Space News thread

[Takeovers]

From the early indian space program.

I think it is real, but not quite sure.

https://twitter.com/NewSpaceIndia/st...90849237594112

[Maanaam]

Asgardia, anyone?

"These secrets may be revealed on June 13 during the press conference in Hong Kong."

https://mic.com/articles/179322/the-...cFB#.RPOmeL46Y

[BaitongBoy]

Yes...Bobo mentioned it on the previous page...Post #1420...

Wild stuff...Imagine being born on another "world"...It's coming soon...

[misskit]

China just took the lead in the quantum space race

Scientists lay groundwork for ultra-secure quantum internet


On Thursday, a team of Chinese scientists released findings from a breakthrough study that makes China the indisputable leader in the field of quantum communication, an achievement that could be of immense strategic importance.

The study, led by Pan Jianwei and published in Science magazine, successfully demonstrated the ability to distribute entangled photons across unprecedented distances, from space to earth, opening the door for the practical application of cutting-edge, ultra-secure communication.

In the wake of China’s milestone, some in the scientific community outside of China are eager for their own governments to play catch up in the quantum space race.

Anton Zeilinger, a physicist at the Austrian Academy of Sciences, has pushed his government to launch a quantum satellite of its own, telling Science that this test “shows that China is making the right decisions, […] I’m personally convinced that the internet of the future will be based on these quantum principles.”

Until now, entanglement distribution has only been achieved across a physical separation of less than 100 km, limited by the photon loss in channels such as optical fibers, which increases exponentially with the length of the channel. This test, set in motion when China launched a specialized quantum satellite dubbed Micius last year, was able to distribute the entanglement photons across a distance of more than 1,200 km.

The space-based approach offers a key advantage in achieving the longer distance transmission as most of the photons’ path is through the vacuum of space, with turbulence largely occurring only within the lower 10 km of the atmosphere. In order to exploit this advantage, the scientists used a laser-based entangled-photon source especially resistant to disturbance.

This achievement is a huge step towards the practical application on a global scale of a theoretically unhackable encryption method called quantum key distribution.

Encryption methods used today are nearly, but not completely, impossible to hack, but with more advanced computing power the forms of encoding that protect information sent online will become more and more vulnerable. Quantum key distribution, however, is unique in that any measurement of the transmission by an eavesdropper disturbs the transmission, thereby alerting the parties sending information.

It will take a while to go from what this team of scientists accomplished to the widespread practical application, but they are moving at a fast pace in the right direction. According to Pan, the lead physicist on the study, China’s National Space Science Center will launch additional satellites with stronger and cleaner laser beams detectable even when the sun is shining.

“In the next five years we plan to launch some really practical quantum satellites,” Pan said, speaking to Science.

China just took the lead in the quantum space race | Asia Times

[BaitongBoy]

^ Wild stuff...Cheers...

[Slick]

The House Armed Services Committee has voted to create a US "Space Corps", which would become a new branch of the armed forces and incorporate the current space missions of the US Air Force.

If the US Space Corps goes ahead, it would be the first new military service in the country since 1947.

The move has caused consternation as committee members of the panel say they were only recently informed, giving them little time to protest against the proposal.

Michael Turner, Republican senator of Ohio, said he first heard about the proposal last week, when it appeared before the subcommittee on strategic force.

“I chastised my staff and said, ‘How could I not know that this was happening?’ They said, ‘Well, they had a meeting about it and you missed it,’” Turner said. “A meeting is certainly not enough. Maybe we do need a space corps, but I think this bears more than just discussions in a subcommittee.

“We have not had Secretary Mattis come before us and tell us what this means. We have not heard from the secretary of the Air Force. There’s a whole lot of work we need to do before we go as far as creating a new service branch.”

Martha McSally, Republican senator for Arizona, was similarly caught off guard. “This is honestly the first time I’ve heard about a major reorganisation to our Air Force,” said the retired Air Force colonel.

In response to the criticism, Mike Rogers and Jim Cooper, the top Republican and Democrat on the strategic forces subcommittee, said the dedicated space service had been mooted for years. “There’s been nothing shortsighted about this,” Rogers said according to a Federal News Radio report.

“We started working on it vigorously in September, and we’ve had countless meetings with a number of experts who have advised us as to how this should be construed. In fact, this idea for a space corps as one of the solutions to Air Force space came from the Rumsfeld Commission in 2001.

