The world&#39;s newest island -- formed during a volcanic eruption in the remote Pacific three years ago -- may offer clues to how life potentially developed on Mars, NASA said Wednesday.&nbsp;The island of Hunga Tonga Hunga Ha&#39;apai rose from the seabed about 65 kilometers (40 miles) northwest of the Tongan capital Nuku&#39;alofa in late 2014-early 2015.

Scientists initially expected the island -- created when vast quantities of rock and dense ash spewed from the Earth&#39;s crust -- to wash away within a few months.&nbsp;But NASA said it had proved more resilient than expected, possibly because warm sea water combined with ash during the volcanic explosion to create a concrete-like substance known as &quot;tuff&quot;.

While the island - which initially measured one kilometer wide, two kilometers long and about 100 meters high -- has undergone significant erosion, it is now expected to last anywhere from six to 30 years.&nbsp;Jim Garvin, the chief scientist at NASA&#39;s Goddard Space Flight Center, said it was a rare chance to study the life cycle of a newly created island.

He said Mars had many similar volcanic islands that appeared to have been surrounded by water when they were created.&nbsp;Garvin said such spots may be prime locations to look for evidence of past life because they combined a wet environment with heat from volcanic processes.

Examining how life gained a foothold on the Tongan island could help scientists pinpoint where to look for evidence of life on Mars, he said.&nbsp;&quot;Islands like this might have worked on Mars two or three billion years ago -- lakes and small seas filling depressions, persistent surface waters,&quot; he said.

&quot;(It&#39;s) stuff we really strive to understand because it could have produced the conditions necessary for microbial life&quot;.&nbsp;NASA&#39;s studies on the island were presented at a meeting of the American Geophysical Union in New Orleans this week.

It comes after US President Donald Trump on Monday directed NASA to send <a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/trump-wants-to-send-us-astronauts-back-to-moon-someday-mars-26501">Americans to the Moon</a> for the first time since 1972, in order to prepare for future trips to Mars.

Islands like Tongan with lakes, small seas filling depression, and weather conditions are ideal to study the origin of microbial life; which could be the scene with Mars as well

The world's newest island -- formed during a volcanic eruption in the remote Pacific three years ago -- may offer clues to how life potentially developed on Mars, NASA said Wednesday. The island of Hunga Tonga Hunga Ha'apai rose from the seabed about 65 kilometers (40 miles) northwest of the Tongan capital Nuku'alofa in late 2014-early 2015. Scientists initially expected the island -- created when vast quantities of rock and dense ash spewed from the Earth's crust -- to wash away within a few months. But NASA said it had proved more resilient than expected, possibly because warm sea water combined with ash during the volcanic explosion to create a concrete-like substance known as "tuff". While the island - which initially measured one kilometer wide, two kilometers long and about 100 meters high -- has undergone significant erosion, it is now expected to last anywhere from six to 30 years. Jim Garvin, the chief scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, said it was a rare chance to study the life cycle of a newly created island. He said Mars had many similar volcanic islands that appeared to have been surrounded by water when they were created. Garvin said such spots may be prime locations to look for evidence of past life because they combined a wet environment with heat from volcanic processes. Examining how life gained a foothold on the Tongan island could help scientists pinpoint where to look for evidence of life on Mars, he said. "Islands like this might have worked on Mars two or three billion years ago -- lakes and small seas filling depressions, persistent surface waters," he said. "(It's) stuff we really strive to understand because it could have produced the conditions necessary for microbial life". NASA's studies on the island were presented at a meeting of the American Geophysical Union in New Orleans this week. It comes after US President Donald Trump on Monday directed NASA to send Americans to the Moon for the first time since 1972, in order to prepare for future trips to Mars.

New island offers clues in search for life on Mars: NASA

At a time when China is working on an ambitious lunar programme, President Donald Trump vowed on Monday that the United States will remain the leader in space exploration as he began a process to return Americans to the moon.&nbsp;

&quot;We are the leader and we&#39;re going to stay the leader, and we&#39;re going to increase it manifold&quot;, Trump said in signing &quot;Space Policy Directive 1&quot; that establishes a foundation for a mission to the moon with an eye on going to Mars.&nbsp;

&quot;This time, we will not only plant our flag and leave our footprint, we will establish a foundation for an eventual mission to Mars,&quot; Trump said. &quot;And perhaps, someday, to many worlds beyond&quot;.&nbsp;

Back in June, China&#39;s space official said the country was making &ldquo;preliminary&rdquo; preparations to send a man to the moon, the latest goal in China&#39;s ambitious lunar exploration programme.&nbsp;

Trump&#39;s signing ceremony for the directive included former lunar astronauts Buzz Aldrin and Harrison Schmitt and current astronaut Peggy Whitson, whose 665 days in orbit is more time in space than any other American and any other woman worldwide.

The ceremony also featured a moon rock 3.8 billion years old collected by Schmitt&#39;s Apollo 17 mission in 1972.&nbsp;Trump said he was taking a giant step toward &quot;reclaiming America&#39;s proud destiny in space&quot;.&nbsp;

&quot;And space has so much to do with so many other applications, including a military application&quot;, he said without elaboration.&nbsp;In approving the new policy, Trump abandoned what had been a goal of his predecessor, Democrat Barack Obama, who in 2010 backed a plan to send humans to a near-earth asteroid.&nbsp;

NASA said initial funding for the new policy would be included in its budget request for the fiscal year 2019.&nbsp;

&ldquo;NASA looks forward to supporting the president&#39;s directive strategically aligning our work to return humans to the moon, travel to Mars and opening the deeper solar system beyond&rdquo;, said acting NASA Administrator Robert Lightfoot in a statement.

Trump signs "Space Policy Directive 1" which he claims will ascertain that the United States remains the leader of the space exploration

At a time when China is working on an ambitious lunar programme, President Donald Trump vowed on Monday that the United States will remain the leader in space exploration as he began a process to return Americans to the moon. "We are the leader and we're going to stay the leader, and we're going to increase it manifold", Trump said in signing "Space Policy Directive 1" that establishes a foundation for a mission to the moon with an eye on going to Mars. "This time, we will not only plant our flag and leave our footprint, we will establish a foundation for an eventual mission to Mars," Trump said. "And perhaps, someday, to many worlds beyond". Back in June, China's space official said the country was making “preliminary” preparations to send a man to the moon, the latest goal in China's ambitious lunar exploration programme. Trump's signing ceremony for the directive included former lunar astronauts Buzz Aldrin and Harrison Schmitt and current astronaut Peggy Whitson, whose 665 days in orbit is more time in space than any other American and any other woman worldwide. The ceremony also featured a moon rock 3.8 billion years old collected by Schmitt's Apollo 17 mission in 1972. Trump said he was taking a giant step toward "reclaiming America's proud destiny in space". "And space has so much to do with so many other applications, including a military application", he said without elaboration. In approving the new policy, Trump abandoned what had been a goal of his predecessor, Democrat Barack Obama, who in 2010 backed a plan to send humans to a near-earth asteroid. NASA said initial funding for the new policy would be included in its budget request for the fiscal year 2019. “NASA looks forward to supporting the president's directive strategically aligning our work to return humans to the moon, travel to Mars and opening the deeper solar system beyond”, said acting NASA Administrator Robert Lightfoot in a statement.

Want flag and footprint on Moon, eventual mission to Mars: Trump

Skygazers could witness the glorious &#39;supermoon&#39; on Sunday night when the moon will be the brightest and biggest in at least next 15 years.&nbsp;

The next &#39;supermoon&#39; will happen in 2034.

At 21:17 pm IST the moon will appear about 7 per cent&nbsp;bigger and&nbsp;15 per cent&nbsp;brighter. However, the difference will not be very noticeable.&nbsp;

The rare sighting happens when the Moon reaches its closest point in its orbit around Earth.

The full moon on Sunday night marks the first and only supermoon of 2017.&nbsp;

According to reports, NASA informed that the supermoon on Sunday is the first in a series of three supermoons and the other two will appear on January 1 and 31, 2018.

The last supermoon was seen on November 14, 2016.&nbsp;

The full moon on Sunday night marks the first and only supermoon of 2017

Skygazers could witness the glorious 'supermoon' on Sunday night when the moon will be the brightest and biggest in at least next 15 years. The next 'supermoon' will happen in 2034. At 21:17 pm IST the moon will appear about 7 per cent bigger and 15 per cent brighter. However, the difference will not be very noticeable. The rare sighting happens when the Moon reaches its closest point in its orbit around Earth. The full moon on Sunday night marks the first and only supermoon of 2017. According to reports, NASA informed that the supermoon on Sunday is the first in a series of three supermoons and the other two will appear on January 1 and 31, 2018. The last supermoon was seen on November 14, 2016.

'Supermoon' to brighten skies on Sunday

The dense fog in Bhatinda,&nbsp;Punjab has resulted in a huge&nbsp;accident leading to the death of at least&nbsp;10 students with at least 25 others injured.&nbsp;

The low visibility due to the smog in Bhatinda led to the collision of four vehicles.

A truck rammed into a Scorpio and then collided with the college bus killing ten students.&nbsp;

The accident happened in Bhucho&nbsp;mandi, a village in Bhatinda.&nbsp;

One student who suffered serious injuries was referred to PGIMER hospital in Chandigarh.

Finance minister of Punjab, Manpreet Singh Badal has assured one lakh as compensation to the students who have died in the accident.

The 25 injured have been promised compensation of Rs 50,000.

Meanwhile, the Deputy Commissioner said that a college bus had stopped on the expressway, a truck collided with a Scorpio which&nbsp;hit the college bus.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

NASA recently released a 2015 video?on how a family dinner would look like 250 miles above the Earth on the International Space Station.

The dense fog in Bhatinda, Punjab has resulted in a huge accident leading to the death of at least 10 students with at least 25 others injured. The low visibility due to the smog in Bhatinda led to the collision of four vehicles. A truck rammed into a Scorpio and then collided with the college bus killing ten students. The accident happened in Bhucho mandi, a village in Bhatinda. One student who suffered serious injuries was referred to PGIMER hospital in Chandigarh. Finance minister of Punjab, Manpreet Singh Badal has assured one lakh as compensation to the students who have died in the accident. The 25 injured have been promised compensation of Rs 50,000. Meanwhile, the Deputy Commissioner said that a college bus had stopped on the expressway, a truck collided with a Scorpio which hit the college bus.

Watch: NASA's Thanksgiving from space aboard ISS

Authors: Marc Norman and Penelope King*

No human has been to the Moon since 1972 and only 12 people have ever done it &ndash; all of them American men.

But that list could soon be getting a lot longer.

Why the Moon? Haven&rsquo;t we already been there, done that? Well, yes. But now there are new reasons motivating countries to reach the Moon.

Human and other missions to the Moon are planned by India, China and Russia, as well as Japan and Europe. South Korea and North Korea are also looking towards the Moon.

Even NASA seems to be getting its mojo back, recently announcing a revamped vision for a Deep Space Gateway that includes a port of call at the Moon en route to Mars and beyond. Elon Musk has also called for a Moon base.

Private companies are vying for a slice of the Moon pie, lured by Google&rsquo;s multi-million dollar XPRIZE that challenges entrants to develop low-cost methods for robotic space exploration.

A space race of sorts seems to back on in earnest, for five reasons.

Reason 1: A vision for innovation

In the past and still now, one reason that space attracts interest and investment is that humans seem driven to explore and push the limits, physically and viscerally.

But space also acts as a unifying force, providing a clear vision that pushes technology and innovation forwards.

After several decades of relative neglect, space exploration is again seen as driving technology, inspiring engagement with science and engineering, and creating national pride. The program at the recent International Astronautical Congress in Adelaide captured that sentiment.

These motivators are seen as especially important by emerging economies like India, China and Russia, which means that more established players like Europe and the USA have to work harder keep up.

The recent announcement that Australia will have a space agency is expected to create new opportunities for this country.

Reason 2: Economic and geopolitical advantages

Paradoxically, exploration of the Moon builds both international cooperation and competition.

Even if they don&rsquo;t have their own space program, countries can develop instruments to fly on spacecraft that are built and launched by other nations. For example, India&rsquo;s Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft carried instruments from Sweden, Germany, UK, Bulgaria, and the US to the Moon. This helps mesh economies and provides strong motivation to keep the peace.

Economic and geopolitical competition occurs because the Moon is seen as an unclaimed territory. No country is allowed to own the Moon, at least according to a 1967 UN Treaty that has agreement from over 100 countries.

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The Long March 3C rocket carrying an experimental Moon orbiter launches from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwest China&rsquo;s Sichuan province, 24 October 2014. (Others)
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Nonetheless, there are incentives to place a claim on the Moon. For example, helium-3 (an isotope of the element helium) is abundant on the Moon but rare on Earth. It is a potential fuel for nuclear fusion, a potentially unlimited and non-polluting source of energy. China, in particular, has stated a strong interest in lunar helium-3.

The situation appears similar to that of Antarctica in the 1950s, when the continent was subdivided by the 12 countries that had active scientific programs in the region at the time. Sending a spacecraft to the Moon &ndash; even if it fails prematurely like India&rsquo;s Chandrayaan-1 &ndash; may provide a compelling case for recognition if the Moon were ever to be carved up into zones of research and economic development.

Russia, China, Japan, Europe and the USA landed (or crashed) spacecraft on the Moon in the decades after Apollo.

Reason 3: An easy target

Growing space agencies need successful missions, and the Moon is a tempting target. Radio communication over the relatively short distance between the Earth and Moon (384,400 km) is almost instantaneous (1-2 sec). Between Earth and Mars, two-way communication times can be the better part of an hour.

The low gravity and lack of an atmosphere on the Moon also simplifies operations for orbiters and landers.

The Russian Luna missions showed that it is technically feasible to apply robotics to bring samples from the Moon to Earth. China aims to launch a robotic mission to the Moon in the next 1-2 years to fetch samples. If successful, these will be the first samples brought back from the Moon since Luna 24 in 1976.

Reason 4: New discoveries

Despite decades of observations, each new mission to the Moon produces new discoveries.

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Indian spacecraft lifting off carrying India&rsquo;s first lunar probe Chandrayaan-1 at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, 22 October 2008. (Others)
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Japan&rsquo;s Selene spacecraft and India&rsquo;s Chandrayaan-1 mission discovered new distributions of minerals on the Moon and probed regions of potential resources.

An exciting discovery has been the presence of water ice and other organic compounds in permanently shadowed regions of the Moon that never see sunlight. If present in sufficient quantities, water ice on the Moon could be used as a resource for generating fuel or supporting human habitation. This would be a major advantage for future missions considering the cost of carrying water from the Earth to the Moon

Although immense engineering advances are needed to recover these resources from environments as cold as -250?, such challenges drive new technologies.

Reason 5: We learn about Earth

Aside from the practicalities, exploration of the Moon has revealed completely new ideas about the origin of the Solar system.

Prior to the Apollo missions, planets were thought to form over long periods of time by the slow agglomeration of dusty particles. Moon rocks returned to Earth by the Apollo missions changed that idea literally overnight. We now know that gigantic collisions between planets were common, and one such collision of a Mars-size planet with the Earth probably formed the Moon (animation).

We&rsquo;ve also learned that the dark circular features on the Moon are scars of impacting asteroids stirred up by shifts in the orbits of Jupiter and Saturn.

Future studies of the Moon will undoubtedly lead to even deeper insights into the origin of the Earth, our home planet.

Space exploration is not only about &ldquo;out there&rdquo;. Travel to the Moon creates jobs, technical innovations and new discoveries that improve the lives of all of us &ldquo;down here&rdquo;.

This article was originally published on <a href="http://theconversation.com" rel="nofollow" target="blank">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/five-reasons-india-china-and-other-nations-plan-to-travel-to-the-moon-87589" rel="nofollow" target="blank">original article</a>.

Image Credit: ISRO, NASA, AAP

Penelope King is an Associate Professor at Australian National University

(Disclaimer: Both authors write here in a personal capacity).

