thursday, 23 December 2021 12:25
China launched a relay satellite from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwestern China early on Tuesday morning, according to China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp, the nation's major space contractor.
A Long March 3B carrier rocket blasted off at 0:09 am and then deployed the Tianlian II-02 satellite into orbit, the State-owned company said in a statement. The mission marke Deadliest period in Earth's history was also the stinkiest
Thursday, 23 December 2021 12:25
Tiny microbes belching toxic gas helped cause - and prolong - the biggest mass extinction in Earth's history, a new study suggests. Generally, scientists believe Siberian volcanos spitting greenhouse gases primarily drove the mass extinction event about 250 million years ago, at the end of the Permian period. The gases caused extreme warming, which in turn led 80% of all marine species, as well L3Harris Completes Delivery of Imagers for NOAA's Advanced Environmental Satellites
Thursday, 23 December 2021 12:25
L3Harris Technologies has delivered its fourth imager to NASA, completing the series of advanced weather sensors for NOAA's newest Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites (GOES) and lays the groundwork for future imager programs.
The fourth Advanced Baseline Imager (ABI) will be integrated into the GOES-U satellite, slated to launch in 2024, and will be operated by NOAA.
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