Hubble observes exoplanet atmosphere in more detail than ever before

ESA - Hubble Space Telescope logo.

1 March 2018

An international team of scientists has used the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope to study the atmosphere of the hot exoplanet WASP-39b. By combining this new data with older data they created the most complete study yet of an exoplanet atmosphere. The atmospheric composition of WASP-39b hints that the formation processes of exoplanets can be very different from those of our own Solar System giants.

Wasp-39b and its parent star (artist’s impression)

Investigating exoplanet atmospheres can provide new insight into how and where planets form around a star. “We need to look outward to help us understand our own Solar System,” explains lead investigator Hannah Wakeford from the University of Exeter in the UK and the Space Telescope Science Institute in the USA.

Therefore the British-American team combined the capabilities of the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope with those of other ground- and space-based telescopes for a detailed study of the exoplanet WASP-39b. They have produced the most complete spectrum of an exoplanet’s atmosphere possible with present-day technology [1].

WASP-39b is orbiting a Sun-like star, about 700 light-years from Earth. The exoplanet is classified as a “Hot-Saturn”, reflecting both its mass being similar to the planet Saturn in our own Solar System and its proximity to its parent star. This study found that the two planets, despite having a similar mass, are profoundly different in many ways. Not only is WASP-39b not known to have a ring system, it also has a puffy atmosphere that is free of high-altitude clouds. This characteristic allowed Hubble to peer deep into its atmosphere.

By dissecting starlight filtering through the planet’s atmosphere [2] the team found clear evidence for atmospheric water vapour. In fact, WASP-39b has three times as much water as Saturn does. Although the researchers had predicted they would see water vapour, they were surprised by the amount that they found. This surprise, combined with the water abundance allowed to infer the presence of large amount of heavier elements in the atmosphere. This in turn suggests that the planet was bombarded by a lot of icy material which gathered in its atmosphere. This kind of bombardment would only be possible if WASP-39b formed much further away from its host star than it is right now.

Comprehensive Spectrum of WASP-39b

“WASP-39b shows exoplanets are full of surprises and can have very different compositions than those of our Solar System,” says co-author David Sing from the University of Exeter, UK.

The analysis of the atmospheric composition and the current position of the planet indicate that WASP-39b most likely underwent an interesting inward migration, making an epic journey across its planetary system. “Exoplanets are showing us that planet formation is more complicated and more confusing than we thought it was. And that’s fantastic!”, adds Wakeford.

Having made its incredible inward journey WASP-39b is now eight times closer to its parent star, WASP-39, than Mercury is to the Sun and it takes only four days to complete an orbit. The planet is also tidally locked, meaning it always shows the same side to its star. Wakeford and her team measured the temperature of WASP-39b to be a scorching 750 degrees Celsius. Although only one side of the planet faces its parent star, powerful winds transport heat from the bright side around the planet, keeping the dark side almost as hot.

“Hopefully this diversity we see in exoplanets will help us figure out all the different ways a planet can form and evolve,” explains David Sing.

Hubble Space Telescope

Looking ahead, the team wants to use the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope — scheduled to launch in 2019 — to capture an even more complete spectrum of the atmosphere of WASP-39b. James Webb will be able to collect data about the planet’s atmospheric carbon, which absorbs light of longer wavelengths than Hubble can see [3]. Wakeford concludes: “By calculating the amount of carbon and oxygen in the atmosphere, we can learn even more about where and how this planet formed.”

Notes:

[1] Data used to produce the full spectrum was also collected by NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope and ESO’s Very Large Telescope. In addition older data from Hubble were used.

[2] When starlight passes through the atmosphere of an exoplanet, it interacts with the atoms and molecules in it. This leaves a weak fingerprint of the atmosphere in the spectrum of the star. Certain peaks and troughs in the resulting spectrum correspond to specific atoms and molecules, allowing scientists to see exactly what gases make up the atmosphere.

[3] Given the large amount of heavy elements in WASP-39b’s atmosphere, Wakeford and her team predict that carbon dioxide will be the dominant form of carbon. This could be measured at a wavelength of 4.5 micrometres with James Webb’s NIRSpec instrument. Such follow-up investigations would allow further constraints to be placed on the ratio of carbon to oxygen, and on the metallicity of WASP-39b’s atmosphere.

