I am trying... hard ... to keep politics down to half of my postings (or so) and not on weekends! And hence... something to remind you what a great civilization you are proud of! Do not let the gloom merchants poison your mood.
After a successful launch, the OSIRIS-REx mission sets off to explore and bring back samples from asteroid Bennu, whose size, orbit and possible carbonaceous makeup suggest real potential for riches... and if that dream comes true, then we can stop digging into Mother Earth. Fly well, Osiris-Rex!
After a successful launch, the OSIRIS-REx mission sets off to explore and bring back samples from asteroid Bennu, whose size, orbit and possible carbonaceous makeup suggest real potential for riches... and if that dream comes true, then we can stop digging into Mother Earth. Fly well, Osiris-Rex!
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| Layered buttes on Mars / NASA Curiosity |
Wonderful latest images from our hardworking, loyal robot on Mars. The Curiosity rover recently sent back stunning detailed photos of jagged finely layered buttes in the Mount Sharp region. And they are beauts! (pictured to right).
A very cool (get it?) summary of mysteries revealed about Pluto-Charon by the New Horizons probe.
A rare double eclipse: Kewl! NASA’S Solar Dynamics Observatory caught BOTH the Earth and the moon crossing the sun!
The U.S. government has approved Florida-based Moon Express for a planned 2017 robotic lunar landing, hoping eventually to exploit its resources. And I am rooting for em! Though I am deeply skeptical – I see no evidence for anything usefully available from the bottom of the Lunar gravity well, in the immediate time horizon. (I much prefer what NASA and planetary scientists, industrial investors and this administration see as an obviously better prospect: asteroids.) But go ahead guys! Prove me wrong.
NASA's Solar Probe Plus mission is moving ahead with its daring 2018 launch to study the
sun's super-heated atmosphere. Now of course I have mixed feelings. First, I’m
certainly glad to see this daring voyage-endeavor which, it turns out, will
require seven Venus flyby maneuvers in order to get into a near solar
trajectory. (Do not imagine heading toward the inner solar system, to be ‘easy
because it’s downhill.’ It is excruciatingly difficult, dynamically. Much harder
than - say - going to Mars.)
Still, one
of the competing groups had enlisted me on its board of advisers - as both a
planetary scientist who used to do solar astronomy and later a member of
NIAC. But also, I suppose, because they
had planned to name their mission Project Sundiver, letting me serve as
mascot. Ah well. I suppose the JHUAPL guys had a better
mission plan. Good luck sundivers!
For up to two billion years, some investigators believe, Venus may have been a hospitable place for life. “Venus receives 40% more heat and light than Earth does. At first, that wasn’t a problem since the sun was 30% dimmer in the early days of the solar system, but its brightness—and heat—increased over time… if Venus ever had plate tectonics, the process would have begun grinding to a halt, due at least in part to the lack of water to keep the upper mantle viscous. Without tectonics, carbon in the atmosphere can’t be recirculated underground, worsening greenhouse conditions.”
For up to two billion years, some investigators believe, Venus may have been a hospitable place for life. “Venus receives 40% more heat and light than Earth does. At first, that wasn’t a problem since the sun was 30% dimmer in the early days of the solar system, but its brightness—and heat—increased over time… if Venus ever had plate tectonics, the process would have begun grinding to a halt, due at least in part to the lack of water to keep the upper mantle viscous. Without tectonics, carbon in the atmosphere can’t be recirculated underground, worsening greenhouse conditions.”
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| Channels on Titan/ NASA Cassini |
NASA's Cassini spacecraft has probed the surface of Titan with microwaves, providing evidence of liquid hydrocarbon-filled channels and rivers on Titan. Stunning! This is where I'd go.
Some
astronomers think that the oddly-extended and somewhat retrograde orbits of a
small class of trans Neptunian objects
amount to a ‘treasure’ map that will let them pinpoint and spot “Planet Nine.”
It used to be Planet X, when “X” could also stand for Ten. There have been a lot of wild goose
chases in the search for new planets.
Read how sun watchers stopped World War III in 1967. Yep! Solar
astronomers save the world! BTW... I was the first to spot the Great Flare of
1972! That one, too, could have caused a war, but for solar astronomers. Learn about flares & such in… SUNDIVER!
