Space News from SpaceDaily.com
December 21, 2018
TECH SPACE
NASA industry team creates and demonstrates first quantum sensor for satellite gravimetry



Greenbelt MD (SPX) Dec 21, 2018
NASA and the Sunnyvale, California-based AOSense, Inc., have successfully built and demonstrated a prototype quantum sensor capable of obtaining highly sensitive and accurate gravity measurements - a stepping stone toward next-generation geodesy, hydrology, and climate-monitoring missions in space. The prototype sensor, developed in collaboration with NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, employs a revolutionary measurement technique called atom interferometry, which former U. ... read more

ROCKET SCIENCE
NZ-Dutch space startup raises 3M dollars
Auckland NZ (SPX) Dec 21, 2018
Dawn Aerospace, a New Zealand-Dutch startup building 100% reusable rockets for satellite delivery, has this week raised $3.35m (NZD) of investment from Kiwi, American and Dutch investors. Th ... more
MICROSAT BLITZ
GomSpace and ESA sign contract to initiate work on new GOMX mission
Aalborg, Denmark (SPX) Dec 21, 2018
GomSpace has signed a 300,000 euro development contract with ESA for the initiation of a new GOMX-5 satellite mission to demonstrate new nanosatellite capabilities for the next generation of constel ... more
MICROSAT BLITZ
Groundbreaking nanosatellite imaging technology will revolutionize how we manage climate change
Espoo, Finland (SPX) Dec 21, 2018
A pioneering Finnish nanosatellite has now reached space equipped with the world's smallest infrared hyperspectral camera. The photos with infrared data taken from the satellite provide new solution ... more
OUTER PLANETS
Ultima Thule's First Mystery: Lack of a 'Light Curve'
Laurel MD (SPX) Dec 21, 2018
NASA's New Horizons spacecraft is bearing down on Ultima Thule, its New Year's flyby target in the far away Kuiper Belt. Among its approach observations over the past three months, the spacecraft ha ... more
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IRON AND ICE
ALMA gives passing comet its close-up
Charlottesville VA (SPX) Dec 21, 2018
As comet 46P/Wirtanen neared Earth on December 2, astronomers using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) took a remarkably close look the innermost regions of the comet's coma, th ... more
MARSDAILY
InSight places its first instrument on Mars
Pasadena CA (JPL) Dec 21, 2018
NASA's InSight lander has deployed its first instrument onto the surface of Mars, completing a major mission milestone. New images from the lander show the seismometer on the ground, its copper-colo ... more
SPACE TRAVEL
NASA thanks Russia for prompt crew rescue after Soyuz accident
Yekaterinburg (Sputnik) Dec 21, 2018
US space agency NASA thanked Russian military for promptly rescuing its astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexei Ovchinin after an aborted Soyuz mission in October, the Russian Central Mi ... more
SPACE TRAVEL
NASA astronaut, crewmates return to Earth after 197-Day mission in space
Houston TX (SPX) Dec 21, 2018
Three members of the International Space Station's Expedition 57 crew, including NASA astronaut Serena Aunon-Chancellor, returned to Earth Thursday, safely landing at 12:02 a.m. EST (11:02 a.m. loca ... more
ROBO SPACE
Self-driving rovers tested in Mars-like Morocco
Paris (ESA) Dec 21, 2018
Robots invaded the Sahara Desert for Europe's largest rover field test, taking place in a Mars-like part of Morocco. For two weeks three rovers and more than 40 engineers tested automated navigation ... more
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TECH SPACE
New type of low-energy nanolaser that shines in all directions
Eindhoven, Netherlands (SPX) Dec 19, 2018
Researchers in Eindhoven have developed a new type of low-energy, nanoscale laser that shines in all directions. The key to its omnidirectional light emission is the introduction of something that i ... more
TECH SPACE
Data storage using individual molecules
Basel, Switzerland (SPX) Dec 19, 2018
Researchers from the University of Basel have reported a new method that allows the physical state of just a few atoms or molecules within a network to be controlled. It is based on the spontaneous ... more
TECH SPACE
New megalibrary approach proves useful for the rapid discovery of new materials
Chicago IL (SPX) Dec 19, 2018
Different eras of civilization are defined by the discovery of new materials, as new materials drive new capabilities. And yet, identifying the best material for a given application - catalysts, lig ... more
TIME AND SPACE
Fake plastic atoms
Paris (ESA) Dec 19, 2018
Our world is made of atoms and molecules, but even with the most powerful microscopes we can only see snapshots, never how they move and interact with each other. To model how atoms behave, research ... more
TECH SPACE
Droplet clustering inside clouds confirmed by airborne digital holography
Houghton MI (SPX) Dec 21, 2018
Like raindrops streaking across the windows of your car while you drive through a rainstorm, water droplets in clouds travel in airflow streamlines - following currents of air usually without touchi ... more