More information:

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

The international team of astronomers in this study consists of H.R. Wakeford (University of Exeter, UK; Space Telescope Science Institute, USA), D.K. Sing (University of Exeter, UK), D. Deming (University of Maryland, USA), N.K. Lewis (Space Telescope Science Institute, USA), J. Goyal (University of Exeter, UK), T.J. Wilson (University of Exeter, UK), J. Barstow (University College London, UK), T. Kataria (NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, USA), B. Drummond (University of Exeter, UK), T.M. Evans (University of Exeter, UK), A.L. Carter (University of Exeter, UK), N. Nikolov (University of Exeter, UK), H.A. Knutson (California Institute of Technology, USA), G.E. Ballester (University of Arizona, USA), A.M. Mandell (NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, USA).

Links:

Images of Hubble: http://www.spacetelescope.org/images/archive/category/spacecraft/

Hubblesite release: http://hubblesite.org/news_release/news/2018-09

Science paper: http://www.spacetelescope.org/static/archives/releases/science_papers/heic1804/heic1804a.pdf

NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope: http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/

ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT): https://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/vlt/

NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope: http://sci.esa.int/jwst/

James Webb’s NIRSpec instrument: http://sci.esa.int/jwst/45694-nirspec-the-near-infrared-spectrograph/

Images, Animation, Text, Credits: NASA, ESA, G. Bacon and A. Feild (STScI), and H. Wakeford (STScI/Univ. of Exeter).

Best regards, Orbiter.ch

Mars Express views moons set against Saturn's rings

ESA - Mars Express Mission patch.

1 March 2018

New images and video from ESA’s Mars Express show Phobos and Deimos drifting in front of Saturn and background stars, revealing more about the positioning and surfaces of the Red Planet’s mysterious moons.

Phobos surface

Mars’ two small moons are intriguing objects. While we know something of their size, appearance and position thanks to spacecraft such as ESA’s Mars Express, much remains unknown. How and where did they form? What are they made of? What exactly is on their surfaces – and could we send a lander to find out?

Mars Express has been studying Mars and its moons for many years. The satellite recently observed both Phobos, Mars’ innermost and largest moon at up to 26 km in diameter, and Deimos, Phobos’ smaller sibling at 6.2 km in diameter, to produce this new video and series of images.

The video combines 30 images as individual frames and shows Phobos passing through the frame with the gas giant planet Saturn, which sits roughly a billion kilometres away, visible as a small ringed dot in the background.

Precise positioning

Phobos surface sequence

Mars Express has been working for more than 14 years at the Red Planet. While several other spacecraft are currently at Mars, including ESA’s ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter, Mars Express’ near-polar elliptical orbit gives it some advantages for certain observations.

In particular, its path takes it closer to Phobos than any other spacecraft, and allows it to periodically observe the moon close up from within 150 km – in the summer of 2017, it came as close as 115 km.

The images of Phobos and Saturn comprising the video were taken on 26 November 2016 by the High Resolution Stereo Camera. Mars Express was travelling at about 3 km/s when it obtained these views, highlighting the importance of knowing Phobos’ exact position: the spacecraft had just seconds to image the rocky body as it passed by.

Scientists repeatedly refine our knowledge of the moons’ positioning in the sky and ensure it is up-to-date by observing each moon against background reference stars and other Solar System bodies. These calculated positions are incredibly precise, and can be accurate to just a couple of kilometres.

Studying the surface

These images are also key to understanding the surface and structure of the moons. Alongside the view of Phobos set against Saturn, Mars Express also obtained images of Phobos against a reference star on 8 January 2018 (star circled in red), close-up images of Phobos’ pockmarked surface on 12 September 2017, and images of Deimos with Saturn on 15 January 2018.

Phobos and background star

The frames of Phobos’ surface were taken during close flybys, and show the bumpy, irregular and dimpled surface in detail. Phobos has one of the largest impact craters relative to body size in the Solar System: Stickney crater’s 9 km diameter is around a third of the moon’s diameter. It is visible as the largest crater in these frames.

The same side of the moon always faces the planet, which means multiple flybys are needed to build up a full map of its surface.

Deimos and Saturn

Deimos is visible as an irregular and partially shadowed body in the foreground of one of the new Mars Express images, with the delicate rings of Saturn just about visible encircling the small dot in the background.

Phobos and Saturn

Deimos is significantly further away from Mars than its bigger sibling: while Phobos sits at just 6000 km from the surface, Deimos orbits at nearly 23 500 km. For comparison, our own satellite is around 16 times further from Earth than Deimos is from Mars.

