Copernical Team
BlackSky Secures One-Year Extension for NRO Imagery Contract
BlackSky Technology Inc. (NYSE: BKSY) received a one-year extension contract from the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) to continue its Electro-Optical Commercial Layer (EOCL) subscription for high-frequency Gen-2 imagery services. "This contract represents continued confidence in BlackSky as a trusted mission partner as the NRO makes strides in leveraging commercial space technology to
Iridium Secures Five-Year $94 Million Contract with Space Systems Command
Iridium Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: IRDM) announced a new five-year contract awarded by the United States Space Force's Space Systems Command's Commercial Space Office (COMSO) for Enhanced Mobile Satellite Services (EMSS) capabilities and security sustainment services (ECS3). This contract supports the Iridium EMSS program, ensuring continued operations of the EMSS Service Center for critical U
Carbon capture must quadruple by 2050 to meet climate targets: report
By 2050, humanity must durably remove four times as much CO2 from the air as today to cap global warming below the crucial target of two degrees Celsius, researchers said Tuesday. But massively expanding CO2-absorbing forests - 99 percent of current carbon removal - could claim land needed to grow food and biofuels, while it remains highly uncertain whether new technologies for sucking CO2
SES Space and Defense Successfully Demonstrates Multi-orbit, Multi-band LEO Relay
SES Space and Defense, a subsidiary of SES, has announced the successful demonstration of a multi-orbit, multi-band commercial space relay service for NASA's Communications Services Project (CSP). In collaboration with Planet Labs, SES utilized its O3b mPOWER satellite constellation in Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) and Planet's Low Earth Orbit (LEO) flight-representative terminal to demonstrate
ILA 2024 – Day 1
Europe's Largest Ground Segment Upgraded Without User Disruption
Over 200 professionals from ESA, EUSPA, and European industry across four Galileo centres and seven external entities have successfully upgraded Galileo's extensive ground segment. This operation involved the deployment of 400 items and five months of rehearsals, culminating in the seamless transition to System Build 2.0. With 30 satellites in orbit, Galileo provides metre-level accuracy t
Scientists Find Slowest-Spinning Radio Neutron Star
Scientists have detected what they believe to be a neutron star spinning at an unprecedentedly slow rate - slower than any of the more than 3,000 radio-emitting neutron stars measured to date. Neutron stars, the dense remnants of a dead star, typically rotate at extremely high speeds, taking just seconds or even less to fully spin on their axis. However, the newly discovered neutron star,
Photographer's Discovery and Swarm Data Reveal Steve's Twin
Ever since aurora chasers discovered Steve, a mysterious ribbon of purple light in the night sky, scientists have wondered whether it might have a secret twin. Thanks to a photographer's keen eye and data from ESA's Swarm satellites, we may have found it. Steve was first identified a few years ago by the Alberta Aurora Chasers Facebook group. Its mauve hue and fleeting appearance different
NASA's Webb Telescope Observes Potentially Habitable Exoplanets
Exoplanets are common in our galaxy, with some located in the habitable zone of their stars. NASA's James Webb Space Telescope is currently observing several of these small, potentially habitable planets. Drs. Knicole Colon and Christopher Stark, Webb project scientists at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, discuss the challenges in studying these worlds. "A potentially habitable planet i
Newly Discovered Planet Retains Atmosphere Despite Star's Intense Radiation
A rare exoplanet near its host star has retained a puffy atmosphere, defying expectations of being stripped down to bare rock due to the star's intense radiation. This discovery is challenging current theories about planetary evolution in extreme environments. Nicknamed "Phoenix," the newly discovered planet shows the vast diversity of solar systems and the complexity of planetary evolutio