Pages

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

The Space Review: Review: Light from the Void

The Space Review: Review: Light from the Void

The Space Review: Tailoring spacesuits

The Space Review: Tailoring spacesuits

The Space Review: What happens when you leave empty seats at the table?

The Space Review: What happens when you leave empty seats at the table?

The Space Review: What happens when you leave empty seats at the table?

The Space Review: What happens when you leave empty seats at the table?

The Space Review: Blacker than blue: the US Navy and the Manned Orbiting Laboratory

The Space Review: Blacker than blue: the US Navy and the Manned Orbiting Laboratory

The Moon: Walking On Air

Walking on Air

The moon might look barren and very inhospitable for humans, but actually its surface dirt – known as regolith – is rich in oxygen.
Now scientists have figured out how to extract oxygen from lunar soil, Science Alert reported.
Regolith samples collected from previous lunar missions revealed that oxygen in the moon’s surface is chemically bound to other substances in the form of oxides and can’t be used immediately.
Since the real samples are valuable, the researchers used “fake” lunar dirt, created from terrestrial materials, in their study.
The team, led by Bethany Lomax of the University of Glasgow, used an electrolysis technique to extract about 96 percent of the oxygen in the sample in a matter of 50 hours.
Previous methods required higher temperatures and generated low oxygen amounts. The new method provided a higher yield and was more sustainable.
Moreover, Lomax’s team also extracted several metal alloys in the process, which could prove useful for future colonization.
“This process would give lunar settlers access to oxygen for fuel and life support, as well as a wide range of metal alloys for in-situ manufacturing,” said James Carpenter, lunar strategy officer of the European Space Agency, who was not involved in the study.

Thursday, October 10, 2019

Sunday, October 6, 2019

NASA's Mars 2020 Rover Tests Descent-Stage Separation

NASA's Mars 2020 Rover Tests Descent-Stage Separation: A crane lifts the rocket-powered descent stage away from NASA's Mars 2020 rover after technicians tested the pyrotechnic charges that separate the two spacecraft.

Wednesday, October 2, 2019