Lifeboat Foundation

A team of oceanographers at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, working with a colleague from Chungnam National University and another from the University of Hawaii, has mapped 19,000 previously unknown undersea volcanoes in the world’s oceans using radar satellite data. In their paper published in the journal Earth and Space Science, the group describes how they used radar satellite data to measure seawater mounding to find and map undersea volcanoes and explains why it is important that it be done.

The ocean floor, like dry land masses, features a wide variety of terrain. And as with dry land, features that truly stand out are mountains—in the ocean they are called seamounts. And as on land, they can be created by tectonic plates pushing against one another, or by volcanos erupting. Currently, just one-fourth of the sea floor has been mapped, which means that no one knows how many seamounts exist, or where they might be. This can be a problem for submarines—twice U.S. submarines have collided with seamounts, putting such vehicles and their crew at risk. But not knowing where the seamounts are located presents another problem. It prevents oceanographers from creating models depicting the flow of oceanwater around the world.

In this new effort, the research team set themselves the task of discovering and mapping as many seamounts as possible, and to do it, they used data from radar satellites. Such satellites cannot actually see the seamounts, of course, instead they measure the altitude of the sea surface, which changes due to changes in gravitational pull related to seafloor topography; an effect known as sea mounding. In so doing, they found 19,000 previously unknown seamounts.

One of the most difficult issues in space exploration is extending the lifespan of satellites. Even if the satellite’s system is operational, it can run out of fuel and become defunct.

Enter Orbit Fab. This startup is working on an innovative solution to make satellites reusable by developing gas stations in space to refuel them. We had written about them in 2021.

SpaceX just did their second launch of V2 Mini satellites. Their first launch was two months ago and some satellites were lost as their new tech didn’t work on all satellites. Well, SpaceX has solved the bugs, and launched a second batch. Once the bugs are 100% solved, all future Starlink launches will only contain these new satellites.

These higher capacity satellites service about 33% more customers per pound of satellite than the V1.5 Starlink satellites.

Continue reading “SpaceX Launches Upgraded Starlink Satellites After Issues with First Batch” »

Researchers use a reaction wheel actuator system to make a quadruped robot walk on a narrow balance beam.

A team of researchers at Carnegie Mellon University’s Robotics Institute (RI) has created a method that enables a quadruped robot to walk on a narrow balance beam.

Their solution involves implementing a Reaction Wheel Actuator (RWA) system, which is mounted on the back of the quadruped robot. Through a novel control technique, the RWA system enables the robot to balance independently, irrespective of the position of its feet. To enhance the robot’s balancing capabilities, the team leveraged hardware that is commonly used to control satellites in space.

No people or satellites were aboard. There won’t be another try until at least Wednesday.

“Learned a lot today,” Musk tweeted after the flight was postponed.

The company plans to use Starship to send people and cargo to the moon and, ultimately, Mars.

NAIROBI, April 14 (Reuters) — Kenya launched its first operational earth observation satellite on Saturday onboard a SpaceX rocket from the United States, a live feed from Elon Musk’s rocket company showed.

The satellite, developed by nine Kenyan engineers, will collect agricultural and environmental data, including on floods, drought and wildfires, that authorities plan to use for disaster management and to combat food insecurity.

The Falcon 9 rocket carrying the Taifa-1 satellite, took off at about 648 GMT without incident from Vandenberg Base in California, after three postponements due to bad weather.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — SpaceX has cleared the final hurdle for launching its new giant Starship from Texas as early as next week on a first test flight.

The Federal Aviation Administration issued the long-awaited license on Friday. SpaceX announced that Starship — the world’s biggest and most powerful rocket — could soar as soon as Monday.

No people or satellites will be aboard the 394-foot (120-meter) rocket. SpaceX will attempt to send the spacecraft atop the colossal booster around the world, from the southern tip of Texas all the way to Hawaii. The first stage will be discarded in the Gulf of Mexico and the spacecraft into the Pacific. No landings will be attempted for this debut.

The Spanish company Sateliot plans to send its first base station into orbit, which will enable satellite communications directly from smartphones. SpaceX will help it do so. A SpaceX rocket will naturally be used to launch the telecom satellite into orbit.

Here’s What We Know

The company from Spain wants to launch five satellites into orbit by the end of this year. According to representatives of the startup, this first phase of the project will be completed. Sateliot wants to have 64 satellites in orbit next year, and the company plans to increase the number to 256 in 2025.

— What’s the biggest black hole in the universe?

LISA will consist of a trio of satellites orbiting the sun that will constantly monitor the distances among them. When a gravitational wave comes by, the satellites will detect the telltale signature, like buoys in the ocean recognizing a passing tidal wave.

To search for IMBHs, the astronomers have to hope for a lucky break. If an IMBH in the galactic center happens to capture a wandering dense remnant (like a smaller black hole, a neutron star, or a white dwarf), the process will emit gravitational waves that LISA can potentially detect. Because the IMBH itself will be orbiting around the central supermassive black hole, these gravitational waves will undergo a Doppler shift (like the shifting in frequencies from a passing ambulance) due to the IMBH’s motion.