No human has been to the moon since 1972. But India, China and Russia would like to change that, and soon

Authors: Marc Norman and Penelope King* No human has been to the Moon since 1972 and only 12 people have ever done it – all of them American men. But that list could soon be getting a lot longer. Why the Moon? Haven’t we already been there, done that? Well, yes. But now there are new reasons motivating countries to reach the Moon. Human and other missions to the Moon are planned by India, China and Russia, as well as Japan and Europe. South Korea and North Korea are also looking towards the Moon. Even NASA seems to be getting its mojo back, recently announcing a revamped vision for a Deep Space Gateway that includes a port of call at the Moon en route to Mars and beyond. Elon Musk has also called for a Moon base. Private companies are vying for a slice of the Moon pie, lured by Google’s multi-million dollar XPRIZE that challenges entrants to develop low-cost methods for robotic space exploration. A space race of sorts seems to back on in earnest, for five reasons. Reason 1: A vision for innovation In the past and still now, one reason that space attracts interest and investment is that humans seem driven to explore and push the limits, physically and viscerally. But space also acts as a unifying force, providing a clear vision that pushes technology and innovation forwards. After several decades of relative neglect, space exploration is again seen as driving technology, inspiring engagement with science and engineering, and creating national pride. The program at the recent International Astronautical Congress in Adelaide captured that sentiment. These motivators are seen as especially important by emerging economies like India, China and Russia, which means that more established players like Europe and the USA have to work harder keep up. The recent announcement that Australia will have a space agency is expected to create new opportunities for this country. Reason 2: Economic and geopolitical advantages Paradoxically, exploration of the Moon builds both international cooperation and competition. Even if they don’t have their own space program, countries can develop instruments to fly on spacecraft that are built and launched by other nations. For example, India’s Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft carried instruments from Sweden, Germany, UK, Bulgaria, and the US to the Moon. This helps mesh economies and provides strong motivation to keep the peace. Economic and geopolitical competition occurs because the Moon is seen as an unclaimed territory. No country is allowed to own the Moon, at least according to a 1967 UN Treaty that has agreement from over 100 countries. The Long March 3C rocket carrying an experimental Moon orbiter launches from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwest China’s Sichuan province, 24 October 2014. (Others) × Nonetheless, there are incentives to place a claim on the Moon. For example, helium-3 (an isotope of the element helium) is abundant on the Moon but rare on Earth. It is a potential fuel for nuclear fusion, a potentially unlimited and non-polluting source of energy. China, in particular, has stated a strong interest in lunar helium-3. The situation appears similar to that of Antarctica in the 1950s, when the continent was subdivided by the 12 countries that had active scientific programs in the region at the time. Sending a spacecraft to the Moon – even if it fails prematurely like India’s Chandrayaan-1 – may provide a compelling case for recognition if the Moon were ever to be carved up into zones of research and economic development. Russia, China, Japan, Europe and the USA landed (or crashed) spacecraft on the Moon in the decades after Apollo. Reason 3: An easy target Growing space agencies need successful missions, and the Moon is a tempting target. Radio communication over the relatively short distance between the Earth and Moon (384,400 km) is almost instantaneous (1-2 sec). Between Earth and Mars, two-way communication times can be the better part of an hour. The low gravity and lack of an atmosphere on the Moon also simplifies operations for orbiters and landers. The Russian Luna missions showed that it is technically feasible to apply robotics to bring samples from the Moon to Earth. China aims to launch a robotic mission to the Moon in the next 1-2 years to fetch samples. If successful, these will be the first samples brought back from the Moon since Luna 24 in 1976. Reason 4: New discoveries Despite decades of observations, each new mission to the Moon produces new discoveries. Indian spacecraft lifting off carrying India’s first lunar probe Chandrayaan-1 at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, 22 October 2008. (Others) × Japan’s Selene spacecraft and India’s Chandrayaan-1 mission discovered new distributions of minerals on the Moon and probed regions of potential resources. An exciting discovery has been the presence of water ice and other organic compounds in permanently shadowed regions of the Moon that never see sunlight. If present in sufficient quantities, water ice on the Moon could be used as a resource for generating fuel or supporting human habitation. This would be a major advantage for future missions considering the cost of carrying water from the Earth to the Moon Although immense engineering advances are needed to recover these resources from environments as cold as -250?, such challenges drive new technologies. Reason 5: We learn about Earth Aside from the practicalities, exploration of the Moon has revealed completely new ideas about the origin of the Solar system. Prior to the Apollo missions, planets were thought to form over long periods of time by the slow agglomeration of dusty particles. Moon rocks returned to Earth by the Apollo missions changed that idea literally overnight. We now know that gigantic collisions between planets were common, and one such collision of a Mars-size planet with the Earth probably formed the Moon (animation). We’ve also learned that the dark circular features on the Moon are scars of impacting asteroids stirred up by shifts in the orbits of Jupiter and Saturn. Future studies of the Moon will undoubtedly lead to even deeper insights into the origin of the Earth, our home planet. Space exploration is not only about “out there”. Travel to the Moon creates jobs, technical innovations and new discoveries that improve the lives of all of us “down here”. This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. Image Credit: ISRO, NASA, AAP Penelope King is an Associate Professor at Australian National University (Disclaimer: Both authors write here in a personal capacity).

Opinion: Why India & China plan to travel to the Moon

In a recent report, American space agency NASA has revealed that planet earth may actually face massive destruction in the year of 2036, by an asteroid strike.

According to NASA, the asteroid named Apophis will collide with Earth and it will have result in human extinction.

The asteroid was detected in 2004 by NASA and since then NASA has been observing the celestial body for the past 13 years, finally concluding that the deadly strike may occur in 2036.

The news has been confirmed by Duane Brown, a NASA official at the Washinton Headquarters. Reported by IB Times.

Steve Chesley, a NASA scientist, along with his fellow teammate Paul Khodas from the jet propulsion laboratory of NASA, learned the about the asteroid since 2009, and they have predicted the collision to precisely occur on April 13, 2036.

Dave Tholen and his collaborators at the University of Hawaii&#39;s Institue for astronomy made the observations and confirmed about the updated orbit of Apophis&nbsp;

&quot;Apophis was one of those heavenly bodies, which attracted the interest of the public, as it was discovered in 2004. Updated computational techniques and newly available data indicate the probability of collision of the Earth April 13, 2036,&quot; writes NASA on its website.

Russians scientists have also claimed that asteroid Apophis will have a close flyby in 2029 at a distance of 32,000 km&nbsp;from&nbsp;Earth, and during this time, even a small deviation in its trajectory will cause mass destruction.

Earlier the conspiracy theorists predicted the end of the world to be on November 19, 2017, following a strike by Nibiru or Planet X. However, it was turned out to be a failure.

According to David Meade, another conspiracy theorist, doomsday has already been triggered as of October 15, 2017. He also said that the world will witness seven-year tribulation period through a series of natural disasters including earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanic eruptions. Meade also claimed that Nibiru has already approached the Earth&#39;s orbit

In a recent report, NASA has revealed that planet earth may actually face massive destruction in the year of 2036, by an asteroid strike

In a recent report, American space agency NASA has revealed that planet earth may actually face massive destruction in the year of 2036, by an asteroid strike. According to NASA, the asteroid named Apophis will collide with Earth and it will have result in human extinction. The asteroid was detected in 2004 by NASA and since then NASA has been observing the celestial body for the past 13 years, finally concluding that the deadly strike may occur in 2036. The news has been confirmed by Duane Brown, a NASA official at the Washinton Headquarters. Reported by IB Times. Steve Chesley, a NASA scientist, along with his fellow teammate Paul Khodas from the jet propulsion laboratory of NASA, learned the about the asteroid since 2009, and they have predicted the collision to precisely occur on April 13, 2036. Dave Tholen and his collaborators at the University of Hawaii's Institue for astronomy made the observations and confirmed about the updated orbit of Apophis "Apophis was one of those heavenly bodies, which attracted the interest of the public, as it was discovered in 2004. Updated computational techniques and newly available data indicate the probability of collision of the Earth April 13, 2036," writes NASA on its website. Russians scientists have also claimed that asteroid Apophis will have a close flyby in 2029 at a distance of 32,000 km from Earth, and during this time, even a small deviation in its trajectory will cause mass destruction. Earlier the conspiracy theorists predicted the end of the world to be on November 19, 2017, following a strike by Nibiru or Planet X. However, it was turned out to be a failure. According to David Meade, another conspiracy theorist, doomsday has already been triggered as of October 15, 2017. He also said that the world will witness seven-year tribulation period through a series of natural disasters including earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanic eruptions. Meade also claimed that Nibiru has already approached the Earth's orbit

Asteroid Apophis to cause massive destruction on Earth in 2036, says NASA

Mangalore in <a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/mumbai-hit-by-heavy-rains-waterlogging-4246">Karnataka and Mumbai are at a high</a> risk of encountering floods due to melting ice caps, a NASA report said.&nbsp;

In the past week up to 550 mm (21.7 inches) of rain poured over India&#39;s southeastern coast in the state of Tamil Nadu, NASA said in its website. Total rainfall in southeastern India was measured at around 200 mm (7.9 inches).&nbsp;

The Joint Typhoon Warning Center informed that computer models indicate that rains are expected to move in a northerly direction, wind speed is predicted at approximately 37 to 46.3 kilometers per hour, and with a minimum central pressure near 1004 millibars, NASA confirmed.

The low-pressure continued to produce heavy rain in Tamil Nadu and in remote areas over south coastal Andhra Pradesh, NASA revealed.&nbsp;

Over the next 100 years, the glacial melt may potentially rise Mangalore&#39;s sea levels by 15.98cm as and&nbsp;to 15.26cm in&nbsp;Mumbai and 10.65cm for New York, according&nbsp;to a&nbsp;study carried in the journal Science Advances.&nbsp;&nbsp;

The insights are based on a forecasting tool, gradient fingerprint mapping (GFM) which help to predict how water will be &ldquo;redistributed&rdquo; globally.

&ldquo;This provides, for each city, a picture of which glaciers, ice sheets, and ice caps are of specific importance,&rdquo; researchers said.

&ldquo;As cities and countries attempt to build plans to mitigate flooding, they have to be thinking about 100 years in the future and they want to assess risk in the same way that insurance companies do,&rdquo; said Erik Ivins, senior scientist at NASA&rsquo;s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in the US.

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The Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) instrument aboard NASA-NOAA&#39;s Suomi NPP satellite captured a visible image of rainfall hugging the Indian coast. (Others)
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Moreover, the three prime characteristics which play a part in influencing &ldquo;the sea-level fingerprint,&rdquo; the pattern of sea-level change around the world consist of gravity, the push-pull influence of ice and rotation of the plant itself, said a study published in the journal Science Advances, according to reports.&nbsp;

The melting of ice sheets due to global warming in Greenland and Antarctica is a major contributor to sea level rise.

Mangalore in Karnataka and Mumbai are at a high risk of encountering floods due to melting ice caps, a NASA report said. In the past week up to 550 mm (21.7 inches) of rain poured over India's southeastern coast in the state of Tamil Nadu, NASA said in its website. Total rainfall in southeastern India was measured at around 200 mm (7.9 inches). The Joint Typhoon Warning Center informed that computer models indicate that rains are expected to move in a northerly direction, wind speed is predicted at approximately 37 to 46.3 kilometers per hour, and with a minimum central pressure near 1004 millibars, NASA confirmed. The low-pressure continued to produce heavy rain in Tamil Nadu and in remote areas over south coastal Andhra Pradesh, NASA revealed. Over the next 100 years, the glacial melt may potentially rise Mangalore's sea levels by 15.98cm as and to 15.26cm in Mumbai and 10.65cm for New York, according to a study carried in the journal Science Advances. The insights are based on a forecasting tool, gradient fingerprint mapping (GFM) which help to predict how water will be “redistributed” globally. “This provides, for each city, a picture of which glaciers, ice sheets, and ice caps are of specific importance,” researchers said. “As cities and countries attempt to build plans to mitigate flooding, they have to be thinking about 100 years in the future and they want to assess risk in the same way that insurance companies do,” said Erik Ivins, senior scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in the US. The Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) instrument aboard NASA-NOAA's Suomi NPP satellite captured a visible image of rainfall hugging the Indian coast. (Others) × Moreover, the three prime characteristics which play a part in influencing “the sea-level fingerprint,” the pattern of sea-level change around the world consist of gravity, the push-pull influence of ice and rotation of the plant itself, said a study published in the journal Science Advances, according to reports.

Mumbai, Mangalore at high risk of flooding: NASA

Around 1,38,899 Indians have signed up&nbsp;to travel to Mars in May 2018. The flight to the red planet&nbsp;is going to be via Nasa&#39;s InSight (Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport) mission. According to a report in Times Of India, the selected candidates have been sent &#39;boarding passes&#39; for the mission. 
 
Several Indians applied when Nasa called for names for its mission to Mars. The total number of names received by Nasan from all over the world is 2,429,807. 
 
In fact, India ranks the third in the global list with regards to the number of names submitted from a single country. At the top is America, which does not come as a surprise considering it&#39;s a Nasa mission. At the second position is China which sent 2,62,752 names and India stands third.&nbsp; 
 
India and China&#39;s name in the top three countries is a matter of significance, according to space experts. They attributed India&#39;s growing interest in space mission due to the country&#39;s recent Mangalyaan mission as well as strengthening of India-Us space ties.&nbsp;

The mission will take flight in May 2018 and is scheduled to land in Mars on November 26, 2018. The deadline to submit names was till last week.&nbsp; 
 
Nasa states that InSight&#39;s role is not only to study Mars, but also to gain broader insight into the formation of rocky planets in the entire solar system.

Several Indians applied when Nasa called for names for its mission to Mars.

Around 1,38,899 Indians have signed up to travel to Mars in May 2018. The flight to the red planet is going to be via Nasa's InSight (Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport) mission. According to a report in Times Of India, the selected candidates have been sent 'boarding passes' for the mission. Several Indians applied when Nasa called for names for its mission to Mars. The total number of names received by Nasan from all over the world is 2,429,807. In fact, India ranks the third in the global list with regards to the number of names submitted from a single country. At the top is America, which does not come as a surprise considering it's a Nasa mission. At the second position is China which sent 2,62,752 names and India stands third. India and China's name in the top three countries is a matter of significance, according to space experts. They attributed India's growing interest in space mission due to the country's recent Mangalyaan mission as well as strengthening of India-Us space ties. The mission will take flight in May 2018 and is scheduled to land in Mars on November 26, 2018. The deadline to submit names was till last week. Nasa states that InSight's role is not only to study Mars, but also to gain broader insight into the formation of rocky planets in the entire solar system.

One lakh Indians sign up for next Nasa mission to Mars

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/science-tech/towards-the-dawn-of-the-solar-system-nasa-set-to-launch-near-earth-asteroid-mission-6085" target="_blank">Two American astronauts floated outside the International Space Station</a> Friday for the third spacewalk this month aimed at repairing the orbiting outpost&#39;s robotic arm and replacing old video cameras.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/science-tech/nasas-first-of-its-kind-near-earth-asteroid-mission-lifts-off-6119" target="_blank">NASA&#39;s </a>Joe Acaba and Randy Bresnik officially began the spacewalk at 7:47 am (1147 GMT) when they switched their spacesuits to battery power, then ventured outside the airlock into the vacuum of space.

The pair hopes to replace a degraded camera at the end of the 57-foot (17-meter) robotic arm, finish lubricating its newly installed latching end and replace a blown fuse, among other tasks.

The ageing arm, made by Canada and named the Canadarm, is used to move objects around outside the station and to grab incoming cargo ships.

Installed 16 years ago, its latching end lost its gripping ability in August. A key piece of equipment called the latching end effector was replaced during the October 5 spacewalk.&nbsp;

Further lubrication work was done on the October 10 spacewalk, and a new high definition video camera was also installed outside the research lab.

On Friday, astronauts plan to replace another camera, nicknamed &quot;Old Yeller&quot; because it broadcasts in yellow hues.

The spacewalk is the 205th in the history of the space station, an international collaboration involving more than a dozen countries.

Bresnik, 50, a former Marine Corps aviator who goes by the nickname &quot;Komrade,&quot; has led all three of the October spacewalks, and on Friday is making his fifth career excursion outside the space station.

His colleague Acaba, 50, is the first person of Puerto Rican heritage to become an astronaut, according to his NASA biography.&nbsp;

The former hydro-geologist and educator became an astronaut in 2004 and spacewalked twice in 2009 during the space shuttle era.

Friday&#39;s outing is the ninth this year for NASA. Russian cosmonauts have ventured out on one spacewalk this year.m Spain.

NASA's Joe Acaba and Randy Bresnik officially began the spacewalk at 7:47 am (1147 GMT) when they switched their spacesuits to battery power, then ventured outside the airlock into the vacuum of space

Two American astronauts floated outside the International Space Station Friday for the third spacewalk this month aimed at repairing the orbiting outpost's robotic arm and replacing old video cameras. NASA's Joe Acaba and Randy Bresnik officially began the spacewalk at 7:47 am (1147 GMT) when they switched their spacesuits to battery power, then ventured outside the airlock into the vacuum of space. The pair hopes to replace a degraded camera at the end of the 57-foot (17-meter) robotic arm, finish lubricating its newly installed latching end and replace a blown fuse, among other tasks. The ageing arm, made by Canada and named the Canadarm, is used to move objects around outside the station and to grab incoming cargo ships. Installed 16 years ago, its latching end lost its gripping ability in August. A key piece of equipment called the latching end effector was replaced during the October 5 spacewalk. Further lubrication work was done on the October 10 spacewalk, and a new high definition video camera was also installed outside the research lab. On Friday, astronauts plan to replace another camera, nicknamed "Old Yeller" because it broadcasts in yellow hues. The spacewalk is the 205th in the history of the space station, an international collaboration involving more than a dozen countries. Bresnik, 50, a former Marine Corps aviator who goes by the nickname "Komrade," has led all three of the October spacewalks, and on Friday is making his fifth career excursion outside the space station. His colleague Acaba, 50, is the first person of Puerto Rican heritage to become an astronaut, according to his NASA biography. The former hydro-geologist and educator became an astronaut in 2004 and spacewalked twice in 2009 during the space shuttle era. Friday's outing is the ninth this year for NASA. Russian cosmonauts have ventured out on one spacewalk this year.m Spain.

