New Tests Evaluate Mission Readiness of Astronauts Upon Landing

 

ISS - International Space Station emblem.

April 13, 2022

Have you ever felt off-balance after being on amusement rides or gotten motion sickness on a boat? Astronauts feel something similar that can be more intense when they return to Earth from space.

Once they land, their whole body – including muscles, bones, inner ear, and organs – starts readjusting to Earth’s gravity. Astronauts often report feeling dizzy, lightheaded, nauseated, and off-balance upon their return. These symptoms can last for several days, until they get their “land legs.”

Image above: A volunteer from NASA’s Artemis Extravehicular Activity training group moves a 30-pound object through a boulder field while in a spacesuit connected to NASA’s Active Response Gravity Offload System, or ARGOS. He is conducting a trial run through an obstacle course while ARGOS lifts him and the suit in a way that simulates gravity similar to that on Mars. Some astronauts will work through this obstacle course immediately after returning to Earth so that researchers can learn more about how mission-ready crew can be after landing on a planet’s surface. Image Credit: NASA.

While much work is spent ensuring astronauts’ good health upon reentry to Earth, a group of scientists at NASA’s Human Research Program, or HRP, are focusing on something slightly different. They’re interested in determining how soon after landing astronauts can perform mission-critical tasks.

“Through Artemis, NASA will soon send the first woman, the first person of color, and other crew members to the Moon’s surface. And after that, our eyes will be on Mars,” explains Jason Norcross, a scientist who studies human performance at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. On Mars and the Moon, crew members will need to be ready to act without much feedback from operators on Earth, particularly in emergency scenarios, he notes. “So we need to know: Right after astronauts land on a planetary surface, what can they physically do? How long after landing should they wait to perform certain tasks?”

To help answer these questions, Norcross and a combined team from NASA’s Human Physiology, Performance, Protection and Operations Laboratory and NASA’s Neurosciences Laboratory designed an obstacle course for astronauts volunteering from NASA’s SpaceX Crew-2 and Crew-3 missions to navigate. Before departing to the International Space Station, these crew ran through two sets of tasks: emerging from a mock landing capsule and a simulated spacewalk on a planetary surface while wearing a spacesuit. Then, immediately upon returning to Earth, the same crew will attempt to complete these same tasks – the simulated capsule exit a few hours after landing, and the practice planetary spacewalk about a day later.

For the first task, researchers spent months developing a mockup made of lightweight metal tubing that, when deployed, forms the outline of a space capsule. This portable frame fits inside a large backpack. At an airport close to where the Crew Dragon capsule splashes down, the team will set up the mock capsule. Each astronaut will enter, lie down, and the test will begin.

During the test, the astronaut stands up and – while keeping in mind the mock capsule’s boundaries – unfurls a ladder from the capsule’s top. They will then secure the ladder tightly, grab a survival pack, climb the ladder, and – through a hatch at the capsule’s top – hand off the survival pack to a researcher standing nearby. Finally, the astronaut will descend the ladder, walk about 25 feet away, and return back to where they started.

Image above: NASA scientist Jason Norcross climbs a ladder within a framework of lightweight metal tubing that simulates the outline of a space capsule. He and his team seek to gauge how readily an astronaut who has just returned to Earth can secure this ladder and climb through this capsule, among other tasks. Image Credit: NASA.

“In the preflight test, an astronaut can stand up, climb the ladder, and walk easily. A couple of minutes and they’re done with this whole task,” notes Norcross. “But post-flight, we expect that will be completely different. Astronauts may have to stop, regain their balance, catch their breath, take breaks, maybe even take a moment to be sick. It could be a struggle.”

The task involves several posture changes, such as head-turning and standing up after lying down. “Those shifts in posture are the hardest things for crew to do immediately after landing,” he adds. “We need to know – can this even be done? We think it can be, but then again, we’ve never assessed astronauts doing this particular task at this particular time before.”

The second task – the simulated planetary walk – will take place after astronauts have flown back to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. Once there, they’ll each take turns completing a different set of challenges. First, they’ll try to don their spacesuit unassisted. Then, researchers will connect the suit into NASA’s Active Response Gravity Offload System, or ARGOS – a machine that hoists the suit and pressurizes it, allowing the astronaut inside to experience a fraction of Earth’s gravity. For this test, ARGOS will be tuned to the gravity on Mars, which is roughly three-eighths of Earth’s gravity.

Next, after they get their bearings and establish they can walk, the astronaut will climb a ladder, fit themselves through an opening, and climb down that same ladder. At that ladder’s base, they’ll connect “supply lines” – in this case, large flexible tubes – to a mockup of a life-support module. “We want astronauts to simulate what could happen on a mission off-world,” Norcross notes. “We've got connections down low and we've got things where they're reaching up overhead.”

