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Red foxes and Arctic foxes dive headfirst into snow at up to 4 metres per second to catch small rodents, and the shape of their snouts reduces the impact force

The atlas, which is available in Chinese and English, depicts the surface of the moon with a scale of 1:2.5 million. It highlights many intriguing geological features, such as impact craters.

When a spacecraft arrives at its destination, it settles into an orbit for science operations. But after the primary mission is complete, there might be other interesting orbits where scientists would like to explore. Maneuvering to a different orbit requires fuel, limiting a spacecraft’s number of maneuvers.

Researchers have discovered that some orbital paths allow for no-fuel orbital changes. But the figuring out these paths also are computationally expensive. Knot theory has been shown to find these pathways more easily, allowing the most fuel-efficient routes to be plotted. This is similar to how our GPS mapping software plots the most efficient routes for us here on Earth.

In mathematics, knot theory is the study of closed curves in three dimensions. Think of it as looking at a knotted necklace or a tangle of fishing line, and figuring out how to untangle them in the most efficient manner.

In the same way, a spacecraft’s path could be computed in a crowded planetary system – around Jupiter and all its moons, for example – where the best, simplest and least tangled route could be computed mathematically.

A graphic showing the orbital path the Danuri Lunar Pathfinder spacecraft will take to go into orbit around the Moon. Credit: Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI)

According to a new paper in the journal Astrodynamics, “Applications of knot theory to the detection of heteroclinic connections between quasi-periodic orbits,” using knot theory to untangle complicated spacecraft routes would decrease the amount of computer power or just plain guesswork in plotting out changes in spacecraft orbits.

“Previously, when the likes of NASA wanted to plot a route, their calculations relied on either brute force or guesswork,” said Danny Owen, a postgraduate research student in astrodynamics, in a press release from the University of Surrey. “Our new technique neatly reveals all possible routes a spacecraft could take from A to B, as long as both orbits share a common energy level.”

Owen added that this new process makes the task of planning missions much simpler. “We think of it as a tube [subway] map for space,” he said.

Spacecraft navigation is complicated by the fact that nothing in space is a fixed position. Navigators must meet the challenges of calculating the exact speeds and orientations of a rotating Earth, a rotating target destination, as well as a moving spacecraft, while all are simultaneously traveling in their own orbits around the Sun.

Since fuel is a limited resource for most missions, it would be beneficial to require the least amount of fuel possible in making any changes to the course of a spacecraft in orbit.  

Spacecraft navigators use something called heteroclinic orbits — often called heteroclinic connections — which are paths that allow a spacecraft to travel from one orbit to another using the most efficient amount of fuel – or sometimes no fuel at all. But this usually takes a large amount of computer power or a lot of time to figure out.  

Artist’s impession of the Lunar Gateway with the Orion spacecraft docked on the left side. Credit: ESA

But Owen and co-author Nicola Baresi, a lecturer in Orbital Mechanics at the University of Surrey, wrote that by using knot theory, they have developed “a method of robustly detecting heteroclinic connections,” they wrote in their paper, to quickly generate rough trajectories – which can then be refined. This gives spacecraft navigators a full list of all possible routes from a designated orbit, and the one that best fits the mission can be chosen. They can then choose the one that best suits their mission.

The researchers tested their technique on various planetary systems, including the Moon, and the Galilean moons of Jupiter.

“Spurred on by NASA’s Artemis program, the new Moon race is inspiring mission designers around the world to research fuel-efficient routes that can better and more efficiently explore the vicinity of the Moon,” said Baresi. “Not only does our technique make that cumbersome task more straightforward, but it can also be applied to other planetary systems, such as the icy moons of Saturn and Jupiter.”

The post How Knot Theory Can Help Spacecraft Can Change Orbits Without Using Fuel appeared first on Universe Today.

The list of chemicals found in space is growing longer and longer. Astronomers have found amino acids and other building blocks of life on comets, asteroids, and even floating freely in space. Now, researchers have found another complex chemical to add to the list.

The new chemical is known as 2-methoxyethanol (CH3OCH2CH2OH). It’s one of several methoxy molecules that scientists have found in space. But with 13 atoms, it’s one of the largest and most complex ones ever detected.

A team of scientists called the McGuire Group specializes in detecting chemicals in space. The McGuire Group and other researchers from institutions in Florida and France worked together to find 2-methoxyethanol.

The researchers published their findings in The Astrophysical Journal Letters. It’s titled “Rotational Spectrum and First Interstellar Detection of 2-methoxyethanol Using ALMA Observations of NGC 6334I.” The lead author is Zachary Fried, a graduate student in the McGuire Group at MIT.