US spacewalkers begin third October repair mission

Rumours have been swirling for weeks that scientists have detected gravitational waves &ndash; tiny ripples in space and time &ndash; from a source other than colliding black holes. Now we can finally confirm that we&rsquo;ve observed such waves produced by the violent collision of two massive, ultra-dense stars more than 100m light years from the Earth.

The discovery was made on August 17 by the global network of advanced gravitational-wave interferometers &ndash; comprising the twin LIGO detectors in the US and their European cousin, Virgo, in Italy. It is hugely important, not least because it helps solve some big mysteries in astrophysics &ndash; including the cause of bright flashes of light known as &ldquo;gamma-ray bursts&rdquo; and perhaps even the origins of heavy elements such as gold.

As a member of the LIGO scientific collaboration, I was immediately in raptures as soon as I saw the initial data. And the period that followed was definitely the most intense and sleep deprived, but also incredibly exciting, two months of my career.

The announcement comes just weeks after three scientists were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics for their foundational work leading to the discovery of gravitational waves, first announced in February 2016. Since then, detecting gravitational waves from colliding black holes have started to feel like familiar territory &ndash; with four further such events detected. But as far as we know, colliding black holes offer purely a window on the dark side of the universe. We haven&rsquo;t been able to register light from these events with any other instruments.

But GW170817 &ndash; the catchy title for the event of August 17 &mdash; changes all that. That&rsquo;s because the source of the waves this time was two &ldquo;neutron stars&rdquo; &ndash; incredibly dense stellar remnants the size of a city, each weighing more than the sun. These stars whizzed around each other at a sizeable fraction of the speed of light before merging in a cataclysmic collision that we&rsquo;ve now seen shake the very fabric of space and time.

Mysteries solved

The cosmic concerto was just beginning, however, astronomers have long suspected that the merger of two neutron stars could be the overture to a short gamma-ray burst &ndash; an intense flash of gamma-ray light that releases more energy in a fraction of a second than the sun will pump out in ten billion years. For several decades we have observed these gamma-ray bursts, but without knowing for sure what causes them.

However, just 1.7 seconds after the gravitational waves from GW170817 arrived at the Earth, NASA&rsquo;s Fermi satellite observed a short burst of gamma rays in the same general region of the sky. LIGO and Virgo had found the smoking gun, and the link between neutron star collisions and short gamma-ray bursts was finally and clearly established.

The combination of gravitational-wave and gamma-ray observations allowed the position of the cosmic explosion to be pinpointed to less than 30 square degrees on the sky &ndash; or about 100 times the size of the full moon. This, in turn, allowed a whole barrage of astronomical telescopes sensitive to light across the entire electromagnetic spectrum to search this small patch of sky for the aftermath of the explosion. And sure enough, this was found &ndash; in an unfashionable backwater towards the edge of a fairly unassuming galaxy called NGC4993, in the constellation of Hydra.

Over the next few days and weeks, astronomers watched agog as the embers from the explosion glowed brightly and faded, beautifully matching the pattern expected for a so-called &ldquo;kilonova&rdquo;. This is produced when material rich in subatomic particles known as neutrons from the initial merger is ejected at great speed by the gamma-ray burst. This ploughs into the surrounding region of space, triggering the production of heavy radioactive elements.

These unstable elements typically split up (decay) to a stable state by emitting radiation. This is what causes the glow of the kilonova, which we have now confirmed by mapping it out in exquisite detail. Our observations also strongly support the theory that the stable end-products of these chains of reactions include copious amounts of precious metals like gold and platinum. While we&rsquo;ve suspected neutron stars to be key to producing these elements in space, that hypothesis now looks a whole lot more convincing. Indeed, the kilonova that formed from the embers of GW170817 could have produced as much gold as the entire mass of the Earth &ndash; that is 1,000 trillion tonnes.

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What is a binary neutron star? <a href="https://twitter.com/martin_astro?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Martin_astro</a> tells us about one of the most bizarre objects in the universe. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/GoldenBinary?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#GoldenBinary</a> <a href="https://t.co/AzHTReV8Z7">pic.twitter.com/AzHTReV8Z7</a>
&mdash; Uni of Glasgow (@UofGlasgow) <a href="https://twitter.com/UofGlasgow/status/919936738893602816?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 16, 2017</a></blockquote>
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By observing a kilonova &ldquo;up close and personal&rdquo; for the very first time, and seeing how well it fits into the unfolding astronomical storyboard that began with the neutron star merger, astronomers have taken a huge leap forward in our understanding of these violent cosmic events.

The idea that we are all made of stardust is increasingly appreciated in popular culture &ndash; in everything from documentaries to song lyrics. But the mind-blowing concept that the gold in our wedding rings and Rolex watches is made of neutron stardust is about to catch on. Perhaps even more exciting, however, is the enormous potential now unlocked by this radical, new approach to studying the cosmos.

By working together collaboratively &ndash; using instruments that operate not just across the entire spectrum of light but are sensitive to gravitational waves and even neutrinos too &ndash; astronomers are poised to fully open a completely new &ldquo;multi-messenger&rdquo; window on the universe, with many further discoveries to be made and cosmic mysteries to be solved. For example, we have already used our observations to make the first ever joint measurement of the expansion rate of the universe, using both gravitational waves and light. Our paper will appear in Nature on October 16.

More results will also surely follow soon. The exciting new era of multi-messenger astronomy just started with a bang.

This article was originally published on <a href="http://theconversation.com" rel="nofollow" target="blank">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-we-discovered-gravitational-waves-from-neutron-stars-and-why-its-such-a-huge-deal-85647" rel="nofollow" target="blank">original article</a>.

The discovery of gravitational waves is a new approach to study the cosmos

Rumours have been swirling for weeks that scientists have detected gravitational waves – tiny ripples in space and time – from a source other than colliding black holes. Now we can finally confirm that we’ve observed such waves produced by the violent collision of two massive, ultra-dense stars more than 100m light years from the Earth. The discovery was made on August 17 by the global network of advanced gravitational-wave interferometers – comprising the twin LIGO detectors in the US and their European cousin, Virgo, in Italy. It is hugely important, not least because it helps solve some big mysteries in astrophysics – including the cause of bright flashes of light known as “gamma-ray bursts” and perhaps even the origins of heavy elements such as gold. As a member of the LIGO scientific collaboration, I was immediately in raptures as soon as I saw the initial data. And the period that followed was definitely the most intense and sleep deprived, but also incredibly exciting, two months of my career. The announcement comes just weeks after three scientists were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics for their foundational work leading to the discovery of gravitational waves, first announced in February 2016. Since then, detecting gravitational waves from colliding black holes have started to feel like familiar territory – with four further such events detected. But as far as we know, colliding black holes offer purely a window on the dark side of the universe. We haven’t been able to register light from these events with any other instruments. But GW170817 – the catchy title for the event of August 17 — changes all that. That’s because the source of the waves this time was two “neutron stars” – incredibly dense stellar remnants the size of a city, each weighing more than the sun. These stars whizzed around each other at a sizeable fraction of the speed of light before merging in a cataclysmic collision that we’ve now seen shake the very fabric of space and time. Mysteries solved The cosmic concerto was just beginning, however, astronomers have long suspected that the merger of two neutron stars could be the overture to a short gamma-ray burst – an intense flash of gamma-ray light that releases more energy in a fraction of a second than the sun will pump out in ten billion years. For several decades we have observed these gamma-ray bursts, but without knowing for sure what causes them. However, just 1.7 seconds after the gravitational waves from GW170817 arrived at the Earth, NASA’s Fermi satellite observed a short burst of gamma rays in the same general region of the sky. LIGO and Virgo had found the smoking gun, and the link between neutron star collisions and short gamma-ray bursts was finally and clearly established. The combination of gravitational-wave and gamma-ray observations allowed the position of the cosmic explosion to be pinpointed to less than 30 square degrees on the sky – or about 100 times the size of the full moon. This, in turn, allowed a whole barrage of astronomical telescopes sensitive to light across the entire electromagnetic spectrum to search this small patch of sky for the aftermath of the explosion. And sure enough, this was found – in an unfashionable backwater towards the edge of a fairly unassuming galaxy called NGC4993, in the constellation of Hydra. Over the next few days and weeks, astronomers watched agog as the embers from the explosion glowed brightly and faded, beautifully matching the pattern expected for a so-called “kilonova”. This is produced when material rich in subatomic particles known as neutrons from the initial merger is ejected at great speed by the gamma-ray burst. This ploughs into the surrounding region of space, triggering the production of heavy radioactive elements. These unstable elements typically split up (decay) to a stable state by emitting radiation. This is what causes the glow of the kilonova, which we have now confirmed by mapping it out in exquisite detail. Our observations also strongly support the theory that the stable end-products of these chains of reactions include copious amounts of precious metals like gold and platinum. While we’ve suspected neutron stars to be key to producing these elements in space, that hypothesis now looks a whole lot more convincing. Indeed, the kilonova that formed from the embers of GW170817 could have produced as much gold as the entire mass of the Earth – that is 1,000 trillion tonnes. What is a binary neutron star? @Martin_astro tells us about one of the most bizarre objects in the universe. #GoldenBinary pic.twitter.com/AzHTReV8Z7 — Uni of Glasgow (@UofGlasgow) October 16, 2017 × By observing a kilonova “up close and personal” for the very first time, and seeing how well it fits into the unfolding astronomical storyboard that began with the neutron star merger, astronomers have taken a huge leap forward in our understanding of these violent cosmic events. The idea that we are all made of stardust is increasingly appreciated in popular culture – in everything from documentaries to song lyrics. But the mind-blowing concept that the gold in our wedding rings and Rolex watches is made of neutron stardust is about to catch on. Perhaps even more exciting, however, is the enormous potential now unlocked by this radical, new approach to studying the cosmos. By working together collaboratively – using instruments that operate not just across the entire spectrum of light but are sensitive to gravitational waves and even neutrinos too – astronomers are poised to fully open a completely new “multi-messenger” window on the universe, with many further discoveries to be made and cosmic mysteries to be solved. For example, we have already used our observations to make the first ever joint measurement of the expansion rate of the universe, using both gravitational waves and light. Our paper will appear in Nature on October 16. More results will also surely follow soon. The exciting new era of multi-messenger astronomy just started with a bang. This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

How we discovered gravitational waves from 'neutron stars' ? and why it's such a huge deal

Joseph M.Acaba, NASA astronaut has sent&nbsp;pictures of his family&#39;s hurricane-wrecked ancestral homeland, Puerto Rico from the International Space Station.&nbsp;&nbsp;

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Finally a chance to see the beautiful island of Puerto Rico from <a href="https://twitter.com/Space_Station?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Space_Station</a>. Continued thoughts throughout the recovery process. <a href="https://t.co/pahZiMvODb">pic.twitter.com/pahZiMvODb</a>
&mdash; Joseph M. Acaba (@AstroAcaba) <a href="https://twitter.com/AstroAcaba/status/919257797224669185?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 14, 2017</a></blockquote>
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The NASA scientist was born in Inglewood, California. His parents had migrated from Puerto Rico during the 1960s.&nbsp;

On September 20, Puerto Rico was hit by hurricane Maria, which has completely disrupted the lives of people on the island.

With 150 mph winds,&nbsp;the powerful category 4 hurricane has devastated the island leaving severe scarcity of water, food, cell service, and electricity.

Acaba has always expressed his concern and affection for his ancestral homeland.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

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From <a href="https://twitter.com/Space_Station?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Space_Station</a>, thinking and praying for all families and friends in Puerto Rico. Stay strong and safe boricuas. Cuidense. <a href="https://t.co/Weptg0qECL">pic.twitter.com/Weptg0qECL</a>
&mdash; Joseph M. Acaba (@AstroAcaba) <a href="https://twitter.com/AstroAcaba/status/912098358776406016?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 24, 2017</a></blockquote>
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Acaba&#39;s twitter handle describes him as a NASA astronaut training for third spaceflight, US Marine Corps, Reserve- hydrogeologist- peace corps volunteer. He further adds that his favourite job is to teach maths and science.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

He also said that he took Puerto Rican flags with him to the International Space Station, claiming that no Puerto Rican can travel without their Puerto Rican flags. He added that soon the space station would look like Puerto Rico with all the flags.?

Joseph M.Acaba, NASA astronaut has sent pictures of his family's hurricane-wrecked ancestral homeland, Puerto Rico from the International Space Station. Finally a chance to see the beautiful island of Puerto Rico from @Space_Station. Continued thoughts throughout the recovery process. pic.twitter.com/pahZiMvODb — Joseph M. Acaba (@AstroAcaba) October 14, 2017 × The NASA scientist was born in Inglewood, California. His parents had migrated from Puerto Rico during the 1960s. On September 20, Puerto Rico was hit by hurricane Maria, which has completely disrupted the lives of people on the island. With 150 mph winds, the powerful category 4 hurricane has devastated the island leaving severe scarcity of water, food, cell service, and electricity. Acaba has always expressed his concern and affection for his ancestral homeland. From @Space_Station, thinking and praying for all families and friends in Puerto Rico. Stay strong and safe boricuas. Cuidense. pic.twitter.com/Weptg0qECL — Joseph M. Acaba (@AstroAcaba) September 24, 2017 × Acaba's twitter handle describes him as a NASA astronaut training for third spaceflight, US Marine Corps, Reserve- hydrogeologist- peace corps volunteer. He further adds that his favourite job is to teach maths and science.

Hurricane Maria aftermath: International Space Station releases Puerto Rico pictures

Global astronomers bid farewell&nbsp;Friday&nbsp;to NASA&#39;s famed Cassini spacecraft, which launched 20 years ago to circle Saturn and transformed the way we think about life elsewhere in the solar system.

Cassini, an international project that cost $3.9 billion and included scientists from 27 nations, has run out of rocket fuel as expected after a journey of some 7.9 billion kilometres (4.9 billion miles).&nbsp;

Its death plunge into the ringed gas giant -- the furthest planet visible from Earth with the naked eye -- is scheduled for shortly after the spacecraft&#39;s final contact with Earth at&nbsp;7:55 am&nbsp;(1155 GMT).

Cassini&#39;s well-planned demise is a way of preventing any damage to Saturn&#39;s ocean-bearing moons Titan and Enceladus, which scientists want to keep pristine for future exploration because they may contain some form of life.

&quot;It will be sad to see Cassini go&nbsp;on Friday, especially as the instrument we built is still working perfectly,&quot; said Stanley Cowley, professor of solar planetary physics at the University of Leicester.

&quot;But we recognize that it is important to bring the mission to an end in a tidy and controlled manner.&quot;

Three other spacecraft have flown by Saturn -- Pioneer 11 in 1979, followed by Voyager 1 and 2 in the 1980s.

But none have studied Saturn in such detail as Cassini, named after the French-Italian astronomer Giovanni Domenico Cassini, who discovered in the 17th century that Saturn had several moons and a gap in between its rings.

Discoveries&nbsp;

Cassini launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida in 1997, then spent seven years in transit followed by 13 years orbiting Saturn.

In that time, it discovered six more moons around Saturn, three-dimensional structures towering above Saturn&#39;s rings, and a giant storm that raged across the planet for nearly a year.

The 22 by 13 foot (6.7 by four meter) spacecraft is also credited with discovering icy geysers erupting from Saturn&#39;s moon Enceladus, and eerie hydrocarbon lakes made of ethane and methane on Saturn&#39;s largest moon, Titan.

In 2005, the Cassini orbiter released a lander called Huygens on Titan, marking the first and only such landing in the outer solar system, on a celestial body beyond the asteroid belt.

Huygens was a joint project of the European Space Agency, Italian Space Agency and NASA.&nbsp;

&quot;The mission has changed the way we think of where life may have developed beyond our Earth,&quot; said Andrew Coates, head of the Planetary Science Group at Mullard Space Science Laboratory at University College London.

&quot;As well as Mars, outer planet moons like Enceladus, Europa and even Titan are now top contenders for life elsewhere,&quot; he added.

&quot;We&#39;ve completely rewritten the textbooks about Saturn.&quot;

Some 4,000 scientific papers have been based on data from the mission, said Mathew Owens, professor of space physics at the University of Reading.

And its final plunge will reveal even more about the make-up of Saturn&#39;s atmosphere before Cassini disintegrates like a meteor.

&quot;No doubt scientists will be analyzing the information from its final, one-way trip into Saturn&#39;s atmosphere for years to come,&quot; Owens said.

