Tokyo (AFP) May 10, 2023
Japan on Wednesday enacted a law authorising courts to use GPS for tracking defendants on bail, a measure pushed for after the dramatic 2019 escape of former Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn. The revised criminal proceedings law approved Wednesday will enable courts to order the placement of GPS devices on defendants to prevent them from fleeing Japan. The defendants will be banned from removin

Pasadena CA (JPL) May 09, 2023
A versatile robot that would autonomously map, traverse, and explore previously inaccessible destinations is being put to the test at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. How do you create a robot that can go places no one has ever seen before - on its own, without real-time human input? A team at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory that's creating a snake-like robot for traversing extreme terra

Washington DC (SPX) May 10, 2023
For more than 60 years, NASA has pushed the boundaries of human exploration for the benefit of all, and now the agency's influence and experience are fueling U.S. commercial industry's growth in human spaceflight in low Earth orbit. In the not-too-distant past, one had to be sponsored by a government to fly to space. Now, fully private crews strap into commercially owned and operated human

London, UK (SPX) May 10, 2023
Viasat Inc., (NASDAQ: VSAT), a global communications company, and Inmarsat, a leading provider of global mobile satellite communications services, are pleased that the UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has announced the conclusion of its Phase II review, which confirmed its provisional findings that the transaction does not raise competition concerns, and allows Viasat's proposed acqu

San Antonio TX (SPX) May 10, 2023
NASA has selected Southwest Research Institute for a Phase A study to develop SwRI's Space Weather Solar Coronagraph (SwSCOR) on behalf of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). NOAA's Space Weather Next Program is charged with providing critical data for its space weather prediction center. SwRI is one of five organizations developing a definition-phase study to produce the

Pasadena CA (JPL) May 10, 2023
Earth planning date: Monday, May 8, 2023. A lot of preparation goes into assessing a potential drill site on Mars, and the "Ubajara" target got the usual treatment. Over the past several sols, Curiosity has diligently characterized the potential "Ubajara" drill site with activities such as MAHLI and APXS, brushing it with the dust removal tool, and completing a "preload" test. The preload

Washington DC (SPX) May 10, 2023
NASA has launched a new program aimed at helping space entrepreneurs and startups prepare to apply for SBIR Ignite funding. The SBIR Ignite Catalyst Program will provide founders with an opportunity to learn more about the SBIR Ignite program, build their NASA networks and knowledge, and strengthen their startup ecosystem connections. The program includes two key pillars: a Space Startup E

Wenchang, China (XNA) May 10, 2023
China's cargo spacecraft, Tianzhou 6, is ready for launch, according to the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site, under the Xichang Satellite Launch Center, in China's southern island province of Hainan. The launch of Tianzhou 6 will be the first spaceflight since China's space station entered into the application and development stage. The site has completed all preparations and a final

Long Beach CA (SPX) May 10, 2023
Rocket Lab USA, Inc. (Nasdaq: RKLB) has signed a deal to launch NASA's Starling mission, a multi-CubeSat mission to test and demonstrate autonomous swarm technologies, as well as automated space traffic management for groups of spacecraft in low-Earth orbit. The four Starling small satellites have been manifested on an Electron commercial rideshare mission scheduled for lift-off from Rocke

Paris, France (SPX) May 10, 2023
Arianespace and ClearSpace signed a launch contract for ClearSpace-1, the first active debris removal mission that will capture and deorbit a derelict space debris of 112 kg. The launch, scheduled starting as soon as the second-half of 2026, will use the European light launcher Vega C to release the spacecraft into a Low Earth/Sun-Synchronous drift orbit for commissioning and critical tests. The