MASCOT the asteroid lander is ready for its launch on November 30th

Dear readers and followers,

While Philae sleeps on the comet 67P, the spacecraft MASCOT (Mobile Asteroid Surface Scout) is ready for its launch on 30 November 2014. MASCOT is an asteroid lander developed by +DLR, German Aerospace Center, the Japan space agency +JAXA | 宇宙航空研究開発機構 and the French space agency, +CNES. 

In 2018 the Japanese Hayabusa 2 Mission will feature an asteroid landing and will, for the first time, allow for data acquisition at various points of this kind of celestial body, assisted by MASCOT , the hopping landing craft developed by the German Aerospace Center.  

Credit image: +DLR, German Aerospace Center

The plan is to send the orbiter to its destination in 2014. Upon arrival in 2018, the spacecraft will initially remain in orbit to scout the unknown terrain. A stable, yet extremely light cover will protect the shoe box-sized lander as it falls to the asteroid’s surface. The four instruments designed to conduct in situ measurements on the asteroid are located inside the DLR landing craft:

• the infrared spectrometer that will analyse the surface composition
• magnetometer to investigate the magnetic field
• a wide-angle camera to record the landing site and the fine structure of the soil
• a radiometer that will measure surface temperatures, among other things.

Once the initial measurements are complete, MASCOT will hop to the next measurement site, providing scientists with data from different positions on asteroid on 1999 JU 3, gathered over two asteroid days and nights. During its mission, the landing craft will be monitored from the DLR Microgravity User Support Center (MUSC).

Credit image: +JAXA | 宇宙航空研究開発機構 

1999 JU3 is an Apollo asteroid. The asteroid was discovered in 1999 by the LINEAR project. The Apollo asteroids are a group of near-Earth asteroids named after 1862 Apollo, the first asteroid of this group which was discovered by Karl Wilhelm Reinmuth. 

Source: +CNES

Remember that this blog is free, but you can support us with Flattr

Stay tuned

Press conference of The French Space Agency about the safety and the location of Philae after its landing

Dear readers and followers,

after the successful touch-down of the lander Philae on the comet 67P Churyumov Gerasimenko yesterday! The french space agency is doing a conference from Toulouse, France, to clarify all the technical points and the safety of the Philae spacecraft since the landing! Sorry for English people, the video is in french.

Credit image: +CNES 

Touchdown was planned to take place at a speed of around 1 m/s after its separation from Rosseta, with the three-legged landing gear absorbing the impact to prevent rebound, and an ice screw in each foot driving into the surface.

But during the final health checks of the lander before separation, a problem was detected with the small thruster on top that was designed to counteract the recoil of the harpoons to push the lander down onto the surface. The conditions of landing, including whether or not the thruster performed, along with the exact location of Philae on the comet are being analysed.

The lander seems be close to a kind of cave which stop its moves after two bound since its this touch-down. 8/10 scientific instruments are working normally for the moment. The two other stay off for the moment because they need to move and drill the comet. For safety of the lander, engineer are still working and analyzing data to determine if they will activate the 2 last instruments.

Credit image: ESA/ROSETTA/PHILAE/CIVA

Source: +European Space Agency, ESA & +CNES


Remember that this blog is free, but you can support us with Flattr


Stay tuned

59th straight success for Ariane 5 from Kourou

Dear followers and readers,

last Saturday, March 22th 2014, the European space rocket, Ariane 5, performed with success a flawless launch from Europe’s spaceport at Kourou, French guiana. The space rocket orbited two telecommunications satellites, ASTRA 5B and Amazonas 4A. The flight was the European launcher’s 59th straight success since 2003. 

Credit image: CNES 

Stay tuned

Follow and participate to the live Hangout with the director of Rosetta mission from CNES

Source: CNES 

Participate and ask your questions on twitter with #CNEStalks ! 

Kate Upton in weightlessness with the Zero-G aircraft

Dear readers,

the model Kate Upton is very well known, and we don't have to present her. But this week, the model and the science have been united to experiment the zero gravity. The experiment took place on-board a +Boeing+ plane, the B727. In Europe the +CNES (French Space Agency) work with a similar gear, but in a +Airbus Group plane, A300-Zero-G. The A300 Zero-g looks very much like a conventional aircraft, with a few special modifications dedicated for this experiment.

Theweightlessness is attained through a series of aerobatic maneuvers known as parabolas, where the pilot pulls the plane up at 45 degrees to an altitude around 8500 meters, and then pushes the aircraft into a descent to create zero gravity for 20-30 seconds.

Since 2003, the A300 Zero-g is used by +European Space Agency, ESA and the +CNES for their research programs to keep track of main cryogenic propulsion stages falling backing to Earth during Ariane 5 launches. 

But this time, the model Kate Upton defied gravity for the Sports Illustrated’s 2014 Swimsuit Issue. And it was insanely awesome. Enjoy the picture and the video:

Credit image : +Sports Illustrated 

Source

The short list of the landing of the next Mission InSight on Mars surface selected

Dear followers,

+NASA has announced that the number of potential landing site for the next mission to the surface of Mars is now focus on four locations. After the current success of Curiosity and its one news for research on the red planet, the mission InSight ( Interior Exploration Using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport) is scheduled to launch in March 2016 and land on Mars's surface six months later. 

Credits: +NASA / +NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory 

"This mission's science goals are not related to any specific location on Mars because we're studying the planet as a whole, down to its core," said Bruce Banerdt, InSight principal investigator at +NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory . For this main reasons, the  "mission safety and survival are what drive our criteria for a landing site."

During its mission, InSight rover will deploy a seismometer on the Mars' surface and will use its radio for scientific measurements.

Credits: +NASA / +NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory 

+NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory  manages InSight for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. The French space agency, +CNES (Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales), and the German Aerospace Center are contributing instruments to the mission. Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver, is building the spacecraft.

Source: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/insight/news/insight20130904.html#.Ui1kktJFBpD

Successful Ariane 5 liftoff with ATV-4

Dear followers,

Yesterday we said you that the European space rocket, Ariane 5, built by +Arianespace, will liftoff from Kourou on the evening. The space launcher had carried with success the 4th resupply cargo spacecraft, ATV to the International Space Station (ISS).  The successful launch occurred as scheduled from Kourou, the Guiana Space Centre at 18:52 local time (23:52 CET).

Credis: CNES

The ATV control center at CNES (French space agency) in Toulouse is buzzing with activity after the cargo spacecraft weighing more than 20 tonnes was orbited. it's a new launch mass record for Europe’s heavy-lift vehicle. The ATV-4 is carrying equipment, food, fuel and oxygen for the station’s crew.

Now, the ATV-4 is slowly moving to the ISS, where it is scheduled to dock on 15 June.

More details of the docking will be releave soon, so stay tune