The James Webb Space Telescope – Hubble’s successor – has successfully lifted off.
Now starts the “two weeks of terror” as it gets into position and unfolds. Fingers crossed! 🤞
World’s largest space telescope has liftoff
December 26, 2021
Trace Gas Orbiter finds traces of hydrogen underground in the Valles Marineris
December 16, 2021
The original article title?
“Astronomers Detect Secret Water Reserves in The Largest Canyon in The Solar System”
Science isn’t quite as catchy. The hydrogen may indicate water in the form of permafrost 3 feet and more under the surface.
The high-hydrogen region is about the size of the Netherlands, and overlaps with Candor Chasma, one of the largest canyons in the Valles Marineris system.
Looks like there may be some competition for who gets to land near here first…
https://www.sciencealert.com/hidden-water-has-been-found-in-the-soil-of-mars-grand-canyon
The DART has lift-off
November 24, 2021
twitter.com/nasa/status/1463315612042678279
Technically, the two asteroids the DART is aiming at are a “binary” (they orbit each other).
The BBC’s explanation is pretty good.
They don’t even mention Bruce Willis until the final sentence.
Hey, Russia, how about you try not killing your own cosmonauts?
November 16, 2021
The test blew up one of Russia’s own satellites, creating debris that forced the ISS crew to shelter in capsules.
https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-59299101
Thousands of debris fragments forced the astronauts/cosmonauts (and “taikonauts” in the Chinese-only space station) to shelter in their own separate modules.
“A kind of space madness,” is how one analyst phrased it.
Scientists around the world always have to deal with political maneuvering (i.e., bullshit). (Reference: 2010: A Space Odyssey – The Year We Make Contact).
Madness.
Earth has a second moon…for another 300 years, anyway
November 14, 2021
Kamo’oalewa is one such piece of lunar rubble that spiraled away from the moon. But rather than landing on Earth or simply tumbling off into the void, it found itself a quasi-satellite in its own right.
https://time.com/6116644/earth-second-moon/
Dunno what’s cooler: the name of the Moon fragment or the fact that the grad student at Lunar and Planetary Laboratory at the University of Arizona that discovered the ”moon” is named ”Sharkey.”
Also, the complete and utter lack of visuals is appalling…plus the repetitive politically-oriented automatic videos and random ads irritates me. Honestly, WTF is up with US-based websites these days. Unreadable.
Still, it’s telling that the ”moon” has a Hawaiian name. Much like the navigator in my story…
Water Bears in Space! Uh. Again.
November 12, 2021
Hang on, I think I’ve seen this before…
Oh.
Not such a great idea, then, to send them on an interstellar cruise…
Mars has a really thick skin
July 28, 2021
Well, OK, technically it’s the mantle, not the crust.
But it is thick. Super thick. And no gradations like the Earth.
Extrapolating to the known surface geology of the rest of the planet, this suggests an average thickness of between 24km and 72km. By contrast, Earth’s average crustal thickness is 15-20km.
https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-57935742
So what does this mean?
For one thing, it probably explains why there’s no breathable atmosphere on Mars.
Mars never developed a global magnetic field to block solar radiation. So it’s atmosphere was basically ripped right off.
And any terraforming attempts in the future would fail on a global scale. But maybe locally it might work…
Destination: Red Planet
June 27, 2021
Like other nations, China “regards Mars exploration as the preferred destination for deep space exploration,” Wang said.
https://abcnews.go.com/amp/Technology/china-unveils-ambitious-roadmap-human-mars-exploration/
China’s plan calls for setting up a permanently occupied base and a fleet of interplanetary craft. Probably it’s a good idea to first see whether it can meet its goal of landing people on Mars in 2033.
Of course, China is “willing to join hands with our counterparts and partners all over the world,” but it’s unlikely NASA, JAXA, ESA, and the UAE and other countries not named Russia will “cooperate.”
The next space race is here. Just wait until multinats actually decide asteroid mining is worth the risk and expense.
Squids…In…Space….!
June 6, 2021
The 128 baby bobtail squid will be used as part of research into the effects of spaceflight on beneficial interactions between microbes and animals.
https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-57339989
So why use squid instead of dogs, chimps, or other mammals?
The squid have an immune system which is similar to that of humans.
Ah.
And their distinct lack of a spine makes them similar to most politicians, too. Very helpful for finding out what might happen if we decide to…
Nah.
“Wright Brothers’ moment” – helicopters on Mars
April 19, 2021
“We together flew on Mars. We together have our Wright brothers moment.”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2021/04/19/nasa-ingenuity-helicopter-mars/
Yeah, yeah, I know. Technically, a German immigrant in Connecticut flew a plane before Orville and Wilbur.
But PR counts. Kudos, NASA!
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