Space exploration: history and perspectives

Cosmic Journeys: What an Astronaut's Camera Sees

2011-06-03T07:25:00.000-07:00

Lava Flowing on the Mars

2009-10-09T10:08:00.000-07:00

Mars Express imaged Daedalia Planum, a sparsely cratered, untextured plain on the Red Planet featuring solidified lava flows of varying ages.

Daedalia Planum lies to the south-east of Arsia Mons, one of the largest volcanoes on Mars. It is 350 km in diameter and rises 14 km. The plain is dominated by numerous lava flows of varying ages.

It lies at about 21°S / 243°E. The images have a ground resolution of about 17 m/pixel and cover about 150 x 75 km or 11 250 sq km, an area roughly the size of Jamaica.

The region features numerous solidified lava flows of different ages. These flows originate at the southern flank of Arsia Mons.The map shows two lava flows: the younger flow (upper portion visible in nadir images) exhibits flow structures, pressure ridges as well as the central lava channel (upper right corner). An older flow visible in the lower portion has a smoother surface owing to gradual accumulation of sediments.

Two striking depressions lying almost at right angles to the lava flow are also visible in the upper portion of the imaged region. These structures are related to grabens that existed earlier (grabens are depressional features formed by faults in the crust).It is likely that the lava flows invaded the grabens partially or filled them up completely. Where a graben was only partially filled, the original dimensions are still recognisable.In the upper left of the nadir image is a portion of this feature that remains unmodified by the younger lava flows.

ESA Observes Oceans

2009-09-17T12:46:00.000-07:00

The world's oceans are now being observed routinely and systematically by means of satellite and in situ techniques. The global ocean observing system is changing, however.

After a decade of work on integrating Earth- and satellite-based observing networks, thereby establishing new observation methods that have made a tremendous impact on the way climate change and physical oceanic variability is measured, scientists are once again exploring uncharted waters and looking to set a new course for the future at the OceanObs'09 Conference in Venice, Italy on 21-25 September 2009.

Ten years ago - at the first conference for a comprehensive ocean observing system - scientists envisioned merging satellite altimetry of sea-surface height with tide gauges and buoy measurements in order to forecast ocean currents. They brainstormed methods of, for the first time, systematically monitoring changes in temperature and salinity in the Southern Ocean and the South Atlantic. They also drew up a plan for deploying a global array of temperature and salinity floats that would profile the water column down to a depth of 2000m in real time.

The initiatives launched at that 1999 conference have since provided data used for Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) assessments of human influence on climate change and to improve seasonal forecasts crucial for agriculture, hydropower, and storm prediction, as well as to build up information invaluable to the lives and safety of mariners.

OceanObs'09 will analyse this past decade of achievement and steer the observing system in a new direction for the future. The aim will be to take stock of the progress made over the last 10 years, present scientific results based on global ocean observations, consider the related societal and economic benefits, examine the present frontiers of global ocean observations and look at the way ahead in the coming decade. Over 500 participants from 30 countries will be attending OceanObs'09 to discuss the societal and economic needs that the ocean observing system should address over the next 10 years. Further details and the list of speakers are available on the conference website: www.oceanobs09.net

With a better understanding of how the ocean operates has come a sobering awareness of the impact of changes on marine ecosystems. Understanding the role of carbon flux between the atmosphere, land and sea is a challenge that scientists must meet if the consequences of political decisions on carbon emissions are to be monitored and assessed. Ensuring the sustainability of the observing system is also at the forefront of the agenda. Commitments to further enhance and continue operations are needed from satellite agencies and for in situ networks alike.

Building the Soyuz launch facility

2009-06-25T06:26:00.000-07:00

Credit: esa.int

Activity is continuing at the Guiana Space Centre (Centre Spatial Guyanais - CSG), Europe's Spaceport in French Guiana, as the Soyuz launch site takes shape. Soyuz is a medium-class launcher and its performance will perfectly complement that of the other ESA launchers, Ariane and Vega.

On the spaceport's new launch pad, the infrastructure that maintains Soyuz in its erected position prior to launch is being completed. In the nearby launcher assembly and testing building (монтажно-испытательный корпус; montazhno-ispytatelniy korpus - MIK), ground support equipment for Soyuz integration is being prepared.

This new launch facility for the venerable Soyuz vehicle is located 12 kilometres northwest of the existing Ariane 5 launch complex, extending the spaceport's operational zone further up the French Guiana coastline.

The horizontal transfer of Soyuz launchers at Europe's Spaceport in French Guiana will follow the same basic procedures used for Soyuz operations at Baikonur Cosmodrome. The image shows the rollout of the Soyuz FG launcher and Soyuz TMA-15 spacecraft that lifted off from the cosmodrome on 27 May 2009 with a three-member crew for the International Space Station.

Atlantis repairs Hubble

2009-05-14T02:10:00.000-07:00

Credit: nasa.gov

Atlantis continued to move steadily closer to the Hubble Space Telescope today, and its crew made good use of the time to perform a thorough inspection of the shuttle’s heat shield.

Over the course of the day, five members of the seven-person crew took part in that survey, which lasted more than seven hours. Commander Scott Altman, Pilot Gregory C. Johnson, and Mission Specialists Michael Good, Megan McArthur and Mike Massimino all used the shuttle’s 50-foot orbiter boom sensor system, attached to the shuttle’s 49-foot robotic arm, at one point or another to get an up close look at the surface of the shuttle’s belly and its wing-leading edges and nose cap. The data was sent to the ground, where it will be carefully analyzed to make sure that the shuttle didn’t sustain any serious damage during Monday’s launch.

