space debris Archives - Disasters News

Nov52024 by Editor DeskNo Comments

Japan Launches LignoSat the World’s First Wooden Satellite, Aiming for Space Sustainability

In a groundbreaking move Japan has sent the world’s first wooden satellite, LignoSat into space. Developed by Kyoto University and Sumitomo Forestry, this palm-sized satellite was launched on a SpaceX mission to the International Space Station (ISS), where it will later be released into Earth’s orbit at around 400 km altitude. LignoSat’s mission is to explore timber's viability as a space-grade material, a concept Takao Doi, a former astronaut and professor at Kyoto University, believes could revolutionize off-Earth habitation. Doi envisions a 50-year plan where timber structures on the Moon or Mars could support human life. “With timber, a material we can produce ourselves, we could live and work in space indefinitely,” he remarked. Kyoto University scientists chose honoki wood, nat...

Oct232024 by Editor DeskNo Comments

Scientists Explore Diamonds in the Sky Could Nanoparticles Help Cool the Planet?

Breaking News, Idea & Innovations

Diamonds Heist movies are seldom about solving climate change, and for a good reason. Nobody wants to hear a voice murmur from the back seat as George Clooney tears down the highway with a dump truck full of stolen diamonds, "Hey, let's crush these sparkle-puppies into powder and scatter them through the stratosphere to cool the planet." However, a team of researchers, led by climate scientist Sandro Vattioni from ETH Zurich in Switzerland, have done the math on which materials would be most suitable for a stratospheric aerosol injection (SAI) method of global cooling, concluding that a few hundred trillion dollars' worth of diamond nanoparticles could be a viable solution. Before you start looking for a wise-cracking safe-cracker, a silent contortionist, and a wily femme fatale to c...

Oct162024 by Editor DeskNo Comments

China’s $300 Million Neutrino Observatory to Launch Soon, Aiming to Solve Particle Physics Mysteries

Breaking News, Environment, Space

In a monumental step for particle physics, China's Jiangmen Underground Neutrino Observatory (JUNO), located 700 meters underground in southern Guangdong province, is set to begin gathering data on one of the most elusive subatomic particles neutrinos. The $300 million facility, which has been under construction for years, aims to shed light on some of the biggest mysteries in the universe, including the mass hierarchy of neutrinos and their role in the early stages of cosmic evolution. JUNO’s centerpiece is a giant spherical detector, surrounded by thousands of light-detecting tubes, encased in a 12-story cylindrical water pool. This sophisticated apparatus will help scientists track and analyze neutrinos, particles generated by nuclear reactions, such as those occurring in the sun or ...

Oct112024 by Editor DeskNo Comments

NASA Downplays Safety Concerns Despite Watchdog’s Warning on International Space Station Cracks and Leaks

Breaking News, Environment, Space

Despite its own inspector general's report warning of significant air leaks and cracks in the International Space Station (ISS), NASA appears to be minimizing the gravity of the situation. The Washington Post reported that NASA's recent internal assessment highlighted aging issues in the Russian segment of the ISS, pointing out cracks in the tunnel leading to that section. The report expressed concerns about the increasing severity of air leaks, which have grown worse over time. The inspector general’s report identified these leaks as a "top safety concern," citing that their ongoing increase could pose long-term risks to the space station's integrity and the safety of astronauts. While cracks in space station structures can result in air loss, endangering the crew's environment, NASA h...

Oct32024 by Editor DeskNo Comments

Powerful Solar Flare Hits Earth Triggering Geomagnetic Storms and Auroras

Breaking News, Space

The Sun kicked off October with a massive solar flare, marking the start of the spooky season with an X7.1 flare and coronal mass ejection (CME) on October 1. This flare is the second most powerful of the current solar cycle and ranks among the top 30 strongest solar flares in the last three decades. While Earth is not in immediate danger, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Space Weather Prediction Center has forecast geomagnetic storms between October 3 and 5. These storms, ranging from minor to strong, will result from the solar particles rocketing toward Earth as the CME pushes through the Solar System. Solar flares and CMEs are typical occurrences during the Sun’s peak activity cycle, which scientists believe is currently underway. Solar flares are sudde...

