ScientistPankaj: Voyager 1 spacecraft phones home with transmitter that hasn't been used since 1981

Thursday, October 31, 2024

Voyager 1 spacecraft phones home with transmitter that hasn't been used since 1981

Voyager 1 phones home with transmitter unused since 1981 | Space Quiz! Other than Earth, what is the only other body in the solar system to possess an atmosphere as well as liquid rivers, lakes and seas? | Apollo astronaut Buzz Aldrin endorses Trump for president

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October 31, 2024

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The Launchpad

Voyager 1 phones home with transmitter unused since 1981

(NASA)

Following recent communication issues, NASA's Voyager 1 spacecraft resorted to using a backup radio transmitter that has been inactive since 1981.

The interstellar explorer experienced a brief pause in communications after putting itself in a protective state to conserve power. This was triggered by a command sent on Oct. 16 from NASA's Deep Space Network (DSN) — a global array of giant radio antennas — instructing the spacecraft to turn on one of its heaters.

Full Story: Space (10/30)

Space Quiz! Other than Earth, what is the only other body in the solar system to possess an atmosphere as well as liquid rivers, lakes and seas?

Learn the answer here!

Apollo astronaut Buzz Aldrin endorses Trump for president

(NASA)

One of the United States' most famous space explorers is backing Donald Trump for president. Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin, the second person ever to walk on the moon, endorsed Trump in a statement today (Oct. 30), less than a week before the Nov. 5 presidential election.

Full Story: Space (10/30)

Skywatching

Astrophotographer captures Tsuchinshan-ATLAS anti-tail

(Miguel Claro)

This close-up image of comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) was taken from the Dark Sky Alqueva reserve in Portugal on Oct. 13, 2024 when the comet was displaying an impressive level of brightness and details, as well as a cool 'anti-tail.'

Full Story: Space (10/30)

Spaceflight

NASA to resume ISS spacewalks in 2025 after spacesuit leak

(NASA)

NASA plans to resume spacewalks on the space station in 2025 after a leaky spacesuit suspended those activities in June. "We are planning our next set ... early next year," Bill Spetch, operations and integration manager of NASA's International Space Station (ISS) program, said of spacewalks during a press conference Oct. 25 following the conclusion of SpaceX's Crew-8 mission to the orbiting complex.

Full Story: Space (10/30)

Science & Astronomy

1st image of our Milky Way's black hole may be inaccurate

(Event Horizon Telescope collaboration)

Although our local cosmic abyss, named Sgr A* (short for Sagittarius A*), resides just 26,000 light-years from Earth, it has proven to be a very difficult object to image. This is thanks in part to material whipping around it at near light-speeds. However, after years of trying, scientists with the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) project succeeded in 2022.The black hole's silhouette emerged from the shadows, appearing like a fuzzy orange doughnut.

Yet now, an independent analysis of the EHT data suggests part of the image's doughnut-like appearance may be an artifact due to the way it was put together. This discovery owes itself to a trio of scientists at the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ).

Full Story: Space (10/30)

SpaceX

Astronaut snaps spooky photo of SpaceX Dragon capsule

(NASA/Don Pettit)

The black-and-white image shows the belly of the Dragon, including windows with filters on board to lessen the bright sun. "I like how the sun shines through the stitching, personifying the composition," Pettit wrote Oct. 24 on X, formerly Twitter.

Full Story: Space (10/30)

Technology

Debris from satellite breakup threatens other spacecraft

(Boeing)

Debris from an exploded telecommunications satellite is spreading across geosynchronous orbit, threatening other spacecraft in this precious region of space, an animation by a leading space situational awareness firm suggests. The animation by Pennsylvania-based COMSPOC is a "notional" representation of the aftermath of the breakup of Intelsat 33e, which took place on Oct. 19.

Full Story: Space (10/30)

Search for Life

Saturn's moon Titan may have a 6-mile-thick crust of ice

(Robert Lea (created with Canva))

Scientists have discovered that the icy shell of Saturn's largest moon, Titan, could possess an insulated, six-mile-thick (9.7-kilometer-thick) layer of methane ice beneath its surface. Ironically, this layer may make signs of life from the subsurface ocean of Titan easier to detect. And, down the line, the discovery could benefit the fight against human-driven climate change on Earth.

Full Story: Space (10/30)