Archive for the ‘Space News’ Category
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August 3rd, 2019
Roughly 35 centimeter standoff Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) photo of the Glen Etive 1 target after brushing and the preload test. Photo produced on July 31, 2019, Sol 2482.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover is now performing Sol 2485 duties.
“We are go for drilling at Glen Etive 1,” reports Lucy Thompson, a planetary geologist at University of New Brunswick.
Curiosity MAHLI photo produced on Sol 2484, August 2, 2019.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Scientists have received the results of the Alpha Particle X-Ray Spectrometer (APXS) and Chemistry and Camera (ChemCam) compositional analysis of the prospective drill target, as well as the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) imaging of the area both before and after a preload test.
Curiosity MAHLI photo produced on Sol 2484, August 2, 2019.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Force of drilling
“The preload test is exactly what it sounds like; exerting a load onto the surface bedrock to check that it can withstand the force of drilling,” Thompson explains. “The engineers and science team assessed the results of these analyses and concluded that it is safe to drill the Glen Etive target. Therefore, the weekend plan is dominated by the drill activity, which will take place on the second sol of the plan.”
Curiosity Navcam Left B photo acquired on Sol 2483, August 1, 2019.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
The robot managed to fit in some environmental science and a Mastcam 360°mosaic of its surrounding terrain on the first sol of the plan to provide context for our drill site, Thompson notes, “prior to the rover going to sleep in order to recharge itself for the power intensive drilling.”
Curiosity Rear Hazcam Left B photo taken on Sol 2484, August 2, 2019.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
Post-drill
The environmental observations include a ChemCam passive sky observation, a rear Hazcam dust devil movie, a Mastcam crater rim extinction and basic tau pointed towards the sun.
“We filled a post-drill science block with geological observations. These include observations of what will hopefully be a new drill hole and associated tailings on Mars, with ChemCam passive spectroscopy and remote microscopic imaging as well as Mastcam multispectral imaging,” Thompson reports.
Curiosity’s ChemCam will also continue to investigate the variation in chemistry of the bedrock in the vicinity of the drill target, firing its laser at the “Clarkly Hill” target. Mastcam will document the ChemCam target.
Curiosity ChemCam Remote Micro-Imager photo acquired on Sol 2484, August 2, 2019.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/LANL
Environmental monitoring
Curiosity is slated to wake up and carry out an early morning science block with some more environmental monitoring including a Mastcam full tau pointed towards the sun, a Navcam zenith movie, suprahorizon movie, line of sight image and 360°sky survey.
Standard background Radiation Assessment Detector (RAD), Dynamic Albedo of Neutrons (DAN) and Rover Environmental Monitoring Station (REMS) passive measurements are also planned.
Curiosity Mastcam Right photo of dust removal brush taken on Sol 2483, August 1, 2019.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
22nd drill hole
“Everyone on the team will be eagerly awaiting the first downlinked data after the drill activity, to see if we have our 22nd drill hole on Mars destined for Curiosity’s analytical lab,” Thompson points out.
If successful, next week should see drop off of sample to the robot’s Chemistry & Mineralogy X-Ray Diffraction/X-Ray Fluorescence Instrument (CheMin), Thompson concludes, and the preliminary mineralogical results, which Mars researchers can compare with previous drill holes within Glen Torridon and the Murray formation.
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Illustration shows examples of an Earth-Moon “transportation network,” a key architectural element for access throughout cislunar space.
Credit: Purdue University image/Kate Starr
Transforming cislunar space into an economic wellspring is in the sights of a new university-based initiative.
Purdue University’s Cislunar Initiative is geared to evaluating access to cislunar space, supplying the building blocks for infrastructure, identifying and utilizing space resources, advancing the development of space policy and providing critical educational opportunities.
The “cislunar region” is the orbital area encompassing the Earth and the Moon.
David Spencer, associate professor in the School of Aeronautics and Astronautics, leads the Cislunar Initiative.
