Moon race. Last news
Following the Artemis III mission, which lands the first humans near the lunar south pole, Artemis IV astronauts will live and work on humanity’s first lunar space station, Gateway, opening up new opportunities for science and preparation for human missions to Mars . The mission will combine the complex choreography of multiple launches and dockings of spacecraft in lunar orbit, and will also mark the debut of a larger, more powerful version of NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket and a new mobile launcher.
The commercial Odysseus module landed in the south polar region of the Moon
After launching on February 15, Intuitive Machines’ Odysseus lander touched down in the moon’s south polar region on February 22 and has since transmitted valuable science data back to Earth. Odysseus took six NASA payloads with him, and their data is essential for future human exploration of the Moon under Artemis. This is the first commercial unmanned mission to the Moon. For the first time in more than 50 years, NASA was able to collect data using new scientific instruments and technology demonstrations on the Moon. The data comes from the first successful payload landing of NASA’s CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative and Artemis campaign.
Astronauts on the ISS are looking for solutions to problems that may arise during a long flight
The flight of Russian cosmonauts and NASA astronauts, participants of the 70th long-term expedition, continues at the International Space Station. A long stay in space causes physical changes in the human body. For example, the condition of bones and muscles deteriorates. Therefore, the health of astronauts is closely studied by doctors and scientists.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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 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.
NASA and UNESCO plan to study up to 80 percent of the ocean floor by 2030
The US space agency’s goal is twofold: to understand the nature of the oceans that exist on other planets and to develop technologies to operate in extreme conditions. UNESCO study of the world’s oceans is important for preserving a sustainable climate and ecosystems.
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.
A special NASA mission is testing to change the orbit of an asteroid
On the morning of October 24, 2021, a Falcon 9 launch vehicle with the DRAT space probe launched from a military spaceport in California, which will crash into an asteroid to test technology for protecting the Earth from collisions with space objects.