A massive blaze has broken out at a government facility in Muharraq. Videos released by the ministry show thick smoke and flames engulfing the building, prompting emergency services to respond. Authorities are investigating the cause of the fire, and no casualties have been reported so far.

Breaking: Huge Fire Engulfs Bahrain Government Facility in Muharraq

Is it possible for scientists to recreate the moon on Earth? The answer to this question is being explored by the European Space Agency (ESA) and German Aerospace Centre who are checking the possibility of recreating the moon in their LUNA Analog Facility.&nbsp;

There are 900 tonnes of ground-up volcanic rock on the moon at this LUNA facility which is at the European Astronaut Centre near Cologne.

Scientists have planned to simulate the low-gravity environment of the moon using movable ceiling-mounted trolleys which follow the rover’s movements or a suspended astronaut.&nbsp;

Speaking about the facility in the press briefing, ESA astronaut Alexander Gerst said that it will offer “most aspects that we will encounter on the moon”.&nbsp;

Also Read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/earth-has-hosted-mini-moons-before-and-one-of-them-will-revisit-in-27-years-764394">Earth has had two moons in the past. One of the mini-moons has visited twice and will return in 27 years</a>

“It’s the surface, it’s the lunar dust, the rocks, the lighting. We will work in spacesuits that limit our movement, limit our view," he said.

<h2>What is ESA’s Moon Mission?</h2>

The facility is known as LUNA (Lunar Analog) and it provides simulated regolith in a hall - which is spread over a 700-square-meter area.&nbsp;

The astronauts from ESA, NASA and other space agencies can practice living in conditions similar to that on the Moon in this area.

“We have about 900 tonnes of regolith simulating material in the facility to simulate the dusty environment and mobility on the surface,” said Juergen Schlutz, LUNA Facility Engineer &amp; Moon Strategy Lead at European Space Agency, while speaking at the first press briefing of the facility.&nbsp;

Scientists have made 700 square meters of artificial regolith using the volcanic soils of the Eifel region in Germany, Italy’s Mount Etna and rocks from Norway.

Watch:&nbsp;Moon's surface cooled down during strict COVID-19 lockdown: Study

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/moons-surface-cooled-down-during-strict-covid-19-lockdown-study-763314/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

Astronauts Germany’s Matthias Maurer and France’s Thomas Pesquet also showed how the facility replicates the shine of the sun, which will obstruct the vision of astronauts when they come back to the moon.&nbsp;

They also showed how they would explore a crater on the moon and collect samples. In this facility, cables will be attached to the spacesuits of astronauts to pull them back as they walk and suspend them when they jump. The project has been in the prototype phase.

ESA has got three spots on the NASA-led Artemis programme which will happen in 2030. It is currently dependent on NASA and others to send its astronauts to space.

(With inputs from agencies)

Is it possible for scientists to recreate the moon on Earth? The answer to this question is being explored by the European Space Agency (ESA) and German Aerospace Centre who are checking the possibility of recreating the moon in their LUNA Analog Facility.

Is it possible for scientists to recreate the moon on Earth? The answer to this question is being explored by the European Space Agency (ESA) and German Aerospace Centre who are checking the possibility of recreating the moon in their LUNA Analog Facility. There are 900 tonnes of ground-up volcanic rock on the moon at this LUNA facility which is at the European Astronaut Centre near Cologne. Scientists have planned to simulate the low-gravity environment of the moon using movable ceiling-mounted trolleys which follow the rover’s movements or a suspended astronaut. Speaking about the facility in the press briefing, ESA astronaut Alexander Gerst said that it will offer “most aspects that we will encounter on the moon”. Also Read: Earth has had two moons in the past. One of the mini-moons has visited twice and will return in 27 years “It’s the surface, it’s the lunar dust, the rocks, the lighting. We will work in spacesuits that limit our movement, limit our view," he said. What is ESA’s Moon Mission? The facility is known as LUNA (Lunar Analog) and it provides simulated regolith in a hall - which is spread over a 700-square-meter area. The astronauts from ESA, NASA and other space agencies can practice living in conditions similar to that on the Moon in this area. “We have about 900 tonnes of regolith simulating material in the facility to simulate the dusty environment and mobility on the surface,” said Juergen Schlutz, LUNA Facility Engineer & Moon Strategy Lead at European Space Agency, while speaking at the first press briefing of the facility. Scientists have made 700 square meters of artificial regolith using the volcanic soils of the Eifel region in Germany, Italy’s Mount Etna and rocks from Norway. Watch: Moon's surface cooled down during strict COVID-19 lockdown: Study Astronauts Germany’s Matthias Maurer and France’s Thomas Pesquet also showed how the facility replicates the shine of the sun, which will obstruct the vision of astronauts when they come back to the moon. They also showed how they would explore a crater on the moon and collect samples. In this facility, cables will be attached to the spacesuits of astronauts to pull them back as they walk and suspend them when they jump. The project has been in the prototype phase. ESA has got three spots on the NASA-led Artemis programme which will happen in 2030. It is currently dependent on NASA and others to send its astronauts to space. (With inputs from agencies)

Is Europe creating its own moon? Here's all about the LUNA facility

You remember that ghastly scene from the matrix...with individuals being nurtured and fed in those lifesize pods? Something eerily similar to that is actually being imagined for the future!