During that inspection, mission managers noted one area of damage on the forward part of the spacecraft where the wing blends into the fuselage. Initially it appears to be very minor and of no concern for the mission, however the standard expert analysis is underway.

Meanwhile, Mission Specialists John Grunsfeld and Andrew Feustel, with help from Massimino, checked out the four spacesuits that they and Good will wear for the mission’s five spacewalks.

Before the crew begins their sleep period for the night, Good and Feustel will be checking out the tools they’ll use tomorrow as they rendezvous with the Hubble, and Altman and Johnson will fire the shuttle’s engines to perfect its course to the telescope.

Rendezvous operations will begin at 6:41 a.m. Central on Wednesday, with the actual grapple of the telescope using the shuttle’s robotic arm scheduled for 11:54 a.m.

The STS-125 crew will begin its sleep period at 8:01 p.m. and awaken at 4:01 a.m. Wednesday. The next shuttle status report will be issued after that wake up call or earlier if events warrant.

Around the world in 80 telescopes: '100 Hours of Astronomy' live webcasts

2009-04-03T05:06:00.000-07:00

On 3 April, ESA astronomers will take part in ‘Around the world in 80 telescopes’, a unique live webcast which will be part of the ‘100 Hours of Astronomy’ cornerstone project for the International Year of Astronomy 2009. Viewers will have a peek into ESA's XMM-Newton and Integral satellite control rooms in Spain.

The General Assembly of the United Nations has declared 2009 as the 'International Year of Astronomy' (IYA 2009). This global programme was initiated by the International Astronomical Union and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization with the aim of helping the citizens of the world to rediscover their place in the Universe by reconnecting to the day- and night-sky. 100 Hours of Astronomy is a cornerstone project for IYA 2009.

‘Around the World in 80 Telescopes’ is a live 24-hour video webcast that begins on 3 April at 11:00 CEST. It will take viewers to some of the most advanced ground- and space-based observatories around the world and off the planet.

Viewers can watch what’s on at an observatory in their home country or on the other side of the planet, send in questions and messages, see new images from the cosmos, and discover what astronomers are up to at that very moment.

The webcast is organised by the European Southern Observatory (ESO). The ESA segment will be hosted at at ESA’s European Space Astronomy Centre in Spain. It will provide viewers with an insight into two space observatories, XMM-Newton and Integral, an opportunity to meet astronomers working on these missions, a sneak preview at a pretty new XMM-Newton image of Messier 82, and a chance to participate in a student competition using data from the Integral satellite.

Live and recorded webcasts are available here:

http://www.eso.org/public/events/special-evt/100ha/index.html

GOCE: The First Earth Exploring Mission is launched today

2009-03-17T12:00:00.000-07:00

Credit: esa.int

This afternoon, the Gravity field and steady-state Ocean Circulation Explorer (GOCE) satellite developed by the European Space Agency (ESA) was lofted into a near-Sun-synchronous, low Earth orbit by a Rockot launcher lifting off from the Plesetsk cosmodrome in northern Russia.

The Russian Rockot launcher, derived from a converted ballistic missile, lifted off at 15:21 CET (14:21 GMT) and flew northward over the Arctic. About 90 minutes later, after one orbital revolution and two Breeze-KM upper-stage burns, the 1052 kg spacecraft was successfully released into a circular polar orbit at 280 km altitude with 96.7º inclination to the Equator. The launch was procured from Eurockot Launch Services, a German/Russian company based in Bremen, Germany.

With this launch, a new chapter in the history of Earth observation in Europe has begun. GOCE is the first of a new family of ESA satellites designed to study our planet and its environment in order to enhance our knowledge and understanding of Earth-system processes and their evolution, to enable us to address the challenges of global climate change. In particular, GOCE will measure the minute differences in the Earth’s gravity field around the globe.

Contact with GOCE was established via ESA’s tracking station in Kiruna, Sweden, shortly after separation. The spacecraft is now under the control of ESA’s teams at its European Space Operations Centre in Darmstadt, Germany.

A New NASA Lunar Spacecraft Ships South In Preparation For Launch on 24 of April, 2009

2009-02-14T03:22:00.000-08:00

Credit: nasa.gov

NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, or LRO, spacecraft was loaded on a truck Wednesday to begin its two-day journey to NASA's Kennedy Space justify in Florida. Launch is targeted for April 24.

The spacecraft was built by engineers at Goddard, where it recently completed two months of tests in a thermal vacuum chamber. During its time in the chamber, the spacecraft was subjected to hot and cold temperatures it will experience as it orbits the moon.

The satellite's mission is one of the first steps in NASA's plan to return astronauts to the moon. LRO will spend at least one year in a low polar orbit on its primary exploration mission, with the possibility of three more years to collect additional detailed scientific information about the moon and its environment.

The orbiter will carry seven instruments to provide scientists with detailed maps of the lunar surface and enhance our understanding of the moon's topography, lighting conditions, mineralogical composition and natural resources. Information gleaned from LRO will be used to select safe landing sites, determine locations for future lunar outposts and help mitigate radiation dangers to astronauts. The polar regions of the moon are the main focus of the mission because continuous access to sunlight may be possible and water ice may exist in permanently shadowed areas of the poles.

