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NASA May Have Destroyed Evidence for Organics on Mars 40 Years Ago![]() Moscow (Sputnik) Jul 13, 2018 While the existence of native carbon-based organic compounds on the Red Planet was confirmed only in 2014, some suggest that the discovery could have been made a long time ago. Back in 1976, NASA's twin Viking landers touched down on Mars to find out if life could survive on Mars and whether there was organic matter in the Martian soil. Researchers were puzzled as no evidence for organic molecules were found, because they believed that organics had been delivered to the planet by carbon-rich meteo ... read more |
Scientists Discover "Ghost Dunes" On MarsWashington DC (SPX) Jul 12, 2018 Scientists have discovered hundreds of crescent-shaped pits on Mars where sand dunes the size of the US Capitol stood billions of years ago. The curves of these ancient dune impressions record the d ... more
NASA listens out for Opportunity everydayPasadena CA (JPL) Jul 09, 2018 The dust storm on Mars is continuing as a Planet-encircling Dust Event (PEDE) with no indication of receding at this time. Again, since the last contact with the rover on Sol 5111 (June 10, 20 ... more
Airbus wins two ESA studies for Mars Sample Return missionToulouse, France (SPX) Jul 09, 2018 Airbus has won two studies from the European Space Agency (ESA) to design a Sample Fetch Rover and an Earth Return Orbiter. These two elements will be critical parts of a mission to return samples o ... more
UK space sector set to benefit from new European Space Agency contractLondon, UK (SPX) Jul 09, 2018 A new rover set to visit Mars and collect the first ever samples from the planet to be brought back safely to Earth, will be designed in Stevenage by Airbus following the award of a 3.9 million poun ... more |
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| Previous Issues | Jul 12 | Jul 11 | Jul 10 | Jul 09 | Jul 07 |
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Opportunity sleeps during a planet-encircling dust stormPasadena CA (JPL) Jun 25, 2018 The dust storm on Mars is now a Planet-encircling Dust Event (PEDE). It shows no indication of receding at this time. Since the last contact with the rover on Sol 5111 (June 10, 2018), it is l ... more
Martian Dust Storm Grows Global; Curiosity Captures Photos of Thickening HazeGreenbelt MD (SPX) Jun 21, 2018 A storm of tiny dust particles has engulfed much of Mars over the last two weeks and prompted NASA's Opportunity rover to suspend science operations. But across the planet, NASA's Curiosity rover, w ... more
Explosive volcanoes spawned mysterious Martian rock formationWashington DC (SPX) Jun 19, 2018 Explosive volcanic eruptions that shot jets of hot ash, rock and gas skyward are the likely source of a mysterious Martian rock formation, a new study finds. The new finding could add to scientists' ... more
Unique microbe could thrive on Mars, help future manned missionsWashington (UPI) Jun 18, 2018 New research suggests certain cyanobacteria could thrive on Mars. The microbes could even be used to provide future space colonies with oxygen. ... more
NASA spacecraft studying massive Martian dust stormWashington (UPI) Jun 14, 2018 A record dust storm has been swirling on Mars for nearly two weeks. While the weather has forced the Opportunity rover to bunker down and suspend all scientific activities, several other spacecraft are taking the opportunity to study the storm. ... more |
![]() Study could help humans colonise Mars and hunt for alien life
Opportunity rover sends transmission amid Martian dust stormWashington (UPI) Jun 11, 2018 NASA's Opportunity rover is currently hunkered down, waiting out a severe dust storm on Mars. On Sunday, the rover sent a transmission back to Earth, letting NASA engineers know the rover still has enough battery life for basic communication. ... more |
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NASA encounters the perfect storm for science on MarsPasadena CA (JPL) Jun 14, 2018 One of the thickest dust storms ever observed on Mars has been spreading for the past week and a half. The storm has caused NASA's Opportunity rover to suspend science operations, but also offers a ... more
Martian dust storm silences NASA's rover, OpportunityTampa (AFP) June 13, 2018 A massive dust storm raging across Mars has overcome NASA's aging Opportunity rover, putting the unmanned, solar-powered vehicle into sleep mode and raising concerns about its survival, the US space agency said Wednesday. ... more
Opportunity hunkers down during dust stormPasadena CA (JPL) Jun 13, 2018 NASA engineers attempted to contact the Opportunity rover today but did not hear back from the nearly 15-year old rover. The team is now operating under the assumption that the charge in Opportunity ... more
Regional dust storm is affecting Opportunity Mars roverPasadena CA (JPL) Jun 13, 2018 Opportunity is halfway down in "Perseverance Valley" on the west rim of Endeavour Crater. A nearby, regional dust storm is affecting Opportunity. The first indication of a dust storm 621.37 mi ... more
Mars rover Opportunity hunkers down during dust stormPasadena CA (JPL) Jun 11, 2018 Science operations for NASA's Opportunity rover have been temporarily suspended as it waits out a growing dust storm on Mars. NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter first detected the storm on Fri ... more |
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Israel plans its first moon launch in December Yehud, Israel (AFP) July 10, 2018
An Israeli organisation announced plans Tuesday to launch the country's first spacecraft to the moon in December, with hopes of burnishing Israel's reputation as a small nation with otherworldly high-tech ambitions.
