Archive for the 'Space' Category
U.S. to Return Astronauts to the Moon by 2024, VP Pence Says
March 29th, 2019I wonder what this is actually about? Via: Space.com: The United States plans to land astronauts on the moon within the next five years, Vice President Mike Pence announced today (March 26). The nation had been shooting for a 2028 lunar touchdown, but “that’s just not good enough,” Pence said during the fifth meeting of […]
Pentagon Wants to Test A Space-Based Weapon in 2023
March 16th, 2019Via: DefenseOne: Defense officials want to test a neutral particle-beam in orbit in fiscal 2023 as part of a ramped-up effort to explore various types of space-based weaponry. They’ve asked for $304 million in the 2020 budget to develop such beams, more powerful lasers, and other new tech for next-generation missile defense. Such weapons are […]
China’s Military-Run Space Station in Argentina Is a ‘Black Box’
January 31st, 2019China – Argentina – Patagonia ground station: Outrage, spying, unspecified doom in the media. United States – Australia – Pine Gap: *crickets* Via: Reuters: The United States has long been worried about what it sees as China’s strategy to “militarize” space, according to one U.S. official, who added there was reason to be skeptical of […]
China Makes Historic 1st Landing on Mysterious Far Side of the Moon
January 3rd, 2019Via: Space: Humanity just planted its flag on the far side of the moon. China’s robotic Chang’e 4 mission touched down on the floor of the 115-mile-wide (186 kilometers) Von Kármán Crater Wednesday night (Jan. 2), pulling off the first-ever soft landing on the mysterious lunar far side. Chang’e 4 will perform a variety of […]
Virgin Galactic Test Flight Reaches Edge of Space for First Time
December 13th, 2018Via: CBS: Virgin Galactic’s rocket-powered SpaceShipTwo carried two test pilots out of the discernible atmosphere Thursday, the company’s first piloted flight to the edge of space and a major milestone for Richard Branson’s plans to eventually launch tourists on brief, sub-orbital trips to space. It was the fourth non-government, purely commercial flight to carry pilots […]
The DIY Rocketeer Building SpaceX Replicas of Self-Landing Rockets
December 8th, 2018bps.space bps.space YouTube Channel Via: Motherboard: Joe Barnard left his background in videography and music production to launch his life of amateur rocketry, and he shares his DIY adventures in building rockets on his YouTube channel BPS.space.
China Launches Probe to Explore Dark Side of Moon
December 8th, 2018Via: Reuters: China on Saturday launched a first probe ever to explore the dark side of the Moon, marking another milestone in its ambitious space program, the official Xinhua News Agency reported. The probe, the Chang’e-4, is expected to make the first-ever soft landing on the far side of the Moon, according to Xinhua. Previous […]
Space X: Same First Stage Successfully Used for Third Launch
December 3rd, 2018Via: CBS: A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket using a first stage making a record third flight vaulted away from the California coast Monday, boosting 64 small satellites into orbit for a wide variety of government, academic and private-sector users — including artists — in a commercial launch chartered by Seattle-based Spaceflight. The Falcon 9’s well-traveled […]
Silent and Simple Ion Engine Powers a Plane with No Moving Parts
November 21st, 2018I found a video of the flight: Via: Scientific American: Behind a thin white veil separating his makeshift lab from joggers at a Massachusetts Institute of Technology indoor track, aerospace engineer Steven Barrett recently test-flew the first-ever airplane powered with ionic wind thrusters—electric engines that generate momentum by creating and firing off charged particles.
FCC Approves SpaceX Application for Massive Satellite Constellation
November 15th, 2018Via: Ars Technica: SpaceX today received US approval to deploy 7,518 broadband satellites, in addition to the 4,425 satellites that were approved eight months ago. The Federal Communications Commission voted to let SpaceX launch 4,425 low-Earth orbit satellites in March of this year. SpaceX separately sought approval for 7,518 satellites operating even closer to the […]
