Space Tourism, Space Transport and Space Exploration News
April 16, 2020
OUTER PLANETS
New Horizons pushing the frontier ever deeper into the Kuiper Belt



Boulder CO (SPX) Apr 16, 2020
New Horizons is healthy and performing perfectly as it flies deeper and deeper into the Kuiper Belt! Recently we conducted an engineering review of the spacecraft to "trend" how it was working compared to when it was launched. The result was amazing: Every system and science instrument aboard New Horizons is working as well as it did when we lifted off, more than 14 years and almost 5 billion miles ago. As mission principal investigator I could not be prouder - the men and women who designed, built and ... read more

IRON AND ICE
One step closer to touching Asteroid Bennu
Tucson AZ (SPX) Apr 16, 2020
After the successful completion of its "Checkpoint" rehearsal, NASA's first asteroid-sampling spacecraft is one step closer to touching down on asteroid Bennu. Yesterday, NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraf ... more
MARSDAILY
NASA's Curiosity Keeps Rolling As Team Operates Rover From Home
Pasadena CA (JPL) Apr 15, 2020
For people who are able to work remotely during this time of social distancing, video conferences and emails have helped bridge the gap. The same holds true for the team behind NASA's Curiosity Mars ... more
IRON AND ICE
Seeing asteroids in the dark
Paris (ESA) Apr 16, 2020
A test of the automated navigation system being developed for ESA's Hera mission. A space-grade camera is imaging a model binary asteroid system in dark conditions representative of deep space illum ... more
MERCURY RISING
Top Five Mercury mysteries that BepiColombo will solve
Paris (ESA) Apr 15, 2020
Mercury is a desert world which scientists until recently considered quite uninteresting. NASA's Mariner and MESSENGER missions, however, revealed that there is much more to the smallest and innermo ... more
ADVERTISEMENT



ADVERTISEMENT

Commercial UAV Expo | Sept 2-4, 2025 | Las Vegas


Previous Issues Apr 15 Apr 14 Apr 13 Apr 10 Apr 09
ADVERTISEMENT



EXO WORLDS
Earth-Size, Habitable Zone Planet Found Hidden in Early NASA Kepler Data
Moffett Field CA (SPX) Apr 16, 2020
A team of transatlantic scientists, using reanalyzed data from NASA's Kepler space telescope, has discovered an Earth-size exoplanet orbiting in its star's habitable zone, the area around a star whe ... more
ROBO SPACE
CIMON-2 makes its successful debut on the ISS
Friedrichshafen, Germany (SPX) Apr 16, 2020
CIMON-2, the updated version of the CIMON astronaut assistant, developed and built by Airbus for the German Aerospace Center Space Administration (DLR), has now demonstrated its capabilities during ... more
ROBO SPACE
Robots may become heroes in war on coronavirus
San Francisco (AFP) April 9, 2020
Long maligned as job-stealers and aspiring overlords, robots are being increasingly relied on as fast, efficient, contagion-proof champions in the war against the deadly coronavirus. ... more
IRON AND ICE
One hundred lunar asteroid collisions confirmed by second telescope
Paris (ESA) Apr 15, 2020
Since March 2017, ESA's NELIOTA project has been regularly looking out for 'lunar flashes' on the Moon, to help us better understand the threat posed by small asteroid impacts. The project detects t ... more
MOON DAILY
Time-travelling ESA team explore a virtual Moon
London, UK (SPX) Apr 15, 2020
If someone had been watching as Apollo 15's Falcon Lunar Module headed down beside the Moon's Appenine mountains in 1971, then this is what they would have seen. ESA researchers, working with UK com ... more
24/7 Space News Coverage
24/7 Technology News Coverage
24/7 China News Coverage