Cassini has run out of rocket fuel as expected after a journey of some 7.9 billion kilometres

Global astronomers bid farewell Friday to NASA's famed Cassini spacecraft, which launched 20 years ago to circle Saturn and transformed the way we think about life elsewhere in the solar system. Cassini, an international project that cost $3.9 billion and included scientists from 27 nations, has run out of rocket fuel as expected after a journey of some 7.9 billion kilometres (4.9 billion miles). Its death plunge into the ringed gas giant -- the furthest planet visible from Earth with the naked eye -- is scheduled for shortly after the spacecraft's final contact with Earth at 7:55 am (1155 GMT). Cassini's well-planned demise is a way of preventing any damage to Saturn's ocean-bearing moons Titan and Enceladus, which scientists want to keep pristine for future exploration because they may contain some form of life. "It will be sad to see Cassini go on Friday, especially as the instrument we built is still working perfectly," said Stanley Cowley, professor of solar planetary physics at the University of Leicester. "But we recognize that it is important to bring the mission to an end in a tidy and controlled manner." Three other spacecraft have flown by Saturn -- Pioneer 11 in 1979, followed by Voyager 1 and 2 in the 1980s. But none have studied Saturn in such detail as Cassini, named after the French-Italian astronomer Giovanni Domenico Cassini, who discovered in the 17th century that Saturn had several moons and a gap in between its rings. Discoveries Cassini launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida in 1997, then spent seven years in transit followed by 13 years orbiting Saturn. In that time, it discovered six more moons around Saturn, three-dimensional structures towering above Saturn's rings, and a giant storm that raged across the planet for nearly a year. The 22 by 13 foot (6.7 by four meter) spacecraft is also credited with discovering icy geysers erupting from Saturn's moon Enceladus, and eerie hydrocarbon lakes made of ethane and methane on Saturn's largest moon, Titan. In 2005, the Cassini orbiter released a lander called Huygens on Titan, marking the first and only such landing in the outer solar system, on a celestial body beyond the asteroid belt. Huygens was a joint project of the European Space Agency, Italian Space Agency and NASA. "The mission has changed the way we think of where life may have developed beyond our Earth," said Andrew Coates, head of the Planetary Science Group at Mullard Space Science Laboratory at University College London. "As well as Mars, outer planet moons like Enceladus, Europa and even Titan are now top contenders for life elsewhere," he added. "We've completely rewritten the textbooks about Saturn." Some 4,000 scientific papers have been based on data from the mission, said Mathew Owens, professor of space physics at the University of Reading. And its final plunge will reveal even more about the make-up of Saturn's atmosphere before Cassini disintegrates like a meteor. "No doubt scientists will be analyzing the information from its final, one-way trip into Saturn's atmosphere for years to come," Owens said.

Astronomers bid farewell to $3.9 billion Saturn spacecraft Cassini

The US space agency&#39;s Cassini spacecraft will end its 13-year mission to Saturn in mid-September by transmitting data until the final moment before it plunges into the ringed planet&#39;s atmosphere, officials said on Tuesday.

Cassini, the first spacecraft to orbit Saturn, will make the last of 22 farewell dives between the planet&#39;s rings and surface on Sept. 15. The spacecraft will then burn up as it heads straight into the gas giant&#39;s crushing atmosphere.

Cassini&#39;s final dive will end a mission that provided groundbreaking discoveries that included seasonal changes on Saturn, the moon Titan&#39;s resemblance to a primordial Earth, and a global ocean on the moon Enceladus with ice plumes spouting from its surface.

&quot;The mission has been insanely, wildly, beautifully successful, and it&#39;s coming to an end in about two weeks,&quot; Curt Niebur, Cassini program scientist, said on a telephone conference call with reporters from NASA&#39;s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California.

Cassini&#39;s final photo as it heads into Saturn&#39;s atmosphere will likely be of propellers, or gaps in the rings caused by moonlets, said project scientist Linda Spilker.

The spacecraft will provide near real-time data on the atmosphere until it loses contact with Earth at 4:54 am&nbsp;PDT (1154 GMT) on Sept. 15, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration said.

Spilker said Cassini&#39;s latest data on the rings had shown they had a lighter mass than forecast. That suggests they are younger than expected, at about 120 million years, and thus were created after the birth of the solar system, she said.

During its final orbits between the atmosphere and the rings, Cassini also studied Saturn&#39;s atmosphere and took measurements to determine the size of the planet&#39;s rocky core.

Cassini has been probing Saturn, the sixth planet from the sun, and its entourage of 62 known moons since July 2004. It has provided enough data for almost 4,000 scientific papers.

Since the craft is running low on fuel, NASA is crashing it into Saturn to avoid any chance Cassini could someday collide with Titan, Enceladus or any other moon that has the potential to support indigenous microbial life.

By destroying the spacecraft, NASA will ensure that any hitchhiking Earth microbes still alive on Cassini will not contaminate the moons for future study.

Cassini, the first spacecraft to orbit Saturn, will make the last of 22 farewell dives between the planet's rings and surface on Sept. 15.

The US space agency's Cassini spacecraft will end its 13-year mission to Saturn in mid-September by transmitting data until the final moment before it plunges into the ringed planet's atmosphere, officials said on Tuesday. Cassini, the first spacecraft to orbit Saturn, will make the last of 22 farewell dives between the planet's rings and surface on Sept. 15. The spacecraft will then burn up as it heads straight into the gas giant's crushing atmosphere. Cassini's final dive will end a mission that provided groundbreaking discoveries that included seasonal changes on Saturn, the moon Titan's resemblance to a primordial Earth, and a global ocean on the moon Enceladus with ice plumes spouting from its surface. "The mission has been insanely, wildly, beautifully successful, and it's coming to an end in about two weeks," Curt Niebur, Cassini program scientist, said on a telephone conference call with reporters from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California. Cassini's final photo as it heads into Saturn's atmosphere will likely be of propellers, or gaps in the rings caused by moonlets, said project scientist Linda Spilker. The spacecraft will provide near real-time data on the atmosphere until it loses contact with Earth at 4:54 am PDT (1154 GMT) on Sept. 15, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration said. Spilker said Cassini's latest data on the rings had shown they had a lighter mass than forecast. That suggests they are younger than expected, at about 120 million years, and thus were created after the birth of the solar system, she said. During its final orbits between the atmosphere and the rings, Cassini also studied Saturn's atmosphere and took measurements to determine the size of the planet's rocky core. Cassini has been probing Saturn, the sixth planet from the sun, and its entourage of 62 known moons since July 2004. It has provided enough data for almost 4,000 scientific papers. Since the craft is running low on fuel, NASA is crashing it into Saturn to avoid any chance Cassini could someday collide with Titan, Enceladus or any other moon that has the potential to support indigenous microbial life. By destroying the spacecraft, NASA will ensure that any hitchhiking Earth microbes still alive on Cassini will not contaminate the moons for future study.

NASA to crash US spacecraft into Saturn, 13-year mission to complete soon

SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket is all set to make a new addition into the International Space station.&nbsp;

The rocket that took of at 12:31PM ET from Cape Canaveral, Florida,&nbsp;will launch a supercomputer called Spaceborne, from Hewlett Packard Enterprise.

The Computer system is a joint project between HPE and NASA which aims to check the vulnerability of commercial computer in harsh space environment.&nbsp;

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Weather remains 70% GO for tomorrow&#39;s 12:31pm ET launch of <a href="https://twitter.com/SpaceX">@SpaceX</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Dragon?src=hash">#Dragon</a> carrying science/cargo to <a href="https://twitter.com/Space_Station">@Space_Station</a>: <a href="https://t.co/bIT8bGXhdB">https://t.co/bIT8bGXhdB</a> <a href="https://t.co/kR2itmA0rP">pic.twitter.com/kR2itmA0rP</a>
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Mark Fernandez, the HPE engineer said that the space-bound computer is designed with an ability to make one trillion calculations in a single second.&nbsp;

The space station is placed in lower Earth orbit which makes it an unfavourable place for computers.The ISS is exposed to more radiation from solar flares and cosmic rays because of its presence outside the Earth&#39;s protective atmosphere.&nbsp;

In order to safeguard computers from this exposure they are shielded to make them physically &quot;hardened&quot; which can help in making them adaptable to higher radiation environment.

The project will be experimenting the regular &quot;off- the -shelf&quot; computers to examine their operation in space for longer time. These computers with upgraded software are designed to deal radiation exposure differently.&nbsp;

Running on open-source Linux operating system the computer is programmed to detect &nbsp;high-radiation event.

NASA said that the computer&nbsp;will respond by throttling its systems and lowering its operating speed to save power and avoid damage.

The computer has passed 146 safety tests and certifications by NASA before the space travel, according to HPE. The system is expected to last for an year in the space station after which it will be compared to an identical computer that HPE will be monitoring on the ground.&nbsp;

Later, after the project works similar software hardened computers can be developed as critical tool for future deep space missions beyond Earth.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

The rocket that took of at 12:31PM ET from Cape Canaveral, Florida,?will launch a supercomputer called Spaceborne

SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket is all set to make a new addition into the International Space station. The rocket that took of at 12:31PM ET from Cape Canaveral, Florida, will launch a supercomputer called Spaceborne, from Hewlett Packard Enterprise. The Computer system is a joint project between HPE and NASA which aims to check the vulnerability of commercial computer in harsh space environment. Weather remains 70% GO for tomorrow's 12:31pm ET launch of @SpaceX #Dragon carrying science/cargo to @Space_Station: https://t.co/bIT8bGXhdB pic.twitter.com/kR2itmA0rP — NASA (@NASA) August 13, 2017 × Mark Fernandez, the HPE engineer said that the space-bound computer is designed with an ability to make one trillion calculations in a single second. The space station is placed in lower Earth orbit which makes it an unfavourable place for computers.The ISS is exposed to more radiation from solar flares and cosmic rays because of its presence outside the Earth's protective atmosphere. In order to safeguard computers from this exposure they are shielded to make them physically "hardened" which can help in making them adaptable to higher radiation environment. The project will be experimenting the regular "off- the -shelf" computers to examine their operation in space for longer time. These computers with upgraded software are designed to deal radiation exposure differently. Running on open-source Linux operating system the computer is programmed to detect high-radiation event. NASA said that the computer will respond by throttling its systems and lowering its operating speed to save power and avoid damage. The computer has passed 146 safety tests and certifications by NASA before the space travel, according to HPE. The system is expected to last for an year in the space station after which it will be compared to an identical computer that HPE will be monitoring on the ground. Later, after the project works similar software hardened computers can be developed as critical tool for future deep space missions beyond Earth.

Spaceborne: SpaceX new launch into international space station

NASA is planning to hire a &#39;Planetary Protection Officer&#39; to prevent &quot;aliens&quot; from invading the planet. &nbsp;

The US space agency will offer a salary between $124,406 and $187,000 per year.&nbsp;

The agency is looking for professionals to restrict the entry of alien microbes from contaminating the Earth and to ensure that human space explorers do not damage moons and other terrestrial objects.

The job is open to an experienced top level civilian government employee with an advanced degree in physical science, engineering or mathematics. The job requirements need willing travellers. Besides these, they should be able to manage a significant amount of emails, proposals, and other reading.

NASA has opened applications for US citizens and US nationals till August 14, 2017.&nbsp;

&quot;Planetary protection is concerned with the avoidance of organic-constituent and biological contamination in human and robotic space exploration,&quot; NASA wrote on its website.&nbsp;

The position was created after the US agreement &quot;Outer Space Treaty of 1967&quot;. The treaty aims to &quot;pursue studies of outer space [&hellip;] and conduct exploration of them so as to avoid their harmful contamination and also adverse changes in the environment of the Earth resulting from the introduction of extraterrestrial matter [&hellip;]&rdquo;

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

The agency is looking for professionals to restrict the entry of alien microbes from contaminating the Earth and to ensure that human space explorers do not damage moons and other terrestrial objects

NASA is planning to hire a 'Planetary Protection Officer' to prevent "aliens" from invading the planet. The US space agency will offer a salary between $124,406 and $187,000 per year. The agency is looking for professionals to restrict the entry of alien microbes from contaminating the Earth and to ensure that human space explorers do not damage moons and other terrestrial objects. The job is open to an experienced top level civilian government employee with an advanced degree in physical science, engineering or mathematics. The job requirements need willing travellers. Besides these, they should be able to manage a significant amount of emails, proposals, and other reading. NASA has opened applications for US citizens and US nationals till August 14, 2017. "Planetary protection is concerned with the avoidance of organic-constituent and biological contamination in human and robotic space exploration," NASA wrote on its website. The position was created after the US agreement "Outer Space Treaty of 1967". The treaty aims to "pursue studies of outer space […] and conduct exploration of them so as to avoid their harmful contamination and also adverse changes in the environment of the Earth resulting from the introduction of extraterrestrial matter […]”

NASA to pay officers $187,000 to prevent 'alien' entry

By Aimen Zaki

Taking a step forward in supersonic transport, NASA has decided to build a supersonic aircraft for commercial&nbsp;use.

NASA is all set to launch Quiet Supersonic Technology(QueSST) X-Plane which will mark a comeback of supersonic flights after Concorde retired in 2003.

NASA in a report has also confirmed that it has conducted few experimental flights in Florida&#39;s space coast. The agency is also planning to get a&nbsp;better understanding of the impact&nbsp;of&nbsp;low-altitude atmospheric turbulence on sonic booms by continuing with its&nbsp;assessment in Florida. NASA has worked out its design for the supersonic plane in collaboration with Lockheed Martin.

According to a report, the new supersonic aircraft is 94 feet long with room for one pilot. The overall budget for the project is nearly $390 million.

Last year, NASA administrator Charles Bolden had said: &ldquo;NASA is working hard to make flight greener, safer and quieter &ndash; all while developing aircraft that travel faster, and building an aviation system that operates more efficiently.&rdquo;

&ldquo;To that end, it&rsquo;s worth noting that it&#39;s been almost 70 years since Chuck Yeager broke the sound barrier in the Bell X-1 as part of our predecessor agency&#39;s high-speed research. Now we&rsquo;re continuing that supersonic X-plane legacy with this preliminary design award for a quieter supersonic jet with an aim toward passenger flight,&quot; Bolden added.&nbsp;

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Nasa is all set to build the new Quiet Supersonic Technology X-Plane which could have flight times. (Image source: Lockheed Martin) (Others)
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The new supersonic passenger plane is designed to fly at 55,000 feet above the ground. The design also proposes to solve the noise problem that is associated with such aircrafts. NASA with its new project is aiming at establishing an advance low-sound supersonic flight that will be a revolutionary step in the supersonic aerospace industry.

Commercial supersonic transports became a reality in the 20th century with the two supersonic planes: Concorde and Tupolev Tu-144.

Concorde

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British Airways Concorde (Image source: Wikipedia) (Others)
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Concorde was an elite supersonic passenger jet airliner that was introduced as part of a joint venture by the UK and French government on March 2, 1969. The aircraft was a huge success as it travelled with a speed of over twice the speed of sound.&nbsp;

It was generally preferred by rich passengers who could afford the tickets of the supersonic flight. It soon became a hotspot for high profile Hollywood bigwigs&nbsp;and rock stars.

The Concorde&#39;s budget in 1962 was projected at &pound;160m which would be around &pound;2 billion&nbsp;in today&#39;s money.

However, Concorde flights were discontinued following a plane crash on July 25, 2000 in Gonesse near Paris in which a hundred passengers were killed. The fall in air travel after 9/11 attacks was&nbsp;also a major reason for its retirement.&nbsp;

Tupolev Tu-144

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Tupolev Tu-144 (Image source: Wikipedia) (Others)
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The supersonic aircraft was Russian-built Tu-144. The plane was a product of the former&nbsp;USSR and flew for twenty years - 1963 to 1983.&nbsp;

Apparently, Russia could not solve the problems faced by the Tu-144 flight services that included cabin noise, higher oil prices&nbsp;and various structural failures.&nbsp;

Now with&nbsp;the second generation NASA supersonic airliners in the horizon, the age of supersonic flights could be making a comeback with the QueSST.&nbsp;

NASA is all set to launch Quiet Supersonic Technology X-Plane which will mark a comeback of supersonic flights after Concorde retired in 2003

By Aimen Zaki Taking a step forward in supersonic transport, NASA has decided to build a supersonic aircraft for commercial use. NASA is all set to launch Quiet Supersonic Technology(QueSST) X-Plane which will mark a comeback of supersonic flights after Concorde retired in 2003. NASA in a report has also confirmed that it has conducted few experimental flights in Florida's space coast. The agency is also planning to get a better understanding of the impact of low-altitude atmospheric turbulence on sonic booms by continuing with its assessment in Florida. NASA has worked out its design for the supersonic plane in collaboration with Lockheed Martin. According to a report, the new supersonic aircraft is 94 feet long with room for one pilot. The overall budget for the project is nearly $390 million. Last year, NASA administrator Charles Bolden had said: “NASA is working hard to make flight greener, safer and quieter – all while developing aircraft that travel faster, and building an aviation system that operates more efficiently.” “To that end, it’s worth noting that it's been almost 70 years since Chuck Yeager broke the sound barrier in the Bell X-1 as part of our predecessor agency's high-speed research. Now we’re continuing that supersonic X-plane legacy with this preliminary design award for a quieter supersonic jet with an aim toward passenger flight," Bolden added. Nasa is all set to build the new Quiet Supersonic Technology X-Plane which could have flight times. (Image source: Lockheed Martin) (Others) × The new supersonic passenger plane is designed to fly at 55,000 feet above the ground. The design also proposes to solve the noise problem that is associated with such aircrafts. NASA with its new project is aiming at establishing an advance low-sound supersonic flight that will be a revolutionary step in the supersonic aerospace industry. Commercial supersonic transports became a reality in the 20th century with the two supersonic planes: Concorde and Tupolev Tu-144. Concorde British Airways Concorde (Image source: Wikipedia) (Others) × Concorde was an elite supersonic passenger jet airliner that was introduced as part of a joint venture by the UK and French government on March 2, 1969. The aircraft was a huge success as it travelled with a speed of over twice the speed of sound. It was generally preferred by rich passengers who could afford the tickets of the supersonic flight. It soon became a hotspot for high profile Hollywood bigwigs and rock stars. The Concorde's budget in 1962 was projected at £160m which would be around £2 billion in today's money. However, Concorde flights were discontinued following a plane crash on July 25, 2000 in Gonesse near Paris in which a hundred passengers were killed. The fall in air travel after 9/11 attacks was also a major reason for its retirement. Tupolev Tu-144 Tupolev Tu-144 (Image source: Wikipedia) (Others) × The supersonic aircraft was Russian-built Tu-144. The plane was a product of the former USSR and flew for twenty years - 1963 to 1983. Apparently, Russia could not solve the problems faced by the Tu-144 flight services that included cabin noise, higher oil prices and various structural failures. Now with the second generation NASA supersonic airliners in the horizon, the age of supersonic flights could be making a comeback with the QueSST.