Credit: Purdue University
50-year time horizon
Leader of the Initiative is David Spencer, associate professor in the School of Aeronautics and Astronautics. “The Cislunar Initiative aims to conceive, design, and enable the utilization of cislunar space over a 50-year time horizon,” Spencer notes in a university statement.
Exploration of south pole crater. Water ice-rich resource ready for processing?
Credit: NASA
There are five objectives formulated to accelerate the development of a cislunar region’s economy, Spencer explains:
— Advancing access to space, enabling frequent and sustained transportation to and within the cislunar environment.
— Envisioning and enabling the infrastructure that provides the necessary support for cislunar space exploration and development through a strong university-industry-government collaborative approach.
— Identifying and utilizing space resources and materials.
— Leading in the areas of space policy, economics and space defense.
— Initiating K-12 educational programs and courses, professional development, internships, co-ops and a Purdue curriculum for the future leaders in cislunar development.
Resources
Go to the Cislunar Initiative website at:
Also, go to this informative video that focuses on the Initiative:
Credit: Harbin Institute of Technology
China’s micro lunar orbiter — Longjiang-2 (also known as DSLWP-B) – crashed into the Moon’s farside on July 31 (Beijing Time), reports the Lunar Exploration and Space Program Center of the China National Space Administration.
Weighing 104 pounds (47 kilograms) Longjiang-2 was sent into space on May 21, 2018, together with the Chang’e-4 lunar probe’s relay satellite and entered the lunar orbit four days later.
Lifespan
The small spacecraft operated in orbit for 437 days, exceeding its one-year designed lifespan, reports China’s Xinhua news agency.
The satellite carried an ultra-long-wave detector, developed by the National Space Science Center of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, aiming to conduct radio astronomical observation and study solar radiation.
Credit: Daniel Estévez/Dwingeloo
Longjiang-2 also carried an optical camera developed by the King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology of Saudi Arabia. The camera was used successfully to capture 30 high-definition images of the Moon, Xinhua notes.
Rest in pieces
“There is a new crater on the Moon,” tweeted satellite observer and astronomer working at ASTRON, the Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy, Cees Bassa. On the day of the crash, he reported: “We are already 5 minutes past the moment DSLWP-B would have appeared from behind the Moon if it had not crashed. The fact that we are no longer receiving signals means it has impacted the lunar surface. RIP DSLWP-B.”
Credit: Cees Bassa
The collision with the Moon was planned since January of year, adds amateur radio expert, Daniel Estévez, and was done as a means to end the mission without leaving debris in lunar orbit.
Estévez explains that on January 24, the periapsis (low point) of the lunar orbit of DSLWP-B was lowered approximately by 310 miles (500 kilometers), so that orbital perturbations would eventually force the satellite to collide with the Moon.
Curiosity Navcam Left B photo acquired on Sol 2483, August 1, 2019.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover is now carrying out Sol 2484 tasks.
Mark Salvatore, a planetary geologist at the University of Michigan, reports that weekend drilling is in the plan.
Scientists have been largely interested in characterizing the large block of exposed bedrock in front of the rover to derive as much information as possible before the robot punches through the surface and exposes the rock’s interior, Salvatore adds.
Curiosity Navcam Right B image taken on Sol 2483, August 1, 2019.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
Spatial variability
Curiosity has brushed the dust off of the rock and made some geochemical measurements using the Alpha Particle X-Ray Spectrometer (APXS) instrument.
A recent plan, Salvatore notes, called for acquiring a multispectral image of this brushed surface in addition to two remote laser induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) measurements of the bedrock’s chemistry to determine whether there is spatial variability in the chemistry of this geologic unit.
Enigmatic feature
“We also have an opportunity to acquire a large Mastcam mosaic of the large and flat geologic feature to the south of Curiosity known as the Greenheugh pediment,” Salvatore explains. “This enigmatic feature has been a target of interest ever since Gale crater was first being considered as a potential landing site for the Curiosity rover, and so documenting it from this new vantage point has been a high priority for the geologists on the team.”
