Copernical Team
Tuesday, 28 March 2023 05:43
JWST confirms giant planet atmospheres vary widely
Ithaca NY (SPX) Mar 28, 2023
An international team of astronomers has found the atmospheric compositions of giant planets out in the galaxy do not fit our own solar system trend.
Using NASA's James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), the researchers discovered that the atmosphere of exoplanet HD149026b, a 'hot Jupiter' orbiting a star comparable to our sun, is super-abundant in the heavier elements carbon and oxygen - far ab
An international team of astronomers has found the atmospheric compositions of giant planets out in the galaxy do not fit our own solar system trend.
Using NASA's James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), the researchers discovered that the atmosphere of exoplanet HD149026b, a 'hot Jupiter' orbiting a star comparable to our sun, is super-abundant in the heavier elements carbon and oxygen - far ab
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Tuesday, 28 March 2023 05:43
Planet hunting and the origins of life
Boston MA (SPX) Mar 28, 2023
George Ricker built his first telescope when he was in third grade. Growing up in rural Florida, with its abundance of dark night skies, facilitated his natural propensity for stargazing. But it was in Cambridge, Massachusetts, during his undergraduate days at the Institute that his fascination became a calling. "I was a physics major at MIT, but I took enough astronomy courses to decide that th
George Ricker built his first telescope when he was in third grade. Growing up in rural Florida, with its abundance of dark night skies, facilitated his natural propensity for stargazing. But it was in Cambridge, Massachusetts, during his undergraduate days at the Institute that his fascination became a calling. "I was a physics major at MIT, but I took enough astronomy courses to decide that th
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Tuesday, 28 March 2023 05:43
SwRI-developed instrument delivered for lunar lander mission
San Antonio TX (SPX) Mar 28, 2023
Southwest Research Institute recently delivered the Lunar Magnetotelluric Sounder (LMS) to Firefly Aerospace in Cedar Park, Texas, for integration into the Blue Ghost 1 lunar lander scheduled to arrive at the Moon in 2024. The sounder will determine the electrical conductivity of the interior of the Moon by measuring low-frequency electric and magnetic fields.
"For more than 50 years, scie
Southwest Research Institute recently delivered the Lunar Magnetotelluric Sounder (LMS) to Firefly Aerospace in Cedar Park, Texas, for integration into the Blue Ghost 1 lunar lander scheduled to arrive at the Moon in 2024. The sounder will determine the electrical conductivity of the interior of the Moon by measuring low-frequency electric and magnetic fields.
"For more than 50 years, scie
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Tuesday, 28 March 2023 05:43
Sols 3780-3782: Perfect 10
Pasadena CA (JPL) Mar 24, 2023
Curiosity is ten and a half years into operating in Gale cater, a concept that before and even a few years after landing seemed to be an impossible dream. When we landed, my daughter - then 6 - asked me how long the rover would last. I remember telling her "By the time you get to high school, we'll be just about out of power to do much."
I am pleased to report to you today how wrong I was,
Curiosity is ten and a half years into operating in Gale cater, a concept that before and even a few years after landing seemed to be an impossible dream. When we landed, my daughter - then 6 - asked me how long the rover would last. I remember telling her "By the time you get to high school, we'll be just about out of power to do much."
I am pleased to report to you today how wrong I was,
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Tuesday, 28 March 2023 05:43
Two meteorites are providing a detailed look into outer space
Indianapolis IN (SPX) Mar 28, 2023
If you've ever seen a shooting star, you might have actually seen a meteor on its way to Earth. Those that land here are called meteorites and can be used to peek back in time, into the far corners of outer space or at the earliest building blocks of life. Today, scientists report some of the most detailed analyses yet of the organic material of two meteorites. They've identified tens of thousan
If you've ever seen a shooting star, you might have actually seen a meteor on its way to Earth. Those that land here are called meteorites and can be used to peek back in time, into the far corners of outer space or at the earliest building blocks of life. Today, scientists report some of the most detailed analyses yet of the organic material of two meteorites. They've identified tens of thousan
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Tuesday, 28 March 2023 05:43
Firefly Aerospace completes risk reduction testing for critical Miranda engine
Cedar Park TX (SPX) Mar 28, 2023
Firefly Aerospace, Inc., an end-to-end space transportation company, recently completed risk reduction testing for critical Miranda engine components ahead of the first hot fire scheduled this summer. As a larger, scaled-up version of the company's Reaver engines, Miranda will power the Medium Launch Vehicle (MLV) Firefly is co-developing with Northrop Grumman.
