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NASA
Robonaut 2 ready to give astronauts a helping hand
By Darren Quick
22:21 February 7, 2010 PST
NASA and General Motors have teamed up to build a new robot dexterous enough to use the same tools as humans, allowing them to work safely alongside humans on Earth or in space. The two organizations aim to develop the next generation of robots and robotic technologies that use leading edge control, sensor and vision technologies, to assist astronauts during hazardous space missions and help GM build safer cars and plants. Read More
Your very own self-sustained micro-ecosystem
By Ben Coxworth
00:13 January 22, 2010 PST
Have you ever wanted to create your own little planet? Do you like aquatic life, but think that aquariums are too much work? If your answer to either of those two questions is Yes, then you might quite enjoy owning a miniature closed aquatic ecosystem. All you need is a credit card, or a clear glass jar, some stuff from a pond, and an appreciation for things that exist on a small scale. The result will be a self-sustained miniature world that doesn’t need feeding, filtration, or anything other than light, from the outside world. Read More
Northern Lights collide in an explosion of brilliance - we just haven't noticed it before
By Darren Quick
03:22 December 21, 2009 PST
A network of cameras deployed around the Arctic to understand the trigger mechanism for the beautiful light display called the aurora borealis – also known as the Northern Lights – has discovered that sometimes the vast curtains of aurora borealis collide, producing a stunning outburst. The reason no one on Earth has ever noticed these collisions before is that they occur on such a vast scale it takes a network of sensitive cameras spread across thousands of miles to get the whole picture. Read More
Hubble sees further than ever before
By Alan Brandon
15:11 December 15, 2009 PST
NASA's recently upgraded Hubble Space Telescope has made the deepest near-infrared image of the universe ever taken. Taken using a newly installed camera, the image shows deep space objects such as galaxies that formed only 600 million years after the Big Bang, making them the oldest galaxies ever seen. The image was taken with the Hubble’s new Wide Field Camera 3, which astronauts installed in May. Read More
Methane levels may point to life on Mars
By Jenna Meade
16:37 December 13, 2009 PST
New research has strengthened the possibility that biological life may exist beneath the surface of Mars. Scientists from Imperial College London have shown that the level of methane on the Red Planet can't be explained by meteorites in the atmosphere. This leaves the theory that microorganisms are producing methane gas as a by-product of their metabolic processes as one of the remaining possible explanations. Read More
NASA crash tests 'airbag' helicopter
By Jeff Salton
21:24 December 10, 2009 PST
According to NASA, the way to make a helicopter safer is to crash it – under strict guidance, of course. In order to test the effectiveness of a new "airbag" system - which is actually an expandable honeycomb cushion called a deployable energy absorber - NASA aeronautics researchers at Langley loaded four crash test dummies into a small chopper and, well, dropped it. Read More
Special edition Mailer book comes with its own piece of the moon
By Jude Garvey
20:20 December 3, 2009 PST
Looking for the ultimate Christmas gift? How about a limited edition copy of Norman Mailer’s epic tale of the Apollo II journey, including a signed print of Buzz Aldrin for just US$1500? And if that takes your fancy, a Marc Newson designed “Lunar Rock Edition” of Mailer’s tome including your own piece of genuine moon rock is sure to blow you away…and it will only set you back US$90,500. Read More
New maps suggests Red Planet was blue
By Jeff Salton
16:42 November 24, 2009 PST
Could it be that Mars - the dry, red planet - once had an ocean so huge it covered around one-third of its surface … and that rain created it? New research by scientists from Northern Illinois University (NIU) and the Lunar and Planetary Institute in Houston would indicate that could be the case. Using an innovative computer program to produce a highly detailed global map of the valley networks on Mars, their findings indicate the networks are more than twice as extensive (2.3 times longer in total length) as had been previously shown in the only other planet-wide map of the valleys. These valley networks roughly form a belt around the planet between the equator and mid-southern latitudes, which would indicate the presence of a long-gone ocean. Read More
Eureka! NASA strikes water on lunar surface
By Darren Quick
19:16 November 17, 2009 PST
Scientists have long speculated about the source of significant quantities of hydrogen that have been observed at the moon's lunar poles, and just a few months ago NASA announced that water molecules were indeed present, but in relatively small amounts. Now the Lunar CRater Observing and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) that was employed to shed some more light on the presence of water on the moon, looks like it has done just that with preliminary data indicating the mission successfully uncovered water in a permanently-shadowed crater. Read More
GPS satellites tell us where we are, but what tells them where they are?
