Space Tourism, Space Transport and Space Exploration News

November 17, 2015

Curiosity Mars Rover Heads Toward Active Dunes
Pasadena CA (JPL) Nov 17, 2015
On its way to higher layers of the mountain where it is investigating how Mars' environment changed billions of years ago, NASA's Curiosity Mars rover will take advantage of a chance to study some modern Martian activity at mobile sand dunes. In the next few days, the rover will get its first close-up look at these dark dunes, called the "Bagnold Dunes," which skirt the northwestern flank of Mount Sharp. No Mars rover has previously visited a sand dune, as opposed to smaller sand ripples or drifts ... read more

Previous Issues

Nov 16

Nov 14

Nov 13

Nov 12

Nov 11

New Super H-mode regime could greatly increase fusion power Meet "Super H mode," a newly discovered state of tokamak plasma that could sharply boost the performance of future fusion reactors. This new state raises the pressure at the edge of the plasma beyon ... more		China's satellite expo opens A satellite exposition opened on Thursday in Beijing, displaying more than 6,000 new products and academic achievements. The three-day exposition, Satellite Application China 2015, will attrac ... more		China to launch Dark Matter Satellite in mid-December The Dark Matter Particle Explorer (DAMPE) Satellite, developed by the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), is expected to be launched at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in mid-December. DAMP ... more
				China to better integrate satellite applications with Internet China will step up satellite application and its integration with emerging Internet industries to promote economic development, an official said Friday. China has built a complete aerospace in ... more		Rocket Scientists to Launch Planet-Finding Telescope The university's rocket scientists - Prof. Supriya Chakrabarti and Asst. Prof. Timothy Cook of the Department of Physics and Applied Physics - are launching a rocket-borne experiment called PICTURE- ... more

Solar systems for home and business installations

5400mph winds discovered hurtling around planet outside solar system Winds of over 2km per second have been discovered flowing around planet outside of the Earth's solar system, new research has found. The University of Warwick discovery is the first time that a weat ... more		Airbus Defence and Space delivers first ACES Ground Terminal Airbus Defence and Space has delivered the first ACES Ground Terminal to the German National Metrology Institute (Physikalisch Technische Bundesanstalt, PTB) in Braunschweig (Germany). All aro ... more		Sidekick autonomy software guides YFQ-42A test mission for CCA program Infleqtion lists shares on NYSE as neutral atom quantum firm Top Chinese gaming companies continue to challenge		Daring move for first US-China fusion team The way to increase the power and efficiency of magnetic fusion energy may be to risk running the plasma - hotter than 100-million-degrees C - closer than ever to the wall, according to new experime ... more
				Secondhand Spacecraft Has Firsthand Asteroid Experience The NEOWISE mission hunts for near-Earth objects (NEOs) using the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) spacecraft. Funded by NASA's NEO Observations Program, the NEOWISE mission uses images ta ... more		New exoplanet in our neighborhood Scientists have discovered a new exoplanet that, in the language of "Star Wars," would be the polar opposite of frigid Hoth, and even more inhospitable than the deserts of Tatooine. But instead of r ... more

Nuclear Operations and Maintenance Efficiency Summit USA 2015

Cassini Finds Monstrous Ice Cloud in Titan's South Polar Region New observations made near the south pole of Titan by NASA's Cassini spacecraft add to the evidence that winter comes in like a lion on this moon of Saturn. Scientists have detected a monstrous new ... more		Astronomers eager to get a whiff of newfound Venus-like planet The collection of rocky planets orbiting distant stars has just grown by one, and the latest discovery is the most intriguing one to date. The newfound world, although hot as an oven, is cool enough ... more		Solar-driven ionosphere charges may nudge stressed faults toward rupture Stable black carbon in mangrove soils boosts coastal climate role Low crystallinity iron minerals show promise for chromium cleanup and carbon storage		Upgrade Helps NASA Study Mineral Veins on Mars Scientists now have a better understanding about a site with the most chemically diverse mineral veins NASA's Curiosity rover has examined on Mars, thanks in part to a valuable new resource scientis ... more
Asteroid ripped apart to form star's glowing ring system The sight of an asteroid being ripped apart by a dead star and forming a glowing debris ring has been captured in an image for the first time. Comprised of dust particles and debris, the rings are f ... more		New rocket readies for liftoff in 2016 China is preparing to launch a new-generation quick-response rocket in 2016 to seize more of the international commercial launch market, industry insiders said. The Kuaizhou-11, or Fast Vessel ... more		Mixing an icy cocktail to safely cool hot plasma A shot of icy chemical cocktail - that's the promising solution to controlling hot plasmas in fusion devices, researchers say. Recent experiments conducted at the DIII-D National Fusion Facility at ... more		Medicines do not seem to degrade faster in space The results of an opportunistic, pilot-scale study led by Virginia Wotring of the Center for Space Medicine and Department of Pharmacology at Baylor College of Medicine in the U.S. suggest that medi ... more

	New Results from GPI Exoplanet Survey The Gemini Planet Imager Exoplanet Survey (GPIES) is an ambitious three-year study dedicated to imaging young Jupiters and debris disks around nearby stars using the GPI instrument installed on the ... more		Early Earth's Haze May Give Clue to Habitability Elsewhere An atmospheric haze around a faraway planet - like the one which probably shrouded and cooled the young Earth - could show that the world is potentially habitable, or even be a sign of life itself. ... more

AALTO plans Zephyr stratospheric hub in northern Australia and seeks local payload partners

Ancient guano drove Chincha coastal power

UAH lands first DARPA award for biological sciences department

UCLA professor proposes simpler way to define what makes a planet		Early Earth's haze may give clue to habitability elsewhere in space		Newfound Earth-size exoplanet may be an important milestone in search for alien life		BU Satellite Team Gets Big Boost from NASA		Space rains junk on Spain
Space institute funds adjustable power eyeglasses and a smart sleep mask		Discovery of a new confinement state for plasma		Astronomers spot most distant object in the solar system		Physicists uncover mechanism that stabilizes plasma within tokamaks		The long and short of plasma turbulence

Striking the right note on a magnetic violin

Explaining a mysterious barrier to fusion known as the 'density limit'

Breakthrough in superconducting materials opens new path to fusion

Dust devils detected by seismometer could guide Mars mission

Galileo satellites set for year-long Einstein experiment

New Horizons Yields Wealth of Discovery from Pluto Flyby

Ammonia-Water Slurry May Swirl Below Pluto's Icy Surface

SwRI scientists explain why moon rocks contain fewer volatiles than Earth's

Deserts and dunes: Earth as an analogue for Titan

Amnesia Event Slows Down Opportunity Robotic Arm Work

Humans can empathize with robots

Swiss Camera Leaves for Mars

Gaia's sensors scan a lunar transit

Detecting and eliminating RF interference requires a human touch

Serviceable Spacecraft Make a Comeback

NASA mission reveals speed of solar wind stripping Martian atmosphere

Delving into the atmosphere of Mars

Martian desiccation

Looking For Deliberate Radio Signals From KIC 8462852

Shining a light on the aurora of Mars

Buy Advertising

Media Advertising Kit

Editorial & Other Enquiries

Privacy statement

The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2014 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement All images and articles appearing on Space Media Network have been edited or digitally altered in some way. Any requests to remove copyright material will be acted upon in a timely and appropriate manner. Any attempt to extort money from Space Media Network will be ignored and reported to Australian Law Enforcement Agencies as a potential case of financial fraud involving the use of a telephonic carriage device or postal service.