HELSINKI — China’s second Long March 8 rocket launched late Saturday carrying a domestic record 22 satellites for a range of commercial Chinese space companies. The Long March 8 lifted off from Wenchang Satellite Launch Center at 10:06 p.m. Eastern Feb. 26, with the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) later confirming launch success.
Science
WASHINGTON — Roscosmos announced Feb. 26 that it is halting cooperation with Europe on Soyuz launches from French Guiana and withdrawing its personnel from the launch site in response to European sanctions for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. “In response to EU sanctions against our enterprises, Roscosmos is suspending cooperation with European partners in organizing space
Shining a light on the coronavirus: A test based on changes in the fluorescence of nanodiamonds in a microfluidic channel could be used to indicate the presence of the virus that causes COVID-19. (Courtesy: Changhao Li, Paola Cappellaro, et. al) A quantum sensor based on nitrogen-vacancy centres in diamond could be used to detect viruses
SAN FRANCISCO – Space-as-a-service startup Xplore has brought in $16.2 million to date including venture capital funding and contracts, the company announced Feb. 24. “Xplore’s funding is being used to support the aggressive growth of our team and enable us to meet our development milestones,” Lisa Rich, Xplore co-founder and chief operating officer, told SpaceNews by
SAN FRANCISCO – While Russia’s invasion of Ukraine could have important space policy ramifications for the United States, the impact is not likely to be as significant as shifts that have already occurred in the wake Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea. “What we’ve seen over the intervening eight years is a greater separation of Russia
NASA maintained that it was continuing to work with all international partners, including the Russian Space Agency, Roscosmos, for the “ongoing safe operations” of the International Space Station (Courtesy: NASA). Over 650 Russian scientists and science journalists have signed an open letter calling Russia’s war against Ukraine “unfair and senseless” and stating that there is
WASHINGTON — SpaceX launched another set of Starlink satellites Feb. 25 as the company argues its satellite constellation is consistent with the safe and sustainable use of low Earth orbit. A Falcon 9 lifted off at 12:12 p.m. Eastern from Space Launch Complex 4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. The rocket deployed its
SAN FRANCISCO – Capacity is the biggest constraint for Orbital Sidekick, the hyperspectral imaging startup that is acquiring data from Aurora, its first satellite launched in June. “There’s huge demand for dual-use satellite technology,” Daniel Katz, Orbital Sidekick CEO and co-founder told SpaceNews. “We are working to ramp up production and get hyperspectral data into
In this episode of the Physics World Weekly podcast, we speak to Mirella Koleva and Gaby Slavcheva, who are the co-founders of the UK-based company Quantopticon. The firm develops software for simulating quantum photonics devices and Koleva and Slavcheva explain why there is a need to understand the fundamental physics behind the devices that underpin
WASHINGTON — AE Industrial Partners is buying the part of Firefly Aerospace currently owned by Noosphere Venture Partners, which previously announced it was being forced by the federal government to sell its stake in the launch vehicle developer. The companies announced Feb. 24 that AE Industrial Partners (AEI) was taking a “significant stake” in Firefly
WASHINGTON — NASA’s plans to shift from the International Space Station to commercial space stations may force one key partner to rethink how it cooperates in low Earth orbit. Speaking at a panel on space diplomacy organized by George Washington University’s Space Policy Institute Feb. 23, Sylvie Espinasse, head of the European Space Agency’s Washington
Taken from the February 2022 issue of Physics World, where it appeared under the headline “Physics on the cheap”. Members of the Institute of Physics can enjoy the full issue via the Physics World app. The simplest questions are often the best. Robert P Crease tries to answer one from a physics student in Kenya
Scolese said both government and commercial satellites systems are potential targets CHANTILLY, Va. — As the Ukraine crisis escalates, the director of the National Reconnaissance Office Christopher Scolese warned that satellites in space could be targeted by Russia’s military in an effort to disrupt communications and GPS services. “I think we’re seeing pretty clearly that
WASHINGTON — Virgin Galactic executives said Feb. 22 that they remain on schedule to begin commercial human suborbital missions before the end of the year but acknowledged it will take several years for the company to become profitable. In an earnings call after the release of Virgin Galactic’s fourth quarter and fiscal year 2021 financial
Going faster: In the race for computational advantage, classical machines are less far behind than previously thought. (Courtesy: istock/UroshPetrovic) For quantum computers to be considered viable, they need to successfully and verifiably perform tasks that are hard to reproduce on any classical computer – a situation known as “quantum advantage”. As both quantum computers and
Joint statement: ‘Militaries have an important role in contributing to international efforts to ensure freedom of access to and use of space’ WASHINGTON — The Defense Department announced Feb. 22 that the United States, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom have signed a joint vision document that calls for greater cooperation
WASHINGTON — SpaceX launched a set of Starlink satellites Feb. 21 after more than three-fourths of the satellites from the previous launch were lost because of a solar storm. A Falcon 9 lifted off from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida at 9:44 a.m. Eastern after a one-day delay
Current connection: Schematic diagram of the ion-wire-ion system. Two ions are trapped at either end of an electrically floating wire that is at room temperature. (Courtesy: Da An) Scientists at the University of California, Berkeley have persuaded two trapped ions to interact over a distance of 620 µm – much larger than would be possible