Materials make the space mission – but ensuring they survive in space is always a challenge. The very act of transporting them beyond Earth ensures their characteristics will alter as they interact with the space environment in complex ways.

Washington DC (UPI) Mar 19, 2021
Elon Musk's SpaceX launched 53 Starlink satellites from Florida early Saturday morning after the launch was postponed Friday night because of stormy weather. The launch, which came days after the company celebrated its 20th anniversary, was pushed back to 12:42 a.m. EDT when stormy weather near Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station had cleared. The spacecraft was initi

Redondo Beach CA (SPX) Mar 18, 2022
Built by Northrop Grumman in support of the Missile Defense Agency, two demonstration Space Tracking and Surveillance System (STSS) satellites successfully completed their missions and have been retired. Their achievements pave the way for future operational missile warning and tracking systems that will defend the nation. "Launched in 2009 and expected to operate for four years, these dem

Beijing (XNA) Mar 19, 2022
China plans to conduct a number of frontier scientific experiments on its Tiangong space station, with the two laboratory modules, Wentian and Mengtian, scheduled to be launched this year, according to the Technology and Engineering Center for Space Utilization under the Chinese Academy of Sciences. The experiments include raising fish, growing vegetables, setting up the most precise clock

Golden CO (SPX) Mar 19, 2022
As Western nations look for ways to reduce their reliance on Russian oil and gas, another aspect of the Ukraine crisis has received less attention: Most of the 32 countries that use nuclear power rely on Russia for some part of their nuclear fuel supply chain. Nuclear power is a critical part of many national electricity grids. European countries especially rely on nuclear power, including

Burlington, Canada (SPX) Mar 18, 2022
Canada is a leader in nuclear energy and nuclear safety and has one of the world's most promising domestic markets for the safe and responsible development of small modular reactor (SMR) technology. SMRs have the potential to provide strong economic benefits to the Canadian economy and support Canada's efforts to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. The Honourable Francois-Ph

Pasadena CA (JPL) Mar 19, 2022
Major smashups between rocky bodies shaped our solar system. Observations of a similar crash give clues about how frequent these events are around other stars. Most of the rocky planets and satellites in our solar system, including Earth and the Moon, were formed or shaped by massive collisions early in the solar system's history. By smashing together, rocky bodies can accumulate more material,

Washington DC (SPX) Mar 18, 2022
An international research team led by Lund University in Sweden has managed to study the flight behaviour of the mysterious black swift. They found, among other things, that the black swift rises to extreme heights during a full moon, seemingly catching insects in the moonlight. And, during a lunar eclipse, the birds simultaneously lost altitude. The results are published in Current Biology.

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Mar 19, 2022
Researchers at the University of Tokyo have for the first time been able to create an RNA molecule that replicates, diversifies and develops complexity, following Darwinian evolution. This has provided the first empirical evidence that simple biological molecules can lead to the emergence of complex lifelike systems. Life has many big questions, not least being where did we come from? Mayb