Control on shape of light particles opens the way to 'quantum internet'
Eindhoven, Netherlands (SPX) Dec 16, 2014 -
In the same way as we now connect computers in networks through optical signals, it could also be possible to connect future quantum computers in a 'quantum internet'. The optical signals would then consist of individual light particles or photons. One prerequisite for a working quantum internet is control of the shape of these photons.
Researchers at Eindhoven University of Technology (TU ...
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Poroshenko vows to complete Chernobyl sarcophagus
Moscow (Sputnik) Dec 16, 2014 -
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has promised to complete the stalled construction of a protective cover over the Chernobyl nuclear reactor that went into meltdown in 1986, the presidential press service said Sunday.
"Under the present complicated circumstances we have to take care of those who suffered, to ensure safety at the site and complete construction of a new secure cover over ...
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Squid supplies blueprint for printable thermoplastics
University Park PA (SPX) Dec 16, 2014 -
Squid, what is it good for? You can eat it and you can make ink or dye from it, and now a Penn State team of researchers is using it to make a thermoplastic that can be used in 3-D printing.
"Most of the companies looking into this type of material have focused on synthetic plastics," said Melik C. Demirel, professor of engineering science and mechanics. "Synthetic plastics are not rapidly ...
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NTU invents smart window that tints and powers itself
Singapore (SPX) Dec 18, 2014 -
Nanyang Technological University (NTU) scientists have developed a smart window which can darken or brighten without the need for an external power source.
This unique self-tinting window requires zero electricity to operate and is also a rechargeable battery. The window's stored energy can be used for other purposes, such as to light up low-powered electronics like a light emitting diode ...
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Penn Research Outlines Basic Rules for Construction With a Type of Origami
Philadelphia PA (SPX) Dec 18, 2014 -
Origami is capable of turning a simple sheet of paper into a pretty paper crane, but the principles behind the paper-folding art can also be applied to making a microfluidic device for a blood test, or for storing a satellite's solar panel in a rocket's cargo bay.
A team of University of Pennsylvania researchers is turning kirigami, a related art form that allows the paper to be cut, into ...
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XMM-Newton spots monster black hole hidden in tiny galaxy
Paris (ESA) Dec 20, 2014 -
First impressions can be deceptive - astronomers have used ESA's X-ray satellite XMM-Newton to find a massive black hole hungrily feeding within a tiny dwarf galaxy, despite there being no hint of this black hole from optical observations.
The galaxy, an irregular dwarf named J1329+3234, is one of the smallest galaxies yet to contain evidence of a massive black hole. Located over 200 milli ...
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Inmarsat-2 F2 satellite retired after more than 23.5 years of GEO operations
Paris (SPX) Dec 20, 2014 -
Inmarsat-2 F2, the second Eurostar satellite designed and built by Airbus Defence and Space, was retired from operational service and safely decommissioned this week after completing a record breaking flawless commercial mission in geostationary orbit of 23.5 years. It takes the record away from Airbus Defence and Space's first ever Eurostar satellite, Inmarsat-2 F1 which achieved 22.5 years - b ...
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MUOS-3 Encapsulated In Launch Vehicle Fairing
Cape Canaveral AFS FL (SPX) Dec 20, 2014 -
The third Mobile User Objective System (MUOS) satellite built by Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] for the U.S. Navy was encapsulated into its payload fairing Dec. 18. It is scheduled to launch Jan. 20 aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket.
MUOS operates like a smart phone network in the sky, vastly improving current secure mobile satellite communications for warfighters on the move. Un ...
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TerreStar applauds Harper govt's mobile satellite service and AWS-4 decision
Montreal, Canada (SPX) Dec 20, 2014 -
In response to the decision by Industry Minister James Moore, TerreStar Solutions' President, Andre Tremblay said, "I congratulate Prime Minister Harper and Industry Minister James Moore for this decision which supports wireless services in rural and remote communities and spurs wireless competition in Canada, thereby lowering wireless prices for Canadians and producing new jobs in this high tec ...
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Arianespace sets new operational benchmarks on its latest Soyuz success
Kourou, French Guiana (ESA) Dec 20, 2014 -
The latest Arianespace Soyuz mission has deployed the next four satellites for O3b Networks' pioneering connectivity service on a flight performed from the Spaceport in French Guiana, wrapped up an historic 12 months of commercial launch services for Arianespace.
The 2-hr., 22-min. flight began with the propulsion of Soyuz' basic three-stage launch vehicle, and was followed by multiple bur ...
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NASA, SpaceX Update Launch of Fifth SpaceX Resupply Mission to ISS
Washington DC (SPX) Dec 19, 2014 -
NASA and SpaceX report that the launch of SpaceX's fifth commercial resupply services mission to the International Space Station now will occur no earlier than Tuesday, Jan. 6.
The new launch date will provide SpaceX engineers time to investigate further issues that arose from a static fire test of the Falcon 9 rocket on Dec. 16 and will avoid beta angle constraints for berthing the Dragon ...
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NASA Data Underscore Severity of California Drought
Pasadena CA (JPL) Dec 19, 2014 -
It will take about 11 trillion gallons of water (42 cubic kilometers) - around 1.5 times the maximum volume of the largest U.S. reservoir - to recover from California's continuing drought, according to a new analysis of NASA satellite data.
