NASA's Perseverance rover has given us an otherworldly skywatching treat — the minuscule Mars moon Deimos, twinkling in the dusty Red Planet skies.
Space News & Blog Articles
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Fusion experiment smashes record for generating energy, takes us a step closer to a new source of power
Scientists have calculated that Earth is 4.54 billion years old, with an error range of 50 million years.
Chinese astronauts complete second spacewalk at new space station
Chinese astronauts conducted their second spacewalk outside of the country's new space station on Friday, installing a range of equipment including a back-up air-conditioning unit.
Astronomy Jargon 101: R-Process
In this series we are exploring the weird and wonderful world of astronomy jargon! You’ll quickly see what we’re talking about this week: r-process!
How do you make heavy elements? Some can be forged deep inside a star, where the intense pressures and temperatures are enough to fuse elements. Right now, at this very moment, the sun is turning hydrogen into helium. Towards the end of its life, it will convert helium into carbon and oxygen. Even heavier stars can forge silicon, magnesium, and iron.
It’s through this process that the stars of our universe have turned the primordial hydrogen and helium of the big bang into more elements. But stars themselves are incapable of fusing elements beyond iron, because that fusion process sucks up energy rather than releasing it.
To make elements heavier than iron, you need a few key ingredients. One, you need a lot of seeds, a lot of nuclei roaming around, ready to get heavy. Two, you need neutrons. A lot of them. Three, you need way more energy than is strictly reasonable.
These are the ingredients behind the r-process, which is short for rapid neutron-capture process. It happens in extreme environments. On Earth, it can happen briefly during a nuclear bomb detonation. In space, it happens when stars go supernova or neutron stars collide.
Sodium 'fizz' gives big asteroid Phaethon its weird comet-like appearance
As an asteroid, Phaethon is a ball composed mainly of rock, and it shouldn't have enough water ice to form the glowing fuzzy coma and tail that adorn a comet.
What can we do with a captured asteroid?
Asteroids are packed with gold and other valuable resources. And the best way to harvest those metals may be to bring space rocks to Earth.
Space beer, anyone? Hops flying on SpaceX's private astronaut mission Inspiration4 will be auctioned for charity
Billionaire Jared Isaacman is looking for a brewery to make beer with space-flown hops — for a good cause.
August full moon 2021: The 'Sturgeon Moon' swings by Jupiter this weekend
The full moon of August arrives Sunday (Aug. 22), after it makes a close pass to Jupiter and Saturn.
Japan’s Mission to Phobos Will Also Bring a Sample Home by 2029
Japan’s space agency (JAXA) is gearing up for its Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) mission, with plans to have a sample from Mars’ moon Phobos return to Earth by 2029. Mission scientists say they hope to find clues to the origins of Mars two moons, as well as Mars itself, and possibly even traces of past life.
“We think that the Martian moon, Phobos, is loaded with material lifted from Mars during meteorite impacts,” the MMX team said on Twitter. “By collecting this Phobos sample, MMX will help investigate traces of Martian life and the new era of Martian habitability exploration in the 2020s will begin.”
MMX currently has a planned launch in 2024, with the spacecraft reaching the Mars system by 2025, approximately one year after leaving Earth. Current plans for the mission include an orbiter, a lander that touches down on Phobos with sample collection and return capability, and perhaps even a rover.
A newly released overview of the MMX mission. Credit: JAXAThe orbiter will be placed in a so-called Quasi Satellite Orbit (QSO) around Phobos, to collect scientific data. After both orbital and in situ observations, and sample collection, the lander spacecraft will liftoff to return to Earth carrying the sample of material gathered from Phobos. Current plans are for the lander to collect 10 grams (0.35 ounce) of soil. In a news briefing this week, and reported by the Associated Press, JAXA scientists said that perhaps about 0.1% of the surface soil on Phobos came from Mars, and 10 grams could contain about 30 granules, depending on the consistency of the soil.
The team says their exploration of the Martian moons will help improve technology for future planet and satellite exploration. They say their mission will aid in advancements, for example, in the technology required to make round-trips between the Earth and Mars, enhanced sampling techniques and optimal communication technology using the Deep Space Network ground stations.
NASA halts human moon lander work with SpaceX amid Blue Origin lawsuit
NASA must again stop work on its human moon lander partnership with SpaceX due to a Blue Origin lawsuit, further risking the agency's tight timeline to return astronauts to the moon.