Future missions to Mars

There is much we still wish to know about the Mars system. The moons remain particularly mysterious, with open questions about their origins, formation and composition. As a result, combined with their proximity to the Red Planet, the little moons have generated a lot of interest as a target for future missions.

Mars Express

Phobos in particular has been considered for a possible landing and sample-return mission. Owing to its nearness to Mars and one side always facing its parent, the moon could also be a possible location for a more permanent observation post. This would enable long-term monitoring and study of the martian surface and atmosphere, and communications relay for other spacecraft.

Understanding more about the positioning, surface, composition and terrain of both Phobos and Deimos from Mars Express observations is important for preparing for future missions.

Related links:

ESA’s ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO): http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Space_Science/ExoMars

ESA’s Mars Express: http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Space_Science/Mars_Express

HRSC at DLR: http://www.dlr.de/dlr/en/desktopdefault.aspx/tabid-10364/548_read-400/#/gallery/657

HRSC data viewer: http://hrscview.fu-berlin.de/

Mars Express overview: http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Space_Science/Mars_Express_overview

Behind the lens...: http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Space_Science/Mars_Express/Behind_the_lens

Frequently asked questions: http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Space_Science/Mars_Express/Frequently_asked_questions

Mars Webcam: http://blogs.esa.int/vmc

Images, Video, Text, Credits: ESA/DLR/FU Berlin, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO.

Best regards, Orbiter.ch

Curiosity Tests a New Way to Drill on Mars

NASA - Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) logo.

Feb. 28, 2018

NASA's Mars Curiosity rover has conducted the first test of a new drilling technique on the Red Planet since its drill stopped working reliably.

Curiosity's New Drilling Technique

Video above: After more than a year without the use of the Curiosity Mars rover's drill, engineers have devised a workaround and tested it for the first time on the Red Planet. More testing of the drill method is planned for the future. Video Credits: NASA/JPL.

This early test produced a hole about a half-inch (1-centimeter) deep at a target called Lake Orcadie -- not enough for a full scientific sample, but enough to validate that the new method works mechanically. This was just the first in what will be a series of tests to determine how well the new drill method can collect samples. If this drill had achieved sufficient depth to collect a sample, the team would have begun testing a new sample delivery process, ultimately delivering to instruments inside the rover.

The drill is used for pulverizing rock samples into powder, which are then deposited into two of Curiosity's laboratory instruments, Sample Analysis at Mars, or SAM, and Chemistry and Mineralogy, or CheMin. Curiosity has used its drill to collect samples 15 times since landing in 2012. Then, in December of 2016, a key part of the drill stopped working. The drill was designed to use two finger-like stabilizers to steady itself against rock; a faulty motor prevented the drill bit from extending and retracting between these stabilizers.

After months of effort, Curiosity's engineering team was able to extend the drill all the way out past the stabilizers, but the motor issue persisted. The team posed a challenge for themselves: could they hack the space robot's drill so that it didn't require stabilizers?

Image above: NASA's Curiosity Mars rover used a new drill method to produce a hole on February 26 in a target named Lake Orcadie. The hole marks the first operation of the rover's drill since a motor problem began acting up more than a year ago. Image Credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS.

Images of a new hole on upper Vera Rubin Ridge, Curiosity's current location, suggest this “MacGyvering” is paying off. By leaving the drill in an extended position, engineers were able to practice this freehand drilling for months during testing here on Earth. This hole at Lake Orcadie provides the first insights into how this operation will work in the Martian environment.

If the previous method was like a drill press, holding the bit steady as it extends into a surface, it's now more freehand. The NASA rover is using its entire arm to push the drill forward, re-centering itself while taking measurements with a force sensor. That sensor was originally included to stop the rover's arm if it received a high-force jolt. It now offers Curiosity a vital sense of touch, preventing the drill bit from drifting sideways too much and getting stuck in rock.

"We're now drilling on Mars more like the way you do at home," said Steven Lee, deputy project manager at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California. "Humans are pretty good at re-centering the drill, almost without thinking about it. Programming Curiosity to do this by itself was challenging -- especially when it wasn't designed to do that."