Oct22024 by Editor DeskNo Comments

Astronomers Discover Tiny Exoplanet Orbiting Barnard’s Star, Just 6 Light-Years Away

Breaking News, Disasters, Space

In a groundbreaking discovery, scientists have found a new exoplanet orbiting Barnard’s Star, the nearest single star to our Solar System, located just 5.96 light-years away. This small, rocky world, named Barnard b, has a mass of only 37% that of Earth, making it one of the smallest exoplanets ever detected. Although uninhabitable, the discovery marks a significant step toward finding Earth-sized planets scattered across the galaxy. Barnard b is incredibly close to its host star, completing an orbit every 3.15 days at just 0.02 astronomical units (AU) from the red dwarf. Despite Barnard’s Star being much cooler than our Sun, this proximity makes the planet too hot to sustain liquid water or life as we know it. However, the discovery is still a scientific marvel, as detecting such small...

Sep302024 by Editor DeskNo Comments

New “Mini-Moon” to Visit Earth: Asteroid 2024 PT5 Set for Brief Stay

Breaking News, Environment, Space

Stargazers and space enthusiasts have a new reason to be excited this autumn, as Earth is set to briefly capture a small asteroid, turning it into a temporary "mini-moon" from September 29 to November 25. The asteroid, named 2024 PT5, will be pulled into Earth's gravitational field, sparking interest from the astronomical community. Unfortunately, due to its small size and lack of brightness, the mini-moon won’t be visible to the naked eye or through ordinary telescopes. Asteroid 2024 PT5, measuring about 33 feet wide, hails from the Arjuna asteroid belt and was first detected on August 7 by NASA’s Asteroid Terrestrial-Impact Last Alert System (ATLAS). Dr. Jennifer Millard, host of the Awesome Astronomy podcast, explained that while the asteroid won’t be visible to amateur astronomers, ...

Sep272024 by Editor DeskNo Comments

Astronomers Discover Earth-like Exoplanet Orbiting White Dwarf Offering Glimpse into Solar System’s Future

Breaking News, Space

In a remarkable discovery, astronomers have identified an Earth-like exoplanet orbiting a white dwarf star, potentially providing insight into the distant future of our own solar system. The exoplanet, with a mass approximately 1.9 times that of Earth, survived the violent phase when its host star expanded into a red giant before shrinking into a white dwarf. The finding offers new understanding of how planets might endure the tumultuous stages of stellar evolution. Led by Keming Zhang from the University of California, the study utilized microlensing, a technique that magnifies distant celestial objects when the gravity of a foreground star bends the light from a background star. The white dwarf was nearly perfectly aligned with the background star, amplifying the event more than 1,000...

Sep262024 by Editor DeskNo Comments

SpaceX Proposes $15 Billion Investment in Vietnam for Starlink Satellite Service

Breaking News, Space, Tech

SpaceX is looking to invest a substantial $15 billion in Vietnam, with the focus on expanding its Starlink satellite service in the near future, according to the Vietnamese government. The proposed investment was discussed in a meeting between SpaceX Senior Vice President Tim Hughes and Vietnam’s Communist Party General Secretary To Lam, during the latter's visit to the US for the United Nations General Assembly. The Vietnamese government is currently reviewing the proposal, though no further details have been provided, and SpaceX has yet to comment on the matter. The government noted last year that SpaceX had shown interest in offering its low-Earth orbit satellite service in Vietnam, though earlier reports suggested those plans were delayed. Lam expressed that Vietnam would work wi...

Sep122024 by Editor DeskNo Comments

NASA’s Juno Mission Discovers New Volcano on Jupiter’s Moon Io

Breaking News, Space

Jupiter's moon Io, known as the most volcanically active body in the Solar System, has once again astonished scientists with the discovery of a new volcano. NASA's Juno spacecraft, which has been making closer approaches to Io in recent years, provided the first close-up images of the moon in 25 years, offering fresh insights into its volcanic landscape. The images captured by JunoCam revealed the presence of a new volcano, located just south of Io's equator. This volcano had formed sometime after NASA's Galileo spacecraft last surveyed the region in 1997. At that time, the area where the volcano now sits appeared featureless. However, Juno's latest images show significant volcanic activity, with multiple lava flows and volcanic deposits spread across an area of 180 by 180 kilometers. ...