A ball and stick model of 2-methoxyethanol (CH3OCH2CH2OH). With 13 atoms, it’s one of the largest complex chemicals ever found in space. Image Credit: By Ben Mills – Own work, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=3081683

“There are a number of ‘methoxy’ molecules in space, like dimethyl ether, methoxymethanol, ethyl methyl ether, and methyl formate, but 2-methoxyethanol would be the largest and most complex ever seen,” said lead author Fried.

The researchers didn’t stumble upon the large molecule. It was found as part of a concerted effort to detect new chemicals in space. It all started with machine learning. In 2023, one machine-learning model suggested they look for 2-methoxyethanol. The next step was the lab, where researchers performed experiments that measured and analyzed the molecule’s rotational spectrum here on Earth.

“We do this by looking at the rotational spectra of molecules, the unique patterns of light they give off as they tumble end-over-end in space,” said Fried. “These patterns are fingerprints (barcodes) for molecules. To detect new molecules in space, we first must have an idea of what molecule we want to look for, then we can record its spectrum in the lab here on Earth, and then finally we look for that spectrum in space using telescopes.”

The researchers measured the molecule’s spectrum over a broadband region of frequencies ranging from the microwave to sub-millimetre wave regimes (from about 8 to 500 gigahertz).

With that data in hand, the researchers turned to ALMA, the Atacama Large Millimetre/sub-millimetre Array. ALMA gathered data from two star-forming regions: NGC 6334I and IRAS 16293-2422B. Researchers from the McGuire Group, the National Radio Astronomy Observatory, and the University of Copenhagen all worked on analyzing ALMA’s observations.

“Ultimately, we observed 25 rotational lines of 2-methoxyethanol that lined up with the molecular signal observed toward NGC 6334I (the barcode matched!), thus resulting in a secure detection of 2-methoxyethanol in this source,” said Fried. “This allowed us to then derive physical parameters of the molecule toward NGC 6334I, such as its abundance and excitation temperature. It also enabled an investigation of the possible chemical formation pathways from known interstellar precursors.”

NGC 6334m the Cat’s Paw Nebula. Image Credit: ESO

Here on Earth, 2-methoxyethanol is used mostly as a solvent. It’s toxic to bone marrow and testicles. But its status here on Earth isn’t relevant to its discovery.

The large molecule isn’t a building block for life, either. It’s significant because of its size and complexity. Scientists are interested in understanding how chemistry evolves and forms large molecules in regions where stars and planets are forming.

“Our group tries to understand what molecules are present in regions of space where stars and solar systems will eventually take shape,” explained Fried. “This allows us to piece together how chemistry evolves alongside the process of star and planet formation.”

Molecular complexity is the hallmark of life, so, of course, scientists want to understand molecular complexity in space. As of 2021, scientists only found six molecules in space larger than 13 atoms outside our Solar System. McGuire’s team found many of them.

Finding them is the first step. The next step is to figure out how and where they form. Though there are no direct links between 2-methoxyethanol and life, all complex chemistry has something to tell us about complex chemistry in general.

“Continued observations of large molecules and subsequent derivations of their abundances allows us to advance our knowledge of how efficiently large molecules can form and by which specific reactions they may be produced,” said Fried. “Additionally, since we detected this molecule in NGC 6334I but not in IRAS 16293-2422B, we were presented with a unique opportunity to look into how the differing physical conditions of these two sources may be affecting the chemistry that can occur.”

IRAS 16293?2422 in the star-forming region Rho Ophiuchi. Image Credit: ESO

NGC 6334I is a higher-mass star-forming region compared to IRAS 16293-2422B. That means it could have a potentially enhanced radiation field. That enhanced radiation could produce more precursors for 2-methoxyethanol, eventually leading to more of the molecule itself. Warmer dust temperatures may have contributed, too. Warmer dust allows greater dust mobility, leading to chemical fragments being allowed to recombine.

Thanks to ever-improving observational tools and methods, including machine learning, astrochemistry is a blossoming field. If we’re ever going to understand how life on Earth arose and where it may likely rise elsewhere in the galaxy, astrochemistry will play a leading role. Though 2-methoxyethanol isn’t directly related to life, its detection still tells scientists something.

The post Another New Molecule Discovered Forming in Space appeared first on Universe Today.

What would happen if our closest neighbor, the moon, disappeared? Here we explore the possible effects it could have on the environment and life on Earth.

Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft approaches the International Space Station. NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams will launch aboard Starliner on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket for NASA’s Boeing Crew Flight Test.Credits: NASA

NASA will provide live coverage of prelaunch and launch activities for the agency’s Boeing Crew Flight Test, which will carry NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams to and from the International Space Station.

Launch of the ULA (United Launch Alliance) Atlas V rocket and Boeing Starliner spacecraft is targeted for 10:34 p.m. EDT Monday, May 6, from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.

The flight test will carry Wilmore and Williams to the space station for about a week to test the Starliner spacecraft and its subsystems before NASA certifies the transportation system for rotational missions to the orbiting laboratory for the agency’s Commercial Crew Program.

Starliner will dock to the forward-facing port of the station’s Harmony module at 12:48 a.m., Wednesday, May 8.

The deadline for media accreditation for in-person coverage of this launch has passed. The agency’s media credentialing policy is available online. For questions about media accreditation, please email: ksc-media-accreditat@mail.nasa.gov.

NASA’s mission coverage is as follows (all times Eastern and subject to change based on real-time operations):

Wednesday, May 1

1:30 p.m. – Virtual news conference at Kennedy with the flight test astronauts:

• NASA astronaut Butch Wilmore
• NASA astronaut Suni Williams

Coverage of the virtual news conference will stream live on NASA+, NASA Television, the NASA app, YouTube, and the agency’s website.

Media may ask questions via phone only. For the dial-in number and passcode, please contact the Kennedy newsroom no later than 12:30 p.m., Wednesday, May 1, at: ksc-newsroom@mail.nasa.gov.

Friday, May 3
12:30 p.m. – Prelaunch news conference at Kennedy (no earlier than one hour after completion of the Launch Readiness Review) with the following participants:

• NASA Administrator Bill Nelson
• Steve Stich, manager, NASA’s Commercial Crew Program
• Dana Weigel, manager, NASA’s International Space Station Program
• Emily Nelson, chief flight director, NASA
• Jennifer Buchli, chief scientist, NASA’s International Space Station Program
• Mark Nappi, vice president and program manager, Commercial Crew Program, Boeing
• Gary Wentz, vice president, Government and Commercial Programs, ULA
• Brian Cizek, launch weather officer, 45th Weather Squadron, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station

Coverage of the prelaunch news conference will stream live on NASA+, NASA Television, the NASA app, YouTube, and the agency’s website.

Media may ask questions in person and via phone. Limited auditorium space will be available for in-person participation. For the dial-in number and passcode, media should contact the Kennedy newsroom no later than 11:30 a.m., Friday, May 3, at ksc-newsroom@mail.nasa.gov.

3:30 p.m. – NASA Social panel live stream event at Kennedy with the following participants:

• Ian Kappes, deputy launch vehicle office manager, NASA’s Commercial Crew Program
• Amy Comeau Denker, Starliner associate chief engineer, Boeing
• Caleb Weiss, system engineering and test leader, ULA
• Jennifer Buchli, chief scientist, NASA’s International Space Station Program

Coverage of the panel live stream event will stream live at @NASAKennedy on YouTube, @NASAKennedy on X, and @NASAKennedy on Facebook. Members of the public may ask questions online by posting questions to the YouTube, X, and Facebook livestreams using #AskNASA.

Monday, May 6

6:30 p.m. – Launch coverage begins on NASA+, NASA Television, the NASA app, YouTube, and the agency’s website.

10:34 p.m. – Launch

Launch coverage on NASA+ will end shortly after Starliner orbital insertion. NASA Television will provide continuous coverage leading up to docking and through hatch opening and welcome remarks.

Tuesday, May 7

12 a.m. – Postlaunch news conference with the following participants:

• NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy
• Ken Bowersox, associate administrator, NASA’s Space Operations Mission Directorate
• Steve Stich, manager, NASA’s Commercial Crew Program
• Dana Weigel, manager, NASA’s International Space Station Program
• Mark Nappi, vice president and program manager, Commercial Crew Program, Boeing
• Gary Wentz, vice president, Government and Commercial Programs, ULA

Coverage of the postlaunch news conference will air live on NASA+, NASA Television, the NASA app, YouTube, and the agency’s website.

NASA+ will resume coverage and NASA Television’s media channel will break from in-orbit coverage to carry the postlaunch news conference. Mission operational coverage will continue on NASA Television’s public channel and the agency’s website. Once the postlaunch news conference is complete, NASA+ coverage will end, and mission coverage will continue on both NASA channels.

