
Copernical Team
Another Martian Weekend" Sols 3943-3945

Terran Orbital expands manufacturing at Irvine plant

Telestat, SpaceX announce agreement to launch satellites

Phase Four's next generation Maxwell Propulsion System Achieves Flight Heritage

Lockheed Martin opens futuristic satellite operations center test bed

Intelsat, Aalyria sign deal to advance multi-orbit connectivity

Lucy captures its first images of Asteroid Dinkinesh

Webb discovers methane, carbon dioxide in atmosphere of K2-18 b

Here's how the Sept. 24 asteroid sample delivery will work

Early morning on Sunday, Sept. 24, the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft's sample capsule will come face-to-face with Earth's atmosphere for the first time since the mission's 2016 launch. On board are an estimated 8.8 ounces, or 250 grams, of rocky material collected from the surface of Bennu in 2020—NASA's first asteroid sample and the largest ever collected in space.
When it approaches Earth, the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft won't slow down as it makes its sample drop-off. Instead, when it reaches 63,000 miles (or 102,000 kilometers) above Earth's surface—about one-third the distance from Earth to the moon—a message from operators on the ground will trigger the capsule's release and the capsule will be sent spinning toward the atmosphere below.
Webb discovers methane and carbon dioxide in atmosphere of K2-18 b

A new investigation by an international team of astronomers using data from the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope into K2-18 b, an exoplanet 8.6 times as massive as Earth, has revealed the presence of carbon-bearing molecules including methane and carbon dioxide. The discovery adds to recent studies suggesting that K2-18 b could be a Hycean exoplanet, one which has the potential to possess a hydrogen-rich atmosphere and a water ocean-covered surface.