Tva Ganir

Rabu, 06 April 2022

SpaceX rolls Falcon 9 rocket, Dragon capsule out to pad for Ax-1 astronaut launch (photos) - Space.com

The hardware that will launch the first-ever all-private astronaut mission to the International Space Station has made its way to the pad.

On Tuesday (April 5), SpaceX rolled the Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon capsule that will fly the Ax-1 mission out to Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida. SpaceX posted photos of the rollout on Twitter (opens in new tab).

Ax-1, which was organized by Houston company Axiom Space, is scheduled to lift off on Friday (April 8). It will send three paying customers and Axiom employee Michael López-Alegría, a former NASA astronaut who's commanding the mission, to the orbiting lab for an eight-day stay.

Photos: The first space tourists
Live updates: The Ax-1 private mission to the International Space Station

Another look at the Ax-1 Dragon and Falcon 9 during their rollout on April 5, 2022. (Image credit: SpaceX via Twitter)

Private citizens have visited the station before, but they've always flown alongside government astronauts — specifically, employees of Roscosmos, Russia's federal space agency. Ax-1 will therefore blaze a new trail.

The coming mission isn't the first all-private crewed trip to Earth orbit, however. That distinction belongs to Inspiration4, a SpaceX flight purchased and commanded by tech entrepreneur Jared Isaacman. He and three other people circled our planet for nearly three days last September aboard a Dragon capsule, but they didn't meet up with the space station.

Ax-1's launch had been targeted for Sunday (April 3), but it was pushed back to accommodate the "wet dress rehearsal" of NASA's Artemis 1 moon mission, which was held that same weekend at KSC's Pad 39B.

More delays for NASA's moon rocket test, fueling stalled - The Peterborough Examiner

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA’s dress rehearsal for its mega moon rocket is off until at least this weekend because of a pair of technical problems that kept stalling a fueling test.

Launch managers tried twice — once Sunday and again Monday — to load nearly 1 million gallons of fuel into the 322-foot (98-meter) rocket known as Space Launch System, or SLS. Balky fans at the launch pad thwarted the first effort, while an improperly closed valve halted the second attempt.

The countdown test is the last major milestone before the rocket’s long-awaited launch debut. The Orion crew capsule atop the rocket will be hurled to the moon in a passenger-less test flight, looping around but not landing before returning to Earth. NASA is targeting June, depending on how the demo goes.

“We didn’t get through everything we wanted, but certainly learned a great deal that we’ll take into our next attempt,” said NASA’s Jim Free, who’s in charge of exploration systems development.

Speaking Tuesday at the Space Foundation’s annual conference in Colorado Springs, Free said the launch team will wait until SpaceX launches four private passengers to the International Space Station before taking another crack at the fueling test. Liftoff is scheduled for Friday from Kennedy Space Center, barely a mile from the pad holding the SLS rocket.

Managers declined to specify a date for the next SLS fueling attempt, but noted they would not have to start the test from scratch.

The dress rehearsal began Friday and should have lasted just two days. A severe thunderstorm resulted in four lightning strikes at the pad Saturday, but officials did not believe that caused any of the technical problems. They described the problems as nuisances — not design issues.

“The rocket is fine. The spacecraft (capsule) is fine. We’ve just got to get through the test and the test objectives,“ mission manager Mike Sarafin told reporters.

After this first moonshot in NASA’s Artemis program, NASA will send a crew around the moon in 2024 and then attempt the first lunar landing by astronauts in 2025 or so. Astronauts last walked on the moon in 1972 during NASA’s Apollo program.

___

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Adblock test (Why?)

https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMitAFodHRwczovL3d3dy50aGVwZXRlcmJvcm91Z2hleGFtaW5lci5jb20vdHMvbmV3cy93b3JsZC91cy8yMDIyLzA0LzA1L21vcmUtZGVsYXlzLWZvci1uYXNhcy1tb29uLXJvY2tldC10ZXN0LWZ1ZWxpbmctc3RhbGxlZC5odG1sP2xpX3NvdXJjZT1MSSZsaV9tZWRpdW09dGhlcGV0ZXJib3JvdWdoZXhhbWluZXJfd29ybGTSAQA?oc=5