ADVERTISEMENT


ADVERTISEMENT

MERCURY RISING
BepiColombo takes last snaps of Earth en route to Mercury
Paris (ESA) Apr 11, 2020
The joint ESA JAXA BepiColombo mission has completed its first flyby on 10 April, as the spacecraft came less than 12 700 km from Earth's surface at 06:25 CEST, steering its trajectory towards the f ... more
SPACE MEDICINE
Self-powered X-ray detector to revolutionize imaging for medicine and security
Los Alamos NM (SPX) Apr 14, 2020
A new X-ray detector prototype is on the brink of revolutionizing medical imaging, with dramatic reduction in radiation exposure and the associated health risks, while also boosting resolution in se ... more
MOON DAILY
Xplore wins USAF award for innovative Cislunar commercial capabilities
Seattle WA (SPX) Apr 15, 2020
Xplore Inc., a commercial space company has announced they have won an Air Force award to study positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) solutions for cislunar space. The award category, for commerc ... more
SPACE MEDICINE
Long spaceflights affect astronaut brain volume
Oak Brook IL (SPX) Apr 15, 2020
Extended periods in space have long been known to cause vision problems in astronauts. Now a new study in the journal Radiology suggests that the impact of long-duration space travel is more far-rea ... more
MOON DAILY
Japan plans to launch micro probe into lunar orbit using solid-fuel rocket
Tokyo (Sputnik) Apr 14, 2020
The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency is planning to launch a micro explorer to the Moon's orbit using a solid-fuel Epsilon rocket in the first half of the 2020s, the Kyodo news agency reported on ... more


General Atomics opens new spacecraft development and test facility in Colorado

EXO WORLDS
Simulating early ocean vents shows life's building blocks form under pressure
Pasadena CA (JPL) Apr 16, 2020
Where did life first form on Earth? Some scientists think it could have been around hydrothermal vents that may have existed at the bottom of the ocean 4.5 billion years ago. In a new paper in the j ... more
Space News from SpaceDaily.com

ADVERTISEMENT



SPACE MEDICINE
Technique offers path for biomanufacturing medicines during space flights
Troy NY (SPX) Apr 14, 2020
An instrument currently aboard the International Space Station could grow E. coli bacteria in space, opening a new path to bio-manufacturing drugs during long term space flights. Research published ... more
SPACE MEDICINE
Swiss 'hackathon' seeks new paths in virus battle
Geneva (AFP) April 6, 2020
More than 5,000 people took part over the weekend in a virtual "hackathon" in Switzerland to generate fresh ideas for how to deal with and combat COVID-19, organisers said Monday. ... more
EXO WORLDS
Sellafield research uncovers microbial life in fuel ponds
Manchester UK (SPX) Apr 08, 2020
Two new research papers from The University of Manchester, working with colleagues at Sellafield Limited and the National Nuclear Laboratory show that microbes can actively colonise some of the most ... more
ENERGY TECH
Applying mathematics to accelerate predictions for capturing fusion energy
Plainsboro NJ (SPX) Apr 16, 2020
A key issue for scientists seeking to bring the fusion that powers the sun and stars to Earth is forecasting the performance of the volatile plasma that fuels fusion reactions. Making such predictio ... more
ROBO SPACE
Robots ride to rescue as delivery risks rise
Washington (AFP) April 16, 2020
What looks like a rolling picnic cooler stops at the crosswalk, waits for a car to pass and then navigates its way at a leisurely pace down the sidewalk in suburban Washington. ... more
24/7 Nuclear News Coverage
24/7 War News Coverage
24/7 War News Coverage

NASA's Curiosity Keeps Rolling As Team Operates Rover From Home
Pasadena CA (JPL) Apr 15, 2020
For people who are able to work remotely during this time of social distancing, video conferences and emails have helped bridge the gap. The same holds true for the team behind NASA's Curiosity Mars rover. They're dealing with the same challenges of so many remote workers - quieting the dog, sharing space with partners and family, remembering to step away from the desk from time to time - but wi ... more
+ Mars Helicopter attached to Perseverance Mars rover
+ Choosing rocks on Mars to bring to Earth
+ NASA's Perseverance Mars rover gets its wheels and air brakes
+ Bacteria in rock deep under sea inspire new search for life on Mars
+ The man who wanted to fly on Mars
+ NASA Shows Perseverance with Helicopter, Cruise Stage Testing
+ A Martian mash up: Meteorites tell story of Mars' water history


