Deep Space and Interplanetary Exploration - Houston, we are go for launch!

[rebs]

The JWST has completed deployment of its huge, gold-coated mirrors.

One step closer to its science-based mission.

https://scitechdaily.com/incredible-milestone-nasas-webb-telescope-successfully-completes-deployment-in-space/

[Daryk]

Fantastic news!  :thumbsup:

[rebs]

The SLS: the little rocket engine that could. 

As we inch closer to Artemis I, the excitement of returning to the Moon slowly gets more real

https://scitechdaily.com/nasa-prepares-massive-sls-moon-rockets-for-first-crewed-artemis-missions/

[Sabelkatten]

So, the race is on to see who gets into orbit first: SLS or Superheavy/Starship?

I'll be happy as long as one of them works like it's supposed to! :D

[rebs]

The Moon is one thing.  I want to see NASA fulfill the promise of launching orbiters to Uranus and Neptune.

I dream of this stuff.

[Daryk]

Kurzgesagt posted a video about terraforming Venus, of all things.  Their plan would take centuries, but seems workable.

[Natasha Kerensky]

The SLS: the little rocket engine that could. 

As we inch closer to Artemis I, the excitement of returning to the Moon slowly gets more real

Not to be a party pooper, but I wouldn’t get my hopes up.

In November, NASA delayed Artemis II (first flight with crew) from 2023 to 2024 and Artemis III (the landing) from 2024-2025.  Orion has another $2.3B cost overrun:

https://spacenews.com/nasa-delays-human-lunar-landing-to-at-least-2025/

A week later, NASA’s Inspector General released a report that the landing would be delayed until as late as 2028 based on NASA’s past performance on similar programs:

https://spacenews.com/nasa-inspector-general-warns-of-further-delays-in-returning-humans-to-the-moon/

And NASA’s Aerospace Safety Advisory Board released their annual report this week, which they dedicated to basically saying that NASA is not managing the integration of the piece parts of Artemis and has no idea how to:

http://spaceref.com/news/viewpr.html?pid=59149

Kurzgesagt posted a video about terraforming Venus, of all things.  Their plan would take centuries, but seems workable.

Bah, don’t waste the Earth’s GDP terraforming.  Just live 30-odd miles up in the Venusian atmosphere.  It’s the only place in the solar system besides Earth where the gravity will probably allow normal gestation and the radiation won’t shorten lifespans by decades.  Plus you can walk around in the 1 bar atmosphere.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2014-07-01/the-surprisingly-strong-case-for-colonizing-venus

https://bigthink.com/hard-science/how-to-colonize-venus/

https://ntrs.nasa.gov/api/citations/20030022668/downloads/20030022668.pdf

https://selenianboondocks.com/2013/11/venus-isru-introduction/

[Daryk]

I suppose it depends on your definition of "long term" returns...

[Natasha Kerensky]

I suppose it depends on your definition of "long term" returns...

I’m being a little tongue-in-cheek.  But I also think the Venusian atmosphere is the only existing location in the solar system that we actually would have a shot at colonizing (meaning having children and living out entire lives there) without altering our bodies or minds or waiting for terraforming or O’Neil colonies.  I think our biology limits us to visits (for research, work, or vacation) everywhere else.

[Rainbow 6]

I’m being a little tongue-in-cheek.  But I also think the Venusian atmosphere is the only existing location in the solar system that we actually would have a shot at colonizing (meaning having children and living out entire lives there) without altering our bodies or minds or waiting for terraforming or O’Neil colonies.  I think our biology limits us to visits (for research, work, or vacation) everywhere else.

Venus is certainly more viable than Mars.

[CVB]

Venus is certainly more viable than Mars.

Somehow that sounds like the title of a book about gender topics... ;D

[Wrangler]

New US base company attempting to build a single-stage space plane.  Reported here on Ars Technica,  the Radian company in Washington State, who headed by former director of the X-33 Rocket program is trying get project off the ground.

The goal is to single-stage 2.5 tons of cargo on their Radian One spaceplane.  Their setting eyes for 2030, but I've heard too many these projects in the past. So We'll see.  I hope so.  It's looks to be a cool project.

[rebs]

My very first memory of us being promised the development of an aerospace vehicle was just after the Challenger disaster, when I was a kid.  It was promised to be a reality by the late 1990's.

Obviously, never happened. 

But I still hope it becomes a reality.  Would be a great achievement. 

