Space Tourism, Space Transport and Space Exploration News
December 25, 2020
MOON DAILY
Researchers identify over 109,000 impact craters on moon



Changchun, China (XNA) Dec 25, 2020
An international team of researchers has identified over 109,000 previously unrecognized impact craters on the moon using machine learning methods. The study, led by researchers from Jilin University, was published in the journal Nature Communications. Impact craters are the most prominent lunar surface feature and occupy most of the moon's surface. With traditional automatic identification methods, it is generally difficult to find irregular and seriously degraded impact craters that may ha ... read more

MARSDAILY
Fluvial Mapping of Mars
Washington DC (SPX) Dec 25, 2020
It took fifteen years of imaging and nearly three years of stitching the pieces together to create the largest image ever made, the 8-trillion-pixel mosaic of Mars' surface. Now, the first study to ... more
MOON DAILY
China's lunar rover travels about 600 meters on moon's far side
Beijing (XNA) Dec 25, 2020
China's lunar rover Yutu-2, or Jade Rabbit-2, has survived 719 Earth days and traveled 600.55 meters on the far side of the moon as of Tuesday. Both the lander and the rover of the Chang'e-4 p ... more
MOON DAILY
SpaceX, Blue Origin, Dynetics await NASA lunar lander decision
Orlando FL (UPI) Dec 25, 2020
Elon Musk's SpaceX, Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin and a lesser-known company, Huntsville, Ala.-based Dynetics, are preparing for a major decision by NASA early in 2021 about which company will build human ... more
MOON DAILY
Chandrayaan-2 Mission : Initial data release
Sriharikota, India (SPX) Dec 25, 2020
India's second mission to the Moon, Chandrayaan-2 was launched on 22nd July 2019 from Satish Dhawan Space Center, Sriharikota. The Orbiter which was injected into a lunar orbit on 2nd Sept 2019, car ... more
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MOON DAILY
Next lunar mission to sample pole or far side
Beijing (XNA) Dec 18, 2020
China plans to use its next moon mission, Chang'e 6, to collect samples from the moon's south pole or possibly the celestial body's far side, according to a key figure in the nation's lunar explorat ... more
MOON DAILY
China's space landing site chosen with utmost care
Beijing (XNA) Dec 18, 2020
For Siziwang Banner of the Inner Mongolia autonomous region, falling spacecraft are nothing unusual. Before the landing of Chang'e 5 at 1:59 am on Thursday, the site also welcomed back 11 Shen ... more
MARSDAILY
NASA video shows Perseverance rover's planned 'terror' landing on Mars
Washington DC (UPI) Dec 23, 2020
NASA has shown what it will look like when its Perseverance rover touches down on Mars, a challenging sequence that the agency describes as "7 minutes of terror." ... more
IRON AND ICE
SwRI-led team finds meteoric evidence for a previously unknown asteroid
San Antonio TX (SPX) Dec 22, 2020
A Southwest Research Institute-led team of scientists has identified a potentially new meteorite parent asteroid by studying a small shard of a meteorite that arrived on Earth a dozen years ago. The ... more
EXO WORLDS
Astronomers detect possible radio emission from exoplanet
Ithaca NY (SPX) Dec 17, 2020
By monitoring the cosmos with a radio telescope array, a Cornell University-led international team of scientists has detected radio bursts emanating from the constellation Bootes. The signal could b ... more
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MOON DAILY
UCF developed sensor passes first test, on track for future moon missions
Orlando FL (SPX) Dec 21, 2020
A prototype sensor that detects Moon dust by shooting lasers through the sky has successfully completed its first hurdle. That means UCF is one step closer to building the real instrument that could ... more
EXO WORLDS
Key building block for organic molecules discovered in meteorites
Greenbelt MD (SPX) Dec 21, 2020
Scientists from Japan and NASA have confirmed the presence in meteorites of a key organic molecule which may have been used to build other organic molecules, including some used by life. The discove ... more
IRON AND ICE
The Subaru Telescope photographs the next target asteroid for Hayabusa2
Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Dec 21, 2020
On December 10, 2020 (Hawai?i Standard Time), the Subaru Telescope imaged the small asteroid 1998 KY26, the target of Hayabusa2's extended mission. The positional data for 1998 KY26 collected during ... more
IRON AND ICE
Knowledge of asteroid composition to help avert collisions
Helsinki, Finland (SPX) Dec 21, 2020
The European Space Agency ESA and NASA are working together to determine how the Earth might be protected against the threat posed by asteroids by altering their trajectory. VTT is taking part in th ... more
MARSDAILY
How to get people from Earth to Mars and safely back again
Brisbane, Australia (The Conversation) Dec 23, 2020
There are many things humanity must overcome before any return journey to Mars is launched. The two major players are NASA and SpaceX, which work together intimately on missions to the Interna ... more


