Satellites Equipped With a Tether Would be Able to De-Orbit Themselves at the...
A new technology that allows satellites to de-orbit themselves at the end of their lives could help mitigate the problem of space debris. The post Satellites Equipped With a Tether Would be Able to...
View ArticleThe Most Efficient Way to Explore the Entire Milky Way, Star by Star
At this year's Global Trajectory Optimization Competition (GTOC), a team from the ESA presented a model for how humanity could settle the Milky Way galaxy. The post The Most Efficient Way to Explore...
View ArticleMeet the Comet Interceptor. It’ll Wait Patiently In Space for a Comet, Then...
The ESA has announced a new mission to explore a comet. The Comet Interceptor mission will have a spacecraft wait in space until a pristine comet approaches the inner Solar System. Then it will make a...
View ArticleThe ESA’s SpaceBok Robot Will Hop Its Way Around Low-Gravity Worlds
The ESA is helping a group of students from Zurich test and develop their hopping exploration robot. Called SpaceBok, the robot is designed to operate on low-gravity bodies like the Moon or asteroids....
View ArticleGaia Mission is Mapping Out the Bar at the Center of the Milky Way
The latest discovery to come from Gaia's years of observing the Milky Way is the first 3D measurements of our galaxy's central bar structure. The post Gaia Mission is Mapping Out the Bar at the Center...
View ArticleAsteroid 2006 QV89 Now Has a 0% Chance of Hitting Earth in September
Why report on an asteroid that has no chance of hitting Earth? Because this asteroid, known as 2006 QV89, has a history. A history of being kind of hard to track. As the name says, this asteroid was...
View ArticleThanks to Gaia, we Now Know Exactly How Big Europa is
The ESA's Gaia mission recently allowed astronomers to catch a glimpse of Europa as it passed in front of a star, leading to new discoveries about this fascinating moon. The post Thanks to Gaia, we Now...
View ArticleEven Though it Hasn’t Launched Yet, JUICE Took its First Images of Jupiter...
Is there a more complicated and sophisticated technological engineering project than a spacecraft? Maybe a particle accelerator or a fusion power project. But other than those two, the answer is...
View ArticleEurope and US are Going to Try and Deflect an Asteroid
The ESA and NASA are getting closer to mounting the AIDA mission, which will will test the effectiveness of asteroid deflection in the coming years. The post Europe and US are Going to Try and Deflect...
View ArticleAstronauts Explore Caves on Earth, Learning the Skills They’ll Need for the...
We’re accustomed to astronauts pulling off their missions without a hitch. They head up to the International Space Station for months at a time and do what they do, then come home. But upcoming...
View ArticleSkylon’s SABRE Engine Passes a Big Test
Reaction Engines Ltd. recently passed a major milestone with the development of their SABRE engine, which could lead to spaceplanes that don't rely on rocket boosters. The post Skylon’s SABRE Engine...
View ArticleESA Astronaut Luca Parmitano will be Controlling a Rover From Space
The ESA has begun conducting experiments as part of their Analog project, which will allow human operators to control robotic rovers from orbit. The post ESA Astronaut Luca Parmitano will be...
View ArticleAn Upcoming ESA Mission is Going to Remove one Piece of Space Junk From Orbit
A specialized spacecraft will be sent to orbit by the ESA in 2025 to remove a piece of space debris, which will pave the way for future cleanup missions. The post An Upcoming ESA Mission is Going to...
View ArticleESA’s CHEOPS Just Launched. We’re About to Learn a LOT More About Exoplanets
The CHEOPS mission is underway. On December 18th, the exoplanet-studying spacecraft launched from Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana aboard a Soyuz-Fregat rocket. Initial signals from CHEOPS...
View ArticleESA is Going to Test Two Rovers Working Together to Explore the Moon
The ESA is working on a system (TRAILER) that will allow two robots to work in tandem and explore the lunar surface. The post ESA is Going to Test Two Rovers Working Together to Explore the Moon...
View ArticleCHEOPS Just Opened Its Eyes to Start Studying Known Exoplanets, We Should See...
The CHEOPS (CHaracterising ExOPlanets Satellite) spacecraft just opened the cover on its telescope. The spacecraft was launched on December 18th 2019 and has so far performed flawlessly. In one or two...
View ArticleESA is Considering a Mission to Give Advanced Warnings of Solar Storms
The Sun is not exactly placid, though it appears pretty peaceful in the quick glances we can steal with our naked eyes. In reality though, the Sun is a dynamic, chaotic body, spraying out solar wind...
View ArticleThe Disk of the Milky Way is Warped Because it Already Collided With Another...
Using data from the second Gaia data release, a team of astronomers has demonstrated that the "warp" in our galaxy is rapidly changing! The post The Disk of the Milky Way is Warped Because it Already...
View ArticleThis Powerful Ion Engine Will Be Flying on NASA’s DART Mission to Try and...
Despite humanity’s current struggle against the novel coronavirus, and despite it taking up most of our attention, other threats still exist. The very real threat of a possible asteroid strike on Earth...
View ArticleAstronaut Pee Will Help Build Bases on the Moon
In a strange development, a new ESA-supported study has shown that urine could actually help astronauts build bases on the Moon The post Astronaut Pee Will Help Build Bases on the Moon appeared first...
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