"GAO has done three studies on this, all of which tell us that you cannot maintain the current organisational construct of the Air Force and solve the acquisition problems and the operational problems that we have. The Air Force is like any other bureaucracy. They don’t want to change.”

Jim Cooper, the Democrat senator for Tennessee, argued the new space corps was important for US defence strategies. “We could wake up one morning and be blinded and deafened by adversary powers, because so many of our most precious assets are up in space.”

US planning to create 'Space Corps' as sixth branch of armed forces | The Independent

[chassamui]

If they are looking for home grown space cadets, there are a few candidates on here. Put up a yootube vid and CP will come running.

[harrybarracuda]

Fascinating article about attempts to communicate with possible extraterrestrial intelligence.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/28/m...murder-us.html

Was of particular interest to me as I visited Arecibo last month while I was in Puerto Rico, and fucking amazing it is too.

[Takeovers]

Today 19:00 Beijing time China will launch their second Long March 5 rocket. A very powerful heavy lift rocket.



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_March_5

CZ-5 is the first Chinese vehicle with new design focusing on liquid rocket propellants from the ground up.[3] Currently, two CZ-5 vehicle configurations are planned for different missions, with a maximum payload capacity of ~25,000 kilograms (55,000 lb) to LEO[4] and ~14,000 kilograms (31,000 lb) to GTO.[5] The Long March 5 roughly matches the capabilities of American EELV heavy-class vehicles such as the Delta IV Heavy. Its payload capacity currently makes it the second most powerful rocket in the world after the Delta IV Heavy.
The CZ-5's maiden launch occurred on 3 November 2016 at 12:43 UTC, from the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Center on Hainan island. The launch was successful.

Note that the new rocket launches from an island. They move away from launches over populated areas.

[Takeovers]

Life coverage of the launch has begun on YouTube.

Launch in ~1 hour.



The narrator gives some explanations. He says they are very confident of a successful launch. He points out that the new rocket uses Kerosene and liquid hydrogen plus liquid oxygen as propellants, getting away from the toxic propellants used on older rockets. He also said, despite being bigger this is also cheaper to build that the older types.

It is launching a com sat today but will be used to launch the modules of their planned space station.

The second stage has made one burn by now. A second burn to the final orbit will be up soon. Everything good so far.

They also said this rocket will launch a lunar sample return mission by end of this year. Send a lander and rover to the backside of the moon and have a return stage that brings material back to earth.

They also mentioned that the first flight was not fully precise but the orbital cargo carrier was able to make up for the shortfalls. Perfectly reasonable to have minor problems on early flights. the sample return mission will have little room for failure.

[Takeovers]

Last news, CGTN TV-network announces, the launch has failed. Some problem with the second stage. Looks like that second burn of the second stage but they are still researching.

Edit: People analyzing the launch video think the first stage underperformed after one of the 2 engines failed. The second stage did a probably nominal burn but the first stage did not give it sufficient speed, so it probably could not reach orbit. Let's wait if we get more detailed information from chinese authorities. They only mentioned launch failure so far.

[Takeovers]

Some comparison between the LM-5 rocket, which is in many ways handles like US and russian rockets and the SpaceX Falcon rockets.

Some photos of LM-5 on the pad.

A huge platform transports the rocket vertical to the launch pad, similar to Saturn 5.




This huge structure encapsulates the rocket, with access possible at every level.



The lower structure can also be closed.


Here it is open before launch


A huge and costly structure.


In contrast how it is done by SpaceX. All work is done inside a hangar with the rocket horizontal and easily accessible. A quite simple structure with some overhead cranes the most complex.

On the way to the pad not a huge platform.



That same structure erects it on the pad. That baseplate is complex even if you can not see it. But nothing compared to other rockets.


The huge dark structure to the right is not part of the launch system. It is legacy from Shuttle launches. It now only serves as a lightning rod. It will be used for crew access once SpaceX fly crew to the ISS, but only because it is there and available.


SpaceX is lowering launch cost by minimizing complexity on every single step, not only the rockets and reuse.

[crackerjack101]

nice one Mr. T
isn't lateral thinking great.
pun intended

[harrybarracuda]

SpaceX had to abort a launch 9 seconds before take off.

I would imagine Intelsat and their insurers are rather pleased.

SpaceX aborted the launch of one of its Falcon 9 rockets on Sunday with less than 10 seconds left to lift off, causing the company to delay the mission for the day.