Media may ask questions in person and via phone. Limited auditorium space will be available for in-person participation. For the dial-in number and passcode, media should contact the Kennedy newsroom no later than 10:30 p.m., Monday, May 6, at ksc-newsroom@mail.nasa.gov.

10:15 p.m. – Arrival coverage resumes on NASA+, the NASA app, and YouTube, and continues on NASA Television and the agency’s website.

Wednesday, May 8
12:48 a.m. – Targeted docking to the forward-facing port of the station’s Harmony module

2:35 a.m. – Hatch opening

3:15 a.m. – Welcome remarks

4:15 a.m. – Post-docking news conference at Johnson with the following participants:

• NASA Associate Administrator Jim Free
• Steve Stich, manager, NASA’s Commercial Crew Program
• Dana Weigel, manager, NASA’s International Space Station Program
• Mark Nappi, vice president and program manager, Commercial Crew Program, Boeing

Coverage of the post-docking news conference will air live on NASA+, NASA Television, the NASA app, YouTube, and the agency’s website.

All times are estimates and could be adjusted based on operations after launch. Follow the space station blog for the most up-to-date operations information.

Audio Only Coverage

Audio only of the news conferences and launch coverage will be carried on the NASA “V” circuits, which may be accessed by dialing 321-867-1220, -1240 or -7135. On launch day, “mission audio,” countdown activities without NASA Television launch commentary, will be carried on 321-867-7135.

Launch audio also will be available on Launch Information Service and Amateur Television System’s VHF radio frequency 146.940 MHz and KSC Amateur Radio Club’s UHF radio frequency 444.925 MHz, FM mode, heard within Brevard County on the Space Coast.

Live Video Coverage Prior to Launch

NASA will provide a live video feed of Space Launch Complex-41 approximately 48 hours prior to the planned liftoff of the mission. Pending unlikely technical issues, the feed will be uninterrupted until the prelaunch broadcast begins on NASA Television, approximately four hours prior to launch. Once the feed is live, find it here: http://youtube.com/kscnewsroom.

NASA Website Launch Coverage

Launch day coverage of the mission will be available on the agency’s website. Coverage will include live streaming and blog updates beginning no earlier than 6:30 p.m., May 6 as the countdown milestones occur. On-demand streaming video and photos of the launch will be available shortly after liftoff.

For questions about countdown coverage, contact the Kennedy newsroom at 321-867-2468. Follow countdown coverage on the commercial crew or the Crew Flight Test blog.

Attend the Launch Virtually

Members of the public can register to attend this launch virtually. NASA’s virtual guest program for this mission also includes curated launch resources, notifications about related opportunities or changes, and a stamp for the NASA virtual guest passport following launch.

Watch and Engage on Social Media

Let people know you’re following the mission on X, Facebook, and Instagram by using the hashtags #Starliner and #NASASocial. You can also stay connected by following and tagging these accounts:

X: @NASA, @NASAKennedy, @NASASocial, @Space_Station, @ISS_Research, @ISS National Lab, @BoeingSpace, @Commercial_Crew

Facebook: NASA, NASAKennedy, ISS, ISS National Lab

Instagram: @NASA, @NASAKennedy, @ISS, @ISSNationalLab

Coverage en Espanol

Did you know NASA has a Spanish section called NASA en Espanol? Check out NASA en Espanol on X, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube for additional mission coverage.

Para obtener información sobre cobertura en español en el Centro Espacial Kennedy o si desea solicitar entrevistas en español, comuníquese con Antonia Jaramillo: 321-501-8425; antonia.jaramillobotero@nasa.gov; o Messod Bendayan: 256-930-1371; messod.c.bendayan@nasa.gov.

NASA’s Commercial Crew Program has delivered on its goal of safe, reliable, and cost-effective transportation to and from the International Space Station from the United States through a partnership with American private industry. This partnership is changing the arc of human spaceflight history by opening access to low-Earth orbit and the International Space Station to more people, science, and commercial opportunities. The space station remains the springboard to NASA’s next great leap in space exploration, including future missions to the Moon and, eventually, to Mars.

