Copernical Team
Imagining an Earthly neighbor
We do not yet know whether the sun-like stars closest to us, the α Centauri A/B binary, harbor an Earth-like planet. However, thanks to new modeling work, we now have a good sense of what such a planet, should it exist, would look like and how it might have evolved.
These are exciting times for exoplanet research, moving from demography towards detailed characterization. The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), successfully launched in December 2021, is projected to detect the atmospheres of rocky exoplanets transiting in front of M dwarfs—stars that are fainter than the sun—orbiting within the habitable zone. The Extremely Large Telescope (ELT), currently under construction in Chile, will be set up to directly image rocky exoplanets around nearby sun-like stars by the end of the decade. Looking even further ahead, ambitious future space mission concepts are currently being explored, including the Large Interferometer for Exoplanets (LIFE), which targets habitable-zone rocky exoplanets and their atmospheres.
ETH Zurich is leading or significantly involved in these and other observational infrastructures. Complementary research at the Institute for Particle Physics and Astrophysics in the Department of Physics concerns numerical modeling, which is indispensable for understanding habitable-zone rocky exoplanets and in guiding the future observations and instrumentation development.
IMPERIAL: 3D printing’s new dimension
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ESA’s new IMPERIAL 3D printer can print parts much larger than itself, overcoming one of the main constraints of the process – limited build volume.
What is also known as ‘Additive manufacturing’ is an essential enabling technology for deep space crewed missions. Accordingly this printer has been specially designed with ‘out-of-Earth’ manufacturing in mind, enabling future space explorers to produce structures, tools and spare parts as needed. Built to operate in weightlessness – meaning it can work upside down on Earth – the printer is capable of printing high performance polymer parts of unlimited dimensions along a single direction.
The long goodbye
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The long goodbye Backbone of Hera asteroid mission
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Backbone of Hera asteroid mission Expedition to highest active volcano unearths clues about life on other worlds
A harsh sun shines down through a cloudless sky, across a vast and unforgiving landscape. It's covered in gray rock, giant ice sculptures and expansive fields of spiky, yellow and orange bushes. In the distance, intimidating mountain peaks dominate the desolate scene, many miles from the nearest town. Yet alpacas roam freely and flamingos seek out scarce water, both unexpected sights in this wil MDA to provide satellite imagery for international efforts in UKRAINE
MDA Ltd. issued the following statement regarding the ongoing situation in Ukraine: "As organizations around the globe come together in a spirit of cooperation and collaboration to support efforts to restore peace, MDA has secured special authorization from the Government of Canada to collect Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) satellite imagery over restricted areas in Ukraine.
Images captured Saudi, Lockheed Martin in missile defence deal
Saudi Arabia announced a deal Monday with US firm Lockheed Martin to manufacture elements of the missile defences of the Gulf state, the target of frequent cross-border attacks by rebels in Yemen.
Its military industries authority, cited by state news agency SPA, approved two projects to produce launchers and other equipment used in the THAAD anti-missile defence system.
The announcement Satellogic and Astraea enable direct collection access for emergency response in Ukraine
Satellogic Inc. (NASDAQ:SATL), a leader in sub-meter resolution satellite imagery collection, announced a collaboration with Astraea, a geospatial and AI analysis software company, to distribute critical Earth Observation ("EO") data directly to the Ukrainian government, allied governments, and humanitarian organizations on the ground.
Satellogic is providing its Daily Collection Access se Motiv Space Systems and Blue Origin announce ModuLink
Motiv Space Systems reports it has been awarded a contract under the Defense Innovation Unit's (DIU's) Modularity for Space Systems Program (M4SS) together with sub-contractor Blue Origin. The contract leverages Motiv's advanced space robotics technology to enable a new age of space utilization in which deployed spacecraft can be repaired, augmented, or modified to make them more resilient and m Fleet Space Technologies teams up with Seven Sisters Consortium
Fleet Space Technologies is standing with some of Australia and the world's leading space and non-space organisations in a bid to further exploration of the Moon, Mars and the Earth.
The Seven Sisters is an initiative to discover abundant resources for humanity's exploration of space through the implementation of world-leading surface exploration and construction technologies developed wit