http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/space_time/space_probes/ Space Probes. Read the latest in space exploration using unmanned spacecraft. See images from Space Probe Cassini and Space Probe Galileo. Pictures of Saturn, Jupiter, Mars and more. en-us Tue, 13 May 2008 05:05:01 EDT Tue, 13 May 2008 05:05:01 EDT 60 http://www.sciencedaily.com/images/logosmall.gif http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/space_time/space_probes/ For more science articles, visit ScienceDaily. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080508091605.htm Imagine yourself hip-to-hip, shoulder-to-shoulder, inside a room the size of a walk-in closet for eight hours with five people you just met. Does that make you sweat? Or maybe make your breathing a little more animated? For three weeks, 23 volunteers dedicated time to do just that -- sweat and breathe -- inside a test chamber so NASA scientists at Johnson Space Center in Houston could measure the amount of moisture and carbon dioxide absorbed by a new system being developed for future space vehicles. The system is designed to control carbon dioxide and humidity inside a crew capsule to make air breathable and living space more comfortable. Thu, 08 May 2008 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080508091605.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080502094224.htm NASA has a new plan to send a spacecraft closer to the sun than any probe has ever gone. The ambitious Solar Probe mission will study the streams of charged particles the sun hurls into space from a vantage point within the sun's corona -- its outer atmosphere -- where the processes that heat the corona and produce solar wind occur. At closest approach Solar Probe would zip past the sun at 125 miles per second, protected by a carbon-composite heat shield that must withstand up to 2,600 degrees Fahrenheit and survive blasts of radiation and energized dust at levels not experienced by any previous spacecraft. Sun, 04 May 2008 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080502094224.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080501091356.htm A new space mission, due to launch this month, is going to shed light on some of the most extreme astrophysical processes in nature -- including pulsars, remnants of supernovae, and supermassive black holes. It could even help us comprehend the origin and distribution of dark matter. Sun, 04 May 2008 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080501091356.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080430134305.htm Astronomers appear to have solved a long-standing mystery about the cause of anomalies in Jupiter's gossamer rings. A faint extension of the outermost ring beyond the orbit of Jupiter's moon Thebe, and other observed deviations from an accepted model of ring formation, result from the interplay of shadow and sunlight on dust particles that make up the rings. Thu, 01 May 2008 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080430134305.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080429120900.htm Artificial intelligence being used at the European Space Operations Center is giving a powerful boost to ESA's Mars Express as it searches for signs of past or present life on the Red Planet. Thu, 01 May 2008 02:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080429120900.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080429174658.htm As a powerful electrical storm rages on Saturn with lightning bolts 10,000 times more powerful than those found on Earth, the Cassini spacecraft continues its five-month watch over the dramatic events. Scientists with NASA's Cassini-Huygens mission have been tracking the visibly bright, lightning-generating storm--the longest continually observed electrical storm ever monitored by Cassini. Wed, 30 Apr 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080429174658.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080420114718.htm A radar instrument has looked beneath the surface of Mars and opened up a new dimension for planetary exploration. The technique's success is prompting scientists to think of other places in the solar system where they would like to use radar sounders. Tue, 22 Apr 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080420114718.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080420114045.htm Commander Peggy Whitson and cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko of the 16th International Space Station crew landed on the steppes of Kazakhstan around 4:30 a.m. EDT April 19 after 192 days in space. All three people aboard the Soyuz TMA-11 spacecraft were reported to be in good condition after their re-entry and landing. Mon, 21 Apr 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080420114045.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080415133647.htm NASA is extending the international Cassini-Huygens mission by two years. The historic spacecraft's stunning discoveries and images have revolutionized our knowledge of Saturn and its moons. Cassini's mission originally had been scheduled to end in July 2008. The newly-announced two-year extension will include 60 additional orbits of Saturn and more flybys of its exotic moons. These will include 26 flybys of Titan, seven of Enceladus, and one each of Dione, Rhea and Helene. The extension also includes studies of Saturn's rings, its complex magnetosphere, and the planet itself. Thu, 17 Apr 2008 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080415133647.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080415134614.htm NASA engineers have adjusted the flight path of the Phoenix Mars Lander, setting the spacecraft on course for its May 25 landing on the Red Planet. The mission's two prior trajectory maneuvers, made last August and October, adjusted the flight path of Phoenix to intersect with Mars. Thu, 17 Apr 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080415134614.