The unmanned spacecraft, shaped like a pod and weighing some 585 kilogrammes (1,300 pounds) at launch, will land on the moon on February 13, 2019 if all goes according to plan, o ... more |
China readying for space station era: Yang Liwei Beijing (XNA) Jul 10, 2018
China is accelerating its timetable for a space station, with the core capsule expected to be launched in 2020, says Yang Liwei, director of the China Manned Space Engineering Office and the country's first astronaut.
Yang told Chinese media recently that the two experiment modules of the space station will be sent into space in 2021 and 2022. Three or four manned missions and several carg ... more |
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Observatories Team Up to Reveal Rare Double Asteroid Pasadena CA (JPL) Jul 13, 2018
New observations by three of the world's largest radio telescopes have revealed that an asteroid discovered last year is actually two objects, each about 3,000 feet (900 meters) in size, orbiting each other.
Near-Earth asteroid 2017 YE5 was discovered with observations provided by the Morocco Oukaimeden Sky Survey on Dec. 21, 2017, but no details about the asteroid's physical properties we ... more |
First Global Maps of Pluto and Charon from New Horizons Published Houston TX (SPX) Jul 11, 2018
Until 2015, it was not known whether icy Pluto or its largest moon, Charon, had mountains, valleys or even impact craters. After the spectacular success of New Horizons in July 2015, scientists were amazed at the towering peaks and deep valleys that were revealed in the returned data.
Now, thanks to the efforts of the New Horizons team, the first official validated global map and topograph ... more |
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Listen: Sound of Electromagnetic Energy Moving Between Saturn, Enceladus Pasadena CA (JPL) Jul 10, 2018
New research from NASA's Cassini spacecraft's up-close Grand Finale orbits shows a surprisingly powerful and dynamic interaction of plasma waves moving from Saturn to its rings and its moon Enceladus.
The observations show for the first time that the waves travel on magnetic field lines connecting Saturn directly to Enceladus. The field lines are like an electrical circuit between the two ... more |
Copernicus Sentinel-5P releases first data Paris (ESA) Jul 12, 2018
Following months of tests and careful evaluation, the first data on air pollutants from the Copernicus Sentinel-5P satellite have been released. These first maps show a range of trace gases that affect air quality such as carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide and ozone.
Launched on 13 October 2017, Sentinel-5P is the first Copernicus satellite dedicated to monitoring our atmosphere. It is part ... more |
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Orion Jettison Motor Ready for Crew Escape System Test Sacramento CA (SPX) Jul 10, 2018
Aerojet Rocketdyne recently passed a key milestone in preparation for the Ascent Abort Test (AA-2) next year with the successful casting of the Jettison Motor for the Lockheed Martin-built Orion spacecraft's Launch Abort System (LAS).