NASA's QueSST: The second generation supersonic planes

The US military&#39;s experimental X-37B space plane landed on Sunday at NASA&rsquo;s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, completing a classified mission that lasted nearly two years, the Air Force said.

The unmanned X-37B, which resembles a miniature space shuttle, touched down at 7:47 a.m. EDT (1147 GMT) on a runway formerly used for landings of the now-mothballed space shuttles, the Air Force said in an email.

The Boeing-built space plane blasted off in May 2015 from nearby Cape Canaveral Air Force Station aboard an Atlas 5 rocket built by United Launch Alliance, a partnership between Lockheed Martin Corp and Boeing Co.&nbsp;

The X-37B, one of two in the Air Force fleet, conducted unspecified experiments for more than 700 days while in orbit.

It was the fourth and lengthiest mission so far for the secretive program, managed by the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office.

The orbiters &quot;perform risk reduction, experimentation and concept-of-operations development for reusable space vehicle technologies,&quot; the Air Force has said without providing details. The cost of the program is also classified.

The Secure World Foundation, a nonprofit group promoting the peaceful exploration of space, says the secrecy surrounding the X-37B suggests the presence of intelligence-related hardware being tested or evaluated aboard the craft.

The vehicles are 29 feet (9 meters) long and have a wingspan of 15 feet, making them about one quarter of the size of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration&rsquo;s now-retired space shuttles.

The X-37B, also known as Orbital Test Vehicle, or OTV, first flew in April 2010 and returned after eight months. A second mission launched in March 2011 and lasted 15 months, while a third took flight in December 2012 and returned after 22 months.

Sunday&rsquo;s landing was the X-37B&#39;s first in Florida. The three previous landings took place at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.

The Air Force relocated the program in 2014, taking over two of NASA&rsquo;s former shuttle-processing hangars.

The Air Force intends to launch the fifth X-37B mission from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, located just south of the Kennedy Space Center, later this year.&nbsp;

(Reuters)

The X-37B, one of two in the Air Force fleet, conducted unspecified experiments for more than 700 days while in orbit.

The US military's experimental X-37B space plane landed on Sunday at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, completing a classified mission that lasted nearly two years, the Air Force said. The unmanned X-37B, which resembles a miniature space shuttle, touched down at 7:47 a.m. EDT (1147 GMT) on a runway formerly used for landings of the now-mothballed space shuttles, the Air Force said in an email. The Boeing-built space plane blasted off in May 2015 from nearby Cape Canaveral Air Force Station aboard an Atlas 5 rocket built by United Launch Alliance, a partnership between Lockheed Martin Corp and Boeing Co. The X-37B, one of two in the Air Force fleet, conducted unspecified experiments for more than 700 days while in orbit. It was the fourth and lengthiest mission so far for the secretive program, managed by the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office. The orbiters "perform risk reduction, experimentation and concept-of-operations development for reusable space vehicle technologies," the Air Force has said without providing details. The cost of the program is also classified. The Secure World Foundation, a nonprofit group promoting the peaceful exploration of space, says the secrecy surrounding the X-37B suggests the presence of intelligence-related hardware being tested or evaluated aboard the craft. The vehicles are 29 feet (9 meters) long and have a wingspan of 15 feet, making them about one quarter of the size of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s now-retired space shuttles. The X-37B, also known as Orbital Test Vehicle, or OTV, first flew in April 2010 and returned after eight months. A second mission launched in March 2011 and lasted 15 months, while a third took flight in December 2012 and returned after 22 months. Sunday’s landing was the X-37B's first in Florida. The three previous landings took place at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The Air Force relocated the program in 2014, taking over two of NASA’s former shuttle-processing hangars. The Air Force intends to launch the fifth X-37B mission from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, located just south of the Kennedy Space Center, later this year. (Reuters)

Unmanned US Air Force space plane lands after secret mission

A SpaceX reusable cargo ship splashed down in the Pacific Ocean safely on Sunday, ending a mission to supply astronauts on the International Space Station, the company said.

The Dragon capsule, the only such vessel capable of returning research samples and other material to Earth, remained docked with the ISS for nearly a month after delivering more than two tonnes of food, water and scientific equipment for NASA on February 23.

Before its departure, the crew loaded the cargo ship with old equipment, waste and almost 4,000 pounds of research samples from experiments carried out in the station`s condition of microgravity.

Released by the ISS&#39;s robot arm at 0900 GMT, the capsule undertook a more than six-hour journey back to Earth,landing off the coast of Mexico just before 1600 GMT, its final descent slowed by three giant parachutes.

&quot;Today we said goodbye to the #Dragon!&quot; tweeted the French astronaut Thomas Pesquet, one of six crew members, who arrived on the ISS in November.

&quot;She is taking part of us back to the ground with her - important scientific samples, some from the crew!&quot;

(AFP)

&nbsp;

The capsule, the only such vessel capable of returning research samples and other material to Earth, remained docked with the ISS for nearly a month

A SpaceX reusable cargo ship splashed down in the Pacific Ocean safely on Sunday, ending a mission to supply astronauts on the International Space Station, the company said. The Dragon capsule, the only such vessel capable of returning research samples and other material to Earth, remained docked with the ISS for nearly a month after delivering more than two tonnes of food, water and scientific equipment for NASA on February 23. Before its departure, the crew loaded the cargo ship with old equipment, waste and almost 4,000 pounds of research samples from experiments carried out in the station`s condition of microgravity. Released by the ISS's robot arm at 0900 GMT, the capsule undertook a more than six-hour journey back to Earth,landing off the coast of Mexico just before 1600 GMT, its final descent slowed by three giant parachutes. "Today we said goodbye to the #Dragon!" tweeted the French astronaut Thomas Pesquet, one of six crew members, who arrived on the ISS in November. "She is taking part of us back to the ground with her - important scientific samples, some from the crew!" (AFP)

Watch: SpaceX Dragon returns to Earth

India&#39;s first lunar probe - the Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft - which was considered lost, is still orbiting the Moon, NASA scientists have found by using a new ground-based radar technique.

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) lost communication with Chandrayaan-1 on August 29, 2009, almost a year after it was launched on October 22, 2008. Now, scientists at NASA&#39;s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in California have successfully located the spacecraft still circling some 200 kilometres above the lunar surface.

&ldquo;We have been able to detect NASA&#39;s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) and the Indian Space Research Organisation&#39;s Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft in lunar orbit with ground-based radar,&rdquo; said Marina Brozovic, a radar scientist at JPL and principal investigator for the test project.

&quot;Finding LRO was relatively easy, as we were working with the mission&#39;s navigators and had precise orbit data where it was located. Finding India&#39;s Chandrayaan-1 required a bit more detective work because the last contact with the spacecraft was in August of 2009,&quot; said Brozovic.

The Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft is very small, a cube about 1.5 meters on each side - about half the size of a smart car. 
Although the interplanetary radar has been used to observe small asteroids several million miles from Earth, researchers were not certain that an object of this smaller size as far away as the Moon could be detected, even with the world&#39;s most powerful radars.

Chandrayaan-1 proved the perfect target for demonstrating the capability of this technique. To find a spacecraft 380,000 kilometres away, JPL&#39;s team used NASA&#39;s 70-metre antenna at NASA&#39;s Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex in California to send out a powerful beam of microwaves directed towards the Moon. Then the radar echoes bounced back from lunar orbit were received by the 100-meter Green Bank Telescope in West Virginia.

Finding a derelict spacecraft at lunar distance that has not been tracked for years is tricky because the Moon is riddled with mascons (regions with higher-than-average gravitational pull) that can dramatically affect a spacecraft&#39;s orbit over time, and even cause it to have crashed into the Moon.

JPL&#39;s orbital calculations indicated that Chandrayaan-1 is still circling some 200 kilometres above the lunar surface, but it was generally considered &quot;lost.&quot; However, with Chandrayaan-1, the radar team utilised the fact that this spacecraft is in polar orbit around the Moon, so it would always cross above the lunar poles on each orbit.

On July 2 last year, the team pointed Goldstone and Green Bank at a location about 160 kilometres above the Moon&#39;s north pole and waited to see if the lost spacecraft crossed the radar beam.

Chandrayaan-1 was predicted to complete one orbit around the Moon every two hours and eight minutes. Something that had a radar signature of a small spacecraft did cross the beam twice during four hours of observations, and the timings between detections matched the time it would take Chandrayaan-1 to complete one orbit and return to the same position above the Moon&#39;s pole.

The team used data from the return signal to estimate its velocity and the distance to the target. This information was then used to update the orbital predictions for Chandrayaan-1.

Chandrayaan operated for 312 days as opposed to the intended two years but the mission achieved 95 per cent of its planned objectives. Among its many achievements, the greatest achievement was the discovery of the widespread presence of water molecules in the lunar soil.

(PTI)

ISRO lost communication with Chandrayaan-1 on August 29, 2009, almost a year after it was launched on October 22, 2008

India's first lunar probe - the Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft - which was considered lost, is still orbiting the Moon, NASA scientists have found by using a new ground-based radar technique. Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) lost communication with Chandrayaan-1 on August 29, 2009, almost a year after it was launched on October 22, 2008. Now, scientists at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in California have successfully located the spacecraft still circling some 200 kilometres above the lunar surface. “We have been able to detect NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) and the Indian Space Research Organisation's Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft in lunar orbit with ground-based radar,” said Marina Brozovic, a radar scientist at JPL and principal investigator for the test project. "Finding LRO was relatively easy, as we were working with the mission's navigators and had precise orbit data where it was located. Finding India's Chandrayaan-1 required a bit more detective work because the last contact with the spacecraft was in August of 2009," said Brozovic. The Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft is very small, a cube about 1.5 meters on each side - about half the size of a smart car. Although the interplanetary radar has been used to observe small asteroids several million miles from Earth, researchers were not certain that an object of this smaller size as far away as the Moon could be detected, even with the world's most powerful radars. Chandrayaan-1 proved the perfect target for demonstrating the capability of this technique. To find a spacecraft 380,000 kilometres away, JPL's team used NASA's 70-metre antenna at NASA's Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex in California to send out a powerful beam of microwaves directed towards the Moon. Then the radar echoes bounced back from lunar orbit were received by the 100-meter Green Bank Telescope in West Virginia. Finding a derelict spacecraft at lunar distance that has not been tracked for years is tricky because the Moon is riddled with mascons (regions with higher-than-average gravitational pull) that can dramatically affect a spacecraft's orbit over time, and even cause it to have crashed into the Moon. JPL's orbital calculations indicated that Chandrayaan-1 is still circling some 200 kilometres above the lunar surface, but it was generally considered "lost." However, with Chandrayaan-1, the radar team utilised the fact that this spacecraft is in polar orbit around the Moon, so it would always cross above the lunar poles on each orbit. On July 2 last year, the team pointed Goldstone and Green Bank at a location about 160 kilometres above the Moon's north pole and waited to see if the lost spacecraft crossed the radar beam. Chandrayaan-1 was predicted to complete one orbit around the Moon every two hours and eight minutes. Something that had a radar signature of a small spacecraft did cross the beam twice during four hours of observations, and the timings between detections matched the time it would take Chandrayaan-1 to complete one orbit and return to the same position above the Moon's pole. The team used data from the return signal to estimate its velocity and the distance to the target. This information was then used to update the orbital predictions for Chandrayaan-1. Chandrayaan operated for 312 days as opposed to the intended two years but the mission achieved 95 per cent of its planned objectives. Among its many achievements, the greatest achievement was the discovery of the widespread presence of water molecules in the lunar soil. (PTI)

NASA spots ISRO's 'lost' Chandrayaan-1 orbiting the moon

NASA is planning to send an ice chest-sized box to the International Space Station (ISS), where it will freeze gas atoms to create the coolest spot in the universe - an advance that may provide new insights into gravity and dark matter. Inside that box, lasers, a vacuum chamber and an electromagnetic &quot;knife&quot; will be used to cancel out the energy of gas particles, slowing them until they&#39;re almost motionless.

The suite of instruments, developed by NASA&#39;s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in the US, is called the Cold Atom Laboratory (CAL). It is set to ride to space in August aboard the SpaceX CRS-12.

CAL&#39;s instruments are designed to freeze gas atoms to a mere billionth of a degree above absolute zero - more than 100 million times colder than the depths of space. &quot;Studying these hyper-cold atoms could reshape our understanding of matter and the fundamental nature of gravity,&quot; said CAL Project Scientist Robert Thompson of JPL. 
 
&quot;The experiments we&#39;ll do with the Cold Atom Lab will give us insight into gravity and dark energy - some of the most pervasive forces in the universe,&quot; said Thompson. When atoms are cooled to extreme temperatures, as they will be inside of CAL, they can form a distinct state of matter known as a Bose-Einstein condensate. 
 
In this state, familiar rules of physics recede and quantum physics begins to take over. Matter can be observed behaving less like particles and more like waves. Rows of atoms move in concert with one another as if they were riding a moving fabric. These mysterious waveforms have never been seen at temperatures as low as what CAL will achieve. 
 
NASA has never before created or observed Bose-Einstein condensates in space. On Earth, the pull of gravity causes atoms to continually settle towards the ground, meaning they are typically only observable for fractions of a second. However, on the ISS, ultra-cold atoms can hold their wave-like forms longer while in freefall. That offers scientists a longer window to understand physics at its most basic level. 
 
Thompson estimated that CAL will allow Bose-Einstein condensates to be observable for up to five to 10 seconds. Future development of the technologies used on CAL could allow them to last for hundreds of seconds. 
 
Bose-Einstein condensates are a &quot;superfluid&quot; - a kind of fluid with zero viscosity, where atoms move without friction as if they were all one, solid substance. &quot;If you had superfluid water and spun it around in a glass, it would spin forever. There&#39;s no viscosity to slow it down and dissipate the kinetic energy,&quot; said Anita Sengupta of JPL, Cold Atom Lab project manager. 
 
&quot;If we can better understand the physics of superfluids, we can possibly learn to use those for more efficient transfer of energy,&quot; said Sengupta.

(PTI)

An ice chest-sized box will fly to the International Space Station this summer

NASA is planning to send an ice chest-sized box to the International Space Station (ISS), where it will freeze gas atoms to create the coolest spot in the universe - an advance that may provide new insights into gravity and dark matter. Inside that box, lasers, a vacuum chamber and an electromagnetic "knife" will be used to cancel out the energy of gas particles, slowing them until they're almost motionless. The suite of instruments, developed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in the US, is called the Cold Atom Laboratory (CAL). It is set to ride to space in August aboard the SpaceX CRS-12. CAL's instruments are designed to freeze gas atoms to a mere billionth of a degree above absolute zero - more than 100 million times colder than the depths of space. "Studying these hyper-cold atoms could reshape our understanding of matter and the fundamental nature of gravity," said CAL Project Scientist Robert Thompson of JPL. "The experiments we'll do with the Cold Atom Lab will give us insight into gravity and dark energy - some of the most pervasive forces in the universe," said Thompson. When atoms are cooled to extreme temperatures, as they will be inside of CAL, they can form a distinct state of matter known as a Bose-Einstein condensate. In this state, familiar rules of physics recede and quantum physics begins to take over. Matter can be observed behaving less like particles and more like waves. Rows of atoms move in concert with one another as if they were riding a moving fabric. These mysterious waveforms have never been seen at temperatures as low as what CAL will achieve. NASA has never before created or observed Bose-Einstein condensates in space. On Earth, the pull of gravity causes atoms to continually settle towards the ground, meaning they are typically only observable for fractions of a second. However, on the ISS, ultra-cold atoms can hold their wave-like forms longer while in freefall. That offers scientists a longer window to understand physics at its most basic level. Thompson estimated that CAL will allow Bose-Einstein condensates to be observable for up to five to 10 seconds. Future development of the technologies used on CAL could allow them to last for hundreds of seconds. Bose-Einstein condensates are a "superfluid" - a kind of fluid with zero viscosity, where atoms move without friction as if they were all one, solid substance. "If you had superfluid water and spun it around in a glass, it would spin forever. There's no viscosity to slow it down and dissipate the kinetic energy," said Anita Sengupta of JPL, Cold Atom Lab project manager. "If we can better understand the physics of superfluids, we can possibly learn to use those for more efficient transfer of energy," said Sengupta. (PTI)

NASA plans to create 'coolest spot in universe'

A NASA science satellite orbiting Mars was forced to make a rare evasive manoeuvre to avoid a collision next week with one of the planet&#39;s two small moons, the US&nbsp;space agency said on Thursday.

