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A preview of the "Star Trek: Lower Decks" Season 4 Blu-ray and DVD, which was released today (April 16).

The robotic telescopes of the Virtual Telescope Project have observed a quasar powered by a supermassive black hole 3 billion times as massive as the sun at the very edge of the universe

Starfish feet are coordinated purely through mechanical loading, enabling the animals to bounce rhythmically along the seabed without a central nervous system

Starfish feet are coordinated purely through mechanical loading, enabling the animals to bounce rhythmically along the seabed without a central nervous system

Traditional economics makes ludicrous assumptions and poor predictions. Now an alternative approach using big data and psychological insights is proving far more accurate

Traditional economics makes ludicrous assumptions and poor predictions. Now an alternative approach using big data and psychological insights is proving far more accurate

Modelling that shows how the world can remain below 1.5°C of warming assumes we can store vast amounts of carbon dioxide underground, but a new analysis reveals that achieving this is extremely unlikely

Modelling that shows how the world can remain below 1.5°C of warming assumes we can store vast amounts of carbon dioxide underground, but a new analysis reveals that achieving this is extremely unlikely

A black hole would be tough to destroy, but in the season two premiere of Dead Planets Society our hosts are willing to go to extremes, from faster-than-light bombs to time travel

A black hole would be tough to destroy, but in the season two premiere of Dead Planets Society our hosts are willing to go to extremes, from faster-than-light bombs to time travel

BepiColombo spotted an outpour of carbon and oxygen atoms in Venus' fragile magnetic environment

Switzerland became the 37th country to sign the Artemis Accords for peaceful moon exploration with NASA on April 15, following the inclusion of Greece and Uruguay in February.

More U.S. states are requiring online ID checks. A proposed French strategy aims to balance child safety with users’ privacy rights

Hmmm spaceflight is not the easiest of enterprises. NASA have let us know that their plans for the Mars Sample Return Mission have changed. The original plan was to work with ESA to collect samples from Perseverance and return them to Earth by 2031. Alas like many things, costs were increasing and timescales were slipping and with the budget challenges, NASA has had to rework their plan. Administrator Bill Nelson has now shared a simpler, less expensive and less risk alternative.

The Mars Perseverance Rover departed Earth as part of the Mars 2020 mission on 30 July 2020. It’s no quick nip round the corner to get to the red planet so it arrived just under 7 months later on 18 February 2021. Among its many tasks was to collect rock samples, package them up into tubes and deposit them ready for collection by another future mission to return them to Earth. The samples are to be analysed in Earth based laboratories to help us understand the formation of the Solar System, to look for signs of ancient life on Mars and to enable future human exploration. So far so good but enter NASAs budgetary challenges. 

Illustration of Perseverance on Mars

In response to these budget challenges and to an independent review of the Mars Sample Return mission, NASA have had to get creative. The mission design has been updated to include a simpler, less risky approach and at lower cost. The timescales for the sample return have also now been pushed out to return the samples by 2040 instead of the original target date 9 years earlier. 

The team at NASA are under no illusions as to the complexity of the task at hand. To land safely on Mars is just the beginning. The samples have to be collected and safely stowed away, then the rocket must take off from Mars and return safely to Earth! This has never been done before without human intervention – think Apollo with astronauts bringing several kilograms of lunar samples back for analysis. 

At the time of writing this report, NASA do not yet have a way to reduce the costs yet maintain a high level of confidence of success. NASA has asked multiple teams to work together to come up with a plan that takes an innovative approach with where possible, proven technology. They are to work with other industries on proposals to find ways that the mission can be delivered to the cost challenges, with less complexity and by bringing the delivery of the samples back to the 2030’s. 

Nicky Fox, NASA’s associate administrator from Washington said “NASA does visionary science – and returning diverse, scientifically-relevant samples from Mars is a key priority.” Clearly it’s a challenge, not only the logistics of the mission itself but to bring it in given the constraints facing the team is no mean feat. One thing NASA has on its side is their can-do attitude. It’s an organisation that never fails to impress with ingenious solutions. I have no doubt that, by the end of the 2039 we will see the samples returned to Earth in another first for interplanetary exploration. 

Source : NASA Sets Path to Return Mars Samples, Seeks Innovative Designs

The post The Current Mars Sample Return Mission isn’t Going to Work. NASA is Going Back to the Drawing Board appeared first on Universe Today.

To see the premier astronomical observatory in its full-size glory, you need to go to Lagrange Point 2, a location farther away than anyone has traveled. Or, soon, you can visit Colorado.

Major discoveries during the past 10 years have transformed prostate cancer treatment, enabling it to proceed even for the most advanced form of the disease

Experts describe ways to turn down the volume, from earbuds to smartphone apps that detect harmful noise levels

Changing demographics mean shrinking families and more older relatives in future decades

Pavlov’s dogs; Mercury’s dark side