A new study shows another unique connection
between Jupiter and its innermost large moon Io: In addition to its raging sulfur
volcanoes and sputtering ionic radiation storms, Io's atmosphere collapses every time it passes into Jupiter's shadow, and scientists just watched it
happen for the first time. The newly arrived JUNO mission should be spectacular - its goal to analyze Jupiter's atmosphere and map the giant planet's magnetic and gravitational fields.
Oh, did I mention that you are a member of a civilization that does stuff like this? Shame on you for buying into the gloom! Statistics refute almost every negative thing that politicians and media are saying about this society and era. Do not let gloom merchants get (or stay) in power! And change channels.
On the other hand... we do need to be prepared...
Oh, did I mention that you are a member of a civilization that does stuff like this? Shame on you for buying into the gloom! Statistics refute almost every negative thing that politicians and media are saying about this society and era. Do not let gloom merchants get (or stay) in power! And change channels.
On the other hand... we do need to be prepared...
== Space Tech ==
Orbital targets for hackers? Satellites are at significant risk of cyber-attacks, by individuals or state-sponsored terrorists. These vulnerabilities could interrupt communications, defense, weather monitoring and navigation.
China confirms that its Space Station Tiangong-1 will fall to Earth sometime in 2017. Heads up.
A 'space train' concept that can get to Mars in two days? There are too many awful-dumb things about this article to even begin commenting on… and I hope it is the reporter’s fault. Because the underlying concept – having a space station that transit loops from Earth to Mars and back again – is actually a pretty good one. Trajectory options are very very very limited but possible and alluring, allowing passengers to torch their rendezvous with this space liner in teensy capsules. Only there’s no going into “orbit” at either planet. That… defeats… the… whole… notion.
China confirms that its Space Station Tiangong-1 will fall to Earth sometime in 2017. Heads up.
A 'space train' concept that can get to Mars in two days? There are too many awful-dumb things about this article to even begin commenting on… and I hope it is the reporter’s fault. Because the underlying concept – having a space station that transit loops from Earth to Mars and back again – is actually a pretty good one. Trajectory options are very very very limited but possible and alluring, allowing passengers to torch their rendezvous with this space liner in teensy capsules. Only there’s no going into “orbit” at either planet. That… defeats… the… whole… notion.
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| Lockheed SkyFire Cubesat |
To be clear, I oppose the US taxpayers funding any near-term return to the (probably) sterile-useless lunar surface - for the time being. But lunar orbit is extremely valuable! A space station there could do our asteroid mining experiments safely. And that station could provide services to the European, Russian, Chinese, and billionaire-private efforts at landing on the moon. Charge the fools... I mean copycats... I mean brave explorers a nice fee.
Ever since the Obama Administration opened up launch services to competition, the United Launch Alliance’s monopoly on U.S. military and intelligence cargoes has been under threat, with Elon Musk’s SpaceX offering bids up to 75% discounted from ULA’s normal price. Oh but let's get those problems solved. Interesting times.
Aquila is Facebook’s solar-powered airplane designed to stay aloft weeks at a time and beam internet to remote parts of the world.
Terrific! Hubble before and after images of Comet 332P breaking apart.
This promising concept from JPL: an E-Glider, or electrostatic glider that could maneuver around asteroids without expending fuel, in the electrically charged environment around an asteroid. Further research has been funded by NASA NIAC, where I'm on the advisory council.
NASA’s Asteroid Redirect Mission (ARM) will demonstrate advanced, high-power, high-throughput solar electric propulsion; advanced autonomous high-speed proximity operations at a low-gravity planetary body. Exactly what we should be trying to do.
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| E-Glider concept, JPL |
NASA’s Asteroid Redirect Mission (ARM) will demonstrate advanced, high-power, high-throughput solar electric propulsion; advanced autonomous high-speed proximity operations at a low-gravity planetary body. Exactly what we should be trying to do.
Rosetta’s mission to Comet
67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko finally spotted the lost Philae lander.
