Saturn's rings reveal how to make a moon
London, UK (SPX) Apr 17, 2014 -
Writing in the journal Icarus this week, Professor Carl Murray from Queen Mary's Astronomy Unit reports that recently discovered disturbances at the very edge of Saturn's outer bright A ring result from a small icy object that formed within the ring and which may be in the process of migrating out of it. They have nicknamed the object, 'Peggy'.
"We hadn't seen anything like this before," e ...
more
Egyptian sensing satellite placed in orbit
Moscow (Voice of Russia) Apr 17, 2014 -
An Egyptian land remote sensing satellite, Egyptsat, launched from Baikonur cosmodrome on Wednesday has successfully separated from Soyuz-U launch vehicle and entered terrestrial orbit, Interfax-AVN was told at the press service of the Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos).
"At 8:28 pm the satellite successfully separated from the third stage of the launch vehicle," a spokesman said. Soyuz-U to ...
more
First radar vision for Copernicus
Paris (ESA) Apr 17, 2014 -
Launched on 3 April, ESA's Sentinel-1A satellite has already delivered its first radar images of Earth. They offer a tantalising glimpse of the kind of operational imagery that this new mission will provide for Europe's ambitious Copernicus environmental monitoring programme.
Rather aptly, the first image shows Brussels in Belgium, the seat of the European Commission.
The European Co ...
more
NASA Astronauts Will Breathe Easier With New Oxygen Recovery Systems
Hampton VA (SPX) Apr 17, 2014 -
For NASA's long-duration human spaceflight missions, travelers will need to recycle as much breathable oxygen in their spacecraft environments, as possible. To turn that need into a reality, NASA is seeking proposals for lightweight, safe, efficient and reliable systems for regenerating oxygen on future human exploration missions.
The first of two phases of this new NASA solicitation will ...
more
SpaceX Launch of NASA Cargo to Space Station Set for Friday
Kennedy Space Center FL (SPX) Apr 17, 2014 -
NASA and SpaceX are targeting a 3:25 p.m. EDT launch on Friday, April 18, of SpaceX's third cargo resupply mission to the International Space Station from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. NASA Television coverage will begin at 2:15 p.m.
The company's April 14 launch to the orbiting laboratory was scrubbed due to a helium leak in the Falcon 9 rocket that will launch the Dragon s ...
more
Unexpected Teleconnections in Noctilucent Clouds
Huntsville AL (SPX) Apr 17, 2014 -
Earth's poles are separated by four oceans, six continents and more than 12,000 nautical miles. Turns out, that's not so far apart. New data from NASA's AIM spacecraft have revealed "teleconnections" in Earth's atmosphere that stretch all the way from the North Pole to the South Pole and back again, linking weather and climate more closely than simple geography would suggest.
For example, ...
more
NASA Signs Agreement with SpaceX for Use of Historic Launch Pad
Kennedy Space Center FL (SPX) Apr 17, 2014 -
NASA Kennedy Space Center's historic Launch Complex 39A, the site from which numerous Apollo and space shuttle missions began, is beginning a new mission as a commercial launch site.
NASA signed a property agreement with Space Exploration Technologies Corporation (SpaceX) of Hawthorne, Calif., on Monday for use and occupancy of the seaside complex along Florida's central east coast. It wil ...
more
Astronomers: 'Tilt-a-worlds' could harbor life
Seattle WA (SPX) Apr 17, 2014 -
A fluctuating tilt in a planet's orbit does not preclude the possibility of life, according to new research by astronomers at the University of Washington, Utah's Weber State University and NASA. In fact, sometimes it helps.
That's because such "tilt-a-worlds," as astronomers sometimes call them - turned from their orbital plane by the influence of companion planets - are less likely than ...
more
Russian Rockets used by the US
Bethesda MD (SPX) Apr 17, 2014 -
Since the end of the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, U.S. and Russian relations have deteriorated significantly due to the Russia-Ukraine crisis. One of the important questions on many minds is: "What will be the impact of this crisis on the U.S. space program?"
So far, joint U.S.-Russian activities related to the International Space Station (ISS) appear to be normal, i.e., NASA pays Rus ...
more