For NASA’s launch blog and more information about the mission, visit:

https://www.nasa.gov/commercialcrew

-end-

Joshua Finch / Claire O’Shea
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1100
joshua.a.finch@nasa.gov / claire.a.o’shea@nasa.gov

Steven Siceloff / Danielle Sempsrott / Stephanie Plucinsky
Kennedy Space Center, Florida
321-867-2468
steven.p.siceloff@nasa.gov / danielle.c.sempsrott@nasa.gov / stephanie.n.plucinsky@nasa.gov

Leah Cheshier
Johnson Space Center, Houston
281-483-5111
leah.d.cheshier@nasa.gov

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Details Last Updated Apr 29, 2024 LocationNASA Headquarters Related Terms

• Commercial Space
• Commercial Crew
• Humans in Space
• International Space Station (ISS)
• ISS Research
• Space Operations Mission Directorate

Rising from turbulent waves of dust and gas is the Horsehead Nebula, otherwise known as Barnard 33, which resides roughly 1,300 light-years away. The NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope has captured the sharpest infrared images to date of one of the most distinctive objects in our skies, the Horsehead Nebula. Webb’s new view focuses on the illuminated edge of the top of the nebula’s distinctive dust and gas structure.

Rising from turbulent waves of dust and gas is the Horsehead Nebula, otherwise known as Barnard 33, which resides roughly 1300 light-years away. The NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope has captured the sharpest infrared images to date of one of the most distinctive objects in our skies, the Horsehead Nebula. Webb’s new view focuses on the illuminated edge of the top of the nebula’s distinctive dust and gas structure.

This image of part of the Horsehead Nebula, captured by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope and released on April 29, 2024, shows the nebula in a whole new light, capturing the region’s complexity with unprecedented spatial resolution. Located roughly 1,300 light-years away, the nebula formed from a collapsing interstellar cloud of material, and glows because it is illuminated by a nearby hot star. The gas clouds surrounding the Horsehead have already dissipated, but the jutting pillar is made of thick clumps of material and therefore is harder to erode. Astronomers estimate that the Horsehead has about 5 million years left before it too disintegrates.

Image Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, K. Misselt (University of Arizona) and A. Abergel (IAS/University Paris-Saclay, CNRS)

The James Webb Telescope has zoomed in on the Horsehead Nebula, capturing slices of this stunning star-forming region close to Earth in an entirely new light.

“Energy independence” doesn’t mean what politicians think it means

The SpaceX Dragon crew spacecraft pictured from the International Space Station.Credit: NASA

In preparation for the arrival of NASA’s Boeing Crew Flight Test, four crew members aboard the International Space Station will relocate the SpaceX Dragon crew spacecraft to a different docking port Thursday, May 2, to make way for Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft.

NASA will provide live coverage of the move beginning at 7:30 a.m. EDT on NASA+, NASA Television, the NASA app, YouTube, and the agency’s website. Learn how to stream NASA TV through a variety of platforms including social media.

NASA astronauts Matt Dominick, Mike Barratt, and Jeanette Epps, as well as Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin, will undock from the forward-facing port of the station’s Harmony module at 7:45 a.m. The spacecraft will then autonomously dock with the module’s space-facing port at 8:28 a.m.

The relocation, supported by flight controllers at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston and SpaceX in Hawthorne, California, will free up Harmony’s forward-facing port for the docking of the Boeing Starliner spacecraft for its first flight with astronauts in May. Starliner will autonomously dock to the forward-facing port of the Harmony module, delivering NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams to the space station.

This will be the fourth port relocation of a Dragon spacecraft with crew, following previous relocations during the Crew-1, Crew-2, and Crew-6 missions.

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 mission launched March 3 from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida and docked to the space station March 5. Crew-8, targeted to return this fall, is the eighth rotational crew mission from NASA and SpaceX as a part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program.

Learn more about space station activities by following @space_station and @ISS_Research on X, as well as the ISS Facebook, ISS Instagram, and the space station blog.

-end-

Joshua Finch / Claire O’Shea
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1100
joshua.a.finch@nasa.gov / claire.a.o’shea@nasa.gov

Sandra Jones / Anna Schneider
Johnson Space Center, Houston
281-483-5111
sandra.p.jones@nasa.gov / anna.c.schneider@nasa.gov

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Details Last Updated Apr 29, 2024 LocationJohnson Space Center Related Terms

• Humans in Space
• Astronauts
• Commercial Crew
• International Space Station (ISS)
• ISS Research

China reportedly plans to launch its Chang'e 6 sample-return mission toward the moon's mysterious far side on Friday (May 3).

Climate change means many tree species planted today in Europe won’t survive to the end of the century, but English oaks could thrive in many areas

Climate change means many tree species planted today in Europe won’t survive to the end of the century, but English oaks could thrive in many areas

Boeing Starliner's 1st astronaut crew continues their training, even in quarantine. After finishing a big dress rehearsal on April 26, practice continues ahead of the scheduled May 6 launch to the ISS.

