August 24th, 2020
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NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover is now carrying out Sol 2862 tasks. “Curiosity is still at the “Mary Anning” drill location, investigating the chemistry and sedimentary structures in this vicinity,” reports Lauren Edgar, a planetary geologist at the USGS Astrogeology Science Center in Flagstaff, Arizona. “As we continue to dig into the science at this location, […]
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Back in 1976, the dual NASA Viking landers came to full stop on the Red Planet. The assignment: Is there life on Mars? Gilbert Levin was the principal investigator of the Viking Labeled Release (LR) life detection experiment and he maintains the investigation at both landing locales got positive responses. That said, a consensus of […]
When China’s Tianwen-1 Mars probe settles down on the Red Planet next year, Chinese scientists will use a virtual reality system to monitor its movement on the planet. The system can simulate the operation of the rover on Mars, including unfolding its aerials and solar array wings, climbing and changing directions. “It mainly simulates the […]
China’s Tianwen-1 probe en route to Mars will carry out its second orbital correction next month. The spacecraft was launched on July 23, a probe that is a combination orbiter, lander, and rover and is due to reach the Red Planet around February 2021. After entering Mars orbit, Tianwen-1 is slated to spend another two […]
Russian cosmonaut Ivan Vagner released a video last week capturing what appears to be five objects zipping over Antarctica when the space traveler was trying to capture the southern lights from the International Space Station. Vagner later tweeted that “the very peak of the Aurora Borealis over Antarctica is in the longitude of Australia, i.e. […]
Permanently shadowed regions at the Moon’s poles have a story to tell. Not only could sun-shy polar ice patches yield an account about the Moon’s history, but may also offer astrobiological clues regarding the origin of life. The floor of those craters in polar regions that have permanently shadowed floors are between 3.4 to […]
Year by year, as the issue of orbital trash continues to unfold, how best to deal with management of space traffic becomes problematic. But where should the responsibility of space traffic management reside? A new study — Space Traffic Management: Assessment of the Feasibility, Expected Effectiveness, and Funding Implications of a Transfer of Space […]
NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover is now carrying out Sol 2858 tasks. Reports Michelle Minitti, a planetary geologist at Framework in Silver Spring, Maryland: “It was just a few short weeks ago that we acquired sample from the “Mary Anning” drill target.” In those intervening weeks, Chemistry & Camera (ChemCam), the rover’s Chemistry & Mineralogy X-Ray […]
Sixty years ago today, on August 19, 1960 — Korabl-Sputnik 2 — a prototype of the Vostok piloted spacecraft, was launched into Earth orbit, with the dogs Belka and Strelka on board. This was the first orbital flight of living beings with a successful return to Earth. Also onboard were mice, insects, plants, fungal […]
Japan’s en route Hayabusa2 re-entry capsule is headed for a December 6 parachute landing in the Woomera Prohibited Area in Australia. Topped off with asteroid samples, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s (JAXA) capsule has been given landing clearance from the Australian Government – an Authorization of Return of Overseas-Launched Space Object, or AROLSO for […]