"This is the culmination of four years of hard work by everyone on the LRO Project," said Cathy Peddie, LRO deputy project manager at NASA's Goddard Space Flight justify in Greenbelt, Md. "LRO now begins its launch site processing, where it will be prepped for integration with our sister mission LCROSS, and eventually encapsulated in the Atlas V for its journey to the moon."

LRO's instruments have considerable heritage from previous planetary science missions, enabling the spacecraft to transition to a research phase under the direction of NASA's Science Mission Directorate one year after launch.

Accompanying LRO on its journey to the moon will be the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite, or LCROSS, a mission that will impact the lunar surface in its search for water ice. The LCROSS mission is managed by NASA's Ames Research justify at Moffett Field, Calif.

For more information please visit nasa.gov

ESA global land cover map is available online now.

2009-01-06T11:10:00.000-08:00

ESA global land cover map.
Credit: esa.int

ESA's global land cover map, which is ten times sharper than any previous global satellite map, is now available to the public online from the GlobCover website. It is the highest resolution land cover map that has been completely validated ever released.

Sixteen experts validated the map using more than 3 000 reference land cover points and showed it had an overall accuracy of 73% weighted by area for its 22 land cover classes. The map’s legend was developed using the United Nation Food and Agriculture Organisation's (FAO) Land Cover Classification System (LCCS).

The map was generated using 19 months worth of data from Envisat's Medium Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MERIS) instrument working in Full Resolution Mode to provide a spatial resolution of 300 m. Data were collected between December 2004 and June 2006.

A consortium of specialists worked to process the map, including Medias France, Germany's Brockmann Consult and Belgium's Université catholique de Louvain.

These data are useful for many applications, including modelling climate change extent and impacts, conserving biodiversity and managing natural resources. The map has been downloaded by more than 4 000 people since October 2008.

The higher resolution map is available here:
esa.int

Mars Express Observes The Red Planet

2008-11-22T05:41:00.000-08:00

Scientists using ESA’s Mars Express have produced the first crude map of aurorae on Mars. These displays of ultraviolet light appear to be located close to the residual magnetic fields generated by Mars’s crustal rocks. They highlight a number of mysteries about the way Mars interacts with electrically charged particles originating from the Sun.

The aurorae on Mars were discovered in 2004 using the SPICAM ultraviolet and infrared atmospheric spectrometer on board Mars Express. They are a powerful tool with which scientists can investigate the composition and structure of the Red Planet’s atmosphere.

Now Francois Leblanc, from the Service d’Aéronomie, IPSL/CNRS, France and colleagues have announced the results of coordinated observation campaigns using SPICAM, the MARSIS sub-surface sounding radar altimeter’s radar, and the energetic neutral atoms analyser, ASPERA’s electron spectrometer on Mars Express.

They have observed nine new auroral emission events, which have allowed them to make the first crude map of auroral activity on Mars. They see that the aurorae seem to be located near regions where the martian magnetic field is the strongest. MARSIS had previously observed higher-than-expected electrons in similar regions. This suggests, although it does not prove, that the magnetic fields help to create the aurorae.

On Earth, aurorae are more commonly known as the northern and southern lights. They are confined to the polar regions and shine brightly at visible as well as ultraviolet wavelengths. The existence of similar aurorae is well known on the giant planets of the Solar System. They occur wherever a planet’s magnetic field channels electrically charged particles into the atmosphere.

More information available at esa.int

ESA presents new human spaceflight education DVD at 'Science on Stage'

2008-11-02T05:12:00.000-08:00

How fast do we need to travel to stay in orbit around the Earth? Why it is necessary to push up the International Space Station every now and then? How does portable satellite navigation work when I am riding my bike?

Although we use space technology on a daily basis and we have permanently inhabited Earth's orbit for almost a decade, we rarely know how it actually works. The new education DVD from ESA's Directorate of Human Spaceflight (D/HSF) 'Space Transportation: an ATV perspective' sheds some light on exactly these topics.

The team from the D/HSF Erasmus Centre, who produced this DVD, picked one of ESA's latest success stories - the mission of Jules Verne, the first Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) that was docked to the International Space Station (ISS) for 6 months - to highlight the complex physical laws behind handy space applications and driving current and future human exploration undertakings.

During the 'Science on Stage' event in Berlin last week, Sabbatini and his team put the new production to test. It had to undergo a reality check done by participating teachers. Like its protagonist, the Jules Verne spacecraft, the DVD 'Space Transportation: an ATV Perspective' was also awarded the highest marks.

Like another recent ESA release, the DVD 'The Ingredients for life: On Earth and in Space', this DVD forms part of a wide range of education material for students and teachers at primary, secondary and university level. ESA's Human Spaceflight Education Programme takes the inspiration of human spaceflight and the ISS to capture the attention and the interest of students and to attract them to study, in particular, scientific and technical disciplines.

The Science on Stage Festival represents a platform for teachers and education experts to discuss concepts and methods of teaching science and technology subjects. Some 300 participants from across Europe attended and presented scientific experiments, lectures and workshops on current education topics. ESA participated with its own stand: representatives of the Human Spaceflight Education Programme were available to meet teachers and discuss with them about the benefit and importance of space for Europe, to illustrate ESA educational projects and to distribute the newest ESA teaching tools.

For a complete list of available material visit: http://www.esa.int/spaceflight/education.

Ozone Hole Is Growing

2008-10-07T03:52:00.000-07:00

Credits: esa.int

Ozone hole during 7 October 2008 as measured by the Scanning Imaging Absorption Spectrometer for Atmospheric Cartography (SCIAMACHY) atmospheric sensor onboard ESA's Envisat.

