Planetary Science – Page 3

Daily Minor Planet Volunteers Spot an Asteroid Passing Close to Earth

October 30, 2023 NeRD

2 min read Daily Minor Planet Volunteers Spot an Asteroid Passing Close to Earth The Catalina Sky Survey telescope “G96” with the follow-up telescope “I52” in the background. Credit: David Rankin Volunteers working with The Daily Minor Planet have made the project’s first big discovery: an asteroid passing very near planet Earth. On the night of October 3rd, a telescope for the Catalina Sky Survey snapped four pictures of a far northern section of the sky. The next day, volunteers H. N. DiRuscio, X. Liao, V. Gonano and E. Chaghafi spotted a clear…

NASA’s Dragonfly Tunnel Visions

October 23, 2023 NeRD

5 min read NASA’s Dragonfly Tunnel Visions Dragonfly Team Utilizes Unique NASA Facilities to Shape Its Innovative Titan-bound Rotorcraft Dragonfly team members review the half-scale lander model after it underwent wind tunnel testing at NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. Pictured are (from left) Art Azarbarzin, Juan Cruz, Wayne Dellinger, Zibi Turtle, Chuck Hebert, Ken Hibbard, Bernadine Juliano and Bruce Owens. Johns Hopkins APL/Ed Whitman With its dense atmosphere and low gravity, Saturn’s moon Titan is a great place to fly. But well before NASA’s Dragonfly rotorcraft lander soars…