The rocket remains completely intact as SpaceX’s computer automatically stopped the count down because something in the guidance system was “out of limits,” according to John Insprucker, the principal integration engineer for the Falcon 9, and the host of today’s live stream.

“This is a computer abort that happened at T-10 seconds where we’re looking at the status of the guidance system and the flight hardware that supports it,” he said. “It appears that something was out of limits, the computer stopped the countdown before we got into the engine ignition sequence.”

“Unfortunately, though, we’re not going to be able to recycle the countdown in the time that we have left in the window and make another attempt today.”

https://www.recode.net/2017/7/2/1591...-rocket-launch

[Takeovers]

SpaceX had to abort a launch 9 seconds before take off.

Yes. This launch was a bit late for me, I slept through it and learned about it only now. They are somewhat paranoid about potential risks. They had two failures which really hurt them and can ill afford another failure. So they try to err on the cautious side. There was one problem in the launch control computer. Probably 98% or better for a successful launch with lots of redundancy but that is not good enough.

Very recently the launch engineering team was go for launch but Elon Musk called a scrub only 20 seconds before liftoff and let them go through all the data again because he did not like one parameter.

A few weeks ago President of the company Gwynne Shotwell said they are in a position to survive at least 2 more launch failures. It is an important part of her job to ensure that. But it would throw them back years and they would lose revenue they need to continue their Mars plans. Unlike NASA who get funded for programs from Congress they need to make money to spend it on advanced research.

[Takeovers]

BTW Elon Musk on the chinese failure on Twitter.

Elon Musk

Sorry to hear about China launch failure today. I know how painful that is to the people who designed & built it.

Reply

Well what else can you expect from Made in China things.

Elon Musk

Actually, China manufacturing quality is excellent. Among other things, that's where iPhones, many Android phones & most laptops are made.

[OhOh]

Thanks for your postings, all good.

[reddog]

Harry,that dish at Arecibo,Puerto Rico looks like one from that featured in a James Bond movie.

[harrybarracuda]

Harry,that dish at Arecibo,Puerto Rico looks like one from that featured in a James Bond movie.

Well spotted. It was in both Goldeneye and Contact.

It's about an 80 minute drive from San Juan but well worth it.

They even have to wear special shoes to walk around on it.



It's made up of loads of individual, perforated 6'x3'aluminium sheets, because otherwise (quote) "It would be Puerto Rico's biggest pond".

[Takeovers]

A series of photos showing a recent mission of SpaceX, bringing supplies to the ISS and materials back for analysis in labs here on earth. It ended with the landing of Dragon this last monday, July 3.

Edit: I almost forgot to mention, that CRS-11 was the first Dragon to fly a second time. Though they did a major rework to make it flightworthy again. Many components are new. They hope to reduce the amount of work spent for future flights. They already have stopped making new Dragon 1 pressure vessels, so they have to refly the existing ones for most of the 8 remaining missions. I think they have one more new Dragon ready to go as CRS-12. The production line has been changed to produce the new Dragon 2 vessels which will fly Astronauts to the ISS hopefully next year.


The launch


The first stage coming back.


Dragon arriving at the ISS, see the Canada-Arm grappling it to attach it to the ISS. This arm is the contribution of Canada to the ISS.


Dragon back on eart, picked up by the vessel NRC Quest. Note that this is a quite small vessel, in contrast to picking up the Apollo capsules. At that time they sent a whole Navy Carrier group for the job. But that would be an unfair comparison.

[Takeovers]

Two photos by the Curiosity rover in roughly the same directions. First a new photo, second one of April this year. Seems there is a major dust storm going on.

[misskit]

^ What's that landing on the dune?

I've been trying to scratch those dots off my tablet screen.

[Takeovers]

What's that landing on the dune?

Just a periscope extended by the Martians. They keep an eye on Curiosity.

Or maybe an artifact of transmission or jpg compression.

[harrybarracuda]

Mars covered in toxic chemicals that can wipe out living organisms, tests reveal

The chances of anything coming from Mars have taken a downward turn with the finding that the surface of the red planet contains a “toxic cocktail” of chemicals that can wipe out living organisms.

Experiments with compounds found in the Martian soil show that they are turned into potent bactericides by the ultraviolet light that bathes the planet, effectively sterilising the upper layers of the dusty landscape.

The discovery has wide-ranging implications for the hunt for alien life on the fourth rock from the sun and suggests that missions will have to dig deep underground to find past or present life if it lurks there. The most hospitable environment may lie two or three metres beneath the surface where the soil and any organisms are shielded from intense radiation. “At those depths, it’s possible Martian life may survive,” said Jennifer Wadsworth, a postgraduate astrobiologist at Edinburgh University.

