Lifeboat Foundation: Safeguarding Humanity
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Category: space – Page 966

Slight variations in the moon’s gravitational tug have hinted that kilometers-wide caverns lurk beneath the lunar surface. Like the lava tubes of Hawaii and Iceland, these structures probably formed when underground rivers of molten rock ran dry, leaving behind a cylindrical channel. On Earth, such structures max out at around 30 meters across, but the gravitational data suggest that the moon’s tubes are vastly wider.

Other satellites had found the openings of large lunar lava tubes and caves.

  • The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter has now imaged over 200 pits that show the signature of being skylights into subsurface voids or caverns, ranging in diameter from about 16 feet (5 meters) to more than 2,950 feet (900 m), although some of these are likely to be post-flow features rather than volcanic skylights.

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John Glenn, who captured the nation’s attention in 1962 as the first American to orbit the Earth during a tense time when the United States sought supremacy over the Soviet Union in the space race, and who rocketed back into space 36 years later, becoming the oldest astronaut in history, died Dec. 8 at a hospital in Columbus, Ohio. Mr. Glenn, who in his post-NASA career served four terms as a U.S. senator from Ohio, was 95.

The death was confirmed by Hank Wilson, communications director at the John Glenn College of Public Affairs at Ohio State University. Mr. Glenn had a stroke after heart-valve replacement surgery in 2014, but the immediate cause was not announced.

Mr. Glenn was one of the seven original astronauts in NASA’s Mercury program, which was a conspicuous symbol of the country’s military and technological might at the height of the Cold War. He was not the first American in space — two of his fellow astronauts preceded him — but his three-orbit circumnavigation of the globe captured the imagination of his countrymen like few events before or since. Mr. Glenn was the last survivor of the Mercury Seven.

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Physics Today has a speculative article that proposes that laser light be used to shape and polish an asteroid to high optical standards. This could create an Asteroid Belt Astronomical Telescope (ABAT).

The Asteroid Belt Astronomical Telescope (ABAT) focuses light from laser-polished asteroids onto dual imaging arrays above and below the solar system; other intense laser pulses maneuver the arrays to different locations, thus allowing ABAT to point at multiple celestial targets. Asteroid ablation residue corralled into a pair of Devil’s Footprints shields the focal regions from solar illumination. (Courtesy of Laura Kim.)

Imagined 10 meter resolution imaging of exoplanet.

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Space Warp Dynamics’s mission is fundamentally an audacious endeavor in terms of what we deem as the status quo of spacecraft propulsion and in terms of where humanity will be able to reach in the galaxy (other stars) within the next 15–20 years (and not only within the next 200+ years from now). In other words, if this challenge can be addressed with the appropriate resources and the right people’s support, then for example you and your family will potentially be able to travel to Earth 2.0 (presumably in the Proxima Centauri star system).
Space Warp Dynamics can already currently demonstrate (prove) that their invention can manipulate (warp or bend) space-time in a controlled micro-environment. This could mean that we finally know how gravity works and also how to control gravity and this in itself is a monumental accomplishment.
As their technology is now (granted after the necessary safety tests), they can sell/licence their current development level of technology to NASA to use as artificial gravity generation technology on the International Space Station (as you probably know, the long-term lack of gravity on the ISS is really bad for astronauts’ bodies).
Regular Research Progress Updates:
https://www.facebook.com/SWarpDynamics

Why is warp drive R&D so important for the future of mankind?
–> Primarily, because without “warp bubble” (warp drive) technology any random object that is “drifting” in space will easily be able to decommission/neutralize even the most robust spacecraft.
–> Without mankind first developing warp drive (“warp bubble”) technology, we will never reach places like Earth 2.0 (presumably in the Proxima Centauri star system).

This is simply because the speeds at which a spacecraft will need to move to get people to another life bearing planet within at least less than half the time of 1 human lifetime’s amount of years, will be way too fast [the relative speed will be way too fast] to allow our spacecraft’s detection systems to anticipate a potential collision with space junk/dust or small meteors. As you know, space junk/dust and small meteors can move at incredibly high relative speeds and at these incredibly high relative speeds even a very small object becomes a serious threat to a spacecraft.
Therefore, any spacecraft traveling at such high relative speeds in space without making use of the protection of a “warp bubble” will be effectively leaving the spaceship vulnerable to these random objects in space to crash into the spaceship. Because, practically it would be virtually impossible for a spaceship to beforehand identify/track and then out-maneuver all of the random objects in space that are going to crash into it while it is traveling between the Solar system and the Proxima Centauri star system – especially if an object is small and traveling at an incredibly high speed.
I trust everyone sees the fundamental need for this technology in order to enable true interstellar (star-to-star) human space exploration.
For details how to get involved send them a Facebook message at:
https://www.facebook.com/SWarpDynamics