Epic radio images give most-detailed views of distant galaxies
The most detailed radio images of galaxies outside the Milky Way have been captured by a network of 70,000 radio antennas spread over nine European countries.
NASA awards $500,000 to develop moon-mining tech
NASA has awarded a total of $500,000 to 13 different teams via its Break the Ice Lunar Challenge, a competition designed to nurture the development of moon-mining tech.
China's Mars rover Zhurong sets completes primary mission, gets life extension
China's Zhurong rover has completed its primary three-month-long expedition on Mars but is set to continue exploring the Red Planet.
Flying on Mars getting tougher as Ingenuity helicopter gears up for 14th hop
Image: New radar images show the A-74 iceberg spinning around the western tip of the Brunt Ice Shelf, brushing slightly against it before continuing southwards.
Stunning image shows galactic dance of stars swirling around a supermassive black hole
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After four months of darkness, it is finally time to rise and shine for the crew at Concordia Research Station in Antarctica. The most-welcome Sun finally made its appearance on 11 August and ESA-sponsored medical doctor Nick Smith was not about to miss it.
For nine months Nick and his fellow crew mates have been living and working in one of the most isolated, confined and extreme environments on Earth, with no way in or out of the Station during the winter-over period.
Nick is overseeing experiments in human physiology and biology, atmospheric physics, meteorology, and astronomy, among other disciplines. Along with the rest of the crew, he is also maintaining the base – one of only three to run year-round in the Antarctic.
Four months of complete darkness is quite the challenge, and one researchers are very interested in studying from a physiological and psychological point of view. From questionnaires to blood and stool samples, the crew are poked and prodded to understand how better to prepare humans for deep space travel.
Social dynamics are also of interest to researchers during the period of darkness. Stress brought on by lack of sunlight, changing sleep patterns, fatigue and moodiness can affect the group. The crew are especially encouraged to take on group activities and get creative to combat the isolation of the winter. And not just with their own station crew.
This Week's Sky at a Glance, August 20 – 28
Jupiter ands Saturn are just past opposition, so they dominate the sky all night. They inhabit dim Capricornus, which pushes Sagittarius westward. Venus, even showier, owns the western twilight but sets by full darkness.
The post This Week's Sky at a Glance, August 20 – 28 appeared first on Sky & Telescope.
The 12-Year Cycle of Jupiter Oppositions
Jupiter is at opposition on August 19th. If we take the long view — 12 years long — we can watch Jupiter's oppositions as it passes through the zodiac constellations.
The post The 12-Year Cycle of Jupiter Oppositions appeared first on Sky & Telescope.
Venus: Thin-skinned and Likely to Blow
Scientists found a strange little volcanic feature on the edge of a Venusian corona, giving further credence to the theory that the planet has a thin outer layer and an active interior.
The post Venus: Thin-skinned and Likely to Blow appeared first on Sky & Telescope.
Musk Confirms how “Mechazilla” Will Catch and Assemble Starship and Super Heavy for Rapid Reuse
In January of 2021, Elon Musk announced SpaceX’s latest plan to increase the number of flights they can mount by drastically reducing turnaround time. The key to this was a new launch tower that would “catch” first stage boosters after they return to Earth. This would forego the need to install landing legs on future Super Heavy boosters and potentially future Starship returning to Earth.
Musk shared this idea in response to a Tweet made by an animator who goes by the Twitter handle Erc X, who asked if his latest render (of a Starship landing next to its launch tower) was accurate. As usual, Musk responded via Twitter, saying:
“We’re going to try to catch the Super Heavy Booster with the launch tower arm, using the grid fins to take the load… Saves mass & cost of legs & enables immediate repositioning of booster on to launch mount—ready to refly in under an hour.”
The ground crews at SpaceX’s South Texas Launch Facility near Boca Chica recently finished stacking the nine sections of bolted steel that make up the tower, which now stands about 145 m (440 ft) tall. With this phase complete, the teams can now undergo the process of outfitting the tower with large actuator arms, hydraulic systems, fuel lines, and other components that will convert it into what Musk has affectionately nicknamed “Mechazilla.”
This was likely a reference to the character “Mechagodzilla” from the Godzilla movie franchise, a robotic version of Godzilla that squares off with the original in the 1974 film Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla. The moment Musk announced this new tower, people in the space community have been speculating what it might look like. The first to oblige him was a 3D designer (Youtube handle Mini3D) who created an animation based on Musk’s description the very next day.
