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China's enormous FAST radio telescope is getting even bigger
September 30, 2024
China has kicked off of a second phase of construction to enhance the capabilities of what is already the world's largest single-dish radio telescope.
The Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Telescope (FAST), situated in a karst region in Guizhou, southwest China, has been operating since January 2020.
But now a second phase will add 24 new moveable radio telescopes, each with a diameter of 131 feet (40 meters).
Construction officially started on Sept. 25, on the eighth anniversary of FAST's completion.
This expansion, named the FAST Core Array, aims to make use of the "quiet" electromagnetic environment that exists within a 3-mile (5 kilometers) radius around the telescope, according to China Central Television (CCTV).
The site was originally chosen for the area's remote location and natural topography.
When combined into an array, the new telescopes will enhance resolution and detection capabilities.
The plan aims to allow scientists deeper investigations into various fields, including gravitational wave events, fast radio bursts, supernovae and black hole tidal disruption events.
It will also contribute to space situational awareness, detection of small solar system objects, communication and control of deep space probes and other areas, according to a paper on the Array.
FAST was completed in 2016 and became fully operational in early 2020.
It has so far detected more than 900 pulsars, or fast-spinning neutron stars.
The giant facility has also been open to research requests from international scientists and teams since early 2021.
https://www.space.com/china-fast-radio-telescope-24-new-dishes
Nearing Hera era in space
30/09/2024
One week before ESA’s Hera asteroid mission launch window opens, this group shot shows ESA and OHB team members performing final spacecraft tests (look closely for the mission's dinosaur mascot as well).
The photo was taken inside the North Integration Cell of the SpaceX Payload Processing Facility, located at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
Just visible in the background, with red tags placed on its corner thrusters, Hera has now been filled with propellant and as a next step awaits encapsulation within its launcher fairing.
Due to be launched on a Space Falcon 9, Hera is ESA's first planetary defence mission, heading to a unique target among the 1.3 million known asteroids of our Solar System.
If an incoming asteroid were to threaten Earth, what could people do about it?
On 26 September 2022 NASA’s DART mission performed humankind’s first test of asteroid deflection by crashing into the Great-Pyramid-sized Dimorphos moonlet.
The result was a shift in its orbit around the mountain-sized Didymos main asteroid.
Next comes ESA’s own contribution to this international collaboration: the Hera mission will revisit Dimorphos to gather vital close-up data about the deflected body, to turn DART’s grand-scale experiment into a well-understood and potentially repeatable planetary defence technique.
The mission will also perform the most detailed exploration yet of a binary asteroid system – although binaries make up 15% of all known asteroids, they have never been surveyed in detail.
Hera will also perform technology demonstration experiments, including the deployment ESA’s first deep space ‘CubeSats’ – shoebox-sized spacecraft to venture closer than the main mission then eventually land – and an ambitious test of 'self-driving' for the main spacecraft, based on vision-based navigation.
https://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Images/2024/09/Nearing_Hera_era_in_space
China unveils lunar spacesuit for crewed moon mission
September 29, 2024
China’s human spaceflight agency has revealed the exterior design of the spacesuit for the country’s future crewed lunar landing missions.
The China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) unveiled the extravehicular lunar suit Sept. 28 in Chongqing, southwest China.
CMSA is also soliciting suggestions for a name for the suit.
The suit is being developed as one element of China’s goal of landing astronauts on the moon before 2030.
China is also currently working on a new human-rated launcher, the Long March 10, a deep space crew spacecraft and a crew lander for the mission.
A crew rover is also being designed.
As part of the reveal, a promotional video showcased both the outer appearance and the suit’s key capabilities.
Astronauts Wang Yaping, China’s second woman in space, and Zhai Zhigang modeled the EVA suit.
The suit is described as having a comprehensively protective fabric that shields against the harsh thermal environment and lunar dust.
The helmet features a panoramic, anti-glare visor. The helmet also carries separate long and short focal length cameras. A multi-functional integrated control console is on the chest.