Finally, they’ll see if they can repeatedly move a couple of 30-pound objects from one end of a boulder field to the other. These objects are moderately bulky – about the size of a five-gallon water cooler jug. “Again, we're trying to make them do realistic tasks, but giving them challenging postures to see what’s possible so soon after landing,” Norcross continues.

For both tasks, astronauts will give verbal feedback to researchers as they progress. After they complete the tasks, crew will take surveys about their exertions through each step. During the simulated walk on Mars, astronauts will wear sensors to monitor heart rate and energy expenditures. In addition, the astronauts will be recorded on video as they go through both tasks. Comparing the videos before launch to the ones immediately after landing will help scientists pinpoint where and perhaps why crew members struggled.

Future iterations will include more participants, more complex and longer tasks, and simulations programmed for the Moon’s gravity. Information gained will help NASA design mission activities, emergency protocols, spacesuits, and capsules that minimize difficult tasks in the first few days after astronauts land on the Moon or Mars.

NASA's Human Research Program, or HRP, pursues the best methods and technologies to support safe, productive human space travel. Through science conducted in laboratories, ground-based analogs, and the International Space Station, HRP scrutinizes how spaceflight affects human bodies and behaviors. Such research drives HRP’s quest to innovate ways that keep astronauts healthy and mission-ready as space travel expands to the Moon, Mars, and beyond.

Related links:

Human Research Program (HRP): https://www.nasa.gov/hrp/

Humans in Space: https://www.nasa.gov/topics/humans-in-space

Space Station Research and Technology: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/overview.html

International Space Station (ISS): https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/main/index.html

Images (mentioned), Text, Credits: NASA/Kelli Mars/NASA Human Research Program Strategic Communications/Mohi Kumar/Jennifer L. Turner.

Best regards, Orbiter.ch

Astronomers Detect Supermassive Black Hole Precursor Lurking in Archival Hubble Data

 

NASA / ESA - Hubble Space Telescope (HST) patch.

April 13, 2022

Artist’s Impression of GNz7q

An international team of astronomers using archival data from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope and other space- and ground-based observatories have discovered a unique object in the distant, early Universe that is a crucial link between star-forming galaxies and the emergence of the earliest supermassive black holes. This object is the first of its kind to be discovered so early in the Universe’s history, and had been lurking unnoticed in one of the best-studied areas of the night sky.

Astronomers have struggled to understand the emergence of supermassive black holes in the early Universe ever since these objects were discovered at distances corresponding to a time only 750 million years after the Big Bang [1]. Rapidly growing black holes in dusty, early star-forming galaxies are predicted by theories and computer simulations but until now they had not been observed. Now, however, astronomers have reported the discovery of an object — which they name GNz7q — that is believed to be the first such rapidly growing black hole to be found in the early Universe. Archival Hubble data from the Advanced Camera for Surveys helped the team study the compact ultraviolet emission from the black hole's accretion disc and to determine that GNz7q existed just 750 million years after the Big Bang.

Crop of the GNz7q in the Hubble GOODS-North field

“Our analysis suggests that GNz7q is the first example of a rapidly-growing black hole in the dusty core of a starburst galaxy at an epoch close to the earliest super massive black hole known in the Universe,” explains Seiji Fujimoto, an astronomer at the Niels Bohr Institute of the University of Copenhagen in Denmark and lead author of the paper describing this discovery. “The object’s properties across the electromagnetic spectrum are in excellent agreement with predictions from theoretical simulations.”

Current theories predict that supermassive black holes begin their lives in the dust-shrouded cores of vigorously star-forming “starburst” galaxies before expelling the surrounding gas and dust and emerging as extremely luminous quasars. Whilst they are extremely rare, examples of both dusty starburst galaxies and luminous quasars have been detected in the early Universe. The team believes that GNz7q could be the “missing link” between these two classes of objects.

GNz7q in the Hubble GOODS-North field

“GNz7q provides a direct connection between these two rare populations and provides a new avenue towards understanding the rapid growth of supermassive black holes in the early days of the Universe,” continued Fujimoto. “Our discovery is a precursor of the supermassive black holes we observe at later epochs.”

Whilst other interpretations of the team’s data cannot be completely ruled out, the observed properties of GNz7q are in strong agreement with theoretical predictions. GNz7q’s host galaxy is forming stars at the rate of 1600 solar masses of stars per year [2] and GNz7q itself appears bright at ultraviolet wavelengths but very faint at X-ray wavelengths. The team have interpreted this — along with the host galaxy’s brightness at infrared wavelengths — to suggest that GNz7q is harbors a rapidly growing black hole still obscured by the dusty core of its accretion disc at the center of the star-forming host galaxy.

