Science

TAMPA, Fla. — Uncrewed rather than crewed spacecraft will be key to realizing an emerging in-orbit manufacturing industry, according to a European venture that has tasked Thales Alenia Space to develop a vehicle called REV1 for missions starting in late 2025. Thales Alenia Space signed a first phase contract for the REV1 reusable and pressurized

U.S. expansion into the high frontier of space has proven to be critically important to global security and economic growth. Commercial space assets are an essential element of U.S. national defense plans and operations and serve as an economic growth multiplier through communications, position knowledge, Earth observation, and combinations of those capabilities as an enhancement

Advanced computation: Artificial intelligence techniques such as deep learning and machine learning could enhance many areas of medicine. (Courtesy: iStock/metamorworks) From developing advanced machine-learning algorithms to building devices that will improve access to effective treatments for patients across the world, researchers working in medical physics, biotechnology and the many related fields continue to apply scientific

SAN FRANCISCO – Canadian startup Magnestar is establishing a platform to predict radio frequency interference among satellite operators. “By mapping and monitoring all communication pathways between Earth and space, we predict when points of interference will occur for multiple operators, giving them time to reroute their signals or take other measures to maintain consistent operations

Schrödinger and snowflakes: Celebrating all things quantum. (Courtesy: Shutterstock/sakkmesterke) Quantum physicists celebrated in October when the Nobel committee awarded a long-awaited physics prize to Alain Aspect, John Clauser and Anton Zeilinger for their pioneering research on quantum entanglement. But the community certainly hasn’t been resting on its laurels, and with so many other exciting developments

SAN FRANCISCO – Northrop Grumman has completed ground-based tests to demonstrate critical technology required for a 2025 demonstration of space-based solar power. “As far as the technologies go, we’re very confident in our design and we’ve proven it out,” Tara Theret, Northrop Grumman’s Space Solar Power Incremental Demonstrations and Research (SSPIDR) program director, told SpaceNews.

TAMPA, Fla. — French satellite operator Eutelsat said Dec. 22 it stands to lose up to 15 million euros ($16 million) in annual revenues from restricting broadcasts in Russia and Iran to comply with sanctions. The amount represents 2.2% of the broadcast revenues Eutelsat reported for its previous fiscal year to the end of June

It might seem right to rename scientific principles that honour physicists who have done bad things. But doing so raises ethical questions, says Robert P Crease Human impact Like the main protagonist in the movie Tár, there are physicists who have soared and fallen – but should we cut their names from history? (Courtesy: LANDMARK

More than 50 people are recognized by the Federal Aviation Administration for traveling to space and back on commercially licensed vehicles, and forecasts indicate the list will continue to grow. Remarkably, the United States lacks continuous oversight throughout commercial human spaceflight. To ensure the safety of spaceflight travelers from launch to landing, the United States

Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine was the biggest story of 2022. Aside from reviving Cold War fears of nuclear war and playing havoc with energy markets, it’s been a black swan event for a space industry still adjusting to a black swan called COVID. Russia’s flouting of international order set in motion a realignment with

A year after its launch, astronomers are revealing the secrets of the universe, as the first scientific results from observations made by the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) are released. This month, Physics World is publishing a series of blog posts on the discoveries. This is the fourth post in the series – you can read the previous

Ukraine and Elon Musk weren’t the only big stories of 2022. These seven commanded our attention with actions that will reverberate well into 2023. JWST AND SLS Credit: SpaceNews illustration by B. Berger For most of the last decade, the James Webb Space Telescope and the Space Launch System were albatrosses around the neck of

The 2023 omnibus spending package includes $26.3 billion for the U.S. Space Force WASHINGTON — Congress in a massive $1.7 trillion government funding bill on Dec. 23 approved $797.7 billion for the Defense Department, or $69.3 billion more than DoD got in 2022.  The consolidated funding bill funds the U.S. government for the remainder of

A large room-temperature TMR of 85% was obtained in all-vdW Fe3GaTe2/WSe2/Fe3GaTe2 MTJs. (Courtesy: K Wang) Magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJs), which consist of two ferromagnets separated by a non-magnetic barrier material, are found in a host of technologies, including magnetic random-access memories in computer hard disk drives as well as magnetic sensors, logic devices and electrodes

The quadrennial wait for updating global spectrum rules stands in stark contrast to the rapid pace of change now sweeping through space and terrestrial communications. Satellite and ground-based networks are fast converging to unprecedented levels, underlined by the emergence of direct-to-smartphone capabilities. This integration promises new business opportunities but also creates interference and other challenges

WASHINGTON — The Senate passed legislation that would direct NASA to establish a program to remove orbital debris, but supporters of the bill will likely have to try again in the next Congress to enact it. The Senate passed by unanimous consent late Dec. 21 the Orbital Sustainability, or ORBITS, Act. The bill was introduced

Access all areas A new study calls for more proactive inclusion efforts within science. (Courtesy: iStock/Wavebreakmedia) Disabilities are created not only by an individual’s circumstances, but also by systems and social processes designed without them in mind. That is according to a new study that calls for more proactive inclusion efforts within science, technology, engineering,

WASHINGTON — As astronauts completed a delayed spacewalk outside the International Space Station, NASA and Roscosmos officials said they are continuing to study whether a Soyuz spacecraft that suffered a coolant leak can safely return its crew home. NASA astronauts Josh Cassada and Frank Rubio successfully completed a spacewalk Dec. 22 lasting seven hours and