2022-04-05 20:08:38Z
CBMitAFodHRwczovL3d3dy50aGVwZXRlcmJvcm91Z2hleGFtaW5lci5jb20vdHMvbmV3cy93b3JsZC91cy8yMDIyLzA0LzA1L21vcmUtZGVsYXlzLWZvci1uYXNhcy1tb29uLXJvY2tldC10ZXN0LWZ1ZWxpbmctc3RhbGxlZC5odG1sP2xpX3NvdXJjZT1MSSZsaV9tZWRpdW09dGhlcGV0ZXJib3JvdWdoZXhhbWluZXJfd29ybGTSAQA

Russians 'blindsided' by spacesuit controversy: NASA astronaut - CTV News

The three Russian astronauts who boarded the International Space Station last month in spacesuits that echoed the colours of Ukraine's flag were paying tribute to their university and not protesting Russia's invasion, NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei said Tuesday.

The yellow and blue spacesuits surprised many observers, who assumed the Russians were showing support for Ukraine. However, the three cosmonauts are all graduates of Bauman Moscow State Technical University, which has yellow and blue in its emblem.

Vande Hei said cosmonauts Oleg Artemyev, Denis Matveev and Sergey Korsakov were caught off guard by the controversy over their spacesuits.

"All three of them happened to be associated with the same university, and I think they were kind of blindsided by it," he said at a press conference.

Vande Hei said he didn't shy away from discussing the war with his ISS crewmates.

"They weren't very long discussions, but I did ask them how they were feeling and sometimes asked pointed questions, but our focus was on our mission together."

Vande Hei landed in Kazakhstan in a Russian Soyuz MS-19 spacecraft on March 30 after a record-breaking 355 days spent in space. He traveled back from the space station with cosmonauts Anton Shkaplerov and Pyotr Dubrov.

GEOPOLITICAL TENSIONS

His return from the ISS was highly anticipated and drew unprecedented attention because of mounting geopolitical tensions fueled by Russian space agency chief Dmitry Rogozin, who made several fiery social media posts directed at the United States.

This included Rogozin retweeting a partially animated video that appeared to threaten that Russian astronauts would abandon Vande Hei in space. Rogozin also engaged in a Twitter spat with retired NASA astronaut Scott Kelly, who held the record for the longest stint in space by a US astronaut until Vande Hei surpassed him.

Vande Hei said he heard about the tweets from his wife. "I never perceived those tweets as anything to take seriously," he said, adding he saw the tweets as aimed at a "different audience" other than him.

"I just didn't spend a lot of emotional energy paying attention to it. I heard about it. I kind of laughed it off and moved on," he said.

On Saturday, Rogozin suggested in a series of tweets that Russia might end cooperation with the ISS due to international sanctions on Moscow and said Russia would prepare "concrete proposals to our country's leadership" on the possibility of ending cooperation at the ISS with the space agencies of the U.S., Canada, the European Union and Japan.

NASA said, "the professional relationship between our international partners, astronauts and cosmonauts continues for the safety and mission of all on board the ISS."

Other parts of Russia's space program have been affected by the war in Ukraine. The country's Mars rover project with the European Space Agency is on hold.

RUSSIAN CREWMATES 'DEAR FRIENDS'

Vande Hei declined to reveal how the Russians on board felt about the invasion of Ukraine. "Those are things that I would prefer that they get to share directly rather than me sharing how they feel about it," he said.

He said the invasion itself was "heartbreaking, very sad" and he felt "powerless" learning about it while living in space. Vande Hei said it didn't change his feelings about his Russian crewmates.

"They were, are, and will continue to be very dear friends of mine. We supported each other throughout everything. And I never had any concerns about my ability to continue to work with them."

Upon landing after his record-breaking mission, Vande Hei said he was able to walk after about eight hours, though he said he was wobbly.

He said he was also happy to eat some guacamole for the first time in a year and was shocked at how normal it felt to be back on Earth after so long in space.

"It's a little disappointing how normal it feels."

