Science, Space, & Robotics - Page 143

Since May 14, China's Zhurong rover has been exploring the Utopia Planitia, its landing location. Now it needs some help getting its collected data back to Earth for researchers to interpret.

China's Zhurong has been slowly gathering vital information about its surroundings and can't get the recorded data back to Earth on its own as it doesn't have the equipment to transmit data directly back to Earth. The reason for this is because the instruments would take up too much space on the rover, which is used for other space experiments. Instead of transmitting the data itself, Zhurong relies on the service provided by orbiters such as the European Space Agency's Mars Express.

The rovers are equipped with radios to transmit the data to an orbiter that then relays the message to Earth. Between the space agencies, it's reported that it's "common practice" to share orbiter information in order to get vital research information back to Earth efficiently. Beginning in November, ESA's Mars Express will undergo five listen and relay attempts that will include the orbit listening and recording any signals it "hears" when it passes directly over the Zhurong rover, which will be transmitting its signal "out loud".

In a new blog post, NASA has detailed the results yielded from the Juno spacecraft's observations of the solar system's largest planet.

In the post, the space agency states that its Juno probe that is currently orbiting the planet Jupiter has provided insight into the inner workings of the gas giant's atmosphere. From the observations, researchers were able to derive the first 3D map of Jupiter's atmosphere, the results have been published throughout several papers in the two recent issues of the Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets and Geophysical Research Letters.

Scott Bolton, the principal investigator of Juno from the Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio and lead author of the Journal Science paper that explores the depth of Jupiter's vortices, said, "Previously, Juno surprised us with hints that phenomena in Jupiter's atmosphere went deeper than expected. Now, we're starting to put all these individual pieces together and getting our first real understanding of how Jupiter's beautiful and violent atmosphere works - in 3D."

Following a leak incident with the all-civilian Inspiration4 crew that recently launched with SpaceX, NASA has asked astronauts returning back from the ISS not to use the toilet.

NASA's Commercial Crew program manager, Steve Stitch, said on Friday that following a detected leak during the Inspiration4 mission that included just civilians, that NASA astronauts Shane Kimbrough and Meghan McArthur, Akihiko Hoshide of Japan's JAXA, and Thomas Pesquet of the ESA to explore "other means" of disposing of their bodily fluids. Technicians detected the leak by discovering one of the glued joints in the waste tank broke, which resulted in urine from the tank leaking into the fan.

Stitch said, "We have other means to allow the crew to perform the functions they need to do... Anytime the crew is suited they use an undergarment in that suit, and it's a short mission coming home." Adding, "Our intent is to not use the system at all for the return leg home because of what we've seen with the fluids we are talking about." The NASA crew that is heading back to Earth from the ISS was scheduled to launch from the floating laboratory on Halloween, but the launch was delayed due to bad weather until November 3 at 1:30 am ET.

NASA recently confirmed that on October 28, the solar flare was observed on the Sun's lower center and that this flare would result in a large amount of radiation smashing into Earth.

The flare was officially classified as an X-1 flare, with X being the most intense classification given to a flare. Officials predicted that the solar wind produced by the flare would impact Earth on October 30, and while their timing was correct, the intensity wasn't. The coronal mass ejection (CME) from the flare arrived with much less intensity than anticipated, with the majority of the flare actually missing Earth.

While the impact of a CME can cause geomagnetic storms that interfere with satellite, GPS communications, and other signals, they also can cause auroras to appear in the sky. Auroras are the result of the interaction between charged particles from the Sun's solar wind hitting particles in Earth's upper atmosphere. The interaction causes a glow that is visible in the sky. Skywatchers in certain locations around the world were able to spot the gorgeous phenomenon occur in the night sky.

The space located around Earth is exponentially filling up with junk from rocket parts and broken satellites, and if the issue isn't solved, the polluted space may result in a hindrance to humanity's space exploration.

In 1979 NASA scientist Donald J. Kessler proposed what was dubbed the "Kessler syndrome", which is a scenario that could unfold when the number of objects within low Earth orbit becomes so dense that the likelihood that it increases the the the point where it's more likely further collisions will occur, causing a cascade effect of debris collisions throughout low Earth orbit. Researchers are proposing new ideas to clean up low Earth orbit to prevent this tragic domino effect from happening. One suggestion may be to use magnets that can manipulate the debris.

A new study published in the journal Nature by researchers at the University of Utah details the use of spinning magnets equipped by robots. These robots would be able to push space debris down into Earth's atmosphere, where they would then burn up upon re-entry, removing the need for the robot to collect them physically. The team of researchers was able to demonstrate with the technology that they were able to manipulate debris in six degrees of movement, including rotation.