Zoom Into GNz7q

As well as GNz7q’s importance to the understanding of the origins of supermassive black holes, this discovery is noteworthy for its location in the Hubble GOODS North field, one of the most highly scrutinised areas of the night sky [3].

“GNz7q is a unique discovery that was found just at the centre of a famous, well-studied sky field — showing that big discoveries can often be hidden just in front of you,” commented Gabriel Brammer, another astronomer from the Niels Bohr Institute of the University of Copenhagen and a member of the team behind this result. “It’s unlikely that discovering GNz7q within the relatively small GOODS-N survey area was just ‘dumb luck’ rather the prevalence of such sources may in fact be significantly higher than previously thought.”

Pan of the Hubble GOODS-North field

Finding GNz7q hiding in plain sight was only possible thanks to the uniquely detailed, multi-wavelength datasets available for GOODS-North. Without this richness of data GNz7q would have been easy to overlook, as it lacks the distinguishing features usually used to identify quasars in the early Universe. The team now hopes to systematically search for similar objects using dedicated high-resolution surveys and to take advantage of the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope's spectroscopic instruments to study objects such as GNz7q in unprecedented detail.

“Fully characterising these objects and probing their evolution and underlying physics in much greater detail will become possible with the James Webb Space Telescope.” concluded Fujimoto. “Once in regular operation, Webb will have the power to decisively determine how common these rapidly growing black holes truly are.”

Notes:

[1] Whilst light travels imperceptibly quickly in day-to-day life, the vast distances in astronomy mean that as astronomers look at increasingly distant objects, they are also looking backwards in time. For example, light from the Sun takes around 8.3 minutes to reach Earth, meaning that we view the Sun as it was 8.3 minutes ago. The most distant objects are the furthest back in time, meaning that astronomers studying very distant galaxies are able to study the earliest periods of the Universe.

[2] This does not mean that 1600 Sun-like stars are produced each year in GNz7q’s host galaxy, but rather that a variety of stars are formed each year with a total mass 1600 times that of the Sun.

[3] GOODS — the Great Observatories Origins Deep Survey — is an astronomical survey that combines multi-wavelength observations from some of the most capable telescopes ever built, including Hubble, ESA's Herschel and XMM-Newton space telescopes, NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope and Chandra X-ray Observatory, and powerful ground-based telescopes.
 
More information:

The Hubble Space Telescope is a project of international cooperation between ESA and NASA.

These results have been published in Nature.

The international team of astronomers in this study consists of S. Fujimoto (Cosmic Dawn Center [DAWN] and Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, Denmark), G. B. Brammer (DAWN and Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, Denmark), D. Watson (DAWN and Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, Denmark), G. E. Magdis (DAWN, DTU-Space at the Technical University of Denmark, and Niels Bohr Institute at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark), V. Kokorev (DAWN and Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, Denmark), T. R. Greve (DAWN and DTU-Space, Technical University of Denmark, Denmark), S. Toft (DAWN and Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, Denmark),  F. Walter ( DAWN, Denmark, the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Germany, and the National Radio Astronomy Observatory, USA), R. Valiante (INAF-Osservatorio Astronomico di Roma, Rome, Italy), M. Ginolfi (European Southern Observatory, Garching, Germany), R. Schneider (INAF-Osservatorio Astronomico di Roma, Rome, Italy and Dipartimento di Fisica, Universitá di Roma La Sapienza, Rome, Italy), F. Valentino (DAWN and Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, Denmark), L. Colina (DAWN, Copenhagen, Denmark and Centro de Astrobiología (CAB, CSIC-INTA), Madrid, Spain), M. Vestergaard (Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, Denmark, and Steward Observatory, University of Arizona, USA), R. Marques-Chaves (Geneva Observatory, University of Geneva, Switzerland), J. P. U. Fynbo (DAWN and Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, Denmark), M. Krips (IRAM, Domaine Universitaire, Saint-Martin-d’Hères, France), C. L. Steinhardt (DAWN and Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, Denmark), I. Cortzen (IRAM, Domaine Universitaire, Saint-Martin-d’Hères, France), F. Rizzo (DAWN and Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, Denmark), and P. A. Oesch (DAWN, Copenhagen, Denmark and Geneva Observatory, University of Geneva, Switzerland).

