Space News thread

[Takeovers]

A highligts video on the DM-1 mission from launch to touch down in the Atlantic.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_co...&v=NhKFBW3S8Pg

[OhOh]

Too lazy to look up a link.

https://www.teslarati.com/spacex-no-...onaut-launches

As indicated "searches"can deliver many "results".

I am following this for years

I on the other hand have not and therefore utilise previous "results", from a proven source.

In this case you, , having demonstrated, to all here on TD, knowledge and impartiality.

Not the correct number, most likely not virgins and possibly not females, but you will receive something similar for your efforts.

Have a great International Womans Day.

[OhOh]

I thought this one looked a little bit Asian, more so if it had a thatched roof.

Here is the Thai recovery fleet utilising the waiting time by doing some fishing, Note the bamboo lifting cranes on the two multi-purpose boats, in the distance.

[Takeovers]

The crew of the russian Soyuz that failed last year had another launch yesterday. This time they made it to the ISS. The ISS is now back up to the usual 6 people instead of the minimal crew of 3 they had since the failed launch.


The probably very well checked Soyuz


Thorough launch preparation


Crew in the capsule, ready for launch


launch


ISS approach

[Topper]

Dragon looks cooler.......

Thanks again, TO!

[Luigi]

Crew in the capsule, ready for launch

I bet they were praying more than the holy man.

Thanks again, TO!

Amen.

[Takeovers]

Dragon looks cooler.......

From the published numbers Soyuz has a bigger pressurized volume than Dragon.

I wonder how they arrive to those numbers. Even considering that Soyuz has 2 separate compartments. The one where 3 cosmonauts are packed in is the smaller of the two. There is an additional orbital module that gets discarded before reentry.

[Ukan Kizmiaz]

A photo of Pluto, 25 years apart. (1994-2019) - I wonder what we'll see in another 25?

[Takeovers]

A photo of Pluto, 25 years apart. (1994-2019) - I wonder what we'll see in another 25?

I hope for orbiters around the outer planets, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto. NASA is presently developing reactors of a series they call Kilopower with 1 and 10kW. That's enough to run ion propulsion engines for many years, enabling transfers in less time than presently and then brake into orbit. Presently there is a problem that in theory they could send probes to orbit but the transfer times would be many decades or they are too fast for going into orbit. So we do only flybys of the outer planet which limits the observation time to just hours.

[harrybarracuda]

It's that one that's hiding I want a picture of. Imagine if it's got civilisation?

[Norton]

I wonder what we'll see in another 25?

[Luigi]

The number of planets detected around other stars - or exoplanets - is set to hit the 4,000 mark.


The huge haul is a sign of the explosion of findings from searches with telescopes on the ground and in space over the last 25 years.


It's also an indication of just how common planets are - with most stars in the Milky Way hosting at least one world in orbit around them.


That's something astronomers couldn't be certain of just 30 years ago.

https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-47681239

[Takeovers]

A short video by SpaceX, just 1 minute with 4k resolution. Not primarily information but amazing pictures worth watching. Very detailed closeup shots of the F9 booster in flight.

[Luigi]

Hayabusa-2: Japanese probe set to 'bomb' an asteroid




The Japanese Hayabusa-2 spacecraft is about to detonate an explosive charge on the asteroid it is exploring.

The operation is designed to generate an artificial crater in the asteroid Ryugu, which the probe has been studying since June 2018.

Hayabusa-2 will later descend into the crater to collect pristine samples of the asteroid that have not been exposed to the harsh environment of space.

The charge is carried on the Small Carry-On Impactor (SCI) device.

This is a 14kg conical container attached to Hayabusa-2 and packed with plastic explosive.


The SCI is due to separate from Hayabusa-2 at 01:56 GMT on Friday at an altitude of 500m above the surface of Ryugu. That will kick off a 40-minute countdown to detonation. When the device explodes, it is expected to punch a 10m-wide hole in the asteroid.

In the meantime, Hayabusa-2 should have manoeuvred itself to hide away on the other side of the asteroid, shielding the spacecraft from any flying debris.


https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-47818460

[Takeovers]

Chinese upstart Linkspace has done a free launch and landing test. They are working on reusable rocket tech.

Their landing pad


Launching


Robert Zubrin, the man who has proposed a cheaper way to go to Mars than NASA was there and observed the test.


Notice this photo of the surroundings of the test site. That's China. I am sure it is not as close as it looks due to using a telelens for this one but still.

[OhOh]

Chinese upstart Linkspace has done a free launch and landing test.

Details available here:

https://gbtimes.com/chinese-space-co...h-landing-test

[harrybarracuda]

Great, now aliens think we are a primitive race with hostile intentions.

The Nips blew a hole in an asteroid.

https://www.npr.org/2019/04/05/71028...=1554528085408

[misskit]

See the first real pictures of a black hole revealed live

Astronomers are preparing to reveal the first images of our galaxy's supermassive black hole (or, more accurately, the area immediately around it, since the hole pulls in all light and matter).


The image, captured by the Event Horizon Telescope, will show the black hole at the center of the Milky Way, and will be shown in a press conference beginning at 9am ET (2pm BST) on April 10. When the conference begins, you will be able to watch the live stream below.


The black hole at the center of the Milky Way, Sagittarius A, is 26,000 light years away from Earth and shrouded in dust and gas. Until now, our knowledge of it has been based on inferences rather than direct observation.

Despite its name, the Event Horizon Telescope is actually a collection of eight radio telescopes located around the world, precisely co-ordinated using highly accurate atomic clocks. Together, they effectively creating a global observatory.with the power to let us observe Sagittarius A for the first time.


Groundbreaking

This will be a groundbreaking moment for the scientific community, testing predictions based on the Theory of General Relativity.


Matter pulled in by the black hole is believed to settle in a disc-like formation (the accretion disc), moving faster and becoming hotter as it draws closer to the event horizon, creating light. This light is expected to bend around the event horizon to create a lopsided, glowing ring, which researchers are hoping to see for the first time.


https://www.techradar.com/news/see-t...-revealed-live


live stream

[misskit]

^

[Looper]

^^That bloke that is measuring the size of the black hole he swore he saw through his own 6 inch telescope looks like a space alien with those yellow insect antennae...

[harrybarracuda]

Here's a close up of the middle bit:

[BaitongBoy]

Awesome, 'arry...

555...

[Luigi]

Cheers MK.


It's a fantastic achievement.







It is a bit roomy.

[Topper]

So what's up with the falcon heavy launch?

[Takeovers]

So what's up with the falcon heavy launch?

It was delayed one day because of high altitude winds. Weather report looks much better today. It should go in about 7+ hours.

One interesting aspect is that the upcoming FH launch for the Airforce is expected to reuse the 2 side boosters of this launch. It is a certification launch ahead of giving full certification to FH by the Airforce. Interesting they work on certifying used boosters.