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Doomed US Moon lander on collision course with Earth
Jan 14, 2024
A US spacecraft involved in the first American attempt to land on the Moon in more than 50 years is headed back down to Earth, its maker said.
The private mission by Pittsburgh-based space company Astrobotic, dubbed Peregrine Mission One, set off from Earth last Monday and was schedueld to land on the lunar surface on 23 February.
But a fuel leak sealed its fate, and about 30 hours after launch the company admitted the spacecraft had “no chance” of achieving a soft landing on the Moon.
In its latest update on the spacecraft, the firm said it was “on a path towards Earth” and that it would “likely” burn up on re-entry.
“Our latest assessment now shows the spacecraft is on a path towards Earth, where it will likely burn up in the Earth’s atmosphere,” Astrobotic posted on X, without sharing much information on when the re-entry is expected to happen.
“We have been evaluating how best to safely end the spacecraft’s mission to protect satellites in Earth orbit as well as ensure we do not create debris in cislunar space,” the company said in a blog post on Monday.
The Peregrine spacecraft – the first ever private US Moon lander mission – has been in space for over six days and continues to leak propellant, according to Astrobotic, which said its teams were “working tirelessly” to stabilise the vehicle.
After the probe was hit by an “anomaly” which caused the fuel leak, the company’s engineers oriented the spacecraft towards the Sun so that its solar panel could absorb sunlight and charge its battery.
The spacecraft, now about 376,600 km (234,000 miles) away, will soon re-enter Earth’s atmosphere, the company said, adding that it is working with Nasa and the US government to evaluate the vehicle’s controlled re-entry path.
“We do not believe Peregrine’s re-entry poses safety risks, and the spacecraft will burn up in Earth’s atmosphere,” the firm said in a blog post.
“We will continue to operate the spacecraft and provide status updates through the end of the mission,” it said.
https://www.independent.co.uk/space/moon-lander-peregrine-earth-collision-b2478590.html
OnlyFans porn star 'who was spying for Belarus dictator Lukashenko's KGB secret service' is arrested
UPDATED: 11:43 EST, 15 January 2024
An OnlyFans porn star who was allegedly spying for Belarus dictator Alexander Lukashenko's KGB secret service has been arrested.
Daria Ostapenko, 36, a vet by profession who was also an active OnlyFans model, has been detained in Poland where she is suspected of collaborating with Lukashenko's secret service for up to seven years.
She is accused of posing as a pro-democracy opposition activist seeking to overthrow allegedly vote-rigging Lukashenko, while in fact informing the feared KGB on democracy campaigners who have fled abroad - including to Poland.
Lukashenko is Vladimir Putin's closest ally, and the Minsk autocrat's basket-case economy and defence is entirely dependent on the Kremlin.
Part of Ostapenko's cover was to work as a model, receiving money from subscribers for online pornography, it is alleged.
Earlier she had reportedly worked as a hardcore porn star with the nickname Rita Martin.
As an alleged opposition activist with the Belarusian diaspora in Poland 'she talked about the need to act more decisively to overthrow the government in Belarus, namely by force', reported opposition news outlet Zerkalo.
'She suggested collecting weapons, breaking into Belarus and setting up an explosion on the Belarusian border.'
But after a drinking session she spoke about her actual role in Poland - reporting back to Lukashenko's feared KGB, which routinely tortures the dictator's enemies.
'Information about her was transferred to the Polish Internal Security Agency, and she was detained on the same day,' reported the news outlet.
Sources say evidence of her links to the KGB was found on her smartphone. She is currently remanded in custody.
Reports say the adult actress is charged under Poland's espionage laws which permit penalties of between five and 30 years in prison.
'Ostapenko's chosen profession made her extremely vulnerable to recruitment because Belarusian authorities could catch her breaking Belarus' extremely strict prostitution and pornography laws,' said Polish news outlet Onet.
'Sources report that Ostapenko may have started cooperating with the KGB as early as 2017.'
Once she posed as an opposition activist at a polling station where dictator Lukashenko went to vote.
'The [alleged] spy's career collapsed because of her own mistake,' reported the outlet. 'Ostapenko, while drunk, revealed to her friends that she was working for the Belarusian security services.
'On the same day, the Polish authorities arrested Ostapenko. On her phone, the Internal Security Agency found evidence of communication with Belarusian intelligence officers.'
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12965143/OnlyFans-porn-star-spying-Belarus-Lukashenkos-arrested.html