NASA recently confirmed the existence of a solar flare occurring on the Sun, which resulted in a plasma wave being launched directly towards Earth.

The space agency explained that Sunspot AR2887 erupted, causing a solar flare and a coronal mass ejection (CME) to be shot towards Earth's direction. The solar flare was classified as an X1-class flare, X being the highest categorization that is given to a solar flare. For those that don't know what flares are, they are burst of radiation that can't pass through Earth's atmosphere to harm humans. However, its impact on Earth can cause geomagnetic storms that knock out GPS and radio communications and interfere with satellites.

As for the flare that hit Earth's magnetic field on Oct. 31st at ~10:00 UT, the resulting impact was much less than anticipated as it only caused a G1-class geomagnetic storm. The reason for the weakness, as Spaceweather.com reports, is that majority of the CME missed Earth, which stands as an example that current computer models used to predict the events of the Sun aren't always 100% correct as there are still many unknowns about the Sun and its processes. More simply put, it's difficult to predict the motions of a celestial object located 93 million miles away.

On October 28, the Sun blasted out an X-1 solar flare causing a coronal mass ejection of charged particles to be launched directly towards Earth.

The X1 classification for this solar flare is the most intense classification that is given to solar flares, and while the flare itself reached Earth only 8.5 minutes after it happened, the resulting coronal mass ejection (CME) is expected to arrive on October 30. While the large swath of charged radiation particles impacting Earth poses no danger to humans on the surface, the interaction in Earth's upper atmosphere can cause geomagnetic storms that can interfere with satellites, radio communications, GPS, and more.

According to NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center, there is a G3 (strong) geomagnetic storm watch scheduled for October 30. Looking back into what past solar flares have caused on Earth, this specific classification of solar flare has caused auroras to appear in the sky over certain parts of the planet. These auroras are similar to the Northern/Southern lights and can be seen with the naked eye. NASA recommends people who live in Northern US and Canada to keep an eye out for a possible light show that will coincide with Halloween.

NASA has taken to its blog with a new image and video centered around the Hubble Space Telescope and what it has recently snapped an image of.

According to the blog post, which can be found on the NASA website, the Hubble Space Telescope is celebrating Halloween with "creepy celestial sights". The above video posted to the NASA Goddard YouTube channel details Hubble's observation of a "giant space spider-web", which is actually the destruction of the red giant star named CW Leonis, located 400 million light-years away from Earth.

The "cobwebs" are dusty clouds of "sooty carbon engulfing the dying star", and after being created through nuclear fusion in the star's interior, it's thrown out into the void of space around it, providing raw materials for future star formation. CW Leonis is the closest carbon star to Earth, and due to its position and nature, astronomers have a great prospect of understanding how carbon stars interact and evolve with their surroundings. Over the past 15 years, researchers have observed a dip in the brightness radiating out of CW Leonis, which is an extremely small amount of time in astronomical terms.

NASA has taken to its blogs and social medias to confirm the existence of a massive solar flare headed directly towards Earth.

The solar flare was observed on October 28, and according to NASA, the flare came from the Sun's lower center which is directly facing Earth. At 11:35 a.m EDT, the Sun released the biggest of a series of flares, bursting out a large amount of radiation towards Earth that is expected to arrive very soon. The flare was categorized as an X1-class flare, X being the most intense categorization for solar flares.

The Sun entered Solar Cycle 25, and according to the space agency, this is the second X-class solar flare of the cycle, with the cycle lasting 11 years. Over the duration of the cycle, the Sun will go through active and quiet periods until it reaches its solar maximum, where its magnetic poles will flip.

Researchers thought that Earth's inner core was "solid," but new research suggests that it may be closer to a mush than a solid.

A new study published in the journal Physic of the Earth and Planetary Interiors on September 20 details that the planet's inner core can range from being hard to a semisoft liquid metal. According to Jessica Irving, a seismologist at the University of Bristol in England and not involved in the aforementioned study, "The more that we look at it, the more we realize it's not one boring blob of iron. We're finding a whole new hidden world."

As for the researchers behind the study, they were measuring the seismic waves that are created by large earthquakes. These quakes travel from one side of the globe to the other. Recording these massive vibrations in the form of straight-line compressional waves and undulating shear waves using special instruments, researchers are able to recreate a picture of what the inner planet looks like.

In a recent article for Spaceweather.com, an astronomer described an object seen traveling at 26,000 mph as a "giant space volcano".