Curiosity ChemCam Remote Micro-Imager photo taken on Sol 2484, August 2, 2019.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/LANL
Ground controllers have placed Curiosity in a good place to drill this unit over the weekend, Salvatore reports, followed by several additional days to document the new drill hole and the tailings.
“If all goes well, we should receive additional geologic data from the rover’s instruments on the mineralogy of this unit sometime next week,” Salvatore concludes. “It’ll be great to compare this location with the other drill holes acquired since the investigation of Vera Rubin ridge.”
Curiosity Navcam Left B photo taken on Sol 2483, August 1, 2019.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover is presently performing Sol 2483 duties.
Reports Mariah Baker, a planetary geologist at Johns Hopkins University, the robot is currently located in the southern part of the “Visionarium,” with planning underway to start the next drill campaign.
Curiosity Mastcam left image taken on Sol 2481 of target for weekend drilling.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
“And we can’t help but take in the scenery! Perched on top of a small escarpment, we have arguably one of the best backdrops we have ever had during a drill campaign,” Baker adds. “The stunning panoramic views of Mount Sharp and surrounding terrains could truly take one’s breath away – if the lack of oxygen wasn’t enough!”
Curiosity Front Hazcam Left B photo taken on Sol 2483, August 1, 2019.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
Drillable rocks
Curiosity embarked on drill Sol 1, which meant the team was focused on locating and prioritizing drillable rocks in the rover’s workspace.
The target “Glen Etive 1” was selected as the primary drill option; Chemistry and Camera (ChemCam), Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI), and Alpha Particle X-Ray Spectrometer (APXS) measurements on Glen Etive 1 will provide information on the geologic and chemical properties of this rock before Curiosity starts to drill.
Curiosity Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) photo produced on Sol 2483, July 31, 2019.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Distant sandstone
Baker notes that ChemCam will also target another spot on the same rock layer (“Glen Etive 2”) as well as a target on another outcrop nearby, “Ninian”.
Also in the plans were various Mastcam observations, such as documentation images of the three ChemCam targets, a stereo image of a layered rock target called “Liddel,” and a larger mosaic image of a distant sandstone unit, Baker reports.
Curiosity Navcam Right B image taken on Sol 2482, July 31, 2019.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
A set of environmental measurements rounds out recent planning, including two Dynamic Albedo of Neutrons (DAN) activities, Rover Environmental Monitoring Station (REMS) monitoring, and Navcam images to monitor dust loading and dust devil activity.
Curiosity Navcam Right B image taken on Sol 2482, July 31, 2019.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
“The team is eager and ready to jump into drilling at this new location, especially given the picturesque backdrop we get to enjoy while we work,” Baker concludes. “And since a full drill campaign can last weeks, we can continue to revel in the beauty of Gale crater’s vast and diverse landscapes for at least a little while longer.”
Curiosity Navcam Left B image taken on Sol 2482, July 31, 2019.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
Weekend drilling
In a new update, Lucy Thompson, a planetary geologist at University of New Brunswick, says there’s anticipation regarding drill hole number three, and maybe number four within Glen Torridon.
New planning has been focused on getting more compositional and textural information on top of this small ridge that we plan to attempt drilling at the weekend, Thompson adds.
“This ridge is representative of one of the units mapped from orbit prior to landing, the ‘fractured clay bearing unit.’ We previously drilled two holes into the ‘smooth clay bearing unit’ and it will be interesting to compare the composition and mineralogy of these orbitally distinct units to each other and with the rest of the Murray formation,” Thompson explains.
Curiosity ChemCam Remote Micro-Imager photo acquired on Sol 2483, August 1, 2019.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/LANL
Science targets
On tap is use of ChemCam to investigate the composition of two more spots (“Glen Dessary” and “Canisbay”) on the same block that scientists intend to drill to see if different layers have the same chemistry, and there will be Mastcam documentation imaging of these targets.