The suit also carries elements of Chinese culture. The red stripes on its upper sections are inspired by ribbons from the famous “flying apsaras” of Dunhuang art.
The overall design of the lunar suit was stated to draw on the style of traditional Chinese armor.
In contrast to China’s Feitian EVA suit used in low Earth orbit, the lunar suit one is designed to be lightweight, catering to the demands of activities in a low-gravity environment.
It allows for movements such as squatting and bending.
“The suit allows for more actions. So in various postures, the fitness shouldn’t be affected after a posture change.
Therefore it requires a better fit on the human body,” Wang Chunhui, deputy chief designer of the astronauts training systems at the China Astronaut Research and Training Center, told China Central Television (CCTV).
Wang stated that the suit was designed to handle various harsh conditions. Complex environmental factors include vacuum and low gravity, lunar dust and regolith, complex surface topography, and extreme high and low temperatures.
It also needs to protect astronauts from a high radiation environment.
“Considering that they are working under one-sixth gravity, in order to reduce the metabolic load of the human body, it is a must to greatly reduce the suit’s weight,” Wang said.
“As astronauts will walk on the lunar surface and carry out scientific research activities, the spacesuits must have better ergonomic support capabilities, and be smaller and more integrated,” he added.
China’s crewed landing plan is for two astronauts to make a short, roughly six-hour-duration stay on the lunar surface. However, the mission is part of a longer-term lunar exploration effort.
The country will send robotic missions to the lunar south pole in 2026 and 2028 for resource surveys and in-situ resource utilization tests as a precursor to a moon base.
The International Lunar Research Station (ILRS) is to be built in the 2030s. It will eventually be capable of hosting short term human stays.
NASA, meanwhile, is working on its Artemis program to return astronauts to the moon and build a sustained lunar presence.
The Artemis 3 crewed landing mission is currently scheduled for no earlier than September 2026. However, the agency’s own analysis suggests potential significant delays for the Artemis 3 lunar lander.
NASA selected Axiom Space in 2022 to develop a spacesuit to be used on the Artemis 3 mission. Both China and NASA are engaged in efforts to attract partners for ILRS and Artemis respectively.
https://spacenews.com/china-unveils-lunar-spacesuit-for-crewed-moon-mission/
Nasa reveals shock images of battered Mars rover after ‘worst abuse’ in its search for alien life
12:24 ET, Sep 30 2024
A robot on the hunt for signs of alien life on Mars has taken a huge battering, shock new images released by Nasa show.
The Curiosity rover has been busy gathering rocks for more than 12 years to workout whether the Red Planet was ever able to support life.
It's been exploring the Gale Crater since 2012, clocking over 20 miles.
But the lengthy visit has taken its toll on the device, after surviving multiple dust storms and Mars' challenging terrain.
Images released by Nasa show Curiosity's wheels have sustained some extensive damage.
They show very clear gaping holes in the aluminium wheels.
It's been exploring the Gale Crater since 2012, clocking over 20 miles.
But the lengthy visit has taken its toll on the device, after surviving multiple dust storms and Mars' challenging terrain.
Images released by Nasa show Curiosity's wheels have sustained some extensive damage.
They show very clear gaping holes in the aluminium wheels. Curiosity has six wheels in total.
Fortunately, Nasa doesn't appear to be too worried about the damage.
The $2.5billion (£1.9billion) machine is "still holding up well despite taking some of the worst abuse from Mars", according to Ashley Stroupe, Mission Operations Engineer at Nasa.
Holes and tears grew quite a bit in Curiosity's first year on the Red Planet.
Since then, experts controlling the bot have been trying to avoid nasty environments to prevent further holes.
They've also issued special updates to adjust speed.
"The wheel wear has been cause for concern, and although we estimate they have years of life still in them, we do want to reduce that wear whenever possible to extend the life of the wheels," Art Rankin, part of Nasa's test team, said back in 2017.
During it's time on Mars, Curiosity has stumbled across an array of mysterious objects.
