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Category: space – Page 758

Photographer Catches the ISS Crossing the Sun and Moon

Photographer Andrew McCarthy is known for shooting incredible astrophotography images from his backyard in Sacramento, California. He recently added two more jaw-dropping images to his portfolio: ultra-clear views of the International Space Station (ISS) crossing the Sun and Moon.

Given that the ISS whizzes across the Sun and Moon in less than a second from the perspective of someone on Earth, capturing a clear view of the transit is not an easy thing to do.

McCarthy first managed to capture the ISS transiting the Sun on Tuesday, October 6th.

How to live in space: what we’ve learned from 20 years of the International Space Station

Twenty straight years of life in space makes the ISS the ideal “natural laboratory” to understand how societies function beyond Earth.

The ISS is a collaboration between 25 space agencies and organisations. It has hosted 241 crew and a few tourists from 19 countries. This is 43% of all the people who have ever travelled in space.

As future missions to the Moon and Mars are planned, it’s important to know what people need to thrive in remote, dangerous and enclosed environments, where there is no easy way back home.

Applying particle physics methods to quantum computing

Borrowing a page from high-energy physics and astronomy textbooks, a team of physicists and computer scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) has successfully adapted and applied a common error-reduction technique to the field of quantum computing.

In the world of subatomic particles and giant particle detectors, and distant galaxies and giant telescopes, scientists have learned to live, and to work, with uncertainty. They are often trying to tease out ultra-rare particle interactions from a massive tangle of other particle interactions and background “noise” that can complicate their hunt, or trying to filter out the effects of atmospheric distortions and interstellar dust to improve the resolution of astronomical imaging.

Also, inherent problems with detectors, such as with their ability to record all particle interactions or to exactly measure particles’ energies, can result in data getting misread by the electronics they are connected to, so scientists need to design complex filters, in the form of computer algorithms, to reduce the margin of error and return the most accurate results.

Scientists induce “suspended animation” state in mice and rats

Some animals, like mice and birds, are able to bring their body temperature and metabolism way down to conserve energy, going into a sleep-like state called torpor. Now researchers have identified the brain cells that trigger this state, showing they can activate it on demand. The team was even able to do it in rats, which don’t normally do it at all, suggesting that such a “suspended animation” state might eventually be possible in humans.

Torpor seems to have evolved as a survival strategy during times of food scarcity, allowing animals to snooze through cold nights or even entire winters without wasting too much energy keeping their body temperature up. That of course allows them to survive until things warm up again, and food becomes more plentiful.

Scientists have toyed with the idea of inducing this kind of hibernation state in humans to reduce the resources and room required for long treks into space. Now researchers at Harvard and the University of Tsukuba in Japan may have made progress towards doing just that.

Planet that rains rocks and has winds faster than the speed of sound discovered by scientists

Scientists have found a planet where it rains rocks, the winds whip faster than the speed of sound and there is an ocean of magma more than 100km deep.

Researchers have found extreme “lava planets” before. They are worlds so close to their host star that the surface is made of oceans of molten lava.

But the newly-analysed planet known as K2-141b is unusual even among those extreme worlds. Its surface, ocean and atmosphere are all made up of rocks, which fall like rain and melt into its huge seas.

Reaching for the Moon, Mars and beyond: This is how space exploration can benefit all

The secrets of the solar system can drive economic return for all.

The launch of NASA’s fifth Mars rover marks a new milestone in the era of space exploration. It puts focus on the need for greater collaboration, equity and inclusion among international partners to ensure the sustainable, peaceful and fair use of resources. Guidelines for interacting and norms of behaviour are as essential to ensure success in space as on Earth.

The Artemis Accords: a framework for cooperation

The Artemis Accords, recently announced by NASA, is a framework to encourage international cooperation and ensure a safe, prosperous and sustainable future for all humankind in space. The Accords are bi-lateral agreements between the United States and other nations who wish to collaborate with NASA on the Artemis program, and they build on existing agreements with countries already involved in NASA-led programs such as the International Space Station.

Starlink Beta Has Outperformed Most Internet in the US

It seems Starlink will give other service providers a run for their money. 🙂

Managing Expectations

SpaceX made its expectations clear from the beginning: The space company called the public test a “Better Than Nothing Beta” and suggested users might see speeds of 50 to 150 Mbps.

“Starlink will forever change the game,” one user from rural Montana said on Reddit as they shared their 174 Mbps download speeds. Another beta tester boasted of their results in Seattle, which were slightly lower but still better than 95 percent of the U.S.

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