Wadsworth’s research was driven by the discovery of powerful oxidants known as perchlorates in the Martian soil some years back. Hints of perchlorates first showed up in tests performed by Nasa’s Viking lander missions 40 years ago, but were confirmed recently by the space agency’s Phoenix lander and Mars rover, Curiosity. In 2015, the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter spotted signs of perchlorates in what appeared to be wet and briny streaks that seeped down Martian gullies and crater walls.

Many scientists suspected that perchlorates would be toxic for microbial Martians, but in theory at least, alien bacteria might find a way to use the chemicals as an energy source. If life could thrive in perchlorate-rich brines, then aliens might be thriving in the damp patches on Mars.

Working with Charles Cockell, an astrobiologist at Edinburgh, Wadsworth looked at what happened to Bacillus subtilis, a common soil bacterium and regular Earthly contaminant found on space probes, when it was mixed with magnesium perchlorate and blasted with ultraviolet rays similar to those witnessed on Mars. She found that the bugs were wiped out twice as fast when perchlorate was present. Other perchlorates found on Mars had a similar bactericidal effect.

Further tests found that the UV rays broke down the perchlorate into other chemicals, namely hypochlorite and chlorite, and it is these that appear to be so destructive to the bacteria.

The scientists followed-up with another round of experiments that looked at the toxic effects of iron oxides and hydrogen peroxide, which are also found in Martian soil. These tests yielded even more bad news for microscopic Martians: when the bacteria were hit with UV rays in the presence of perchlorates, iron oxide and peroxide, the bugs were killed 11 times faster than with perchlorates alone. Writing in Scientific Reports, the researchers say that the inhospitable conditions on Mars are caused by a “toxic cocktail of oxidants, iron oxides, perchlorates and UV irradiation.”

The findings mean that damp streaks on the Martian surface that have been spotted from orbit may not be prime spots to find alien microbes. The briny patches would be likely to concentrate perchlorates, making the streaks even more toxic than the surrounding soil.

“I can’t speak for life in the past,” said Wadsworth. “As far as present life, it doesn’t rule it out but probably means we should look for life underground where it’s shielded from the harsh radiation environment on the surface.”

Chris McKay, a planetary scientist at Nasa Ames Research Center in California, said the study was “a big step forward” in understanding the ramifications of finding high levels of perchlorate on Mars. From a Mars exploration point of view, he said the results were both good and bad news. On the plus side, it means that any microbes that hitch a ride on landers sent to Mars will be swiftly destroyed on the surface, alleviating concerns about contaminating a potentially inhabited planet. “This should greatly reduce planetary protection concerns as well as any concerns about infection of astronauts,” he said. “But the bad news is that this means we have to dig to quite some depth to reach a biological record of early life that is not completely destroyed by the reactive UV-activated perchlorates.”

In 2020, the European Space Agency plans to send its ExoMars rover to the red planet on a mission to search for alien life. The rover is equipped with a drill that can bore two metres into the ground to retrieve soil samples in which microscopic Martians may be found.

Andrew Coates, a planetary scientist at UCL who leads the ExoMars panoramic camera team, said the work shows that the surface of Mars today is more hostile to life than thought. “This, combined with the solar and galactic particle radiation environment at the Martian surface, makes it all the more important to sample underneath the surface in the search for biomarkers,” he said.

“With the ExoMars rover, we will drill to retrieve and analyse samples from up to 2m under the surface,” he added. “This is important as a millimetre or two will get us below the harmful ultraviolet, one metre will get us below the oxidants such as perchlorates, and 1.5m gets us below the ionising radiation from the sun and galaxy.”

https://www.theguardian.com/science/...s-tests-reveal

[Takeovers]

Chris McKay, a planetary scientist at Nasa Ames Research Center in California, said the study was “a big step forward” in understanding the ramifications of finding high levels of perchlorate on Mars. From a Mars exploration point of view, he said the results were both good and bad news. On the plus side, it means that any microbes that hitch a ride on landers sent to Mars will be swiftly destroyed on the surface, alleviating concerns about contaminating a potentially inhabited planet. “This should greatly reduce planetary protection concerns as well as any concerns about infection of astronauts,” he said.

This is my take away from the article. But I am dubious if the planetary protection zealots will change their position.