Space Spin

NASA finishes listening for Phoenix Mars Lander

Tue, 02 Dec 2008 07:40:06 +0000

After nearly a month of daily checks to determine whether Martian NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander would be able to communicate again, the agency has stopped using its Mars orbiters to hail the lander and listen for its beep. As expected, reduced daily sunshine eventually left the solar-powered Phoenix craft without enough energy to keep its batteries charged.

The final communication from Phoenix remains a brief signal received via NASA's Mars Odyssey orbiter on Nov. 2. The Phoenix lander operated for two overtime months after achieving its science goals during its original three-month mission. It landed on a Martian arctic plain on May 25.

Dawn on course for Mars gravity assist

Mon, 01 Dec 2008 14:22:28 +0000

Dawn needed to thrust with its ion propulsion system for less than 2.5 hours in November. The maneuver on November 20 was designed to adjust the trajectory to put it on course for a gravity assist from Mars on February 17, 2009.

On November 4, the spacecraft successfully executed a procedure to calibrate the power of the solar arrays. The method was identical to that used in a test in September, but this time the arrays were rotated to point 60 degrees away from the Sun instead of 45 degrees. With the arrays not pointed directly at the Sun, their power output was reduced to a level the spacecraft could measure.

Outcome of ESA's Ministerial Council as concerns the Science and Robotic Exploration Directorate

Fri, 28 Nov 2008 19:52:32 +0000

The Science Programme received a positive outcome from the recent Council Meeting at Ministerial Level, being granted an increase of 3.5% per annum for the period 2009-2013, giving it a budget over this period of 2.4 billion Euro at 2008 economic conditions.

This level of funding provides the necessary budget to implement the envisaged re-planning for the extension of missions in operation, to complete the missions under development and to safeguard the Cosmic Vision 2015-2025 plan as currently envisaged, with a launch of the first CV mission foreseen for 2016-2017.

Cassini ISS images - November 24-28, 2008

Fri, 28 Nov 2008 19:41:42 +0000

The following new images taken by the Imaging Science Subsystem (ISS) on the Cassini spacecraft are now available:

Shadow of the Giant (Released 24 November 2008)
Saturn's shadow cuts across the rings in this view from high above the ringplane.
Prometheus Brings Change to the F Ring (Released 25 November 2008)
Prometheus, one of the F ring shepherds, is seen here orbiting between the A and F rings.
B Ring in the Negative (Released 26 November 2008)
The B ring, shown here, is filled with radial structure.
Fingerprints of the Moons (Released 27 November 2008)
The Encke and Keeler gaps are visible in this image of the outer A ring.
Ring Shapers (Released 28 November 2008)
Two moons that have profound impacts on the rings, Mimas and Prometheus, are seen here with the F ring.

The Euminedes Dorsum mountains on Mars

Fri, 28 Nov 2008 14:36:57 +0000

The High Resolution Stereo Camera on board ESA's Mars Express imaged the Eumenides Dorsum mountains on the Red Planet.

Eumenides Dorsum lies at approximately 2° south and 206° east. The images, taken on 26 December 2007, have a ground resolution of about 13 m/pixel. They cover an area of about 12 000 square km.

The mountains are located to the west of the Tharsis Region, and form part of the Medusae-Fossae Region, which is most likely covered by a blanket of volcanic ash.

Spirit serious but stable

Thu, 27 Nov 2008 10:29:20 +0000

Spirit's condition has improved during the past week, though skies remain fairly dusty after the recent Martian dust storm. Since sol 1730 (Nov. 14, 2008), solar-array energy has averaged 169 watt-hours (100 watt-hours is the amount of energy needed to light a 100-watt bulb for 1 hour). The latest measurement of atmospheric darkness caused by dust, known as Tau, is 0.858. The dust factor, representing the portion of sunlight penetrating the coating of dust on the solar panels, is 0.2912.

Spirit performed a cursory check of the health of the miniature thermal emission spectrometer. After three nights with the spectrometer's heaters disabled, the instrument appeared to be undamaged as of sol 1730. Power is not yet sufficient to re-enable those heaters, though Spirit will continue to monitor the spectrometer while waiting for power to improve. For the most part, Spirit is limiting activities to those necessary for maintaining engineering health and safety.

Opportunity prepares for two weeks of independent study

Thu, 27 Nov 2008 10:23:10 +0000

Opportunity is getting ready for solar conjunction, the time when the Sun is in the line of sight between Earth and Mars. During this two-week period, from Nov. 30, 2008 to Dec. 13, 2008, the mission team will not send new commands to the rover. The science team plans to position Opportunity on a rock outcrop, possibly near a cobble the rover can study with the Moessbauer spectrometer, during this time interval.

Opportunity began the week with a 93-meter (310-foot) drive on Sol 1709 (Nov. 13, 2008). The drive allowed the rover to reach a large expanse of bare outcrop. Another drive on Sol 1710 (Nov. 14, 2008), covering 17 meters (56 feet), placed the rover near potential targets of scientific interest. A candidate target, a cobble about 8 meters (30 feet) away, became the objective of the drive on Sol 1713 (Nov. 17, 2008). The 8-meter drive positioned the cobble, now nicknamed "Santorini", within the work volume of the science instruments on Opportunity's robotic arm.

