Copernical Team
In a first, scientists capture a 'quantum tug' between neighboring water molecules
Water is the most abundant yet least understood liquid in nature. It exhibits many strange behaviors that scientists still struggle to explain. While most liquids get denser as they get colder, water is most dense at 39 degrees Fahrenheit, just above its freezing point. This is why ice floats to the top of a drinking glass and lakes freeze from the surface down, allowing marine life to survive c
Space exploration priority of nation's sci-tech agenda
President emphasizes cooperation on making bigger contributions to well-being of mankind China is working on several huge space programs that aim to push forward the frontiers of its science, technology, engineering and exploration. Once these programs are completed, the nation will have a massive space station, an unmanned outpost and more robots on the moon, and it is attempting to
Galaxies pump out contaminated exhausts
A team of astronomers led by Alex Cameron and Deanne Fisher from the ARC Centre of Excellence for All Sky Astrophysics in 3 Dimensions (ASTRO 3D) used a new imaging system on at the WM Keck Observatory in Hawaii to confirm that what flows into a galaxy is a lot cleaner than what flows out. "Enormous clouds of gas are pulled into galaxies and used in the process of making stars," said co-le
World's first space junk cleaner satellite successfully picks up orbital debris
According to the Union of Concerned Scientists' database, there are more than 3,300 functioning satellites in orbit and thousands of pieces of junk that can be traced, including discarded boosters, derelict satellites, and pieces that have fallen off of vessels. In a major development that may ease concerns that dead satellites are being left to litter space, Japan's private firm Astroscal
Mars mission to pause for about 50 days
China's Tianwen 1 Mars mission will be inactivated for about 50 days from mid-September due to an expected disruption of its communications with Earth caused by solar electromagnetic radiation, the mission's chief designer said. During the period, which will end in early November, the Zhurong rover and the mission's orbiter will suspend their working mode, Zhang Rongqiao of the China Natio
AFRL extends capability for testing solid rocket motors with new equipment
The Air Force Research Laboratory's Rocket Propulsion Division has a new capability, a Split-Hopkinson Pressure Bar system, also known as a Kolsky bar, that measures stress at high strain rates and helps analyze material behavior under severe conditions. "This system will give AFRL a new and unprecedented capability to test and gather data from any solid propellant we can manufacture," sai
Rogue Space and Firefly Aerospace sign Launch Service Agreement
Rogue Space Systems Corporation, a U.S. company that is developing a smart spacecraft program and is planning to offer transport, and in-space services to the growing space market, and Firefly Aerospace, a leading provider of economical and dependable launch vehicles, spacecraft, and in-space services, has announced they have signed a Launch Service Agreement (LSA). The agreement confirms that R
Navy conducts test of second stage rocket motor for hypersonic missiles
The Navy has successfully tested a second stage hypersonic rocket motor, the branch said Thursday. Navy Strategic Systems Programs successfully conducted the initial live-fire test of the second stage Solid Rocket Motor on Wednesday, in Promontory, Utah, the Navy SSP said in a statement. The test was done as a step toward developing a common hypersonic missile for the Army and Na
GOLD's bird's-eye reveals dynamics in Earth's interface to space
New research using data from NASA's Global-scale Observations of the Limb and Disk, or GOLD, mission, has revealed unexpected behavior in the swaths of charged particles that band Earth's equator - made possibly by GOLD's long-term global view, the first of its kind for this type of measurement. GOLD is in geostationary orbit, which means it orbits around Earth at the same pace the planet
Beyond Earth Releases Space Solar Power Report
The Beyond Earth Institute (BEI) unveiled "Catching the Sun: A National Strategy for Space Solar Power," a new report on Space Solar Power (SSP) today. SSP uses solar panels in space to collect power from the Sun to serve the energy needs of the people on Earth. The full report can be downloaded here. "It is rare when a single project can help us achieve so many goals" said Tony DeTora, Be