There’s potential for two separate contact science targets in a new plan and science team members are discussing whether they wanted two APXS and MAHLI targets or whether they want to devote one of those targets to MAHLI oblique imaging of the layers in the block they plan to drill – as opposed to imaging just the top surface.
Brushing
“We decided to brush, get APXS and MAHLI on the second potential drill target ‘Glen Etive 2,’ and then do the MAHLI oblique imaging,” Thompson points out, “to hopefully inform us of the third dimension that we will encounter when we drill, as well as of any sedimentary structures present.”
Standard environmental activities rounded out the new plan with REMS, Radiation Assessment Detector (RAD) and DAN active and passive measurements, Mastcam crater rim extinction and basic tau of the sun, and a Navcam suprahorizon movie, Thompson concludes.
On July 25, SpaceX launched its eighteenth Commercial Resupply Services mission (CRS-18) to the International Space Station.
Credit: SpaceX
Matchbox-sized prototypes – called biomining reactors – have been sent to the International Space Station (ISS).
The “space mining kits” are dedicated to studying how microscopic organisms could be used to recover minerals and metals from space rocks – from asteroids and other celestial targets.
Space testing is expected to reveal how low gravity affects bacteria’s natural ability to extract useful materials – such as iron, calcium and magnesium – from rocks, researchers at the University of Edinburgh say.
Their findings could also help improve the process – known as biomining – which has numerous applications on Earth, including in the recovery of metals from ores.
Rosa Santomartino
School of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Edinburgh checks out space mining kits pre-launch.
Credit: Rosa Santomartino
Three-week experiment
On July 27, eighteen of the devices reached the International Space Station, along with a host of other experiments, via a SpaceX Dragon supply ship.
Onboard the ISS, small pieces of basalt rock – which makes up the surface of the Moon and Mars – will be loaded into each device and submerged in bacterial solution.
Biomining reactors.
Credits: Rosa Santomartino, UK Centre for Astrobiology/University of Edinburgh
According to a University of Edinburgh press statement, the three-week experiment will also study how microbes grow and form layers – known as biofilms – on natural surfaces in space. As well as providing insights into how low gravity affects biofilms, the findings will also improve understanding of how microbes grow on Earth.
Once returned to Earth, the rocks will be analyzed by the Edinburgh team in a lab at Stanford University in California.
Fundamental insights
The groundbreaking study could aid efforts to establish human settlements on distant worlds by helping develop ways to source minerals essential for survival in space.
“This experiment will give us new fundamental insights into the behavior of microbes in space, their applications in space exploration and how they might be used more effectively on Earth in all the myriad way that microbes affect our lives,” explains Charles Cockell of the School of Physics and Astronomy and project lead at the University of Edinburgh.
Matchbox-sized prototypes – called biomining reactors.
Credits: Rosa Santomartino, UK Centre for Astrobiology/University of Edinburgh
“Microbes are everywhere, and this experiment is giving us new ideas about how they grow on surfaces and how we might use them to explore space,” added Rosa Santomartino, also of the School of Physics and Astronomy. She is leading the study of the rocks when they return.
The “BioRock” experiment is led by the University of Edinburgh, with the European Space Agency and the UK Space Agency, in collaboration with DLR (Germany) and SCK-CEN (Belgium), and is funded by the Science and Technology Facilities Council, part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).
What lurks within the Moon’s underground lava tubes? Entrances or “skylights” to lava tubes might allow future explorers access to subsurface ice.
Credit: Pascal Lee/Mars Institute/SETI Institute
The drum beat of back to the Moon with humans “this time to stay,” is fueled by harvesting available lunar resources. Many see plunging into the floors of permanently shadowed polar craters. Water ice found resident in these everlastingly shaded “cold traps” is thought to be stable and exploitable.