It hasn't been easy. JPL engineers spent many double-shifts testing the new method, including on weekends and holidays. They also had to perform "invasive surgery" on their testbed -- a near-exact replica of Curiosity -- installing a force sensor to match the one on Mars. The Earth-based testbed's sensor had stopped working before Curiosity's launch in 2012, but there had never been reason to replace it before now.

"This is a really good sign for the new drilling method," said Doug Klein of JPL, one of Curiosity's sampling engineers. "Next, we have to drill a full-depth hole and demonstrate our new techniques for delivering the sample to Curiosity's two onboard labs."

Leaving the drill in its extended position means it no longer has access to a device that sieves, portions and delivers the rock powder to the rover's instruments (called Collection and Handling for In-Situ Martian Rock Analysis, or CHIMRA).

CHIMRA: Scoops, Sieves and Delivers Samples

Image above: This false-color engineering drawing shows the Collection and Handling for In-Situ Martian Rock Analysis (CHIMRA) device, attached to the turret at the end of the robotic arm on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover. This device processes samples acquired from the built-in scoop (red) and the drill, which is not shown but is also part of the turret. CHIMRA also delivers samples to the analytical lab instruments inside the rover. Two paths to get material into CHIMRA are shown (the scoop delivers material to the location marked at the bottom, and the drill deposits material to the sample transfer tube shown at top). Also marked are the location of the vibration mechanism used to shake the turret and cause the sample to move inside CHIMRA, and the portion box (yellow) from which the material processed through a sieve is delivered to the analytical lab instruments. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech.

JPL also had to invent a new way to deposit the powder without this device. The new solution makes Curiosity look as though it is adding seasoning to its science, shaking out grains from the drill's bit as if it were tapping salt from a shaker.

This tapping has been successfully tested here on Earth -- but Earth's atmosphere and gravity are very different from that of Mars. Whether rock powder on Mars will fall out in the same volume and in a controlled way has yet to be seen.

In the days ahead, Curiosity's engineers will evaluate the results of this recent test and likely drill again nearby. If enough sample is collected, they will test portioning the sample out, using the rover's Mastcam to estimate how much powder can be shaken from the drill bit.

Though this first test of the drill didn't produce a full sample, Curiosity's science team is excited to see this step on the path back to routine drilling. There's high interest in getting multiple drilled samples from Vera Rubin Ridge, especially from the upper ridge that contains both gray and red rocks. The latter are rich in hematite, an iron oxide mineral that forms in the presence of water. Drilled samples might shed light on the origin of the ridge and the history of its interaction with water.

For more information about Curiosity, visit:

https://www.nasa.gov/curiosity

https://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl

Images (mentioned), Video (mentioned), Text, Credits: NASA/Tony Greicius/JPL/Andrew Good.

Greetings, Orbiter.ch

XMM-Newton spies first clear X-ray flares from massive stellar lighthouse

ESA - XMM-Newton Mission patch.

28 February 2018

In 2014, ESA's XMM-Newton spotted X-rays emanating from the massive star Rho Ophiuchi A and, last year, found these to ebb and flow periodically in the form of intense flares – both unexpected results. The team has now used ESO's Very Large Telescope to find that the star boasts a strong magnetic field, confirming its status as a cosmic lighthouse.

XMM-Newton view of massive star Rho Ophiuchi A

Image above: XMM-Newton view of massive star Rho Ophiuchi A. Credit: ESA/XMM-Newton; I. Pillitteri (INAF–Osservatorio Astronomico di Palermo).

Stars like the Sun are known to produce strong X-ray flares, but massive stars appear to be very different. In stars upwards of eight solar masses X-ray emission is steady, and no such star had been confidently observed to repeatedly flare in this part of the spectrum – until recently.

In 2014, a team of scientists used ESA's XMM-Newton space observatory to observe a massive star named Rho Ophiuchi A. This star sits at the heart of the Rho Ophiuchi Dark Cloud, a nearby region known to be actively forming new stars. Surprisingly, the data showed an abundance of X-rays streaming out from the star, prompting the team to look closer.

"We observed the star with XMM-Newton for almost 40 hours and found something even more unexpected," says Ignazio Pillitteri of the INAF–Osservatorio Astronomico di Palermo, Italy, and leader of the research team.

"Rather than a smooth, steady emission, the X-rays pulsed periodically outwards from Rho Ophiuchi A, varying over a period of roughly 1.2 days as the star rotated – like an X-ray lighthouse! This is quite a new phenomenon in stars bigger than the Sun."

