Saturn’s moons: organic compounds discovered on Enceladus; Mimas has a subglacial ocean
The Cassini probe delivered new information about the moons of Saturn. In the subglacial ocean of Enceladus, Saturn’s moon, many organic compounds involved in the synthesis of proteins and DNA were discovered. This is very similar to the “primordial soup” that existed on Earth billions of years ago. There may be life on a distant, icy world at the edge of the solar system. Saturn has 146 moons, the most in the solar system. The largest one, Titan, has long been considered the most interesting. The Huygens lander was sent to it as part of the Cassini mission in 2005. Behind the dense atmosphere, the probe saw a lifeless, cold world, shrouded in smog, with seas and lakes of methane. Some evidence suggests that there is an ocean below the surface.
Carbonaceous materials from an asteroid, chelates and soda lakes: scientists are closer to understanding the origin of life
The research results may explain how life arose on Earth and can also be applied to other planets and bodies in the solar system and to exoplanets.
NASA’s Perseverance rover confirms the presence of an ancient dry lake on Mars
NASA’s Perseverance rover has confirmed the presence of an ancient lake on Mars that could hold the key to ancient life. Evidence of ancient lacustrine sediments at the base of Jezero Crater on Mars offers new hope for detecting traces of life in samples collected by NASA’s Perseverance rover.
NASA orbiter discovered Japanese lunar lander SLIM on the lunar surface after its landing
SLIM, or Smart Lander for Lunar Exploration, is operated by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). It landed on the Moon on January 19 in a precision landing, making Japan the fifth country to perform a soft landing on the lunar surface, after India, China, the United States and Russia (then the Soviet Union). Five days later, NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) spacecraft flew over the landing site and photographed SLIM.
Groundwater reserves are catastrophically declining
Groundwater supplies are being depleted in aquifers around the world, a new study has found, with the rate of decline accelerating over the past four decades in nearly a third of the aquifers studied. Rapid declines in water levels are most common in aquifers beneath cropland in drier regions, the largest analysis of groundwater trends shows.
75% of the world’s industrial fishing vessels are not trackable
An innovative study by Sentinel-1 and AI (European Space Agency) combining satellite data and artificial intelligence has shed light on the number of ships, wind turbines and oil platforms at sea. Shockingly, the study shows that about 75% of the world’s industrial fishing vessels were previously hidden from publicly available tracking systems. The study, published recently in the journal Nature, was conducted by Global Fishing Watch, an organization that seeks to improve ocean governance through increased transparency of human activity at sea.
Eighth asteroid discovered before it collides with Earth
On January 20, 2024, astronomer Christian Sarnecki discovered an asteroid approaching Earth, which just hours later crashed into our planet’s atmosphere 50 km west of Berlin, creating a fireball. Dubbed “2024 BX1”, it is only the eighth asteroid discovered by humanity before the impact, and the third discovered by Sarnetsky. The asteroid impact created a bright fireball, or bolide, that was visible from as far away as the Czech Republic and may have scattered small meteorites across the ground at the impact site about 37 miles (60 kilometers) west of Berlin.
The Hubble telescope discovered water vapor in the atmosphere of an exoplanet located 97 light years from Earth
Astronomers using NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope have observed the smallest exoplanet to have water vapor in its atmosphere. Planet GJ 9827d, which is only about twice the diameter of Earth, could be an example of potential planets with water-rich atmospheres in other parts of our galaxy. GJ 9827d was discovered by NASA’s Kepler space telescope in 2017. It orbits the red dwarf every 6.2 days. The star GJ 9827 is located 97 light years from Earth in the constellation Pisces.
The historic journey of Ingenuity, the first Earth-based helicopter on Mars, has come to an end
Originally designed as a technology demonstration to perform up to five experimental test flights over 30 days, the first off-planet vehicle operated on Mars for nearly three years, completed 72 flights, and flew more than 14 times farther than planned while recording more than two hours total flight time.
NASA’s DSOC sent video using a laser to Earth from a distance of 31 million kilometers
Following successful testing of DSOC technology in Earth orbit and on the Moon, NASA is now using deep space optical communications technologies to test laser communications over increasingly greater distances. While aboard the agency’s Psyche mission, DSOC has already sent video via laser to Earth from 19 million miles (31 million kilometers) away and is aiming to prove that high-throughput data can be sent even from Mars.
