Europa Clipper: 8 things to know about NASA's mission to an ocean moon of Jupiter
Tuesday, 17 September 2024 18:26
The first NASA spacecraft dedicated to studying an ocean world beyond Earth, Europa Clipper aims to find out whether the ice-encased moon Europa could be habitable.
NASA's Europa Clipper spacecraft, the largest the agency has ever built for a planetary mission, will travel 1.8 billion miles (2.9 billion kilometers) from the agency's Kennedy Space Center in Florida to Europa, an intriguing icy moon of Jupiter. The spacecraft's launch period opens Thursday, Oct. 10.
Data from previous NASA missions has provided scientists with strong evidence that an enormous salty ocean lies underneath the frozen surface of the moon. Europa Clipper will orbit Jupiter and conduct 49 close flybys of the moon to gather data needed to determine whether there are places below its thick frozen crust that could support life.
Spacewalk an 'emotional experience' for private astronauts
Tuesday, 17 September 2024 17:45
The commander of the daring space voyage that included the first-ever spacewalk by private astronauts described opening the hatch into the void as an "emotional experience" that left him in awe, yet deeply aware of the dangers.
Jared Isaacman, the 41-year-old founder and CEO of Shift4Payments, led the recently concluded SpaceX Polaris Dawn mission, where a team of four ventured farther into the cosmos than any humans in half a century.
Shamir study supports century-old tired light theory, challenging big bang
Tuesday, 17 September 2024 17:44
A recent study led by a Kansas State University engineer has provided evidence that supports the "Tired Light" theory, a century-old concept that challenges the widely accepted Big Bang theory.
Lior Shamir, an associate professor of computer science, conducted an observational study using imaging from three telescopes and over 30,000 galaxies to measure the redshift of galaxies based on th Astropolitics 3.0: A Reality Check
Tuesday, 17 September 2024 17:44
With the release of his 10th book, Astropolitics 3.0: Reality Check, Frank, delivers another sharp and insightful analysis in the acclaimed "Reality Check" series, which includes successful releases: A.I. 2.0, Earth Polycrisis, Hydrogen 3.0, and Net Zero.
Space is no longer the exclusive domain of scientific discovery. In Astropolitics 3.0: Reality Check, the author takes a hard look at th Apex Unveils Nova Satellite Bus Platform
Tuesday, 17 September 2024 17:44
Apex, a Los Angeles-based company specializing in spacecraft bus platforms, has introduced Nova, a new ESPA-Grande class satellite bus platform designed to accommodate payloads between 200 and 500 kg.
Set for delivery starting in Q3 2025, Nova will cater to the demands of proliferated Low Earth Orbit (LEO) missions, including projects for the U.S. Space Force's Space Development Agency (SD AST SpaceMobile launches first 5 BlueBird satellites into orbit
Tuesday, 17 September 2024 17:44
AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ: ASTS) reports the the successful launch of its first five commercial satellites, called BlueBirds.
The groundbreaking launch started at 4:52 a.m. EDT from Cape Canaveral, Florida. The event was witnessed by partners and retail shareholders from around the globe who had gathered to be a part of this historic milestone.
These large arrays of antennas are Airbus to Provide Over 200 Sparkwing Solar Arrays for MDA AURORA Satellites
Tuesday, 17 September 2024 17:44
Airbus has been selected by MDA Space Ltd. (TSX:MDA), a global leader in advanced space technology and services, to supply solar arrays for its MDA AURORA TM software-defined satellite product line. This satellite system aims to expand communication networks across the world by enabling satellite constellations for improved global connectivity.
Under the agreement, Airbus will deliver over Reaching New Heights to Unravel Deep Martian History!
Tuesday, 17 September 2024 17:44
The Perseverance rover is reaching new heights as it ascends the rim of Jezero crater (over 300 meters in elevation higher than the original landing site)! The rover is now enroute to its first campaign science stop Dox Castle (image in the far ground) a region of interest for its potential to host ancient Mars' bedrock in the exposed rocks on the rim.
Impact craters like Jezero may be the Compact nuclear clocks edge closer to reality
Tuesday, 17 September 2024 17:44
Scientists use atomic clocks to measure 'second,' the smallest standard unit of time, with great precision. These clocks use natural oscillations of electrons in atoms, similar to how pendulums work in old grandfather clocks. The quest for an even more precise timekeeper led to the discovery of nuclear clocks, which use the transitions of atomic nuclei instead of electrons to keep time.
A 55 Years Ago: Space Task Group Proposes Post-Apollo Plan to President Nixon
Tuesday, 17 September 2024 17:44
The Apollo 11 mission in July 1969 completed the goal set by President John F. Kennedy in 1961 to land a man on the Moon and return him safely to the Earth before the end of the decade. At the time, NASA planned nine more Apollo Moon landing missions of increasing complexity and an Earth orbiting experimental space station. No firm human space flight plans existed once these missions ended in th Mission Space to launch commercial payload for space weather forecasting in 2025
Tuesday, 17 September 2024 17:44
In early 2025, Luxembourg-based startup Mission Space, originally from Israel, is set to make a major step forward with the launch of the first commercial payload focused on space weather monitoring. This launch will be the beginning of an ambitious satellite constellation designed to deliver real-time, high-resolution data on space weather phenomena, ultimately improving the precision of locali Plextek advances radar technology for CLEAR mission to address space debris
Tuesday, 17 September 2024 17:44
Plextek continues to strengthen its role in space debris removal technology, furthering its collaboration with ClearSpace and the UK Space Agency. This partnership highlights the importance of the CLEAR mission, which aims to significantly enhance space sustainability and safety.
Chosen as the radar development partner, Plextek remains a leader in innovation and technical excellence. With Rivada and Peraton Partner for Global Secure Communications Network
Tuesday, 17 September 2024 17:44
Peraton, a U.S.-based national security company and IT provider, has partnered with Rivada Space Networks to offer a secure low earth orbit (LEO) network to support U.S. government mission-critical communications worldwide.
Peraton has been leveraging first-generation LEO constellations for its operations, and this collaboration with Rivada Space Networks will bring the latest secure space Skylo introduces satellite connectivity for smartphones with Snapdragon
Tuesday, 17 September 2024 17:44
Skylo Technologies has introduced satellite connectivity for smartphones powered by the Snapdragon X80 5G Modem-RF System from Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. This new integration brings Skylo's Non-Terrestrial-Network (NTN) to smartphones, enabling direct communication over satellite. This feature supports two-way peer-to-peer text messaging, location sharing, and SOS notifications to emergency ser An ambitious mission to Neptune could study both the planet and Triton
Tuesday, 17 September 2024 17:07
Mission concepts to the outer solar system are relatively common, as planetary scientists are increasingly frustrated by our lack of knowledge of the farthest planets. Neptune, the farthest known planet, was last visited by Voyager 2 in the 1980s.
Technologies have advanced a lot since that probe was launched in 1977. But to utilize that better technology, we first need to have a mission arrive in the system—and one such mission is being developed over a series of papers by ConEx Research and University College London. One has been published in The Aeronautical Journal by J. E. McKevitt and colleagues.
The Arcanum mission is designed to orbit Neptune and land on Triton, giving insight into both objects of interest in the system. Neptune has some of the highest winds in the solar system and the "Great Dark Spot" storm system.