Credits: Credits: KNMI/ESA

Monthly averages of total ozone values for September over the South Pole for the last 10 years using measurements from the Scanning Imaging Absorption Spectrometer for Atmospheric Cartography (SCIAMACHY) sensor aboard ESA's Envisat, the Global Ozone Monitoring Experiment (GOME) aboard ESA’s ERS-2 and its follow-on instrument GOME-2 aboard EUMETSAT's MetOp.

Credit: Credits: DLR

See also: Great Sandstorm Above the Persian Gulf

Falcon 1 Is Successfully Launched

2008-09-29T04:47:00.000-07:00

Credit: spacex.com

Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) announces that Flight 4 of the Falcon 1 launch vehicle has successfully launched and achieved Earth orbit. With this key milestone, Falcon 1 becomes the first privately developed liquid fuel rocket to orbit the Earth.

"This is a great day for SpaceX and the culmination of an enormous amount of work by a great team," said Elon Musk, CEO and CTO of SpaceX. "The data shows we achieved a super precise orbit insertion—middle of the bull's-eye — and then went on to coast and restart the second stage, which was icing on the cake."

Falcon 1, designed from the ground up by SpaceX, lifted off at 4:15 p.m. (PDT) / 23:15 (UTC) from the Reagan Test Site (RTS) on Omelek Island at the U.S. Army Kwajalein Atoll (USAKA) in the Central Pacific, about 2,500 miles southwest of Hawaii.

Preliminary data indicates that Falcon 1 achieved an elliptical orbit of 500 km by 700 km, 9.2 degrees inclination—exactly as targeted.

Falcon 1 carried into orbit a payload mass simulator of approximately 165 kg (364 lbs), designed and built by SpaceX, specifically for this mission. Consisting of a hexagonal aluminum alloy chamber 1.5 meters (5 feet) tall, the payload remains attached to the second stage as it orbits Earth.

This was the fourth launch of the Falcon 1 launch vehicle and second flight for the new SpaceX-developed Merlin 1C regeneratively-cooled engine. A "hold before liftoff" system was used to enhance reliability by permitting all launch systems to be verified as functioning nominally before launch was initiated. A single SpaceX-developed Kestrel engine powered the Falcon 1 second stage.

For more information about the Falcon family of vehicles, and to watch the archived video of the Falcon 1, Flight 4 launch, visit the SpaceX website.

Jules Verne Mission Will Draw To An End

2008-09-05T07:10:00.000-07:00

Credits: ESA

In just a few days time, the historic Jules Verne mission will draw to an end. After the ATV Control Centre commands the opening of the Automated Transfer Vehicle hooks, ESA's first resupply and reboost vehicle will perform a fully automated undocking with the International Space Station on 5 September at 23:30 CEST (21:30 UT).

The undocking of the Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) will conclude the remarkably successful five-month attached phase of the mission, and mark the end of Jules Verne's main servicing mission to deliver cargo, propellant, water, oxygen and propulsion capacity to the Station. Since its perfect launch on 9 March, Jules Verne ATV has achieved each scheduled objective and much more.

Following a successful test of its anti-collision manoeuvre system, ATV demonstrated the high level performance of its precise rendezvous piloting, navigation and control. Then, after a superb final approach and docking on 3 April, the spacecraft completed all resupply tasks and even provided capabilities unplanned before its mission, such as a debris avoidance manoeuvre for the International Space Station (ISS), recovering large amounts of stored condensation water from the ISS in its empty tanks and offering a new comfortable sleeping area for Space Station crew members.

A lot of moving in and out

"Over the last 7 days, the ISS crew has spent 31 hours in their heavy schedule to carry, as planned, the remaining 900 kg (of the original 1150 kg) of dry cargo from the ATV to the Station," said Hervé Côme, ESA's ATV Mission Director at the ATV Control Centre (ATV-CC) in Toulouse, France.

The three ISS crew members, Sergei Volkov, Oleg Kononenko, Greg Chamitoff have been 'flying' back and forth in microgravity through the ATV's open hatch, carrying food, clothes and equipment, as well as two original manuscripts handwritten by Jules Verne and a 19th century illustrated edition of his novel 'From the Earth to the Moon'.

The astronauts have also worked hard carrying items in the opposite direction, loading waste and excess equipment from the ISS into the racks and spaces left empty inside Jules Verne.

Credits: ESA

The total dry cargo waste loaded into ATV represents 816 kg of material no longer needed on the Station. On top of that, 264 kg of liquid waste has been transferred from the Station to the ATV's water tanks. This weight does not include the accommodation hardware, such as the racks and bags that store the dry cargo and liquid waste.

Russian ISS Commander Sergei Volkov, performed a special deck inspection of the ATV to check on possible condensation and to measure shell temperature of the ESA spaceship. Although there was no safety concern, this measure was implemented after the discovery early in the flight that several external layers of MLI (Multi-Layer Insulation) had shifted during launch, exposing the ATV's hull in several locations without thermal insulation. Using a 'Scopemeter' with a thermal probe, Volkov confirmed the temperature to be well within normal margins.

Read more: esa.int

New Round Of The Space Race

2008-09-03T00:23:00.000-07:00

Aerospace engineers have been holed up in a Mojave Desert hangar for four years, fashioning a commercial spaceship to loft rich tourists some 62 miles above Earth. Now the wraps come partially off the top-secret project.

