Science

WASHINGTON — Firefly Aerospace said Sept. 5 its first Alpha rocket failed when one of its first-stage engines shut down seconds after liftoff. Firefly posted a video of the Sept. 2 launch from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, which ended when the rocket tumbled out of control about two and a half minutes after

The program office for the Electro-Optical Infrared Weather System extended the competition to spring 2022, said Col. Brian Denaro, program executive officer at the Space Systems Command WASHINGTON — The U.S. Space Force was expected this year to choose which vendors will build next-generation weather satellites for the Defense Department. But the competition is being

Top of the world: a mountain near the town of Lenghu in Qinghai Province has ideal conditions as an astronomy hub (courtesy: Licai Deng) Astronomers in China have found that the Tibetan Plateau offers conditions that make it ideal for future gigantic optical-based telescopes. The researchers report that a mountain near the town of Lenghu

LOMPOC, Calif. — Space technology company Redwire announced Sept. 2 that it closed its merger with a special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC), taking the company public and providing it with capital for future acquisitions. Shareholders of Genesis Park Acquisition Corporation voted Sept. 1 to approve the merger with Redwire, with 97% of votes, representing 73% of

LOMPOC, Calif. — Rocket Lab announced Sept. 1 that it is expanding production of satellite components to meet demand from companies developing satellite constellations. The company said it is increasing production of reaction wheels, components used for attitude control of spacecraft. The company started offering those components after acquiring Sinclair Interplanetary, a smallsat component manufacturer,

Long distance: a study of the front crawl suggests that long-distance swimmers could benefit from using a different hand technique than short-distance swimmers. (Courtesy: iStock/mihailomilovanovic) The Paralympic Games in Tokyo will be wrapping up this weekend and to honour the hosts, this edition of the Red Folder is focussing on Japan. World-class swimmers must work

How satellites are stitched together needs to be at the forefront of SDA’s Transport Layer discussion The Defense Department’s Space Development Agency just issued a request for support to build 144 spacecraft. The agency’s Tranche 1 Transport Layer is expected to be one of the most complex networks the U.S. government has ever deployed in

LOMPOC, Calif. — The Federal Aviation Administration will not allow Virgin Galactic to resume flights of its SpaceShipTwo suborbital spaceplane until it completes an investigation into a problem on the vehicle’s previous flight in July. In a Sept. 2 statement, the FAA said it is overseeing a Virgin Galactic mishap investigation into the July 11

Prize winner: Session chair Anna Kirby presents Brita Singers Sørensen with the Donal Hollywood Award. (Courtesy: ESTRO) The annual congress of the European Society for Radiation Oncology (ESTRO) sees physicists, clinicians, radiobiologists and radiation therapists come together to share their latest research developments, technical innovations and clinical studies. The best abstract submitted each year, selected

VANDENBERG SPACE FORCE BASE, Calif. — Firefly Aerospace’s first launch of its Alpha rocket ended in failure when the rocket exploded two minutes after liftoff Sept. 2 The Alpha rocket lifted off from Space Launch Complex 2 here at 9:59 p.m. Eastern. A first launch attempt at 9 p.m. Eastern was aborted in the final

The visibility and attention space missions often get work to the industry’s advantage, from helping to attract top engineering talent to top investment dollars. But it also comes with heightened scrutiny that risks tripping up young space companies rushing to the commercial market. The industry is “highly dependent on customer sentiment and regulatory potential impacts,”

While many activities here on Earth have slowed down or been put on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic, that has not stopped China – and other countries – from forging ahead in space. China has managed several firsts this year, notably landing its first rover on Mars, starting construction of a fully-fledged space station,

HASC approved a proposal by Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Ala.) to add $23.9 billion to the Pentagon’s $715 billion budget request for fiscal year 2022 WASHINGTON —  The House Armed Services Committee in its version of the 2022 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) passed several provisions on national security space policy and DoD procurement of space

Small satellite propulsion has a critical role to play in keeping space sustainable. While in-orbit debris cleaners and other emerging capabilities capture imaginations, thrusters underpin a healthy operating environment in space. Onboard thrusters can help ensure a satellite safely reaches its assigned orbit, moves out of harm’s way, relocates as market and mission requirements warrant,

Open-source software has been critical to the famous image of a black hole – but also for many other areas of physics besides Picture of success: The importance of open-source software to physics Twenty-three thousand. That’s roughly how many people helped create the first ever image of a black hole, taken by the Event Horizon

WASHINGTON — NASA currently has no plans to trade any of its Apollo-era lunar samples with those returned by China’s Chang’e-5 mission, although then agency’s chief scientist held out hope for such an exchange in the future. Speaking at the annual meeting of the Lunar Exploration Analysis Group Aug. 31, Jim Green said that the

COLORADO SPRINGS — Leaders of national space agencies agree that space traffic management (STM) should be a priority but have differing views on who should be responsible for it. During a panel discussion at the 36th Space Symposium Aug. 25, the heads of space agencies in Europe and North America emphasized the importance of space

Follow the eyes: By identifying the patient’s eye corners, the VR system can utilize gaze tracking information to trigger interactions in the virtual world. (Courtesy: CC BY 4.0/Sci. Rep. 10.1038/s41598-021-95634-y) The gaze tracking system acts as the crux of the VR system, as it allows immersive control of the environment without bodily movement. First, the