The space agency recently revealed it found yellow crystals that "shouldn’t be there".
Curiosity has certainly defied the odds, far outliving the two-year mission time period it was originally given.
These days the bot isn't alone on Mars, with the Perseverance also investigating on the surface.
Nasa built thicker, more durable wheels for Perseverance to avoid the sort of damage seen on Curiosity.
Car-sized Perseverance has been on Mars since February 18, 2021.
https://www.the-sun.com/tech/12570661/nasa-mars-curiosity-rover-wheels-battered-damage/
China launches reusable Shijian-19 satellite for space breeding and technology tests
September 30, 2024
China launched the retrievable and reusable Shijian-19 satellite Friday to carry out a range of experiments in low Earth orbit.
A Long March 2D rocket lifted off at 8:30 a.m. Eastern (1030 UTC) Sept. 27 from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in the Gobi Desert.
Exhaust from the hypergolic rocket billowed into the air as the launcher ascended into largely clear blue skies above the spaceport.
The Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology (SAST) announced launch success, revealing the payload to be the Shijian-19 satellite.
Shijian-19 is a retrievable satellite developed by the China Academy of Space Technology (CAST).
The same arm of China’s main space contractor is also developing a reusable crew spacecraft for low Earth orbit (LEO) and lunar and deep space missions.
U.S. Space Force’s Space Delta 2 tracked Shijian-19 in a 322 by 339-kilometer-altitude orbit inclined by 41.6 degrees.
The mission is geared towards space breeding experiments and carries various plant seeds selected from a range of locations.
Researchers hope the exposure to the radiation environment of LEO will instigate mutations that may bring about advantages such as shorter breeding cycles and other beneficial variations.
The mission patch features a parachute, returning capsule, and three rabbits, which may be drawing on themes of fertility and a link to the space breeding experiments.
In China, space breeding has become an increasingly important avenue for attempting to improve agricultural outputs.
Exposure to space conditions is thought to accelerate genetic mutations that may enhance crop resilience and productivity.
The Shijian-19 mission also includes in-orbit flight test verification tests for domestic components and raw materials and the development and application of new space technologies.
The reusable spacecraft is intended to be utilized for this and other microgravity science and space life science experiments.
The mission also carries payloads from five countries, including Thailand and Pakistan, according to the China National Space Administration (CNSA).
CAST officials had presented the reusable, retrievable Shijian satellite series back in 2018.
It was stated that around 15 missions were planned for the period 2019-2025. Friday was, however, the first launch.
The Shijian-19 satellite, weighing approximately 3,500 kilograms, has different configurations for varying mission durations.
The short-term version, designed for missions lasting about two weeks, will return to Earth promptly.
The long-term configuration, equipped with solar arrays on its propulsion and power module, will remain in orbit longer, supporting extended experiments.
The recoverable portion can carry between 500 to 600 kilograms of payload.
The landing site was initially stated to be Siziwang Banner in Inner Mongolia, but the Dongfeng landing area, closer to Jiuquan and where China’s Shenzhou crews now return, is a more likely site.
The payload fairing for the mission was attached to the rocket 48 hours ahead of launch. Conversely, China’s previous retrievable satellite launch, Shijian-10 in 2016, did not feature a payload fairing.
The Shijian-19 mission is part of China’s broader space program, which includes ambitious plans for deep space exploration, a range of experiments aboard the Tiangong space station, and advancements in reusable space technologies.
The launch was China’s 46th of 2024. It follows the launch of five satellites on the fourth Lijian-1 (Kinetica-1) solid rocket from CAS Space, Sept. 24.
CASC said late September it plans to conduct more than 20 launches before the end of the year. These include the Shenzhou-19 crewed and Tianzhou-8 cargo missions to Tiangong space station.
The new Long March 12 rocket is expected to have its inaugural flight, while a Long March 8 will also fly from Hainan’s new commercial spaceport.
https://spacenews.com/china-launches-reusable-shijian-19-satellite-for-space-breeding-and-technology-tests/