Japan’s Sniper Moon (SLIM) probe lands on the Moon
On January 19, 2024, Japan’s national robotic spacecraft SLIM landed on the lunar surface, marking a huge success for Japan, making it only the fifth country to soft-land on Earth’s moon. The pioneers were the Soviet Union and the United States, which made their first flights to the lunar surface during the Cold War space race; then China, which successfully landed a probe in December 2013; India – Chandrayaan-3 lander and rover landed in August 2023. SLIM was expected to land within 330 feet (100 meters) of a target point on the rim of Scioli Crater, which explains the probe’s nickname “Moon Sniper.”
Researchers are studying layers of water ice on Mars
Mars appears to be a dry world now, but there are plenty of signs on the planet’s surface that there was once plenty of water, including dry river beds, ancient ocean and lake beds, and valleys carved by water. Significant reserves of water ice have also been discovered on Mars, such as huge polar ice caps, buried glaciers closer to the equator, and near-surface ice permeated by the Martian soil.
The Arctic, Antarctica and Greenland have received special attention from organizations involved in space research
The Russian satellite constellation Arktika-M, launched in 2021 and 2023, transmitted the first images of the Arctic region and surrounding areas from space. On June 30, 2011, NASA’s Terra satellite made several passes over the Arctic. ICESat-2 is the second spacecraft to study the Earth’s ice cover. The US-India satellite NISAR will begin monitoring changes in the Earth’s frozen regions in 2024.
The USA and China are the main competitors in the Moon race
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson is not concerned that China will beat the United States to returning astronauts to the Moon. Both China and the United States plan to land astronauts on the moon before the end of the decade, reigniting talk of a new space race.
The NASA/JAXA XRISM mission investigates the composition and physical state of space objects by detecting X-ray radiation
Invisible to our eyes, X-rays emitted by the hot gas that fills much of the Universe can shed light on many cosmic mysteries. The first observations of this gas by JAXA’s X-ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission (XRISM) are ready and demonstrate that the mission will play a major role in revealing the evolution of the Universe and the structure of spacetime.
Uranus and Neptune are actually the same blue color, new color images show
While Voyager 2’s familiar images of Uranus were released in a form closer to “true” color, the images of Neptune were actually stretched and enhanced, and therefore artificially made too blue.
NASA has recognized the existence of life on Mars in the past and present
The goal of the NIAC project is to collect the necessary samples before human arrival on Mars, planned by NASA, the Chinese National Space Agency and SpaceX, by 2040, by 2033 and before 2030, respectively, according to the space agencies’ respective statements. Human arrival will undoubtedly complicate the search for indigenous Martian life, so from an astrobiological perspective, these planned manned missions to Mars have set a very strict timeline for the search for life on pristine Mars.
Top 12 unusual exoplanets discovered in 2023
In 2023, scientists discovered several stunning exoplanets. Last year, planetary scientists added a number of exciting new worlds to the exoplanet catalog of more than 5,000 objects. Among them are planets that we have never seen before.
The James Webb Space Telescope has proven that complex organic compounds are present even in the most ancient galaxies of the Universe
The James Webb Space Telescope is capable of searching the “carbonaceous” atmospheres of exoplanets to search for alien life. “We have a way to find out if there is liquid water on another planet. And we can achieve this in the next few years.”
The European Space Agency has announced a space economy in collaboration with international partners
From managing climate change to emergency response and digitizing the economy, space exploration is becoming increasingly important to life on Earth. To help policymakers and businesses make informed decisions about investments in space, ESA (European Space Agency) has published plans to create robust and reliable data on the space economy in collaboration with international partners.
The scientific community is studying the Apophis asteroid approaching Earth
Scientists estimate that asteroids the size of Apophis, about 367 yards across, come this close to Earth only once every 7,500 years. Asteroid Apophis will make an exceptionally close approach to our planet on April 13, 2029. Although Apophis will not collide with Earth during this approach or in the foreseeable future, its passage in 2029 will be within 32,000 kilometers of Earth. At this point, it will be closer than some satellites and can be seen with the naked eye in Earth’s eastern hemisphere. Although the encounter with Apophis is more than five years away, the next milestone on its path will be the first of six close transits of the Sun.
