NASA's Getting Ready to Explore the Corpse of an Ancient Planet in the Asteroid Belt

A NASA mission to an ancient iron-nickel hunk has entered its final design phase, a key milestone on the way to reaching the distant destination in the mid-2020s.

from Space.com http://bit.ly/2FtyYwL

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

SpaceX wants to launch 100,000 Starlink satellites to orbit

SpaceX is nothing if not ambitious. Elon Musk 's company just filed an application with the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to operate a 100,000-member constellation of "Gen3" satellites in low Earth orbit (LEO). This will presumably be an updated version of SpaceX's Starlink broadband network, according to astronomer and satellite tracker Jonathan McDowell, who reported the news via X today (July 9). SpaceX have filed for a 100,00 satellite "Gen3 NGSO" system. Presumably Starlink Gen3, but they don't call it that. The sats are 2000-2500 kg, area 300 to 400 sq m. Orbits 320-480 km at various inclinations. Have added to my page at https://t.co/uFI9aoSNnM July 9, 2026 The new plan would dramatically expand Starlink's already extensive orbital footprint. SpaceX currently operates nearly 10,800 of the internet spacecraft in LEO and has FCC approva...
Read more

On this day in space! Oct. 28, 1971: Britain launches its 1st satellite Prospero into space on a Black Arrow rocket

Image
On Oct. 28, 1971, the United Kingdom launched its first satellite. The satellite was named Prospero, but it was also known as the X-3. This wasn't Britain's first satellite , but it was the first and only one the British space program launched with one of its own rockets. The first six British satellites all launched from the United States on NASA rockets. Prospero launched on a carrier rocket called the Black Arrow. The Prospero mission was the fourth and final flight of a Black Arrow rocket . Prospero was designed to study how the environment in space affects communications satellites. It tested things solar cells and telemetry systems, and even had a micrometeoroid detector that would determine small particles in space posed a threat to the spacecraft. The mission lifted off from the Woomera Range Complex in Australia. While the launch was a success, the rocket's final stage bump...
Read more