OSIRIS-REx mission plans for May asteroid departure
Tuesday, 26 January 2021 12:53
Since its launch in September 2016, the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft has traveled billions of miles, mapped the surface of an asteroid in unprecedented detail, and made new scientific discoveries about near-Earth asteroids. Now, it's preparing to bring a piece of asteroid Bennu home.
On May 10, NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft will say farewell to asteroid Bennu and begin its two-year journey back to Earth, where the dust and rocks collected during the Touch-And-Go maneuver in October will be studied by scientists, including OSIRIS-REx mission principal investigator and University of Arizona planetary scientist Dante Lauretta.
During its Oct. 20, 2020, sample collection event, the spacecraft collected a substantial amount of material from Bennu's surface, likely exceeding the mission's requirement of 2 ounces, or 60 grams.
Apollo Fusion wins electric propulsion order from York Space Systems
Tuesday, 26 January 2021 11:52
WASHINGTON — Apollo Fusion announced Jan. 26 it won an order from York Space Systems for a set of satellite electric propulsion systems.
Apollo Fusion said it will provide its Apollo Constellation Engine (ACE) electric propulsion system for a low Earth orbit constellation of at least 10 satellites York is building for launch in 2022.
EDRS: the space data highway
Tuesday, 26 January 2021 11:00
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The European Data Relay System, or EDRS, uses cutting-edge laser technology to greatly reduce the time it takes for information to be sent from low-Earth orbiting spacecraft – such as the Earth observing Sentinel satellites – to Earth.
The system makes Earth observation information available in almost real-time, which can help disaster management workers and the emergency services accelerate their responses to natural crises.
Known as the ‘space data highway’, it currently consists of an extensive network of European ground stations and control centres, and two sister satellites: EDRS-A and EDRS-C. Both are in geostationary orbit at an altitude
Axiom Space reveals historic first private crew to visit ISS
Tuesday, 26 January 2021 08:55
Axiom Space on Tuesday announced its crew for humankind's first flight of a group of private individuals to a Low Earth Orbit destination - the first-ever entirely private mission proposed to fly to the International Space Station (ISS).
The proposed historic Axiom Mission 1 (Ax-1) will consist of: former NASA astronaut and Axiom vice president Michael Lopez-Alegria as commander; American NASA Marshall, SpaceX team celebrates engines of success
Tuesday, 26 January 2021 08:55
When the big ring of nine Merlin engines on the Falcon 9 rocket rumbled to life, propelling NASA's SpaceX Crew-1 spacecraft and its occupants to their historic rendezvous with the International Space Station, most spectators were watching for the customary bloom of smoke and fire.
NASA manager Steve Gaddis and his team were also listening, anticipating the musical sound of success. At 7:27 Hot Fire met many objectives, test assessment underway
Tuesday, 26 January 2021 08:55
For the Green Run hot fire test on Jan. 16, NASA set out to acquire test data to support 23 detailed verification objectives. To satisfy the objectives, hot fire test data is used in combination with analysis and testing that has already been completed. These detailed verification objectives are used to certify the design of the Space Launch System rocket's core stage.
The preliminary asse AI: ensuring that humans remain in the center
Tuesday, 26 January 2021 08:55
Valuable support or job killer? Artificial intelligence (AI) promises to enhance efficiency of business processes, but also changes the environment of workers. Profitable use of AI technologies for digitization in the energy sector and ways for human beings to remain in the center are studied by the new MeKIDI project coordinated by Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT). The project is aimed a When galaxies collide
Tuesday, 26 January 2021 08:55
It was previously thought that collisions between galaxies would necessarily add to the activity of the massive black holes at their centers. However, researchers have performed the most accurate simulations of a range of collision scenarios and have found that some collisions can reduce the activity of their central black holes. The reason is that certain head-on collisions may in fact clear th The naming of Tooley crater
Tuesday, 26 January 2021 08:38
Satnav antenna built for ends of the Earth
Tuesday, 26 January 2021 08:07
A new ESA-supported wide-bandwidth satnav antenna has been designed to receive both satellite and augmentation signals from anywhere in the sky, even down to just a couple of degrees above the horizon.
Virgin Orbit to launch first satellite for Dutch Ministry Of Defense
Tuesday, 26 January 2021 07:13
Virgin Orbit has been selected by the Dutch space engineering company Innovative Solutions in Space (ISIS) to launch the Royal Netherlands Air Force's (RNLAF) first ever satellite, a 6U CubeSat called BRIK-II.
Designed and integrated by ISIS, BRIK-II will serve as a testbed for various communications experiments and demonstrate how nanosatellites can provide a meaningful contribution to mi China's first liquid/solid fueld rocket to make 2021 maiden flight
Tuesday, 26 January 2021 07:13
Long March-6A, China's first carrier rocket powered by a solid and liquid engine, will make its maiden flight in 2021, its developer said.
Long March-6A, a new generation medium-launch vehicle, can be powered by different numbers of liquid and solid engines to achieve different carrying capacity levels, which is more cost-effective, according to the Eighth Academy of China Aerospace Scienc Axiom Space reveals historic first private crew to visit International Space Station
Tuesday, 26 January 2021 07:13
Axiom Space on Tuesday announced its crew for humankind's first flight of a group of private individuals to a Low Earth Orbit destination - the first-ever entirely private mission proposed to fly to the International Space Station (ISS).
The proposed historic Axiom Mission 1 (Ax-1) will consist of: former NASA astronaut and Axiom vice president Michael Lopez-Alegria as commander; American OSIRIS-REx mission set for May departure from Bennu back to Earth
Tuesday, 26 January 2021 07:13
On May 10, NASA's Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security, Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) spacecraft will say farewell to asteroid Bennu and begin its journey back to Earth.
During its Oct. 20, 2020, sample collection event, the spacecraft collected a substantial amount of material from Bennu's surface, likely exceeding the mission's requirement of 2 ounces (60 Moon rock on Joe Biden's desk raises hopes for lunar return
Tuesday, 26 January 2021 07:13
A moon rock that President Joe Biden has placed in the Oval Office came from the last Apollo mission in 1972, raising hopes that he will support a new lunar landing program already underway.
The White House said the moon rock was part of Biden's goal to have the office reflect the best of American accomplishments.
Astronauts chipped the rock from a large boulder at the base of th