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080415162612.htm A new electric solar wind sail is almost ready for implementation. Electric sail propulsion might have a large impact on space research and space travel throughout the solar system. The electric solar wind sail uses the solar wind as its thrust source and therefore needs no fuel or propellant. The solar wind is a continuous plasma stream emanating from the Sun. Changes in the properties of the solar wind cause auroral brightening and magnetic storms, among other things. Thu, 17 Apr 2008 02:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080415162612.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080414094156.htm The European Space Agency has chosen the GSI accelerator facility to assess radiation risks that astronauts will be exposed to on a Mars mission. GSI was selected because its accelerator is the only one in Europe able to create ion beams similar to those found in space. To determine possible health risks of manned space flights, scientists from all over Europe have been asked to investigate the effects of ion beams in human cells and organs. Mon, 14 Apr 2008 23:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080414094156.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080411091532.htm NASA engineers have adjusted the flight path of the Phoenix Mars Lander, setting the spacecraft on course for its May 25 landing on the Red Planet. Mon, 14 Apr 2008 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080411091532.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080414145656.htm The Delta II 7920-H, or "Heavy," rocket that will launch NASA's Gamma-ray Large Area Telescope satellite is in the process of being assembled on Launch Pad 17-B at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida. Mon, 14 Apr 2008 00:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080414145656.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080411092032.htm NASA is preparing to send a small spacecraft to the moon in 2011 to assess the lunar atmosphere and the nature of dust lofted above the surface. Sun, 13 Apr 2008 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080411092032.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080409150058.htm Researchers have discovered why rocket engines are occasionally destroyed by mysterious waves of sound. The new imaging techniques allow scientists to observe and understand the destructive waves. Thu, 10 Apr 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080409150058.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080409231029.htm A new stereo view of Phobos, the larger and inner of Mars' two tiny moons, has been captured by a NASA spacecraft orbiting Mars. The High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter took two images of Phobos 10 minutes apart on March 23. Scientists combined the images for a stereo view. Thu, 10 Apr 2008 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080409231029.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080403125509.htm ATV Jules Verne, the European Space Agency's first resupply and reboost vehicle, has successfully performed a fully automated docking with the International Space Station. This docking marks the beginning of Jules Verne's main servicing mission to deliver cargo, propellant, water, oxygen and propulsion capacity to the Station, as well as ESA's entry into the restricted club of the partners able to access the orbital facility by their own means. Fri, 04 Apr 2008 02:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080403125509.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080402155139.htm Scientists have found the source of the stream of particles that make up the solar wind. The solar wind consists of electrically charged particles that flow out from the Sun in all directions. Thu, 03 Apr 2008 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080402155139.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080401112356.htm Preparations for launching NASA's Gamma-ray Large Area Telescope satellite are underway at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Florida. The twin solar panels have been attached. The panels will provide electrical power for GLAST after its launch into earth orbit. Tue, 01 Apr 2008 00:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080401112356.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080326151729.htm NASA's Cassini spacecraft tasted and sampled a surprising organic brew erupting in geyser-like fashion from Saturn's moon Enceladus during a close flyby on March 12. Scientists are amazed that this tiny moon is so active, "hot" and brimming with water vapor and organic chemicals. Thu, 27 Mar 2008 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080326151729.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080326091951.htm A small California aerospace company has just unveiled a new suborbital spaceship that will provide affordable front-seat rides to the edge of space for the millions of people who want to buy a ticket. The company, XCOR Aerospace, of Mojave, CA, announced that its two-seat Lynx suborbital spaceship will carry people or payloads to where they will experience weightlessness and see the stars above and the Earth and its atmosphere below. Wed, 26 Mar 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080326091951.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080320150022.htm Using visible and infrared data collected from telescopes on Hawaii's Mauna Kea, astronomers have identified three asteroids that appear to be among our solar system's oldest objects. Sun, 23 Mar 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080320150022.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080320150828.htm NASA's Cassini spacecraft has discovered evidence that points to the existence of an underground ocean of water and ammonia on Saturn's moon Titan. The findings made using radar measurements of Titan's rotation will appear in the March 21 issue of the journal Science. Fri, 21 Mar 2008 02:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080320150828.