Copernical Team
The 2022 Geminids meteor shower is approaching
The cosmos' annual gift to sky watchers, the Geminids Meteor shower, will peak on Dec. 13-14 this year.
During peak activity and perfect weather conditions, which are rare, the Geminids produce approximately 100-150 meteors per hour for viewing. However, this year a wanning gibbous moon will make it harder to view most of the shower, resulting in only 30-40 visible meteors per hour at the Mars set to wink out behind the Moon
On the night of December 7-8, Mars will be at opposition - opposite the Sun's position in the sky. On that date, Earth is situated directly between Mars and the Sun. The planet is at its brightest, rising as the Sun sets and setting as the Sun rises. Opposition and closest approach to Earth, however, are offset by several days due to the relative shape and orientation of each planet's orbit. Mar Space Force's Wide Field of View achieves First Light
The United States Space Force Space Systems Command's Wide Field of View Testbed transmitted its "First Light" mission data-product. Performing the satellite's mission operations, Millennium Space Systems, a Boeing (NYSE: BA) company, secured the data beginning October 25.
"Achieving this major milestone is a huge accomplishment, and we are very excited to enter into the calibration phase China astronauts return from Tiangong space station
Three Chinese astronauts safely returned to Earth on Sunday after six months aboard the Tiangong space station, state media quoted the country's space agency as saying, with their mission deemed a "complete success."
The team, which had been aboard the station since early June, touched down at the Dongfeng landing site in Inner Mongolia at 8:09 pm Beijing time (1209 GMT), Xinhua news agency AST SpaceMobile closes $75M funding round
AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ: ASTS) has closed of its offering of 13,636,364 shares of Class A Common Stock raising gross proceeds of $75.0 million. B. Riley Securities ("B. Riley") was the sole book-running manager of the offering. The Company has also granted B. Riley a 30-day option to purchase an additional 2,045,454 shares to cover over-allotments, if any, which would raise an additional $ SpaceX gets federal approval to launch 7,500 communication satellites
SpaceX, the American aerospace manufacturing company owned by billionaire Elon Musk, has received federal approval to launch 7,500 satellites in an operation that would expand the company's Starlink internet services around the world.
Thursday's decision by the Federal Communications Commission, although not everything SpaceX wanted, was seen as a monumental victory for the company as i Orion set for final Lunar flyby
Orion performed the second return trajectory correction burn on Sunday, Dec. 4, at 10:43 a.m. CST, using the auxiliary thrusters and increasing the spacecraft's velocity by 1.16 mph (1.71 feet per second).
Shortly after acquiring signal with the Deep Space Network's Canberra ground station at 12:41 a.m. CST, Orion experienced an issue with a power conditioning distribution unit (PCDU), in Australia starts building 'momentous' radio telescope
Australia on Monday started building a vast network of antennas in the Outback, its section of what planners say will eventually become one of the most powerful radio telescopes in the world.
When complete, the antennas in Australia and a network of dishes in South Africa will form the Square Kilometer Array (SKA), a massive instrument that will aim to untangle mysteries about the creation of stars, galaxies and extraterrestrial life.
The idea for the telescope was first conceived in the early 1990s, but the project was plagued by delays, funding issues and diplomatic jockeying.
Three Chinese astronauts return to Earth after 6-month mission
The world finally has its first 'parastronaut'. Can we expect anyone to be able to go to space one day?
The European Space Agency made history last week with the announcement of the first "parastronaut," 41-year-old UK citizen John McFall.
He is the first candidate selected for the Parastronaut Feasibility project, described by ESA as a "serious, dedicated and honest attempt to clear the path to space for a professional astronaut with a physical disability."
McFall, a former Paralympic sprinter, had his right leg amputated after a motorcycle accident at age 19.
Most of us are familiar with images of grueling astronaut selection tests and training from movies such as The Right Stuff. ESA seeks to answer the practical question of what changes to training and equipment need to be made for a physically disabled person to travel to space.
How are astronauts selected?
NASA first selected astronauts, the Mercury Seven, in 1959.