Atmospheric aerosol formation from biogenic vapors is strongly affected by air pollutants

CHIP TECH
Studying how unconventional metals behave, with an eye on high-temperature superconductors
Princeton NJ (SPX) Dec 17, 2018
Using laser light to trap atoms in a checkerboard-like pattern, a team led by Princeton scientists studied how resistance - the loss of electrical current as heat - can develop in unconventional met ... more
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WATER WORLD
Seismic study reveals huge amount of water dragged into Earth's interior
Washington DC (SPX) Dec 19, 2018
Slow-motion collisions of tectonic plates under the ocean drag about three times more water down into the deep Earth than previously estimated, according to a first-of-its-kind seismic study that sp ... more
CLIMATE SCIENCE
Research sheds new light on what drove last, long-term global climate shift
Exeter UK (SPX) Dec 21, 2018
The quest to discover what drove the last, long-term global climate shift on Earth, which took place around a million years ago, has taken a new, revealing twist. A team of researchers led by ... more
EARLY EARTH
Fossils suggest flowers originated 50 million years earlier than thought
Washington DC (SPX) Dec 19, 2018
Scientists have described a fossil plant species that suggests flowers bloomed in the Early Jurassic, more than 174 million years ago, according to new research in the open-access journal eLife. ... more
MARSDAILY
Mars 2020 rover to capture sound on the Red Planet
Alleroed, Denmark (SPX) Dec 21, 2018
In February 2021, NASA's Mars 2020 Rover is scheduled to touch down on the Red Planet. The spacecraft will have the capability to capture imagery and sound as the Mars 2020 vehicle descends through ... more
IRON AND ICE
NASA telescopes take a close look at the brightest comet of 2018
Greenbelt MD (SPX) Dec 21, 2018
As the brilliant comet 46P/Wirtanen streaked across the sky, NASA telescopes caught it on camera from multiple angles. NASA's Hubble Space Telescope photographed comet 46P/Wirtanen on Dec. 13, ... more
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NASA astronaut, crewmates return to Earth after 197-Day mission in space
Houston TX (SPX) Dec 21, 2018
Three members of the International Space Station's Expedition 57 crew, including NASA astronaut Serena Aunon-Chancellor, returned to Earth Thursday, safely landing at 12:02 a.m. EST (11:02 a.m. local time) in Kazakhstan. Aunon-Chancellor and her crewmates, Expedition 57 Commander Alexander Gerst of ESA (European Space Agency) and Soyuz Commander Sergey Prokopyev, launched June 6 and arrive ... more
+ Queen guitarist Brian May releases tribute to NASA spacecraft
+ Astronauts land from ISS stint marred by air leak, rocket failure
+ NASA thanks Russia for prompt crew rescue after Soyuz accident
+ Super-Fast 3-Hour Manned Flights to ISS to Begin in 18 Months
+ A method to monitor indoor crop health no matter what planet you're on
+ Russian Progress freighter to fly to ISS under short scheme for second time
+ Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo reaches space for first time
NZ-Dutch space startup raises 3M dollars
Auckland NZ (SPX) Dec 21, 2018
Dawn Aerospace, a New Zealand-Dutch startup building 100% reusable rockets for satellite delivery, has this week raised $3.35m (NZD) of investment from Kiwi, American and Dutch investors. The money will be used to commercialise its world-leading satellite propulsion systems and begin development of it's Mk-II Spaceplane. The company makes reusable rockets designed to carry small sa ... more
+ Elon Musk's SpaceX set to raise $500 mn: report
+ Russia to Decommission Carrier Vehicle With Ukraine-Made Components
+ Russia's Vostochny Cosmodrome to Have Only One Space Launch in 2019
+ New Materials Architectures Sought to Cool Hypersonic Vehicles
+ Winning ideas for new space transport services
+ Roscosmos to submit super-heavy rocket project to Government
+ NASA's Plum Brook Station Completes Acoustic Test for SLS


