Category: Space Exploration

NASA’s OSIRIS-REx Collects a Significant Amount of Material from Asteroid Bennu

Post author By M. Özgür Nevres
Post date October 24, 2020
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NASA's OSIRIS-REx collects asteroid material — Captured by the spacecraft's SamCam camera on October 22, 2020, this image shows that the sampler head on NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft is full of rocks and dust collected from the surface of the asteroid Bennu. This is a static image I produced from a series of three images published by NASA which show also that some of these particles are slowly escaping the sampler head. Analysis by the OSIRIS-REx team suggests that bits of material are passing through small gaps where the head's mylar flap is slightly wedged open. The mylar flap (the black bulge on the left inside the ring) is designed to keep the collected material locked inside, and these unsealed areas appear to be caused by larger rocks that didn't fully pass through the flap. Based on available imagery, the team suspects there is a plentiful sample inside the head and is on a path to stow the sample as quickly as possible. Credits: NASA

NASA’s OSIRIS REx spacecraft was supposed to grab a sample of the asteroid Bennu so that it could be returned to Earth for analysis. The spacecraft grabbed the sample on Tuesday, October 20, 2020, but, it’s taken a few days to actually get photos of the tool. Now the mission scientists at NASA realized that they have a problem with too much material. OSIRIS-REx collects a significant amount of asteroid material that larger pieces of regolith have kept the sample head from closing properly, so the material is slowly being lost. As a result, the mission operators are skipping past a number of important tests and going straight to storing the sample for return to avoid losing more.

Solar System Space Exploration

NASA’s OSIRIS-REx Spacecraft Successfully Touches Asteroid Bennu

Post author By M. Özgür Nevres
Post date October 21, 2020
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This illustration shows NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft descending towards asteroid Bennu to collect a sample of the asteroid's surface. Credits: NASA/Goddard/University of Arizona

Exciting news: NASA’s OSIRIS-REx, the first United States spacecraft to return samples from an asteroid has successfully touched down the Asteroid Bennu. The touchdown and sample collection occurred on October 20, 2020, at about 22:12 UTC.

Space Exploration

Soyuz makes a record-breaking 3-hour flight to the ISS

Post author By M. Özgür Nevres
Post date October 16, 2020
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Soyuz MS-17 makes a record-breaking 3-hour flight to the ISS — Soyuz MS-17 makes a record-breaking 3-hour flight to the International Space Station (ISS).

On 14 October 2020, Soyuz MS-17 transported three crew members of the Expedition 64 crew to the International Space Station with a record-breaking 3-hour flight. It was the 145th crewed flight of a Soyuz spacecraft. The crew consists of a Russian commander (Sergey Ryzhikov) and a Russian and American flight engineer (Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and Kathleen Rubins).

Moon Landing Artificial Intelligence Space Exploration Technology

Moon landing videos remastered

Post author By M. Özgür Nevres
Post date October 9, 2020
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Run by a Dutch restoration specialist who remastering historic videos using Artificial Intelligence (AI), the Dutch Steam Machine (Dutchsteammachine) channel has published remastered Apollo Moon landing videos, as well as some other vintage space videos, and the results are astonishing.

Mars Astrobiology Space Exploration

Subglacial lakes on Mars: an oasis for life?

Post author By M. Özgür Nevres
Post date October 2, 2020
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More subglacial lakes on Mars have been discovered

Back in 2018, using the onboard radar instrument MARSIS (Mars Advanced Radar for Subsurface and Ionosphere Sounding), European Space Agency’s Mars Express orbiter discovered an underground reservoir that is buried about 1.5 km (0.93 mi) under the ice. Now, in September 2020, scientists analyzing Mars Express data have discovered three more subglacial lakes on Mars or pools of liquid water buried under the ice in the south polar region of the red planet. Could they be an oasis for microbial life?

Space Exploration

Space Shuttle, Boeing 747, and Concorde in the same photo

Post author By M. Özgür Nevres
Post date September 9, 2020
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Space Shuttle, Boeing 747, and Concorde (featured) — Space Shuttle Enterprise on top of a Boeing 747 "the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft" while a British Airways Concorde is taking off.

Washington Dulles International Airport has shared a strikingly beautiful throwback photo on their Twitter account (@Dulles_Airport): The year 1986, the Space Shuttle Enterprise on top of a Boeing 747, while a Concorde was taking off in the background. A photo that can never be replicated. Total aviation and space exploration greatness.

Mars Space Exploration

The 3D-Printed Homes of the Future are Giant Eggs on Mars

Post author By Singularity Hub
Post date September 4, 2020
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AI SpaceFactory 3D printed Mars house — AI SpaceFactory's 3D printed Mars houses

In June 2020, a 3D-printed house that can float on a pontoon was unveiled in the Czech Republic. Last year, work started on a community of 3D-printed houses for low-income families in Mexico. While building homes with 3D printers is becoming more scalable, it’s also still a fun way to play around with unique designs and futuristic concepts for our living spaces.

Space Exploration Technology

6 Auto Innovations Driven by NASA research

Post author By M. Özgür Nevres
Post date August 29, 2020
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NASA driven auto innovations — Nissan Test Drives NASA Space Technology for Use in Driverless Cars

A common question people ask is, “Why does NASA spend billions on space exploration when there are so many problems here on Earth?” While this concern is understandable, it overlooks an important fact: NASA’s research and technological advancements often lead to innovations that benefit life on Earth, with the automotive industry being a prime example.

Space Exploration

Alexei Leonov, the first spacewalker was also a painter

Post author By M. Özgür Nevres
Post date August 7, 2020
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Soviet and Russian cosmonaut Alexei Leonov (30 May 1934 – 11 October 2019), the first human to walk in space was also a painter.

Moon Landing Space Exploration This Day in Science, Technology, Astronomy, and Space Exploration History

Complete descent and landing of Apollo 11 [July 20, 1969]

Post author By M. Özgür Nevres
Post date July 12, 2020
1 Comment on Complete descent and landing of Apollo 11 [July 20, 1969]

The complete descent and landing of Apollo 11 - the Eagle has landed

Apollo Flight Journal channel published a detailed video that shows every second of the complete descent and landing of Apollo 11, the spaceflight that first landed humans on the Moon on July 20, 1969. The video combines data from the onboard computer for altitude and pitch angle (you can see both altitude and pitch angle every second), 16mm film that was shot throughout the descent at 6 frames per second.