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080320095012.htm Jules Verne ATV has today reached a parking position 2000 km ahead of the International Space Station. Europe's ISS re-supply spacecraft will wait at this holding point for the completion of the STS-123 Space Shuttle mission before proceeding with the first of two rendezvous demonstration days. Thu, 20 Mar 2008 00:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080320095012.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080314160235.htm The space shuttle is carrying with it an experiment designed to isolate how each component of the low-earth orbit environment contributes to the overall degradation each material specimen. The results will help guide the development of next-generation satellite materials that will be durable in space. Sat, 15 Mar 2008 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080314160235.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080313213204.htm NASA's Cassini spacecraft performed a daring flyby of Saturn's moon Enceladus on March 12, flying about 15 kilometers per second (32,000 mph) through icy water geyser-like jets. The spacecraft snatched up precious samples that might point to a water ocean or organics inside the little moon. Fri, 14 Mar 2008 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080313213204.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080314112239.htm Mission controllers received confirmation shortly March 14 that Jules Verne ATV had successfully demonstrated the critical Collision Avoidance Maneuver. The crucial test included placing the spacecraft into a minimally functioning "survival" mode. Fri, 14 Mar 2008 00:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080314112239.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080310164854.htm Engineers are conducting experiments using a new hydrogen facility to help NASA create designs to improve the cooling efficiency and performance of the J-2X rocket engine, critical for future missions to Mars and the moon. Thu, 13 Mar 2008 23:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080310164854.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080312095219.htm Following an overnight recovery operation, Jules Verne ATV's propulsion system has successfully been restored to full robustness. The spacecraft has since performed the first orbital manoeuvres necessary to set up phasing with the International Space Station. Thu, 13 Mar 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080312095219.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080309151238.htm Radio waves accelerate electrons within Jupiter's magnetic field in the same way as they do on Earth, according to new research. The discovery overturns a theory that has held sway for more than a generation and has important implications for protecting Earth-orbiting satellites. Wed, 12 Mar 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080309151238.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080310110917.htm Jules Verne, the first of the European Space Agency's Automated Transfer Vehicles, a new series of autonomous spaceships designed to resupply and reboost the International Space Station, was successfully launched into low Earth orbit by an Ariane 5 vehicle this morning. Wed, 12 Mar 2008 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080310110917.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080311085606.htm Space shuttle Endeavour thundered into orbit early in the morning on March 11 carrying seven astronauts and Japan's dreams for a space-based laboratory at the International Space Station. The first module of the Japanese-built Kibo laboratory complex was packed inside Endeavour's cargo bay, along with a Canadian-built robotics system that will enhance the capabilities of the International Space Station's robotic arm. Tue, 11 Mar 2008 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080311085606.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080310171102.htm NASA's Cassini spacecraft will make an unprecedented "in your face" flyby of Saturn's moon Enceladus on Wed., March 12. The spacecraft, orchestrating its closest approach to date, will skirt along the edges of huge Old-Faithful-like geysers erupting from giant fractures on the south pole of Enceladus. Cassini will sample scientifically valuable water-ice, dust and gas in the plume. The source of the geysers is of great interest to scientists who think liquid water, perhaps even an ocean, may exist in the area. Tue, 11 Mar 2008 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080310171102.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080306160209.htm NASA's Cassini spacecraft has found evidence of material orbiting Rhea, Saturn's second largest moon. This is the first time rings may have been found around a moon. A broad debris disk and at least one ring appear to have been detected by a suite of six instruments on Cassini specifically designed to study the atmospheres and particles around Saturn and its moons. Fri, 07 Mar 2008 08:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080306160209.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080307133706.htm NASA's Gamma-ray Large Area Space Telescope, or GLAST, arrived Tuesday at the Astrotech payload processing facility near the Kennedy Space Center to begin final preparations for launch. Liftoff of GLAST aboard a Delta II rocket is currently targeted for 11:45 a.m. EDT on May 16. Fri, 07 Mar 2008 00:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080307133706.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080305105128.htm Using two ESA spacecraft, planetary scientists are watching the atmospheres of Mars and Venus being stripped away into space. The simultaneous observations by Mars Express and Venus Express give scientists the data they need to investigate the evolution of the two planets' atmospheres. Despite the differences in size and distance from the Sun, Mars and Venus are surprisingly similar. Both planets have beams of electrically charged particles flowing out of their atmospheres. The particles are being accelerated away by interactions with the solar wind, a constant stream of electrically charged particles released by the Sun. Thu, 06 Mar 2008 23:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080305105128.