Time-travelling ESA team explore a virtual Moon
London, UK (SPX) Apr 15, 2020
If someone had been watching as Apollo 15's Falcon Lunar Module headed down beside the Moon's Appenine mountains in 1971, then this is what they would have seen. ESA researchers, working with UK company Timelab Technologies, are recreating historic missions to the Moon in high-definition 360 virtual reality, as a way of gaining new insights from vintage instrument data - as well as helping plan ... more
+ Xplore wins USAF award for innovative Cislunar commercial capabilities
+ Japan plans to launch micro probe into lunar orbit using solid-fuel rocket
+ Help Pave the Way for Artemis: Send NASA Your Mini Moon Payload Designs
+ Apollo 13's 50th anniversary recalls NASA tragedy turned triumph
+ NASA awards contract to deliver science, tech to Moon ahead of human missions
+ When the Moon dust settles, it won't settle in VIPER's wheels
+ Space Tango wins NASA utilization awards for LEO Commercialization of biomedical applications
New Horizons pushing the frontier ever deeper into the Kuiper Belt
Boulder CO (SPX) Apr 16, 2020
New Horizons is healthy and performing perfectly as it flies deeper and deeper into the Kuiper Belt! Recently we conducted an engineering review of the spacecraft to "trend" how it was working compared to when it was launched. The result was amazing: Every system and science instrument aboard New Horizons is working as well as it did when we lifted off, more than 14 years and almost 5 billion mi ... more
+ Mysteries of Uranus' oddities explained by Japanese astronomers
+ Jupiter's Great Red Spot shrinking in size, not thickness
+ Researchers find new minor planets beyond Neptune
+ Ultraviolet instrument delivered for ESA's Jupiter mission
+ One Step Closer to the Edge of the Solar System
+ TRIDENT Mission Concept Selected by NASA's Discovery Program
+ Findings from Juno Update Jupiter Water Mystery
Earth-Size, Habitable Zone Planet Found Hidden in Early NASA Kepler Data
Moffett Field CA (SPX) Apr 16, 2020
A team of transatlantic scientists, using reanalyzed data from NASA's Kepler space telescope, has discovered an Earth-size exoplanet orbiting in its star's habitable zone, the area around a star where a rocky planet could support liquid water. Scientists discovered this planet, called Kepler-1649c, when looking through old observations from Kepler, which the agency retired in 2018. While p ... more
+ Simulating early ocean vents shows life's building blocks form under pressure
+ Sellafield research uncovers microbial life in fuel ponds
+ Salmon parasite is world's first non-oxygen breathing animal
+ Origin of the first known interstellar object 'Oumuamua
+ NASA selects early-stage technology concepts for new, continued study
+ Humans are not the first to repurpose CRISPR
+ Sulfur 'spices' alien atmospheres
Russia space chief spars with Elon Musk over launch pricing
Moscow (AFP) April 11, 2020
The head of Russia's space agency on Saturday accused Elon Musk's SpaceX of predatory pricing for space launches, which is pushing Russia to cut its own prices. "Instead of honest competition on the market for space launches, they are lobbying for sanctions against us and use price dumping with impunity," Roscosmos chief Dmitry Rogozin wrote on Twitter. Rogozin, who is often outspoken on ... more
+ RocketShip delivers Delta IV Heavy boosters at VAFB
+ Rocket Lab completes electron mid-air recovery test
+ Russia will cut space launch prices by 30 percent in response to SpaceX predatory pricing
+ Three Proton-M rockets returned to factory over quality control issues
+ Pandemic delays New Zealand launch of three US Intel satellites
+ Dragon returns to Earth with science payloads from ISS
+ Space Force announces its first pandemic-related launch delay


