Space Daily 02 11 2018

November 02, 2018

Small rockets are taking off  New York (AFP) Nov 2, 2018 - In mid-November, a company called Rocket Lab will try to send six small satellites into orbit around Earth - a fairly banal undertaking, save for the size of the launch rocket. It is only 17 meters (56 feet) tall and 1.2 meters (four feet) in diameter. And if all goes well, the US company will send up more than one of its Electron rockets every month in 2019. Rocket Lab, which was ... more

NASA's Dawn asteroid mission ends as fuel runs out  Washington (AFP) Nov 1, 2018 - Dawn, a NASA spacecraft that launched 11 years ago and studied two of the largest objects in the asteroid belt, has ended its mission after running out of fuel, officials said Thursday. Scientists have known for about a month that Dawn was essentially out of hydrazine, the fuel that kept the spacecraft's antennae oriented toward Earth and helped turn its solar panels to the Sun to recharge. ... more

Water cycle along the northern rim of Hellas Basin throughout Mars' history  Mountain View CA (SPX) Nov 02, 2018 - The northeastern rim region of Hellas impact basin, located in the southern hemisphere of Mars, contained numerous ephemeral lakes throughout Mars' history, a new study reveals. A new paper published in Astrobiology examines a region where depressions may have been hosted ponding water that originated from different sources, including precipitation, fluvial transportation and ground water. ... more

Lockheed Martin's missile defense laser concept continues toward development  Sunnyvale CA (SPX) Nov 01, 2018 - The Missile Defense Agency awarded Lockheed Martin a nine month, $25.5 million contract extension to continue development of its Low Power Laser Demonstrator (LPLD) missile interceptor concept. This program, awarded Aug. 31, builds on a 2017 contract to develop an initial LPLD concept. Lockheed Martin's LPLD concept consists of a fiber laser system on a high-performing, high-altitude airbo ... more

US must prepare to go on offensive in space says Mattis  Washington DC (Sputnik) Nov 01, 2018 - The US armed forces must utilize the framework of their new Space Command, announced earlier this year by President Donald Trump to go on the offensive to maintain military supremacy in the heavens, Secretary of Defense James Mattis said at the US Institute of Peace (USIP). "We have got to be prepared to go on the offensive in space," Mattis said on Tuesday. "No competitive sport in the wo ... more

Soyuz launch failed due to assembly problem: Russia Korolyov, Russia (AFP) Nov 1, 2018 - Russia said on Thursday the launch of a Soyuz rocket failed last month because of a sensor that was damaged during assembly at the Baikonur cosmodrome but insisted that the spacecraft remains reliable. Russia, the only country able to ferry astronauts to the International Space Station, suspended all launches after a Soviet-designed Soyuz rocket failed on October 11 just minutes after blast- ... more

NASA team investigates ultrafast laser machining for multiple spaceflight applications  Greenbelt MD (SPX) Nov 02, 2018 - An ultrafast laser that fires pulses of light just 100 millionths of a nanosecond in duration could potentially revolutionize the way that NASA technicians manufacture and ultimately assemble instrument components made of dissimilar materials. A team of optical physicists at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, is experimenting with a femtosecond laser and has already ... more

Dawn Mission to Asteroid Belt comes to end  Pasadena CA (JPL) Nov 02, 2018 - NASA's Dawn spacecraft has gone silent, ending a historic mission that studied time capsules from the solar system's earliest chapter. Dawn missed scheduled communications sessions with NASA's Deep Space Network on Wednesday, Oct. 31, and Thursday, Nov. 1. After the flight team eliminated other possible causes for the missed communications, mission managers concluded that the spacecraft finally ... more

Eye-tracking glasses provide a new vision for the future of augmented reality  Hanover NH (SPX) Oct 30, 2018 - Battery-free eye-tracking glasses developed at Dartmouth College could create an even more realistic experience for augmented reality enthusiasts. The new technology improves player controls for gaming and allows for more accurate image displays. High power consumption and cost have kept eye trackers out of current augmented reality systems. By using near-infrared lights and photodiodes, D ... more  Super-computer brings 'cloud' to astronauts in space Washington (AFP) Nov 1, 2018 - A super-computer at the International Space Station aims to bring "cloud" computing to astronauts in space and speed up their ability to run data analysis in orbit, Hewlett-Packard Enterprise said Thursday. A SpaceX cargo capsule delivered the equipment, known as The Spaceborne Computer, to the space station in August 2017. After more than a year of tests, HPE says it is ready to bring t ... more  Researchers discover weak chemical interactions hold together box of infinite possibilities  Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Nov 01, 2018 - Researchers have identified the weak molecular forces that hold together a tiny, self-assembling box with powerful possibilities. The study demonstrates a practical application of a force common in biological systems and advances the pursuit of artificial chemical life. "I want to understand self-assembly systems, which are essential for life. Building artificial self-assembling cubes help ... more  Shape-shifting robots perceive surroundings, make decisions for first time  Ithaca NY (SPX) Nov 01, 2018 - General-purpose robots have plenty of limitations. They can be expensive and cumbersome. They often accomplish only a single type of task. But modular robots - composed of several interchangeable parts, or modules - are far more flexible. If one part breaks, it can be removed and replaced. Components can be rearranged as needed - or better yet, the robots can figure out how to reconfigure ... more  The materials engineers are developing environmentally friendly materials  Tartu, Estonia (SPX) Nov 01, 2018 - Recently the research article "A method for producing conductive graphene biopolymer nanofibrous fabrics by exploitation of an ionic liquid dispersant in electrospinning" written by the researchers of Tallinn University of Technology was published in a leading peer-reviewed journal Carbon. The article introduces nanofibers, a material produced by the electrospinning device at the Laborator ... more  How Max Polyakov from Zaporozhie develops the Ukrainian space industry  Los Angeles CA (SPX) Oct 19, 2018 - Despite the fact that only state organizations have the right to develop the space industry in Ukraine, Max Polyakov supports the sphere in the country. He and his Noosphere organize the events concerning the field's theme. ... more  JILA researchers see signs of interactive form of quantum matter  Washington DC (SPX) Nov 01, 2018 - JILA researchers have, for the first time, isolated groups of a few atoms and precisely measured their multi-particle interactions within an atomic clock. The advance will help scientists control interacting quantum matter, which is expected to boost the performance of atomic clocks, many other types of sensors, and quantum information systems. The research is described in a Nature paper p ... more  Flexy, flat and functional magnets  Seoul, South Korea (SPX) Nov 01, 2018 - In the nanoworld, magnetism has proven to be truly surprising. Just a few atoms thick, magnetic 2D materials could help to satisfy scientists' curiosities and fulfil dreams for ever-smaller post-silicon electronics. An international research team led by PARK Je-Geun at the Center for Correlated Electron Systems, within the Institute for Basic Science (IBS), has just published a Perspective ... more  Brain-inspired methods to improve wireless communications  Blacksburg VA (SPX) Oct 31, 2018 - Researchers are always seeking more reliable and more efficient communications, for everything from televisions and cellphones to satellites and medical devices. One technique generating buzz for its high signal quality is a combination of multiple-input multiple-output techniques with orthogonal frequency division multiplexing. Virginia Tech researchers Lingjia Liu and Yang (Cindy) ... more  Tests show integrated quantum chip operations possible  Sydney, Australia (SPX) Oct 31, 2018 - Quantum computers that are capable of solving complex problems, like drug design or machine learning, will require millions of quantum bits - or qubits - connected in an integrated way and designed to correct errors that inevitably occur in fragile quantum systems. Now, an Australian research team has experimentally realised a crucial combination of these capabilities on a silicon chip, br ... more