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April 20, 2015

NASA spacecraft set for death plunge into Mercury
Miami (AFP) April 16, 2015
A NASA probe that has circled Mercury for the past four years will make a dramatic death plunge into the planet's surface in late April when it runs out of fuel. The MESSENGER spacecraft - which stands for MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry, and Ranging - will end its run, as planned, on or around April 30, the US space agency said. Its mission was initially only supposed to last one year, but since it was operating well and returning interesting data and discoveries, scientists ... read more

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Why astronomers hate the lawn-mowing Roomba Astronomers may have formed secret alliance with the lawn care industry. What else can explain the anger of star-watching scientists over iRobot's forthcoming lawn-mowing Roomba? ... more		Search for advanced civilizations finds nothing obvious in 100,000 galaxies After searching 100,000 galaxies for signs of highly advanced extraterrestrial life, a team of scientists using observations from NASA's WISE orbiting observatory has found no evidence of advanced c ... more		Violent methane storms on Titan may solve dune direction mystery With its thick, hazy atmosphere and surface rivers, mountains, lakes and dunes, Titan, Saturn's largest moon, is one of the most Earthlike places in the solar system. As the Cassini-Huygens spacecra ... more
				Mars Test Rover Joins Runners at Finish Line A test rover used during preparations for rover missions on Mars stood in for the NASA Mars rover Opportunity by breaking through the finish-line tape after runners completed a relay marathon at JPL ... more		An exoplanet with an infernal atmosphere As part of the PlanetS National Centre of Competence in Research (NCCR), astronomers from the Universities of Geneva (UNIGE) and Bern, Switzerland, have come to measure the temperature of the atmosp ... more

Space Tech Expo - Design - Build - Test - Long Beach CA - May 19-21, 2015

The World's Largest Commercial Drone Conference and Expo - Sept 9 - Las Vegas

Human 2 Mars Conference Mat 5-7 2015 - Washington DC

Yutu finds Moon still active in old age Findings from China's first moon rover Yutu, or Jade Rabbit which is the only scientific probe to land on the Moon in almost 40 years, are rewriting lunar history. Analyzing data sent back fro ... more		Robotic Arm Gets Busy on Rock Outcrop Opportunity is on the west rim of Endeavour Crater near the entrance of "Marathon Valley," a putative location for abundant clay minerals. The rover is positioned on a light-toned outcrop next ... more		U.S. defense in free fall Saudi Arabia and Pakistan sign mutual defense pact Brazil, Chile sign defense agreement		NASA Mars Rover's Weather Data Bolster Case for Brine Martian weather and soil conditions that NASA's Curiosity rover has measured, together with a type of salt found in Martian soil, could put liquid brine in the soil at night. Perchlorate ident ... more
				NASA's Curiosity Rover Making Tracks and Observations NASA's Curiosity Mars rover is continuing science observations while on the move this month. On April 16, the mission passed 10 kilometers (6.214 miles) of total driving since its 2012 landing, incl ... more		NASA-funded Study Explains Saturn's Epic Tantrums The long-standing mystery of why Saturn seethes with enormous storms every 30 years may have been solved by scientists working with data from NASA's Cassini mission. The tempests, which can grow int ... more

Army Network Modernization 2015 - Washington DC June 23-25

Mars might have liquid water Researchers have long known that there is water in the form of ice on Mars. Now, new research from NASA's Mars rover Curiosity shows that it is possible that there is liquid water close to the surfa ... more		Dawn's Ceres Color Map Reveals Surface Diversity A new color map of dwarf planet Ceres, which NASA's Dawn spacecraft has been orbiting since March, reveals the diversity of the surface of this planetary body. Differences in morphology and color ac ... more		GUARDIAN Tsunami Detection Tech Catches Wave in Real Time Galileo daughter mission named Celeste to strengthen navigation resilience How quantum computers can be validated when solving unsolvable problems		Manned Moon Flight Planned For 2030 The lunar flight program for 2028-2029 will be unmanned, but putting a man on the moon is scheduled for 2029-2030, the head of Russia's space agency said Tuesday. "We need to begin working now ... more
NASA's New Horizons Nears Historic Encounter with Pluto NASA's New Horizons spacecraft is three months from returning to humanity the first-ever close up images and scientific observations of distant Pluto and its system of large and small moons. " ... more		NASA Chief Scientist: We'll Find Proof of Alien Life by 2025 While scientists have long suspected that we may not be alone in the universe, they've never had concrete evidence. But top NASA officials say that may not be the case much longer. In less than a de ... more		Altimeter Assists in MESSENGER's Low-Altitude Navigation As NASA's MESSENGER mission draws to a close, an on-board science instrument that mapped the surface of Mercury is helping the navigation team with the spacecraft's low-altitude passes. MESSEN ... more		Explaining Saturn's Great White Spots Every 20 to 30 years, Saturn's atmosphere roils with giant, planet-encircling thunderstorms that produce intense lightning and enormous cloud disturbances. The head of one of these storms - popularl ... more

	Hot and Stormy at High Altitudes on Exoplanet HD 189733b Studying the atmosphere of an exoplanet, Swiss astronomers derived a temperature profile with unprecedented precision. Their results are based on data collected with a relatively small ground-based ... more		A glass fiber that brings light to a standstill Light is an extremely useful tool for quantum communication, but it has one major disadvantage: it usually travels at the speed of light and cannot be kept in place. A team of scientists at the Vien ... more

Ohio State scientists advance focus on nuclear propulsion

Mixing neutrinos of colliding neutron stars changes how merger unfolds

China launches experimental satellites to enhance mobile space internet

Unravelling relativistic effects in the heaviest actinide element		Inkjet-printed liquid metal could bring wearable tech, soft robotics		Mars rover data boosts hope for liquid water on Mars		'Dwarf planet' Ceres spawns giant mystery		Examining Rock Outcrop at 'The Spirit of St. Louis' Crater
Pluto, now blurry, will become clear with NASA flyby		Correction Maneuver Puts MESSENGER Right on Course		NASA Experiments With 'Building Blocks' of Life in Lab		Aliens Are Probably Huge 650-Pound Creatures		All dolled up: China sex toys play for real

Saucers, totes, cans, passion and dedication shape local students at JSC

ALMA captures Juno traveling through space

Comms system critical to delaying MESSENGER's Mercury impact

Mars has belts of glaciers consisting of frozen water

A new view of the moon's formation

Small solar eruptions can have profound effects on unprotected planets

DARPA Seeks to Create Software Systems That Could Last 100 Years

Home Away From Home: NASA Spider-Droids to Build in Space

NASA Extends Campaign for Public to Name Features on Pluto

Dawn in Excellent Shape One Month After Ceres Arrival

The Solar System and Beyond is Awash in Water

Mars' dust-covered glacial belts may contain tons of water

Team Returning Orbiter to Duty After Computer Swap

Dawn orbiting high over the night side of Ceres

More evidence for groundwater on Mars

Moon formed when young Earth and little sister collided

Ultra-realistic robot proves there's more than one way to scare a fish

Scars on Mars from 2012 Rover Landing Fade - Usually

Life Needs An Atmosphere, But How Much Is Too Much

Planned Maneuver Further Extends MESSENGER Orbital Operations

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