Author Topic: Deep Space and Interplanetary Exploration - Houston, we are go for launch! (Read 117510 times)

Bedwyr · « **Reply #900 on:** 17 February 2023, 19:07:02 »

Quote from: Daryk on 15 February 2023, 04:17:35

Awesome find, thanks! And yes, I love "blazars"... :D

As a wise astrophysicist said, basically the most metal thing in the known universe.

Daryk · « **Reply #901 on:** 17 February 2023, 19:47:10 »

+all the plusses for that one! :D

rebs · « **Reply #902 on:** 21 February 2023, 17:46:51 »

Proposed new Space Radar System to watch for earth-threatening asteroids...

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/new-space-radar-will-hunt-planet-threatening-asteroids/

Daryk · « **Reply #903 on:** 21 February 2023, 20:00:26 »

Not a bad idea! :thumbsup:

Luciora · « **Reply #904 on:** 02 March 2023, 22:55:57 »

Jupiter and Venus over the CA Bay area.

Daryk · « **Reply #905 on:** 03 March 2023, 04:20:35 »

Nice shot! :thumbsup:

rebs · « **Reply #906 on:** 05 March 2023, 23:54:03 »

Last year at this time, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn were all roughly in a straight line across the sky as I saw it in Mobile at the marina.

Illustrations online showed how Neptune and Uranos were there in that rough line as well, only you need telescopic vision to see them.

Edit: here's a good one I just remembered - I once read that people with extremely good vision can occasionally see the nearer of the two ice giants.

I don't know if that's even true, as I never read it again anywhere else. And you can find anything to support any case online, so that's not a good help.

rebs · « **Reply #907 on:** 14 March 2023, 00:13:21 »

Time for a hypothetical.

Here's an interesting short read - simulations showing what happens when you place a "Super Earth" (term for a terrestrial planet between 2 and 7 times the mass of the Earth) of varying sizes somewhere in the vicinity of the Asteroid Belt.

Sometimes even Uranos gets ejected from the Solar System! And the inner planets "ain't livin' long like this".

https://www.space.com/super-earth-impact-solar-system-study

Daryk · « **Reply #908 on:** 14 March 2023, 03:23:36 »

Interesting! Thanks for sharing! :thumbsup:

rebs · « **Reply #909 on:** 19 March 2023, 23:54:06 »

Space junk.

Scientists say there are trillions of pieces of space junk in orbit around the Earth currently. So much so that many are concerned about a possible Kessler Event - an event where space junk in orbit collides with a satellite or vehicle causing it to explode, exponentially increasing the amount of space junk in orbit in a cascade of collisions that happen in the wake of the initial explosion.

There are a number pf proposed answers to this dilemma of what to do about space junk. One is a space tug to deorbit satellites, among other tasks.

Laser satellites are also an option.

A third option is termed a Space Broom. A ground-based laser system that fires on space junk, heating up one side of the object, altering its orbit to cause rapid orbital decay and atmospheric reentry.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laser_broom

I don't usually link Wikipedia, but the references seem good here.

Daryk · « **Reply #910 on:** 20 March 2023, 03:22:32 »

The refs are relatively old, but good yes! :thumbsup:

rebs · « **Reply #911 on:** 22 March 2023, 15:04:26 »

RNA compounds and traces of vitamin B3 found in samples from near-Earth asteroid Ryugu.

https://www.cnn.com/2023/03/21/world/ryugu-asteroid-organic-molecules-scn/index.html

rebs · « **Reply #912 on:** 06 April 2023, 22:55:42 »

JWST took some mighty fine images of Uranos and its ring system.

Check it out here...

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/rings-around-uranus-james-webb-space-telescope-captures-stunning-image-of-ice-giant-photo-video/ar-AA19z2Ri

Daryk · « **Reply #913 on:** 07 April 2023, 03:29:07 »

"Stunning" barely begins to describe it! :thumbsup:

Sabelkatten · « **Reply #914 on:** 07 April 2023, 12:07:50 »

It’s interesting that they mention polar ice caps. I thought the atmosphere was to thick such temperature differences below it.

kato · « **Reply #915 on:** 07 April 2023, 12:52:26 »

Quote from: Sabelkatten on 07 April 2023, 12:07:50

It’s interesting that they mention polar ice caps. I thought the atmosphere was to thick such temperature differences below it.

It's not an ice cap - someone probably added the word in editing. It is simply a "polar cap" (previously also known as a "polar hood"). Nasa itself terms it "an area of brightening at the pole facing the Sun, known as a polar cap".

In general it is thought to be an accumulation of methane clouds within areas of the atmosphere of a certain density that fully cover the polar area.

The primary "new" feature discovered now is that this accumulation has a ("subtle") brighter spot - i.e. a spot with higher albedo in the chose near-infrared spectrum - in its center at the pole facing the sun.

