Science

Three of the 2021 launches planned from Florida’s Space Coast will be NASA human spaceflight missions — two by SpaceX and one by Boeing. WASHINGTON — As many as 53 space missions are projected to lift off in 2021 from Florida’s Space Coast, the vice commander of the 45th Space Wing said Jan. 12. “We

Pulsar array: artist’s impression of how NANOGrav observes pulsars in an effort detect gravitational waves. (Courtesy: NANOGrav/T Klein) The observation of tiny deviations in the arrival times of radio pulses from neutron stars could be our first glimpse at gravitational waves from merging supermassive black holes – according to astronomers working on the NANOGrav pulsar

The NGA and NRO are stepping up research to better understand the emerging commercial geospatial intelligence market. WASHINGTON — The private sector is coming out with new geospatial intelligence products and services faster than the government can figure out how to buy them. That means analysts need ways to procure commercial geoint “at a moment’s

SAN FRANCISCO – Iceye is preparing to send three Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) satellites into orbit on the SpaceX Falcon 9 small satellite rideshare mission scheduled for launch Jan. 21. With the upcoming launch, Iceye seeks to expand its constellation to include six SAR satellites. “We are excited to start 2021 with the launch of

Entangled image: still from a 3D animation of a volume scan of a 900-micron thick structure, consisting of three layers of alumina ceramics. (Courtesy: Aron Vanselow and Sven Ramelow, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin) Entangled pairs of photons have been used by physicists in Germany and Austria to image structures beneath the surfaces of materials that scatter

SAN FRANCISCO – NOAA’s National Satellite, Data and Information Service is recommending flying three satellites over the United States in the satellite constellation that will follow the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite R Series (GOES-R). In addition, to operating satellites in orbits similar to those of the current GOES East and GOES West satellites, NOAA recommends

If you live in a part of the world with cold winters, you probably know the awful feeling that comes with an unexpectedly early frost or snow—one that covers your car in a layer of ice before you’ve pulled out your gloves and ice scraper for the season. The one that makes your fingers freeze

WASHINGTON — The head of Arianespace asked European governments to provide his company with more support in order to balance what he called government support of American competitors “with no precedent.” At a Jan. 7 press briefing, Stéphane Israël, chief executive of Arianespace, said the company completed 2020 with revenues of about one billion euros

Schematic structure of the tandem solar cell stack in 3D. Credit: Eike Koehnen/HZB Solar cells made from a combination of silicon and a complex perovskite have reached a new milestone for efficiency. The new tandem devices, made by Steve Albrecht and colleagues at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin, Germany, have a photovoltaic conversion efficiency (PCE) of 29.15%,

The European Space Agency (ESA) signed a nearly €296 million ($362 million) contract with Thales Alenia Space Jan. 7 to build a European module for NASA’s lunar Gateway space station. JOHANNESBURG — The European Space Agency (ESA) signed a nearly €296 million ($362 million) contract with Thales Alenia Space Jan. 7 to build a European

WASHINGTON — NASA has selected four small astrophysics missions for further study, although the agency cautions that not all may ultimately be flown. NASA announced Jan. 7 it selected three smallsat missions and one high-altitude balloon mission as the first in its new Astrophysics Pioneers program. The program, established last year, is intended to support

Stress and strain: artistic representation of the device used to stretch the diamond samples. In real life the clear pieces of diamond are about 5 micron tall. (Courtesy: City University of Hong Kong) Normally brittle diamond has been stretched by almost 10% by an international team of scientists in China. Modelling done by the team

WASHINGTON — The Federal Communications Commission will allow SpaceX to launch 10 Starlink satellites into polar orbit on an upcoming mission, but deferred a decision on a much broader modification of SpaceX’s license. In an order published Jan. 8, the FCC granted SpaceX permission to launch 10 Starlink satellites into a 560-kilometer orbit with an

WASHINGTON — The outgoing director general of the European Space agency announced Jan. 8 that he will step down at the end of February, four months ahead of schedule. In a blog post, Jan Wörner announced that, after consultation with the chair of the ESA Council, Anna Rathsman, he will resign at the end of

Cool running: the new blue material absorbs sweat six times faster and holds 15 times more moisture than conventional materials, and it turns pink when saturated. (Courtesy: National University of Singapore) If you have resolved to get more exercise in 2021, researchers in Singapore have just the fabric for you. They have invented a new

Chief of Space Operations Gen. John Raymond announced the service has stood up the U.S. Space Force Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Enterprise to support the intelligence community. WASHINGTON— The U.S. Space Force on Jan. 8 officially became the 18th member of the U.S. intelligence community. The addition of the Space Force to the intelligence community

WASHINGTON — A SpaceX Falcon 9 launched a Turkish communications satellite Jan. 7 to start what may be the busiest year yet for the launch company. The Falcon 9 lifted off from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 9:15 p.m. Eastern, more than 45 minutes into a four-hour launch window.

Quantum light: a 2000::km fibre optic network enables quantum key cryptography between four cities in China. (Courtesy: iStock/MorePixels) A network for quantum key distribution (QKD) spanning thousands of kilometres has been built in China. It links four quantum metropolitan area networks (QMANs) in cities in eastern China with a remote location in the far west