World's first 'artificial womb facility’ for 30,000 babies!

Honda Motor Co gave a sneak preview of its self-driving prototypes on Wednesday, saying it was already on its way to offer&nbsp;semi-autonomous safety functions to the mass market.

The Japanese automaker has been less vocal about its plans for self-driving cars than larger rivals like Toyota and General Motors&nbsp;which in recent months have shown off major research and development projects and big-ticket acquisitions.

Honda has been building semi-autonomous functionality under the radar, including forward-collision warning, lane-departure warning and lane-keeping assist. These features are already being rolled out in Honda&#39;s Acuras and the Civic model year 2016&nbsp;which costs about $22,000.

&quot;We under-promise and over-deliver as a promise, as a company. There are a lot of promises talked about by a lot of companies,&quot; said Jim Keller, chief engineer for Honda Research and Development Americas, referring to the pervasive industry hype.

With the current roll-out of semi-autonomous functions, which it says will pave the way for full autonomy on highways by 2020, Honda says it differs from rivals, whose self-driving efforts have centered on their luxury models.

&quot;This is a unique differentiator for Honda,&nbsp;who is committed to the concept of safety for everyone,&quot; said Keller. &quot;Unless we democratize it across our lineup it will be just a niche.&quot;

Honda revealed&nbsp;two prototypes it has used in testing at the GoMentum Station, a 5,000-acre former naval munitions zone that features 20 miles of paved roadway, tunnels and other infrastructure ideal for testing.

On Wednesday, reporters saw the cars accelerate, stop and cede the way for pedestrians, and turn in autonomous mode.

The site in Concord, California, about 30 miles northeast of San Francisco, hopes to lure other carmakers to test autonomous cars there. Besides Honda, the French maker of driverless shuttles, Easy Mile, also tests there.

The auto industry has been marked by a series of high-profile investments and acquisitions related to autonomous driving in recent months. General Motors, in January, bought autonomous vehicle technology start-up Cruise Automation for a reported $1 billion, while Toyota has committed to spending $1 billion over five years to develop technologies behind the self-driving car.

Honda Motor Co projected a brief premier of the prototype of its self-driven cars at its new testing facility

Honda Motor Co gave a sneak preview of its self-driving prototypes on Wednesday, saying it was already on its way to offer semi-autonomous safety functions to the mass market. The Japanese automaker has been less vocal about its plans for self-driving cars than larger rivals like Toyota and General Motors which in recent months have shown off major research and development projects and big-ticket acquisitions. Honda has been building semi-autonomous functionality under the radar, including forward-collision warning, lane-departure warning and lane-keeping assist. These features are already being rolled out in Honda's Acuras and the Civic model year 2016 which costs about $22,000. "We under-promise and over-deliver as a promise, as a company. There are a lot of promises talked about by a lot of companies," said Jim Keller, chief engineer for Honda Research and Development Americas, referring to the pervasive industry hype. With the current roll-out of semi-autonomous functions, which it says will pave the way for full autonomy on highways by 2020, Honda says it differs from rivals, whose self-driving efforts have centered on their luxury models. "This is a unique differentiator for Honda, who is committed to the concept of safety for everyone," said Keller. "Unless we democratize it across our lineup it will be just a niche." Honda revealed two prototypes it has used in testing at the GoMentum Station, a 5,000-acre former naval munitions zone that features 20 miles of paved roadway, tunnels and other infrastructure ideal for testing. On Wednesday, reporters saw the cars accelerate, stop and cede the way for pedestrians, and turn in autonomous mode. The site in Concord, California, about 30 miles northeast of San Francisco, hopes to lure other carmakers to test autonomous cars there. Besides Honda, the French maker of driverless shuttles, Easy Mile, also tests there. The auto industry has been marked by a series of high-profile investments and acquisitions related to autonomous driving in recent months. General Motors, in January, bought autonomous vehicle technology start-up Cruise Automation for a reported $1 billion, while Toyota has committed to spending $1 billion over five years to develop technologies behind the self-driving car.

Honda's self-driving cars unveiled in California

facility

Facility, News on Facility, stories on Facility, articles on Facility, Facility stories at Wion, Facility news, Facility latest news