Flight controllers at NASA&#39;s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, commanded the MAVEN spacecraft, which is studying Mars&#39; vanishing atmosphere, to fire up its engine on Tuesday to boost its speed by about 1.3 feet per second (0.4 metres per second).

The acceleration was necessary to slightly shift MAVEN&#39;s orbit and steer the satellite clear of the Martian moon Phobos, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration said in a statement.

Without the tweak, MAVEN and the small, lumpy moon would have reached the same point in space within seven seconds of one another next Monday, March 6. In its new orbit, MAVEN will miss Phobos by about two and a hald minutes, NASA said.

MAVEN is in an egg-shaped orbit that regularly crosses the paths of other science satellites and of Phobos, which circles just 6,000 miles (9,656 kilometres) above the Martian surface, closer than any other known moon to a planet in the solar system. At that distance, Phobos whips around Mars three times a day.

Flight controllers regularly monitor MAVEN&#39;s path for potential collisions. Tuesday&#39;s evasive action was the first time MAVEN had to dodge the potato-shaped Phobos, which measures about 10 by 14 miles by 11 miles (16 by 22.5 by 18 kilometres).

MAVEN, short for Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution, reached the red planet in September 2014.

(Reuters)

Boosting the satellite's speed by 1.3 metres a second was needed to slightly shift MAVEN's orbit, and steer clear of the Martian moon Phobos

A NASA science satellite orbiting Mars was forced to make a rare evasive manoeuvre to avoid a collision next week with one of the planet's two small moons, the US space agency said on Thursday. Flight controllers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, commanded the MAVEN spacecraft, which is studying Mars' vanishing atmosphere, to fire up its engine on Tuesday to boost its speed by about 1.3 feet per second (0.4 metres per second). The acceleration was necessary to slightly shift MAVEN's orbit and steer the satellite clear of the Martian moon Phobos, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration said in a statement. Without the tweak, MAVEN and the small, lumpy moon would have reached the same point in space within seven seconds of one another next Monday, March 6. In its new orbit, MAVEN will miss Phobos by about two and a hald minutes, NASA said. MAVEN is in an egg-shaped orbit that regularly crosses the paths of other science satellites and of Phobos, which circles just 6,000 miles (9,656 kilometres) above the Martian surface, closer than any other known moon to a planet in the solar system. At that distance, Phobos whips around Mars three times a day. Flight controllers regularly monitor MAVEN's path for potential collisions. Tuesday's evasive action was the first time MAVEN had to dodge the potato-shaped Phobos, which measures about 10 by 14 miles by 11 miles (16 by 22.5 by 18 kilometres). MAVEN, short for Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution, reached the red planet in September 2014. (Reuters)

NASA satellite orbiting Mars dodges planet's moon with rare evasive manoeuvre

The US space agency said Friday it is considering putting astronauts on an upcoming test flight of the deep space capsule Orion as it aims to orbit the Moon.

Orion is being built with an eye to one day ferrying astronauts to Earth&#39;s neighbouring planet, Mars, perhaps by the 2030s.

Until now, the Orion test flight known as Exploration Mission 1 (EM-1) was scheduled for 2018 and was expected to be unmanned.

But NASA&#39;s acting administrator Robert Lightfoot asked on February 15 for the space agency to study the feasibility of putting people on board, and the findings of that study are expected in the coming months.

&quot;Our priority is to ensure the safe and effective execution of all our planned exploration missions with the Orion spacecraft and Space Launch System rocket,&quot; said Bill Gerstenmaier, associate administrator for NASA&#39;s human exploration and operations mission directorate.

The capsule will be propelled to space atop a rocket called the Space Launch System (SLS), which is currently being developed. NASA has described it as the &quot;most powerful rocket in the world.&quot;

Orion will &quot;fly farther than any spacecraft built for humans has ever flown,&quot; NASA added.

The space capsule also aims to &quot;stay in space longer than any ship for astronauts has done without docking to a space station and return home faster and hotter than ever before.&quot;

The study is evaluating the pros and cons of adding two crew members, and could possibly delay the EM-1 mission until mid-2019.

The current plan is to send astronauts on Orion&#39;s second flight, EM-2, an eight-day mission in 2021. &nbsp;

(AFP)

The deep space capsule Orion will one day take astronauts to Mars

The US space agency said Friday it is considering putting astronauts on an upcoming test flight of the deep space capsule Orion as it aims to orbit the Moon. Orion is being built with an eye to one day ferrying astronauts to Earth's neighbouring planet, Mars, perhaps by the 2030s. Until now, the Orion test flight known as Exploration Mission 1 (EM-1) was scheduled for 2018 and was expected to be unmanned. But NASA's acting administrator Robert Lightfoot asked on February 15 for the space agency to study the feasibility of putting people on board, and the findings of that study are expected in the coming months. "Our priority is to ensure the safe and effective execution of all our planned exploration missions with the Orion spacecraft and Space Launch System rocket," said Bill Gerstenmaier, associate administrator for NASA's human exploration and operations mission directorate. The capsule will be propelled to space atop a rocket called the Space Launch System (SLS), which is currently being developed. NASA has described it as the "most powerful rocket in the world." Orion will "fly farther than any spacecraft built for humans has ever flown," NASA added. The space capsule also aims to "stay in space longer than any ship for astronauts has done without docking to a space station and return home faster and hotter than ever before." The study is evaluating the pros and cons of adding two crew members, and could possibly delay the EM-1 mission until mid-2019. The current plan is to send astronauts on Orion's second flight, EM-2, an eight-day mission in 2021. (AFP)

NASA mulls putting astronauts on deep space test flight

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Astronomers have found a nearby solar system with seven Earth-sized planets, three of which circle their parent star at the right distance for liquid surface water (WION)
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Astronomers have found a nearby solar system with seven Earth-sized planets, three of which circle their parent star at the right distance for liquid surface water, bolstering the prospect of discovering extraterrestrial life, research published on Wednesday showed.

The star, known as TRAPPIST-1, is a small, dim celestial body in the constellation Aquarius. It is located about 40 light years away from Earth, close by astronomical standards, but about 44 million years away at the average cruising speed of a commercial passenger jet.

Researchers said the proximity of the system, combined with the proportionally large size of its planets compared to the small star, make it a good target for follow-up studies. They hope to scan the planets&#39; atmospheres for possible chemical fingerprints of life.

&quot;The discovery gives us a hint that finding a second Earth is not just a matter of if, but when,&rdquo; NASA chief scientist Thomas Zurbuchen said at a news conference on Wednesday.

The discovery, published in this week&#39;s issue of the journal Nature, builds on previous research showing three planets circling TRAPPIST-1. They are among more than 3,500 planets discovered beyond the solar system, or exoplanets.

&quot;This is the first time that so many Earth-sized planets are found around the same star,&quot; lead researcher Michael Gillon, with the University of Liege in Belgium, told reporters.

Researchers have focused on finding Earth-sized rocky planets with the right temperatures so that water, if any exists, would be liquid, a condition believed to be necessary for life.

&quot;I think that we&#39;ve made a crucial step towards finding if there is life out there,&quot; University of Cambridge astronomer Amaury Triaud said on a conference call with media on Tuesday.

The diameter of TRAPPIST-1 is about 8 per cent of the sun&#39;s size. That makes its Earth-sized planets appear large as they parade past.

From the vantage point of telescopes on Earth, the planets&#39; motions regularly block out bits of the star&#39;s light. Scientists determined the system&#39;s architecture by studying these dips. &quot;The data is really clear and unambiguous,&quot; Triaud wrote in an email to Reuters.

Because TRAPPIST-1 is so small and cool, its so-called &quot;habitable zone&quot; is very close to the star. Three planets are properly positioned for liquid water, Gillon said.

&quot;They form a very compact system,&quot; Gillon told reporters on Tuesday. &quot;They could have some liquid water and maybe life.&quot;

Even if the planets do not have life now, it could evolve. TRAPPIST-1 is at least 500 million years old, but has an estimated lifespan of 10 trillion years. The sun, by comparison, is about halfway through its estimated 10-billion-year life.

In a few billion years, when the sun has run out of fuel and the solar system has ceased to exist, TRAPPIST-1 will still be an infant star, astronomer Ignas Snellen, with the Netherlands&#39; Leiden Observatory, wrote in a related essay in Nature.

&quot;It burns hydrogen so slowly that it will live for another 10 trillion years,&quot; he wrote, &quot;which is arguably enough time for life to evolve.&quot;

(Reuters)

The star, TRAPPIST-1, is a small, dim celestial body in the constellation Aquarius. It is located only about 40 light years away from Earth

Astronomers have found a nearby solar system with seven Earth-sized planets, three of which circle their parent star at the right distance for liquid surface water (WION) × Astronomers have found a nearby solar system with seven Earth-sized planets, three of which circle their parent star at the right distance for liquid surface water, bolstering the prospect of discovering extraterrestrial life, research published on Wednesday showed. The star, known as TRAPPIST-1, is a small, dim celestial body in the constellation Aquarius. It is located about 40 light years away from Earth, close by astronomical standards, but about 44 million years away at the average cruising speed of a commercial passenger jet. Researchers said the proximity of the system, combined with the proportionally large size of its planets compared to the small star, make it a good target for follow-up studies. They hope to scan the planets' atmospheres for possible chemical fingerprints of life. "The discovery gives us a hint that finding a second Earth is not just a matter of if, but when,” NASA chief scientist Thomas Zurbuchen said at a news conference on Wednesday. The discovery, published in this week's issue of the journal Nature, builds on previous research showing three planets circling TRAPPIST-1. They are among more than 3,500 planets discovered beyond the solar system, or exoplanets. "This is the first time that so many Earth-sized planets are found around the same star," lead researcher Michael Gillon, with the University of Liege in Belgium, told reporters. Researchers have focused on finding Earth-sized rocky planets with the right temperatures so that water, if any exists, would be liquid, a condition believed to be necessary for life. "I think that we've made a crucial step towards finding if there is life out there," University of Cambridge astronomer Amaury Triaud said on a conference call with media on Tuesday. The diameter of TRAPPIST-1 is about 8 per cent of the sun's size. That makes its Earth-sized planets appear large as they parade past. From the vantage point of telescopes on Earth, the planets' motions regularly block out bits of the star's light. Scientists determined the system's architecture by studying these dips. "The data is really clear and unambiguous," Triaud wrote in an email to Reuters. Because TRAPPIST-1 is so small and cool, its so-called "habitable zone" is very close to the star. Three planets are properly positioned for liquid water, Gillon said. "They form a very compact system," Gillon told reporters on Tuesday. "They could have some liquid water and maybe life." Even if the planets do not have life now, it could evolve. TRAPPIST-1 is at least 500 million years old, but has an estimated lifespan of 10 trillion years. The sun, by comparison, is about halfway through its estimated 10-billion-year life. In a few billion years, when the sun has run out of fuel and the solar system has ceased to exist, TRAPPIST-1 will still be an infant star, astronomer Ignas Snellen, with the Netherlands' Leiden Observatory, wrote in a related essay in Nature. "It burns hydrogen so slowly that it will live for another 10 trillion years," he wrote, "which is arguably enough time for life to evolve." (Reuters)

NASA finds 7 Earth-size planets where life is possible

A SpaceX Falcon rocket blasted off on Sunday from a Florida launch pad once used to send NASA astronauts to the moon, a step forward for billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk and his company&#39;s goal of ferrying astronauts to the International Space Station.

The 229-foot tall (70-meter) Falcon 9 soared off a seaside launchpad at the Kennedy Space Center at 9.39 am&nbsp;ET (1439 GMT) carrying a Dragon cargo ship bound for the station.

Nine minutes after blastoff, the main section of the rocket flew back to a landing pad at nearby Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, the eighth successful touchdown for Space Exploration Technologies Corp.

&quot;Baby came back,&quot; Musk wrote on Twitter, celebrating the re-landing, which came a day after SpaceX decided to delay the mission 13 seconds before launch due to concerns about the steering system in the rocket`s upper stage, the company said.

Sunday&#39;s launch was the first for SpaceX from Launch Complex 39A, originally built for the 1960s-era Apollo moon program and later repurposed for the space shuttles.

The pad was last used for the final space shuttle launch in 2011. In 2014, SpaceX signed a 20-year lease to use pad and has spent millions remodeling it.&nbsp;&nbsp;

The launch was also SpaceX&#39;s first from Florida since an accident in September heavily damaged what had been the company&#39;s prime site at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, located just south of the NASA spaceport.&nbsp;

Last month, SpaceX resumed flying its Falcon 9 rockets using a second launch pad in California, where the first stage of the rocket also nailed its re-landing.&nbsp;

The company plans to reuse the rockets, slashing costs and allowing it to offer reduced pricing.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration, which hired SpaceX to fly cargo to the station after the shuttle program ended, closely monitored the launch to learn more about the company`s operations before it clears the company to fly NASA astronauts on SpaceX rockets.

SpaceX and Boeing Co are scheduled to begin flying crew to the station by the end of 2018. A Government Accountability Office report last week said both companies face technical hurdles that likely will delay their programs.&nbsp;

SpaceX aims to have the Florida launchpad,&nbsp;damaged in last year&#39;s explosion, up and running by this summer.

(Reuters)

The 229-foot tall (70-meter) Falcon 9 soared off a seaside launchpad at the Kennedy Space Center at 9.39 am?ET

A SpaceX Falcon rocket blasted off on Sunday from a Florida launch pad once used to send NASA astronauts to the moon, a step forward for billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk and his company's goal of ferrying astronauts to the International Space Station. The 229-foot tall (70-meter) Falcon 9 soared off a seaside launchpad at the Kennedy Space Center at 9.39 am ET (1439 GMT) carrying a Dragon cargo ship bound for the station. Nine minutes after blastoff, the main section of the rocket flew back to a landing pad at nearby Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, the eighth successful touchdown for Space Exploration Technologies Corp. "Baby came back," Musk wrote on Twitter, celebrating the re-landing, which came a day after SpaceX decided to delay the mission 13 seconds before launch due to concerns about the steering system in the rocket`s upper stage, the company said. Sunday's launch was the first for SpaceX from Launch Complex 39A, originally built for the 1960s-era Apollo moon program and later repurposed for the space shuttles. The pad was last used for the final space shuttle launch in 2011. In 2014, SpaceX signed a 20-year lease to use pad and has spent millions remodeling it. The launch was also SpaceX's first from Florida since an accident in September heavily damaged what had been the company's prime site at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, located just south of the NASA spaceport. Last month, SpaceX resumed flying its Falcon 9 rockets using a second launch pad in California, where the first stage of the rocket also nailed its re-landing. The company plans to reuse the rockets, slashing costs and allowing it to offer reduced pricing. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration, which hired SpaceX to fly cargo to the station after the shuttle program ended, closely monitored the launch to learn more about the company`s operations before it clears the company to fly NASA astronauts on SpaceX rockets. SpaceX and Boeing Co are scheduled to begin flying crew to the station by the end of 2018. A Government Accountability Office report last week said both companies face technical hurdles that likely will delay their programs. SpaceX aims to have the Florida launchpad, damaged in last year's explosion, up and running by this summer. (Reuters)

SpaceX launches rocket from historic NASA pad in Florida

Shawna Pandya, a 32-year-old Indian-origin neurosurgeon based in Canada has been shortlisted for NASA&#39;s Citizen Science Astronaut (CSA) programme 2018 mission.&nbsp;

With roots in Mumbai, where her grandmother resides the general physician with Alberta University Hospital could follow in the footsteps of Kalpana Chawla and Sunita Williams to be third Indian-origin woman in space.&nbsp;

Pandya is also an accomplished opera singer, a taekwondo champion and has also trained in Muay Thai with a Navy SEAL.&nbsp;

&quot;I am being trained as a citizen scientist and there are some 120 who would be part of the space mission. The experiments in biomedicine and medical science along with physiological, health, and environmental observations in Microgravity (PHEnOM) are also part of it. The work is distributed among the participants.&quot;, Dr Pandya said.&nbsp;

&quot;I am also in the team working for a project called Polar Suborbital Science in the Upper Mesosphere (PoSSUM), which will study the effects of climate change.&quot;

&quot;There has been a lot of support from my family, including my mother. They were well aware of my dreams since childhood and now also they are supporting to my journey,&quot; she added.&nbsp;

She completed her B.Sc in neuroscience at University of Alberta, then pursued M.Sc. in space science from International Space University. She completed her MD also from the University of Alberta.&nbsp;

She applied for medical school and the space programme at the same time.&nbsp;

The mission is expected to start by early 2018.&nbsp;

(WION with inputs from PTI) 
&nbsp;

The 32-year-old Indian-origin neurosurgeon based in Canada has been shortlisted for NASA's Citizen Science Astronaut programme 2018 mission

Shawna Pandya, a 32-year-old Indian-origin neurosurgeon based in Canada has been shortlisted for NASA's Citizen Science Astronaut (CSA) programme 2018 mission. With roots in Mumbai, where her grandmother resides the general physician with Alberta University Hospital could follow in the footsteps of Kalpana Chawla and Sunita Williams to be third Indian-origin woman in space. Pandya is also an accomplished opera singer, a taekwondo champion and has also trained in Muay Thai with a Navy SEAL. "I am being trained as a citizen scientist and there are some 120 who would be part of the space mission. The experiments in biomedicine and medical science along with physiological, health, and environmental observations in Microgravity (PHEnOM) are also part of it. The work is distributed among the participants.", Dr Pandya said. "I am also in the team working for a project called Polar Suborbital Science in the Upper Mesosphere (PoSSUM), which will study the effects of climate change." "There has been a lot of support from my family, including my mother. They were well aware of my dreams since childhood and now also they are supporting to my journey," she added. She completed her B.Sc in neuroscience at University of Alberta, then pursued M.Sc. in space science from International Space University. She completed her MD also from the University of Alberta. She applied for medical school and the space programme at the same time. The mission is expected to start by early 2018. (WION with inputs from PTI)

Shawna Pandya to become third Indian-origin woman in space

NASA on Friday marked the 50th anniversary of its moon program&#39;s fatal Apollo launchpad fire with the first public display of the scorched hatch that trapped three astronauts inside their spaceship during a routine pre-launch test.

