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Space News
Universe Today
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Image Credit: Universe Today
Photonic Lightsails are our Best Shot at Reaching Another Star
- Photonic lightsails offer a potential solution for interstellar travel due to their ability to propel spacecraft using beams of energy.
- A recent paper explores the principles of lightsail technology and identifies the best materials and designs for interstellar travel.
- Finding the right materials like molybdenum disulfide and nano-structured designs like diffraction gratings are crucial for the success of lightsails.
- However, the technology is still in its early stages and further progress is needed in material science, metalenses, and high-powered lasers.
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Armaghplanet
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Image Credit: Armaghplanet
Lord of Ether and Light – Earliest Astronomical Drawings on display at Armagh Planetarium
- The Armagh Planetarium is currently hosting an exhibition of the earliest astronomical drawings, called 'The Lord of Ether and Light'.
- The exhibition showcases the sketches of the Orion Nebulae, made by the 3rd Earl of Rosse and his team using the Great Telescope.
- The Great Telescope, built in 1845, used a 6-foot mirror made of Speculum, a copper and tin alloy, to gather light. It was a breakthrough instrument at the time.
- The drawings, which were later vindicated by astrophotography, have had a significant impact on our understanding of the universe.
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Universe Today
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Image Credit: Universe Today
DARPA Wants to Build Structures in Orbit, Without Needing a Launch from Earth
- DARPA is partnering with universities to develop 3D printing technology and in-orbit assembly of satellite components.
- DARPA's NOM4D program aims to send lightweight materials to space for on-site construction, enabling the building of larger and more mass-efficient structures in orbit.
- Partnerships with Caltech and the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign are progressing to in-space testing of the assembly process for smaller satellites.
- DARPA is exploring the possibility of growing large biological structures in space to enable new construction possibilities.
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Earthsky
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Image Credit: Earthsky
What’s a supermoon? Here are the supermoons in 2025
- In 2025, there will be five new supermoons, followed by three full supermoons in a row at the end of the year.
- A supermoon occurs when the new or full moon coincides closely with the moon's closest point to Earth, known as perigee.
- The new supermoons in 2025 will occur on February 28, March 29, April 27, May 27, and June 25 at varying distances from Earth.
- One of the supermoons in March 2025 will cause a partial solar eclipse.
- The closest full supermoons in 2025 will be on October 7, November 5, December 4, and starting in January 2026.
- Supermoons appear brighter than ordinary full moons, as they exceed the average brightness and size of the moon.
- The term 'supermoon' originated in 1979 by astrologer Richard Nolle and has gained popularity in recent years.
- Supermoons can cause higher-than-usual tides known as perigean spring tides, which may lead to localized flooding under certain conditions.
- The cycle of supermoons repeats every 14 lunar months, with variations in distance and brightness compared to micromoons, which occur when the moon is farthest from Earth.
- In 2025, there will also be three full micromoons, with the most distant full moon occurring on April 13.
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Digitaltrends
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Image Credit: Digitaltrends
The space station is too darn clean, research suggests
- New research suggests that the International Space Station (ISS) might benefit from having a more diverse microbial community.
- The excessive cleanliness of the ISS may be contributing to health issues experienced by astronauts including immunity problems and skin rashes.
- The study found that the ISS has a lower diversity of microbes compared to human-built environments on Earth, with most species introduced by visiting astronauts.
- Adding more Earth microbes to the ISS could potentially improve astronaut health without compromising hygiene.
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Medium
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Image Credit: Medium
Exploring Mars — The Red Planet
- Mars, also known as the Red Planet, continues to be explored by various missions from NASA, ESA, and other space agencies.
- Key features of Mars include Olympus Mons, the largest volcano in the solar system, Valles Marineris, a vast canyon system, and the polar ice caps composed of water and carbon dioxide ice.
- Mars has a thin atmosphere consisting mainly of carbon dioxide, making it uninhabitable for humans without artificial environments.
- Scientists are still searching for answers regarding the possibility of past or current life on Mars, while plans for human missions and potential terraforming projects are being discussed.
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The Verge
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Image Credit: The Verge
Jeff Bezos is sending Katy Perry to space
- Katy Perry will fly to space during Blue Origin’s next crewed mission.
- The pop star will join CBS host Gayle King and Bezos’s fiancé Lauren Sánchez aboard the New Shepard rocket this spring.
- Blue Origin’s most recent human spaceflight took place earlier this week, with a six-person crew reaching the edge of space and experiencing zero gravity for a few minutes before returning to Earth.
- Since 2021, Blue Origin has taken 52 people to space aboard its New Shepard rocket, including Star Trek’s William Shatner and Bezos himself.
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Guardian
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Image Credit: Guardian
Planetary parade: Mercury falls into line for rare seven-planet alignment
- A rare seven-planet alignment, known as a planetary parade, will occur on the last day of February.
- The visibility of the planets in the parade depends on their proximity to the horizon.
- Mercury, Neptune, and Saturn will be hard to see, while Venus, Jupiter, and Mars will be easily visible to the naked eye.
- Planetary parades with more than four or five planets are rare, with the next predicted alignment set to occur in 2040.