By Jeff Salton
18:00 November 1, 2009 PST
Global Positioning System (GPS) devices have permeated society to the point where millions of us rely on them daily for directions, locations and traffic avoidance (if only they could tell me where I left my car keys). GPS satellites send signals to a receiver in your handheld or car-based GPS navigator, which calculates your position on the planet based on the location of the satellites and your distance from them. The distance is determined by how long it took the signals from various satellites to reach your receiver. But have you ever thought what tells the GPS satellites where they are in the first place? Read More
NASA IBEX spacecraft shows where we sit in the galaxy
By Jeff Salton
01:26 October 16, 2009 PDT
Move over Google Maps, NASA's Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX) spacecraft has given scientists the tools to construct the first comprehensive sky map of our solar system and where it resides in the Milky Way galaxy. NASA says the new view will change the way researchers study the interaction between our galaxy and sun. Read More
Pentagon looking for someone to pick up the trash in space
18:05 October 8, 2009 PDT
The Soviet Union launched the very first earth-orbiting satellite in 1957, and the world looked on in awe as Sputnik flashed through the sky. Fifty years later, you’d be lucky to see anything. The U.S. Space Surveillance Network says there are almost 20,000 man-made objects in orbit, ninety-four percent of which are non-functional debris. And that’s not counting the hundreds of thousands of bits of junk too small to track. Little wonder the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has put out a call for someone – anyone – to come up with a way to effectively remove orbital debris. Read More
NASA live broadcast of LCROSS impact
By Paul Ridden
06:42 October 8, 2009 PDT
NASA's Lunar Prospector first detected some hydrogen signatures in craters on the dark side of the moon in 1999. Ever since, researchers have been keen to confirm the presence of water on the moon. The Lunar CRater Observing and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) is tasked with crashing through the mists of speculation and conjecture and discover the truth. And you can watch all the action as it happens. Read More
What, exactly, makes a rocket fuel environmentally friendly?
By Darren Quick
22:52 October 7, 2009 PDT
Automobiles aren’t the only vehicles turning to more environmentally friendly fuel sources. As we reported recently, NASA are testing a new type of rocket propellant made of a mixture of water and “nanoscale aluminum” powder they claim could provide a cleaner way to launch rockets, power long-distance space missions and generate hydrogen for fuel cells. A number of readers wondered, not unreasonably, what qualifies a rocket fuel as eco-friendly. We now have a few more answers. Read More
Cosmic rays hit Space-Age high
By Jeff Salton
03:36 September 30, 2009 PDT
NASA has a warning for everyone planning a trip to Mars in the near future – it might be a good idea to wrap yourself in an extra layer of tinfoil when you travel According to sensors on NASA's ACE (Advanced Composition Explorer) spacecraft, galactic cosmic rays have just hit a Space Age high, reaching levels 19 percent higher than observed in the past 50 years and sparking a rethink on the radiation shielding needed for astronauts. Read More
Lotus leaf inspires dust-busting shield for space gear
By Paul Lester
16:56 September 27, 2009 PDT
Finding inspiration from nature in order to refine and advance modern technologies is nothing new; Mercedes’ bionic car was an interesting example and we’ve also seen a new ‘smart fabric’ based on the design of pine cones. Perhaps one of the most inspiring species, certainly in the plant world, is the lotus, which has already contributed to the development of fog-free windscreens and other surfaces along with improving the efficiency of solar cells. Now NASA is looking to the Lotus Leaf to develop a non-stick surface for use on spaceflight equipment. Read More
Water found on the moon – what will it mean for the future?