SpaceShipOne ushered in a new space age dominated by deep-pocketed entrepreneurs with dreams of making space voyages as mundane as airplane travel. That vision remains unfulfilled.

Among the new space entrepreneurs is the swashbuckling Branson, who teamed with Rutan's publicity-shy Scaled Composites LLC to commercialize SpaceShipOne. Its successor, SpaceShipTwo, is being designed out of the public eye, along with the carrier aircraft White Knight Two.

" They've been hyping this and selling tickets," said Alan Radecki, a helicopter mechanic and aviation photographer who follows the private space race. "This is the first time they're going to have hardware to show people."

Branson previously heralded 2008 as the "Year of the Spaceship." In January, he and Rutan offered a sneak peak of their commercial partnership, showing off scale models of the mothership and the spacecraft it will launch.

Though technical details remain guarded, tidbits about the vehicles have trickled out: The twin-fuselage White Knight Two will have the same wingspan - 140 feet - as the Boeing B-29 Superfortress, a World War II bomber.

British billionaire Sir Richard Branson and American aerospace designer Burt Rutan are due to show off their mothership, which is designed to air launch a passenger-toting spaceship out of the atmosphere.

It will launch SpaceShipTwo, which will be the size of a corporate Gulfstream capable of carrying six passengers and two pilots. Both will be built wholly from ultra-light composite material. Flight testing is slated for the end of September.

Meanwhile, SpaceShipTwo is only about 70 percent complete, said Virgin Galactic president Will Whitehorn.

Observers of the infant private spaceflight industry are encouraged by the progress, but note that the main attraction - the actual spaceship that will carry passengers - is yet to come.

"It's a positive step forward," said space analyst John Logsdon of George Washington University. "The real indication of progress will be showing a spaceship that's on the path that's ready to fly."

Whitehorn declined to set a date for commercial travel, but he said the earliest flights to space could be late 2009 or early 2010. The maiden voyage has been reserved for Branson and his family; Virgin Galactic plans to rename the aircraft "Eve" after Branson's mother, a former glider pilot instructor and flight attendant.

Plans call for White Knight Two to carry SpaceShipTwo 50,000 feet in the air, tucked beneath its single 140-foot wing, before releasing it. SpaceShipTwo will then power its hybrid rocket and climb into space. Before gliding back to Earth, it will use a Rutan-designed "feathering" technique - in which the wings are rotated upward from the fuselage to reduce the heat of re-entry.

The 2-1/2 hour trip is expected to include about five minutes of weightlessness.

The unveiling comes a year after an explosion at Scaled Composites' test site killed three technicians. The company, now owned by Northrop Grumman Corp., is appealing a state fine of $28,870 for workplace violations in connection with the blast, which occurred during the development of SpaceShipTwo's propellant system.

Exactly when tourists will experience zero gravity or see Earth's curvature is unknown, but the project already lags Virgin Galactic's 2004 prediction that passengers would be in space last year.

The rollout - a year after a deadly accident at Rutan’s test site - marks the start of a rigorous flight test program that space tourism advocates hope will climax with the first suborbital joy rides by the end of the decade. More than 250 wannabe astronauts have paid $200,000 or put down deposits for a chance to float weightless for a mere five minutes.

"Having invested all my faith in it, I'm so excited to see the actual thing," said artist Namira Salim, a customer who is lined up for a ride on Branson's Virgin Galactic.

The last time there was this level of buzz in the high desert north of Los Angeles was in 2004, when throngs of spectators gathered to witness SpaceShipOne capture the $10 million Ansari X Prize by becoming the first private, manned craft to reach space. It was designed by Rutan and bankrolled by Microsoft Corp. co-founder Paul Allen.

NASA Spacecraft Discovered Martian Water

2008-08-04T05:05:00.000-07:00

Credit: nasa.gov

Laboratory tests aboard NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander have identified water in a soil sample. The lander's robotic arm delivered the sample Wednesday to an instrument that identifies vapors produced by the heating of samples.

The soil sample came from a trench approximately 2 inches deep. When the robotic arm first reached that depth, it hit a hard layer of frozen soil. Two attempts to deliver samples of icy soil on days when fresh material was exposed were foiled when the samples became stuck inside the scoop. Most of the material in Wednesday's sample had been exposed to the air for two days, letting some of the water in the sample vaporize away and making the soil easier to handle.

"We have water," said William Boynton of the University of Arizona, lead scientist for the Thermal and Evolved-Gas Analyzer, or TEGA. "We've seen evidence for this water ice before in observations by the Mars Odyssey orbiter and in disappearing chunks observed by Phoenix last month, but this is the first time Martian water has been touched and tasted."

With enticing results so far and the spacecraft in good shape, NASA also announced operational funding for the mission will extend through Sept. 30. The original prime mission of three months ends in late August. The mission extension adds five weeks to the 90 days of the prime mission.

"Phoenix is healthy and the projections for solar power look good, so we want to take full advantage of having this resource in one of the most interesting locations on Mars," said Michael Meyer, chief scientist for the Mars Exploration Program at NASA Headquarters in Washington.

"Mars is giving us some surprises," said Phoenix principal investigator Peter Smith of the University of Arizona. "We're excited because surprises are where discoveries come from. One surprise is how the soil is behaving. The ice-rich layers stick to the scoop when poised in the sun above the deck, different from what we expected from all the Mars simulation testing we've done. That has presented challenges for delivering samples, but we're finding ways to work with it and we're gathering lots of information to help us understand this soil."