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080306133930.htm Scientists have discovered never-before-seen impact "megabreccia" and a possibly once-habitable ancient lake on Mars at a place called Holden crater. Topping the clay layers that formed in the placid Holden crater lake are layers of great boulder-filled debris unleashed later, when water breached Holden crater rim, creating a torrential flood that eroded the older lake sediments. The body of water would have been larger than Lake Huron. Thu, 06 Mar 2008 17:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080306133930.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080229102056.htm With ESA's Columbus laboratory successfully attached and operating on the International Space Station, the time has now come for another European milestone mission to leave for the ISS -- that of the first Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV), named "Jules Verne." Tue, 04 Mar 2008 02:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080229102056.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080303155815.htm A NASA spacecraft in orbit around Mars has taken the first ever image of active avalanches near the Red Planet's north pole. The image shows tan clouds billowing away from the foot of a towering slope, where ice and dust have just cascaded down. Mon, 03 Mar 2008 17:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080303155815.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080227182335.htm NASA has obtained the highest resolution terrain mapping to date of the moon's rugged south polar region, with a resolution to 20 meters per pixel. The imagery generated by the data has been incorporated into animation depicting the descent to the lunar surface of a future human lunar lander and a flyover of Shackleton Crater. Thu, 28 Feb 2008 20:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080227182335.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080222101542.htm Ulysses, the mission to study the Sun's poles and the influence of our star on surrounding space is coming to an end. After more than 17 years in space -- almost four times its expected lifetime -- the mission is finally succumbing to its harsh environment and is likely to finish sometime in the next month or two. Mon, 25 Feb 2008 14:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080222101542.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080222112324.htm An enormous plume of dust and water spurts violently into space from the south pole of Enceladus, Saturn's sixth-largest moon. This raging eruption has intrigued scientists ever since the Cassini spacecraft provided dramatic images of the phenomenon. Now a physicist has revealed why the dust particles in the plume emerge more slowly than the water vapour escaping from the moon's icy crust. Enceladus orbits in Saturn's outermost "E" ring. It is one of only three outer solar system bodies that produce active eruptions of dust and water vapour. Moreover, aside from the Earth, Mars, and Jupiter's moon Europa, it is one of the only places in the solar system for which astronomers have direct evidence of the presence of water. Sat, 23 Feb 2008 11:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080222112324.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080222095432.htm Seeking an out-of-this-world travel destination? Outer space will rocket into reality as "the" getaway of this century, according to researchers. The "final frontier" could begin showing up in travel guides by 2010, they predict. Fri, 22 Feb 2008 23:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080222095432.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080220200045.htm Saturn's orange moon Titan has hundreds of times more liquid hydrocarbons than all the known oil and natural gas reserves on Earth, according to new data from NASA's Cassini spacecraft. The hydrocarbons rain from the sky, collecting in vast deposits that form lakes and dunes. Thu, 21 Feb 2008 20:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080220200045.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080220223653.htm The targeting by missile of a failed U.S. intelligence-gathering spacecraft now orbiting Earth spotlights a number of associated policy issues, from dealing with the growing problem of orbital debris and the need to establish space traffic control measures, to defusing concerns over the weaponization of space. Thu, 21 Feb 2008 11:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080220223653.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080219122014.htm Despite the incredible diversity of Saturn's icy moons, theirs is a story of great interaction. Some of them are pock-marked, some seemingly dirty, others pristine, one spongy, one two-faced, some still spewing with activity and some seeming to be captured from the far reaches of the solar system. Yet many of them have a common thread -- black "stuff" coating their surfaces. "We are beginning to unravel the mysteries of these different and strange moons," said Rosaly Lopes, Cassini scientist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. She coordinated a special section of 14 papers about Saturn's icy moons that appears in the February issue of the journal Icarus. Thu, 21 Feb 2008 08:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080219122014.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080213111050.htm European scientists have developed the most accurate method yet for predicting the doses of radiation that astronauts will receive aboard the orbiting European laboratory module, Columbus, recently attached to the ISS. Mon, 18 Feb 2008 05:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080213111050.htm