Astronomers spot a 'blinking giant' near the centre of the Galaxy
Monday, 14 June 2021 05:29
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Astronomers have spotted a giant 'blinking' star towards the centre of the Milky Way, more than 25,000 light years away. An international team of astronomers observed the star, VVV-WIT-08, decreasing in brightness by a factor of 30, so that it nearly disappeared from the sky. While many stars change in brightness because they pulsate or are eclipsed by another star in a binary system, it's excep A new animation shows 'A day without space'
Monday, 14 June 2021 05:29 Write a comment
What would happen if all the satellites orbiting Earth stopped working? In short, global chaos would ensue. "Satellites have long been an integral part of our day-to-day lives. The services they provide are indispensable for mobility on land, at sea and in the air, for all power and communications networks, for the international systems used for financial transactions, global weather forecasting Rover leaves 'China's imprint' on Mars
Monday, 14 June 2021 05:29 Write a comment
Solar panel "wings" spread out and two camera "eyes" pointing ahead, China's Mars rover Zhurong struck a birdlike pose as it explored the red planet in photos released by the country's space agency Friday.
Zhurong's touchdown in May was the first ever successful probe landing by any country on its first Mars mission - a milestone in China's ascent to space superpower status.
The rover, China making plans for future space exploration: official
Monday, 14 June 2021 05:29 Write a comment
China is making plans for the future development of its space program, including exploring asteroids and the Jovian system, collecting samples from Mars and exploring the polar region of the moon, said an official from the China National Space Administration (CNSA) on Saturday.
Xu Hongliang, a spokesperson of the CNSA, said at a press conference held in Beijing that about the year 2025 Chi ISS National Lab to Host Session at World Stem Cell Summit
Monday, 14 June 2021 05:29 Write a comment
The International Space Station (ISS) U.S. National Laboratory will host a panel of industry experts on the impacts of health, aging, and human survival research onboard the orbiting laboratory at the World Stem Cell Summit.
This annual event brings together noted science, industry and policy experts in regenerative medicine. It also provides multiple forums to discuss the impacts of curre Trip to space with Jeff Bezos sells for $28 mn
Sunday, 13 June 2021 19:42 Write a comment
A mystery bidder paid $28 million at auction Saturday for a seat alongside Jeff Bezos on board the first crewed spaceflight of the billionaire's company Blue Origin next month.
The Amazon founder revealed this week that both he and his brother Mark would take seats on board the company's New Shepard launch vehicle on July 20, to fly to the edge of space and back.
The Bezos brothers will be joined by the winner of Saturday's charity auction, whose identity remains unknown, and by a fourth, as yet unnamed space tourist.
Northrop Grumman’s Pegasus rocket launches U.S. Space Force mission
Sunday, 13 June 2021 14:08 Write a comment
WASHINGTON — A Northrop Grumman Pegasus XL rocket launched the U.S. Space Force’s Tactically Responsive Launch-2 (TacRL-2) mission June 13 at 1:11 a.m. Pacific from Vandenberg Space Force Base, California.
The payload was successfully deployed to low Earth orbit, a Space Force spokesman said Sunday.
New Virginia spaceport head seeks to increase launch activity
Sunday, 13 June 2021 12:12 Write a comment
WASHINGTON — The new head of Virginia’s commercial spaceport on Wallops Island says he wants to increase launch activity at the site, while acknowledging that there are limits as to how big it can grow.
Virginia Gov.
Blue Origin auctions New Shepard seat for $28 million
Saturday, 12 June 2021 16:17 Write a comment
WASHINGTON — A seat on the first crewed flight of Blue Origin’s New Shepard suborbital vehicle sold for $28 million at an auction June 12.
The live auction wrapped up a bidding process that the company announced May 5 to sell the seat on the flight, scheduled for July 20 from the company’s West Texas test site.
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Heat vision Governments ally for federated quantum encryption satellite network
Friday, 11 June 2021 19:04 Write a comment
TAMPA, Fla. — The United States and five other countries are banding together with the United Kingdom to develop a satellite-based quantum technology encryption network.
The Federated Quantum System (FQS) will be based on the one British startup Arqit is developing for commercial customers, using quantum technology breakthroughs to guard against increasingly sophisticated cyberattacks.
Seraphim Capital unveils world’s first listed space technology fund
Friday, 11 June 2021 16:04 Write a comment
TAMPA, Fla. — Seraphim Capital plans to trade stakes it has amassed in space technology startups on the public market through an investment trust.
The Seraphim Space Investment Trust will eventually comprise bets in 19 international startups, including satellite data specialist Spire Global, quantum encryption firm Arqit and space-based cellular network operator AST Space Mobile.
Week in images: 07 - 11 June 2021
Friday, 11 June 2021 12:36 Write a comment
Week in images: 07 - 11 June 2021
Discover our week through the lens
NASA selects new science investigations for future moon deliveries
Friday, 11 June 2021 12:10 Write a comment
As NASA continues plans for multiple commercial deliveries to the moon's surface per year, the agency has selected three new scientific investigation payload suites to advance understanding of Earth's nearest neighbor. Two of the payload suites will land on the far side of the moon, a first for NASA. All three investigations will receive rides to the lunar surface as part of NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services, or CLPS, initiative, part of the agency's Artemis approach.
The payloads mark the agency's first selections from its Payloads and Research Investigations on the Surface of the Moon (PRISM) call for proposals.
"These selections add to our robust pipeline of science payloads and investigations to be delivered to the moon through CLPS," said Joel Kearns, deputy associate administrator for exploration in NASA's Science Mission Directorate. "With each new PRISM selection, we will build on our capabilities to enable bigger and better science and prove technology which will help pave the way for returning astronauts to the moon through Artemis."
Lunar Vertex, one of the three selections, is a joint lander and rover payload suite slated for delivery to Reiner Gamma—one of the most distinctive and enigmatic natural features on the moon, known as a lunar swirl.
NASA launches baby squid and water bears to the International Space Station
Friday, 11 June 2021 12:07 Write a comment
From worms to quail, the ISS has housed all kinds of creatures great and small over the years. Animal research in space is about to welcome some new members to the club.
Aboard SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket, 128 baby glow-in-the-dark bobtail squid and about 5,000 microscopic animals are headed to the ISS. The animals are tardigrades, better known as water bears, and they can be found everywhere on Earth.
Something fishy going on
The squid will be used to explore the effects of spaceflight on the interactions between microbes and animals. "Animals, including humans, rely on our microbes to maintain a healthy digestive and immune system. We do not fully understand how spaceflight alters these beneficial interactions," principal investigator Jamie Foster, a professor in the department of microbiology and cell science at the University of Florida, told the "BBC."
Prof. Foster added that the squid will "address these important issues in animal health." What makes the squid interesting is that they glow in the dark thanks to an organ in their sac.