Mars Express gets festive: A winter wonderland on Mars
Paris (ESA) Dec 21, 2018
This image shows what appears to be a large patch of fresh, untrodden snow - a dream for any lover of the holiday season. However, it's a little too distant for a last-minute winter getaway: this feature, known as Korolev crater, is found on Mars, and is shown here in beautiful detail as seen by Mars Express. ESA's Mars Express mission launched on 2 June 2003, and reached Mars six months l ... more
+ Mars 2020 rover to capture sound on the Red Planet
+ InSight places its first instrument on Mars
+ InSight Engineers Have Made a Martian Rock Garden
+ Opportunity team performs more frequent communication attempts throughout each day
+ Planetary scientists assist in capturing image of Insight from orbit
+ NASA's InSight takes its first selfie
+ InSight's robotic arm ready for some lifting on Mars
China's Chang'e-4 probe enters lunar orbit
Beijing (XNA) Dec 13, 2018
China's Chang'e-4 probe decelerated and entered the lunar orbit Wednesday, completing a vital step on its way to make the first-ever soft landing on the far side of the moon, the China National Space Administration (CNSA) announced. After flying about 110 hours from earth, an engine on the probe was ignited when it was 129 km above the surface of the moon, in line with instructions sent fr ... more
+ China launches rover for first far side of the moon landing
+ Evolving Chinese Space Ecosystem To Foster Innovative Environment
+ China sends 5 satellites into orbit via single rocket
+ China releases smart solution for verifying reliability of space equipment components
+ China unveils new 'Heavenly Palace' space station as ISS days numbered
+ China's space programs open up to world
+ China's commercial aerospace companies flourishing
ESA astronaut Alexander Gerst returns to Earth for the second time
Paris (ESA) Dec 21, 2018
ESA astronaut Alexander Gerst returned to Earth earlier this week alongside NASA astronaut Serena Aunon-Chancellor and Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergei Prokopyev. Returning in the same Soyuz MS-09 spacecraft that flew them to the International Space Station on 6 June 2018, the trio landed in the Kazakh steppe on 20 December at 05:06 GMT (06:06 CET). Alexander is now flying directly to Colo ... more
+ Scaled back OneWeb constellation Not to affect number of Soyuz boosters
+ Spacecraft Repo Operations
+ Update from ESA Council, December 2018
+ CAT rules in favour of Ofcom's EAN authorisation decision
+ Fleet Space Technologies' Centauri launched aboard SpaceX Falcon 9
+ Roscosmos Targeted by Info Attack to Hamper Revival of Space Industry in Russia
+ SAS Signs Distribution Agreement with GlobalSat Group
NASA industry team creates and demonstrates first quantum sensor for satellite gravimetry
Greenbelt MD (SPX) Dec 21, 2018
NASA and the Sunnyvale, California-based AOSense, Inc., have successfully built and demonstrated a prototype quantum sensor capable of obtaining highly sensitive and accurate gravity measurements - a stepping stone toward next-generation geodesy, hydrology, and climate-monitoring missions in space. The prototype sensor, developed in collaboration with NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in ... more
+ New megalibrary approach proves useful for the rapid discovery of new materials
+ Data storage using individual molecules
+ Finding ways to protect crews from the effects of space radiation
+ Droplet clustering inside clouds confirmed by airborne digital holography
+ New type of low-energy nanolaser that shines in all directions
+ Raytheon awarded $114M for AN/SPY-6V radar integration, production
+ Celestia wins major ESA contract for UK