A Martian Roundtrip: NASA's Perseverance Rover Sample Tubes

IRON AND ICE
EMXYS and Royal Observatory, Belgium to participate in planetary defence Hera space mission
Alicante, Spain (SPX) Dec 23, 2020
EMXYS and the Royal Observatory of Belgium have been selected by the European Space Agency to provide a gravimeter for the Juventas spacecraft that will land on asteroid Dimorphos as part of the Eur ... more
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MOON DAILY
China ponders moon base within five years
Beijing (Sputnik) Dec 18, 2020
According to a report, China's national space agency said it would invite other agencies and foreign partners to work jointly on the project if possible, with the next lunar mission likely to take p ... more
TECH SPACE
Astroscale Ships ELSA-d Spacecraft to Launch Site
Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Dec 22, 2020
Astroscale Holdings Inc. ("Astroscale"), the market leader in securing long-term orbital sustainability, has shipped its End-of-Life Services by Astroscale demonstration (ELSA-d) satellite to Baikon ... more
DRAGON SPACE
China's Chang'e-5 orbiter embarks on new mission to gravitationally stable spot at L1
Beijing (Sputnik) Dec 22, 2020
Having finished its primary mission, the part of China's Chang'e-5 spacecraft that remained in space has departed for a new mission: exploring an unusual area of space known as a Lagrangian point. ... more
DRAGON SPACE
China plans to launch four manned spacecraft in next two years
Beijing (XNA) Dec 21, 2020
China plans to launch four manned spacecraft as part of its space station construction program in the next two years, said an official with the China National Space Administration (CNSA) Thursday. ... more
DRAGON SPACE
Mission accomplished, now on to the next: China Daily editorial
Beijing (XNA) Dec 21, 2020
The Chang'e 5 lunar mission has been declared a complete success after the reentry capsule carrying rock and soil samples from the moon landed safely in the designated area early on Thursday. ... more
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RELATED CONTENT
The following news reports may link to other Space Media Network websites.
A Martian Roundtrip: NASA's Perseverance Rover Sample Tubes
Pasadena CA (JPL) Dec 23, 2020
Marvels of engineering, the rover's sample tubes must be tough enough to safely bring Red Planet samples on the long journey back to Earth in immaculate condition. The tubes carried in the belly of NASA's Mars 2020 Perseverance rover are destined to carry the first samples in history from another planet back to Earth. Future scientists will use these carefully selected representatives of M ... more
+ NASA video shows Perseverance rover's planned 'terror' landing on Mars
+ Fluvial Mapping of Mars
+ How to get people from Earth to Mars and safely back again
+ NASA moves forward with campaign to return Mars samples to Earth
+ Three things we've learned from NASA's Mars InSight
+ Study of dune dynamics will help scientists understand the topography of Mars
+ Powerful electrical events quickly alter surface chemistry on Mars