The city of Philadelphia is shown inside a theoretical lunar lava tube. A Purdue University team of researchers explored whether lava tubes more than one kilometer wide could remain structurally stable on the moon.
Credit: Purdue University/courtesy of David Blair
But there may be other spots on the Moon that could yield a scientific motherlode of data – as well as survive and thrive resources to sustain human occupation of Earth’s celestial next door neighbor.
Take a look at my new Space.com story:
Living Underground on the Moon: How Lava Tubes Could Aid Lunar Colonization – But there’s a lot we still don’t know
Go to:
Curiosity Right Navigation Camera on Sol 2480. Several candidate drill sites have been identified, with a decision to drive to a relatively flat slab that is visible in the right portion of this image.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
NASA’s Curiosity is now carrying out Sol 2481 duties.
Reports Vivian Sun, a planetary Geologist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California: “After a successful ascent to the top of the southern outcrop in the ‘Visionarium,’ we are now searching for our next drill site.”
Curiosity Navcam Left B photo acquired on Sol 2480, July 29, 2019.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
Sun adds that there were no bedrock exposures available for contact science activities in Curiosity’s immediate workspace, so attention has now shifted to identify a drill site area, with the rover driving to that spot.
Drill site selection
“There are a number of factors we considered when selecting this drill site. We looked for bedrock that looked ‘in-place,’ meaning bedrock that likely has not been moved since it formed. While there can be ‘out-of-place’ rocks — or ‘float’ rocks — that are interesting, in-place bedrock can be more stable for drilling and its geologic context is simpler to interpret, Sun points out.
Curiosity Navcam Left B image taken on Sol 2480, July 29, 2019.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
Mars researchers have also prioritized larger bedrock exposures, as they need room to drill, discard, and analyze the sample, Sun adds. The size of the bedrock slab is even more important than usual at this location because science teams may consider drilling a second time and delivering sample for a possible Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) Instrument Suite wet chemistry experiment.
Curiosity Navcam Right B photo taken on Sol 2480, July 29, 2019.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
“Lastly, we considered other practical constraints,” Sun continues, “like finding an area that gives us a good parking position and a level surface to drill on. Considering all of these factors, we identified several candidate sites and finally decided to drive to a relatively flat slab.”
Curiosity Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) photo produced on Sol 2480, July 29, 2019.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Remote sensing activities
With the major drive decision out of the way, Curiosity team members then proceeded to plan the rest of the observations at the rover’s current location.
Since contact science was not on the plan, Mars researchers obtained some extra time for remote sensing activities and planned three Chemistry and Camera (ChemCam) measurements of some nearby bedrock (“Blaven,” “Glen Lyon,” “Glen Orchy”).
Curiosity Navcam Right B photo taken on Sol 2480, July 29, 2019.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
Sedimentary structures
“We also planned a large Mastcam mosaic of the bedrock exposures in front of us, dubbed the “Hebrides” region, which we imaged in the previous plan from a different angle. Imaging this area before we drive up to our drill site will help us examine sedimentary structures and provide context for our future drill sample,” Sun reports.
Curiosity Navcam Right B photo taken on Sol 2480, July 29, 2019.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
In addition to these observations, Mars team members also planned a suite of atmospheric observations including Navcam dust devil movies, crater rim extinction, and Mastcam tau observations.
“There is much to look forward to in the upcoming days,” Sun concludes, “with the start of our next drill campaign and excellent views from our future parking spot!”
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. of Arizona
New road map
Curiosity has now driven 13.10 miles (21.08 kilometers) since landing on Mars in August 2012.
A newly released Curiosity traverse map through Sol 2480 shows the route driven by the robot through the 2480 Martian day, or sol.
Numbering of the dots along the line indicate the sol number of each drive. North is up. The scale bar is 1 kilometer (~0.62 mile).
