Out with the old, in with the new and a stroll around the Station
Tuesday, 16 February 2021 14:00
Write a comment
A new year is traditionally a time to reflect and make some space for new beginnings. As many people on Earth have been making resolutions to finally eat healthier, exercise more, or pick up a book instead of turning on the television, however, there is little time for rest and reflection aboard the International Space Station.
This is what happens to spacecraft when they re-enter the Earth's atmosphere
Tuesday, 16 February 2021 13:40 Write a comment
When one of the Russian Progress resupply ships undocks from the International Space Station, timing is everything. The Progress needs to fire its engines at just the right time to instigate the deorbit burn in order for the ship to enter the atmosphere at just the right place so that its destructive re-entry occurs over the Pacific Ocean. That way, any potential surviving bits and pieces that might reach Earth will hit far away from any land masses—which are home to people, buildings, and other things we don't want to get bonked.
Last week, the timing for the Progress MS-15 cargo ship was just right, so that the astronauts/cosmonauts on board the ISS could see the ship as it broke apart and burned up in Earth's atmosphere. JAXA astronaut Soichi Noguchi shared the view on social media.
"Farewell, Progress 76P MS-15! #Russian cargo spacecraft undocked from #ISS, and successfully burned up," Noguchi tweeted, sharing a photo of the Progress' fiery demise.
Farewell, Progress 76P MS-15! #Russian cargo spacecraft undocked from #ISS, and successfully burned up. #ロシア プログレス宇宙船、役目を終えて大気圏突入時の夜空に燃え尽きる瞬間を見事に捉えました！#はやぶさ 思い出すと泣けます。。。 pic.twitter.com/2OLMrlmAKO
— NOGUCHI, Soichi 野口 聡－（のぐち そういち） (@Astro_Soichi) February 9, 2021
Life as we do not know it: Astrobiology and the Mars 2020 mission
Tuesday, 16 February 2021 13:35 Write a comment
Life as we know it has never been found anywhere in our solar system or universe, other than on Earth. But that does not necessarily mean it is not out there.
The Mars 2020 mission is the first NASA mission with an explicit astrobiology component. Planned to be executed in multiple parts over decades, Mars 2020 and related missions aim to be the first to return samples of another planet for the purpose of examining them for signs of life.
But what do scientists hope to find? How will they know if or when they have found it? What does it mean for life on Earth if something is found, and what does it mean if it is not?
NASA's next Mars rover is ready for the most precise landing yet
Tuesday, 16 February 2021 13:17 Write a comment
What to expect when the Mars 2020 Perseverance rover arrives at the Red Planet on Feb. 18, 2021:
With about 2.4 million miles (3.9 million kilometers) left to travel in space, NASA's Mars 2020 Perseverance mission is days away from attempting to land the agency's fifth rover on the Red Planet.
Mars Relay Network connects Earth to NASA's robotic explorers
Tuesday, 16 February 2021 13:17 Write a comment
Russian cargo ship docks at International Space Station
Tuesday, 16 February 2021 13:02 Write a comment
NASA fears gap in astronaut crew at multibillion-dollar space station
Tuesday, 16 February 2021 11:58 Write a comment
Having spent well over $150 billion on the International Space Station, NASA fears a potential lack of launch vehicles could leave the orbiting platform without a U.S. astronaut and create a potential safety risk.
Such a gap would occur only if a crew had a problem that forced them to leave the space station early, but it would represent a costly "lost opportunity that cannot be regained" NASA ready to land another rover on Mars
Tuesday, 16 February 2021 11:58 Write a comment
With about 2.4 million miles (3.9 million kilometers) left to travel in space, NASA's Mars 2020 Perseverance mission is days away from attempting to land the agency's fifth rover on the Red Planet. Engineers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, where the mission is managed, have confirmed that the spacecraft is healthy and on target to touch down in Jezero Crater at around Staying long-term on Mars
Tuesday, 16 February 2021 11:58 Write a comment
The "red planet" in the evening sky seems more and more within reach, as leading space agencies aspire astronaut missions to Mars in the future. Unlike the 1969 moon landing, these missions are designed for a long-term stay, which poses new challenges for science: In addition to a habitat, for example, the few materials brought from Earth must be used efficiently and sustainably to equip and fee The Mars Relay Network Connects Us to NASA's Martian Explorers
Tuesday, 16 February 2021 11:58 Write a comment
A tightly choreographed dance between NASA's Deep Space Network and Mars orbiters will keep the agency's Perseverance in touch with Earth during landing and beyond. When NASA's Mars 2020 Perseverance rover touches down with the Ingenuity Mars Helicopter on the Red Planet on Feb. 18, they won't be alone. From orbit, two robotic buddies will be playing a special role in the event by checking in on The geological context of the Mars 2020 landing site through the eyes of DLR
Tuesday, 16 February 2021 11:58 Write a comment
On Thursday, 18 February 2021, at approximately 21:55 CET, NASA's control centre in Pasadena should receive the radio signal indicating that the Perseverance rover has been gently lowered onto the surface of Mars by a 'sky crane' as part of NASA's Mars 2020 mission. Perseverance's new home will be the floor of a former lake in the Jezero impact crater. There, the mobile laboratory, which is the Biotech fit for the Red Planet
Tuesday, 16 February 2021 11:58 Write a comment
NASA, in collaboration with other leading space agencies, aims to send its first human missions to Mars in the early 2030s, while companies like SpaceX may do so even earlier. Astronauts on Mars will need oxygen, water, food, and other consumables. These will need to be sourced from Mars, because importing them from Earth would be impractical in the long term. In Frontiers in Microbiology, scien HKU planetary scientists discover evidence for a reduced atmosphere on ancient Mars
Tuesday, 16 February 2021 11:58 Write a comment
Both Earth and Mars currently have oxidising atmospheres, which is why iron-rich materials in daily life develop rust (a common name for iron oxide) during the oxidation reaction of iron and oxygen. The Earth has had an oxidising atmosphere for approximately two and a half billion years, but before that, the atmosphere of this planet was reducing - there was no rust.
The transition from a Airbus space technology reaches Mars
Tuesday, 16 February 2021 11:58 Write a comment
When NASA's Perseverance rover lands on the surface of the Red Planet next Thursday, key Airbus technology will be on board: the MEDA meteorological station will provide scientists with valuable Mars weather data and the High Gain Antenna System will ensure a high-speed comms link with Earth for the duration of the MARS2020 mission.
Perseverance will use seven scientific instruments to stu China publishes technical requirements for key civilian BDS products
Tuesday, 16 February 2021 11:58 Write a comment
China has published six documents detailing technical requirements and test methods for key civilian products using the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS).
The documents have been issued to facilitate the construction of a certification system for key BDS-3 products, according to the China Satellite Navigation Office.
Technical requirements and test methods were drafted for c