Science

National Guard units have expertise in space operations such as strategic missile warning, space situational awareness and space control WASHINGTON — Reps. Doug Lamborn (R) and Jason Crow (D), both from Colorado, announced Aug. 30 they are introducing legislation to establish a Space National Guard as a reserve component of the U.S. Space Force.  Lamborn

Clinton Crosier, a retired U.S. Air Force major general who helped organize the standup of the U.S. Space Force, recently celebrated his anniversary of joining cloud giant AWS to lead its newly created Aerospace and Satellite business team. SpaceNews caught up with Crosier at the Space Symposium in Colorado to learn more about AWS’ plans

Taken from the August 2021 issue of Physics World where it first appeared under the headline “The cosmos in 30 questions”. Members of the Institute of Physics can enjoy the full issue via the Physics World app. Laura Hiscott reviews What’s Eating the Universe and Other Cosmic Questions by Paul Davies (Courtesy: NASA/JPL-Caltech and Planck US

The completion of the environmental review does not guarantee the FAA will issue a launch license to Virgin Orbit WASHINGTON — Virgin Orbit is one step closer to getting approval to launch satellites from Guam, a U.S. island territory in the Western Pacific.  The Federal Aviation Administration on Aug. 27 released its final environmental assessment

WASHINGTON — SpaceX performed its first Falcon 9 launch in two months Aug. 29, sending a cargo Dragon spacecraft to the International Space Station. The Falcon 9 lifted off from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center at 3:14 a.m. Eastern after a one-day delay because of weather. The Dragon spacecraft separated from the

Updated 8:40 p.m. Eastern with comments from media call. WASHINGTON — Astra’s third attempt to reach orbit failed Aug. 28 when its Rocket 3.3 vehicle struggled to get off the launch pad because of an engine shutdown and eventually failed in flight. The small launch vehicle, designated LV0006 by Astra, ignited its five first-stage engines

COLORADO SPRINGS — Defense Department satellite programs are feeling the effects of the widespread microchip shortage that has stymied carmakers and consumer electronic manufacturers. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency is hoping to launch as many as 12 satellites into low Earth orbit next year for the Blackjack program, but supply shortages are creating schedule

Taken from the August 2021 issue of Physics World where it first appeared under the headline “History made tangible”. Members of the Institute of Physics can enjoy the full issue via the Physics World app. Laura Hiscott reviews Sir James Jeans: Scientist, Philosopher and Musician  by Christopher Jeans and Alexandr Kozenko (Courtesy: AIP Emilio Segrè

HELSINKI — The National Natural Science Foundation of China has outlined a five-year project for researchers to study the assembly of ultra-large spacecraft. Scientists are being directed to meet the “urgent need” for the construction of ultra-large spacecraft. Preliminary research is to include studying the challenges of developing lightweight structures and subsequent on-orbit assembly and

COLORADO SPRINGS — Currently more known for the high-resolution cameras it builds than for spacecraft, Dragonfly Aerospace’s plan to move into microsatellite manufacturing got a major boost in April when it was sold to serial entrepreneur Max Polyakov.  The deal helps fund the development of satellite buses and upgrade Dragonfly Aerospace facility in South Africa,

Expecting to fly: Koji Murata showing a metal-framed wood panel that will be sent to the Kibō platform in late 2021. (Courtesy: Kyoto University) Wood is an amazing material. It can be strong, flexible or lightweight – and sometimes all of the above depending upon the tree. Wood can be used on its own, or

COLORADO SPRINGS — Amazon is urging the Federal Communications Commission to dismiss SpaceX’s revised plans for its second-generation Starlink constellation, saying they are too broad and speculative. SpaceX proposed two potential configurations for nearly 30,000 follow-on satellites Aug. 18, which Amazon said breaks FCC rules that require details of a proposed amendment to be settled

COLORADO SPRINGS — Shares in small launch vehicle and spacecraft developer Rocket Lab dropped in their first day of trading Aug. 25, but the company’s chief executive says it remains focused on its long-term plans enabled by going public. Rocket Lab made its debut on the Nasdaq exchange Aug. 25 after completing its merger with

Distance matters: a new study recommends that devices such as mobile phones should be kept at least 15 cm from implanted pacemakers and defibrillators. (Courtesy: iStock/grinvalds) Modern consumer electronics can produce magnetic fields strong enough to interfere with implanted medical devices, but the effect only poses a low risk to patients. That is the conclusion

COLORADO SPRINGS — Intelsat has amended its restructuring plan to exit Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection later this year, securing the support of holders of nearly 75% of its debt.  Similar to the plan the satellite operator announced Feb. 12, the restructuring would slash its debt by more than half from nearly $15 billion to $7

COLORADO SPRINGS – Phase Four plans to fuel its Maxwell engine with a green propellant developed by the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory, under a contract the Southern California startup won Aug. 18 at the U.S. Space Force’s first SpaceWERX Pitch Day. By fueling Maxwell engines with the green propellant, called Advanced Spacecraft Energetic Non-Toxic

Tough times: researchers are less productive when they have children, a survey suggests, but women find the going tougher as they generally do more childcare than male parents (Courtesy: istock/Steve Debenport) Academics with children become less productive and do work of lower impact as their childcare responsibilities increase. That’s the finding of a survey of