From Sol 2477 to Sol 2480, Curiosity had driven a straight line distance of about 40.36 feet (12.30 meters), bringing the rover’s total odometry for the mission to 13.10 miles (21.08 kilometers).
The base image from the map is from the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment Camera (HiRISE) in NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.
Courtesy of NASA/JPL/USGS
Celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission to the Moon with an in-depth look at four unique outcomes of this momentous event, led by four esteemed professors.
This unique series is offered by The Great Courses (an educational streaming video on demand company), a new course on what most people still don’t know about exploration of Earth’s neighbor, the Moon.
One of the Apollo 16 sample boxes being opened in the Lunar Receiving Laboratory on Earth. The box contains a large rock and many small sample bags.
Credit: NASA/Johnson Space Center
The lecture series features:
Moon Rock Revelations: An Inside Story
What can the samples collected by the Apollo astronauts tell us about the Moon? Neil Armstrong and his fellow explorers were able to bring back about 50 pounds of rocks and soils that revealed things about the Moon that we had never known, or even surmised. Join Professor Bob Hazen, mineralogist and crystallographer, to uncover what the Moon is made of, how the Earth and the Moon are intimately connected, and the minerals that form the Moon.
Geologist Harrison Schmitt performs Moon tasks during Apollo 17 mission in December 1972.
Credit: NASA
Viewing Apollo Landing Sites from Earth
Join Ed Murphy, professor and astronomer, to go outside and really view the Moon—the complex geology, mountains, lava flows, volcanic domes, and more. Discover and recognize what you can and can’t see with your naked eye, binoculars, and a telescope, as well as learn the best time to view the Moon. Once you’ve established the Moon’s topography, Professor Murphy shows you how to orient your viewing to the location of the Apollo 11 landing and what, exactly, you are seeing.
Credit: NASA/Curtin University
Moon Rocks Reveal a Wild Early Solar System?
In a story that sounds like the basis for a science fiction blockbuster, Professor Sabine Stanley, the Bloomberg Distinguished Professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences at Johns Hopkins University demonstrates how studying Moon rocks has suggested a large number of meteor collisions in our solar system about four billion years ago—known as the Late Heavy Bombardment. See how this Moon event, which occurred during a concentrated time period of 200 million years, has implied that giant planets migrated during their formation—a possibility many scientists never considered.
Soviet technician working on Sputnik 1, 1957.
Credit: ESA/Sovfoto/History.com
Geopolitics of Space: Past, Present, Future
The Apollo space mission was more than just a giant leap for mankind in terms of scientific developments and insights into both space and Earth, it was also a huge step in advancing America’s position in the geopolitical world as the Cold War extended into space. Professor Vejas Gabriel Liulevicius, the Lindsay Young Professor of History and Director of the Center for the Study of War and Society, invites you to investigate how the Space Race was not just a matter of prestige, but how it also established a claim on the future for the “winner’s” values, ideology, and way of life.
For more information, go to:
https://www.thegreatcoursesplus.com/show/apollo_11_lessons_for_all_time
Also, tap into this overview of The Great Courses Plus and its offerings at:
https://www.thegreatcoursesplus.com/
Credit: Griffith Observatory TV
I was honored to be on panels and provide a talk on my new National Geographic book, Moon Rush – The New Space Race, at the fabulous Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles.
In my talk, I detailed the story of the path for our return to the Moon. This time, however, it’s not just NASA that’s going. Nations from all over the world and private industry have big plans.
Credit: Griffith Observatory
Golden Moon
The presentation was streamed live on July 21, 2019, one part of the Observatory’s “Golden Moon” celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 lunar landing mission.
For my appearance, I was joined by Dr. Laura Danly, Curator for the Griffith Observatory, and Lon Rains, my former editor at SpaceNews.
This discussion can be viewed at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jXoIAfz_e88
For a complete roster of all activities and videos available via Griffith Observatory TV, go to:
http://www.griffithobservatory.org/events/rememberingapollo11.html