The finding was part of a sobering update on the state's drought made possible by space and airborne measurements and presented by NASA scientists De ...
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XCOR Announces Further Progress on XCOR Lynx Spacecraft
Mojave CA (SPX) Dec 19, 2014 -
The XCOR Lynx suborbital spacecraft continues to make rapid progress towards final assembly. Immediately after bonding the cockpit to the fuselage, the shop crews set up for the delicate and precise operation of bonding the carry-through spar on to the rear end of the Lynx fuselage.
"The carry-through spar is the heart of the loading structure on any winged craft - it supports the primary ...
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All Four O3B CommSats Put Into Orbit
Moscow (Sputnik) Dec 19, 2014 -
All four European communication satellites were put into orbit by a Russian-made Soyuz ST-B rocket from the Kourou space center in French Guiana, a spokesperson for the Russian Federal Space Agency, Roscosmos, said Friday.
"Thus, the Russian part of the program - putting four foreign satellites [into orbit] - has been fully implemented," Roscosmos representative told RIA Novosti.
Fou ...
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ISS Experiment May Hold Key to Alzheimer's Cause
Kennedy Space Center FL (SPX) Dec 19, 2014 -
An experiment housed in a 4-inch cube destined for launch to the International Space Station aboard the SpaceX CRS-5 cargo resupply mission could become a key step in the progress toward understanding Alzheimer's disease and similar conditions and ultimately figuring out a way to stop them.
Called SABOL, short for Self-Assembly in Biology and the Origin of Life: A Study into Alzheimer's, t ...
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State Spaceports Receive Federal Funding
Anchorage, AK (SPX) Dec 20, 2014 -
The Alaska Aerospace Corporation (AAC) will receive half of the $6 million in the Federal Fiscal Year 2015 Appropriations Omnibus Bill (HR83) for state owned spaceports.
AAC has been working with the Alaska congressional delegation for the past two years to establish a program to support non-Federal spaceports that provide launch services in support of the national security space program, ...
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Opportunity drives on in no-flash mode
Pasadena CA (JPL) Dec 20, 2014 -
Opportunity is on the west rim of Endeavour Crater heading towards 'Marathon Valley,' a location assumed to have abundant clay minerals only about a half-mile (800 meters) to the south.
With the continuing Flash memory problems on the rover, the project has chosen to operate the rover without using the non-volatile Flash storage system and instead rely on the volatile random access memory ...
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Signs of Europa Plumes Remain Elusive in Search of Cassini Data
Pasadena CA (JPL) Dec 19, 2014 -
A fresh look at data collected by NASA's Cassini spacecraft during its 2001 flyby of Jupiter shows that Europa's tenuous atmosphere is even thinner than previously thought and also suggests that the thin, hot gas around the moon does not show evidence of plume activity occurring at the time of the flyby.
The new research provides a snapshot of Europa's state of activity at that time, and s ...
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Satellite firm Stevenson Astrosat moves into spacecraft systems
Edinburgh, UK (SPX) Dec 18, 2014 -
Stevenson Astrosat, one of Scotland's most ambitious space technology companies, is accelerating into spacecraft systems in the latest rocket-powered boost to its business growth trajectory.
The Edinburgh-based company, which almost uniquely in the UK merges satellite and ground-based data to provide valuable information to a wide range of sectors, already has a thriving earth observation ...
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Preparing for an asteroid strike
Paris (ESA) Dec 19, 2014 -
ESA and national disaster response offices recently rehearsed how to react if a threatening space rock is ever discovered to be on a collision course with Earth.
Last month, experts from ESA's Space Situational Awareness (SSA) programme and Europe's national disaster response organisations met for a two-day exercise on what to do if an asteroid is ever found to be heading our way.
In ...
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SpaceX delays resupply flight to ISS
Cape Canaveral, Fla. (UPI) Dec 18, 2014 -
SpaceX's fifth commercial launch to provide supplies to the International Space Station was delayed due to problems experienced during an engine fire test, the company and NASA said Thursday.
The Falcon 9 rocket was scheduled to take off with the Dragon cargo ship Friday at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The rocket is now scheduled to launch the morning of Jan. 6.
A news ...
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NASA's Kepler Reborn, Makes First Exoplanet Find of New Mission
Pasadena CA (JPL) Dec 19, 2014 -
NASA's planet-hunting Kepler spacecraft makes a comeback with the discovery of the first exoplanet found using its new mission - K2. The discovery was made when astronomers and engineers devised an ingenious way to repurpose Kepler for the K2 mission and continue its search of the cosmos for other worlds.
"Last summer, the possibility of a scientifically productive mission for Kepler afte ...
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NASA, Planetary Scientists Find Meteoritic Evidence of Mars Water Reservoir
Washington DC (SPX) Dec 19, 2014 -
NASA and an international team of planetary scientists have found evidence in meteorites on Earth that indicates Mars has a distinct and global reservoir of water or ice near its surface.
Though controversy still surrounds the origin, abundance and history of water on Mars, this discovery helps resolve the question of where the "missing Martian water" may have gone. Scientists continue to ...
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