Pretty amazing photos reveal the lander tumbled on its side in a shadowed
crevice, a fate long suspected suspected since it ran out of solar power soon
after touch-down… or bounce-down. Ah well.
A lot of science got done anyway, verifying much of my doctoral thesis.
(And some bits from Heart of the Comet!)
Thanks Europe! Now onward into
space!
And Rosetta's mission recently came to an end. After twelve years in space, and two years flying around Comet 67P, the orbiter crash took a final dive onto the surface of the comet on September 30. Adieu, Rosetta! Mission Accomplished.
And Rosetta's mission recently came to an end. After twelve years in space, and two years flying around Comet 67P, the orbiter crash took a final dive onto the surface of the comet on September 30. Adieu, Rosetta! Mission Accomplished.
Like most sun-grazing comets, this
comet was torn apart and vaporized by the
intense forces near the sun.
Images from the Dawn mission provided evidence for a “fairly recent” salty water/mud volcano on Ceres.
== Outside the Solar System ==
Interesting item. My comrade Stephen Baxter’s 2013 novel PROXIMA seems to have predicted almost every aspect of the newly discovered earthlike planet “Proxima b” orbiting our neighboring star, Proxima Centauri! Lee Billings' writeup in Scientific American offers you a generous excerpt! The James Webb space telescope, scheduled for launch in 2018, may provide more information.
The
mysterious dimming of “Tabby’s Star” – both periodic and secular, perhaps
across the last 100 years – has both amateur and professional astronomers
peering at old photographic plates and new Kepler data to seek possible
explanations. And yes, “alien
constructions” are still on the table!
Though you have to make some assumptions…
Biggest galactic map may throw light on the nature of 'dark energy,' -- and fascinating echoes of the formation of our universe of galaxies with hints at the behavior of both dark matter and dark energy. All from the biggest and most detailed galactic mapping, ever.
The Future First series of brief online tech-shows is a credit to Popular Science, well edited, informative and on target. This one — “Where are all the aliens?” — starts with my description of the Fermi Paradox or SETI Question, then segues to Jason Crusan, director of NASA’s Advanced Exploration Systems. Such cogency, charisma and… science!
Directed Energy Comms and SETI/METI: UC Santa
Barbara physics professor Philip Lubin — "The Search for Directed
Intelligence" appears in the journal REACH - Lubin is a scientific
advisor on Milner's Breakthrough Starshot, which is using his NASA research as
a roadmap as it seeks to send tiny spacecraft to nearby star systems.
Of course mysteries remain... as explained in The Unknown Universe: A New Exploration of Time, Space and Modern Cosmology, by Stuart Clark. A look at how the latest discoveries are shedding light on the formation and evolution of the universe.
Of course mysteries remain... as explained in The Unknown Universe: A New Exploration of Time, Space and Modern Cosmology, by Stuart Clark. A look at how the latest discoveries are shedding light on the formation and evolution of the universe.
Send a fingernail sized digital archive containing human knowledge. Profs.
Lubin and Bradshears, in this (unsuccessful) Kickstarter campaign, aim to create the world's
first "Space Time Capsule" - a Humanity Chip, a custom semiconductor
memory device that can be attached to the small, wafer-scale spacecraft that
are part of DEEP-IN and other directed-energy concepts. This chip will contain
volumes of data, including tweets, media files, and even the digital DNA
records of all those who want to take part in the mission.
There, that was a lotta space stuff! It oughta hold you across the weekend. And maybe convince you to tell every single grouch out there... and they are rife in the FAR left and the ENTIRE right... to get bent! There is zero justification for gloom! Every bad thing you hear is either exaggeration or else reason to step up in confident problem solving mode.
Because we are mighty beings, citizens of a spectacular civilization that can do a lot! And the gloom merchants can go to hell.
There, that was a lotta space stuff! It oughta hold you across the weekend. And maybe convince you to tell every single grouch out there... and they are rife in the FAR left and the ENTIRE right... to get bent! There is zero justification for gloom! Every bad thing you hear is either exaggeration or else reason to step up in confident problem solving mode.
Because we are mighty beings, citizens of a spectacular civilization that can do a lot! And the gloom merchants can go to hell.