SpaceX, Blue Origin, Dynetics await NASA lunar lander decision
Orlando FL (UPI) Dec 25, 2020
Elon Musk's SpaceX, Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin and a lesser-known company, Huntsville, Ala.-based Dynetics, are preparing for a major decision by NASA early in 2021 about which company will build human-carrying landers for trips to the moon. The three space firms were selected in April to submit proposals early this month. Having done that, they now await NASA's decision, which is scheduled ... more
+ China's lunar rover travels about 600 meters on moon's far side
+ Chandrayaan-2 Mission : Initial data release
+ Next lunar mission to sample pole or far side
+ China's space landing site chosen with utmost care
+ UCF developed sensor passes first test, on track for future moon missions
+ Researchers identify over 109,000 impact craters on moon
+ China ponders moon base within five years
Dark Storm on Neptune reverses direction, possibly shedding a fragment
Baltimore MD (SPX) Dec 16, 2020
Astronomers using NASA's Hubble Space Telescope watched a mysterious dark vortex on Neptune abruptly steer away from a likely death on the giant blue planet. The storm, which is wider than the Atlantic Ocean, was born in the planet's northern hemisphere and discovered by Hubble in 2018. Observations a year later showed that it began drifting southward toward the equator, where such storms ... more
+ The 'Great' Conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn
+ NASA's Juno Spacecraft Updates Quarter-Century Jupiter Mystery
+ Swedish space instrument participates in the search for life around Jupiter
+ Researchers model source of eruption on Jupiter's moon Europa
+ Radiation Does a Bright Number on Jupiter's Moon
+ New plans afoot beyond Pluto
+ Where were Jupiter and Saturn born?


Astronomers detect possible radio emission from exoplanet
Ithaca NY (SPX) Dec 17, 2020
By monitoring the cosmos with a radio telescope array, a Cornell University-led international team of scientists has detected radio bursts emanating from the constellation Bootes. The signal could be the first radio emission collected from a planet beyond our solar system. The team, led by Cornell postdoctoral researcher Jake D. Turner, Philippe Zarka of the Observatoire de Paris - Paris S ... more
+ Key building block for organic molecules discovered in meteorites
+ Device mimics life's first steps in outer space
+ Scientists discover compounds that could have helped to start life on Earth
+ Research identifies Earth's extreme environments as best places for life to grow
+ Hubble identifies strange exoplanet that behaves like a "Planet Nine"
+ Rochester researchers uncover key clues about the solar system's history
+ UC Riverside-led team looks back to find life beyond
Loss of Vega flight VV17 report issued
Paris (ESA) Dec 18, 2020
Initial investigations, conducted right after the launch with the available data, identified a problem related to the integration of the fourth-stage AVUM Thrust Vector Control (TVC) system as being the most likely cause of the loss of control of the launcher. Arianespace (the launch service provider) and the European Space Agency (ESA - the launch system development authority) immediately ... more
+ Long March 8 rocket makes maiden flight
+ NASA awards contract for Global Hawk Skyrange program
+ FAA begins scoping period for environmental review at SpaceX launch site
+ China's new Long March-8 rocket makes first flight
+ SpaceX launches U.S. spy satellite; Falcon 9 first stage returns
+ Universities prepare to launch experiments with NASA, Virgin Orbit
+ SLS team completes propellant loading of Core Stage during Green Run test




