October 2022 – Page 9 – NeRDs Moonbase

SpaceX launches telecom satellite, lands rocket on ship at sea

October 15, 2022 NeRD

SpaceX launched a communications satellite and landed a rocket on a ship at sea early Saturday (Oct. 15), just hours after bringing four astronauts home from the International Space Station. A Falcon 9 rocket carrying Eutelsat’s Hotbird 13F satellite lifted off from Florida’s Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on Saturday at 1:22 a.m. EDT (0522 GMT), at the very end of the mission’s nearly two-hour window. The Falcon 9’s first stage returned to Earth just under nine minutes after launch, landing on SpaceX’s Just Read the Instructions droneship, which was…

China launches 3 more spy satellites to orbit (video)

October 14, 2022 NeRD

China just sent three more reconnaissance satellites to orbit. A Long March 2D rocket lifted off from Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southern China on Friday (Oct. 14) at 3:12 p.m. EDT (1912 GMT; 3:12 a.m. on Oct. 15 Beijing time). The rocket apparently carried three satellites in China’s Yaogan 36 series. The spacecraft were successfully deployed into their designated orbit, according to Chinese media reports (opens in new tab). Related: The latest news about China’s space program A Long March 2D rocket launches three of China’s Yaogan 36 remote-sensing satellites…

One of the most extreme black hole collisions in the universe just proved Einstein right

October 14, 2022 NeRD

Researchers studying the aftermath of a gargantuan black hole collision may have confirmed a gravitational phenomenon predicted by Albert Einstein a century ago. According to new research published today (opens in new tab) (Oct. 12) in the journal Nature, the phenomenon — which is known as precession and is similar to the wobbling motion sometimes seen in a spinning top — occurred when two ancient black holes crashed together and merged into one. As the two massive objects swirled closer together, they released enormous ripples through the fabric of space-time…

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-4 Astronauts Safely Splash Down in Atlantic

October 14, 2022 NeRD

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-4 astronauts aboard the Dragon spacecraft safely splashed down Friday off the coast of Jacksonville, Florida, completing the agency’s fourth commercial crew mission to the International Space Station. The international crew of four spent 170 days in orbit.

Resupply Mission for NASA Carries Scientific Experiments to Space Station

October 14, 2022 NeRD

The 18th Northrop Grumman commercial resupply services mission for NASA to the International Space Station carries scientific investigations of topics such as 3D printing of knee cartilage, plant mutations, and mudflow structure along with a demonstration of camera technology and small satellites from Japan, Uganda, and Zimbabwe.

Space Station Science Highlights: Week of October 10, 2022

October 14, 2022 NeRD

Crew members aboard the International Space Station conducted scientific investigations during the week of Oct. 10

NASA Invites Media to Launch of Water-Monitoring Satellite

October 13, 2022 NeRD

Media accreditation is now open for the upcoming launch of the Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) satellite, a pathfinder mission about Earth’s water that will use new technology to address climate change and its impact on our environment.

Fallen Arecibo Observatory telescope won’t be rebuilt despite scientists’ hopes

October 13, 2022 NeRD

Puerto Rico’s iconic radio telescope, which collapsed in 2020, won’t be rebuilt, although the site will see a new education center open next year. The Arecibo Observatory‘s massive radio dish was an unusual facility because it was a key player in three different fields of science: atmospheric studies, radio astronomy and planetary radar. Opened in 1963, the telescope’s observing equipment hung from a web-like platform strung over a massive dish 1,000 feet (305 meters) wide. But in December 2020, the cables supporting that platform gave out and the equipment crashed…

China launches environmental satellite in 3rd flight in 6 days

October 13, 2022 NeRD

China sent its third rocket aloft in a week on Wednesday (Oct. 12), this time to launch a satellite intended for environmental monitoring. A radar satellite known as S-SAR01, nicknamed Huanjing-2E, flew to space atop a Long March 2C rocket from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in northern Shanxi province, according to Chinese state media. Liftoff happened at 6:53 p.m. EDT (2253 GMT Wednesday, or 6:53 a.m. local time on Thursday, Oct. 13). The satellite’s 60-foot (5-meter) resolution will primarily be used for disaster relief and environmental protection, according to…

See the hypersonic ‘Darkstar’ jet from ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ in person this weekend

October 13, 2022 NeRD

The real-world mockup of the fictional “Darkstar” hypersonic jet seen in the opening sequence of the 2022 film “Top Gun: Maverick” is on display this weekend. While not an actual hypersonic aircraft (not confirmed as such, anyway), the mock jet looks real enough for most passersby to mistake it for the real thing. For the first time, this mock-up will now be on display: Attendees at the 2022 Aerospace Valley Open House, Air Show, & STEM Expo in Southern California this weekend can get up close and personal with the…