-
Subscribe
Subscribed
Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
According to Helicity, the core technology behind their fusion drive efficiently converts electricity into plasma heating, using a unique approach to scale fusion conditions and directly produce thrust. Their method, distinct from conventional magnetic or inertial (laser) fusion, employs self-organized Taylor relaxation and magnetic reconnection physics, combined with a peristaltic magnetic compression scheme. In very…
We’re still none the wiser as to what China is trying to achieve during its latest spaceplane mission beyond testing reusable spaceplane technologies and carrying out science experiments, per state-run news agency Xinhua. But considering China has pulled off three missions in just three years, it’s a tech demo that’s certainly worth following closely. https://futurism.com/the-byte/chinese-spaceplane-signal-north-american
On December 14, the country launched its reusable spaceplane from the Gobi Desert, as the state-run news agency Xinhua reported at the time. According to the brief update, its third flight will be used to verify reusable spaceplane technologies and carry out science experiments. But according to amateur astronomer and satellite tracker Scott Tilley, who’s been closely tracking the…
Oooooh it has been a very very very long road for this team. The Dream Chaser spaceplane, designed by Colorado-based Sierra Space, is an uncrewed cargo spacecraft that is expected to carry out its first demonstration mission next year, NASA said in a news release. Currently the only commercial runway-capable spaceplane, the reusable cargo system comprises two…
The team show how a silicon nitride photonics crystal with a thin silicon membrane can achieve the high levels of reflectivity in the 1300nm to 1500nm wavelengths required for light sails. The potential in the sails is significant with the manufacturing techniques able to scale up to several metres which may well set the scene…
I wonder if someone is bringing all the FRB signals together and throwing and AI at the fused data stream… As detailed in a new study published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society this week, researchers spotted a “never-before-seen” burst dubbed FRB 20220912A using the SETI Institute’s Allen Telescope Array, a collection of 42 antennae…
The Cassini spacecraft observed that Saturn’s moon Enceladus has a series of jets erupting from its South Polar Terrain. Previous studies of in situ data collected by Cassini’s Ion and Neutral Mass Spectrometer (INMS) have identified H2O, CO2, CH4, NH3 and H2 within the plume of ejected material. Identification of minor species in the plume…
One of the problems the Voyager team faces, in addition to working across incredible distances to communicate with an Earthly spacecraft drifting at a solid 38,210 miles per hour on its way through interstellar space, has to do with technology that is now several decades old.
There’s no suggestion that the US and Chinese spaceplanes are spying on one another because their orbits do not bring them close together. However, the supposed similarities between the US and Chinese military spaceplanes are hard to ignore. “It’s no surprise that the Chinese are extremely interested in our spaceplane, and we’re extremely interested in…
Welcome to Edition 6.23 of the Rocket Report! In last week’s report, my colleague Eric Berger mentioned what a year 2023 has been for rocket debuts. Several new launch vehicles flew for the first time this year, including SpaceX’s Starship and Japan’s H3. In this week’s report, we have some news on some major rocket…
Dave5 