Adblock test (Why?)

https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMilAFodHRwczovL3d3dy5jdHZuZXdzLmNhL3NjaS10ZWNoL3J1c3NpYW4tY29zbW9uYXV0cy1ibGluZHNpZGVkLWJ5LWNvbnRyb3ZlcnN5LW92ZXItYXJyaXZpbmctYXQtaXNzLWluLXllbGxvdy1zcGFjZXN1aXRzLW5hc2EtYXN0cm9uYXV0LXNheXMtMS41ODUwMTc30gEA?oc=5

2022-04-06 02:56:06Z
1356776659

Selasa, 05 April 2022

NASA’s first space tourism mission to ISS delayed - Digital Trends

The launch of NASA’s first space tourism flight to the International Space Station (ISS) has been delayed by two days and is now set to launch on Friday, April 8.

Texas-based Axiom Space, which is organizing the Ax-1 mission in partnership with SpaceX, didn’t offer a reason as to why the mission has been delayed.

“Late last week, SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft arrived in the hangar at Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, where it has since been mated with the Falcon 9 rocket,” Axiom Space said in a message that also revealed the new launch date. “The team is continuing with pre-launch processing work in the hangar ahead of vehicle rollout on Tuesday, April 5. This shift puts dry dress with the Ax-1 crew on Wednesday, April 6, followed by an integrated static fire test of the rocket on the same day.”

It added that the mission team is now targeting late morning ET on Friday, April 8, for the launch, followed by the ISS docking procedure early on Saturday morning ET.

For information on how to watch NASA’s livestream of the launch and docking, Digital Trends has you covered.

The Ax-1 crew comprises Canadian investor and philanthropist Mark Pathy, American entrepreneur Larry Connor, and former Israeli Air Force pilot Eytan Stibbe, along with mission commander and former NASA astronaut Michael López-Alegría.

Each of the three newly trained spacefarers has reportedly paid around $55 million for the 10-day mission that will see them live and work alongside the station’s current crew of professional astronauts.

The Ax-1 crewmembers, all of whom have undertaken months of intense training for their trip to space, will carry out scientific research aboard the ISS, and also outreach and commercial activities.

NASA has had the option to launch space tourism missions to the ISS since 2020 when California-based SpaceX gained a permit to conduct crewed missions from U.S. soil using its own spaceflight hardware. Since then, NASA has used SpaceX to ferry professional astronauts to and from the space station in four crewed missions to date.

Depending on the success of Ax-1, NASA’s tourism mission could be the first of many to the orbiting outpost before it’s decommissioned in 2031, though a replacement space station should also be able to host amateur astronauts who can afford the cost of the ride.

Editors' Recommendations

Adblock test (Why?)

https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiVGh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmRpZ2l0YWx0cmVuZHMuY29tL25ld3MvbmFzYXMtZmlyc3Qtc3BhY2UtdG91cmlzbS1taXNzaW9uLXRvLWlzcy1kZWxheWVkL9IBAA?oc=5

2022-04-05 05:00:39Z
1303164067

Minggu, 03 April 2022

NASA Teams Continue To Monitor Severe Weather Ahead of Artemis I Wet Dress Rehearsal - SciTechDaily

The sunrise casts a golden glow on the Artemis I Space Launch System (SLS) and Orion spacecraft at Launch Pad 39B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on March 23, 2022. Credit: NASA/Ben Smegelsky

The launch team is continuing to monitor severe weather in the Kennedy Space Center area surrounding Launch Complex 39B. Earlier this evening one of the lightning towers was struck and teams are currently assessing any impacts.

The lightning protection system consists of three nearly 600 foot tall towers that work together to protect the rocket from lightning strikes. The team will provide an update once a determination has been made on the intensity of the strike and has established a go forward plan.

Meteorologists with the U.S. Space Force Space Launch Delta 45 currently predict favorable weather conditions for tanking on April 3. The forecast for this afternoon slightly improved from yesterday. There is currently less than a 5% chance of lightning within five nautical miles of the launch pad. Weather constraints stipulate there must be less than a 20% chance lightning within 5 nautical miles of pad during the first hour of tanking. Meteorologists are also predicting a 10% chance of winds greater than 23 knots on April 3, when tanking begins. Winds must not be above 37.5 knots and the temperature cannot be below 41 degrees Fahrenheit.