Links:

Space Sparks Episode 11 - Astronomers Detect Supermassive Black Hole Precursor Lurking in Archival Hubble Data: https://esahubble.org/videos/heic2204a/

Images of Hubble: https://esahubble.org/images/archive/category/spacecraft/
 
Hubblesite release: https://hubblesite.org/contents/news-releases/2022/news-2022-019

Science paper: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-022-04454-1

Hubblesite: https://hubblesite.org/

Image Credits: ESA/Hubble, N. Bartmann/NASA, ESA, G. Illingworth (University of California, Santa Cruz), P. Oesch (University of California, Santa Cruz; Yale University), R. Bouwens and I. Labbé (Leiden University), and the Science Team, S. Fujimoto et al. (Cosmic Dawn Center [DAWN] and University of Copenhagen)/Videos Credits: ESA/Hubble, NASA, Digitized Sky Survey 2, G. Brammer, S. Fujimoto, G. Illingworth, P. Oesch, R. Bouwens, I. Labbé, N. Risinger, E. Slawikkkn, M. Zamani, N. Bartmann (ESA/Hubble)/Music: tonelabs - Happy Hubble (tonelabs.com)/NASA, ESA, G. Illingworth (University of California, Santa Cruz), P. Oesch (University of California, Santa Cruz; Yale University), R. Bouwens and I. Labbé (Leiden University), and the Science Team, S. Fujimoto et al. (Cosmic Dawn Center [DAWN] and University of Copenhagen), N. Bartmann (ESA/Hubble)/Music: zero-project - Through the Looking Glass (zero-project.gr)/Text Credits: ESA/Hubble/Bethany Downer/Cosmic Dawn Center and the Niels Bohr Institute of the University of Copenhagen, Denmark/Seiji Fujimoto/Gabriel Brammer.

Greetings, Orbiter.ch

Busy Science Day Explores Human Research and Space Physics

 

ISS - Expedition 67 Mission patch.

April 12, 2022

The 11 astronauts and cosmonauts living aboard the International Space Station today worked on a multitude of science experiments that may improve life for humans on and off the Earth. The space research on the orbiting lab ran the gamut of biology, physics and Earth observations.

Expedition 67 Commander Tom Marshburn set up a glucometer and blood tubes to explore how living in weightlessness affects insulin resistance for the Vascular Aging study. He also continued helping the four Axiom Mission 1 (Ax-1) astronauts get up to speed with operations aboard the space station.

Image above: The 11-person crew aboard the station is comprised of the seven-member Expedition 67 crew and the four-member Axiom Space crew. Image Credit: NASA.

Flight Engineer Raja Chari of NASA configured Actiwatches that monitor light conditions and an astronaut’s activities to help doctors understand a crew member’s wake-sleep in space. NASA Flight Engineer Kayla Barron worked inside the Life Science Glovebox and set up the Fluidic Space Optics experiment that could impact the development of space telescopes. ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Matthias Maurer collected air samples for chemical analysis then set up blood collection hardware for the Myotones muscle biomechanics study.

Veteran astronaut and Ax-1 Commander Michael Lopez-Alegria researched how space affects brain activity and increases the risk of cancer. Ax-1 Pilot Larry Connor also explored brain dynamics, then installed a miniature antenna demonstration, and held an educational event with students on Earth.

International Space Station (ISS). Animation Credit: ESA

The two Ax-1 Mission Specialists also had a full schedule researching a variety of space phenomena throughout the orbiting lab on Tuesday. Israeli crew member Eytan Stibbe assisted Connor with the antenna work then focused on the space liquid behavior study that Barron had set up earlier. Mark Pathy from Canada photographed Earth landmarks from inside the cupola then explored holoportation while wearing an augmented reality headset.

The station’s three cosmonauts from Roscosmos focused on their contingent of activities throughout the orbiting lab’s Russian segment. Veteran cosmonaut Oleg Artemyev worked on cargo activities inside the ISS Progress 79 resupply ship, then joined first time space-flyer Sergey Korsakov and trained for operations of the European Robotic Arm. New cosmonaut Denis Matveev studied advanced Earth photography techniques and worked on maintenance activities.

Related links:

Expedition 67: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/expeditions/expedition67/index.html

Vascular Aging: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=8639

Actiwatches: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Facility.html?#id=362

Fluidic Space Optics: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=8641

Air samples: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=7445

Myotones: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=7573

Brain activity: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=8659

Risk of cancer: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=8687

Miniature antenna demonstration: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=8645

Photograph Earth landmarks: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=84

Cupola: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/structure/elements/cupola.html

Holoportation: https://www.nasa.gov/feature/innovative-3d-telemedicine-to-help-keep-astronauts-healthy

Space Station Research and Technology: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/overview.html

International Space Station (ISS): https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/main/index.html

Image (mentioned), Animation (mentioned), Text, Credits: NASA/Mark Garcia.

Best regards, Orbiter.ch

Hubble Confirms Largest Comet Nucleus Ever Seen

 

NASA - Hubble Space Telescope patch.

