March 27, 2025

Rocket Milestones, Celestial Eclipses, and Surprising Cosmic Findings

Rocket Milestones, Celestial Eclipses, and Surprising Cosmic Findings

Astronomy Daily | Space News: S04E74
In this exciting episode of Astronomy Daily, host Anna takes you on a journey through the latest advancements and discoveries in space exploration. From the U.S. Space Force's certification of a new rocket to a...

Season 4
Astronomy Daily | Space News: S04E74
In this exciting episode of Astronomy Daily, host Anna takes you on a journey through the latest advancements and discoveries in space exploration. From the U.S. Space Force's certification of a new rocket to a captivating look at a mysterious galaxy, this episode is packed with cosmic insights that will leave you inspired.
Highlights:
- ULA's Vulcan Centaur Rocket Certification: Discover the significance of the U.S. Space Force's recent certification of United Launch Alliance's Vulcan Centaur rocket for national security missions. This milestone enhances America's launch capabilities for sensitive military payloads and marks a significant step forward in national security.
- Upcoming Partial Solar Eclipse: Mark your calendars for March 29, 2025, when a partial solar eclipse will be visible across parts of Europe, Africa, and North America. Learn about the eclipse's unique characteristics and how to safely view this celestial event.
- Surprising Discovery of Ancient Light: Explore the groundbreaking findings from NASA's James Webb Space Telescope, which has identified bright hydrogen emissions from a galaxy observed just 330 million years after the Big Bang. This unexpected discovery challenges our understanding of the early universe and opens new questions about galaxy formation.
- China's Expanding Satellite Network: Get the latest on China's successful launch of the Tianlian 204 satellite, which enhances the country's data relay capabilities for its space program. This mission underscores China's ambitions in space and its plans for future exploration.
- NASA's Europa Clipper Mission: Learn about the Europa Clipper's upcoming mission to scout landing sites on Jupiter's icy moon, Europa. This strategic reconnaissance will aid in future explorations of this intriguing ocean world and could pave the way for humanity's first landing beyond Earth.
For more cosmic updates, visit our website at astronomydaily.io. Join our community on social media by searching for #AstroDailyPod on Facebook, X, YouTubeMusic, TikTok, and our new Instagram account! Don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Thank you for tuning in. This is Anna signing off. Until next time, keep looking up and stay curious about the wonders of our universe.
00:00 - Welcome to Astronomy Daily
01:05 - ULA's Vulcan Centaur certification
10:30 - Upcoming partial solar eclipse details
17:00 - Webb's discovery of ancient light
22:15 - China's new satellite launch
27:30 - Overview of NASA's Europa Clipper mission
✍️ Episode References
Vulcan Centaur Certification
[United Launch Alliance](https://www.ulalaunch.com)
Partial Solar Eclipse Information
[NASA Eclipse Page](https://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse.html)
James Webb Telescope Discoveries
[NASA Webb](https://www.nasa.gov/webb)
China's Tianlian Satellite Launch
[China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation](http://www.casc.cn/)
Europa Clipper Mission Details
[NASA Europa Clipper](https://europa.nasa.gov/)
Astronomy Daily
[Astronomy Daily](http://www.astronomydaily.io/)

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WEBVTT

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Welcome to Astronomy Daily, your source for the latest and

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most exciting news in space exploration and astronomy. I'm your host, Anna,

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and today we're diving into several fascinating developments from across

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the Cosmos. We've got a packed episode ahead, covering everything

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from the Space Force's certification of a new rocket for

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national security launches to an upcoming partial solar eclipse that

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will grace our skies. This week, we'll also explore a

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mysterious galaxy that's challenging what we thought we knew about

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the early universe. Check in on China's expanding satellite network,

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and learn how NASA's Europa Clipper will scout potential landing

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sites on one of the most promising worlds for finding

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extraterrestrial life. So settle in as we journey through these

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captivating stories that remind us just how dynamic and ever

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changing our understanding of space truly is. The US Space

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Force has officially certified United Launch Alliances Vulcan Centaur rocket

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for national security missions after analyzing data from the vehicle's

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two certification launches that took place in January and October

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of twenty twenty four. This milestone announcement came on March

