Science
February 18, 2021 Helium isotope, known as helium-3 is found in much greater quantities in natural stores on the moon than those on Earth, where it is 100 million times more abundant. NASA
A Kraków start-up has teamed up with a US nuclear company to carry out an unmanned mission to the moon to extract a rare and valuable isotope of helium thought to be the key to the production of pure nuclear energy.
Solar System Resources Corporation from Kraków, an innovative space mining start-up, intend to extract and bring back 300kg of the rare isotope to Earth by 2028 with the US based Nuclear Corp, a nuclear company which has participated in advanced projects for the American army and government.
Auburn professor Bodewits’ work included in NASA’s Hubble timeline
Published: February 17, 2021
Decrease Font Size Font Size
Increase Font Size
Article body
NASA recently included the work of Dennis Bodewits an associate professor in Auburn University’s Department of Physics in the College of Sciences and Mathematics in a timeline highlighting the history of the revolutionary Hubble Space Telescope.
Bodewits used the telescope to study the composition of Comet 2I/Borisov, the first interstellar comet to pass through our solar system, and his findings originally published in an April 20, 2020, article were included as an historic highlight in the interactive Hubble History Timeline. Bodewits’ work helped detail the comet’s unusual chemical makeup, which includes an abundance of carbon monoxide.
February 10, 2021
New research suggests that particles escaping from Mars’ atmosphere have been accumulating on the surface of the planet’s largest moon Phobos for billions of years. They could provide important new details about the history of both worlds.
Mars’ largest moon Phobos, as seen by NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft on March 23, 2008. Image via NASA/ JPL-Caltech/ University of Arizona.
A new study suggests that Mars’ larger moon Phobos orbits through a stream of charged particles flowing off the planet’s atmosphere. The findings, published February 1, 2021, in the peer-reviewed journal
Nature Geoscience, suggest that the ions of oxygen, carbon, nitrogen, and argon charged particles smashing into Phobos have been accumulating on the moon’s surface for billions of years. The researchers say analysis of Phobos’ soil could provide important new details about the history of both worlds.
Press release content from Business Wire. The AP news staff was not involved in its creation.
Blue Canyon Technologies Provides Microsats for NASA Pioneers Missions
January 27, 2021 GMT
BOULDER, Colo. (BUSINESS WIRE) Jan 27, 2021
Leading small satellite manufacturer and mission services provider Blue Canyon Technologies, LLC. (“BCT” or “Blue Canyon”) today announced it is providing the microsatellites for NASA’s Pioneers Aspera and Pandora missions – small-scale astrophysics missions.
“We are providing high-performance microsats capable of supporting astrophysics missions at a price point never before possible,” said George Stafford, CEO of Blue Canyon. “The missions will demonstrate our ability to be a mission-enabler in the areas of exoplanet characterization and the intergalactic medium.”
NASA/Goddard/University of Arizona
On May 10, NASA s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft will say farewell to asteroid Bennu and begin its two-year journey back to Earth, where the dust and rocks collected during the Touch-And-Go maneuver in October will be studied by scientists, including OSIRIS-REx mission principal investigator and University of Arizona planetary scientist
Dante Lauretta.
During its Oct. 20, 2020, sample collection event, the spacecraft collected a substantial amount of material from Bennu s surface, likely exceeding the mission s requirement of 2 ounces, or 60 grams. The spacecraft is scheduled to deliver the sample to Earth on Sep. 24, 2023 in the Utah desert.
The May departure date allows the spacecraft to consume the least amount of fuel and also provides the OSIRIS-REx team with the opportunity to plan a final spacecraft flyby of Bennu. This activity was not on the original mission schedule, but the team is studying the feasibility of a final observation run of the