Universe Today

October 15, 2003 by Fraser Cain

Chandra’s View of the Crescent Nebula

Image credit: Chandra

A new composite/optical image taken by the Chandra X-Ray Observatory shows a portion of the Crescent Nebula, a gaseous shell surrounding the massive star HD 192163. Early on in its life, the massive star expanded to become a red giant, and then compacted down again and began emitting an intense stellar wind that pushed material away at 4.8 million kph. We see the nebula from Earth because the wind is heating up the shell of material the star left when it was a red giant. The massive star is only 4.5 million years old, but it?s already nearing death; astronomers believe it will explode as a supernova within 100,000 years.

Massive stars lead short, spectacular lives. This composite X-ray(blue)/optical (red and green) image reveals dramatic details of a portion of the Crescent Nebula, a giant gaseous shell created by powerful winds blowing from the massive star HD 192163 (a.k.a. WR 136).

After only 4.5 million years (one-thousandth the age of the Sun), HD 192163 began its headlong rush toward a supernova catastrophe. First it expanded enormously to become a red giant and ejected its outer layers at about 20,000 miles per hour. Two hundred thousand years later ? a blink of the eye in the life of a normal star ? the intense radiation from the exposed hot, inner layer of the star began pushing gas away at speeds in excess of 3 million miles per hour!

When this high speed “stellar wind” rammed into the slower red giant wind, a dense shell was formed. In the image, a portion of the shell is shown in red. The force of the collision created two shock waves: one that moved outward from the dense shell to create the green filamentary structure, and one that moved inward to produce a bubble of million degree Celsius X-ray emitting gas (blue). The brightest X-ray emission is near the densest part of the compressed shell of gas, indicating that the hot gas is evaporating matter from the shell.

HD 192163 will likely explode as a supernova in about a hundred thousand years. This image enables astronomers to determine the mass, energy, and composition of the gaseous shell around this pre-supernova star. An understanding of such environments provides important data for interpreting observations of supernovas and their remnants.

Original Source: Chandra News Release

October 14, 2003June 3, 2013 by Fraser Cain

Chinese Launch is a Success

China joined an elite club of spacefarers on Wednesday with the launch of the Shenzhou 5 spacecraft from the Jiuquan desert launch site. At precisely 9:00am local time (0100 GMT), a Long March 2 rocket blasted into the sky carrying astronaut Yang Liwei into orbit – and into the history books.

Liwei reached space 10 minutes after launch, and is set to orbit the Earth 14 times over the course of 21 hours. He’ll then de-orbit on Thursday, re-enter the Earth’s atmosphere and make a parachute landing in the Gobi desert. Just like the previous four passengerless Shenzhou spacecraft have done.

Only the United States and Russia have launched humans into space before today.

Liwei Chosen from Fourteen
China’s first man into space, Yang Liwei, is a 38-year old lieutenant in the People’s Liberation Army. He hails from Louzhong County in Liaoning province, an industrial area in northeast China. He’s the son of a teacher and an official at an agricultural firm.

Liwei was chosen from 14 astronauts who had been training for several years for this mission. Then three candidates were chosen to prepare for an actual launch. Officials said they’d be selecting their astronaut based on physical condition on the day of the launch – lucky Liwei.

Although the Shenzhou can carry three astronauts, only one was chosen for today’s flight.

Almost a Secret
The Chinese space program is renowned for its secrecy. Until today’s launch, space officials had kept everyone in the dark; announcing the launch of the previous Shenzhou spacecraft only after they’d successfully made it to orbit.

With Shenzhou 5, however, insiders and media were predicting an October 15 launch. Officials finally admitted last week that it was indeed their chosen date; to give government officials time to attend the launch. It’s believed that President Hu Jintao and his predecessor Jiang Zemin were there to watch Liwei blast off.

State officials were originally planning to broadcast the launch live on television, but they decided against it at the last minute to manage publicity in case of an accident.

NASA was one of the first groups to publicly congratulate the new spacefarers. NASA Administrator Sean O’Keefe said, “the Chinese people have a long and distinguished history of exploration. NASA wishes China a continued safe human space flight program.”