Adblock test (Why?)

https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMibmh0dHBzOi8vc2NpdGVjaGRhaWx5LmNvbS9uYXNhLXRlYW1zLWNvbnRpbnVlLXRvLW1vbml0b3Itc2V2ZXJlLXdlYXRoZXItYWhlYWQtb2YtYXJ0ZW1pcy1pLXdldC1kcmVzcy1yZWhlYXJzYWwv0gFyaHR0cHM6Ly9zY2l0ZWNoZGFpbHkuY29tL25hc2EtdGVhbXMtY29udGludWUtdG8tbW9uaXRvci1zZXZlcmUtd2VhdGhlci1haGVhZC1vZi1hcnRlbWlzLWktd2V0LWRyZXNzLXJlaGVhcnNhbC9hbXAv?oc=5

2022-04-03 06:02:40Z
1308534003

Jumat, 01 April 2022

Amid US-Russia Tension, the US and Russian Astronauts Return To Earth Together From ISS - India Today

Adblock test (Why?)

https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiK2h0dHBzOi8vd3d3LnlvdXR1YmUuY29tL3dhdGNoP3Y9Z3Zla0JQdVRSYU3SAQA?oc=5

2022-04-01 09:08:23Z
1356776659

Scientists sequence the most complete human genome yet - Yahoo Movies Canada

A team of almost 100 scientists part of the Telomere-to-Telomere (T2T) Consortium has successfully sequenced the most complete human genome yet. If you're thinking "Wait a minute — didn't scientists produce the complete human genome sequence almost two decades ago?" Well, you wouldn't be wrong. The Human Genome Project finished sequencing 92 percent of the human genome back in 2003, but the techniques available at the time left the remaining 8 percent out of reach until recent years. Thus, 200 million DNA bases remained a mystery for the longest time.

In a series of papers published in Science, the T2T Consortium has reported how it managed to fill in almost all of the missing spots except for five, leaving only 10 million and the Y chromosome only vaguely understood. After the papers went out, the consortium's scientists have revealed on Twitter that they have figured out the correct assembly for the Y chromosome and that they will publish another paper with the latest results.

Research lead Evan Eichler from the University of Washington likened sequencing a DNA to solving a jigsaw puzzle. Scientists have to break the DNA into small parts and then use sequencing machines to piece them together. Older tools could only sequence small sections of DNA at once, so it's like solving those unnecessarily tough puzzles with tens of thousands of repetitive, almost identical pieces. Newer tools can sequence longer segments of DNA, which makes finding the correct sequence much more achievable.

To make the process less complicated, the team used a cell line from a failed pregnancy called a mole, wherein the sperm enters an egg that doesn't have its own set of chromosomes. That means the team only had to sequence one set of DNA instead of two. Then, they used a technique called Oxford Nanopore to complete assemblies of centromeres, which are dense knobs in the middle of chromosomes. Oxford Nanopore has a relatively high error rate, however, making it less than ideal for sequencing sections with repetitive DNA. For those regions, the team used another technique called PacBio HiFi, which can sequence shorter sections with 99.9 percent accuracy.

Eichler said the previously unknown genes include ones for immune response that help us survive plagues and viruses, genes that help predict a person's response to drugs and genes responsible for making human brains larger than other primates'. "Having this complete information will allow us to better understand how we form as an individual organism and how we vary not just between other humans but other species," Eichler said.

The consortium's work cost a few million dollars to achieve, but sequencing is getting cheaper and cheaper with new technologies. Adam Phillippy, another lead author for the studies, said the hope is for individual genome sequencing to cost as little as $1,000 within the next decade. That could make DNA sequencing a part of routine medical tests, which might help doctors create tailor-made treatments for individuals.

Adblock test (Why?)

https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiTmh0dHBzOi8vY2EubW92aWVzLnlhaG9vLmNvbS9tb3N0LWNvbXBsZXRlLWh1bWFuLWdlbm9tZS1zZXF1ZW5jZS0wNTUzNDc4NTIuaHRtbNIBVmh0dHBzOi8vY2EubW92aWVzLnlhaG9vLmNvbS9hbXBodG1sL21vc3QtY29tcGxldGUtaHVtYW4tZ2Vub21lLXNlcXVlbmNlLTA1NTM0Nzg1Mi5odG1s?oc=5

2022-04-01 05:53:47Z
1365204289