X-ray flares from Rho Ophiuchi A

Animation above: X-ray flares from Rho Ophiuchi A. Credit: ESA/XMM-Newton; I. Pillitteri (INAF–Osservatorio Astronomico di Palermo).

Rho Ophiuchi A is far hotter and more massive than our parent star. It remains unknown how X-rays are generated in such stellar heavyweights; one possibility is a strong intrinsic magnetism, which would be observable via signs of surface magnetism. However, how such a magnetic field would come to be – and how it would be linked to any X-ray emission – remains unclear.

"We guessed that there may be a giant active magnetic spot on the surface of Rho Ophiuchi A – a bit like a sunspot, only far bigger and more stable," adds Pillitteri.

"As the star rotates, this spot would come in and out of view, causing the observed pulsing X-rays. However, this idea was somewhat unlikely; spots on stars form when an interior magnetic field pops out to the surface, and we know that only one in ten massive stars has a measurable magnetic field."

Another way the pulsing 'lighthouse effect' could be created is via a lower-mass orbiting companion that added its own copious X-rays to the light attributed to Rho Ophiuchi A; this X-ray emission would vary in strength as the hypothetical smaller star crossed in front of and behind Rho Ophiuchi A during its 1.2-day orbit. The team also considered this possibility: that Rho Ophiuchi A could have a small, unseen, lower-mass companion in a very tight orbit.

"To find out one way or another, we rushed to get magnetic measurements of Rho Ophiuchi A using one of the largest ground-based telescopes in existence: ESO's Very Large Telescope," says Lida Oskinova of the University of Potsdam, Germany, a member of the international team that conducted the study.

"Excitingly, these measurements confirmed one of our predictions and showed that the X-rays are most likely linked to magnetic structures on the surface of the star."

These measurements were made in visible light using a technique known as spectropolarimetry, which involves studying various wavelengths of polarised light emanating from a star. The data showed Rho Ophiuchi A to have an intense magnetic field some 500 times stronger than that of the Sun.

"Such a strong field is easily capable of producing the kind of flares we spotted," says Pillitteri.

XMM-Newton. Image Credit: ESA

"This confirms that what we discovered using XMM-Newton were indeed X-ray flares on Rho Ophiuchi A, that massive stars can be magnetically active – as shown by the optical observations – and that this activity can be seen in X-rays."

The combined data indicate that Rho Ophiuchi A is the only star of its type to have a confirmed active magnetic region on its surface that emits X-rays. Hunting for similar behaviour in stars like Rho Ophiuchi A will help scientists to understand how prevalent this phenomenon is, and unravel more about the magnetic properties of such stars.

"This study is an important one in our exploration of massive stars – there's much we still don't understand about these objects," says Norbert Schartel, ESA XMM-Newton Project Scientist.

"Together, the extraordinary capabilities of XMM-Newton and the Very Large Telescope have now uncovered another piece of the puzzle."

"As a bonus, it illustrates the process of science very well – of finding something interesting or unusual, investigating and coming up with a few possible hypotheses, and following up with more observation to figure out which is correct. It's a wonderful example of an international collaboration between telescopes, both in orbit and on the ground, working together to explore and explain the phenomena we see throughout the cosmos."

Notes for editors:

These findings are described in three papers published in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics: "Smooth X-ray variability from ρ Ophiuchi A+B: A strongly magnetized primary B2 star?" by Pillitteri et al. (2014), doi: 10.1051/0004-6361/201424243; "The early B-type star Rho Ophiuchi A is an X-ray lighthouse" by Pillitteri et al. (2017), doi: 10.1051/0004-6361/201630070; and "Detection of magnetic field in the B2 star ρ Oph A with ESO FORS2" by Pillitteri et al. (2018), doi: 10.1051/0004-6361/201732078.

https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/201424243
https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/201630070
https://dx.doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/201732078

More information about ESA's XMM-Newton mission can be found here: http://sci.esa.int/xmm-newton

The optical observations were performed using the FOcal Reducer/low dispersion Spectrograph 2 (FORS2) instrument on the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope, located in Chile. http://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/vlt/vlt-instr/fors/

Images (Mentioned), Animation (mentioned), Text, Credits: ESA/Norbert Schartel/Institute of Physics and Astronomy, University of Potsdam/Lida Oskinova/INAF–Osservatorio Astronomico di Palermo/Ignazio Pillitteri.