While this description isn't officially recognized, it may be the best way to describe the comet named 29P. This comet is constantly spewing "cryomagma" into space and is certainly stretching our definitions of what we call a "comet". 29P measures 37 miles in diameter It is a massive ice ball with ice volcanoes on its surface that erupt around 20 times a year. The strange comet was first discovered back in 1927, and its eruptions have been documented for quite some time. However, 29P seems angrier than ever.

Arizona amateur astronomer Eliot Herman was observing the comet and recorded four eruptions in quick succession in late September. Dr. Richard Miles of the British Astronomical Association (BAA) told Spaceweather.com, "The current outburst, which began on Sept. 25th, appears to be the most energetic of the past 40 years." Adding, "within a span of only 56 hours, four eruptions took place in quick succession, creating a 'superoutburst.'"

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has said that he plans on using his wealth on getting humanity to Mars after criticizing a plan to tax billionaires.

The statements from Musk come after Senate Democrats are moving to propose a new tax increase that directly targets the top wealthiest individuals in the United States. In response to an article from the Washington Post that discusses the moves being made by lawmakers, Elon Musk criticized the idea saying, "According to their own estimates, this tax only covers ~10% of the $3.5 trillion spending bill. Where will the other 90% come from? The answer is you."

Additionally, the SpaceX CEO followed up by saying the "US national debt is ~$28,900 billion or ~$229k per taxpayer. Even taxing all "billionaires" at 100% would only make a small dent in that number, so obviously the rest must come from the general public. This is basic math. Spending is the real problem." Adding, "US Federal Debt/GDP was 56% in 2000, now it is 126% & climbing fast." Musk didn't stop there, the SpaceX CEO doubled down on stance, saying that his "plan is to use the money to get humanity to Mars and preserve the light of consciousness."

Humans are constantly snapping images of Earth and the surrounding stars/galaxies, some even millions of light-years away from our planet,

It wasn't always that way, though, as there was a lack of technology/knowledge about how we can even take a picture of Earth and retrieve the image without it being destroyed. But that all changed on October 24, 1946, when a 35 mm motion-picture camera was loaded on the back of a Nazi V-2 ballistic missile and launched to an altitude of about 65 miles. The camera was programmed to take an image every 1.5 seconds, and the results created a milestone in space exploration, as researchers had successfully taken the first image of Earth from space.

At the time, the missiles had no way of slowing down upon re-entry, which meant that they hit the ground at more than 340 mph. The speed of the missile hitting the ground was devastating and provided problems for engineers about how they would be able to save the images that were taken. To get around this problem, the engineers encased the camera in a specialized steel case designed to protect it from the incredibly high-speed fall.

A research paper out of China has detailed an achievement in the quantum computing realm, as the paper states the researchers have created a quantum computer that puts Google's to shame.

The paper states that the Chinese research team has achieved a quantum computation advantage in two mainstream technical routes; superconducting quantum computing and photonics quantum computing. The Global Times reports that the team has designed a 66-qubit programmable superconducting quantum computing system. This system is named "Zuchongzhi".

Additionally, the report states China's new quantum system is reportedly 10 million times faster than the current fastest supercomputer. On top of being "10 million times faster than the current fastest supercomputer", the supercomputer's calculation complexity is more than 1 million times higher than Google's Sycamore processor, and if true, China has achieved a quantum advantage in a superconducting quantum computing system.

NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory has spotted evidence of a possible planet located in another galaxy - a first-of-its-kind discovery if proven true.

NASA has detailed the discovery of the evidence in a new report on its website where it states that the possible exoplanet is located in the spiral galaxy Messier 51, which is also referred to as the Whirlpool Galaxy. Exoplanets are planets located outside of our Solar System, and according to NASA, researchers have located "almost all of them less than about 3,000 light-years from Earth". The possible exoplanet located in the Whirlpool Galaxy is around 28 million light-years away from Earth.

The researchers discovered the evidence for the possible exoplanet using the transit method, which is an event that occurs when a planet passes in front of a star, causing observes to notice a significant drop in the star's light its producing. This method of exoplanet hunting is commonly used by astronomers in the optical light frequency, the frequency of light humans can see in. However, Rosanne Di Stefano of the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian (CfA) in Cambridge, Massachusetts, who led the study on the newly discovered evidence, used X-rays wavelengths, which aren't visible to the human eye.

NASA is planning on launching its first attempt at deflecting an asteroid of its course very soon, as the space agency has locked in the launch date.