A giant impact likely formed Pluto's heart-shaped basin, Sputnik Planitia. A big chunk of the impactor’s core might still be buried under the ice.

The post A Cosmic Arrow Pierced Pluto's Heart — Is It Still There Beneath the Surface? appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

This coronal mass ejection, captured by NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory, erupted on the Sun Aug. 31, 2012, traveling over 900 miles per second and sending radiation deep into space. Earth’s magnetic field shields it from radiation produced by solar events like this one, while Mars lacks that kind of shielding.NASA/GFSC/SDO

The Sun will be at peak activity this year, providing a rare opportunity to study how solar storms and radiation could affect future astronauts on the Red Planet.

In the months ahead, two of NASA’s Mars spacecraft will have an unprecedented opportunity to study how solar flares — giant explosions on the Sun’s surface — could affect robots and future astronauts on the Red Planet.

That’s because the Sun is entering a period of peak activity called solar maximum, something that occurs roughly every 11 years. During solar maximum, the Sun is especially prone to throwing fiery tantrums in a variety of forms — including solar flares and coronal mass ejections — that launch radiation deep into space. When a series of these solar events erupts, it’s called a solar storm.

Earth’s magnetic field largely shields our home planet from the effects of these storms. But Mars lost its global magnetic field long ago, leaving the Red Planet more vulnerable to the Sun’s energetic particles. Just how intense does solar activity get on Mars? Researchers hope the current solar maximum will give them a chance to find out. Before sending humans there, space agencies need to determine, among many other details, what kind of radiation protection astronauts would require.

Learn how NASA’s MAVEN and the agency’s Curiosity rover will study solar flares and radiation at Mars during solar maximum – a period when the Sun is at peak activity. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/GSFC/SDO/MSSS/University of Colorado

“For humans and assets on the Martian surface, we don’t have a solid handle on what the effect is from radiation during solar activity,” said Shannon Curry of the University of Colorado Boulder’s Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics. Curry is principal investigator for NASA’s MAVEN (Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN) orbiter, which is managed by NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. “I’d actually love to see the ‘big one’ at Mars this year — a large event that we can study to understand solar radiation better before astronauts go to Mars.”

Measuring High and Low

MAVEN observes radiation, solar particles, and more from high above Mars. The planet’s thin atmosphere can affect the intensity of the particles by the time they reach the surface, which is where NASA’s Curiosity rover comes in. Data from Curiosity’s Radiation Assessment Detector, or RAD, has helped scientists understand how radiation breaks down carbon-based molecules on the surface, a process that could affect whether signs of ancient microbial life are preserved there. The instrument has also provided NASA with an idea of how much shielding from radiation astronauts could expect by using caves, lava tubes, or cliff faces for protection.

When a solar event occurs, scientists look both at the quantity of solar particles and how energetic they are.

“You can have a million particles with low energy or 10 particles with extremely high energy,” said RAD’s principal investigator, Don Hassler of the Boulder, Colorado, office of the Southwest Research Institute. “While MAVEN’s instruments are more sensitive to lower-energy ones, RAD is the only instrument capable of seeing the high-energy ones that make it through the atmosphere to the surface, where astronauts would be.”

The Radiation Assessment Detector on NASA’s Curiosity is indicated in this annotated image from the rover’s Mastcam. RAD scientists are excited to use the instrument to study radiation on the Martian surface during solar maximum.NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS This artist’s concept depicts NASA’s Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) near Mars. The spacecraft observes radiation, solar particles, and more from high above the Red Planet.NASA/GFSC

When MAVEN detects a big solar flare, the orbiter’s team lets the Curiosity team know so they can watch for changes in RAD’s data. The two missions can even assemble a time series measuring changes down to the half-second as particles arrive at the Martian atmosphere, interact with it, and eventually strike the surface.

The MAVEN mission also leads an early warning system that lets other Mars spacecraft teams know when radiation levels begin to rise. The heads-up enables missions to turn off instruments that could be vulnerable to solar flares, which can interfere with electronics and radio communication.

Lost Water

Beyond helping to keep astronauts and spacecraft safe, studying solar maximum could also lend insight into why Mars changed from being a warm, wet Earth-like world billions of years ago to the freezing desert it is today.

The planet is at a point in its orbit when it’s closest to the Sun, which heats up the atmosphere. That can cause billowing dust storms to blanket the surface. Sometimes the storms merge, becoming global.