[Bedwyr]

Looks like they've got a different angle on things.

[Daryk]

Certainly a higher chance of success than earlier attempts.  "High enough" remains to be seen.  At least I've got my fingers crossed for them.  If I win the lottery, I might even have cash to spare to help them on their way...  :thumbsup:

[Wrangler]

The Hubble Telescope catched image of a black hole helping form stars in a Henize 2-10 Dwarf Galaxy 30 million light-years away, reported in Magazine (online) Nature and Petapixel.

Does make sense that effects of a Blackhole, like the one Milky way galaxy that holds such stellar structures together would have other benefits a sides keeping everything together (and trashing stars as well.)


Henize 2-10 Dwarf Galaxy

[rebs]

I'd say so.  Gravitation perturbances are one of the major factors in interstellar gas clouds collapsing into star birth.

[rebs]

It's official!  Today the JWST did its final burn to insert itself into orbit at the L2 point.   

Let the science soon begin.

https://blogs.nasa.gov/webb/2022/01/24/orbital-insertion-burn-a-success-webb-arrives-at-l2/

[Frabby]

And the JWST spent only an absolute minimum of fuel to get there. Looks like it is going to far exceed its projected mission time, something in the area of over 15 years (possibly yet more, some dream of 20) instead of 5. Scientists are giddy and overjoyed about this.

[BirdofPrey]

I'm usually shocked when a piece of space equipment DOESN'T massively exceed it's planned/projected service life

[Dynodragon]

Because it's easier to get politicians to sign off on mission extension expenses for something already built and in place rather than at square 1.

"Mr Congressman, you signed off on the 9.7B$ cost for design, construction and launch of this thing, please give us 200M$ to use it for another X years"

[Kit deSummersville]

I'm usually shocked when a piece of space equipment DOESN'T massively exceed it's planned/projected service life

Poor Mars Polar Lander....

[Frabby]

I'm usually shocked when a piece of space equipment DOESN'T massively exceed it's planned/projected service life

Sure, but in this case it apparently worked better still than anyone anticipated.

[rebs]

Speaking of outlasting projected service life, how about that Hubble Space Telescope!

[Øystein]

I'm more impressed by Curiosity - 9,5 years and still roving Mars.

[kato]

Speaking of outlasting projected service life, how about that Hubble Space Telescope!

Hubble doesn't really count given that it has been maintenanced and repaired in-orbit.

The three solar research satellites WIND, ACE and SOHO are probably the most enduring un-tended spacecraft. They were originally planned for 2 years operations at the Sun-Earth L1 point, WIND for 3 years.
ACE is now at 24 years 5 months, SOHO at 26 years 2 months, WIND at 27 years 3 months - with missions of ACE and SOHO currently extended to 2024 and 2025 respectively. WIND is estimated to have enough fuel to last at SEL1 until 2070...

[Kit deSummersville]

Hubble doesn't really count given that it has been maintenanced and repaired in-orbit.

The three solar research satellites WIND, ACE and SOHO are probably the most enduring un-tended spacecraft. They were originally planned for 2 years operations at the Sun-Earth L1 point, WIND for 3 years.
ACE is now at 24 years 5 months, SOHO at 26 years 2 months, WIND at 27 years 3 months - with missions of ACE and SOHO currently extended to 2024 and 2025 respectively. WIND is estimated to have enough fuel to last at SEL1 until 2070...

Voyager 2 might beg to differ.

[kato]

Well, with 80% of her instruments deactivated...

Technically the dedicated passive laser satellite fleet has them all beat. LAGEOS-1 and STARLETTE were launched in '76 and '75 and are planned to stay in orbit for about 8 million years and will continue to fulfill their mission for however long Earth will use satellite laser ranging.

[Daryk]

Hubble will count eventually... MILSPEC counts for something (the mirror forging "problem" not withstanding)...  ^-^

[ANS Kamas P81]

https://www.the-sun.com/tech/4545551/astronomers-mysterious-object-anything-seen-before/

Short form - it's a pulsar/magnetar with a period of twenty minutes, which is weird since pulsars generally are much faster than that.  Explosion of a star and conservation of angular momentum means their spin increases dramatically when they throw off the outer layers, yet this one isn't anywhere near that typical millisecond speed.  Is it that old that it's slowed down, or did something else happen to cause this one?

One more for the astronomers to figure out.