Author Topic: Deep Space and Interplanetary Exploration - Houston, we are go for launch!  (Read 117448 times)

Daryk

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Just glad to be contributing where I can!  :thumbsup:

rebs

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Any skygazers here?  Right now is the perfect time to see Jupiter and its moons.  The great jovian planet is at opposition at the moment, so break out those small telescopes.  Even a good set of binoculars.

Saturn is also in good viewing recently.

It was also a good time to see Mecury at dusk.  It's low to the horizon, but not always visible.

https://www.seattletimes.com/life/outdoors/how-you-may-see-jupiter-and-her-moons-tonight/?amp=1
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rebs

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JAXA has announced a bold mission to Mars' moon, Phobos.  There they will land a probe that will take a roughly 10 ounce sample, then lift off and return to Earth.  Launch date will be 2024, and the return journey will arrive home in 2029.

Read more about it here:

https://phys.org/news/2021-08-japan-aims-soil-samples-mars.amp
« Last Edit: 19 August 2021, 22:51:23 by rebs »
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rebs

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I'm very proud to post this next one...

The James Webb Space Telescope will be launched in November of this year!  Its upper stage is being transported to the launch site as we speak.

Read more here...

https://www.universetoday.com/152263/james-webbs-upper-stage-is-off-to-the-launch-site/amp/
« Last Edit: 21 August 2021, 21:23:14 by rebs »
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Daryk

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Good news is always welcome!  :thumbsup:

kato

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JAXA has announced a bold mission to Mars' moon, Phobos.  There they will land a probe that will take a roughly 10 ounce sample, then lift off and return to Earth.  Launch date will be 2024, and the return journey will arrive home in 2029.

Read more about it here:

https://phys.org/news/2021-08-japan-aims-soil-samples-mars.amp
The Phobos mission (MMX) has been in plans for a couple years - even the english Twitter account for the mission was opened in 2017  ;) .

The 2024 launch date was announced early last year. Unlike what the article states it doesn't have anything to do with US or Chinese Mars sample-return missions, but is standalone and considered an extension of the Hayabusa programme. DLR and CNES will provide a rover for the mission again, like with the last Hayabusa mission (signed at Paris Air Show 2019).

Advertising video for MMX published three days ago:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yiS6NdpEL2A

Rover simulation published last year:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiZn3VID8_I

The Spacecraft is basically designed to be a slightly enlarged (double-weight) Hayabusa with all functions shifted to the sides of the cube in order to accomodate docking hardpoints for a lightweight landing gear sub-module on the ventral position and a pretty hefty propulsion module for the travel to Mars in the dorsal position.


Sabelkatten

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This is an interesting way to save some weight: https://www.universetoday.com/152221/musk-confirms-how-mechazilla-will-catch-and-assemble-starship-and-super-heavy-for-rapid-reuse/amp/
Well... I'll believe it when I see it working. It feels way too optimistic. :-\

rebs

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Well... I'll believe it when I see it working. It feels way too optimistic. :-\

That's how my inner anxiety expresses itself about the JWST.  I hope November sees it launched fina)y, so I understand.  The commercial space flight titans promise much but we have to wait for a while if we're going to see it delivered.
« Last Edit: 22 August 2021, 12:02:07 by rebs »
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ANS Kamas P81

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I admit it'll probably take a lot longer to achieve that technology than Musk would prefer, but I gotta say...could someone in the Wright Brothers time have foreseen the commercialized, rapid-turnaround air travel industry we now have today?  It'd be pie in the sky unachievable dreams...yet here it's second nature for us.  Maybe in 50-60 years we'll be at that same point.  Too late for us...but isn't that why we have kids? 

Five bucks says the Japanese look at this and take a long, hard look at their moving Gundam statue...

rebs

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With mini nukes, like Liberty Prime in Fallout III...
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Daryk

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I admit it'll probably take a lot longer to achieve that technology than Musk would prefer, but I gotta say...could someone in the Wright Brothers time have foreseen the commercialized, rapid-turnaround air travel industry we now have today?  It'd be pie in the sky unachievable dreams...yet here it's second nature for us.  Maybe in 50-60 years we'll be at that same point.  Too late for us...but isn't that why we have kids? 

Five bucks says the Japanese look at this and take a long, hard look at their moving Gundam statue...

Well, the original Flash Gordon exists, so...  ::)

rebs

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Here's an article about the 5 most impressive geological formations in our Solar System.

My favorite has always been Caloris on Mercury, but Valles Marinaris is also pretty cool.   8)

https://theconversation.com/amp/the-five-most-impressive-geological-structures-in-the-solar-system-166046
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"Thou shalt not create a machine in the image of the human mind." ~ The Orange Catholic Bible, Dune, Frank Herbert

Daryk

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Nice find!  It reminds of Wanderers (which I've posted before, but I don't think it hurts to do so again): https://erikwernquist.com/wanderers

Oh, and the maker's site has a bunch more short films on it now!  I know what I'll be doing this afternoon... :)

kato

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I would nominate Iapetus in general for most impressive geological formations.