While there’s little water left on Mars — mostly ice under the surface and at the poles — some still circulates as vapor in the atmosphere. Scientists wonder whether global dust storms help to eject this water vapor, lofting it high above the planet, where the atmosphere gets stripped away during solar storms. One theory is that this process, repeated enough times over eons, might explain how Mars went from having lakes and rivers to virtually no water today.

If a global dust storm were to occur at the same time as a solar storm, it would provide an opportunity to test that theory. Scientists are especially excited because this particular solar maximum is occurring at the start of the dustiest season on Mars, but they also know that a global dust storm is a rare occurrence.

More About the Missions

NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, manages the MAVEN mission. Lockheed Martin Space built the spacecraft and is responsible for mission operations. JPL provides navigation and Deep Space Network support. The Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics at the University of Colorado Boulder is responsible for managing science operations and public outreach and communications. 

Curiosity was built by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, which is managed by Caltech in Pasadena, California. JPL leads the mission on behalf of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate in Washington. The RAD investigation is supported by NASA’s Heliophysics Division as part of NASA’s Heliophysics System Observatory (HSO).

Additional information about the missions can be found at:

https://mars.nasa.gov/maven/

and

http://mars.nasa.gov/msl

News Media Contacts

Nancy Neal Jones
Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
301-286-0039
nancy.n.jones@nasa.gov

Andrew Good
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
818-393-2433
andrew.c.good@jpl.nasa.gov

Karen Fox / Charles Blue
NASA Headquarters, Washington
301-286-6284 / 202-802-5345
karen.c.fox@nasa.gov / charles.e.blue@nasa.gov

2024-052

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Details Last Updated Apr 29, 2024 Related Terms

• Mars
• Curiosity (Rover)
• Goddard Space Flight Center
• Heliophysics
• Jet Propulsion Laboratory
• Mars Science Laboratory (MSL)
• MAVEN (Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN)
• The Solar System
• The Sun

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John Bailey, director, John C. Stennis Space Center

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson on Monday named John Bailey as director of the agency’s Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, effective immediately. Bailey had been serving as acting director since January. 

“John will build on his nearly 35 years of federal service to lead our talented workforce at Stennis,” said Nelson. “So much of NASA runs through Stennis. It is where we hone new and exciting capabilities in aerospace, technology, and deep space exploration. I am confident that John will lead the nation’s largest and premier propulsion test site to even greater success.”

NASA Stennis also is a unique federal city, home to more than 50 resident tenants with a combined workforce of over 5,200. The center tested the SLS (Space Launch System) core stage that helped launch the Artemis I mission. It also is testing all RS-25 engines to help power SLS launches and will conduct flightworthy testing of the agency’s new exploration upper stage prior to its use in space on future Artemis missions to the Moon and beyond.

The center is a leader in partnering and working with commercial aerospace companies to support their propulsion test projects. It also is expanding as an aerospace and technology hub, and in development of intelligent and autonomous systems needed for deep space exploration.

“This is an exciting time for NASA Stennis, and I am deeply honored to lead its great family of employees who make up this amazing workforce,” Bailey said. “We are dedicated to continuing to provide frontline support to the agency’s missions and initiatives. I look forward to our shared future and success.”

Bailey has more than three decades of federal service with the U.S. Air Force and NASA. As a communications engineer with the U.S. Air Force, Bailey led electronic communications testing worldwide. He joined the NASA Stennis team in 1999 and subsequently served in a variety of roles, managing and leading technical and non-technical organizations and supervising employees with a wide range of skills and backgrounds.

Bailey was tapped in 2015 to lead the NASA Stennis Engineering and Test Directorate, managing critical rocket propulsion test assets exceeding $2 billion in value and projects more than $221 million. He was named NASA Stennis associate director in 2018 and selected as the center’s deputy director in 2021.

An Alabama native, Bailey holds a bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering and a master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of South Alabama.

Access Bailey’s online biography at:

https://www.nasa.gov/people/john-w-bailey-jr/

-end-

Cheryl Warner 
Headquarters, Washington 
202-358-1600 
cheryl.m.warner@nasa.gov

C. Lacy Thompson
Stennis Space Center, Bay St. Louis, Miss.
228-363-5499
calvin.l.thompson@nasa.gov

NASA astronauts Barry "Butch" Wilmore and Suni Williams are slated to launch on Boeing’s first crewed test flight of its Starliner capsule, flying to the International Space Station on May 6.

The JWST is flexing its muscles with its interferometry mode. Researchers used it to study a well-known extrasolar system called PDS 70. The goal? To test the interferometry mode and see how it performs when observing a complex target.

