Hubble remains in safe mode, NASA team investigating
Tuesday, 02 November 2021 07:28NASA is continuing to investigate why the instruments in the Hubble Space Telescope recently went into safe mode configuration, suspending science operations. The instruments are healthy and will remain in safe mode while the mission team continues its investigation. Hubble's science instruments issued error codes at 1:46 a.m. EDT Oct. 23, indicating the loss of a specific synchronization
Major Artemis engine part arrives at Stennis for certification testing
Tuesday, 02 November 2021 07:28The first four Artemis missions will use NASA's 16 upgraded RS-25 engines that previously powered space shuttle flights. For future flights on the Space Launch System (SLS), NASA and prime contractor Aerojet Rocketdyne are changing the way they build major parts for the RS-25. Engineers and technicians are fabricating some of these parts using advanced manufacturing techniques that increase reli
New roles, combined offices for NASA Administrator Leadership Team
Tuesday, 02 November 2021 07:28NASA Administrator Bill Nelson is announcing new leadership roles, as well as the merging of two offices into the Office of Technology, Policy, and Strategy (OTPS), in support of Biden-Harris Administration priorities and the focus on space strategy. OTPS is being established to provide data- and evidence-driven technology, policy, and strategy advice to NASA leadership. The office is a me
BICEP3 tightens the bounds on cosmic inflation
Tuesday, 02 November 2021 07:28Physicists looking for signs of primordial gravitational waves by sifting through the earliest light in the cosmos - the cosmic microwave background (CMB) - have reported their findings: still nothing. But far from being a dud, the latest results from the BICEP3 experiment at the South Pole have tightened the bounds on models of cosmic inflation, a process that in theory explains several p
Groundbreaking findings in hunt for new neutrinos in the universe
Tuesday, 02 November 2021 07:28Illinois Institute of Technology Associate Professor of Physics Bryce Littlejohn is part of an international team of scientists that has dealt a blow to a popular theory of the existence of a fourth "sterile" neutrino. The groundbreaking research results were announced at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory today. Neutrinos, which come in three known "flavors," are smaller than atoms and
Uncovering the secrets behind Earth's first major mass extinction
Tuesday, 02 November 2021 07:28We all know that the dinosaurs died in a mass extinction. But did you know that there were other mass extinctions? There are five most significant mass extinctions, known as the "big five," where at least three-quarters of all species in existence across the entire Earth faced extinction during a particular geological period of time. With current trends of global warming and climate change, many
The silent build-up to a super-eruption
Tuesday, 02 November 2021 07:28It is estimated that about 5-10 volcanoes worldwide are capable of producing a super-eruption that could catastrophically affect global climate. One of these volcanoes hides below the waters of Lake Toba in Sumatra and has caused two super-eruptions in the last one million year. But when will the next one be? Will there be any warning signs? To answer these questions, an international team
Better climate data through ten times more accurate satellite navigation
Tuesday, 02 November 2021 07:28Satellites provide important data on climate and the environment every day. According to initial tests, new software from RUAG Space can determine the real-time position of a satellite in space ten times more accurately than was previously possible. More accurate positioning data leads to more precise satellite data and helps to avoid space debris. Every day, satellites provide important d
Physicists discover how particles self-assemble
Tuesday, 02 November 2021 07:28A team of physicists has discovered how DNA molecules self-organize into adhesive patches between particles in response to assembly instructions. Its findings offer a "proof of concept" for an innovative way to produce materials with a well-defined connectivity between the particles. The work is reported in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. "We show that one can progra
Final decision on Georgia spaceport permit delayed yet again
Tuesday, 02 November 2021 07:11A federal agency has yet again pushed back a final decision on whether to allow the construction of a launchpad for commercial rockets in coastal Georgia.
The Federal Aviation Administration plans to release its decision on Spaceport Camden by Dec. 15 rather than this Wednesday, agency spokesman Steve Kulm said. An agency statement cited a delay caused by "ongoing consultation efforts." The final determination was originally expected at the end of July but now has been delayed at least three times.
Camden County, in the southeast corner of Georgia, wants to build the nation's 13th licensed commercial spaceport and has spent nearly 10 years and $10 million pursuing that goal. The FAA in June issued an environmental impact study that concluded building the spaceport would be its "preferred alternative."
That drew pushback from the National Park Service and its parent agency, the U.S. Department of the Interior. In a July 22 letter to the FAA, the Interior Department said a chance of rockets exploding and raining fiery debris onto the federally protected wilderness on Cumberland Island creates an "unacceptable risk.
SpaceX launch delayed due to astronaut 'minor medical issue'
Tuesday, 02 November 2021 07:08ABL Space Systems to launch Project Kuiper’s first satellites in 2022
Monday, 01 November 2021 16:00Amazon has signed a multi-launch deal with rocket developer ABL Space Systems, which plans to loft two prototype satellites for its Project Kuiper broadband megaconstellation next year.
Northrop Grumman selects Mynaric as ‘strategic supplier’ of space laser communications
Monday, 01 November 2021 15:11Mynaric, a manufacturer of laser communications equipment, announced Nov. 1 it was selected by Northrop Grumman as a strategic supplier.
Starlink in talks with two Philippine telcos over satellite internet
Monday, 01 November 2021 15:00Elon Musk’s Starlink is in talks with two Philippine telcos to launch its satellite internet services next year in an archipelagic country with slow speeds and poor connectivity.