Not only is it black on one side and white on the other, it also features an equatorial ridge - on the black side - with some of the tallest mountains - and some of the largest landslides - in the solar system making it visibly walnut-shaped even from a distance and has the largest known impact crater in the outer solar system. And apparently due to its inclination Iapetus is the place to be among Saturn's larger moons if you want to have a good look at the rings.

kato

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While i'm out there at the gas giants:

ESA's JUICE mission just entered its final assembly stage last week after the spacecraft was flown over to Toulouse - it is planned to launch from Kourou in about 9 months. If NASA gets Europa Clipper up there in time in '24 both probes will be present in the Jupiter system at the same time between 2030 and 2034. While Europa Clipper will remain in Jupiter orbit JUICE will transfer into an orbit around Ganymede in 2032.

Both spacecraft look virtually the same in general configuration btw, although ESA chose a somewhat different solar panel layout, and both will also carry a functionally rather similar instrument layout to the extent where e.g. the UV spectrometer is basically the same instrument from the same institute; for differences e.g. the ice-penetrating radar on JUICE is only HF vs HF+VHF, but it also carries a laser altimeter for surface topography.

Also, for news in that regard, Hubble apparently found water vapour at JUICE's target Ganymede last month. Unlike Europa it's not plumes but instead sublimation in warm regions of the moon.

Daryk

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Heh...

"Water, water, everywhere,
Nor any drop to drink."

-Coleridge

rebs

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Glad to hear the JUICE mission is nearing completion!  And Europa Clipper, too.
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rebs

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I would nominate Iapetus in general for most impressive geological formations.

Not only is it black on one side and white on the other, it also features an equatorial ridge - on the black side - with some of the tallest mountains - and some of the largest landslides - in the solar system making it visibly walnut-shaped even from a distance and has the largest known impact crater in the outer solar system. And apparently due to its inclination Iapetus is the place to be among Saturn's larger moons if you want to have a good look at the rings.

That is a good choice.   :thumbsup:

In the outer Solar System I choose the great webbed-spidered crater Valhalla on Calisto.  It's such an impressive impact site.   

I'm thinking the view on Calisto is pretty amazing, though it's not Saturn you'd be seeing all the time.  You would also take less rads than standing on the surface of the Earth.

Your feet will get cold as hell.   ;D
« Last Edit: 23 August 2021, 22:09:08 by rebs »
Playing Guitar On My YouTube Channel:
Current cover tune: "The Wind Cries Mary" (by Jimi Hendrix)
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"Thou shalt not create a machine in the image of the human mind." ~ The Orange Catholic Bible, Dune, Frank Herbert

ANS Kamas P81

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Can't remember which one or where for the life of me, but there's a moon out there that has a fairly high ridge running completely around its equator, as if two small moons slowly melted together into a ball shape.  I feel bad for forgetting...

the largest known impact crater in the outer solar system
Even bigger than Mimas's Death Star Laser?

kato

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Can't remember which one or where for the life of me, but there's a moon out there that has a fairly high ridge running completely around its equator, as if two small moons slowly melted together into a ball shape. 
That's Iapetus.



Even bigger than Mimas's Death Star Laser?
Herschel (that prominent crater on Mimas) is only 130 km diameter and hence fairly small as craters go. It only looks big because Mimas is so small.  >:D

Turgis on Iapetus is 580 km in diameter, and there's a couple more around 400-500 km there. In the outer system only Sputnik Planitia on Pluto is bigger (but not really confirmed as an impact crater), in the inner system due to the LHB there's far bigger craters on Mars, Luna and Mercury.

ANS Kamas P81

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Bigger by proportion then, though I suppose little Mimas is still a favorite for its shape.

And, okay, so I was right, it was Iapetus after all.  Thanks!

Kit deSummersville

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That's no moon....
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rebs

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Funny thing is you can look at a picture of Tethys and crater Odysseus and it is not easy to tell the difference.
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Wrangler

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******/******/comments/pbhoat/series_of_images_on_the_surface_of_a_comet/[/url]

This looks like it's snowing!

Originally posted on Reddit

EDIT: what is wrong with url....
« Last Edit: 25 August 2021, 21:09:03 by Wrangler »
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rebs

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China is launching a five year study on the issues associated with assembling kilometer sized ultra-large spacecraft, calling it an "urgent need". 

Details are in the following link...

https://spacenews.com/china-researching-challenges-of-kilometer-scale-ultra-large-spacecraft/
« Last Edit: 27 August 2021, 11:47:08 by rebs »
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"Thou shalt not create a machine in the image of the human mind." ~ The Orange Catholic Bible, Dune, Frank Herbert

Sabelkatten

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Asteroid mining seems to get more important... Paying $100,000 for a ton of steel doesn't seem so bad if it saves you $1,000,000 in launch costs.

Daryk

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The trick will be doing the mixing to get the alloys right.

rebs

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Meaning refining and floating out ingots. 

New orbital facilities make me happy.   :thumbsup:
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Sabelkatten

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The trick will be doing the mixing to get the alloys right.
Oh yes. And we don't even know how to purify the elements to start with.

But if anyone wants to build a km-sized spacecraft the one who can provide materiel for less than launch cost will be sitting pretty! :)