October 14, 2003 by Fraser Cain

NASA Lab Will Study Astronaut’s Radiation

Image credit: NASA

NASA and the US Department of Energy have set up a new laboratory to study the effect of radiation on astronauts as they fly outside the Earth?s protective atmosphere. Located at the Brookhaven National Laboratory in Upton, New York, the $34 million NASA Space Radiation Laboratory will have 80 researchers annually. The teams will do a variety of experiments with the kinds of radiation found in space in hopes to better understand how it damages living tissue. This can help NASA predict risks and develop countermeasures when risking astronauts to long-term exposure to radiation.

Imagine a human spacecraft crew voyaging through space. A satellite sends a warning; energetic particles are being accelerated from the sun’s corona, sending dangerous radiation toward their spacecraft, but the crew isn’t worried. Long before their journey, researchers on Earth conducted experiments to accurately measure the hazards of space radiation and developed new materials and countermeasures to protect them.

To ensure the safety of spacecraft crews, NASA biologists and physicists will perform thousands of experiments at the new $34 million NASA Space Radiation Laboratory (NSRL) commissioned today at the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory in Upton, N.Y. The laboratory, built in cooperation between NASA and DOE, is one of the few facilities that can simulate the harsh space radiation environment.

“Scientists will use this facility as a research tool to protect today’s crews on the International Space Station and to enable the next generation of explorers to safely go beyond Earth’s protected neighborhood,” said Guy Fogleman, director of the Bioastronautics Research Division, Office of Biological and Physical Research (OBPR), at NASA Headquarters in Washington.

Space radiation produced by the sun and other galactic sources is more dangerous and hundreds of times more intense than radiation sources, such as medical X-rays or normal cosmic radiation, usually experienced on Earth. When the intensely ionizing particles found in space strike human tissue, it can result in cell damage and may eventually lead to cancer.

Approximately 80 investigators will conduct research annually at the new facility. “The NSRL will enable us to triple the ability of researchers to perform radiobiology experiments and the resulting science knowledge,” said Frank Cucinotta, the program scientist for NASA’s Space Radiation Health Project at Johnson Space Center, Houston. “Scientists at universities and medical centers across the nation will use the facility to investigate how space radiation damages cells and tissues such as the eyes, brain and internal organs,” he said.

For each experiment, an accelerator produces beams of protons or heavy ions. These ions are typical of those accelerated in cosmic sources and by the sun. The beams of ions move through a 328-foot transport tunnel to the 400-square-foot, shielded target hall. There, they hit the target, which may be a biological sample or shielding material.

“Physicists will measure how specific particles interact with shielding material, ” said James Adams, the program scientist for the Space Radiation Shielding Program at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. “We can use this knowledge to improve our ability to predict the effectiveness of various materials and to develop and test new materials.”

At NSRL, the radiation health team will perform extensive tests with biological samples placed in the path of the radiation. They will use the information to understand mechanisms of radiation damage to cells, predict risks, and develop countermeasures that mitigate radiation effects. “Advances in radiation detection, shielding and other radiation-mitigation techniques may be applied to workers in space and on Earth and may lead to improved use of radiation to treat disease on Earth and prevent radiation-induced illnesses,” Fogleman said.

Since the 1970s, NASA has been using particle accelerators to understand and mitigate the risks of space radiation. The NSRL will take advantage of the high-energy particle accelerators at Brookhaven National Laboratory, a DOE facility established in 1947. Construction of the new facility began in 1998, and was funded in part by NASA’s Office of Biological and Physical Research.

Original Source: NASA News Release

October 14, 2003December 19, 2015 by Fraser Cain

SIRTF Successfully Focused

Image credit: NASA

NASA?s recently launched Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF) passed an important milestone this week when it was successfully focused. The fourth, and last, of NASA?s great observatory has been in space since it was launched on August 25, and since then, it?s been slowly cooling down. The telescope is now only five degrees above Absolute Zero ? this will let it pick up the faint infrared emissions from distant objects in space without seeing its own heat. The observatory will eventually reveal previously unseen objects obscured by gas and dust.

The Space Infrared Telescope Facility, NASA’s fourth and final Great Observatory, has been successfully focused. This crucial milestone ? which will enable the observatory’s infrared eyes to see the cosmos in clear detail ? was achieved after a series of delicate adjustments were made to the telescope’s secondary mirror.