NASA study finds sugars, key ingredient for life, can form in space
Washington DC (Sputnik) Dec 21, 2018
A new study by NASA scientists has proven that sugar molecules - one of the building blocks of life - can form in conditions similar to those in outer space. The find provides further grist to the mill of the argument that life on Earth got some sort of help from above in its formation. A new paper published on Tuesday by scientists from the National Atmospheric and Space Administration's ... more
+ Narrowing the universe in the search for life
+ A young star caught forming like a planet
+ Planets with Oxygen Don't Necessarily Have Life
+ Where did the hot Neptunes go
+ Dancing with the enemy
+ In search of missing worlds, Hubble finds a fast-evaporating exoplanet
+ Hubble finds faraway planet vanishing at record speed
Ultima Thule's First Mystery: Lack of a 'Light Curve'
Laurel MD (SPX) Dec 21, 2018
NASA's New Horizons spacecraft is bearing down on Ultima Thule, its New Year's flyby target in the far away Kuiper Belt. Among its approach observations over the past three months, the spacecraft has been taking hundreds of images to measure Ultima's brightness and how it varies as the object rotates. Those measurements have produced the mission's first mystery about Ultima. Even though sc ... more
+ Teledyne e2v has provided New Horizons with two specialist image sensors
+ Astronomers identify cycle of disturbances at Jupiter's equator
+ New Horizons Takes the Inside Course to Ultima Thule
+ Most Distant Solar System Object Ever Observed
+ A nuclear-powered 'tunnelbot' to search for life on Jupiter's icy moon Europa
+ NASA's Juno mission halfway to Jupiter science
+ Record Setting Course-Correction Puts New Horizons on Track to Kuiper Belt Flyby


Seismic study reveals huge amount of water dragged into Earth's interior
Washington DC (SPX) Dec 19, 2018
Slow-motion collisions of tectonic plates under the ocean drag about three times more water down into the deep Earth than previously estimated, according to a first-of-its-kind seismic study that spans the Mariana Trench, a crescent-shaped trench in the Western Pacific that measures 1,500 miles long and is the deepest ocean trench in the world. The observations from the trench have importa ... more
+ Warning over deep-sea 'gold rush'
+ Cambodia hails opening of country's largest dam despite opposition
+ A damming trend
+ Climate change leading to water shortage in Andes, Himalayas
+ New management strategies may help Los Angeles avoid future water crises
+ Research unlocks secrets of iron storage in algae
+ The long dry: why the world's water supply is shrinking
First Lockheed Martin-Built GPS III satellite encapsulated for Dec. 18 launch
Titusville, FL (SPX) Dec 12, 2018
The U.S. Air Force's first Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT)-built GPS III satellite is now encapsulated for its planned December 18 launch from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. GPS III Space Vehicle 01 (GPS III SV01) underwent pre-launch processing, fueling and encapsulation at Astrotech Space Operations, in Titusville, Florida. During encapsulation, GPS I ... more
+ Spire Taps Galileo for Space-Based Weather Data
+ Lockheed Martin prepares GPS III satellite for SpaceX launch
+ UK will build its own satellite-navigation system after Brexit
+ Beijing's space navigation BeiDou program seeks to dethrone US-owned GPS platform
+ China expands use of BeiDou navigation system in transportation
+ China launches twin BeiDou navigation satellites
+ Finland summons Russian ambassador over GPS blocking claims


Getting a glimpse inside the moon
Edmonton, Canada (SPX) Dec 21, 2018
New research from University of Alberta physicists provides the first-ever model of our Moon's rotational dynamics, taking into consideration its solid inner core. Their model helps to explain why, as seen from Earth, the Moon appears to wobble on its axis. The answer, said physicist Mathieu Dumberry, lies in the complex geometry of the Moon's orbit, locked in what is known as a Cassini st ... more
+ Israeli spacecraft gets special passenger before moon journey
+ NASA seeks US partners to develop reusable systems to land astronauts on Moon
+ Learning from lunar lights
+ China launches rover for first far side of the moon landing
+ China Will Launch First Probe to Moon's Far Side Later This Week
+ NASA Announces New Partnerships for Commercial Lunar Payload Delivery Services
+ Lockheed Martin Selected for NASA's Commercial Lunar Lander Payload Services Contract
Navigating NASA's first mission to the Trojan asteroids
Greenbelt MD (SPX) Dec 21, 2018
In science fiction, explorers can hop in futuristic spaceships and traverse half the galaxy in the blink of a plot hole. However, this sidelines the navigational acrobatics required in order to guarantee real-life mission success. In 2021, the feat of navigation that is the Lucy mission will launch. To steer Lucy towards its targets doesn't simply involve programming a map into a spacecraf ... more
+ ALMA gives passing comet its close-up
+ NASA telescopes take a close look at the brightest comet of 2018
+ Space telescope detects water in a number of asteroids
+ Las Cumbres builds new instrument to study December comet
+ GMV leads the system that "drives" the HERA mission for planetary defence
+ Watch Comet 46P Wirtanen as it nears Earth
+ Rosetta witnesses birth of baby bow shock around comet