April 12, 2022

NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has determined the size of the largest icy comet nucleus ever seen by astronomers. The estimated diameter is approximately 80 miles across, making it larger than the state of Rhode Island. The nucleus is about 50 times larger than found at the heart of most known comets. Its mass is estimated to be a staggering 500 trillion tons, a hundred thousand times greater than the mass of a typical comet found much closer to the Sun.

Image above: This sequence shows how the nucleus of Comet C/2014 UN271 (Bernardinelli-Bernstein) was isolated from a vast shell of dust and gas surrounding the solid icy nucleus. On the left is a photo of the comet taken by the NASA Hubble Space Telescope's Wide Field Camera 3 on January 8, 2022. A model of the coma (middle panel) was obtained by means of fitting the surface brightness profile assembled from the observed image on the left. This allowed for the coma to be subtracted, unveiling the point-like glow from the nucleus. Combined with radio telescope data, astronomers arrived at a precise measurement of the nucleus size. That's no small feat from something about 2 billion miles away. Though the nucleus is estimated to be as large as 85 miles across, it is so far away it cannot be resolved by Hubble. Its size is derived from its reflectivity as measured by Hubble. The nucleus is estimated to be as black as charcoal. The nucleus area is gleaned from radio observations. Image Credits: NASA, ESA, Man-To Hui (Macau University of Science and Technology), David Jewitt (UCLA); Image processing: Alyssa Pagan (STScI).

The behemoth comet, C/2014 UN271 (Bernardinelli-Bernstein) is barreling this way at 22,000 miles per hour from the edge of the solar system. But not to worry. It will never get closer than 1 billion miles away from the Sun, which is slightly farther than the distance of the planet Saturn. And that won't be until the year 2031.

The previous record holder is comet C/2002 VQ94, with a nucleus estimated to be 60 miles across. It was discovered in 2002 by the Lincoln Near-Earth Asteroid Research (LINEAR) project.

"This comet is literally the tip of the iceberg for many thousands of comets that are too faint to see in the more distant parts of the solar system," said David Jewitt, a professor of planetary science and astronomy at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), and co-author of the new study in The Astrophysical Journal Letters. "We've always suspected this comet had to be big because it is so bright at such a large distance. Now we confirm it is."

Hubble Space Telescope (HST). Animation Credit: NASA

Comet C/2014 UN271 was discovered by astronomers Pedro Bernardinelli and Gary Bernstein in archival images from the Dark Energy Survey at the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile. It was first serendipitously observed in November 2010, when it was a whopping 3 billion miles from the Sun, which is nearly the average distance to Neptune. Since then, it has been intensively studied by ground and space-based telescopes.

"This is an amazing object, given how active it is when it's still so far from the Sun," said the paper's lead author Man-To Hui of the Macau University of Science and Technology, Taipa, Macau. "We guessed the comet might be pretty big, but we needed the best data to confirm this." So, his team used Hubble to take five photos of the comet on January 8, 2022.

The challenge in measuring this comet was how to discriminate the solid nucleus from the huge dusty coma enveloping it. The comet is currently too far away for its nucleus to be visually resolved by Hubble. Instead, the Hubble data show a bright spike of light at the nucleus' location. Hui and his team next made a computer model of the surrounding coma and adjusted it to fit the Hubble images. Then, the glow of the coma was subtracted to leave behind the starlike nucleus.

Hui and his team compared the brightness of the nucleus to earlier radio observations from the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) in Chile. This combined data constrains the diameter and the reflectivity of the nucleus. The new Hubble measurements are close to the earlier size estimates from ALMA, but convincingly suggest a darker nucleus surface than previously thought. "It's big and it's blacker than coal," said Jewitt.

Image above: This diagram compares the size of the icy, solid nucleus of comet C/2014 UN271 (Bernardinelli-Bernstein) to several other comets. The majority of comet nuclei observed are smaller than Halley’s comet. They are typically a mile across or less. Comet C/2014 UN271 is currently the record-holder for big comets. And, it may be just the tip of the iceberg. There could be many more monsters out there for astronomers to identify as sky surveys improve in sensitivity. Though astronomers know this comet must be big to be detected so far out to a distance of over 2 billion miles from Earth, only the Hubble Space Telescope has the sharpness and sensitivity to make a definitive estimate of nucleus size. Image Credits: Illustration: NASA, ESA, Zena Levy (STScI).

The comet has been falling toward the Sun for well over 1 million years. It is coming from the hypothesized nesting ground of trillions of comets, called the Oort Cloud. The diffuse cloud is thought to have an inner edge at 2,000 to 5,000 times the distance between the Sun and the Earth. Its outer edge might extend at least a quarter of the way out to the distance of the nearest stars to our Sun, the Alpha Centauri system.