Since launch on Aug. 25, the Space Infrared Telescope Facility has performed as expected, proceeding through in-orbit checkout activities on schedule. In addition to achieving final focus, the telescope has cooled to an operating temperature of approximately 5 Kelvin (-268 Celsius or -451 Fahrenheit). This cold temperature will allow the observatory to detect the infrared radiation, or heat, from celestial objects without picking up its own infrared signature.

“The science community now has an outstanding observatory with which to study the universe,” said Dr. Michael Werner, project scientist for the mission at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. “We are eager to complete the fine-tuning of the observatory and begin the science program.”

In-orbit checkout activities are scheduled to continue for 11 more days, after which a one-month science verification phase will occur. Following this, the science program will begin.

From its innovative Earth-trailing orbit around the Sun, the Space Infrared Telescope Facility will pierce the dusty darkness enshrouding much of the universe, revealing galaxies billions of light years away; brown dwarfs, or failed stars; and planet-forming discs around stars.

JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the Space Infrared Telescope Facility for NASA’s Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. Further information about the Space Infrared Telescope Facility is available at http://sirtf.caltech.edu/.

Original Source: NASA/JPL News Release

October 13, 2003 by Fraser Cain

Happy Thanksgiving

I just wanted to let you all know that it’s Thanksgiving here in Canada today, so there won’t be an update of Universe Today until Tuesday, October 14. I’m too full of turkey to really think straight anyway. 😉

Take care,

Fraser Cain
Publisher
Universe Today

October 10, 2003March 24, 2012 by Fraser Cain

New Method for Finding Life on Mars

Image credit: NASA

Is there life on Mars? A team of scientists from the University of Glasgow have developed a method they believe will help detect evidence of life in ancient rocks – perhaps helping uncover if there’s life on Mars. With their technique, the rocks are crushed to release tiny amounts of liquid water, and then special detectors are used to search for the presence of biomolecules in the water. Once the technique has been proven to work, the researchers believe it could be miniaturized and flown aboard future Mars landers.

A new UK project could help detect evidence of life on Mars and improve our understanding of how life evolved on Earth. The aim is to develop a technique that can identify biomolecules in water that have been trapped in rocks for millions to billions of years.

The three-year initiative will be carried out by geologists and bioengineers at the University of Aberdeen and the University of Glasgow, with funding from the UK’s Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council.

The initiative is being led by Dr John Parnell of the University of Aberdeen’s Geology and Petroleum Geology Department, in collaboration with Professor Jonathan Cooper of the University of Glasgow’s Department of Electronics.

Professor Cooper says, ‘With our collaborators in Aberdeen, we are fortunate to have the possibility of working on one of the most exciting projects in the universe, the search for life on other planets!’

As well as analysing samples from Earth, the technique could be used to obtain important information from water sealed within rock samples brought back from Mars. The team will also consider how the technique could be miniaturised for incorporation into spacecraft that travel to other planets.

The research will explore significant technological challenges at the interface between the physical sciences and engineering. These include microfluidic methods for sample pre-concentration (ie the extraction and handling of exceptionally small amounts of fluid), single molecule detection technologies to locate very small amounts of biomaterials and the elimination of contaminants.

The project is highly innovative, attempting to access a source of biomolecules that have not been tapped before. Analysis of material dating from the time before the Earth’s fossil record became extensive is a major project aim, potentially resulting in our knowledge of the development of life on Earth being significantly enhanced.

Original Source: University of Glasgow News Release

October 10, 2003March 24, 2012 by Fraser Cain

Laser Powered Plane Takes Flight

Image credit: NASA

A team of NASA researchers have created a remote control plane that gets its power from a ground-based laser that tracks it as it flies around. The model plane has a 3.5 metre wingspan, and only weighs 300 grams. It collects energy from a bank of photovoltaic cells to power its propeller. Although this is just a prototype, future versions could be much larger and fly above a city indefinitely providing telecommunications services – it could be an inexpensive replacement for satellites.