By Jude Garvey
22:18 September 24, 2009 PDT
Newspapers and websites around the world are buzzing with the news that water and hydroxyl (hydrogen and oxygen) molecules have been found in the polar regions of the moon. NASA announced yesterday that instruments aboard three separate spacecraft revealed that water molecules were present, although in relatively small amounts. It was also discovered that hydroxyl also existed in the lunar soil. Although the amount of water found is small, it is exciting in terms of potential for the possibilities of establishing a lunar base and even for creating spacecraft fuel. Read More
Swift snaps our best-ever ultraviolet image of neighboring Andromeda Galaxy
By Jeff Salton
18:51 September 20, 2009 PDT
In a galaxy far, far away … about 2.5 million light years, in fact, lie approximately 20,000 hot, young stars and dense clusters that comprise the Andromeda Galaxy. The galaxy, known as M31 in the constellation Andromeda, was recently captured by an ultraviolet optical telescope aboard NASA’s Swift satellite, and delivers the highest-resolution view of a neighboring spiral galaxy ever attained in the ultraviolet. Read More
Astronomers like what they see from rejuvenated NASA Hubble Space Telescope
By Jeff Salton
23:39 September 13, 2009 PDT
New images from the rejuvenated, more powerful Hubble Space Telescope have universally delighted astronomers. Last week, observations from four of its six operating science instruments were released by NASA. They include colorful, multi-wavelength pictures of far-flung galaxies, a densely-packed star cluster, an eerie ‘pillar of creation’, and a ‘butterfly’ nebula. Read More
LRO - a giant leap for data transfer from the moon
By Jeff Salton
22:52 August 27, 2009 PDT
How is it that my cell phone still loses connection in the city and my laptop barely gets the Internet in the mountains, yet NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) can keep in touch with Earth from 238,800 miles away, 24 hours a day? Additionally, LRO can transmit 461GB of data per day (the equivalent amount of information found in a huge library), sending this information at a rate of up to 100Mb/s, while my so-called high-speed Internet service struggles to provide about 1-3Mb/s. Obviously, it’s not what you know but who you know! Read More
NASA tests eco-friendly rocket fuel
By Jeff Salton
21:11 August 23, 2009 PDT
NASA and the Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR) have successfully launched a nine-foot rocket to a height of 1,300ft using an environmentally-friendly propellant made from aluminum powder and water ice. The fuel, called ALICE, has the consistency of toothpaste with a high burn rate and achieved a maximum thrust of 650 pounds during this test. Read More
NASA confirms building blocks of life found on comets
By Paul Lester
18:40 August 19, 2009 PDT
Fresh evidence has been revealed to support the theory that life on Earth began in space. NASA’s Stardust probe, a specially-designed comet ‘chaser’, successfully collected particles shed from Comet Wild 2 in 2004, and NASA scientists have since confirmed for the first time that amino acids can indeed be found on these extraterrestrial bodies. Read More
NASA and Goodyear develop puncture proof tire for the 21st Century
By Paul Ridden
02:31 August 16, 2009 PDT
It looks like seventies science fiction television is (finally) going to meet reality with NASA planning to set up a real Moonbase Alpha by 2020. In order to meet the heavy load/long range transport requirements of life on the moon, NASA recently teamed up with Goodyear to review and redesign some 40-year-old technology in the shape of the airless tires first seen on the Lunar Rover Vehicles of Apollo missions. Read More
NASA competition offers green challenge for air travel
By Paul Lester
19:06 August 4, 2009 PDT
As we've seen with the ongoing X-Prize model, competitions can be a great way to provide incentive for technological advancements in transport. While the latest example, the Lunar X Prize, has its sight set on the heavens, NASA is running a competition with objectives a little closer to the ground. The Green Flight Challenge is enticing creative types with a USD$1.5 million prize in which designers need to create an aircraft that is low cost, quiet, has a short take-off, is 'road worthy' and gets excellent passenger-miles per gallon. Read More
The search for ice on the moon heats up
By Jeff Salton
19:58 August 2, 2009 PDT
Special sensing technology developed by Raytheon for the US Navy's miniaturized radio frequency system is aboard NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), one of two spacecraft hoping to find photographic evidence that the polar regions of the moon contain ice. Until now, man hasn’t been able to confirm if there is ice on the moon because it is thought to exist only in permanently dark patches, or poles, on the lunar landscape – which means we haven’t been able to take detailed photos yet. NASA in particular is interested in determining the extent to which lunar ice exists, if at all, as the agency prepares for future manned exploration and possible habitation on the moon. Read More
windykites1
- February 9, 2010 @ 19:22 UTC
