Flight control, space weather and debris: What an astronaut needs to know
Thursday, 22 December 2022 13:00
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Recently, Andreas Mogensen, now getting ready for his ‘Huginn’ mission to the ISS in 2023, stopped by ESA’s ESOC mission control centre in Darmstadt, Germany, to meet with some of the experts who keep our satellites flying.
Andreas usually works at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston as an ISS ‘capcom’, and we don’t often see him in Europe. A few months back, while returning to Germany for some training at ESA’s Astronaut Centre in Cologne, we seized the opportunity to ask him if he’d like to stop over in Darmstadt for a look behind the
China sets out clear and independent long-term vision for space
Thursday, 22 December 2022 12:09
China’s main space contractor is working towards making the country a leading space power with a focus on developing capabilities, space infrastructure and self-reliance.
The post China sets out clear and independent long-term vision for space appeared first on SpaceNews.
Independent panel to investigate Vega C launch failure
Thursday, 22 December 2022 11:56
Arianespace and the European Space Agency will establish an independent commission to investigate the Vega C launch failure Dec. 20 that resulted in the loss of two satellites and new questions about the future of European space access.
Terran Orbital delivers 10 satellite buses to Lockheed Martin for U.S. military constellation
Thursday, 22 December 2022 10:00
Terran Orbital announced Dec. 22 it has completed delivery of 10 satellite buses ordered by Lockheed Martin for the Space Development Agency's mesh network in low Earth orbit.
The post Terran Orbital delivers 10 satellite buses to Lockheed Martin for U.S.
Underground Italian lab searches for signals of quantum gravity
Thursday, 22 December 2022 09:34
For decades physicists have been hunting for a quantum-gravity model that would unify quantum physics, the laws that govern the very small, and gravity. One major obstacle has been the difficulty in testing the predictions of candidate models experimentally. But some of the models predict an effect that can be probed in the lab: a very small violation of a fundamental quantum tenet called the Pa Chinese space-tracking ship sets sail for new missions
Thursday, 22 December 2022 09:34
China's space-tracking ship, Yuanwang 3, set sail on Sunday for a new round of spacecraft monitoring missions. The ship, which is a second-generation vessel and responsible for monitoring high-, medium-, and low-orbit satellites, spaceships, and space station modules, has a long history of service. It was launched over 20 years ago and has completed more than 100 missions with a 100% success rat North Korea claims spy satellite progress, posts imagery of Seoul, Incheon
Thursday, 22 December 2022 09:34
North Korea claimed Monday to have taken satellite photos of the South Korean cities of Seoul and Incheon, as its state media boasted of success toward developing its first military spy satellite.
The state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported an "important final-stage test" involving a mock satellite that it said was launched Sunday from the Sohae Satellite Launching Station in Christmas craterscape
Thursday, 22 December 2022 09:00
This beautifully crisp icy scene with a swirling ribbon of rusty red and white striped terrain connecting two large craters wraps up the year on Mars.
Northrop Grumman space navigation systems achieve galactic threshold
Thursday, 22 December 2022 07:42
When considering that a full calendar year has 8,760 hours and a commercial airliner can be in service for about 30 years (or around 165,000 flying hours), then achieving a continuous performance milestone of 65 million hours is truly out of this world - exactly where Northrop Grumman navigation technology has been operating for decades.
In 2022, Northrop Grumman's hemispherical resonator UK space regulator issues Virgin Orbit licenses ahead of UK launch
Thursday, 22 December 2022 07:42
The UK Civil Aviation Authority has issued the final remaining licences to Virgin Orbit ahead of a planned UK launch after requirements were met within 15 months. The licences were issued following consent from Transport Secretary Mark Harper for Virgin Orbit's launch and range licence, meaning he is in agreement with the licensing decisions made by the UK Civil Aviation Authority.
Virgin Exploration power for the Moon, Mars, and Beyond
Thursday, 22 December 2022 07:42
With Artemis, NASA looks to accomplish something unprecedented - exploration of the lunar South Pole. When astronauts reach their destination and establish a long-term presence, a unique challenge awaits.
Unlike Apollo missions, which were equatorial and had abundant sunlight, Artemis missions will operate in inhospitable conditions, including the lunar night cycle and permanently shadowed Sol 3688: Arm Day
Thursday, 22 December 2022 07:42
We were very glad to come in to today's planning to see the drive placed us in a perfect position to bring out the robotic arm to do some science! The rover will spend the first several hours of the sol 3688 plan taking ChemCam and Mastcam. ChemCam will use its laser on the target "Quixada" followed by ChemCam imaging of "Xiriana" and "Xidao." Then Mastcam takes over with imaging the now-laser z Leaving the Amapari Drill Site: Sol 3687
Thursday, 22 December 2022 07:42
Slight change of plans! The drive that Curiosity was supposed to complete over the weekend was pulled from her plan, so the rover started the day at the Amapari drill site. We will recover our ChemCam and Mastcam coordinated observation of target "Aricama" to document the bedrock composition of the Marker Band. ChemCam will also acquire passive spectroscopy of the bedrock from the "Puraque" targ Perseverance deposits first sample on Mars surface
Thursday, 22 December 2022 07:42
A titanium tube containing a rock sample is resting on the Red Planet's surface after being placed there on Dec. 21 by NASA's Perseverance Mars rover. Over the next two months, the rover will deposit a total of 10 tubes at the location, called "Three Forks," building humanity's first sample depot on another planet. The depot marks a historic early step in the Mars Sample Return campaign.
P NASA retires InSight Mars Lander
Thursday, 22 December 2022 07:42
The mission has concluded that the solar-powered lander has run out of energy after more than four years on the Red Planet.
NASA's InSight mission has ended after more than four years of collecting unique science on Mars.
Mission controllers at the agency's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California were unable to contact the lander after two consecutive attempts, leading them