The Oort Cloud's comets didn't actually form so far from the Sun; instead, they were tossed out of the solar system billions of years ago by a gravitational "pinball game" among the massive outer planets, when the orbits of Jupiter and Saturn were still evolving. The far-flung comets only travel back toward the Sun and planets if their distant orbits are disturbed by the gravitational tug of a passing star – like shaking apples out of a tree.

Comet Bernardinelli-Bernstein follows a 3-million-year-long elliptical orbit, taking it as far from the Sun as roughly half a light-year. The comet is now less than 2 billion miles from the Sun, falling nearly perpendicular to the plane of our solar system. At that distance temperatures are only about minus 348 degrees Fahrenheit. Yet that's warm enough for carbon monoxide to sublimate off the surface to produce the dusty coma.

Comet Bernardinelli-Bernstein provides an invaluable clue to the size distribution of comets in the Oort Cloud and hence its total mass. Estimates for the Oort Cloud's mass vary widely, reaching as high as 20 times Earth's mass.

First hypothesized in 1950 by Dutch astronomer Jan Oort, the Oort Cloud still remains a theory because the innumerable comets that make it up are too faint and distant to be directly observed. Ironically, this means the solar system's largest structure is all but invisible. It's estimated that NASA's pair of Voyager spacecraft won't reach the inner realm of the Oort Cloud for another 300 years and could take as long as 30,000 years to pass through it.

Circumstantial evidence come from infalling comets that can be traced back to this nesting ground. They approach the Sun from all different directions meaning the cloud must be spherical in shape. These comets are deep-freeze samples of the composition of the early solar system, preserved for billions of years. The reality of the Oort Cloud is bolstered by theoretical modeling of the formation and evolution of the solar system. The more observational evidence that can be gathered through deep sky surveys coupled with multiwavelength observations, the better astronomers will understand the Oort Cloud's role in the solar system's evolution.

Hubble Confirms Largest Comet Nucleus Ever Seen

Video above: Hubble determined the size of the largest icy comet nucleus ever found. And, it’s big! With a diameter of approximately 80 miles across, it’s about 50 times larger than typical comets. Its 500-trillion-ton mass is a hundred thousand times greater than the average comet. Video Credits: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center; Lead Producer: Paul Morris.

The Hubble Space Telescope is a project of international cooperation between NASA and ESA (European Space Agency). NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, manages the telescope. The Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) in Baltimore, Maryland, conducts Hubble science operations. STScI is operated for NASA by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, in Washington, D.C.

Related links:

The Astrophysical Journal Letters: https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/2041-8213/ac626a

Hubble Space Telescope (HST): https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/hubble/main/index.html

Images (mentioned), Animation (mentioned), Video (mentioned), Text, Credits: NASA/Andrea Gianopoulos/STScI/Ray Villard/State Key Laboratory of Lunar and Planetary Science, Macau University of Science and Technology/Man-To Hui/University of California, Los Angeles/David Jewitt.

Greetings, Orbiter.ch

Artemis I Update: Countdown is Underway for Wet Dress Rehearsal

 

NASA - Artemis Exploration Mission 1 patch.

April 12, 2022

At approximately 5 p.m. EDT today, the launch team arrived at their stations inside the Launch Control Center at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The countdown will begin 30 minutes later at 5:30 p.m. or L-45 hours, 10 minutes before the initial target T-0 for the wet dress rehearsal test for NASA’s Artemis I mission. Teams are proceeding with a modified test, primarily focused on tanking the core stage and minimal propellant operations on the interim cryogenic propulsion stage (ICPS) with the ground systems at Kennedy. Tanking operations are scheduled to occur on Thursday, April 14.

Image above: NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket with the Orion spacecraft aboard is seen atop a mobile launcher at Launch Complex 39B, Monday, April 4, 2022, as the Artemis I launch team conducts the wet dress rehearsal test at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Ahead of NASA’s Artemis I flight test, the wet dress rehearsal will run the Artemis I launch team through operations to load propellant, conduct a full launch countdown, demonstrate the ability to recycle the countdown clock, and drain the tanks to practice timelines and procedures for launch. Image Credits: NASA/Joel Kowsky.

Meteorologists with the U.S. Space Force 45th Space Wing predict favorable weather for propellant loading operations.  Weather constraints stipulate there must be less than a 20% chance lightning within 5 nautical miles of pad during the first hour of tanking. Winds also must not be above 37.5 knots and the temperature cannot be below 41 degrees Fahrenheit.

Overnight, teams will power up Orion and the Space Launch System core stage, charge core stage battery, and prepare the four RS-25 engines, which will not be lit during the test.