Best regards, Orbiter.ch

Touchdown! Three Expedition 54 Crewmates Back on Earth

ROSCOSMOS - Soyuz MS-06 Mission patch.

February 28, 2018

Three members of the Expedition 54 crew aboard the International Space Station (ISS), including NASA astronauts Mark Vande Hei and Joe Acaba, have returned to Earth after months of performing research and spacewalks in low-Earth orbit.

Vande Hei, Acaba and cosmonaut Alexander Misurkin of the Russian space agency Roscosmos landed at 9:31 p.m. EST (8:31 a.m. Feb. 28 in Kazakhstan) southeast of the remote town of Dzhezkazgan in Kazakhstan.

 Soyuz With Expedition 54 Trio Aboard Returns to Earth

Image above: The Soyuz MS-06 spacecraft is seen as it lands with Expedition 54 crew members Joe Acaba and Mark Vande Hei of NASA and cosmonaut Alexander Misurkin near the town of Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan on Wednesday, Feb. 28, 2018 (Feb. 27 Eastern time). Acaba, Vande Hei, and Misurkin are returning after 168 days in space where they served as members of the Expedition 53 and 54 crews onboard the International Space Station. Image Credits: NASA/Bill Ingalls.

Their time on station marked the beginning of the first long-term increase in crew size on the U.S. segment, enabling NASA to double the time dedicated to research and achieve a record-setting week of research that surpassed 100 hours. Highlights from this research include investigations into the manufacturing of fiber optic filaments in microgravity, improving the accuracy of an implantable glucoses biosensor, and measuring the Sun’s energy input to Earth.

Soyuz MS-06 hatch closure, undocking & landing

The crew also welcomed four cargo spacecraft delivering several tons of supplies and research experiments. Orbital ATK’s Cygnus spacecraft arrived at the station in November on the company’s eighth commercial resupply mission, followed in December by SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft on the company’s thirteenth resupply mission. Two Russian ISS Progress cargo craft arrived at the station in October and February.

Vande Hei logged 168 days in space on this, his first, mission. He ventured outside the space station on four spacewalks to perform work that included replacing and lubricating the Latching End Effectors on both ends of the Canadarm2. Acaba completed one spacewalk to lubricate an end effector and install new cameras on the station’s arm and truss. He now has accrued 306 days in space on three flights. Acaba and Vande Hei also participated in dozens of educational events while in space as part of NASA’s Year of Education on Station.

Image above: NASA astronaut Joe Acaba, Russian cosmonaut Alexander Misurkin and NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei relax after their return trip from the International Space Station to their landing site southeast of the remote town of Dzhezkazgan in Kazakhstan, where they touched down at 9:31 p.m. EST Tuesday, Feb. 27, 2018. Image Credits: NASA/Bill Ingalls.

Misurkin conducted one record-setting spacewalk with fellow cosmonaut Anton Shkaplerov to replace an electronics box for a high-gain communications antenna on the Zvezda service module in February. The spacewalk timed out at 8 hours and 13 minutes, the longest in Russian space program history. Misurkin now has spent 334 days in space on two flights.

Now operating the station are Expedition 55 crew members Commander Anton Shkaplerov of Roscosmos and Flight Engineers Scott Tingle of NASA and Norishige Kanai of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. Astronauts Ricky Arnold and Drew Feustel of NASA, and Oleg Artemyev of Roscosmos are scheduled to launch March 21 and arrive at the space station two days later, returning the crew size to six.

Related links:

Fiber optic filaments: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=7388

Glucoses biosensor: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=7703

Sun’s energy input to Earth: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=1907

NASA’s Year of Education on Station: https://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/stem-on-station/year-of-education.html

Expedition 54: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/expeditions/expedition54/index.html

Expedition 55: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/expeditions/expedition55/index.html

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

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

Images (mentioned), Video, Text, Credits: NASA/Sarah Loff/Mark Garcia/NASA TV/ROSCOSMOS/SciNews.

Greetings, Orbiter.ch

JAXA - Reconnaissance satellite launched by H-2A rocket

JAXA - Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency logo.

February 27, 2018

Image above: A Japanese reconnaissance satellite rode to orbit Tuesday aboard the country's H-IIA carrier rocket. Liftoff, from the Tanegashima Space Centre.

A Japanese H-2A rocket launched Tuesday with a clandestine government-owned satellite to collect sharp-eyed views of North Korea’s missile developments and other global hotspots.