"We are making significant p
Firefly Aerospace, Inc., an end-to-end space transportation company, recently completed risk reduction testing for critical Miranda engine components ahead of the first hot fire scheduled this summer. As a larger, scaled-up version of the company's Reaver engines, Miranda will power the Medium Launch Vehicle (MLV) Firefly is co-developing with Northrop Grumman.
"We are making significant p
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Tuesday, 28 March 2023 05:43
Certified and Ready for Rocket-Powered Flight
Christchurch, New Zealand (SPX) Mar 28, 2023
Insability is a key property that enables both swift iteration in development and unparalleled utility of the end product.
Aside from being a key technology demonstrator, the Mk-II holds significant commercial promise as a suborbital vehicle, spanning a wide range of applications such as earth monitoring, microgravity research, disaster management, and in-situ atmospheric measurements - pr
Insability is a key property that enables both swift iteration in development and unparalleled utility of the end product.
Aside from being a key technology demonstrator, the Mk-II holds significant commercial promise as a suborbital vehicle, spanning a wide range of applications such as earth monitoring, microgravity research, disaster management, and in-situ atmospheric measurements - pr
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Tuesday, 28 March 2023 05:43
Scientists find water inside glass beads on the Moon
Paris (AFP) March 27, 2023
Scientists said Monday they have discovered water inside tiny beads of glass scattered across the Moon, suggesting that one day it could be extracted and used by the "explorers of tomorrow".
The Moon was long believed to be dry, but over the last few decades several missions have shown there is water both on the surface and trapped inside minerals.
Mahesh Anand, a professor of planetary
Scientists said Monday they have discovered water inside tiny beads of glass scattered across the Moon, suggesting that one day it could be extracted and used by the "explorers of tomorrow".
The Moon was long believed to be dry, but over the last few decades several missions have shown there is water both on the surface and trapped inside minerals.
Mahesh Anand, a professor of planetary
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Tuesday, 28 March 2023 05:43
Webb measures temperature of rocky exoplanet for first time
Paris (AFP) March 27, 2023
The James Webb Space Telescope has measured the temperature of a rocky exoplanet for the first time, finding that a "cousin" of Earth most likely lacks an atmosphere, researchers said Monday.
When the Trappist-1 system was discovered in 2017, astronomers were excited at the prospect that some of its seven rocky planets - which are roughly similar to Earth in size and mass - could be habita
The James Webb Space Telescope has measured the temperature of a rocky exoplanet for the first time, finding that a "cousin" of Earth most likely lacks an atmosphere, researchers said Monday.
When the Trappist-1 system was discovered in 2017, astronomers were excited at the prospect that some of its seven rocky planets - which are roughly similar to Earth in size and mass - could be habita
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Monday, 27 March 2023 15:44
Vatican to send Pope's message of hope into orbit
A message of faith and hope first delivered by Pope Francis in the middle of the 2020 coronavirus lockdown will be sent into space, the Vatican announced Monday.
The speech of the pontiff praying alone in an empty St Peter's Square have been turned into a "nanobook" measuring less than two millimeters wide, which will be launched into orbit on June 10.
It will travel around the Earth on a purpose-built satellite at an altitude of about 525 kilometers, dispatched on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.
The "Spei Satelles" (Satellites of Hope in Latin) project—whose cost and funding has not been revealed—is being coordinated by the Italian Space Agency in conjunction with various Italian institutions.
Agency president Giorgio Saccoccia said the Vatican had asked for "a solution that would allow the Holy Father's words of hope to cross the earth's borders and reach from space the greatest possible number of women and men on our troubled planet".
On March 27, 2020, the pope urged followers who felt "afraid and lost" in the face of what was then a terrifying new virus to have faith.
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