Atmospheric aerosol formation from biogenic vapors is strongly affected by air pollutants
Helsinki, Finland (SPX) Dec 17, 2018
The formation of new aerosol particles is a complicated process. Researchers have only recently started to understand this process on a molecular level after instruments able to detect nanometer-scale particles became available. The human population has altered the composition of atmospheric gas in several ways. Sulfur dioxide from industrial emissions, nitrogen oxides from traffic, and am ... more
+ Research reveals 'fundamental finding' about Earth's outer core
+ First detection of rain over the ocean by navigation satellites
+ Ionosphere plasma experiments reviewed in a new Kazan University publication
+ ICESat-2 helps scientists measure ice thickness in the Weddell Sea
+ HyperScout demonstrates that satellite imagery can be processed in space
+ First Radar Image from ICEYE-X2 Published Only A Week After Launch
+ Brazil keeps eye on Amazon deforestation with satellites
Preparing for discovery with NASA's Parker Solar Probe
Greenbelt MD (SPX) Dec 13, 2018
Weeks after Parker Solar Probe made the closest-ever approach to a star, the science data from the first solar encounter is just making its way into the hands of the mission's scientists. It's a moment many in the field have been anticipating for years, thinking about what they'll do with such never-before-seen data, which has the potential to shed new light on the physics of our star, the Sun. ... more
+ Research provides insights into Sun's past, future
+ Prediction of Sun's Activity Over the Next Decade
+ Auroras help scientists study energy instabilities in space
+ NASA retires prolific solar observatory after 16 years
+ Scientists map magnetic reconnection in Earth's magnetotail
+ Auroras Unlock the Physics of Energetic Processes in Space
+ Windy with a chance of magnetic storms - space weather science with cluster


Webb Telescope wrapped in a mobile clean room
Greenbelt MD (SPX) Dec 21, 2018
Before moving NASA's James Webb Space Telescope, and to assure that it's kept clean and safe, Webb got a very special wrapping treatment. The wrapping acts as a "mobile clean room," safeguarding the technological marvel from contaminants. All satellites and observatories are created in clean rooms. Clean rooms filter out harmful contaminants, as even a speck of dust or a fingerprint could ... more
+ Stellar corpse reveals clues to missing stardust
+ Faint glow within galaxy clusters illuminates dark matter
+ Cosmic ray telescope launches from Antarctica
+ Key milestone for Euclid Mission, now ready for final assembly
+ Sapphires and Rubies in the Sky
+ NEOWISE satellite observes adolescent star going through a growth spurt
+ Scientists design new material to harness power of light
Beyond the black hole singularity with loop quantum gravity
University Park PA (SPX) Dec 21, 2018
Our first glimpses into the physics that exist near the center of a black hole are being made possible using "loop quantum gravity" - a theory that uses quantum mechanics to extend gravitational physics beyond Einstein's general theory of relativity. Loop quantum gravity, originated at Penn State and subsequently developed by a large number of scientists worldwide, is opening up a new para ... more
+ Unique insights into an exotic matter state
+ Physicists develop new theory to answer fundamental questions about black holes
+ Fake plastic atoms
+ Mystery of coronae around supermassive black holes deepens
+ Fossil Gas Cloud from the Big Bang Discovered with Keck Observatory
+ Mystery of Black Hole Coronae Deepens
+ Cosmic fountain powered by giant black hole
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