Ever since the dawn of powered flight, it has been necessary for all aircraft to carry fuel onboard ? whether in the form of batteries, fuel, solar cells, or even a human “engine” ? in order to stay aloft.

A team of researchers from NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., NASA’s Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards, Calif., and the University of Alabama in Huntsville is trying to change that.

They have now chalked up a major accomplishment? and a “first.” The team has developed and demonstrated a small-scale aircraft that flies solely by means of propulsive power delivered by an invisible, ground-based laser. The laser tracks the aircraft in flight, directing its energy beam at specially designed photovoltaic cells carried onboard to power the plane’s propeller.

“The craft could keep flying as long as the energy source, in this case the laser beam, is uninterrupted,” said Robert Burdine, Marshall’s laser project manager for the tests. “This is the first time that we know of that a plane has been powered only by the energy of laser light. It really is a groundbreaking development for aviation.”

“We feel this really was a tremendous success for the project,” added David Bushman, project manager for beamed power at Dryden. “We are always trying to develop new technologies that will enable new capabilities in flight, and we think this is a step in the right direction.”

The plane, with its five-foot wingspan, weighs only 11 ounces and is constructed from balsa wood and carbon fiber tubing covered with Mylar film. Designed and built at NASA Dryden, the aircraft is a one-of-a-kind, radio-controlled model airplane. A special panel of photovoltaic cells, selected and tested by team participants at the University of Alabama in Huntsville, is designed to efficiently convert the energy from the laser wavelength into electricity to power a small electric motor that spins the propeller.

The lightweight, low-speed plane was flown indoors at the Marshall center to prevent wind and weather from affecting the test flights.

After the craft was released from a launching platform inside the building, the laser beam was aimed at the airplane’s panels, causing the propeller to spin and propel the craft around the building, lap after lap. When the laser beam was turned off, the airplane glided to a landing.

The team made a similar series of demonstration flights in 2002 at NASA Dryden, using a theatrical searchlight as a power source. The recent flights at the Marshall center are the first known demonstration of an aircraft flying totally powered by a ground-based laser. The demonstration is a key step toward the capability to beam power to a plane aloft. Without the need for onboard fuel or batteries, such a plane could carry scientific or communication equipment, for instance, and stay in flight indefinitely. The concept offers potential commercial value to the remote sensing and telecommunications industries, according to Bushman.

“A telecommunications company could put transponders on an airplane and fly it over a city,” Bushman said. “The aircraft could be used for everything from relaying cell phone calls to cable television or Internet connections.”

Laser power beaming is a promising technology for future development of aircraft design and operations. The concept supports NASA?s mission-critical goals for the development of revolutionary aerospace technologies.

Original Source: NASA News Release

October 10, 2003 by Fraser Cain

Chase Planes Could Let the Shuttle Launch at Night

NASA is considering sending two WB-57F research planes to chase the space shuttle when it launches at night to watch for trouble. Ground cameras can’t see the shuttle clearly at night because of the bright glow from the solid rocket boosters. NASA is also modernizing its current imaging systems, spending $3.2 million on new computers, software and cameras – they’re adding at least 11 new cameras at various places around the Kennedy Space Center.

October 10, 2003 by Fraser Cain

China Finally Reveals Launch Plans

After years of secrecy, the Chinese government has finally revealed details of its upcoming launch. As predicted by media and industry insiders, Shenzhou 5 will launch some time between October 15 and 17. The flight will last between 14 orbits, or 21 hours – not the single orbit previously reported. They revealed that there are three astronaut candidates at the launch facility, but not the number that will actually ride in the spacecraft on this first flight.

October 9, 2003March 24, 2012 by Fraser Cain

Four New Space-Related Bills Passed

Image credit: Scaled Composites

The US government passed four new bills by voice vote that promote space and astronomy. The Commercial Space Act of 2003 hopes to better regulate commercial space launches, such as sub-orbital tourist flights. The Charles `Pete’ Conrad Astronomy Awards Act will encourage amateur astronomers to help spot potential Earth-crossing asteroids. The Remote Sensing Applications Act of 2003 will provide funding for satellite images to support various projects. And the Human Space Flight Independent Investigation Commission Act of 2003 will establish and independent commission to investigate future disasters, like the loss of Columbia.