NASA has begun colonizing the Moon
The world’s industrial giants have rushed in pursuit of helium-3 in order to achieve “cosmic” successes in nuclear energy. “Lunar treasure” is considered an ideal fuel, with which there will be no need to search for and extract traditional fuel resources.
The era of liquid water on Mars ended three billion years ago
Chinese scientists have concluded that groundwater on Mars under the Utopia Planitia remained active until the Amazonian (recent) period of the geological history of the Red Planet, which was previously considered cold and dry. In sedimentary deposits of Amazonian age, Zhuzhong instruments identified hydrated sulfates, hydrosilica, ferric oxides and chlorides. These minerals require liquid salt water to form.
Russia and the United States expect to develop the resources of the Moon in the coming decades
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) plans to begin test mining on the Moon before 2032. At the first stage, the United States expects to extract water and oxygen from the soil, then to develop deposits of iron and rare earth metals on the Earth’s satellite. The Russian road map in 2041–2050 assumes the beginning of the extraction and use of water, as well as oxygen, on the Moon.
NASA demonstrates optical communications for deep space operations
DSOC, an experiment that could change the way spacecraft communicate, has sent data using a laser to and from the Moon for the first time. The transmitted data takes the form of bits (the smallest units of data that a computer can process) encoded in laser photons—quantum particles of light.
Mars has its own aurora
A Mars probe has discovered that the Red Planet’s atmosphere glows green at night. Scientists have observed the night glow of Mars in the visible light spectrum for the first time, the European Space Agency reports.
ARRAKIHS dark matter satellite will be launched in 2030
The mission is planned to study the dark matter halo of 75 different galaxies – a hypothetical component of galaxies that surrounds the galactic disk and extends far beyond the visible part of the galaxy. The mass of the halo is the main component of the total mass of the galaxy, reports the European Space Agency.
The European Space Agency has signed a contract to create its own space station, Starlab
Beginning in 2027, Starlab will maintain a permanent human presence in low Earth orbit, operated by Voyager Space and Airbus.
European Institute for the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence uses new radio frequency technologies
The SETI Institute received $200 million to search for evidence of alien life. The new funding will allow the SETI Institute to consolidate and expand the search for extraterrestrial intelligence.
Roscosmos extended the operation of the Russian segment of the ISS until 2028
Earlier, Roscosmos General Director Yuri Borisov reported to Russian President Vladimir Putin about the decision made to withdraw from the ISS project after 2024. Borisov later said that Russia will most likely participate in the project until 2028. Now the decision to extend the ISS until 2030 has been made by the United States and Japan, and the European Space Agency also supported this initiative.
DART mission changed the trajectory of an asteroid using a spacecraft
The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope captured a series of photographs of the rapid changes to the asteroid Dimorphos when it was deliberately struck by a 545-kilogram spacecraft on September 26, 2022. The main goal of NASA’s mission, called DART (Double Asteroid Redirection Test), is to test the ability to change the trajectory of an asteroid as it orbits its larger companion asteroid.
Roscosmos: nuclear tug “Zeus” will go to explore the natural satellites of Jupiter
Today, the satellites of Jupiter – Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto – attract the closest attention of scientists around the world and are even considered as objects for colonization in the distant future. It has been established that some of them have oceans covered with ice, from under which steam sometimes escapes, and some tectonic activity is observed, which indicates a hot core of the celestial body. Heat and water are necessary conditions for the existence of life. The presence of people on the nuclear tug during the research is not planned at this stage.
Lunar Mission: Polar Moon Craters Become Cold Traps and Capable of Preserving Water Ice
Planetary scientists have found that magnetic anomalies in the region of the Moon’s south pole can protect deposits of water ice in craters from destruction by the solar wind by deflecting ions, according to a report from the 53rd Lunar and Planetary Science Conference.
Mars exploration: China gains insights from its first rover
The team of China’s first Mars rover, Zhurong, published the results of an analysis of data collected on Utopia Planitia in the journal Nature Geoscience.