AA-2 is a full-stress test of NASA's Orion LAS, which includes the Jettison Motor built by Aerojet Rocketdyne. The Orion Jettison Motor is used to separate the LA ... more |
NASA's Webb Space Telescope to Inspect Atmospheres of Gas Giant Exoplanets Baltimore MD (SPX) Jul 12, 2018
In April 2018, NASA launched the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS). Its main goal is to locate Earth-sized planets and larger "super-Earths" orbiting nearby stars for further study. One of the most powerful tools that will examine the atmospheres of some planets that TESS discovers will be NASA's James Webb Space Telescope. Since observing small exoplanets with thin atmospheres like E ... more |
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Fire Scout unmanned helicopter finishes first flight tests from LCS Washington (UPI) Jul 9, 2018
A MQ-8C Fire Scout unmanned helicopter finished its Initial Operational Test and Evaluation from the littoral combat ship USS Coronado, U.S. Navy officials said.
The crew of the Coronado and Air Test and Evaluation Squadron 1, or VX-1, conducted combat simulations to evaluate the Fire Scout on target identification, intelligence and surface warfare, the results of which will help the Na ... more |
Plasma Jets Foretell Unequal Activity of the Sun's Two Hemispheres Kolkata, India (SPX) Jul 13, 2018
The Sun's activity waxes and wanes periodically and holds sway over our space environment. Sunspots, strongly magnetized blotches on the solar surface, sometimes release fierce storms in space that severely impact our satellite based communication and navigational systems and occasionally, render satellites useless.
However, a complete understanding of all aspects of the sunspot activity c ... more |
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Boeing, SpaceX unlikely to make manned flights to ISS in 2019 Washington (AFP) July 12, 2018
Boeing and SpaceX are unlikely to be able to send astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) next year, according to a US government audit report, resulting in a possible gap in the US presence on the spacecraft.
The two companies were engaged by the US space agency NASA in 2014 to develop rockets that could transport astronauts to the space station when the current contract with Ru ... more |
MeerKAT Radio Telescope Reveals Clearest View Yet of Center of Milky Way Johannesburg, South Africa (SPX) Jul 13, 2018
Deputy President of the Republic of South Africa, Mr. David Mabuza, has officially inaugurated the MeerKAT radio telescope. After a decade in design and construction, this project of South Africa's Department of Science and Technology has now begun science operations. At the launch event, a panorama obtained with the new telescope was unveiled that reveals extraordinary detail in the region surr ... more |
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Could Gravitational Waves Reveal How Fast Our Universe Is Expanding? Boston MA (SPX) Jul 12, 2018
ince it first exploded into existence 13.8 billion years ago, the universe has been expanding, dragging along with it hundreds of billions of galaxies and stars, much like raisins in a rapidly rising dough.
Astronomers have pointed telescopes to certain stars and other cosmic sources to measure their distance from Earth and how fast they are moving away from us - two parameters that are es ... more |
Centenary of cosmological constant lambda Washington DC (SPX) Jul 12, 2018
Physicists are now celebrating the 100th anniversary of the cosmological constant. On this occasion, two papers recently published in EPJ H highlight its role in modern physics and cosmology.
Although the term was first introduced when the universe was thought to be static, today the cosmological constant has become the main candidate for representing the physical essence believed to be re ... more |
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MIT's Cheetah 3 robot avoids obstacles without the help of vision Washington (UPI) Jul 5, 2018
Cheetah 3, a robot designed by engineers at MIT, can run, jump and climb across complex terrain, avoiding obstacles along the way - all without the benefit of sight.
Researchers have dubbed the robot's technological abilities "blind locomotion."
Robots with similar maneuverability rely on cameras or some other kind of sensor to "see" the world, but Cheetah 3 is effectively blind ... more |
China readying for space station era: Yang Liwei Beijing (XNA) Jul 10, 2018
China is accelerating its timetable for a space station, with the core capsule expected to be launched in 2020, says Yang Liwei, director of the China Manned Space Engineering Office and the country's first astronaut.
Yang told Chinese media recently that the two experiment modules of the space station will be sent into space in 2021 and 2022. Three or four manned missions and several carg ... more |
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