A radar image of China’s Tiangong-1 space station, which ceased operation in 2018. Beijing has announced plans for a permanent space station by 2022. Image: Fraunhofer Institute FHR via AP.
Category: space – Page 731
The strange storms on Jupiter
At the south pole of Jupiter lurks a striking sight—even for a gas giant planet covered in colorful bands that sports a red spot larger than the earth. Down near the south pole of the planet, mostly hidden from the prying eyes of humans, is a collection of swirling storms arranged in an unusually geometric pattern.
Since they were first spotted by NASA’s Juno space probe in 2019, the storms have presented something of a mystery to scientists. The storms are analogous to hurricanes on Earth. However, on our planet, hurricanes do not gather themselves at the poles and twirl around each other in the shape of a pentagon or hexagon, as do Jupiter’s curious storms.
Now, a research team working in the lab of Andy Ingersoll, Caltech professor of planetary science, has discovered why Jupiter’s storms behave so strangely. They did so using math derived from a proof written by Lord Kelvin, a British mathematical physicist and engineer, nearly 150 years ago.
Who was the first astronaut in space?
Watch yourself!! #SpaceExploration
JAXA teams with GITAI for world-first private sector space robotics demo
Space robotics startup GITAI and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) are teaming up to produce the world’s first robotics demonstration in space by a private company. The new agreement under the JAXA Space Innovation through Partnership and Co-creation (J-SPARC) initiative aims to demonstrate the potential for robots to automate of the processing of specific tasks aboard the International Space Station (ISS).
Robotics is altering many aspects of our lives in many fields and one where it is particularly attractive is in the exploration and exploitation of space. Ironically, the great strides made in manned spaceflight since the first Vostok mission lifted off in 1961 have shown that not only is supporting astronauts in orbit challenging and expensive, there are also many tasks, like microgravity experiments, where the human touch isn’t the best choice.
These tasks often require complex, precise, and subtle movements that demand either a highly specialized and expensive bespoke apparatus or a robot. The GITAI/JAXA agreement will work on ways that robots can handle maintenance, scientific experiments, and other specific tasks aboard the ISS.
OSIRIS-REx Meets Bennu’s Surprises
Even though it’s a month away from completing its primary task of capturing a sample, NASA’s OSIRIS-REx Asteroid Sample Return Mission has already set records and revealed some surprising things about the asteroid Bennu: youtu.be/j_hSNBmpuqY
Earth is about to capture a new ‘mini moon’ (but it might not be a moon at all)
O,.o.
A new mini-moon might be about to join Earth’s orbit briefly, before being hurled back into space.
‘Minimoons’ are only a few feet across, and each tends to do a stint of around a few months in orbit – before resuming their previous lives as asteroids.
But this particular mini-moon may be a little different – as experts have suggested it’s not a moon at all, but man-made space junk.