Since landing on May 25, Phoenix has been studying soil with a chemistry lab, TEGA, a microscope, a conductivity probe and cameras. Besides confirming the 2002 finding from orbit of water ice near the surface and deciphering the newly observed stickiness, the science team is trying to determine whether the water ice ever thaws enough to be available for biology and if carbon-containing chemicals and other raw materials for life are present.

The mission is examining the sky as well as the ground. A Canadian instrument is using a laser beam to study dust and clouds overhead.

"It's a 30-watt light bulb giving us a laser show on Mars," said Victoria Hipkin of the Canadian Space Agency.

A full-circle, color panorama of Phoenix's surroundings also has been completed by the spacecraft.

"The details and patterns we see in the ground show an ice-dominated terrain as far as the eye can see," said Mark Lemmon of Texas A&M University, lead scientist for Phoenix's Surface Stereo Imager camera. "They help us plan measurements we're making within reach of the robotic arm and interpret those measurements on a wider scale."

The Phoenix mission is led by Smith at the University of Arizona with project management at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., and development partnership at Lockheed Martin in Denver. International contributions come from the Canadian Space Agency; the University of Neuchatel, Switzerland; the universities of Copenhagen and Aarhus in Denmark; the Max Planck Institute in Germany; and the Finnish Meteorological Institute.

Read more: nasa.gov

iMARS Mission: Bridging Robotic And Human Space Exploration

2008-07-23T08:13:00.000-07:00

Credit: esa.int

The first robotic mission to return samples to Earth from Mars took a further step toward realisation with the recent publication of a mission design report by the iMARS Working Group. The report defines key elements of the future internationally-funded mission involving the cooperation of ESA, NASA and other national agencies.

The Mars Sample Return mission is an essential step with respect to future exploration goals and the prospect of establishing a future human mission to Mars. Returned samples will increase the knowledge of the properties of Martian soil and contribute significantly to answering questions about the possibility of life on the Red Planet. This mission will improve our understanding of the Mars environment to support planning for the future human exploration.

iMARS, which stands for the International Mars Architecture for the Return of Samples, is a committee of the International Mars Exploration Working Group made up of scientists, engineers, strategic planners, and managers. The report, which comes after months of deliberation, outlines the scientific and engineering requirements of such an international mission to be undertaken in the timeframe 2020-2022.

Credit: Voyage to Planets, BBC

Credit: Space Odyssey: Voyage to Planets, BBC

The iMARS report outlines the mission's scientific objectives including the types and quantities of samples to be returned from Mars; the different mission elements (launchers, spacecraft, Mars lander, a rover and a Mars ascent vehicle) and ground processing facilities necessary to contain and analyse the received samples in a protected environment. A preliminary timeline for the mission and approximate budget has also been defined.

"Exploration is gaining momentum year by year, as is the experience and knowledge gained by ESA and its international partners in this area” said Bruno Gardini ESA's Exploration Programme Manager in the Directorate of Human Spaceflight and iMARS study leader. “The information we gain from current Mars missions and from the ISS provide a basis not only for future robotic missions but also a stepping stone for the human exploration missions."

Great Sandstorm Above the Persian Gulf

2008-07-13T06:33:00.001-07:00

Some of the world's largest sandy desert areas, including the Rub'al Khali and An-Nafud, are located in the Arabian Peninsula. Sand and dust storms are usually the result of atmospheric convection currents, which form when warm, lighter air rises and cold, heavier air sinks.

Envisat captures sand and dust blowing northeast from the Arabian Peninsula across the Persian Gulf toward Iran.

Dust storms in northeastern Iraq, the Persian Gulf and the southern Arabian Peninsula are more frequent in summer because a strong northwesterly wind, called the shamal, blows over the floodplain of Iraq’s Tigris and Euphrates Rivers for up to three months, transporting the sand and dust.

Other countries visible in the image include Iraq (where the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers merge at top left), Kuwait (top left of Persian Gulf), Saudi Arabia (bottom stretching along the peninsula) and Qatar (centre right, jutting out into the Persian Gulf).

In mid-June, a shamal caused a massive dust storm that stretched from Iraq to India to the Arabian Peninsula, where it hovered for days due to low wind speeds.

This image was acquired on 1 July 2008 by Envisat's Medium Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MERIS) instrument while working in Full Resolution mode to provide a spatial resolution of 1.2 km.

Start of the Cassini Equinox Mission

2008-07-06T05:16:00.000-07:00

Approval for the two-year extension, called the Cassini Equinox Mission, was announced by NASA in April 2008.

The mission extension builds upon the success of the primary mission. Some key scientific objectives of this extended mission are:

to monitor seasonal effects on Titan and Saturn
to study in more detail the Saturnian moons, in particular Titan and Enceladus
to observe the unique ring geometry of the Saturn equinox in August 2009 - when sunlight will pass directly through the plane of the rings
to explore new regions of the Saturnian magnetosphere

Data from the Cassini primary and extended missions will provide valuable data for possible future missions to Saturn, Titan or Enceladus.

Observations of Titan have been obtained by the orbiter remote sensing instruments during several flybys of the primary mission. The Huygens landing site, which has already been observed a few times, will be further observed during the extended mission, in particular with the RADAR and VIMS instruments. Observations with these instruments, which at closest approach to Titan have a resolution of 300-500 m, will be used to look for temporal variability in this region which has been extensively studied with Huygens.

