Scientists are happy with observations from a fresh sensor swiftly prepared for launch aboard a U.S. Air Force satellite last year to fill a gap in data on the sun's brightness, a crucial kernel of information for climate change research. The instrument's launch in November came at an opportune time for climate scientists. After an unbroken 35-year record of data on the sun's total energy output, researchers faced the probability they would lose that resource in the next few years as aging satellites died off due to equipment failures. (2/9)
Orion: Next-gen Crew Capsule Set to Launch in September (Source: Daily Press)
In September, a spacecraft built for human exploration is set to blast off and venture deeper into space than any such craft has gone since the Apollo moon missions more than 40 years ago. The unmanned vessel will cruise about 3,600 miles out — 15 times farther than the International Space Station — at speeds of up to 20,000 mph, NASA says. It'll orbit the planet twice before re-entering the atmosphere, protected by heat shields built to withstand temperatures of 4,000 degrees F.
Then its 11 parachutes will slow it down to less than 20 mph for splashdown in the Pacific. This is the test flight NASA plans for its new Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle, modeled on the Apollo lunar module but tricked out with technologies more advanced than any spacecraft ever built, designed to be safer and more flexible for deep-space missions to an asteroid, to Mars or beyond. (2/10)
Bolivia's First Communications Satellite Undergoing Operational Tests (Source: Xinhua)
Bolivia's first communications satellite is under its full control and expected to be ready for operation on April 1, Bolivian Space Agency (ABE) announced Sunday. The China-made Tupac Katari satellite, launched on Dec. 21 last year, is in the phase of operational testing with a little help from Chinese technicians, ABE Director Ivan Zambrana told Xinhua, adding the tests were progressing efficiently. The satellite would be put into commercial use in just over a month and a half, Zambrana said. (2/10)
Russian-European Spacecraft to Go on Martian Mission in Jan 2016 (Source: Interfax)
A spacecraft built for the Russian-European ExoMars project will begin its voyage to Mars in January 2016. "In all, there will be four stages in this project. An orbiter designed by the European Space Agency will be launched with a Russian Proton-M LV and a Briz-M upper stage in the period from January 7 to January 27, 2016."
"The spacecraft will arrive in the Martian orbit in October 2016. It will be carrying a number of our and European instruments and a small craft, which will be airdropped to the planet," the scientist said. The vehicle will spend two weeks on the planet's surface. (2/10)
The Oldest Star Discovery Tells Much About the Early Universe (Source: The Conversation)
The discovery of an ancient star formed approximately 13.6-billion years ago just after the Big Bang is telling us much about the early universe. The star – designated SMSS J031300.36-670839.3 – lies within our Milky Way galaxy and a mere (relatively) 6,000 light years away but is the oldest known star discovered so far, we’re announcing in a paper published in Nature.
By studying the light from this star in detail we have, for the first time, seen the chemical fingerprint of the first stars to form in the universe. The telltale sign that the star is so ancient is the complete absence of any detectable level of iron in the spectrum of light emerging from the star. (2/10)
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