WASHINGTON — Several NASA astrophysics missions in various stages of development are likely facing delays because of the coronavirus pandemic, an agency official said. At a Sept. 21 meeting of the Astronomy and Astrophysics Advisory Committee, Paul Hertz, director of NASA’s astrophysics division, said the agency anticipated a number of missions, big and small, will
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By: Hannah Pell On September 20th, 2019 — one year ago today as I write this — the infamous Three Mile Island (TMI) nuclear power plant was permanently shut down. TMI Unit-2 has been shuttered since the partial meltdown in 1979, an event described as the “most serious accident in U.S. commercial nuclear power plant
This week’s podcast focuses on Peer Review Week, an annual event honouring the vital role that peer review plays in maintaining the quality of published scientific papers. But while peer review is important, it’s certainly not perfect. The quality of reviews is not always up to scratch – as the darkly comic website Shit My Reviewers
WASHINGTON — NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine urged Senate appropriators to provide full funding of Artemis as some members questioned the agency’s emphasis on its lunar exploration program. Bridenstine, testifying before the commerce, justice and science subcommittee of the Senate Appropriations Committee Sept. 23, said that NASA needed the full $3.2 billion it requested in its
According to folklore, earwigs like to crawl through the ears of sleeping humans, burrow into their brains, and lay eggs. Perhaps for this reason, or maybe because of their large rear-end pinchers, these insects tend to fall in the “creepy” category. Don’t be fooled through, earwigs are more sophisticated than they look: they’re record-holders in
WASHINGTON — The International Space Station maneuvered to avoid a potential collision with a piece of space debris Sept. 22, an incident the head of NASA used to advocate for more funding for the agency directed to handle space traffic management. NASA announced on the afternoon of Sept. 22 that it was working with U.S.
The news last week that scientists had spotted a potential signature of life in the clouds of Venus was always likely to cause a stir. But arriving the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic – during which our everyday lives have changed significantly – the story has truly captured the public imagination. In the latest episode
WASHINGTON — Commercial spaceflight company Blue Origin is considering development of commercial space stations, with NASA as a potential early customer. Blue Origin posted a job opening Sept. 18 for am “Orbital Habitat Formulation Lead” at its headquarters in the Seattle suburb of Kent, Washington. That individual will be charged with leading the company’s development
SAN FRANCISCO – Radar satellite operator Iceye raised $87 million in a Series C round announced Sept. 22, boosting the Finnish startup’s total investment tally to $152 million. “We’re grateful to have closed a great round,” Mark Matossian, Iceye US CEO, told SpaceNews. “Now, we can stand on the accelerator.” With the Series C round
Nanotweezers: A laser, an AC electric field and an array of gold ” make up the new device. justus> Nanotweezers: A laser, an AC electric field and an array of gold “nanoholes” make up the new device. (Courtesy: Justus Ndukaife) A new type of optical tweezer can trap and manipulate objects smaller than 10 nm
The contract is to upgrade and expand the Ground-based Electro-Optical Deep Space Surveillance System that track objects in geostationary orbits. WASHINGTON — L3Harris Technologies received a $119.1 million contract to upgrade and expand the network of U.S. military telescopes known as the Ground-based Electro-Optical Deep Space Surveillance System that track objects in geostationary orbits. The
WASHINGTON — NASA’s inspector general warned in a recent report that the agency’s planetary science division was taking “undue risk” in its current approach to a commercial lunar transportation program. The Office of Inspector General (OIG), in an audit of the agency’s planetary science division released Sept. 16, highlighted several issues with the Commercial Lunar
The newly formed CRRG will bring together physicists, engineers, and other medical and biological experts to collaborate on COVID-19 research. (Courtesy: iStock/RomoloTavani) Physics has an important role to play in tackling the COVID-19 pandemic. Many physicists are already contributing to COVID-related research, in areas including computational modelling, medical imaging and development of protective and therapeutic
“China’s Space Narrative” was released Sept. 17 by the U.S. Air Force Air University’s China Aerospace Studies Institute and the CNA nonprofit research center. WASHINGTON — A new study by the U.S. Air Force’s university think tank confirms the widely held view that China’s anti-satellite weapons pose a national security threat to the United States.
WASHINGTON — The NASA directorate responsible for human spaceflight efforts has completed a long-anticipated internal reorganization intended to better align activities ranging from the International Space Station to Artemis. At a Sept. 16 Washington Space Business Roundtable webinar, Kathy Lueders, who took over as NASA associate administrator for human exploration and operations three months ago,
Toe curling: the toe spring makes it easier to step, but could also be damaging feet. (Courtesy: Harvard University) Most conventional running shoes have a “toe spring” – a gentle upward curve of the sole towards the tip of the shoe. While this makes stepping more comfortable and easier, Harvard University’s Daniel Lieberman, Oliver Hansen
New Space has for the last decade challenged the established design rules for spacecraft, and proved that is it possible to design and launch small spacecrafts at a fraction of the cost of traditional designs. OneWeb being one of the pioneers challenging the established supplier base using new thinking to drive down the cost and
WASHINGTON — A smallsat mission to study the atmosphere of Mars is looking for a new ride after being removed as a secondary payload on the launch of a NASA asteroid mission. The Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers, or EscaPADE, mission, was one of three smallsat missions selected by NASA in 2019 for