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12/08/2023 07:43 AM
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The International Space Station Celebrates 25 Years in Space
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NASA recently celebrated the 25th anniversary of the International Space Station (ISS) with a space-to-Earth call between the 7-person Expedition 70 crew and outgoing NASA Associate Administrator, Bob Cabana, and ISS Program Manager, Joel Montalbano. On December 6, 1998, the U.S.-built Unity module and the Russian-built Zarya module were mated in the Space Shuttle Endeavour …
Continue reading "The International Space Station Celebrates 25 Years in Space"
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12/07/2023 10:49 PM
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Fly Slowly Through Enceladus' Plumes to Detect Life
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Enceladus is blasting water into space from the jets at its southern pole. This makes it the ideal place to send a dedicated mission, flying the spacecraft through the plumes with life-detection instruments s. A new study suggests that a spacecraft must proceed carefully through the plumes, keeping its speed below 4.2 km/second (2,236 miles …
Continue reading "Fly Slowly Through Enceladus' Plumes to Detect Life"
The post Fly Slowly Through Enceladus' Plumes to Detect Life appeared first on Universe Today.
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12/07/2023 08:34 PM
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OSIRIS-REx Failed to Deploy its Drogue Chute Properly. Now NASA has Figured out Why
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On September 24, 2023, NASA’s OSIRIS-REx mission returned a precious sample of rocky material from asteroid Bennu to Earth. The capsule landed safely under its main parachute, but it arrived more than a minute early. The cause: a small drogue parachute, designed to slow the spacecraft down prior to the main chute’s deployment, failed to …
Continue reading "OSIRIS-REx Failed to Deploy its Drogue Chute Properly. Now NASA has Figured out Why"
The post OSIRIS-REx Failed to Deploy its Drogue Chute Properly. Now NASA has Figured out Why appeared first on Universe Today.
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12/07/2023 04:16 AM
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In 1872, a Solar Storm Hit the Earth Generating Auroras from the Tropics to the Poles
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Imagine a solar storm generating auroral displays across the entire sky. No, we haven’t quite seen them that strong in the current solar cycle. But, back in February 1872, people around the world reported seeing brilliant northern and southern lights. The culprit? A medium-sized sunspot group that unleased a torrent of charged particles in a …
Continue reading "In 1872, a Solar Storm Hit the Earth Generating Auroras from the Tropics to the Poles"
The post In 1872, a Solar Storm Hit the Earth Generating Auroras from the Tropics to the Poles appeared first on Universe Today.
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12/07/2023 01:15 AM
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For its Final Trick, Chandrayaan-3 Brings its Propulsion Module to Earth Orbit
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On August 23, ISRO’s Vikram lander detached from its propulsion module and made a soft landing near the Moon’s south pole region. The lander then deployed its Pragyan rover, and for two weeks the endearing little solar-powered rover performed marvelously, detecting water ice and characterizing the makeup of the lunar regolith before succumbing to the …
Continue reading "For its Final Trick, Chandrayaan-3 Brings its Propulsion Module to Earth Orbit"
The post For its Final Trick, Chandrayaan-3 Brings its Propulsion Module to Earth Orbit appeared first on Universe Today.
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12/06/2023 11:25 PM
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ESA’s Ariel Mission is Approved to Begin Construction
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We’re about to learn a lot more about exoplanets. The ESA has just approved the construction of its Ariel mission, which will give us our first large survey of exoplanet atmospheres. The space telescope will help us answer fundamental questions about how planets form and evolve. The JWST has proven the value of infrared telescopes …
Continue reading "ESA’s Ariel Mission is Approved to Begin Construction"
The post ESA’s Ariel Mission is Approved to Begin Construction appeared first on Universe Today.
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12/06/2023 08:56 PM
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Communicating With a Relativistic Spacecraft Gets Pretty Weird
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Someday, in the not-too-distant future, humans may send robotic probes to explore nearby star systems. These robot explorers will likely take the form of lightsails and wafercraft (a la Breakthrough Starshot) that will rely on directed energy (lasers) to accelerate to relativistic speeds – aka. a fraction of the speed of light. With that kind …
Continue reading "Communicating With a Relativistic Spacecraft Gets Pretty Weird"
The post Communicating With a Relativistic Spacecraft Gets Pretty Weird appeared first on Universe Today.
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12/06/2023 07:54 PM
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99% of Space Junk is Undetectable. That Could Change Soon
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Private and military organizations are tracking some of the 170 million pieces of space junk orbiting the planet, but they’re limited to how small an object they can detect. Only chunks larger than a softball can be tracked with radar or optical systems, and that only accounts for less than 1% of the junk out …
Continue reading "99% of Space Junk is Undetectable. That Could Change Soon"
The post 99% of Space Junk is Undetectable. That Could Change Soon appeared first on Universe Today.
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12/06/2023 07:14 PM
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Astronomers Calculate Which Exoplanets Are Most Likely to Have Water
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Astronomers know of about 60 rocky exoplanets orbiting in the habitable zones of their stars. When they try to determine how habitable these planets might be, detecting water in their atmospheres plays a huge role. But what if there was another way of measuring the water content in these worlds? Researchers are developing a way …
Continue reading "Astronomers Calculate Which Exoplanets Are Most Likely to Have Water"
The post Astronomers Calculate Which Exoplanets Are Most Likely to Have Water appeared first on Universe Today.
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12/06/2023 03:43 PM
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Famed Halley’s Comet Passes Aphelion This Weekend
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Famous Halley’s Comet reaches a distant milestone this coming weekend.
The post Famed Halley’s Comet Passes Aphelion This Weekend appeared first on Universe Today.
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