The 174-foot-tall (53-meter) rocket fired its hydrogen-fueled LE-7A main engine and two solid rocket boosters at 0434 GMT Tuesday (11:34 p.m. EST Monday) to fire into space from the Tanegashima Space Center, a launch base carved into a rocky oceanfront outcrop on an island off Japan’s southwestern coast.

Propelled by 1.4 million pounds of thrust, the H-2A rocket climbed through a clear afternoon sky at Tanegashima, where launch occurred at 1:34 p.m. local time Tuesday.

Japanese H-2A Rocket Launches IGS Optical 6 Earth Observation Satellite

The two solid rocket boosters consumed their pre-packed propellants in less than two minutes before falling away to plummet into the Pacific Ocean. The H-2A’s nose shroud jettisoned around four minutes after liftoff, followed by shutdown of the rocket’s first stage engine around six-and-a-half minutes into the flight.

An upper stage LE-5B engine, also burning liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen, ignited to send Japan’s newest Information Gathering Satellite into an orbit that will take it around Earth over the poles.

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, the H-2A rocket’s main contractor, did not provide a live video webcast of the mission. But news media and other spectators near the launch pad streamed the launch live online, and announcements over loudspeakers at the Tanegashima press site confirmed separation of the IGS Optical 6 satellite in orbit.

IGS Optical 6 Earth Observation Satellite

The spacecraft’s specifications, including its imaging performance, are kept secret by the Japanese government. But the government has acknowledged the satellite will join a fleet of Information Gathering Satellites operated by the Cabinet Satellite Intelligence Center, which reports directly to the Japanese government’s executive leadership.

Tuesday’s mission was the 38th flight of an H-2A rocket, and the 12th time an H-2A launcher has lifted off with an Information Gathering Satellite, a record that includes one launch failure. The H-2A rocket flew in the basic “202” configuration with two strap-on solid rocket boosters. Heavier satellites launching on the H-2A sometimes need four boosters to reach orbit.

For more information about Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA): http://global.jaxa.jp/

Images, Video, Text, Credits: JAXA/Spaceflight Now/Stephen Clark/Julian Danzer.

Greetings, Orbiter.ch

Expedition 54 Trio Undocks from Station, Begins Ride Home

ROSCOSMOS - Soyuz MS-06 Mission patch.

February 27, 2018

Image above: Expedition 55 Commander Anton Shkaplerov (foreground) says farewell to his Expedition 54 crewmates inside the Soyuz MS-06 spacecraft that will return them to Earth today. Image Credit: NASA TV.

NASA astronauts Mark Vande Hei and Joe Acaba and Commander Alexander Misurkin of Roscosmos undocked from the International Space Station at 6:08 p.m. EST to begin their voyage home to Earth.

The deborbit burn is targeted for 8:38 p.m., and will lead to a landing at 9:31 p.m. NASA Television coverage of deorbit and landing begins at 8 p.m. Watch their return to Earth online at NASA website.

Their time on station marked the beginning of the first long-term increase in crew size on the U.S. segment from three people to four, enabling NASA to double the time dedicated to research and achieve a record-setting week of research that surpassed 100 hours. Highlights from this research include investigations into the manufacturing of fiber optic filaments in microgravity, improving the accuracy of an implantable glucoses biosensor, and measuring the Sun’s energy input to Earth.

Image above. Soyuz MS-06 spacecraft in free flight after undocked International Space Station (ISS). Image Credit: NASA TV.

This mission was the first spaceflight for Vande Hei, the second for Misurkin, and the third for Acaba. Their cumulative time in space, respectively, is 168 days, 334 days, and 306 days.

With the undocking, Expedition 55 has now begun aboard the station with Anton Shkaplerov of Roscosmos as the Commander and Flight Engineers Scott Tingle of NASA, and Norishige Kanai of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. Three additional crew members arrive on March 23. Ricky Arnold and Drew Feustel of NASA and Oleg Artemyev of Roscosmos will launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on March 21 for a two-day journey to join Expedition 55 on station.

Related links:

NASA TV: http://www.nasa.gov/live

Fiber optic filaments: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=7388

Implantable glucoses biosensor: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=7703

Sun’s energy input to Earth: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/explorer/Investigation.html?#id=1907

Expedition 54: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/expeditions/expedition54/index.html

Expedition 55: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/expeditions/expedition55/index.html

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

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

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

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