Parachutes guide China's rocket debris safely to earth
Beijing (XNA) Apr 07, 2020
China has been testing high-tech parachutes to control rocket debris and make space launches safer, according to the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology (CALT). During the March 9 launch of a Long March-3B rocket carrying a satellite of the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System, a booster was equipped with parachutes and control devices. After the booster separated from the rocke ... more
+ China to launch IoT communications satellites named after Wuhan
+ China's experimental manned spaceship undergoes tests
+ China's Long March-7A carrier rocket fails in maiden flight
+ China's Yuanwang-5 sails to Pacific Ocean for space monitoring mission
+ Construction of China's space station begins with start of LM-5B launch campaign
+ China Prepares to Launch Unknown Satellite Aboard Long March 7A Rocket
+ China's Long March-5B carrier rocket arrives at launch site
One hundred lunar asteroid collisions confirmed by second telescope
Paris (ESA) Apr 15, 2020
Since March 2017, ESA's NELIOTA project has been regularly looking out for 'lunar flashes' on the Moon, to help us better understand the threat posed by small asteroid impacts. The project detects the flash of light produced when an asteroid collides energetically with the lunar surface, and recently recorded its 100th impact. But this time, it was not the only one watching. Earth is const ... more
+ One step closer to touching Asteroid Bennu
+ Seeing asteroids in the dark
+ Rehearsal Time for NASA's Asteroid Sampling Spacecraft
+ Journey to a metallic world called Psyche
+ Researchers zero in on Near-Earth Asteroid deflection simulations ahead of breakthrough mission
+ Astronomers reveal source of 'red sign' in ancient Japanese literature
+ Modern science reveals ancient secret in Japanese literature


Lockheed nabs $22.4M for work on LCS-based laser system
Washington DC (UPI) Mar 10, 2020
Lockheed Martin was awarded a $22.4 million contract for work on the Layered Laser Defense system prototype onboard a Navy littoral combat ship, the Department of Defense announced. The deal, announced Monday by the Pentagon, funds integration, demonstration, testing and operation of the LLD weapon system on board a vessel while the ship is underway. The work includes development ... more
+ Navy: Chinese warship fired laser at U.S. aircraft
+ AFRL engineer leaves a legacy called HADES
+ Israel hails 'breakthrough' towards laser air defence system
+ China's air force seeks aircraft-mounted laser weapon
+ Air Force tests ATHENA laser weapon against multiple drones
+ First anti-drone laser delivered to Air Force for year-long test deployment
Russia positions S-500 as game changer for missile defense
Moscow (Sputnik) Apr 14, 2020
Last month, a subsidiary of S-500 maker Almaz-Antey confirmed that multiple components of the next generation air defence system had been developed and tested, with the completed complex to start testing with the military later this year. The S-500 is not just a conventional air and missile defence system, but an anti-space weapon whose introduction will fundamentally change Russia's air d ... more
+ Iran warns US after Patriot deployment to Iraq
+ US deploys Patriot air defence system to Iraq
+ Lockheed awarded $932.8M to make THAADs for U.S., Saudi Arabia
+ Missile Defense Agency's Long Range Discrimination Radar closer to delivery
+ Arrows of misfortune as US Missile Defence needs upgrading
+ Syrian air defence responds to 'Israeli missiles': state media
+ Syrian air defence responds to 'Israeli missiles': state media


Data from NASA's Cassini may explain Saturn's atmospheric mystery
Pasadena CA (JPL) Apr 07, 2020
The upper layers in the atmospheres of gas giants - Saturn, Jupiter, Uranus and Neptune - are hot, just like Earth's. But unlike Earth, the Sun is too far from these outer planets to account for the high temperatures. Their heat source has been one of the great mysteries of planetary science. New analysis of data from NASA's Cassini spacecraft finds a viable explanation for what's keeping ... more
+ Why is NASA Sending Dragonfly to Titan
+ New SwRI models reveal inner complexity of Saturn moon
+ Huygens landing spin mystery solved
+ Final images from Cassini spacecraft
+ How Enceladus got its stripes
+ A study of Saturn's largest moon may offer insights for earth
+ The first global geologic map of Titan completed
Magnetic nanoparticles help researchers remotely release adrenal hormones
Washington DC (UPI) Apr 13, 2020
Scientists have developed a way to remotely control the release of adrenal hormones like adrenaline and cortisol. Previous studies have linked problems with the regulation of hormones from the adrenal gland with mental health disorders, such as depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. The new research, detailed in the journal Science Advances, could help scientists investig ... more
+ New DNA origami motor breaks speed record for nano machines
+ Deep-sea osmolyte makes biomolecular machines heat-tolerant
+ Nanobubbles in nanodroplets
+ New production method for carbon nanotubes gets green light
+ A quantum breakthrough brings a technique from astronomy to the nano-scale
+ Creating a nanoscale on-off switch for heat
+ Nanoscience breakthrough: Probing particles smaller than a billionth of a meter