During the test, the timing for some events on account of several planned operational demonstrations tied to specific capabilities and test objectives may differ from the day of launch countdown. These demonstrations include tests on the cryogenic systems and an approximately three-minute hold inside the terminal count, which would not normally occur on launch day. If needed, the test team may also hold as necessary to verify conditions before resuming the countdown, or use the test window or extend beyond it, if consumables and resources allow them to complete test objectives.

In addition to updates on this blog, NASA will provide live updates on the Exploration Ground Systems Twitter account. NASA is also streaming live video of the rocket and spacecraft at Launch Pad 39B on the Kennedy Newsroom YouTube channel. Activity at the launch pad will likely not be visible during the majority of the countdown, but some venting may be seen during tanking on April 14.

Related articles:

NASA Prepares for Next Artemis I Wet Dress Rehearsal Attempt
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2022/04/nasa-prepares-for-next-artemis-i-wet.html

Artemis I WDR Update: Go to Proceed for Tanking – Countdown Resumes
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2022/04/artemis-i-wdr-update-go-to-proceed-for.html

NASA ‘Go’ for Artemis I Wet Dress Rehearsal
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2022/03/nasa-go-for-artemis-i-wet-dress.html

Standing tall: Moon rocket milestone for Artemis
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2022/03/standing-tall-moon-rocket-milestone-for.html

NASA Readies Rocket for Artemis I Wet Dress Rehearsal
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2022/03/nasa-readies-rocket-for-artemis-i-wet.html

Related links:

Space Launch System (SLS): https://www.nasa.gov/exploration/systems/sls/index.html

Orion spacecraft: https://www.nasa.gov/exploration/systems/orion/index.html

Artemis I: https://www.nasa.gov/artemis-1

Image (mentioned), Text, Credit: NASA.

Best regards, Orbiter.ch

NASA, UAE Mars Missions Agree to Share Science Data

 

NASA - Goddard Space Flight Center logo.

April 12, 2022

NASA’s MAVEN mission and the United Arab Emirates’ Hope Probe mission are paving the way toward greater scientific collaboration and data exchange between the two Mars orbiters.

A new partnership that encourages the sharing of data between NASA’s MAVEN (Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution) project and the Emirates Mars Mission’s (EMM) Hope Probe will enhance scientific returns from both spacecraft, which are currently orbiting Mars and collecting data on the Red Planet’s atmosphere. The arrangement is expected to add value to both MAVEN and EMM, as well as the scientific communities involved in analyzing the data the missions collect.

Artist’s rendition of the MAVEN spacecraft in orbit around Mars. Image Credit: NASA

MAVEN went into orbit around Mars in 2014. Its mission is to investigate the upper atmosphere and ionosphere of Mars, offering an insight into how the planet’s climate has changed over time.

“MAVEN and EMM are each exploring different aspects of the Martian atmosphere and upper-atmosphere system,” said Shannon Curry, MAVEN principal investigator from the University of California, Berkeley. “Combined, we will have a much better understanding of the coupling between the two, and the influence of the lower atmosphere on the escape to space of gas from the upper atmosphere.”

Image above: A rendition of the Emirates Mars Mission "Hope Probe" in orbit around Mars. Image Credit: UAE Space Agency.

The EMM Hope Probe, which went into Mars orbit in 2021, is studying the relationship between the upper layer and lower regions of the Martian atmosphere, giving insight into the planet’s atmosphere at different times of the day and seasons.

“Since the inception of EMM, the project has been defined by strong international collaborations and partnerships,” said Omran Sharaf, project director of EMM. “The opportunity to work alongside other Mars missions and derive greater insights by sharing our observations and working together to fit together the pieces of the puzzle is one we are delighted to take.”

MAVEN’s principal investigator is based at the University of California, Berkeley, while NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, manages the MAVEN project. Lockheed Martin Space built the spacecraft and is responsible for mission operations. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, provides navigation and Deep Space Network support.

For more information on the NASA’s MAVEN mission, visit: https://www.nasa.gov/maven

Related links:

Emirates Mars Mission’s (EMM): https://www.emiratesmarsmission.ae/mission/about-emm/

Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC): https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/home/index.html

Images (mentioned), Text, Credits: NASA/Bill Steigerwald/GSFC/Nancy Jones.

Greetings, Orbiter.ch

China is hatching a plan to find Earth 2.0

 

Chinese Academy of Sciences logo.

 

 April 12, 2022

A satellite will scour the Milky Way for exoplanets orbiting stars just like the Sun.

Image above: China is planning its first space mission to survey the skies for exoplanets similar to Kepler-186f, an Earth-size planet orbiting a distant star (artist’s impression). Image Credits: NASA Ames/JPL-Caltech/T. Pyle.

After sending robots to the Moon, landing them on Mars and building its own space station, China is now eyeing distant solar systems. This month, scientists will release detailed plans for the country’s first mission to discover exoplanets.

