Space and astronomy news
China says its Chang’e-6 spacecraft has gathered up soil and rocks from the far side of the moon and has lifted off from the surface, beginning a journey to bring the samples back to Earth. The probe’s payload represents the first lunar samples ever collected from the far side. In a status update, the China …
Continue reading “Chinese Probe Collects Moon Samples and Heads for Earth”
After touching down on the moon’s far side, China’s Chang’e-6 lander is collecting samples to bring back to Earth — and sending back imagery documenting its mission. Chang’e-6, which was launched May 3, went through weeks’ worth of in-space maneuvers that climaxed with its weekend landing in the moon’s South Pole-Aitken Basin region. The mission …
Continue reading “Chinese Probe Lands on Moon’s Far Side to Collect Samples for Return”
Solar Sails are an enigmatic and majestic way to travel across the gulf of space. Drawing an analogy to the sail ships of the past, they are one of the most efficient ways of propelling craft in space. On Tuesday a RocketLab Electron rocket launched NASA’s new Advanced Composite Solar Sail System. It aims to …
Continue reading “NASA’s New Solar Sail Has Launched and Will Soon Deploy”
Some of the biggest names in aerospace — and the automotive industry — will play roles in putting NASA astronauts in the driver’s seat for roving around on the moon. The space agency today selected three teams to develop the capabilities for a lunar terrain vehicle, or LTV, which astronauts could use during Artemis missions …
Continue reading “Start Your Engines: NASA Picks 3 Teams to Work on Lunar Terrain Vehicle”
Intuitive Machines recently had a major breakthrough, successfully becoming the first non-governmental entity to land on the Moon in February. At least the landing was partially successful – the company’s Odysseus lander ended up on its side, though its instruments and communication links remained at least partially functional. That mission, dubbed IM-1, was the first …
Continue reading “A Robot Hopper to Explore the Moon’s Dangerous Terrain”
You might remember the SLIM lunar lander that managed to land upside-down! The probe from the Japanese Space Agency has survived its second night on the Moon and returns a new photograph. Despite the solar panels pointing away from the Sun during the day it was still able to capture the image and transmit to …
Continue reading “Against all Odds. Japan’s SLIM Lander Survived a Second Lunar Night Upside Down”
Japan’s space agency didn’t expect its wrong-side-up SLIM moon lander to revive itself after powering down for a circuit-chilling lunar night on Feb. 1. But that’s exactly what happened. “Last night, a command was sent to SLIM and a response received, confirming that the spacecraft has made it through the lunar night and maintained communication …
Continue reading “Surprise! Japan’s SLIM Moon Lander Wakes Up After a Freezing Night”
Within the Saturn system, there are many moons which could present the opportunity terraforming. But to do so presents many challenges.
Much has been learned about Saturn’s system of moons in recent decades, thanks to the Voyager missions and the more recent surveys conducted by the Cassini spaceprobe. Between its estimated 150 moons and moonlets (only 53 of which have been identified and named) there is no shortage of scientific curiosities, and enough mysteries to keep …
Thanks the Voyager missions and the more recent flybys conducted by the Cassini space probe, Saturn’s system of moons have become a major source of interest for scientists and astronomers. From water ice and interior oceans, to some interesting surface features caused by impact craters and geological forces, Saturn’s moons have proven to be a …