[ad_1] Don’t think SpaceX is toning down its spaceflight ambitions in light of the pandemic — if anything, the company is ramping things up. Elon Musk has confirmed a SpaceXFleet scoop (via TechCrunch) that SpaceX is hiring staff to help build “floating, superheavy-class spaceports” for Mars and Moon missions, not to mention hypersonic flights for […]
Category: mars
NASA’s Mars helicopter is ready for the red planet
[ad_1] NASA is in the final stages of preparing the Perseverance rover for its trip to the red planet, which could begin anytime between July 17th and August 5th if everything goes as planned. Over the past week, the team assembled the machine, tested what needed to be tested and filled its tanks with fuel. […]
NASA reveals the next company to deliver expedition tech to the Moon
[ad_1] Humankind is one step closer to its next lunar expedition, as NASA has awarded a contract that will see foundational exploratory kit delivered to the surface of the Moon ahead of manned missions in 2024. California’s Masten Space Systems has won the $75.9 million contract to transport and operate eight payloads to the Moon’s […]
The company behind the robotic arms that help us explore Mars
[ad_1] Maxar Technologies knows a thing or two about building space-based systems. The company has been developing and deploying satellite technology since 1969. It’s built robotic arms for NASA since the Apollo era, as well as for commercial customers — over 75 in total. In fact, all five robotic arms currently on the surface of […]
NASA accepts applications for astronauts for the first time in four years
[ad_1] NASA says that you’ll need to be a US citizen with either a master’s degree in a STEM field or an equivalent, such as two years of work toward the doctorate in your field, a medical doctorate or the combination of a completed test pilot school program (finished by June 2021) with a STEM […]
NASA wants students’ help designing tech for the Moon and Mars
[ad_1] The awards will be relatively modest at $15,000 to $50,000, but NASA stressed that this doesn’t necessarily involve tangible products. It can also involve research that fills “knowledge gaps” or reduces risks, for instance. Proposals are due by April 24th. The competition may not lead to a major breakthrough in NASA’s Moon and Mars […]
SpaceX approved to build Starship factory and research hub in LA
[ad_1] SpaceX has pursued the permit for some time after first identifying and subsequently leasing the site back in 2018. As Reuters notes, the company has the option to terminate the permit within 180 days, and indeed, it canceled a similar permit two years ago when it moved the initial phase of the Starship project […]
NASA finds water ice just below the surface of Mars
[ad_1] Researchers created the map of the Martian surface which shows where water ice is believed to be located. In some places, the ice is as little as 2.5 centimeters below the surface, making it easily accessible to future visitors. Cool colors represent ice closer to the surface, while warm colors are ice deeper down. […]
NASA’s InSight lander can finally dig a hole for its Mars heat probe
[ad_1] It’s still moving slowly. The mole has dug roughly three quarters of an inch since October 8th, and it could venture as deep as 16 feet. It could be a long, long time before the probe reaches its potential. Nonetheless, it’s a huge relief to scientists worried that one of InSight’s key instruments might […]
Virgin Orbit plans to send cubesats to Mars as early as 2022
[ad_1] Virgin Orbit is a spinoff of Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic and is dedicated to low-cost smallsat projects. This new Virgin Orbit endeavor was reportedly inspired by NASA’s recent InSight mission, which successfully sent two cubesats to Mars. Now, the company believes it can send its own similar spacecraft (as light as 110 pounds) into […]