Bremen robot team successfully simulates Mars mission in Utah
Bremen, Germany (SPX) Dec 16, 2016 -
A major challenge in the exploration of Mars by robots is its uneven surface, which is marked by trenches and craters. Whether the systems can withstand the rough terrain on the Red Planet, they have to prove it on the earth first - for example, in the rocky deserts of the American state of Utah.
There, scientists from the Robotics Innovation Center of the German Research Center for Artifi ...
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A Promising Spot for Life on Mars
Moffett Field CA (SPX) Dec 16, 2016 -
As NASA's Curiosity rover makes its way up the central peak of Gale Crater, it has been gathering evidence from ancient lake beds and long ago groundwater environments that are promising to life.
Scientists in charge of the mission gave an update of their findings on Tuesday at the American Geophysical Union conference in San Francisco, saying the landing site at Gale Crater had exceeded t ...
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Seven Ways Astronauts Improve Sleep May Help You Snooze Better on Earth
Houston TX (SPX) Dec 16, 2016 -
The hazards of lost sleep can range from on-the-job errors to chronic disease. People all around the world experience disruptions in circadian rhythm, or the body's natural regulator for sleep and wake cycles based on a 24-hour schedule, every day. This instinctual process can be disrupted by abnormal work schedules, extensive traveling between time zones, and by daily life for International Spa ...
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Juno Captures Jupiter 'Pearl'
Pasadena CA (JPL) Dec 16, 2016 -
This image, taken by the JunoCam imager on NASA's Juno spacecraft, highlights the seventh of eight features forming a 'string of pearls on Jupiter - massive counterclockwise rotating storms that appear as white ovals in the gas giant's southern hemisphere. Since 1986, these white ovals have varied in number from six to nine. There are currently eight white ovals visible.
The image was ta ...
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Europe's own satnav Galileo goes live
Brussels (AFP) Dec 15, 2016 -
After 17 years, numerous setbacks and three times over budget, Europe's Galileo satnav system went live Thursday, promising to outperform rivals and guarantee regional self-reliance.
Initial services, free to users worldwide, are available only on smartphones and navigation units fitted with Galileo-compatible microchips.
Some devices may need only a software update to start using the se ...
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Rocket launches eight tiny NASA satellites to study hurricanes
Miami (AFP) Dec 15, 2016 -
A rocket on Thursday propelled into orbit eight tiny NASA satellites meant to peer deeply into hurricanes and help scientists better understand how they gain force, the US space agency said.
NASA's Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System mission, or CYGNSS, was launched aboard Orbital ATK's Pegasus rocket XL.
The rocket was carried on the underside of the company's Stargazer L-1011 a ...
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How on Earth does NASA choose a landing site on Mars?
Pasadena CA (JPL) Dec 16, 2016 -
Getting to the surface of Mars takes years of planning, engineering and science work, a successful launch, and a months-long journey of millions of miles. You only get one opportunity to touch down at a site on Mars, so it's critical to get it right. "You can't say, 'here are ten different sites, let's go to them,'" said Michael Meyer, the lead scientist for the Mars Exploration Program at NASA ...
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