China has launched a new Moon relay satellite. Missions to the far side of the Moon cannot communicate with Earth without a relay satellite. Queqiao-2 launched this week to provide that relay solution for China's lunar exploration program. Mission objectives include supporting the next Chang'e-6 Lunar far-side sample return mission, scheduled to launch in 2024. Pictured: China's Chang'e-5 spacecraft captured this view of Earth on the far side of the Moon on October 28, 2014. Image credit: CAST.
The DART impact changed the shape and orbit of the asteroid Dimorphos. Follow-up observations of the asteroid have found evidence that when the DART (Double Asteroid Redirection Test) intentionally crashed into Dimorphos in 2022, it did more than just change its orbit around its parent asteroid, Didymos. Dimorphos also appears to have changed shape.from a relatively symmetrical object to a “triaxial ellipsoid”, something more like an elongated watermelon. Pictured: Dimorphos before impact, photographed by DART. Image credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins APL.
Urban micrometeorite hunters look for cosmic dust on rooftops. Thousands of tons of micrometeorites fall to Earth each year, mostly tiny particles between 50 micrometers and two millimeters in diameter. These drop everywhere, but are most easily found in large, inaccessible, and largely untouched places. Antarctica is a good place for micrometeorite hunters, but so are the roofs of the cathedrals.
If you dream of being an astronaut, prepare for space headaches. A new study from Leiden University Medical Center in the Netherlands has found that astronauts with no history of headaches You may experience migraines and tension headaches while spending longer periods (more than 10 days) in space. These headaches are likely caused by the vestibular system, which affects balance and posture, trying to adapt to signals it receives from the body that conflict with the signals it expects.
Leave feedback about this