Cassini-Huygens is a joint NASA/ESA/ASI mission to explore Saturn, Titan and the other moons of the Saturnian system. The mission has two distinct elements: the Cassini orbiter and the Huygens probe, the latter provided by ESA.

The Huygens probe successfully completed its part of the mission on 14 January 2005 when it successfully entered Titan's upper atmosphere and descended under parachute to the surface. The descent phase lasted around 2 hours 27 minutes with a further 1 hour 10 minutes on the surface. Throughout this period data was collected from all instruments providing a detailed picture of Titan's atmosphere and surface.

More information about Cassini mission available here and here.

European Astronaut Selection

2008-06-15T04:17:00.000-07:00

Aspiring astronauts still have some time to fill in their online application forms before the closing date of Monday 16 June and, who knows, they may get the chance to join an elite team and fly in space.

ESA began its selection procedure for new astronauts in May, calling for applications from talented individuals who wish to join the European Astronaut Corps. There has not been a selection campaign since 1992, so this is a rare opportunity to be at the forefront of ESA’s human spaceflight programmes, including future missions to the ISS, the Moon and beyond.

“The application phase is a very exciting period for the entire ESA Astronaut Selection Team. We already have a large number of highly qualified applicants but it is still possible to apply until Monday 16 June, and why should not one of those selected be among the very last to apply?” said Gerhard Thiele, Head of the European Astronaut Corps and ESA Astronaut Selection Project Manager.

Applicants from all 17 Member States (Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom) are welcome to apply.

Apply here: http://www.esa.int/astronautselection

NASA's Phoenix Spacecraft Lands at Martian Arctic Site

2008-05-30T04:00:00.000-07:00

The martian surface, seen by Phoenix Spacecraft

NASA's Phoenix spacecraft landed in the northern polar region of Mars Sunday to begin three months of examining a site chosen for its likelihood of having frozen water within reach of the lander's robotic arm.

Radio signals received at 4:53:44 p.m. Pacific Time (7:53:44 p.m. Eastern Time) confirmed the Phoenix Mars Lander had survived its difficult final descent and touchdown 15 minutes earlier. The signals took that long to travel from Mars to Earth at the speed of light.

Mission team members at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.; Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver; and the University of Arizona, Tucson, cheered confirmation of the landing and eagerly awaited further information from Phoenix later Sunday night.

Among those in the JPL control room was NASA Administrator Michael Griffin, who noted this was the first successful Mars landing without airbags since Viking 2 in 1976.

ESA completed a key step in its ongoing support to NASA's Phoenix mission, when signals from the Phoenix Mars lander recorded by Mars Express were successfully received at ESA's Space Operations Centre (ESOC), Darmstadt, Germany. NASA has just made the first few images available.

The signals from Phoenix were monitored by Mars Express between 01:21 - 01:47 CEST on 26 May during the lander's critical entry, descent and landing (EDL) phase. They were received by the European spacecraft via the Mars Express Lander Communications (MELACOM) system.

For more images returned by Phoenix, please see The University of Arizona's Phoenix image gallery.

During its 422-million-mile flight from Earth to Mars after launching on Aug. 4, 2007, Phoenix relied on electricity from solar panels during the spacecraft's cruise stage. The cruise stage was jettisoned seven minutes before the lander, encased in a protective shell, entered the Martian atmosphere. Batteries provide electricity until the lander's own pair of solar arrays spread open.

Phoenix uses hardware from a spacecraft built for a 2001 launch that was canceled in response to the loss of a similar Mars spacecraft during a 1999 landing attempt. Researchers who proposed the Phoenix mission in 2002 saw the unused spacecraft as a resource for pursuing a new science opportunity. Earlier in 2002, Mars Odyssey discovered that plentiful water ice lies just beneath the surface throughout much of high-latitude Mars. NASA chose the Phoenix proposal over 24 other proposals to become the first endeavor in the Mars Scout program of competitively selected missions.

The Phoenix mission is led by Smith at the University of Arizona with project management at JPL and development partnership at Lockheed Martin, Denver. International contributions come from the Canadian Space Agency; the University of Neuchatel, Switzerland; the universities of Copenhagen and Aarhus, Denmark; Max Planck Institute, Germany; and the Finnish Meteorological Institute.

Phoenix Ready for Mars Landing

2008-05-14T07:47:00.000-07:00

NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander is preparing to end its long journey and begin a three-month mission to taste and sniff fistfuls of Martian soil and buried ice. The lander is scheduled to touch down on the Red Planet May 25.

Phoenix will enter the top of the Martian atmosphere at almost 13,000 mph. In seven minutes, the spacecraft must complete a challenging sequence of events to slow to about 5 mph before its three legs reach the ground. Confirmation of the landing could come as early as 7:53 p.m. EDT.

"We have blanketed nearly the entire landing area with HiRISE images," said Ray Arvidson of Washington University in St. Louis, chairman of the Phoenix landing-site working group. "This is one of the least rocky areas on all of Mars and we are confident that rocks will not detrimentally impact the ability of Phoenix to land safely."

"This is not a trip to grandma's house. Putting a spacecraft safely on Mars is hard and risky," said Ed Weiler, associate administrator for NASA's Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "Internationally, fewer than half the attempts have succeeded."

Rocks large enough to spoil the landing or prevent opening of the solar panels present the biggest known risk. However, images from the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, detailed enough to show individual rocks smaller than the lander, have helped lessen that risk.