NASA astronauts Virgil &quot;Gus&quot; Grissom, Edward White and Roger Chaffee died when thick smoke filled the crew module of the Apollo 1 capsule on January 27, 1967, in what was the first deadly accident in the space agency&#39;s early days.

The men were unable to open the capsule&#39;s three-part hatch before being overcome by smoke. Emergency rescue teams rushed to battle the fire at the launchpad, located at what is now Cape Canaveral Air Force Station but were too late.

The hatch has now been taken out of storage and incorporated into a new display at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex to honour the fallen astronauts and serve as a reminder of the risks of spaceflight.

&quot;Had that accident occurred in space, we&#39;d have never known exactly what had happened,&quot; former Gemini and Apollo astronaut Tom Stafford said at a ceremony to mark the exhibit&#39;s opening.

The deaths of these &quot;three great heroes...helped save at least one other in flight, maybe two,&quot; he added.

Investigators discovered several problems with the Apollo capsule design that led to the fire, including an electrical wiring issue, a pure-oxygen environment and flammable materials throughout the crew cabin.

NASA made dozens of changes and resumed flying in October 1968, setting the stage for the historic Apollo 11 lunar landing in July 1969.

Grissom, aged 40 and one of the original Mercury 7 astronauts, became the second American in space in a suborbital flight that preceded John Glenn&#39;s landmark first US&nbsp;orbital space flight. White, who was 36, became the first American to walk in space as pilot of the Gemini 4 mission in June 1965. Chaffee, 31, was a rookie astronaut with no previous spaceflight experience.

Friday&#39;s ceremony was one of the several events this week in which NASA also paid tribute to the Space Shuttle Challenger crew, killed during launch on January 28, 1986, and the Shuttle Columbia astronauts, who died when that spaceship broke apart as it re-entered the Earth&#39;s atmosphere on February 1, 2003.

At twilight, the families of the Apollo 1 astronauts gathered at the base of the seaside launch complex where Grissom, White and Chaffee had been testing their capsule when the fire broke out.

&ldquo;It&#39;s really important that we come together and we don&rsquo;t forget who they were and what they sacrificed. Even more important we remember that we don&rsquo;t ever want to have it happen again,&rdquo; Kennedy Space Center director and former shuttle astronaut Bob Cabana told the families.

Cabana said the new exhibit was intended to highlight the importance of a work culture where people feel free to voice concerns. Management and communications problems contributed to both space shuttle accidents, investigators found.

NASA is preparing to turn over crew flights to the International Space Station to privately owned SpaceX and Boeing Co as early as 2018.

&ldquo;The lessons learned from Apollo 1 are critical to our future success and I don&rsquo;t ever want them forgotten,&rdquo; Cabana said. &ldquo;We got to the moon not in spite of Apollo 1, but because of Apollo 1.&rdquo;

(Reuters)

The hatch is displayed at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex to honour the fallen crew, and as a reminder of the risks of spaceflight

NASA on Friday marked the 50th anniversary of its moon program's fatal Apollo launchpad fire with the first public display of the scorched hatch that trapped three astronauts inside their spaceship during a routine pre-launch test. NASA astronauts Virgil "Gus" Grissom, Edward White and Roger Chaffee died when thick smoke filled the crew module of the Apollo 1 capsule on January 27, 1967, in what was the first deadly accident in the space agency's early days. The men were unable to open the capsule's three-part hatch before being overcome by smoke. Emergency rescue teams rushed to battle the fire at the launchpad, located at what is now Cape Canaveral Air Force Station but were too late. The hatch has now been taken out of storage and incorporated into a new display at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex to honour the fallen astronauts and serve as a reminder of the risks of spaceflight. "Had that accident occurred in space, we'd have never known exactly what had happened," former Gemini and Apollo astronaut Tom Stafford said at a ceremony to mark the exhibit's opening. The deaths of these "three great heroes...helped save at least one other in flight, maybe two," he added. Investigators discovered several problems with the Apollo capsule design that led to the fire, including an electrical wiring issue, a pure-oxygen environment and flammable materials throughout the crew cabin. NASA made dozens of changes and resumed flying in October 1968, setting the stage for the historic Apollo 11 lunar landing in July 1969. Grissom, aged 40 and one of the original Mercury 7 astronauts, became the second American in space in a suborbital flight that preceded John Glenn's landmark first US orbital space flight. White, who was 36, became the first American to walk in space as pilot of the Gemini 4 mission in June 1965. Chaffee, 31, was a rookie astronaut with no previous spaceflight experience. Friday's ceremony was one of the several events this week in which NASA also paid tribute to the Space Shuttle Challenger crew, killed during launch on January 28, 1986, and the Shuttle Columbia astronauts, who died when that spaceship broke apart as it re-entered the Earth's atmosphere on February 1, 2003. At twilight, the families of the Apollo 1 astronauts gathered at the base of the seaside launch complex where Grissom, White and Chaffee had been testing their capsule when the fire broke out. “It's really important that we come together and we don’t forget who they were and what they sacrificed. Even more important we remember that we don’t ever want to have it happen again,” Kennedy Space Center director and former shuttle astronaut Bob Cabana told the families. Cabana said the new exhibit was intended to highlight the importance of a work culture where people feel free to voice concerns. Management and communications problems contributed to both space shuttle accidents, investigators found. NASA is preparing to turn over crew flights to the International Space Station to privately owned SpaceX and Boeing Co as early as 2018. “The lessons learned from Apollo 1 are critical to our future success and I don’t ever want them forgotten,” Cabana said. “We got to the moon not in spite of Apollo 1, but because of Apollo 1.” (Reuters)

NASA unveils Apollo 1 hatch 50 years after fatal fire

Since the &#39;Space Race&#39; era of exploration&nbsp;between United States and Soviet Union, space technology has witnessed major developments.

Astronomers have carried out the study of space with telescopes and have progressed to take forward&nbsp;physical exploration, both by unmanned robotic probes and human spaceflights.

Early space explorations were carried out for military, communications and security purposes&nbsp;but now space colonisation, or space humanisation, is also emerging as a new frontier.

If you want to know how we fare in terms of space travel in the future, have a look at some of the most kickass upcoming space missions:

<h2>Asteroid mining technology</h2>

This year, the world will witness the first flight in connection with the long-term goal of asteroid mining.&nbsp;The Prospector-X test flight&nbsp;is a precursor to the Prospector-1 mission&nbsp;and will test the company&rsquo;s water-based propulsion, avionics and navigation systems. If successful, the Prospector-1 mission will take place before the end of the decade.&nbsp;

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<h2>Blue Origin&nbsp;</h2>

Jeff Bezos&rsquo;s Blue Origin private space firm has a manned test flight dated for early this year. It will be a sub-orbital hop rather than a full-fledged journey into orbit. They also have a space capsule offering&nbsp;large windows and space for up to six people.

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<h2>Cassini&#39;s grand finale</h2>

NASA&rsquo;s&nbsp;Cassini probe has been orbiting Saturn since 2004, and&nbsp;the space agency is set for a finale this year.&nbsp;Cassini will&nbsp;undertake 22&nbsp;orbits between the inner rings and the planet, capturing information and images. Once the&nbsp;orbits are complete, the probe will burn&nbsp;in Saturn&rsquo;s upper atmosphere.&nbsp;Cassini has made many important discoveries since its launch. It spotted liquid-hydrocarbon lakes on Titan and geysers of water ice blasting from the south polar region of Saturn&rsquo;s moon Enceladus.

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<h2>Chinese probe to&nbsp;land on moon and return with samples</h2>

This is perhaps the most ambitious mission undertaken by the Chinese space agency. So far, China has sent a rover to the moon, but returning back with samples is risky. Chang&rsquo;e 5 mission will see a lunar lander touching down on the moon, gathering samples and bringing them back to Earth. Returning back is difficult as the probe needs to be protected during re-entry.

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<h2>Dawn&#39;s mission&nbsp;</h2>

NASA&#39;s Dawn spacecraft will complete its task this year. The $467-million Dawn mission was launched in September 2007 to study Vesta and Ceres, the two largest objects in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. The spacecraft has revealed a lot&nbsp;about dry, rocky Vesta and icy Ceres&nbsp;and has found evidence of water ice being&nbsp;common just beneath the dwarf planet&#39;s surface.

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<h2>Exoplanet hunter</h2>

NASA will continue the search for exoplanets this year. It is teaming up with SpaceX to launch the TESS (Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite) space telescope. TESS will monitor more than 200,000 stars for temporary drops in brightness caused by planetary transits. These planets range from gas giants to potential Earth-like planets. It will spend the early years looking for alien planets that cross the faces of their parent stars.&nbsp;

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<h2>ESA to launch exoplanet telescope</h2>

The year will witness&nbsp;two space telescopes being launched.&nbsp;CHEOPS, one of the telescopes, will be looking at nearby stars&nbsp;already known to host exoplanets. This will give new information about existing planets.

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<h2>Falcon Heavy</h2>

Expected to launch in spring/summer, Falcon Heavy will be the most powerful rocket in the world. It will be&nbsp;capable of carrying 60 tons (54 metric tons) to low-Earth orbit (LEO) and 24.5 tons (22.2 metric tons) to the geostationary transfer orbit (GTO).&nbsp;

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<h2>Green alternative to chemical propulsion</h2>

NASA will be launching the Green Propellant Infusion Mission (GPIM)&nbsp;for a new form of green propulsion, as an alternative to hydrazine, the fuel used today. It will lead to&nbsp;fuel loading becoming much safer, faster and less expensive. The alternative also has a higher density than hydrazine with a better thrust and a lower freezing point.

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<h2>Launching satellites from a Boeing 747</h2>

We have had plenty of satellites being launched into space from a jet aircraft, but firing satellites from a Boeing is completely unheard of. Virgin Galactic will be testing its new LauncherOne&nbsp;programme, which aims to carry&nbsp;a 200 kg payload&nbsp;into a &#39;sun synchronous orbit&#39;&nbsp;for less than $10 million.

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<h2>Private moon landing</h2>

For an award prize of&nbsp;$30 million, two companies will be fighting to land a robotic craft on the moon, a first for a private entity.&nbsp;Google&lsquo;s Lunar X Prize, in the form of Israel&rsquo;s SpaceIL and the USA&rsquo;s Moon Express programmes are looking to award the company which can achieve this feat. To win, they will not just land the spacecraft but will travel 500 metres and transmit HD video/pictures back to Earth.

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<h2>Space debris</h2>

The mission is set to launch this year and will test a device that is aimed at capturing&nbsp;orbiting space debris. There will also be a system of spacing junk with an attached dragsail that will allow&nbsp;the existing&nbsp;debris to be pushed out of the orbit. If successful, we might just have less&nbsp;space junk floating around our planet.

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(Contributed by: Zeba Khan)

&nbsp;

From mining asteroids to private space flights and even space tourism, here's what you can expect in space exploration in 2017

Since the 'Space Race' era of exploration between United States and Soviet Union, space technology has witnessed major developments. Astronomers have carried out the study of space with telescopes and have progressed to take forward physical exploration, both by unmanned robotic probes and human spaceflights. Early space explorations were carried out for military, communications and security purposes but now space colonisation, or space humanisation, is also emerging as a new frontier. If you want to know how we fare in terms of space travel in the future, have a look at some of the most kickass upcoming space missions: Asteroid mining technology This year, the world will witness the first flight in connection with the long-term goal of asteroid mining. The Prospector-X test flight is a precursor to the Prospector-1 mission and will test the company’s water-based propulsion, avionics and navigation systems. If successful, the Prospector-1 mission will take place before the end of the decade. Blue Origin Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin private space firm has a manned test flight dated for early this year. It will be a sub-orbital hop rather than a full-fledged journey into orbit. They also have a space capsule offering large windows and space for up to six people. Cassini's grand finale NASA’s Cassini probe has been orbiting Saturn since 2004, and the space agency is set for a finale this year. Cassini will undertake 22 orbits between the inner rings and the planet, capturing information and images. Once the orbits are complete, the probe will burn in Saturn’s upper atmosphere. Cassini has made many important discoveries since its launch. It spotted liquid-hydrocarbon lakes on Titan and geysers of water ice blasting from the south polar region of Saturn’s moon Enceladus. Chinese probe to land on moon and return with samples This is perhaps the most ambitious mission undertaken by the Chinese space agency. So far, China has sent a rover to the moon, but returning back with samples is risky. Chang’e 5 mission will see a lunar lander touching down on the moon, gathering samples and bringing them back to Earth. Returning back is difficult as the probe needs to be protected during re-entry. Dawn's mission NASA's Dawn spacecraft will complete its task this year. The $467-million Dawn mission was launched in September 2007 to study Vesta and Ceres, the two largest objects in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. The spacecraft has revealed a lot about dry, rocky Vesta and icy Ceres and has found evidence of water ice being common just beneath the dwarf planet's surface. Exoplanet hunter NASA will continue the search for exoplanets this year. It is teaming up with SpaceX to launch the TESS (Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite) space telescope. TESS will monitor more than 200,000 stars for temporary drops in brightness caused by planetary transits. These planets range from gas giants to potential Earth-like planets. It will spend the early years looking for alien planets that cross the faces of their parent stars. ESA to launch exoplanet telescope The year will witness two space telescopes being launched. CHEOPS, one of the telescopes, will be looking at nearby stars already known to host exoplanets. This will give new information about existing planets. Falcon Heavy Expected to launch in spring/summer, Falcon Heavy will be the most powerful rocket in the world. It will be capable of carrying 60 tons (54 metric tons) to low-Earth orbit (LEO) and 24.5 tons (22.2 metric tons) to the geostationary transfer orbit (GTO). Green alternative to chemical propulsion NASA will be launching the Green Propellant Infusion Mission (GPIM) for a new form of green propulsion, as an alternative to hydrazine, the fuel used today. It will lead to fuel loading becoming much safer, faster and less expensive. The alternative also has a higher density than hydrazine with a better thrust and a lower freezing point. Launching satellites from a Boeing 747 We have had plenty of satellites being launched into space from a jet aircraft, but firing satellites from a Boeing is completely unheard of. Virgin Galactic will be testing its new LauncherOne programme, which aims to carry a 200 kg payload into a 'sun synchronous orbit' for less than $10 million. Private moon landing For an award prize of $30 million, two companies will be fighting to land a robotic craft on the moon, a first for a private entity. Google‘s Lunar X Prize, in the form of Israel’s SpaceIL and the USA’s Moon Express programmes are looking to award the company which can achieve this feat. To win, they will not just land the spacecraft but will travel 500 metres and transmit HD video/pictures back to Earth. Space debris The mission is set to launch this year and will test a device that is aimed at capturing orbiting space debris. There will also be a system of spacing junk with an attached dragsail that will allow the existing debris to be pushed out of the orbit. If successful, we might just have less space junk floating around our planet. (Contributed by: Zeba Khan)

Out-of-the-world space expeditions

A massive rift in the Antarctic Peninsula&#39;s Larsen C ice shelf has been spotted by NASA.

On November 10, scientists from NASA&rsquo;s IceBridge mission captured an image of the 70-mile-long crack.

According to NASA, the crack is more than 300 feet wide and about a third of a mile deep.

Once the crack completely cuts through the ice shelf, it will produce an iceberg roughly the size of the state of Delaware in the United States, according to Ice Bridge.

Larsen C is Antarctica&#39;s fourth-largest ice shelf, and it holds back the land-based glaciers just behind it, according to science news website Live Science.