HiRISE images for November 26, 2008

Thu, 27 Nov 2008 10:15:06 +0000

The following new images taken by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft are now available:

Yardangs in South Amazonis
This image shows yardangs, or ridges formed from wind abrasion, in the southern Amazonis Planitia, which is located between the Tharsis and Elysium volcanic provinces on Mars.
Volcanic Fissure Vent in Elysium Planitia
This observation shows lava-covered plains in the Elysium Planitia region of Mars, located near the equator.
Aeolian Features, Large and Small
One of the most important processes on present-day Mars is wind.
Complex Terrain East of Holden Crater
This observation covers the Martian surface just to the east of the 150 kilometer-diameter Holden Crater in southwestern Margaritifer Terra.
Hydraotes Chaos
Hydraotes Chaos is an equatorial region of chaotic terrain located near some of the large outflow channels on Mars.
Meander in Valley Network
The central portion of this image includes a portion of a valley network in Arabia Terra.
Student Image of the Week: Kasei Valles
This image was suggested by Kathleen Hartrum's middle school science club at Conestoga Middle School in Beaverton, Oregon.

Second group of Mercury craters named

Wed, 26 Nov 2008 21:01:48 +0000

The International Astronomical Union (IAU) recently approved a proposal from the MESSENGER Science Team to name 15 craters on Mercury. All of the newly named craters were imaged during the mission's first flyby of the solar system's innermost planet in January 2008.

The IAU has been the arbiter of planetary and satellite nomenclature since its inception in 1919. In keeping with the established naming theme for craters on Mercury, all of the craters are named after famous deceased artists, musicians, or authors.

Source of geysers on Enceladus may be underground water

Wed, 26 Nov 2008 20:03:32 +0000

Saturn's moon Enceladus may indeed hide an underground reservoir of water. Scientists at Jet Propulsion Lab in California, the University of Colorado and the University of Central Florida in Orlando teamed up to analyze the plumes of water vapor and ice particles spewing from the moon. They used data collected by the Cassini spacecraft's Ultraviolet Imaging Spectrograph (UVIS).

The team, including UCF Assistant Professor Joshua Colwell, found that the source of plumes may be vents on the moon that channel water vapor from a warm, probably liquid source to the surface at supersonic speeds. The team's findings are reported in the Nov. 27 issue of the journal Nature.

Hubble captures views of mammoth stars

Tue, 25 Nov 2008 14:06:52 +0000

Two of our galaxy's most massive stars, until recently shrouded in mystery, have been viewed by the Hubble Space Telescope, unveiling greater detail than ever before.

The image shows a pair of colossal stars, WR 25 and Tr16-244, located within the open cluster Trumpler 16. This cluster is embedded within the Carina Nebula, an immense cauldron of gas and dust that lies approximately 7500 light-years from Earth. The Carina Nebula contains several ultra-hot stars, including these two star systems and the famous blue star Eta Carinae, which has the highest luminosity yet confirmed.

NASA prepares for new Juno mission to Jupiter

Mon, 24 Nov 2008 20:48:46 +0000

NASA is officially moving forward on a mission to conduct an unprecedented, in-depth study of Jupiter.

Called Juno, the mission will be the first in which a spacecraft is placed in a highly elliptical polar orbit around the giant planet to understand its formation, evolution and structure. Underneath its dense cloud cover, Jupiter safeguards secrets to the fundamental processes and conditions that governed our early solar system.

Chandrayaan-1 starts observations of the Moon

Mon, 24 Nov 2008 20:12:21 +0000

The Indian Space Research Organisation's lunar orbiter Chandrayaan-1 released a probe that impacted close to the lunar south pole on 14 November. Following this, the instruments on the spacecraft are being switched on to get the science observations started.

The Moon Impact Probe was dropped close to Shackleton crater, a place close to the south pole, where ice may exist in areas that are never illuminated by the Sun. It carried three instruments: a video imaging system, a radar altimeter and a mass spectrometer. The imaging system took pictures of the Moon as it approached the surface, the radar was used to determine the altitude, and the mass spectrometer was used to study the thin lunar atmosphere.

A pinwheel in X-rays

Mon, 24 Nov 2008 19:57:21 +0000

With a diameter of about 170,000 light years, the galaxy Messier 101 (M101) is a swirling spiral of stars, gas, and dust whose diameter is nearly twice that of our Milky Way Galaxy.

Its orientation allows telescopes to see the spiral structure of the galaxy face-on, giving inspiration for its nickname of the Pinwheel Galaxy. M101 is found in the Ursa Major constellation and is at a distance of about 25 million light years from Earth.

Cassini ISS images - November 17-21, 2008

Sun, 23 Nov 2008 20:51:31 +0000

The following new images taken by the Imaging Science Subsystem (ISS) on the Cassini spacecraft are now available:

Saturn's View of Titan (Released 17 November 2008)
The Cassini spacecraft looks through Titan's thick atmosphere to reveal bright and dark terrains on the Saturn-facing side of the planet's largest moon.
Over the Limb (Released 18 November 2008)
The Cassini spacecraft acquired this view of Enceladus just after the spacecraft passed within 25 kilometers (15 miles) of the surface on Oct. 9, 2008.
Maxwell's That Ends Well (Released 19 November 2008)
In the Maxwell gap within Saturn's C ring resides a narrow, eccentric ringlet of the same name.
Fore! (Released 20 November 2008)
Mimas's lit crescent has the appearance of a golf ball thanks to its heavily cratered surface.
Smokey Ring (Released 21 November 2008)
The ever-changing F ring appears as wisps of smoke in this image taken downstream of the shepherd moon, Prometheus.