Launch of NASA’s Psyche asteroid mission slips a week due to spacecraft issue – Spaceflight Now
Updated (7:35 p.m. EDT (2335 UTC): Adding NASA confirmation of delay. Artist’s illustration of the Psyche spacecraft and its destination. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech The launch of NASA’s Psyche asteroid mission is being delayed a week due to allow “verifications” of parameters used by the spacecraft’s thrusters, the space agency confirmed Thursday. Liftoff on a SpaceX Falcon […]
Let the Robot Take the Wheel. Autonomous Navigation in Space
Tracking spacecraft as they traverse deep space isn’t easy. So far, it’s been done manually, with operators of NASA’s Deep Space Network, one of the most capable communication arrays for contacting probes on interplanetary journeys, checking data from each spacecraft to determine where it is in the solar system. As more and more spacecraft start […]
Vega’s fuel-free CubeSats to keep formation with wings
Enabling & Support 27/09/2023 2471 views 72 likes Spain’s trio of ANSER CubeSats, due to fly on Europe’s next Vega launcher, will fly like a flock of birds in orbit – in more ways than one. Keeping in formation by following their leader, the three shoebox-sized satellites will image Iberian waters as if they are […]
How Saturated Fats May Hinder Memory Formation in the Aging Brain
A new study suggests that a high-fat diet may impair memory by causing inflammatory effects and issues in cell-signaling management in the brain cells, especially as people age, but the omega-3 fatty acid DHA may help mitigate these effects. The research, focusing on microglia and hippocampal neurons, found that palmitic acid increased inflammation, while DHA […]
How researchers make sure the LSST Camera is the best it can be
Credit: SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory Building the world’s largest digital camera ever made for astronomy, the Vera C. Rubin Observatory’s Legacy Survey of Space and Time Camera, is no simple task—that much is obvious. The camera features a 3,200 megapixel sensor array, some of the largest lenses ever built, and complex electronics meant to take […]
NASA to extend New Horizons mission through late 2020s
WASHINGTON — NASA has agreed to extend operations of its New Horizons spacecraft through late this decade to support “multidisciplinary” science that could include another Kuiper Belt object flyby. NASA announced Sept. 29 that it would extend New Horizons, currently approved for operations through the end of fiscal year 2024, until the spacecraft exits the […]
NASA’s Perseverance rover spots dust devil on Mars (video)
NASA’s Perseverance rover has given us a great look at a weather phenomenon that’s very familiar to folks who live in desert regions here on Earth. The car-sized Perseverance captured video of a dust devil swirling on the western rim of Mars’ Jezero Crater on Aug. 30, 2023. Mission team members calculated that the little […]
SpaceX to launch Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral Friday – Spaceflight Now
Updated 6:00 p.m. EDT (2200 UTC): Revised launch time. Falcon Heavy static fire slips to Saturday. A Falcon 9 rocket is scheduled for launch tonight on another mission to deliver satellites into orbit for SpaceX’s Starlink internet service. Liftoff from pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station is planned for 10:00 p.m. EDT Sept. […]
Dark Matter Could Be Annihilating Inside White Dwarfs
As the search for dark matter particles continues to yield nothing, astronomers continue to look at ways these elusive particles might be found. One general method is to look for evidence of dark matter particle decay. Although dark matter doesn’t interact strongly with regular matter, some dark matter models predict that dark matter particles can […]
Material matters
The Biofilms study continues its cosmic quest to combat bacterial contamination. With three experiments aboard the International Space Station, it’s on a mission to improve antimicrobial technology, benefitting astronauts and people on Earth alike. Source link