The mission will aim to survey planets outside the Solar System in other parts of the Milky Way, with the goal of finding the first Earth-like planet orbiting in the habitable zone of a star just like the Sun. Astronomers think such a planet, called an Earth 2.0, would have the right conditions for liquid water — and possibly life — to exist.

More than 5,000 exoplanets have already been discovered in the Milky Way, mostly with NASA’s Kepler telescope, which was in use for 9 years before it ran out of fuel in 2018. Some of the planets were rocky Earth-like bodies orbiting small red-dwarf stars, but none fit the definition of an Earth 2.0.

With current technology and telescopes, it is extremely hard to find the signal of small, Earth-like planets when their host stars are one million times heavier and one billion times brighter, says Jessie Christiansen, an astrophysicist at the NASA Exoplanet Science Institute at California Institute of Technology in Pasadena.

The Chinese mission, called Earth 2.0, hopes to change that. It will be funded by the Chinese Academy of Sciences and is wrapping up its early design phase. If the designs pass a review by a panel of experts in June, the mission team will receive funding to start building the satellite. The team plans to launch the spacecraft on a Long March rocket before the end of 2026.

Seven eyes

The Earth 2.0 satellite is designed to carry seven telescopes that will observe the sky for four years. Six of the telescopes will work together to survey the Cygnus–Lyra constellations, the same patch of sky that the Kepler telescope scoured. “The Kepler field is a low-hanging fruit, because we have very good data from there,” says Jian Ge, the astronomer leading the Earth 2.0 mission at the Shanghai Astronomical Observatory of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

The telescopes will look for exoplanets by detecting small changes in a star’s brightness that indicate that a planet has passed in front of it. Using multiple small telescopes together gives scientists a wider field of view than a single, large telescope such as Kepler. Earth 2.0’s 6 telescopes will together stare at about 1.2 million stars across a 500-square-degree patch of sky, which is about 5 times wider than Kepler’s view was. At the same time, Earth 2.0 will be able to observe dimmer and more distant stars than does NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), which surveys bright stars near Earth.

“Our satellite can be 10–15 times more powerful than NASA’s Kepler telescope in its sky-surveying capacity,” says Ge.

The satellite’s seventh instrument will be a gravitational microlensing telescope for surveying rogue planets — free-roaming celestial objects that don’t orbit any star — and exoplanets that are far from their star similar to Neptune. It will detect changes in starlight when the gravity of a planet or star warps the light of a background star that it is passing in front of. The telescope will target the centre of the Milky Way where massive numbers of stars are located. If successfully launched, this would be the first gravitational microlensing telescope that operates from space, says Ge.

“Our satellite can essentially conduct a census that identifies exoplanets of different sizes, masses and ages. The mission will provide a good collection of exoplanet samples for future research,” he says.

Doubling the data

NASA launched Kepler in 2009, aiming to find out how common Earth-like planets are in the Galaxy. To confirm that an exoplanet is Earth-like, astronomers need to measure the time it takes to orbit its sun. Such planets should have an orbital period similar to Earth’s and transit their suns about once a year. Chelsea Huang, an astrophysicist at the University of Southern Queensland in Toowoomba, says that scientists need at least three transits to work out a precise orbital period, which takes about three years of data, and sometimes more, if there are data gaps.

But four years into the Kepler mission, parts of the instrument failed, rendering the telescope unable to stare at one patch of the sky over an extended period of time. Kepler was on the cusp of finding some truly Earth-like planets, says Huang, who has worked with the Earth 2.0 team as a data-simulation consultant.

With Earth 2.0, astronomers could have another four years of data that, when combined with Kepler’s observations, could help to confirm which exoplanets are truly Earth-like. “I am very excited about the prospect of returning to the Kepler field,” says Christiansen, who hopes to study Earth 2.0’s data if they are made available.

Ge hopes to find a dozen Earth 2.0 planets. He says he plans to publish the data within one or two years of their collection. “There will be a lot of data, so we need all the hands we can get,” he says. The team already has about 300 scientists and engineers, mostly from China, but Ge hopes more astronomers worldwide will join. “Earth 2.0 is an opportunity for better international collaboration.”

The European Space Agency is also planning an exoplanet mission — called Planetary Transits and Oscillations of Stars (PLATO) — that is scheduled to launch in 2026. PLATO’s design has 26 telescopes, meaning that it will have a much larger field of view than Earth 2.0. But the satellite will shift its gaze every two years to observe different regions of the sky.

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-022-01025-2

Chinese Academy of Sciences: https://english.cas.cn/

Image (mentioned), Text, Credits: Nature/Yvaine Ye.

Best regards, Orbiter.ch