(WION)

Scientists from NASA?s IceBridge mission captured an image of the crack in the Antarctic Peninsula's Larsen C ice shelf back on November 10

A massive rift in the Antarctic Peninsula's Larsen C ice shelf has been spotted by NASA. On November 10, scientists from NASA’s IceBridge mission captured an image of the 70-mile-long crack. According to NASA, the crack is more than 300 feet wide and about a third of a mile deep. Once the crack completely cuts through the ice shelf, it will produce an iceberg roughly the size of the state of Delaware in the United States, according to Ice Bridge. Larsen C is Antarctica's fourth-largest ice shelf, and it holds back the land-based glaciers just behind it, according to science news website Live Science. (WION)

NASA spots 70-mile-long ice rift in Antartica

An unusually large and bright moon will adorn the night sky on November 14 - the closest &quot;supermoon&quot; to Earth in 68 years and a chance for dramatic photos and spectacular surf.

Weather permitting, the phenomenon should appear at its most impressive at 13:52 GMT, when it will be at its fullest just&nbsp;as night falls over Asia, astronomers said.

Provided there are no clouds and not too much light pollution, people should be able to see Earth&#39;s satellite loom unusually large over the horizon shortly after sunset, irrespective of where in the world they are.

This happens when the moon is full at the same time as, or very near, perigee -- its closest point to Earth on an elliptical, monthly orbit.

&quot;On November 14, it becomes full within about two hours of perigee - arguably making it an extra-super Moon,&quot; NASA says on its website.
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The orbit itself is changeable, meaning the distance from Earth differs from perigee to perigee -- this time it will be the closest since 1948 at a distance of 356,509 kilometres (221,524 miles).&nbsp;The average is 384,400km.

On Monday, the full moon&#39;s relative proximity should make it appear about 14 percent bigger and 30 percent brighter than at its furthest orbit point, according to the Irish Astronomical Association (IAA).

&quot;Because the earth/moon system will be getting quite close to the time of year when it is closest to the Sun (January 4, 2017), the moon will be receiving more sunlight than average, also boosting its apparent brightness.&quot;

Furthermore, the moon&#39;s position in the sky will mean its southern hemisphere, the brighter of the two, will be turned towards earth, said the IAA.

Illusion

Without foreknowledge, one might barely notice that the moon appears brighter than usual, astronomers say.&nbsp;Once it is high in the sky, it would be hard to tell that the moon is larger. But on the horizon, it could be quite spectacular.

&quot;When you look at the moon when it&#39;s rising, there is this optical illusion where it looks bigger,&quot; astronomer Mark Bailey, emeritus director of the Armagh Observatory in Northern Ireland, told AFP.

Lying low, as a backdrop to trees or buildings for context, our satellite appears larger to the human eye despite being the same size the whole night.

Supermoons are actually quite common -- there is one every 14 months on average. 
&quot;But some supermoons are more super than others,&quot; said Pascal Descamps of the Paris Observatory -- the closer the Earth the more so.

&quot;If you want to try to image it, choose a location where you&#39;ll get some nice terrestrial feature in the foreground: a well-known landmark such as a tower or a spire will provide a nice comparison, particularly if you stay back a bit and&nbsp;use a zoom or telephoto lens which will magnify both objects,&quot; added the IAA.

The supermoon will also mean a stronger high tide, something that gets surfers giddy with excitement, not only at the prospect of riding bigger waves, but doing so at night.

The next comparable event will be in 2034, when the moon will come even closer, by 64km, to Earth.

(AFP)

The phenomenon occurs when the moon is full at the same time as, or very near, perigee -- its closest point to earth

An unusually large and bright moon will adorn the night sky on November 14 - the closest "supermoon" to Earth in 68 years and a chance for dramatic photos and spectacular surf. Weather permitting, the phenomenon should appear at its most impressive at 13:52 GMT, when it will be at its fullest just as night falls over Asia, astronomers said. Provided there are no clouds and not too much light pollution, people should be able to see Earth's satellite loom unusually large over the horizon shortly after sunset, irrespective of where in the world they are. This happens when the moon is full at the same time as, or very near, perigee -- its closest point to Earth on an elliptical, monthly orbit. "On November 14, it becomes full within about two hours of perigee - arguably making it an extra-super Moon," NASA says on its website. The orbit itself is changeable, meaning the distance from Earth differs from perigee to perigee -- this time it will be the closest since 1948 at a distance of 356,509 kilometres (221,524 miles). The average is 384,400km. On Monday, the full moon's relative proximity should make it appear about 14 percent bigger and 30 percent brighter than at its furthest orbit point, according to the Irish Astronomical Association (IAA). "Because the earth/moon system will be getting quite close to the time of year when it is closest to the Sun (January 4, 2017), the moon will be receiving more sunlight than average, also boosting its apparent brightness." Furthermore, the moon's position in the sky will mean its southern hemisphere, the brighter of the two, will be turned towards earth, said the IAA. Illusion Without foreknowledge, one might barely notice that the moon appears brighter than usual, astronomers say. Once it is high in the sky, it would be hard to tell that the moon is larger. But on the horizon, it could be quite spectacular. "When you look at the moon when it's rising, there is this optical illusion where it looks bigger," astronomer Mark Bailey, emeritus director of the Armagh Observatory in Northern Ireland, told AFP. Lying low, as a backdrop to trees or buildings for context, our satellite appears larger to the human eye despite being the same size the whole night. Supermoons are actually quite common -- there is one every 14 months on average. "But some supermoons are more super than others," said Pascal Descamps of the Paris Observatory -- the closer the Earth the more so. "If you want to try to image it, choose a location where you'll get some nice terrestrial feature in the foreground: a well-known landmark such as a tower or a spire will provide a nice comparison, particularly if you stay back a bit and use a zoom or telephoto lens which will magnify both objects," added the IAA. The supermoon will also mean a stronger high tide, something that gets surfers giddy with excitement, not only at the prospect of riding bigger waves, but doing so at night. The next comparable event will be in 2034, when the moon will come even closer, by 64km, to Earth. (AFP)

Watch tonight: Closest 'supermoon' to earth in 68 years

In a US presidential election that&#39;s already been out of this world, the lone American astronaut in outer space has cast his vote, NASA said on Monday.

Shane Kimbrough became the latest astronaut to join in a long tradition of voting while floating above the Earth, inside the orbiting International Space Station.

&quot;Current space station resident astronaut Shane Kimbrough is the most recent astronaut to take advantage of the opportunity,&quot; NASA said in a statement.

Since astronauts can already get emails in space, an electronic ballot generated by the Galveston county clerk&#39;s office was emailed to Kimbrough&#39;s secure account at NASA&#39;s Johnson Space Center.

Mission control then transferred the email to the space station, so Kimbrough could make his selections some 250 miles (400 kilometers) above the Earth, before sending it back to Texas via secure email.

There was no word from NASA or Kimbrough on which candidate he picked for president.

Kimbrough rode a Russian Soyuz rocket to the ISS on October 19 to start a four-month mission at the research outpost, along with two Russian cosmonauts.

US astronauts have been able to vote from space since 1997, under Texas law. Most astronauts live in the Houston area, home to NASA&#39;s mission control and Johnson Space Center.

The first American to vote from space was David Wolf, who cast his ballot from the Russian space station Mir.

The first US astronaut to vote for a president from space was Leroy Chiao in 2004.

(AFP)

An electronic ballot was emailed to Shane Kimbrough's secure account which NASA then passed on to the International Space Station

In a US presidential election that's already been out of this world, the lone American astronaut in outer space has cast his vote, NASA said on Monday. Shane Kimbrough became the latest astronaut to join in a long tradition of voting while floating above the Earth, inside the orbiting International Space Station. "Current space station resident astronaut Shane Kimbrough is the most recent astronaut to take advantage of the opportunity," NASA said in a statement. Since astronauts can already get emails in space, an electronic ballot generated by the Galveston county clerk's office was emailed to Kimbrough's secure account at NASA's Johnson Space Center. Mission control then transferred the email to the space station, so Kimbrough could make his selections some 250 miles (400 kilometers) above the Earth, before sending it back to Texas via secure email. There was no word from NASA or Kimbrough on which candidate he picked for president. Kimbrough rode a Russian Soyuz rocket to the ISS on October 19 to start a four-month mission at the research outpost, along with two Russian cosmonauts. US astronauts have been able to vote from space since 1997, under Texas law. Most astronauts live in the Houston area, home to NASA's mission control and Johnson Space Center. The first American to vote from space was David Wolf, who cast his ballot from the Russian space station Mir. The first US astronaut to vote for a president from space was Leroy Chiao in 2004. (AFP)

US election 2016: Lone American astronaut in space casts his vote

Thirteen years after its first, failed attempt to place a rover on Mars, Europe reaches a crucial stage Sunday in a fresh quest to scour the Red Planet for signs of life, this time with Russia.

Mission controllers will instruct a spacecraft about 175 million kilometres (109 million miles) from Earth to release and steer a paddling pool-sized lander towards the Red Planet&#39;s cold, dry surface.

Scheduled to arrive next Wednesday (October 19), the short-lived lander&#39;s sole purpose is to prepare the way for a subsequent rover which will drill into Mars in search of extra-terrestrial life.

&quot;Our goal here is to prove we can get to the surface, do science, take data,&quot; European Space Agency (ESA) science advisor Mark McCaughrean said ahead of Sunday&#39;s lander-release manoeuvres.

Dubbed Schiaparelli, the 600-kilogramme (1,300-pound) lander will separate from its mothership, the Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO), after a seven-month, 496 million-kilometre (308 million-mile) trek from Earth.

The lander and the TGO -- which will enter into orbit around Mars to sniff its atmosphere for gases excreted by living organisms -- comprise the first phase of the joint European-Russian ExoMars project.&nbsp;

The second phase, due for launch in 2020 after a two-year funding delay, is the ExoMars rover, for which Schiaparelli will be testing entry and soft-landing technology.

More than half of US, Russian and European attempts to land and operate craft on the Martian surface since the 1960s have failed.

The last time Europe tried, the British-built Beagle 2 disappeared without a trace after separating from the Mars Express mothership in December 2003.

It was finally spotted in January 2015 in a NASA picture of Mars. It showed that even though Beagle 2 failed to establish contact, it had successfully landed.&nbsp;

What&#39;s making the methane?&nbsp;

The United States is alone in having successfully operated rovers on Mars.

If there is life on Mars, it is unlikely to be found on the surface, which is bombarded by ultraviolet and cosmic rays.

But scientists say traces of methane in Mars&#39; thin atmosphere may be an indicator of something stirring underground.

Methane also does not survive the Sun&#39;s ultraviolet rays for long, McCaughrean explained.&nbsp;

&quot;And so for it actually to exist in the Martian atmosphere, it must be coming from something. Something must be making methane.&quot;

One possible source is underground volcanoes.&nbsp;

Another is life: single-celled microbes called methanogens, which on Earth live in places without oxygen such as animal stomachs, where they convert carbon dioxide into methane.

It is hoped that the ExoMars rover -- equipped to drill two-metres (six feet) below the surface -- will yield some clues as to the provenance of Mars&#39; methane.

In the meantime, Schiaparelli&#39;s exploits will be crucial in designing the rover&#39;s landing gear.

The lander will separate from the TGO around 1430 GMT on Sunday, about a million kilometres (621,000 miles) from the Red Planet.

It will enter the atmosphere on Wednesday at an altitude of some 121 km and a speed of nearly 21,000 km (13,000 miles) per hour.

The hot and bumpy trip through Mars&#39; atmosphere will take six minutes.

To protect the lander, an &quot;aeroshell&quot; will absorb and dissipate the heat generated by atmospheric drag for the first three or four minutes.

When it has reached an altitude of 11 km and slowed to 1,700 km/hr, a supersonic parachute will be deployed, the ESA said.

After slowing further and jettisoning its shell and parachute, Schiaparelli will activate nine speed-control thrusters. It will briefly hover at an altitude of two metres before cutting its engines and falling to the surface.

The impact is meant to be absorbed by a crushable structure in the lander&#39;s belly -- similar to a car&#39;s crumple zone.

&quot;It is a complex mission,&quot; Thierry Blancquaert, ESA&#39;s Schiaparelli manager, told AFP. &quot;Landing on Mars requires a lot of technology.&quot;&nbsp;

With a 10-minute delay -- the time it takes for a message to reach Earth -- Schiaparelli will send data on temperature, humidity, density profile and electrical properties.

Battery-driven and without solar panels, the lander should last for two or three days.

&quot;Even if it does not work, we will gain a lot of information,&quot; said Michel Denis, ExoMars flight director.&nbsp;

&quot;If something goes wrong, we will know what it was.&quot;

After releasing Schiaparelli, the TGO will change course to avoid crashing into Mars.

It will then start a 12-month process of &quot;aerobraking&quot; -- skimming the Martian atmosphere to bleed off energy -- to change its eccentric orbit into a circular one.

In early 2018, it will start analysing Mars&#39; atmosphere from an altitude of about 400 km.

If Sunday&#39;s separation fails, mission controllers can try again on Monday.

(AFP)

A lander will leave a Euro-Russian spaceship on Sunday, try and land on the red planet

Thirteen years after its first, failed attempt to place a rover on Mars, Europe reaches a crucial stage Sunday in a fresh quest to scour the Red Planet for signs of life, this time with Russia. Mission controllers will instruct a spacecraft about 175 million kilometres (109 million miles) from Earth to release and steer a paddling pool-sized lander towards the Red Planet's cold, dry surface. Scheduled to arrive next Wednesday (October 19), the short-lived lander's sole purpose is to prepare the way for a subsequent rover which will drill into Mars in search of extra-terrestrial life. "Our goal here is to prove we can get to the surface, do science, take data," European Space Agency (ESA) science advisor Mark McCaughrean said ahead of Sunday's lander-release manoeuvres. Dubbed Schiaparelli, the 600-kilogramme (1,300-pound) lander will separate from its mothership, the Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO), after a seven-month, 496 million-kilometre (308 million-mile) trek from Earth. The lander and the TGO -- which will enter into orbit around Mars to sniff its atmosphere for gases excreted by living organisms -- comprise the first phase of the joint European-Russian ExoMars project. The second phase, due for launch in 2020 after a two-year funding delay, is the ExoMars rover, for which Schiaparelli will be testing entry and soft-landing technology. More than half of US, Russian and European attempts to land and operate craft on the Martian surface since the 1960s have failed. The last time Europe tried, the British-built Beagle 2 disappeared without a trace after separating from the Mars Express mothership in December 2003. It was finally spotted in January 2015 in a NASA picture of Mars. It showed that even though Beagle 2 failed to establish contact, it had successfully landed. What's making the methane? The United States is alone in having successfully operated rovers on Mars. If there is life on Mars, it is unlikely to be found on the surface, which is bombarded by ultraviolet and cosmic rays. But scientists say traces of methane in Mars' thin atmosphere may be an indicator of something stirring underground. Methane also does not survive the Sun's ultraviolet rays for long, McCaughrean explained. "And so for it actually to exist in the Martian atmosphere, it must be coming from something. Something must be making methane." One possible source is underground volcanoes. Another is life: single-celled microbes called methanogens, which on Earth live in places without oxygen such as animal stomachs, where they convert carbon dioxide into methane. It is hoped that the ExoMars rover -- equipped to drill two-metres (six feet) below the surface -- will yield some clues as to the provenance of Mars' methane. In the meantime, Schiaparelli's exploits will be crucial in designing the rover's landing gear. The lander will separate from the TGO around 1430 GMT on Sunday, about a million kilometres (621,000 miles) from the Red Planet. It will enter the atmosphere on Wednesday at an altitude of some 121 km and a speed of nearly 21,000 km (13,000 miles) per hour. The hot and bumpy trip through Mars' atmosphere will take six minutes. To protect the lander, an "aeroshell" will absorb and dissipate the heat generated by atmospheric drag for the first three or four minutes. When it has reached an altitude of 11 km and slowed to 1,700 km/hr, a supersonic parachute will be deployed, the ESA said. After slowing further and jettisoning its shell and parachute, Schiaparelli will activate nine speed-control thrusters. It will briefly hover at an altitude of two metres before cutting its engines and falling to the surface. The impact is meant to be absorbed by a crushable structure in the lander's belly -- similar to a car's crumple zone. "It is a complex mission," Thierry Blancquaert, ESA's Schiaparelli manager, told AFP. "Landing on Mars requires a lot of technology." With a 10-minute delay -- the time it takes for a message to reach Earth -- Schiaparelli will send data on temperature, humidity, density profile and electrical properties. Battery-driven and without solar panels, the lander should last for two or three days. "Even if it does not work, we will gain a lot of information," said Michel Denis, ExoMars flight director. "If something goes wrong, we will know what it was." After releasing Schiaparelli, the TGO will change course to avoid crashing into Mars. It will then start a 12-month process of "aerobraking" -- skimming the Martian atmosphere to bleed off energy -- to change its eccentric orbit into a circular one. In early 2018, it will start analysing Mars' atmosphere from an altitude of about 400 km. If Sunday's separation fails, mission controllers can try again on Monday. (AFP)

Thirteen years later, Europe heads for Mars in search of life again

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