Space exploration sure is hard, huh? Luckily, it’s an iterative process, where engineers test and test and test again to work out all the bugs in advance. At least, that’s what we remind ourselves when the prototype goes “kaboom!” Earlier today, the SN11 joins its predecessors by being the fourth Starship prototype to conduct a successful flight test and then explode while attempting to make a landing (or shortly thereafter).
Continue reading “Latest Starship Prototype SN11 Explodes in mid-air, Raining Debris on the Launch Site”One Idea for a Lunar Lava Tube Explorer
Lava tubes on the moon are some of the most interesting, and difficult, places to explore in the solar system. But if humanity plans to eventually have a permanent presence on the moon, the more knowledge we have about the cave systems created by those lava tubes the better.
That’s why ESA’s current focus on lunar cave exploration is so important, and another good reason to take note when it releases more information about some of the technologies leading that push. Recently, it released an update on a project known as DAEDALUS, led by Julius-Maximilians-Universität of Würzburg (JMU), with interesting new insights into the sphere shaped autonomous robot.
Continue reading “One Idea for a Lunar Lava Tube Explorer”LEGO Announces the Space Shuttle Discovery and Hubble Edition
When I saw the opportunity to write about a new Lego set featuring the Space Shuttle Discovery and Hubble, I immediately went to my 7 year old son, who is obsessed with Legos, and asked him if he thought I should write about it. He immediately agreed, so now I have the pleasure of introducing UT’s audience to one of Lego’s newest sets – #10283 – NASA Space Shuttle Discovery.
Continue reading “LEGO Announces the Space Shuttle Discovery and Hubble Edition”Mars Spiders Form as Spring Arrives on Mars. But why?
A person suffering from arachnophobia might think their fear would stoked on a trip to Mars. However, there is such a thing known colloquially as a Martian “spider”. It is much more innocuous than the eight legged animal that strikes fear into the hearts of millions, but its origins have only been theorized until recently. Now, a team led by a group at Trinity College Dublin has determined that these “spiders” are actually topological troughs formed when dry ice directly sublimates to a gas.
Continue reading “Mars Spiders Form as Spring Arrives on Mars. But why?”This Time NASA’s SLS Hotfire Goes the Full 8 Minutes
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When NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) is fully integrated, assembled, and finished with testing, it will be the most powerful rocket since the Saturn V that carried the Apollo astronauts to the Moon. To get it there, NASA has been conducting a testing campaign known as the Green Run, an 8-step assessment that culminates in a test-firing of all four of the Core’s RS-25 engines (aka. a “Hot Fire” test).
On January 16th, NASA made its first attempt at a Green Run Hot Fire test at the Stennis Space Center’s B-2 Test Stand in Mississippi, which only lasted for about one minute. Another attempt was made on Thursday, March 18th, where all four engines fired for 8 minutes and 19 seconds. This successful fire test is a crucial milestone for the SLS and brings it one step closer to sending astronauts back to the Moon.
Continue reading “This Time NASA’s SLS Hotfire Goes the Full 8 Minutes”A 1-Stage, Fully Reusable Lunar Lander Makes the Most Sense for Returning Humans to the Moon
When astronauts return to the Moon for the first time since the Apollo Era, they will be relying on a number of mission elements to get them there and back safely. This includes the Space Launch System (SLS) and Orion spacecraft that will launch a crew of four and carry them to the Moon. But until recently, the question of how they will get to and from the surface remained unresolved, as there were a few options.
To determine which would be best in terms of performance and cost, researchers from Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology (Skoltech) in Moscow and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) reviewed several dozen proposals. In the end, they determined that a one-stage reusable lunar lander that could transport astronauts to and from the orbiting Lunar Gateway was the best option.
Continue reading “A 1-Stage, Fully Reusable Lunar Lander Makes the Most Sense for Returning Humans to the Moon”Careful Calculations Show That Earth is Safe From Asteroid Apophis for at Least 100 Years
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If you’re looking for doomsday, you can forget about asteroid Apophis. The latest radar observations have effectively ruled out any possibility of this near-Earth object (NEO) hitting Earth for the foreseeable future.
Continue reading “Careful Calculations Show That Earth is Safe From Asteroid Apophis for at Least 100 Years”The Event Horizon Telescope has Revealed the Magnetic Field Lines Around M87's Central Black Hole
In 2019 astronomers captured the first direct image of a black hole. It was an image of the supermassive black hole at the heart of M87. And when many folks saw it, their reaction was “that’s it?” Which is understandable, given that the image is just a blurry, donut-shaped smudge. It isn’t much to look at. But an astronomical image is a small fraction of the data gathered by astronomers. Recently more of that data has been analyzed, including both the polarization of the light and the magnetic field surrounding the black hole.
Continue reading “The Event Horizon Telescope has Revealed the Magnetic Field Lines Around M87's Central Black Hole”Exploring the Moon’s Shadowed Regions Using Beamed Energy
In less than three years, astronauts will return to the Moon for the first time since the Apollo Era. As part of the Artemis Program, the purpose is not only to send crewed missions back to the lunar surface to explore and collect samples. This time around, there’s also the goal of establishing vital infrastructure (like the Lunar Gateway and a Base Camp) that will allow for “sustained lunar exploration.”
A key requirement for this ambitious plan is the provision of power, which can be difficult in regions like the South Pole-Aitken Basin – a cratered region that is permanently-shadowed. To address this, a researcher from the NASA Langley Research Center named Charles Taylor has proposed a novel concept known as “Light Bender.” Using telescope optics, this system would to capture and distribute sunlight on the Moon.
Continue reading “Exploring the Moon’s Shadowed Regions Using Beamed Energy”Newly Forming Stars Don’t Blast Away Material as Previously Believed. So Why Do They Stop Growing?
We thought we understood how stars are formed. It turns out, we don’t. Not completely, anyway. A new study, recently conducted using data from the Hubble Space Telescope, is sending astronomers back to the drawing board to rewrite the accepted model of stellar formation.
Continue reading “Newly Forming Stars Don’t Blast Away Material as Previously Believed. So Why Do They Stop Growing?”