The mode uses the telescope’s NIRISS (Near Infrared Imager and Slitless Spectrograph) as an interferometer. It’s called Aperture Masking Interferometry (AMI) and it allows the JWST to reach its highest level of spatial resolution.

A team of astronomers used the JWST’s AMI to observe the PDS 70 system. PDS 70 is a young T-Tauri star about 5.4 million years old. At that young age, its protoplanetary disk still surrounds it. PDS 70 is a well-studied system that’s caught the attention of astronomers. It’s unique because its two planets, PDS 70 b and c, make it the only multiplanet protoplanetary disk system we know of.

The researchers wanted to determine how easily the AMI would find PDS 70’s two known planets and what else it could observe in the system.

Their research is “The James Webb Interferometer: Space-based interferometric detections of PDS 70 b and c at 4.8 µm.” It’s available on the pre-print site arxiv.org and hasn’t been peer-reviewed yet. The lead author is Dori Blakely from the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Victoria, BC, Canada.

PDS 70 is known for its pair of planets. PDS 70 b is about 3.2 Jupiter masses and follows a 123-year orbital period. PDS 70 c is about 7.5 Jupiter masses and follows a 191-year orbit. One of the most puzzling things about the system is that PDS 70 b appears to have its own accretion disk. The system also shows intriguing evidence of a third body, maybe another star.

The JWST’s interferometry easily detected both planets. In fact, the observations found evidence of circumplanetary disk emissions around PDS 70 b and c. “Our photometry of both PDS 70 b and c provide evidence for circumplanetary disk emission,” the researchers write. That means we can see the star and its protoplanetary disk, where planets form, and the individual circumplanetary disks around each planet. Those disks are where moons form, and seeing them in a system 366 light-years away is very impressive.

The PDS 70 system as seen by the JWST’s interferometry mode and after extensive data processing. A yellow star marks the location of PDS 70, with PDS 70 b and c also shown. The JWST shows the infrared emissions coming from the disk. Image Credit: Blakely et al. 2024.

The JWST’s AMI observations also found a third point source. Its light is different from the light from the pair of planets and more similar to the light from the star. If it’s another planet, its composition is different from the others. If it’s not another planet, that doesn’t mean it necessarily has to be another star. The JWST could be seeing scattered starlight from another gaseous, dusty structure or clump in the disk. “This indicates that what we observe is not due to a simple inner disk structure, and may hint at a complex inner disk morphology such as a spiral or clumpy features,” the researchers explain.

The unexplained third source could be something more exotic. Previous research also identified the source and suggested that it could be an accretion stream flowing between PDS 70 b and c. “We interpret its signal in the direct vicinity of planet c as tracing the accretion stream feeding its circumplanetary disk,” the authors of the previous research wrote.

These images are from previous research that used the JWST but not its interferometry mode. The top row is from the telescope’s F187N filter, and the bottom row is from the telescope’s F480M filter. The left column shows the complete images. The middle column shows the system with the disk subtracted. The right column shows the system with the disk and both known planets extracted. What remains is a potential third planet, planet “d,” and an arm-like feature and potential accretion stream. Image Credit: V. Christiaens et al. 2024.

Or, perhaps most exciting, the source could be another planet. “Another scenario is that the signal we observe is due to an additional planet interior to the orbit of PDS 70 b,” the authors explain. “Follow-up observations will be needed to determine the nature of this emission,” the authors write.

Part of the observations’ success comes from what it didn’t detect. Protoplanetary disks are dusty and difficult to examine. The JWST has a leg up on it because it can see infrared light. When used in interferometry mode, it’s a powerful tool. The fact that it failed to detect any other planets is progress, though. “Additionally, we place the deepest constraints on additional planets,” in part of the disk. These constraints will help future researchers examine the PDS 70 system and other extrasolar systems.

The results also show another of AMI’s strengths: its ability to see into parts of the parameter space that other telescopes can’t. “Furthermore, our results show that NIRISS/AMI can reliably measure relative astrometry and contrasts of young planets in a part of parameter space (small separations and moderate to high contrasts) that is unique to this observing mode, and inaccessible to all other present facilities at 4.8 µm,” the authors explain.

The JWST has already established its place in the history of astronomy. It’s delivered on its promise and has already significantly contributed to our understanding of the cosmos. The telescope’s observations with its Aperture Masking Interferometry mode will further cement its place in history.

“Here, using the power of the James Webb Interferometer, we detect PDS 70, its outer disk, and its two protoplanets, b and c. These are the first planets detected with space-based interferometry,” the authors write.

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