Tag: Space
Satellite-tracked trolleys is winner of UK Space Agency competition
Innovative ideas from young people to track abandoned supermarket trolleys by satellite and an app to find public toilets are among the winners of a space competition. (more…)
Israeli spacecraft crash lands on moon surface
An Israeli spacecraft has failed in its bid to become the first private craft to land on the moon after crashing on the lunar surface. Non-profit organisation SpaceIL had been hoping to see its Beresheet craft complete a landing on the moon, and in the process make Israel only the fourth country to manage the…
Israeli Beresheet spacecraft set to become first commercial moon lander
An Israeli spacecraft will become the first private craft to land on the moon when it touches down on the lunar surface later today (Thursday April 11th, 2019). In a first for commercial space travel, non-profit organisation SpaceIL is hoping to see its Beresheet craft successfully complete a landing on the moon, and in the…
NASA criticises India’s anti-satellite missile test for endangering ISS astronauts
NASA has criticised India’s satellite destruction test for endangering astronauts on board the International Space Station (ISS). On March 27, Indian prime minister Narendra Modi announced that it had managed to shoot down one of its own low-orbit satellites, declaring that the country was now a “space power”. The risk of collision to the ISS…
NASA’s new rocket will not be ready for moon mission next year
NASA's massive new rocket will not be ready for a moon shot next year, the space agency’s top official has told the US Congress. Administrator Jim Bridenstine said he is considering switching to commercial rockets to keep the June 2020 launch date. Mr Bridenstine told a Senate committee that two private rockets would be needed,…
SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule ends test flight with ocean splashdown
The SpaceX crew capsule has returned to Earth, ending its first test flight with an old-fashioned splashdown in the Atlantic Ocean. The Dragon undocked from the International Space Station early on Friday. Six hours later, the capsule carrying a test dummy dropped into the Atlantic off the Florida coast. Good splashdown of Dragon confirmed! pic.twitter.com/WK1nsNnOF5…
Mars lander starts digging on red planet
NASA's newest Mars lander has started digging into the red planet, but hit a few snags, scientists said. The German drilling instrument on the InSight lander struck what appeared to be a couple of stones. It only managed to burrow between half a foot (18cm) and about 1.5ft (50cm), far short of the first dig’s…
Tim Peake’s Soyuz spacecraft ‘lands’ at Ulster Transport Museum
Press Eye - Belfast - Northern Ireland. Picture Matt Mackey / Press Eye. The spacecraft which transported the UK’s first European Space Agency astronaut, Tim Peake, to and from the International Space Station (ISS) has landed at the Ulster Transport Museum. Presented by Samsung and the Science Museum Group, The National…
Israel flying to moon aboard Elon Musk’s SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket
An Israeli spacecraft has rocketed towards the moon aboard Elon Musk's SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket for the country’s first attempted lunar landing. A communications satellite for Indonesia was the main cargo aboard the Falcon 9 rocket, which illuminated the sky as it took flight. But Israel’s privately funded lunar lander — a first not just for…
Airbus tests harpoon designed to capture debris orbiting Earth
A harpoon designed to spear through space junk and capture it has been tested in space for the first time. With between 16,000 and 20,000 pieces being tracked orbiting Eart, the RemoveDebris mission is hoping to address the issue of debris in space left over by past rockets and other deployments. Airbus carried out the…