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Medium
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Image Credit: Medium
"The 2025 Planetary Alignment: A Cosmic Turning Point?"
- The planets will align in a rare celestial formation on February 28, 2025.
- Throughout history, planetary alignments have coincided with moments of profound change.
- Events such as the Black Death and World War I were preceded by planetary alignments.
- The upcoming alignment in 2025 raises the question of what kind of change it will bring.
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Arstechnica
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Image Credit: Arstechnica
Astroscale aced the world’s first rendezvous with a piece of space junk
- Astroscale's ADRAS-J mission successfully approached a piece of space junk in low-Earth orbit.
- The particular object, a derelict upper stage from a Japanese H-IIA rocket, has been in orbit since 2009.
- Astroscale's achievement is an impressive feat of engineering and orbital dynamics.
- It is the world's first spacecraft mission to rendezvous with space debris in a classified environment.
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Universe Today
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Image Credit: Universe Today
Lucy Sees its Next Target: Asteroid Donaldjohanson
- NASA's spacecraft Lucy captured an image of its next flyby target, the asteroid Donaldjohanson.
- Lucy will pass within 960 km of the asteroid on April 20th and will continue to image it for the next two months.
- The asteroid Donaldjohanson is a main-belt, carbonaceous C-type asteroid, about 4 km in diameter.
- Lucy's flyby of Donaldjohanson will allow mission personnel to test and calibrate the spacecraft's navigation system and instruments.
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Nasa
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Image Credit: Nasa
Progress Cargo Mission Lifts Off to Station for Saturday Arrival
- The Progress 91 cargo craft successfully launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
- The unpiloted spacecraft is on its way to the International Space Station (ISS).
- It will automatically dock to the ISS Zvezda Service module in two days.
- The spacecraft carries approximately three tons of food, fuel, and supplies.
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Nasa
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Image Credit: Nasa
Progress Cargo Craft Counts Down to Launch Today on NASA+
- The Progress 88 cargo craft launches from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on May 30, 2024, during Expedition 71.
- The unpiloted Progress 91 spacecraft is scheduled to launch at 4:24 p.m. EST (2:24 a.m. Baikonur time) on a Soyuz rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. It will carry about three tons of food, fuel, and supplies for the Expedition 72 crew aboard the International Space Station.
- NASA’s live coverage is underway on NASA+, providing multiple platforms to watch NASA content, including social media.
- The spacecraft will dock to the aft port of the orbiting laboratory’s Zvezda Service module at 6:03 p.m., Saturday, March 1, after a two-day in-orbit journey. NASA’s rendezvous and docking coverage will begin at 5:15 p.m. on NASA+.
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Brighter Side of News
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Image Credit: Brighter Side of News
New research links ice ages to shifts in the Earth’s orbit
- Research suggests that the next ice age would likely begin in about 10,000 years without human influence, based on Earth's orbital shifts and Milankovitch theory.
- Milankovitch theory explains how variations in Earth's orbit and axial tilt impact climate through changes in sunlight distribution.
- Orbital factors like axial tilt, precession, and eccentricity influence sunlight reaching high latitudes, shaping global climate.
- Recent study in Science reanalyzed a million years of climate history, highlighting a predictable pattern in Earth's glacial cycles.
- The study revealed a consistent correlation between Earth's orbital shifts and transitions between ice ages and interglacial periods.
- While Earth would be on track for a stable warm period in 10,000 years, human-induced greenhouse gas emissions have disrupted this natural cycle.
- Understanding past climate shifts helps refine climate models and predict future trends, offering insights into the impact of human activities.
- The delicate balance of Earth's climate system emphasizes the significance of predicting and understanding natural climate rhythms.
- By calibrating past changes, scientists aim to inform future climate predictions and address the long-term effects of human influence.
- This research provides a clearer understanding of how human activities are altering Earth's climate over long timescales.
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Universe Today
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Image Credit: Universe Today
Mars’s Northern Ice Cap is Surprisingly Young
- Researchers have found that Mars's northern polar ice cap is quite young, providing insights into the planet's interior.
- The team used techniques to measure glacial isostatic adjustment, revealing ongoing deformation in response to the weight of the ice.
- The Martian ice cap measures approximately 1000 kilometers in diameter and up to three kilometers thick, causing depression in the underlying rocky crust.
- By studying glacial isostatic rebound on Mars, researchers concluded that the planet's north polar cap is relatively young and deforms the ground beneath it.
- The small deformation rates suggest that Mars's upper mantle is cold, highly viscous, and stiffer compared to Earth's upper mantle.
- Understanding how ice affects planetary surfaces helps scientists probe deep beneath the surfaces of rocky planets like Mars and Earth.
- Measurements of depression and rebound provide insights into the viscosity of the mantle rocks and the characteristics of planetary construction.
- The team estimated that Mars's north pole surface area is subsiding at rates of up to 0.13 millimeters per year, indicating a cold Martian interior.
- The age of Mars's north polar ice cap is estimated to be between 2 and 12 million years, making it one of the youngest large-scale features on the planet.
- The findings highlight the presence of local melt zones in the mantle near the equator, contrasting with the cold mantle underneath the north pole.
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