Tag • #mars

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With NASA’s plan faltering, China knows it can be first with Mars sample return

news.movim.eu / ArsTechnica · 2 days ago - 18:58

Enlarge / A "selfie" photo of China's Zhurong rover and the Tianwen-1 landing platform on Mars in 2021. (credit: China National Space Administration )

China plans to launch two heavy-lift Long March 5 rockets with elements of the Tianwen-3 Mars sample return mission in 2028, the mission's chief designer said Thursday.

In a presentation at a Chinese space exploration conference, the chief designer of China's robotic Mars sample return project described the mission's high-level design and outlined how the mission will collect samples from the Martian surface. Reports from the talk published on Chinese social media and by state-run news agencies were short on technical details and did not discuss any of the preparations for the mission.

Public pronouncements by Chinese officials on future space missions typically come true, but China is embarking on challenging efforts to explore the Moon and Mars. China aims to land astronauts on the lunar surface by 2030 in a step toward eventually building a Moon base called the International Lunar Research Station.

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A cool flame: how Gaia theory was born out of a secret love affair

news.movim.eu / TheGuardian · 3 days ago - 04:00 · 1 minute

Scientist James Lovelock gave humanity new ways to think about our home planet – but some of his biggest ideas were the fruit of a passionate collaboration

Love rarely gets the credit it deserves for the advancement of science. Nor, for that matter, does hatred, greed, envy or any other emotion. Instead, this realm of knowledge tends to be idealised as something cold, hard, rational, neutral and objective, dictated by data rather than feelings. The life and work of James Lovelock is proof that this is neither possible nor desirable. In his work, he helped us understand that humans can never completely divorce ourselves from any living subject because we are interconnected and interdependent, all part of the same Earth system, which he called Gaia.

Our planet, he argued, behaves like a giant organism – regulating its temperature, discharging waste and cycling chemicals to maintain a healthy balance. Although highly controversial among scientists in the 1970s and 80s, this holistic view of the world had mass appeal, which stretched from New Age spiritual gurus to that stern advocate of free-market orthodoxy, Margaret Thatcher. Its insights into the link between nature and climate have since inspired many of the world’s most influential climate scientists, philosophers and environmental campaigners. The French philosopher Bruno Latour said the Gaia Theory has reshaped humanity’s understanding of our place in the universe as fundamentally as the ideas of Galileo Galilei. At its simplest, Gaia is about restoring an emotional connection with a living planet.

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Airbus trials prototype space rovers in Bedfordshire quarry

news.movim.eu / TheGuardian · 4 days ago - 20:58

Fitted with robotic arms and navigation cameras, the rovers are being developed for mooted missions to the moon and Mars

Two space rover prototypes that could be used to help search for life on Mars are being trialled at a quarry in Bedfordshire. The robots are being put through their paces by the European aerospace giant Airbus, which is considering using the technology to aid missions to the moon.

A four-wheeled rover, named Codi, features navigation cameras and a robotic arm that it can use to collect rocks sealed in small tubes without the need of a human operator.

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Lumière zodiacale, opposition de Saturne, Lune : que voir dans le ciel en septembre 2024 ?

news.movim.eu / Numerama · 7 days ago - 08:02

Le mois du début de l'automne est propice aux observations astronomiques. Lune dans toutes ses phases, lumière zodiacale, Saturne à l'opposition... Voici les phénomènes visibles à l'œil nu dans le ciel en septembre 2024.

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Rocket Lab entered “hero mode” to finish Mars probes—now it’s up to Blue Origin

news.movim.eu / ArsTechnica · Monday, 19 August - 17:16

Enlarge / The two spacecraft for NASA's ESCAPADE mission at Rocket Lab's factory in Long Beach, California. (credit: Rocket Lab )

Two NASA spacecraft built by Rocket Lab are on the road from California to Florida this weekend to begin preparations for launch on Blue Origin's first New Glenn rocket.

These two science probes must launch between late September and mid-October to take advantage of a planetary alignment between Earth and Mars that only happens once every 26 months. NASA tapped Blue Origin, Jeff Bezos' space company, to launch the Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers (ESCAPADE) mission with a $20 million contract.

Last November, the space agency confirmed the $79 million ESCAPADE mission will launch on the inaugural flight of Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket. With this piece of information, the opaque schedule for Blue Origin's long-delayed first New Glenn mission suddenly became more clear.

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BP technology could be used to drill on Mars or moon after deal struck with Nasa

news.movim.eu / TheGuardian · Tuesday, 13 August - 17:01

BP hopes deal will help develop earth technologies such as robotics and clean energy

BP’s technology could one day be used to drill on Mars or the moon after it struck a deal with US space agency Nasa.

Under the terms of the agreement, the two have agreed to share their technology and expertise gained from working “in hostile environments”.

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Il y a assez d’eau sur Mars pour recouvrir toute la planète, selon une étude

news.movim.eu / JournalDuGeek · Tuesday, 13 August - 14:28

Mars Ocean

Même si la sonde InSight a rendu l'âme il y a plus d'un an, les données de cet appareil unique en son genre continuent d'émerveiller les chercheurs.

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New hope of finding life on Mars after indication of water, scientists say

news.movim.eu / TheGuardian · Monday, 12 August - 19:00

Liquid amounting to a 1-2km-deep ocean may be frozen up to 20km below surface, calculations suggest

Vast amounts of water could be trapped deep within the crust of Mars, scientists have said, raising fresh questions about the possibility of life on the red planet.

Scientists say that more than 3bn years ago, Mars not only had lakes and rivers but oceans on its surface – however, as the planet lost its atmosphere these bodies disappeared. All that is visible today is permafrost ice at the planet’s poles.

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Nuits des étoiles 2024 : où aller pour admirer le ciel et les Perséides ?

news.movim.eu / Numerama · Wednesday, 7 August - 14:16

Les Nuits des étoiles sont organisées en France du vendredi 9 au dimanche 11 août 2024. Le spectacle s'annonce superbe, avec plusieurs planètes visibles à l'œil nu et le maximum de l'essaim des Perséides. Où se rendre pour en profiter gratuitement ?