The House Science Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics today approved four bills by voice vote, listed below.

H.R. 3245, “Commercial Space Act of 2003,” sponsored by Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA)
This bill clarifies the legislative framework for commercial human space flight. Currently, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Office of Space Transportation (AST) regulates U.S. commercial space launches for television, telecommunications and imagery satellites. H.R. 3245 ensures that commercial launchers – such as those being built by entrepreneurs to take people to the edge of space – would also be regulated by AST.

Last July, the Space & Aeronautics Subcommittee held a joint hearing with the Senate Commerce Committee on the regulatory issues facing such commercial human space. All of the witnesses at that hearing called for legislation to clearly define the FAA’s regulatory responsibilities on this issue.

“I believe that most Members of Congress share my view that the aerospace industry plays a critical role in advancing America’s space frontier,” said Subcommittee Chairman Rohrabacher. “This bill tells the Department of Transportation that this new commercial human space flight industry should be nurtured by streamlined and careful regulation”

The bill authorizes $11,523,000 and $11,000,000 for fiscal years 2004 and 2005, respectively, for the AST. The bill also authorizes $1,800,000 and $2,000,000 for fiscal years 2004 and 2005, respectively, for the Department of Commerce’s Office of Space Commerce, and delegates licensing authority for private-sector remote sensing systems to this Office.

H.R. 912, “Charles `Pete’ Conrad Astronomy Awards Act,” sponsored by Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA)
The Charles “Pete” Conrad Astronomy Awards Act, named for the third man to walk on the moon, establishes awards to encourage amateur astronomers to discover and track asteroids crossing in a near-Earth orbit. Earth has experienced several near-misses with asteroids that would have proven catastrophic, and the scientific community relies heavily on amateur astronomers to discover and track these objects. The bill authorizes $10,000 for each of fiscal years 2004 and 2005 for NASA to administer the program. The House approved the bill by voice vote last year.

“Pete Conrad was a pilot, explorer, and entrepreneur of the highest caliber. I think it is fitting that we honor Pete Conrad by establishing this award to encourage amateur astronomers and private citizens to keep looking up and out into the future,” said Rohrabacher.

H.R. 1292, “Remote Sensing Applications Act of 2003,” sponsored by Rep. Mark Udall (D-CO)
The Remote Sensing Applications Act, also approved by the House last year, will establish a grant program to help integrate remote sensing data to address state, local and regional needs. The U.S. already collects an abundant amount of remote sensing data, but it is often used only for scientific ventures. However, it can have countless local applications including urban planning, coastal zone management, resource supervision and disaster monitoring for state and local authorities. The bill authorizes $15,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2004 through 2008 for NASA to carry out this program.

“The Remote Sensing Applications Act gives state and local governments 21st century tools to deal with 21st century challenges. My bill will help begin to bridge the gap between established and emerging technology solutions and the problems and challenges we face regarding growth management, homeland security, forest fire management and other issues,” said Udall. “I am pleased the Subcommittee passed the bill today, and hope the full Committee will soon follow suit.”

H.R. 2450, “Human Space Flight Independent Investigation Commission Act of 2003,” sponsored by Rep. Bart Gordon (D-TN)
H.R. 2450 would establish an independent, Presidentially-appointed investigative Commission in the event of incidents in the nation’s human space flight program that result in loss of crew, passengers, or spacecraft, including the International Space Station.

The Commission will consist of 15 members, to include the Chairman of the NTSB and 14 members appointed by the President and drawn in part from lists of candidates from the Majority and Minority Leaders of the Senate, and the Speaker and the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives. Except for the Chairman of the NTSB, no officer or employee of the Federal Government would serve as a member of the Commission.

Subcommittee Ranking Democrat Gordon said, “I appreciate the subcommittee’s support for this legislation, which provides for an independent and accountable accident investigation commission if, God forbid, we have another mishap in space. I hope the rest of my colleagues in the full Science Committee will act quickly to get this bill enacted into law.”

The Subcommittee accepted an amendment offered by Chairman Rohrabacher, clarifying that only those incidents involving missions carrying out U.S. Government activities would trigger the Presidentially-appointed Commission.

Original Source: House Committee on Science News Release