Far-reaching plans – terraforming Mars
The main problem for changing the appearance of Mars is the lack of a strong magnetic field that can protect the atmosphere from solar winds that burn water in it. The magnetic field creates a kind of bubble that protects the planet from the oncoming solar winds. For example, the Earth’s magnetic field prevents most high-energy particles from reaching the planet’s surface.
Planetologists continue to study asteroids
Organic substances have been discovered on the Ryugu asteroid. Another asteroid, 2022 FD1, discovered by astronomers only on the night of March 24-25, flew past the Earth at noon on March 25 at a distance of only about eight thousand kilometers.
The European Space Agency and NASA are developing instruments for lunar exploration
The European Space Agency has selected a team of five European companies to design and build the first experimental payload to extract oxygen from regolith on the lunar surface. In turn, the American company Venturi Astrolab presented a universal lunar rover. It can transport both cargo containers and astronauts.
Roscosmos will produce its own Russian orbital station
The first module of the Russian orbital station could be launched as early as 2026, which will be several times more efficient than the previous ISS, said the head of Roscosmos Dmitry Rogozin.
Russia and China signed a number of documents on joint exploration of the Moon
A number of establishing documents were signed: a memorandum, an agreement, an intergovernmental agreement. China, with good financial support, is actively implementing the first stage of the lunar exploration program with automatic stations, said the head of Roscosmos, Dmitry Rogozin. He also added that the next steps are the construction of a base on the Moon.
Roscosmos has stopped cooperation with most European countries
NASA intends to maintain contacts with Roscosmos to ensure the safe operation of the International Space Station and to continue cooperation between Russia and the United States in the field of the civil space program.
The General Director of the Roscosmos State Corporation commented on the situation in connection with possible sanctions
On February 26, 2022, General Director of the Roscosmos State Corporation Dmitry Rogozin took part in the broadcast of the Solovyov Live YouTube channel, during which he explained the corporation’s position and further actions in connection with the new international situation, the Roscosmos press service reports.
Roscosmos continues to establish international cooperation in space
At the Baikonur Cosmodrome, intensive preparations have begun at the Vostok launch complex at site No. 31 for the launch of the next batch of spacecraft from the OneWeb satellite company as part of mission No. 38, the Roscosmos press service reports.
Private astronautics is becoming more and more distinct
Private space flights, the first private spacewalk, infrastructure for the development of private space exploration in Russia and private satellites – new real space startups.
The international satellite system COSPAS-SARSAT has been successfully saving lives for almost 40 years
The Russian Space Systems holding company began creating a network of ground stations for receiving signals from the COSPAS-SARSAT search and rescue equipment on board the medium-orbit navigation satellites GLONASS, GPS, Galileo and Beidou.
Roscosmos launched another 34 OneWeb satellites into orbit from the French cosmodrome
On February 10, 2022, the Soyuz-ST-B launch vehicle was launched from the launch complex of the Guiana Space Center (French Guiana, South America). After 3.5 hours, the Fregat-M upper stage successfully launched another batch of 34 OneWeb satellites into low-Earth orbit, the Roscosmos press service reports.
The Russian Federal Space Program includes the creation of a garbage collector from geostationary orbits
The federal space program, designed in Russia until 2025, provides for the creation of a satellite for cleaning up space debris, RIA Novosti reports.
Wireless power transmission has become a reality
Roscosmos has developed a project for a promising space power station that will transmit solar energy from space to Earth via a laser beam, the Roscosmos press service reports.
China, USA and Russia are the main participants in the “moon race”
All three countries have long-term programs, the ultimate goal of which is the creation of a permanent base on the Earth’s satellite. The potential of the Moon as a raw material base for the Earth is enormous – scientists believe so.
Potentially dangerous asteroids for the Earth do not leave their orbits
In 2029, the asteroid Apophis will fly at a distance of 30 thousand km from the Earth, on February 8, 2022, the asteroid 2007 UY1 will approach the Earth, it will be at a distance of just over five million kilometers from the planet. A potential collision with asteroid d2022 AE is possible on July 4, 2023.