China performs successful test towards reusable rocket goal
Monday, 24 June 2024 21:51
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China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp (CASC), the nation's leading space contractor, conducted a significant technological test on Sunday, bringing the company closer to its goal of building the nation's first reusable carrier rocket.
The state-owned conglomerate announced that one of its subsidiaries, the Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology, used an experimental rocket to per China lunar probe to return to Earth with samples
Monday, 24 June 2024 21:51 Write a comment
A Chinese probe carrying samples from the far side of the Moon is expected to return to Earth on Tuesday, capping a technically complex 53-day mission heralded as a world first.
Beijing has not disclosed the spacecraft's estimated arrival time, but experts say it will likely touch down in a barren expanse of desert in the northern Inner Mongolia region at around midday (0400 GMT).
It com Webb spots giant star clusters shaping galaxy in early universe
Monday, 24 June 2024 21:51 Write a comment
The James Webb space telescope has discovered massive clusters of stars in the early universe so huge and densely packed that they influenced how their galaxy formed, astronomers said on Monday.
The five clumps of stars, known as globular proto-clusters, are the earliest ever observed, dating back to 460 million years after the Big Bang when the universe was three percent its current age. 
U.S. Space Command sees promise in rocket cargo initiative
Monday, 24 June 2024 20:12
U.S. Space Command ready for potential Russian satellite attack, general says
Monday, 24 June 2024 19:08
Skynopy raises funds for scalable ground station network
Monday, 24 June 2024 17:10
Europe aims to end space access crisis with Ariane 6’s inaugural launch
Monday, 24 June 2024 16:05
Webb captures star clusters in Cosmic Gems arc
Monday, 24 June 2024 14:00 Write a comment
An international team of astronomers have used the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope to discover gravitationally bound star clusters when the Universe was 460 million years old. This is the first discovery of star clusters in an infant galaxy less than 500 million years after the Big Bang.
Could we put data centers in space?
Monday, 24 June 2024 13:42 Write a comment
Artificial intelligence has taken the world by storm lately. It also requires loads of band-end computing capability to do the near-miraculous things that it does. So far, that "compute," as it's known in the tech industry, has been based entirely on the ground. But is there an economic reason to do it in space? Some people seem to think so, as there has been a growing interest in space-based data centers. Let's take a look at why.
Space-based data centers have several advantages over ground-based ones. The first and most obvious is the near-unlimited amount of space in space. Second, there are plenty of potential options for novel power and cooling technologies that can't exist back on Earth. Third, using a space-based data center as a relay point for information could cut down on lag in data transfer between continents. Let's look at each in turn.
One of the significant constraints for data centers is space—they require large amounts of it, and it is expensive in the areas where they are most needed (i.e.
China may need to adjust its approach toward SpaceX
Monday, 24 June 2024 12:00
ESA astronaut class of 2022: Astro Chat with John McFall
Monday, 24 June 2024 11:30 Write a comment
Video:
00:24:06
John McFall, a member of the European astronaut reserve from the ESA astronaut class of 2022, brings a diverse background to his role. With experience as an orthopaedic and trauma surgeon and a former Paralympic sprinter, John is participating in the groundbreaking "Fly!" feasibility study. This initiative seeks to enhance our comprehension of the challenges posed by space flight for astronauts with physical disabilities, aiming to overcome these barriers. Tune in to discover more about John and the "Fly!" project.
This is Episode 9 of our ESA Explores podcast series, delving into everything you want to know about
SpaceX successful with booster replacement on Starlink mission
Monday, 24 June 2024 10:40 Write a comment
SpaceX was back at the launch pad Sunday with an updated rocket to finish off a Starlink mission it tried to send up earlier this month.
A Falcon 9 on the Starlink 10-2 mission lifted off at 1:15 p.m. from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station's Space Launch Complex 40 amid cloudy skies with 22 more Starlink satellites for the company's growing internet constellation that now numbers more than 6,100 satellites in orbit.
The launch came nine days since SpaceX last attempted to knock out the mission on June 14. That attempt had a rare scrub as the countdown clock reached 0 and the rocket was ultimately brought back from the pad to allow for last week's ASTRA 1P satellite launch to go up instead.
But the Starlink satellites returned to the pad, this time with a new first-stage booster, which flew for the 11th time and made another recovery landing on the droneship A Shortfall of Gravitas downrange in the Atlantic Ocean.
SpaceX did not reveal what was wrong with the original booster that was trying to fly for the 16th time.
Exercise examines response to long-term asteroid impact threat
Monday, 24 June 2024 09:58
Two large asteroids safely pass Earth just 42 hours apart
Monday, 24 June 2024 09:00 Write a comment
Two large asteroids will safely pass Earth this week, a rare occurrence perfectly timed to commemorate this year's Asteroid Day. Neither poses any risk to our planet, but one of them was only discovered a week ago, highlighting the need to continue improving our ability to detect potentially hazardous objects in our cosmic neighbourhood.