Sabelkatten · « **Reply #916 on:** 08 April 2023, 00:58:48 »

Ah, thanks. Shame on me for not considering the media...

Prospernia · « **Reply #917 on:** 09 April 2023, 20:37:10 »

Well, I guess Proxima b, is just recently in the habitable-zone; in the past, Proxima-Centauri was hotter and the HZ was further away; the implications of this, if Proxima b wasn't a migrating-planet, that the atmosphere was either blown away or, it resembles Venus. It's not a game-stopper for the world being remotely habitable: Earth, for the first 500 million years or so, had an atmosphere like Venus. So, depending on whether it's eleven-and-a-half day rotation is enough for produce a magnetic-field and, how much water the planet, initially had could determine if it has any water, or an atmosphere at all on it.

Wrangler · « **Reply #918 on:** 09 April 2023, 21:45:21 »

I think biggest issue with using those disposable space tugs to drag dead satellites down to burn up in the atmosphere is it could be used by unfriendly nations to kill important satellites. Pandora's box is a nasty once it's opened.

rebs · « **Reply #919 on:** 13 April 2023, 15:59:24 »

ESA had scheduled the launch of the much-awaited JUICE mission today, but lightning nearby caused them to scrub it at the last minute.

But tomorrow is another launch window.

https://www.space.com/weather-halts-juice-mission-first-launch-attempt

Daryk · « **Reply #920 on:** 13 April 2023, 19:51:12 »

So not all is lost... 8)

rebs · « **Reply #921 on:** 15 April 2023, 17:05:31 »

Indeed. Launch was successful yesterday.

Check out the pics of the Ariane rocket used to propel this latest robotic orbital outpost toward the great Jovian planet.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/relive-the-launch-of-europes-juice-mission-to-jupiter-in-these-stunning-photos/ar-AA19SpPZ

Wrangler · « **Reply #922 on:** 15 April 2023, 17:17:56 »

It appears that SpaceX had gotten all it's ducks in a row and is about to launch their prototype full-stacked rocket into sub-orbit on Monday.

While I am not admirer of Elon Musk, I do like idea behind SpaceX's rockets and how it's pushed technology to change the static industry. It should be interesting launch.

rebs · « **Reply #923 on:** 15 April 2023, 17:30:43 »

So the JUICE mission will first swing around Venus for gravity assist 1, then Earth for a second gravity assist.

The full journey to Jupiter will be 8 years. But there will be things to do along the way, and in the link below are details about various operations before the main mission.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/what-s-next-for-europe-s-juice-mission-here-s-what-to-expect-on-its-long-journey-to-jupiter/ar-AA19TD8f?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=950c2fbf21bf4825815f60cd79e53a93&ei=39

Daryk · « **Reply #924 on:** 15 April 2023, 17:36:00 »

Awesome, thanks for the link! :thumbsup:

rebs · « **Reply #925 on:** 20 April 2023, 11:57:01 »

Not good news for Space-X watchers.

But it seems the commercial space startup was prepared for this outcome, with multiple prototype rockets in various stages of completion.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/elon-musk-s-starship-rocket-just-exploded-minutes-into-its-test-launch/ar-AA19AMHV?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=bd646593718e420680ca6cf4130d42cc&ei=37

Wrangler · « **Reply #926 on:** 20 April 2023, 12:08:06 »

Looks like there was issue with SpaceX's new Starship/Superheavy rocket system this morning. When the vehicle attempted separate the Starship, second stage it begun to spin rapidly and was not able to release the vehicle. It was detonated when it apparent that the vehicle was falling.

Reported in SpaceNews.

Bedwyr · « **Reply #927 on:** 21 April 2023, 15:00:30 »

The crater from the launch was deeper than I thought. Via Twitter:

I think this will be one of the primary focus points going forward. I'll bet money debris was the cause of a fair amount of engine damage. Maybe not all, but the failures further up were definitely affected by it. The vehicle was clearly unable to control itself at some point and went end-over-end.

worktroll · « **Reply #928 on:** 21 April 2023, 15:54:54 »

I'm quoting from smeone quoting from elsewhere, so can't give proper attribution, but apparently folks internal to SpaceX considered the test successful if it cleared the pad. One trusts their instrumentation tells them lots.

33 engines in proximity is an awful lot of shaking going on - that, and the accellerated test program, killed the Soviet N1. By comparison, the current (!) Soyuz launcher has 20 engines in five clusters of 4 - one cluster in the core, and one cluster in each of the "carrots". 1900+ flights since 1966, so the issues can be addressed.

rebs · « **Reply #929 on:** 21 April 2023, 16:19:48 »

Here's an asteroid striking the surface of Mars, as captured by the Insight rover.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/listen-to-a-meteor-slam-into-mars-and-watch-the-aftermath/vi-AA1a9Xo4?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=68bd588e21384680b8713c683ba0b55a&ei=27