China plans to launch four manned spacecraft in next two years
Beijing (XNA) Dec 21, 2020
China plans to launch four manned spacecraft as part of its space station construction program in the next two years, said an official with the China National Space Administration (CNSA) Thursday. China's manned space program will be very busy in 2021 and 2022, said Wu Yanhua, vice administrator of the CNSA, at a press conference on China's Chang'e-5 lunar mission. Wu said a total of ... more
+ China's Chang'e-5 orbiter embarks on new mission to gravitationally stable spot at L1
+ Mission accomplished, now on to the next: China Daily editorial
+ China prepares to launch Long March-8 Y1 rocket
+ China plans to launch new space science satellites
+ How it took decades for space program to take off
+ China to Begin Construction of Its Space Station Next Year
+ Moon mission tasked with number of firsts for China
EMXYS and Royal Observatory, Belgium to participate in planetary defence Hera space mission
Alicante, Spain (SPX) Dec 23, 2020
EMXYS and the Royal Observatory of Belgium have been selected by the European Space Agency to provide a gravimeter for the Juventas spacecraft that will land on asteroid Dimorphos as part of the European Space Agency's planetary defence programme. EMXYS and the Royal Observatory of Belgium will provide the GRASS instrument that will make measurements on the gravity field of the asteroid Di ... more
+ The Subaru Telescope photographs the next target asteroid for Hayabusa2
+ Knowledge of asteroid composition to help avert collisions
+ SwRI-led team finds meteoric evidence for a previously unknown asteroid
+ Asteroid samples leave Japan scientists 'speechless'
+ UK 'comet chaser' to go where no probe has been before
+ Black 'sand-like' asteroid dust found in box from Japan probe
+ Last major meteor shower of 2020 to sparkle in weekend sky




Navy tests autonomous drone as target for laser weapon testing
Washington DC (UPI) Nov 25, 2020
The U.S. Navy Surface War Center announced a test in which an autonomous drone was launched and landed on a moving ship as a target for laser weapons. The tests, held last week at the NSWC Division at Port Hueneme, Calif., involved software made for the Navy by Planck Aerosystems Inc. that allow the drone to follow the ship without people controlling it, the Navy said. The four-r ... more
+ Do Directed Energy Weapons finally live up to their expectations?
+ Army testing new air defense system, laser weapons
+ AFRL breaks ground on new directed energy facility
+ US Army plans to mount anti-aircraft lasers on Stryker armored vehicles
+ Northrop Grumman taps Epirus for Electromagnetic Pulse C-UAS Weapon System
Congress adds $1.3B to Missile Defense Agency's budget in spending bill
Washington DC (UPI) Dec 22, 2020
Congress has added $1.3 billion into the Missile Defense Agency's fiscal 2021 budget, in excess of what the agency asked for in February. The agency had requested $9.13 billion, a $1.27 billion decrease from last year's budget, but also submitted a list of unfunded requirements that totaled nearly $1 billion. In the bill, lawmakers describe a "concerning" disconnect between the M ... more
+ IMDO and MDA complete intercept test of the David's Sling Weapon System
+ Most Advanced SBIRS Missile Warning Satellite Ready For 2021 Launch
+ Russian military successfully tests new anti-ballistic missile
+ Navy intercepts, destroys ICBM during missile test in Hawaii
+ U.S., allied countries begin NATO Missile Firing Installation 2020 in Greece
+ Launching your career in missile defense
+ Lockheed Martin poised to deliver on national priority for Homeland Defense




SwRI models point to a potentially diverse metabolic menu at Enceladus
San Antonio TX (SPX) Dec 17, 2020
Using data from NASA's Cassini spacecraft, scientists at Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) modeled chemical processes in the subsurface ocean of Saturn's moon Enceladus. The studies indicate the possibility that a varied metabolic menu could support a potentially diverse microbial community in the liquid water ocean beneath the moon's icy facade. Prior to its deorbit in September of 2017 ... more
+ Impact craters reveal details of Titan's dynamic surface weathering
+ NASA Scientists Discover 'Weird' Molecule in Titan's Atmosphere
+ ALMA shows volcanic impact on Io's atmosphere
+ Interplanetary storm chasing
+ Titan's lakes can stratify like those on Earth
+ New chronology of the Saturn System
Weak force has strong impact on nanosheets
Houston TX (SPX) Dec 16, 2020
You have to look closely, but the hills are alive with the force of van der Walls. Rice University scientists found that nature's ubiquitous "weak" force is sufficient to indent rigid nanosheets, extending their potential for use in nanoscale optics or catalytic systems. Changing the shape of nanoscale particles changes their electromagnetic properties, said Matt Jones, the Norman an ... more
+ Making 3D nanosuperconductors with DNA
+ Researchers share design for affordable single-molecule microscope
+ Scientists explain the paradox of quantum forces in nanodevices
+ Rice rolls out next-gen nanocars
+ Nano particles for healthy tissue
+ Hybrid nanomaterials hold promise for improved ceramic composites
+ Scientists open new window into the nanoworld




