WASHINGTON—(ENEWSPF)—April 22, 2013. Three smartphones destined to become low-cost satellites rode to space Sunday aboard the maiden flight of Orbital Science Corp.’s Antares rocket from NASA’s Wallops Island Flight Facility in Virginia. The trio of “PhoneSats” is operating in orbit, and may prove to be the lowest-cost satellites ever flown[Read More…]

Satellites support aquaculture EU–(ENEWSPF)–19 April 2013.  Ireland is setting an example for how space technologies can contribute to economic growth and recovery through the maritime sector. Over 100 European specialists in policy, space technology, industry and maritime interests met this week on the Emerald Isle to learn more. Satellites can[Read More…]

Herschel’s view of the Horsehead Nebula and surrounds   EU–(ENEWSPF)–19 April 2013.  New views of the Horsehead Nebula and its turbulent environment have been unveiled by ESA’s Herschel space observatory and the NASA/ESA Hubble space telescope.   Hubble’s view of the Horsehead Nebula The Horsehead Nebula lies in the constellation[Read More…]

WASHINGTON–(ENEWSPF)–April 18, 2013.  NASA’s Kepler mission has discovered two new planetary systems that include three super-Earth-size planets in the “habitable zone,” the range of distance from a star where the surface temperature of an orbiting planet might be suitable for liquid water. The Kepler-62 system has five planets; 62b, 62c,[Read More…]

Distribution of debris EU–(ENEWSPF)–18 April 2013.The continuing growth in space debris poses an increasing threat to economically vital orbital regions. Next week, hundreds of top experts from across the globe will meet at Europe’s largest-ever debris forum to share their latest research findings and discuss potential solutions. Satellite operators worldwide,[Read More…]

Laser pulse EU–(ENEWSPF)–16 April 2013.  Developing new ways of monitoring Earth is always demanding, but ESA’s Aeolus mission has faced some particularly difficult technical challenges. However, with the success of intense high-energy tests on its novel laser there is now light at the end of the tunnel for this unique[Read More…]

Arima twins EU–(ENEWSPF)–11 April 2013.  Dramatic underground explosions, perhaps involving ice, are responsible for the pits inside these two large martian impact craters, imaged by ESA’s Mars Express on 4 January. The ‘twin’ craters are in the Thaumasia Planum region, a large plateau that lies immediately to the south of[Read More…]

Dust disc around Kappa Coronae Borealis EU–(ENEWSPF)–9 April 2013.  ESA’s Herschel space observatory has provided the first images of a dust belt – produced by colliding comets or asteroids – orbiting a subgiant star known to host a planetary system. After billions of years steadily burning hydrogen in their cores,[Read More…]

Artist rendering of NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover, a mobile robot for investigating Mars. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech ANN ARBOR–(ENEWSPF)–April 8, 2013.  Mars has lost much of its original atmosphere, but what’s left remains active, according to recent findings from NASA’s Mars rover Curiosity that involve a University of Michigan[Read More…]

Washington, D.C.-(ENEWSPF)- NASA’s Astrophysics Explorer Program has selected two missions for launch in 2017: a planet-hunting satellite and an International Space Station instrument to observe X-rays from stars.  The Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) and Neutron Star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) were among four concept studies submitted in September 2012.[Read More…]