Earlier in 2002, NASA's Mars Odyssey orbiter discovered that plentiful water ice lies just beneath the surface throughout much of high-latitude Mars. NASA chose the Phoenix proposal over 24 other proposals to become the first endeavor in the Mars Scout program of competitively selected missions.

One research goal is to assess whether conditions at the site ever have been favorable for microbial life. The composition and texture of soil above the ice could give clues to whether the ice ever melts in response to long-term climate cycles. Another important question is whether the scooped-up samples contain carbon-based chemicals that are potential building blocks and food for life.

Read more at: nasa.gov

Navigation Satellite Launched Yesterday

2008-04-28T09:04:00.000-07:00

ESA's second Galileo In-Orbit Validation Element (GIOVE-B) satellite

The GIOVE-B satellite was lofted into a medium altitude orbit around the earth by a Soyuz/Fregat rocket departing from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan by launch operator Starsem. Lift-off occurred at 04:16 local time on 27 April (00:16 Central European Summer Time). The Fregat upper stage performed a series of manoeuvres to reach a circular orbit at an altitude of about 23 200 km, inclined at 56 degrees to the Equator, before safely delivering the satellite into orbit some 3 hours and 45 minutes later. The two solar panels that generate electricity to power the spacecraft deployed correctly and were fully operational by 05:28 CEST.

A further step towards the deployment of Europe's Galileo global navigation satellite system was taken tonight, with the successful launch of ESA's second Galileo In-Orbit Validation Element (GIOVE-B) satellite, carrying the most accurate atomic clock ever flown into space.

This 500 kg satellite was built by a European industrial team led by Astrium GmbH, with Thales Alenia Space performing integration and testing in Rome. Two years after the highly successful GIOVE-A mission, this latest satellite will continue the demonstration of critical technologies for the navigation payload of future operational Galileo satellites.

This 500 kg satellite was built by a European industrial team led by Astrium GmbH, with Thales Alenia Space performing integration and testing in Rome. Two years after the highly successful GIOVE-A mission, this latest satellite will continue the demonstration of critical technologies for the navigation payload of future operational Galileo satellites.

Like its predecessor, GIOVE-B carries two redundant small-size rubidium atomic clocks, each with a stability of 10 nanoseconds per day. But it also features an even more accurate payload: the Passive Hydrogen Maser (PHM), with stability better than 1 nanosecond per day. The first of its kind ever to be launched into space, this is now the most stable clock operating in earth orbit. Two PHMs will be used as primary clocks onboard operational Galileo satellites, with two rubidium clocks serving as back-up.

Read more at: esa.int

Blowing in the air current (Great Dust Storm in Senegal)

2008-04-13T04:47:00.000-07:00

Earth from Space, Sand and Dust Storm. Credit: ESA

Envisat captures sand and dust from the Sahara Desert blowing across the Atlantic Ocean along the coasts of Mauritania (top), Senegal (middle) and Guinea Bissau (bottom). The cloud-covered Cape Verde islands are visible off the coast of Senegal.

Sandstorms, or dust storms, are usually the result of atmospheric convection currents, which form when warm, lighter air rises and cold, heavier air sinks. Dust from the Sahara Desert can be transported over thousands of kilometres by convection currents, which also cause other meteorological conditions, such as thunderstorms.

Sandstorms are very common over the Sahara, which is a major source of mineral dust, and large concentrations of it can be found in the tropical Atlantic and the Caribbean.

Saharan dust plays an important role in the Mediterranean region because it is the major source of mineral nutrients for phytoplankton – the basic food on which all other marine life depends. It is not always beneficial, however. In the Caribbean, Saharan dust is believed to infect coral reefs with the sea fan disease.

The dust is also thought to be linked to health risks, such as increased incidences of paediatric asthma attacks in the Caribbean and epidemics of lethal meningitis in the semi-arid sub-Saharan territory known as the Sahel belt.

This image was acquired on 29 March 2008 by Envisat’s Medium Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MERIS) instrument while working in Full Resolution mode to provide a spatial resolution of 300 metres.

Jules Verne ATV docked with ISS

2008-04-08T05:11:00.000-07:00

credit: esa.int

The astronauts on board the International Space Station performed final ATV hatch opening at around 10:30 CEST (08:30 UT) this morning, clearing the way for the crew to start unloading Jules Verne’s cargo delivery.

The hatches between ISS and Jules Verne ATV were opened for the first time at around 12:15 CEST (10:15 UT) on Friday, at which time the crew briefly entered ATV to place an air filtering device. The so-called ‘air scrubber’ was left to run for 8 hours removing any unwanted gasses or small particles of debris that may be floating around.

Immediately after hatch reopening this morning, the lights inside Jules Verne ATV were turned on and the air scrubber dismounted. The crew will now install portable breathing apparatus, a fire extinguisher and the handrails which help the astronauts move around inside ATV. A flexible hose will also be installed to provide additional ventilation. Once all of these items are in place, ATV is ready for full, regular operations.

ATV also brings a special gift – a playlist of music selected by Norwegian teenager Therese Miljeteig, the winner of ESA’s ATV competition to suggest 10 songs to inspire the astronauts.

Jules Verne will remain attached to as a 48 m3 pressurised and integral part of the complex until early August. When required, ATV will boost the Station’s orbit to overcome the effects of residual atmospheric drag. At the end of its mission, Jules Verne ATV will burn up in a controlled reentry into the Earth’s atmosphere, and in the process, it will eliminate 6.3 tonnes of waste material no longer needed on the Station and stored over 4 months in the ATV.

Read more: esa.int