Tag: Planetary Science
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As launch approaches, JUICE project manager discusses trajectories and science
The European Space Agency’s (ESA) Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE) spacecraft recently arrived in French Guiana for its upcoming launch, which is currently set for April 13, 2023. JUICE is currently undergoing launch preparations in the Payload Preparation Facility at the Centre Spatial Guyanais (CSG) in Kourou, French Guiana, and will soon be mounted atop…
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JUICE arrives in French Guiana for launch, project manager outlines next steps
Set for launch from the Centre Spatial Guyanais (CSG) in Kourou, French Guiana, on April 13, 2023, the European Space Agency’s (ESA’s) Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE) mission will aim to uncover the secrets of Jupiter’s three largest icy moons: Ganymede, Callisto, and Europa. JUICE’s suite of instruments will allow scientists to thoroughly explore and…
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How the ‘Dune’ science-fiction saga parallels the real science of Oregon’s dunes
Timothée Chalamet and Rebecca Ferguson star in “Dune,” a movie based on sci-fi author Frank Herbert’s book. The tale draws in part upon Herbert’s experiences in the Pacific Northwest. (Warner Bros. Photo) The deserts of Abu Dhabi and Jordan play starring roles in the blockbuster sci-fi movie “Dune,” which premieres this week in theaters and…
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China releases first pictures from Zhurong rover since Mars landing
China’s Zhurong rover sits atop the Tianwen 1 mission’s landing platform on Mars. Credit: CNSA China’s space agency released the first pictures from the Zhurong Mars rover Wednesday, showing the six-wheel robot ready to drive down a ramp from its landing platform to begin exploring the Red Planet. The 529-pound (240-kilogram) Zhurong rover landed Friday,…
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China lands its first probe on Mars
EDITOR’S NOTE: Updated at 10 a.m. EDT (1400 GMT) with more details. Artist’s illustration of the Tianwen 1 orbiter and rover at Mars. Credit: CNSA / Chinese Academy of Sciences / Nature Astronomy China’s space agency said Friday the country’s first Mars rover safely touched down and began sending data back to Earth, joining the United…
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Chinese rover heads for landing on Mars
Artist’s illustration of the Tianwen 1 orbiter and rover at Mars. Credit: CNSA / Chinese Academy of Sciences / Nature Astronomy A Chinese rover outfitted with cameras, a weather station, and a sophisticated laser spectrometer could touch down on Mars as soon as Friday, a feat that would make China the second nation to successfully…
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NASA chooses SpaceX to land next astronauts on the Moon
Artist’s concept of a Starship on the moon. Credit: SpaceX NASA has selected SpaceX to build a spacecraft to land the first astronauts on the Moon since 1972, choosing Elon Musk’s space company over competing proposals from Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin and the aerospace firm Dynetics, officials announced Friday. A derivative of SpaceX’s next-generation Starship…
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China’s Tianwen 1 mission targets mid-May landing on Mars
China’s Tianwen 1 orbiter took this picture of Mars on March 18 from a distance of approximately 7,100 miles (11,500 kilometers). Credit: CNSA China’s Tianwen 1 spacecraft — in orbit around Mars since February — is scheduled to deploy a descent module to attempt the country’s first landing on the Red Planet in mid-May. Officials…
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Perseverance rover records sounds of driving on Mars
NASA’s Mars Perseverance rover acquired this image using its onboard left Navigation Camera (Navcam) on March 7, the same day the rover’s microphone recorded the sounds of driving. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech NASA’s Perseverance rover has recorded the crunching, rattling sound of its six metallic wheels rolling across Mars. Perseverance carries the first microphones ever sent to…
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Parker Solar Probe pulls back the veil on Venus’s night side
When flying past Venus in July 2020, Parker Solar Probe’s WISPR instrument, short for Wide-field Imager for Parker Solar Probe, detected a bright rim around the edge of the planet that may be nightglow — light emitted by oxygen atoms high in the atmosphere that recombine into molecules in the nightside. The prominent dark feature…