Latest Space environment Stories
With almost half of the MagISStra mission behind him, ESA astronaut Paolo Nespoli has not had much free time on the International Space Station. In addition to his heavy workload, he has also been on a special diet.The International Space Station is preparing for a new era without Space Shuttles visiting every few months. The focus is shifting from building it to learning to work and live in space and doing scientific research."Space is a unique place for many kinds of science," says Christer...
The first large-scale, physics-based space weather prediction model is transitioning from research into operation.Scientists affiliated with the National Science Foundation (NSF) Center for Integrated Space Weather Modeling (CISM) and the National Weather Service reported the news today at the annual American Meteorological Society (AMS) meeting in Seattle, Wash.The model will provide forecasters with a one-to-four day advance warning of high speed streams of solar plasma and Earth-directed...
GREENBELT, Md., May 8 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Scientists using NASA's fleet of THEMIS spacecraft have discovered how radio waves produced by electrons injected into Earth's near-space environment both generate and remove high-speed "killer" electrons. (Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20081007/38461LOGO) Killer electrons are born within Earth's natural radiation belts, called the Van Allen belts after their discoverer, James Van Allen. Killer electrons are mostly found in the...
Think you have trouble getting rid of the clutter in your living room? After more than 50 years of launching rockets and satellites into space, the human race now has to deal with the clutter left behind -- or is it "above"? Dead satellites, spent rocket stages, paint flakes, and coolant from nuclear-powered satellites continue to orbit the Earth at ultrahigh velocities.It's a serious subject. Space debris threatens the lives of astronauts and the launch of new satellites today,...
Today, NASA-funded researchers released to the general public a new "4D" live model of Earth's ionosphere. Without leaving home, anyone can fly through the layer of ionized gas that encircles Earth at the edge of space itself. All that's required is a connection to the Internet."This is an exciting development," says solar physicist Lika Guhathakurta of NASA headquarters in Washington, DC. "The ionosphere is important to pilots, ham radio operators, earth scientists...
Scientists are now testing a new method that uses SOHO data to predict, in real-time, the approach and intensity of hazardous solar particles that would threaten astronauts and technology in space.The method was developed eight months ago by Dr Arik Posner, Southwest Research Institute (SwRI), USA, with collaborators from the University of Kiel in Germany, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, USA and the University of Turku in Finland. It shows how latest results from basic solar physics...
A new 11-year cycle of heightened solar activity, bringing with it increased risks for power grids, critical military, civilian and airline communications, GPS signals and even cell phones and ATM transactions, showed signs it was on its way late Thursday when the cycle's first sunspot appeared in the sun's Northern Hemisphere, NOAA scientists said."This sunspot is like the first robin of spring," said solar physicist Douglas Biesecker of NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center. "In this case,...
If a satellite encounters high-energy particles or other 'space weather' phenomena before ground controllers can take action, on-board electronics could be disrupted, scientific instruments damaged and, in very rare and extreme cases, spacecraft may even be lost. A sophisticated tool in development at ESOC promises to provide effective monitoring and forecasting for any type of mission. But since early 2005, SEISOP (Space Environment Information System for Operations), a space-weather...
WASHINGTON (AP) -- A large solar flare was reported Wednesday and forecasters warned of potential electrical and communications disruptions. The flare was reported by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Space Environment Center in Boulder, Colo. Significant solar eruptions are possible in the coming days and there could be disruptions in spacecraft operations, electric power systems, high frequency communications and low-frequency navigation systems, the agency said....
A breakthrough by a team of British, US and French scientists will help protect astronauts, spacecraft and satellites from radiation hazards experienced in space. Reporting in the journal Nature this week, the team describe how their study of rare and unusual space storms provided a unique opportunity to test conflicting theories about the behaviour of high energy particles in the Van Allen radiation belts* - a volatile region 12000 miles (19,000 km) above the Earth. Lead author, Dr Richard...
