Tag: France
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InSight’s entry, descent and landing timeline
Artist’s concept of the InSight spacecraft streaking into the Martian atmosphere. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech NASA’s InSight lander will fly from the outer edge of the Martian atmosphere at a speed of more than 12,000 mph to a controlled descent rate of 5 mph just above the red planet’s surface in less than seven minutes. The robotic…
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Mars lander on course for Monday touchdown
STORY WRITTEN FOR CBS NEWS & USED WITH PERMISSION The InSight spacecraft approaches Mars in this artist’s concept. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech After a six-month voyage from Earth, NASA’s InSight Mars lander, streaking through space at at some 12,300 mph, will slam into the thin martian atmosphere Monday afternoon to begin a nail-biting six-and-a-half-minute descent to the surface, kicking…
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Moroccan spy satellite launched aboard Vega rocket
A Vega rocket lifts off Tuesday night with the Mohammed VI-B satellite. Credit: ESA/CNES/Arianespace – Photo Optique Video du CSG – P. Piron A Vega launcher lifted off Tuesday night from a spaceport at the edge of South America’s Amazon rainforest, climbed into orbit on the power of four Italian- and Ukrainian-built rocket stages, and…
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Live coverage: Vega rocket launches with Moroccan spy satellite
Live coverage of the countdown and launch of a Vega rocket with the Mohammed VI-B reconnaissance satellite for the government of Morocco. Text updates will appear automatically below. Follow us on Twitter. Arianespace’s live video webcast begins at approximately 0125 GMT (8:25 p.m. EST), and will be available on this page.
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China-France Oceanography Satellite launches on research mission
A joint oceanography research mission developed by Chinese and French scientists launched Monday on top of a Long March 2C rocket from the Jiuquan space center in remote northwestern China. After a period of post-launch checkouts and activations, the China-France Oceanography Satellite, or CFOSat, will begin a three-year mission to survey the world’s oceans, becoming…
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MASCOT lander hops around asteroid, exceeding scientists’ expectations
This image was taken by MASCOT’s camera between 10 and 20 meters (32 and 65 feet) above the asteroid’s surface. Credit: MASCOT/DLR/JAXA BREMEN and COLOGNE, Germany — The MASCOT lander released from Japan’s Hayabusa 2 spacecraft this week made three hops to different locations on asteroid Ryugu before draining its battery, outliving its design life…
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Descent begins for European asteroid lander
Artist’s concept of the Hayabusa 2 spacecraft approaching asteroid Ryugu. Credit: DLR A German-built landing probe the size of a microwave oven carrying a camera and a suite of scientific instruments was closing in on asteroid Ryugu Tuesday, riding aboard Japan’s Hayabusa 2 spacecraft to join two other robots deployed to the asteroid’s surface last…
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Live coverage: MASCOT lander begins exploring asteroid Ryugu
Live coverage of the final descent and landing of MASCOT, a miniature robot developed in Germany and France carried aboard Japan’s Hayabusa 2 spacecraft exploring asteroid Ryugu. Text updates will appear automatically below; there is no need to reload the page. Follow us on Twitter. Check this page for live updates during MASCOT’s missing at Ryugu.
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Arianespace signs Eutelsat as first commercial customer for new Ariane 6 rocket
Artist’s concept of an Ariane 6 rocket, in a configuration with four strap-on solid rocket boosters. Credit: ESA Eutelsat is the first commercial company to commit to launching on Europe’s new Ariane 6 rocket, under a five-launch agreement announced Monday in conjunction with fresh contracts for Arianespace to haul a French spy satellite and a…
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Hayabusa 2 team sets dates for asteroid landings
Hayabusa 2’s optical navigation camera captured this view of asteroid Ryugu from a distance of 6 kilometers (4 miles) on July 20. Credit: JAXA Japan’s Hayabusa 2 spacecraft is preparing to release three hopping robots to land on asteroid Ryugu in the coming month, with tiny instruments scientists hope will explore the airless world’s boulder-strewn…