The mission is called the Double Asteroid Redirection Test, or DART, and encompasses NASA launching a spacecraft directly towards an asteroid to attempt to knock it off course. It should be noted that the asteroid that NASA is targeting doesn't pose any threat to Earth, and is purely just to research purposes. The launch of DART marks humanity's first attempt at deflecting an asteroid, and is a demonstration of our capabilities to respond to a potentially dangerous asteroid if it's on course with Earth.

NASA is targeting a binary asteroid system called Didymos, which translates to "twin" in Greek. The system features two asteroids, one 2,559 foot-wide asteroid named Didymos and another 525 foot-wide asteroid called Dimorphos. Dimorphos being the smaller of the two orbits its larger partner and is essentially a moon to Didymos. NASA plans to impact Dimorphos, which will (hopefully) push the asteroid into a closer orbit of Didymos. The asteroid system is located 6.8 million miles away from Earth.

Officials that monitor the Sun have observed a large solar flare occur on Thursday, October 28, which may cause interference with radio and satellite communications.

The launched an X1-class solar flare, which is the most powerful category of flare, according to the US Space Weather Prediction Group. According to the group, the solar flare caused a coronal mass ejection that is headed directly towards Earth. Upon impact, the large amount of charged particles hitting Earth's magnetic field can cause wide-area radio communication blackouts for high-frequency signals for around an hour.

Here's what the US Space Weather Prediction Group wrote in an email, "Area of impact consists of large portions of the sunlit side of Earth, strongest at the sub-solar point." The coronal mass ejection shoots out charged particles at around 1 million mph or more and usually takes a few days before they reach Earth. Reports indicate that the charged particles from our local star are expected to reach Earth sometime on October 30 and may deliver a "glancing blow".

Over the weekend, the Western United States was battered by a bomb cyclone, and now reports indicate that the storm is far from being over.

According to AccuWeather, a record-setting bomb cyclone is currently moving east towards central and southern US states, where it may cause severe weather for approximately 30 million people. The warnings have come after more than a dozen tornadoes were reported across three central states as of Sunday night, with one of the hardest-hit areas being 80 miles south of St. Louis. Forecasters report that there is a risk the severe weather will trigger tornadoes that would bring winds speeds between 40 and 60 mph.

AccuWeather reports that 80 mph winds are expected through Thursday evening, and with these wind speeds, there is a considerable chance that damage can be caused to homes, roofs, mobile homes, and objects that aren't secured down. AccuWeather Meteorologist Joseph Bauer said, "From the last week of October into early November, there is a higher probability of severe weather in the eastern Red River Valley into the lower Mississippi Valley, which is roughly where damaging and dangerous storms erupted through early Wednesday."

In a new video posted to NASA's official YouTube channel, a NASA Mars technology expert has answered the following question, "How Did Perseverance Pick its Landing Spot?".

Choosing a landing location for NASA's newest Mars rover is a pivotal choice that had to be made by a selection of people that take into account all of the science goals that the rover is aiming to achieve. The primary goal for Perseverance is to locate evidence of ancient alien life being once present on the Red Planet and relay important data back to Earth about the planet's atmosphere and overall evolution. Taking all of these goals, and many more that aren't outlined here, into consideration, NASA experts selected the Jezero Crater as its landing location due to research at the time indicating that it was once an ancient lake (which was later confirmed).

While the approximate landing location was selected before Perseverance made its way down to the surface, the specific landing location wasn't, and this is where NASA experts took their hands off the wheel and let Perseverance make its own decision. According to NASA Mars Technologist Swati Mohan, Perseverance was equipped with a brand new technology called "Terrain Relative Navigation", which is essentially adding "eyes" to the rover so it could see all of the hazards on the surface as it was descending.

Late last year, researchers detected a strange radio signal coming from the direction of Earth's closest neighboring star, Proxima Centauri.

It was originally speculated that the signal's origins were coming from aliens on Proxima Centauri b, a potentially habitable exoplanet orbiting Proxima Centauri, but at the time, the signal had not undergone thorough analysis. Now, researchers have performed the analysis on the signal and discovered its true origins, which are quite underwhelming if you were hoping that it was aliens.

The signal was deemed a "signal of interest" and was also dubbed Breakthrough Listen Candidate 1 (BLC1). After conducting the analysis, the researchers concluded that the signal wasn't aliens attempting to communicate with Earth, but instead, it was two different Earth-bound transmitters mixing with each other. While the confirmation that the signal is "definitely not aliens", the researchers behind the analysis say that the detection of these signals represents that their instruments are working as intended, which is, at the very least, a reassurance.