January 30th, 2020
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The European Space Agency is studying multiple techniques for 3D printing of structures on the Moon, including solar sintering and ceramics. A 1.5 ton hollow cell block made from simulated lunar dust has been produced using a binding salt as “ink.” The structure was made during an initial feasibility project on lunar 3D printing. It […]
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NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover is wrapping up Sol 2659 tasks. Curiosity is heading for the bench reports Catherine O’Connell, a planetary geologist at University of New Brunswick Fredericton in New Brunswick, Canada. “The bench is an area that we are very interested in,” O’Connell explains, “as it marks a potential contact between the mudstones and […]
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is the planned successor to the Hubble Telescope. Costs for the project have already increased by 95% and the launch date has been delayed by more than 6.5 years. A new Government Accountability Office (GAO) report flags the fact that technical challenges have caused schedule strain and may […]
NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover has just begun Sol 2659 operations. Reports Ken Herkenhoff, a planetary geologist at USGS Astrogeology Science Center in Flagstaff, Arizona, a Sol 2657 drive by the rover went well, “so we have new bedrock exposures to explore on Sol 2658.” The goal is to get good chemical and remote sensing data […]
NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover is now carrying out Sol 2658 tasks. “Curiosity continues to function normally on Mars. We are at a very interesting point with potential changes in rock chemistry,” reports Susanne Schwenzer, a planetary geologist at The Open University, Milton Keynes, United Kingdom. “That always gets the geochemists like me to sit up […]
The Contact Paradox – Challenging our Assumptions in the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence by Keith Cooper, Bloomsbury Publishing; 2020; Hardback; 336 pages, $28.00. Space journalist Keith Cooper takes on a set of assumptions regarding the on-going and perplexing search for other starfolk. This is a well-written, well-researched, and a must read that spotlights the saga […]
NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover is wrapping up Sol 2655 tasks. Here’s a selection of new imagery taken by the robot: Road map Meanwhile, A new map shows the route driven by NASA’s Mars rover Curiosity through the 2654 Martian day, or sol, of the rover’s mission on Mars (January 24, 2020). Numbering of the dots […]
Late last year, astrobiologists let loose a “zoo” of microorganisms that traveled by high altitude stratospheric balloon for nine hours – a journey up to 19 miles (30 kilometers) above the Earth. At this altitude, the shielding effects of Earth’s atmosphere are greatly reduced, and the temperature, radiation and pressure are akin to the […]
A new report looks at the yearly reentry of large numbers of satellite constellations, noting that they can pose a significant hazard to people, both on the ground and in aircraft. But how great are the risks we face? The assessment — Large Constellation Disposal Hazards – has been authored by William Ailor of The […]
China space officials have announced the month of this year’s launch for the country’s Mars orbiter/rover/lander: July. According to China’s Xinhua news agency, this is the first time the country disclosed the launch month of its Mars exploration program. The Mars probe mission will be sent to the Red Planet by the Long March-5 Y4 […]