China launches two satellites for gravitational wave detection
Xichang, China (XNA) Dec 10, 2020
China sent two satellites for the detection of gravitational waves into planned orbit from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Sichuan province on Thursday morning. The two satellites, which compose the Gravitational Wave High-energy Electromagnetic Counterpart All-sky Monitor (GECAM) mission, were launched by a Long March-11 carrier rocket at 4:14 am (Beijing Time), according to the ce ... more
+ A technique to sift out the universe's first gravitational waves
+ Getting in a spin over a cup of coffee
+ Looking at solutions on a parabolic flight
+ Hundreds of copies of Newton's Principia found in new census
+ Designing new mirror materials for better gravitational-wave detection
+ UMD astronomers find x-rays lingering years after landmark neutron star collision
+ Einstein's description of gravity just got much harder to beat
On the Hunt for a Missing Giant Black Hole
Huntsville AL (SPX) Dec 22, 2020
The mystery surrounding the whereabouts of a supermassive black hole has deepened. Despite searching with NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and Hubble Space Telescope, astronomers have no evidence that a distant black hole estimated to weigh between 3 billion and 100 billion times the mass of the Sun is anywhere to be found. This missing black hole should be in the enormous galaxy in the ce ... more
+ A blazar in the early universe
+ World first discovery confirms model of the evolution of our Universe
+ Multi-messenger astronomy offers new estimates of neutron star size and universe expansion
+ Mapping out a transient atom
+ Ultracold atoms reveal a new type of quantum magnetic behavior
+ Baghdad's wristwatch repairman is a timeless treasure
+ Major upgrade to Fermilab accelerator complex gets green light




U.S. Army, Clemson University partner on autonomous vehicle project
Washington DC (UPI) Dec 18, 2020
The U.S. Army and Clemson University announced a partnership to study conversion of Bradley tanks and armored personnel carriers to autonomous use. The study for the conversion of existing Army equipment to self-driving vehicles is enabled by an $18 million Defense Department grant in the school's Virtual Prototyping of Ground Systems, and a partnership between the U.S. Army Ground Vehi ... more
+ Northrop Grumman invests in Deepwave Digital's AI
+ USAF makes history with first flight using artificial intelligence
+ 'Chaotic' way to create insectlike gaits for robots
+ Warning over 'blind adoption' of AI and rights impact
+ 'The robot made me do it': Robots encourage risk-taking behaviour in people
+ SoftBank sells controlling stake in Boston Dynamics to Hyundai
+ ESA signs contracts for reusable Space Rider up to maiden flight
Funding for MQ-9 Reaper drone back in federal budget
Washington DC (UPI) Dec 23, 2020
The $3.2 trillion spending package approved this week by Congress includes $286 million for MQ-9 Reaper drones - weapons previously slated for elimination. The U.S. Air Force eliminated a line item in its Fiscal Year 2021 budget calling for the MQ-9, instead requesting $172 million in funding to help shut down production at General Atomics' manufacturing facility in Poway, Calif. ... more
+ Northrop Grumman completes first flight of Global Hawk Ground Station Modernization Program
+ Air Force launches drone-based security system at Travis AFB
+ Army looks to improve quadrotor drone performance
+ Kongsberg Geospatial Announces New Tactical UAS Sensor Data Management Solution
+ Test of Gremlin drones a near success, but C-130 couldn't retrieve them
+ Navy creates program for specialists to operate MQ-25 Stingray drone
+ Northrop Grumman Completes Initial Development of Australian Triton Network Integration Test Environment
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