Firefly Aerospace collaborates with Klepsydra Technologies for space-based edge computing
Wednesday, 17 April 2024 20:25
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Firefly Aerospace, Inc., a comprehensive space transportation provider, has entered into a collaboration to deploy the Klepsydra Artificial Intelligence (AI) application aboard Firefly's Elytra vehicle. Scheduled for launch on the Alpha rocket later this year, Elytra aims to facilitate on-orbit, real-time data processing as an edge computing platform.
"Edge computing in space addresses the Space ISAC establishes LEO satellite operators group
Wednesday, 17 April 2024 20:07
Astronauts to patch up NASA's NICER telescope
Wednesday, 17 April 2024 20:02 Write a comment
NASA is planning to repair NICER (Neutron star Interior Composition Explorer), an X-ray telescope on the International Space Station, during a spacewalk later this year. It will be the fourth science observatory in orbit serviced by astronauts.
NASA to hoist its sail: Solar sail mission gets ready for launch
Wednesday, 17 April 2024 19:34 Write a comment
A NASA mission testing a new way of navigating our solar system is ready to hoist its sail into space—not to catch the wind, but the propulsive power of sunlight. The Advanced Composite Solar Sail System is targeting launch on Tuesday, April 23 (Wednesday, April 24 in New Zealand) aboard a Rocket Lab Electron rocket from the company's Launch Complex 1 on the Mahia Peninsula of New Zealand.
Rocket Lab's Electron rocket will deploy the mission's CubeSat about 600 miles above Earth—more than twice the altitude of the International Space Station. To test the performance of NASA's Advanced Composite Solar Sail System, the spacecraft must be in a high enough orbit for the tiny force of sunlight on the sail—roughly equivalent to the weight of a paperclip resting on your palm—to overcome atmospheric drag and gain altitude.
NASA's Roman space telescope's 'eyes' pass first vision test
Wednesday, 17 April 2024 19:30 Write a comment
Engineers at L3Harris Technologies in Rochester, New York, have combined all 10 mirrors for NASA's Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope.
NASA's Dragonfly rotorcraft mission to Saturn's moon Titan confirmed
Wednesday, 17 April 2024 18:44 Write a comment
NASA has confirmed its Dragonfly rotorcraft mission to Saturn's organic-rich moon Titan. The decision allows the mission to progress to the completion of the final design, followed by the construction and testing of the entire spacecraft and science instruments.
"Dragonfly is a spectacular science mission with broad community interest, and we are excited to take the next steps on this mission," said Nicky Fox, associate administrator of the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "Exploring Titan will push the boundaries of what we can do with rotorcraft outside of Earth."
In early 2023, the mission successfully passed all the success criteria of its Preliminary Design Review. At that time, however, the mission was asked to develop an updated budget and schedule to fit into the current funding environment. This updated plan was presented and conditionally approved in November 2023, pending the outcome of the fiscal year 2025 budget process.
NASA's near space network enables PACE climate mission to 'phone home'
Wednesday, 17 April 2024 18:21 Write a comment
The PACE (Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem) mission has delivered its first operational data back to researchers, a feat made possible in part by innovative, data-storing technology from NASA's Near Space Network, which introduced two key enhancements for PACE and other upcoming science missions.
As a satellite orbits in space, its systems generate critical data about the spacecraft's health, location, battery life, and more. All of this occurs while the mission's science instruments capture images and data supporting the satellite's overall objective.
This data is then encoded and sent back to Earth via radio waves through NASA's Near Space Network and Deep Space Network—but not without challenges.
One challenge is extreme distances, where disruptions or delays are common.
On-demand nutrient production system for long-duration space missions
Wednesday, 17 April 2024 17:36 Write a comment
When astronauts embark on long space missions, they'll need to grow their own food because pre-packaged meals from Earth lose their nutritional value over time. The BioNutrients project at Ames Research Center's Space Biosciences Division has solved this problem by using genetic engineering to create microbially-based food that can produce nutrients and compounds, such as medicines, with minimal resources.
The process involves storing dried microbes and food-grade media in small bioreactors, which can be rehydrated and grown years later.
BioNutrients-3 yields fresh kefir in lunar analog mission
Wednesday, 17 April 2024 16:48 Write a comment
To sustain astronauts on extended space voyages, Ames Research Center's Space Biosciences Division has engineered a microbially-based food system under the BioNutrients initiative. This innovative approach leverages genetic engineering to produce vital nutrients and medicinal compounds using minimal resources. It involves the use of dried microbes and food-grade media stored in compact bioreacto Boeing Starliner rolls to Cape Canaveral Space Force Station ahead of May launch
Wednesday, 17 April 2024 16:48 Write a comment
Boeing's Starliner spacecraft took a road trip Tuesday before its May 6 liftoff, moving from the Kennedy Space Center to the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
Starliner boarded a transporter at the Commercial Crew and Cargo Processing Facility at Kennedy Space Center on Monday. Final checks were completed Tuesday for the short trip to the United Launch Alliance's Vertical Integration Ariane 6 debut includes Portugal's first university CubeSat for aircraft tracking
Wednesday, 17 April 2024 16:48 Write a comment
Europe's next-generation rocket, Ariane 6, is set to embark on its inaugural flight, carrying a series of space missions each with their own distinct goals and enthusiastic teams supporting them. This launch will demonstrate the capability and adaptability of the new heavy-lift launcher, whether it's deploying satellites to observe Earth, exploring deep space, or testing key new technologies in NASA seeks community input to refine space technology priorities
Wednesday, 17 April 2024 16:48 Write a comment
NASA's Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD) is revising its approach to technology development as it aims to enhance its missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond. The agency has identified nearly 190 national space technology needs and is soliciting input from the American aerospace community to prioritize these for future endeavors.
Dr. Kurt Vogel, associate administrator for Space T Comet Geyser: Perseverance's 24th Rock Core
Wednesday, 17 April 2024 16:48 Write a comment
After investigating the high-standing bedrock at the Bunsen Peak workspace deep within the Margin Unit, the unique nature and composition of this rock was deemed worthy for collection of Perseverance's 24th rock core sample, Comet Geyser!
Bunsen Peak is named after a prominent peak in Yellowstone National, Park, Wyoming, USA, and the namesake for Comet Geyser is the silica-sintered cone ge NASA Goddard to Build Quake Detector for Artemis III Moon Landing
Wednesday, 17 April 2024 16:48 Write a comment
NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, will build a moonquake detector for astronauts to deploy on the Moon in 2026 during the Artemis III mission, which will return astronauts to the lunar surface for the first time in more than 50 years.
NASA selected the instrument, the Lunar Environment Monitoring Station (LEMS) as one of the first three potential payloads for Artem New insights on the young ice deposits of Ceres
Wednesday, 17 April 2024 16:48 Write a comment
Ceres, the largest asteroid in our Solar System, features recently formed ice deposits in permanently shadowed craters near its poles, similar to those found on our Moon and Mercury. This similarity was first noted when the Dawn spacecraft surveyed Ceres in 2016, revealing bright ice deposits in these dark craters.
"The initial observation in 2016 opened up a mystery, with many of Ceres's