Australian researchers create new tools to detect gravitational waves.
Adelaide, Australia (SPX) Apr 09, 2020
A team from the University of Adelaide in South Australia are behind a new type of deformable mirror that could increase the sensitivity of ground-based gravitational wave detectors reaching into space. Gravitational waves are faint ripples in space time caused by distant events like collisions between black holes or neutron stars. These cosmic waves are detected at places like the A ... more
+ Astronomers detect first double helium-core white dwarf gravitational wave source
+ Precision mirrors poised to improve sensitivity of gravitational wave detectors
+ Using a spiral graph to understand how galaxies evolve
+ Continued Gravitational-Wave Discoveries from Public Data
+ Suited up for gravity
+ The link between gravity and soliton
+ ASU and Virginia Tech researchers unlock mysteries of grasshopper response to gravity
Where did the antimatter go
Paris, France (SPX) Apr 16, 2020
We live in a world of matter - because matter overtook antimatter, though they were both created in equal amounts by the Big Bang when our universe began. As featured on the cover of Nature on 16 April 2020, neutrinos and the associated antimatter particles, antineutrinos, are reported to have a high likelihood of differing behaviour that offers a promising path to explaining the asymmetry betwe ... more
+ T2K insight into the origin of the universe
+ Why didn't the universe annihilate itself
+ Russian scientists propose new approach to measuring atoms
+ Water-balloon physics is high-impact science
+ Researchers develop one-way street for electrons
+ First sighting of mysterious Majorana fermion on a common metal
+ Doubts about basic assumption for the universe


CIMON-2 makes its successful debut on the ISS
Friedrichshafen, Germany (SPX) Apr 16, 2020
CIMON-2, the updated version of the CIMON astronaut assistant, developed and built by Airbus for the German Aerospace Center Space Administration (DLR), has now demonstrated its capabilities during initial tests on the International Space Station (ISS). The free-flying, spherical technology demonstrator with artificial intelligence (AI) showed off a number of its features during interactions wit ... more
+ Robots may become heroes in war on coronavirus
+ Robots ride to rescue as delivery risks rise
+ Autonomous Solutions and Phantom Auto Partner to Deploy Unmanned Yard Trucks
+ Crisis brings robots to medical frontline: researchers
+ Stanford engineers create shape-changing, free-roaming soft robot
+ Thai hospitals deploy 'ninja robots' to aid virus battle
+ Soft robot, unplugged
Observing the atmosphere at high altitudes using unmanned aerial vehicles
Beijing, China (SPX) Apr 16, 2020
Severe weather conditions such as low air temperatures and strong winds often bring difficulties to scientific expeditions in Antarctica. Thus, monitoring and forecasting the weather is critical. Soundings constitute one important way to observe the high-altitude atmosphere. This kind of observational data helps with analyzing and studying the atmospheric circulation and improving the accu ... more
+ Sky Sapience introduces tethered UAV platform HoverMast
+ AFRL gives warfighters new weapons system
+ Boeing nabs $84.7M to build 3 more MQ-25s for Navy
+ SUGUS kicks off, a European project for integrating drones into the airspace
+ New research improves drone detection
+ Skyryse introduces automation flight operating system FlightOS
+ Hughes awarded contract by GA-ASI to connect US Army's Gray Eagle UAV with future SatComs
Daily Newsletters - Space - Military - Environment - Energy

Buy Advertising Media Advertising Kit Editorial & Other Enquiries Privacy statement
The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2020 - 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