
Copernical Team
Thursday, 21 December 2023 02:54
Sussex research takes us a step closer to sustaining human life on Mars
Brighton UK (SPX) Dec 21, 2023
Researchers at the University of Sussex have discovered the transformative potential of Martian nanomaterials, potentially opening the door to sustainable habitation on the red planet.
Using resources and techniques currently applied on the International Space Station and by NASA, Dr Conor Boland, a Lecturer in Materials Physics at the University of Sussex, led a research group that invest

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Thursday, 21 December 2023 02:54
SpaceX and Intuitive Machines set revised launch window for IM-1 lunar mission
Los Angeles CA (SPX) Dec 21, 2023
Intuitive Machines, Inc. (Nasdaq: LUNR, LUNRW), in a recent announcement made in coordination with SpaceX, has set a new launch window for its much-anticipated IM-1 lunar mission. The mission, now targeting a multi-day window opening in mid-February 2024, has been rescheduled due to shifts in the SpaceX launch manifest, primarily caused by unfavorable weather conditions.
The IM-1 mission i

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Thursday, 21 December 2023 02:54
Recent volcanism on Mars reveals a planet more active than previously thought
Tucson AZ (SPX) Dec 21, 2023
A vast, flat, "featureless" plain on Mars surprised researchers by revealing a much more tumultuous geologic past than expected, according to a study led by researchers at the University of Arizona. Enormous amounts of lava have erupted from numerous fissures as recently as one million years ago, blanketing an area almost as large as Alaska and interacting with water in and under the surface, re

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Thursday, 21 December 2023 02:54
Hera's wings of power
Paris (ESA) Dec 22, 2023
The solar wings that will power ESA's Hera asteroid mission for planetary defence as it ventures out to meet the Dimorphos asteroid have been cleared for flight. As part of its current test campaign at ESA's ESTEC Test Centre in the Netherlands, the spacecraft commanded the deployment of the wings one at a time, as it will do in space directly after launch - known as a 'hot deployment'.
Th

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Thursday, 21 December 2023 02:54
Rocker-Bogie Around the Marsmas Sea: Sols 4041-4042
Pasadena CA (JPL) Dec 22, 2023
Earth planning date: Monday, December 18, 2023: On the 4040 sol of Marsmas my downlink gave to me, a faulted drive and a wheelie! That's right, folks, we're popping Christmas-sized wheelies this year, bigger than we've ever seen before! It's a little hard to tell from the Navcam perspective, but the cover photo above shows our right-middle wheel (bottom in image) completely off the ground in sus

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Thursday, 21 December 2023 02:54
Zhurong Rover Unveils Ancient Polygonal Terrain Under Mars' Utopia Planitia
Sydney, Australia (SPX) Dec 21, 2023
A team of researchers from the Institute of Geology and Geophysics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (IGGCAS) has made a significant discovery using the Zhurong rover's ground-penetrating radar on Mars. Their study, conducted in the expansive Utopia Planitia region, reveals buried palaeo-polygonal terrain, suggesting that this area experienced considerable climatic variability in ancient Martia

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Thursday, 21 December 2023 02:54
Virgin Galactic sets January 2024 for 11th mission
Los Angeles CA (SPX) Dec 21, 2023
Virgin Galactic Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SPCE) has officially announced the opening of its 'Galactic 06' flight window on January 26, 2024. This mission will mark the company's 11th spaceflight, following a year of remarkable achievements in human spaceflight, including six suborbital missions in just six months.
The upcoming 'Galactic 06' flight is set to continue Virgin Galactic's pioneering

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Thursday, 21 December 2023 02:54
NASA Outlines Future Strategy for Post-ISS Microgravity Research Labs in LEO
Los Angeles CA (SPX) Dec 21, 2023
In a recent development marking a significant shift in space research dynamics, NASA is actively developing a strategy for establishing the next generation of microgravity national labs in a commercial space station environment. This move comes in response to a directive from the National Space Council in September 2022, tasking NASA with crafting a plan for this new era in space research.

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Thursday, 21 December 2023 02:54
NASA's 3D-printed Rotating Detonation Rocket Engine Test a Success
Huntsville AL (SPX) Dec 21, 2023
NASA has achieved a new benchmark in developing an innovative propulsion system called the Rotating Detonation Rocket Engine (RDRE). Engineers at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, successfully tested a novel, 3D-printed RDRE for 251 seconds (or longer than four minutes), producing more than 5,800 pounds of thrust.
That kind of sustained burn emulates typical requi

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Wednesday, 20 December 2023 17:23
Mighty MURI brings the heat to test new longwave infrared radiometer

NASA's new Multiband Uncooled Radiometer Instrument (MURI) features a novel bolometer that detects infrared radiation without a cryogenic cooler, greatly reducing the cost and complexity of dispatching infrared radiometers into low-Earth orbit.
First-light data from NASA's new Multiband Uncooled Radiometer Instrument (MURI) shows its novel, uncooled microbolometer is operational, setting the stage for future space missions dedicated to observing Earth's surface temperature with a cost-effective instrument.
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