June 29th, 2018
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The European Space Agency is working with NASA on a double-spacecraft mission – a test of how to deflect an asteroid. Called Hera, named for the Greek goddess of marriage, this candidate mission is up for consideration during the Agency’s Council of Ministers at European Level in late 2019. Dart In 2022, NASA’s […]
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Asteroid Day is a UN-sanctioned global awareness campaign. This year thousands of self-organized events will be hosted around the world. Join our Asteroid Day LIVE broadcast, 48 hours of content and commentary from around the world. Stellar lineup Hosted by Professor Brian Cox, he will be joined by astronauts, experts and celebrities. Asteroid Day is […]
In case all you bright-eyed sky watchers missed it, a verdict on the James Webb Space Telescope via an external independent review board now finds the JWST a tad behind: Now March 2021. Rejoice in this overview by the NASA chief, Bridentstine: Background resources To read a recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) review […]
Black Swift Technologies, a Boulder, Colorado-based firm, has been awarded a NASA contract to develop an aerial vehicle for atmospheric observations of Venus. “Black Swift Technologies has provided aerial solutions for wild land fires, volcanic observations, tornadoes, and hurricanes—some of the most extreme phenomena on Earth,” explains Jack Elston, CEO of the company. “This mission […]
NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover is now performing Sol 2094 duties. Reports Lauren Edgar, a planetary geologist for the USGS in Flagstaff, Arizona: a recent two-sol plan kicked off with the good news that the rover’s power state exceeded predictions, so Mars researchers were able to add in some extra science activities. Dust storm The first […]
NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover is now performing Sol 2093 duties. Notes Ryan Anderson, a planetary geologist for the USGS in Flagstaff, Arizona: “Despite the global dust storm — more correctly known as a ‘planet encircling dust event’ — darkening the skies, our nuclear-powered rover continues to do good science.” Veins and layers A Sol 2090 […]
Japan’s Haybusa2 is imaging asteroid Ryugu – and revealing a host of engineering challenges ahead for spacecraft operations. “The shape of Ryugu is now revealed,” explains Hayabusa2 Project Manager, Yuichi Tsuda for the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). “From a distance, Ryugu initially appeared round, then gradually turned into a square before becoming a beautiful […]
A fourth candidate landing site — “Midway” — has been added for evaluation by the engineering and science teams working on NASA’s Mars 2020 rover mission. This informal site is midway between the Jezero delta landing site and the NE Syrtis landing ellipse. The other site under consideration is Columbia Hills, Gusev Crater, and home […]
As Japan’s Hayabusa2 closes in on asteroid Ryugu, project officials are taking hard looks at photos of the object. In a recent report by Seiji Sugita, the Optical Navigation Camera Principal Investigator: “As we approached Ryugu and were able to distinguish individual features in the asteroid’s topology, it became clear that Ryugu has a land […]
Rep. Mike Rogers (R-AL), Chairman of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Strategic Forces, made the following remarks, as prepared for delivery, on today’s hearing: Space Situational Awareness – Whole of Government Perspectives on Roles and Responsibilities. “Good morning. I’m excited to host this joint hearing with my sister committee from HSST on space situational […]