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twenty sixth from the Space Force's Space Systems Command, marking

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the completion of a long awaited certification process. Space Force

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Brigadier General Kristin Pansenhagen, who serves as the Program Executive

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Officer for Assured Access to Space, emphasized the significance of

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this development, noting that assured access to space is a

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core function of the Space Force and a critical element

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of national security. She added that the Vulcan certification adds

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launch capacity, resiliency, and flexibility needed for the nation's most

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critical space based systems. This certification is particularly notable as

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ULA now joins SpaceX as only the second provider certified

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to carry out launches under the National Security Space Launch Program,

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enhancing America's launch capabilities for sensitive military and intelligence payloads.

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The path to certification wasn't without challenges. The second Vulcan

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certification flight experienced an incident when the nozzle of one

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of its two solid rocket boosters fell off approximately half

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a minute after liftoff. Remarkably, the vehicle compensated for the

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diminished thrust and still completed its mission successfully. ULA's president

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and CEO, Tory Bruno, later explained that a manufacturing defect

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in an internal insulator part caused the nozzle separation, and

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appropriate corrective actions were implemented and verified through static fire testing.

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Looking ahead, ULA has ambitious plans for their launch cadence.

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Bruno has indicated that the company is projecting a dozen

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launches this year, split roughly evenly between their Atlas and

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Vulcan rockets, serving both national security and commercial missions. The

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first national security space launch mission on Vulcan is planned

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for this summer in North America. ULA aims to establish

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a baseline tempo of two launches per month the end

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of this year and perform twenty launches in twenty twenty five.

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Bruno noted that the company has been strategically stockpiling critical

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components such as B four engines and solid rocket boosters

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to support this accelerated launch schedule. This certification represents a

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significant advancement for America's space launch capabilities, ensuring redundancy and

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resilience in the nation's ability to deploy critical national security

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assets to orbit. As Bruno remarked, we're all staged up

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and ready, and a spacecraft show up will be able

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to fly them. What a difference A year makes just

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a year after millions across North America witnessed the spectacular

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total solar eclipse on April eighth, twenty twenty four, We're

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already preparing for another celestial event. Mark your calendars for

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this Saturday, March twenty ninth, twenty twenty five, when a

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partial solar eclipse will grace our skies, though with a

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notably different viewing audience. This upcoming eclipse resild volts from

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the Moon's shadow, falling primarily on the north polar regions

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of Earth. It's actually the second eclipse in less than

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a month, coming just two weeks after the total lunar

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eclipse that occurred on March thirteenth, fourteen. This pattern is

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what astronomers call an eclipse season, a roughly thirty seven

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day period when the alignment of the Sun and Moon

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can allow for eclipses to occur at both full and

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new moon phases. For this March twenty ninth event, the

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Moon will pass through the opposite node of its orbit

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compared to the lunar eclipse. However, the moon passes this

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node almost too early. By the time it reaches new

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phase about nineteen hours after crossing the ecliptic. The axis

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of its shadow will pass well to the north of Earth.

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The dark shadow cone or umbra, will completely miss our planet,

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passing about one hundred and eighty miles above the north pole.

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This means no location on Earth will experience totality, but

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instead the Moon's outer shadow, the penumbra, will create a

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partial eclipse, visible in varying degrees. The eclipse will be

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visible across Northwest Africa, much of Europe, excluding some eastern sections,

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Northwest Russia, Iceland, and Greenland. Parts of South America, including Surrey,

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Name French, Guyana, and Amada in Brazil, will see a

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small dent in the sun at sunrise. For North Americans,

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visibility depends entirely on location. If you draw a line

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from Oakville, Ontario, down to Virginia Beach, Virginia, areas west

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of this line won't see any part of the eclipse.

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Those to the east, however, will catch at least a

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glimpse near sunrise, though maximum eclipse will have already occurred

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before the Sun appears above the horizon. The farther north

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and east you go in North America, the more impressive

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the view becomes. In Baltimore, the sun will rise with

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seven point eight percent of its diameter already eclipsed, with

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the event ending just four minutes later, but residents of

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northern New England and Atlantic Canada are in for a

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spectacular treat. The town of Madawasca in far northern Maine

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will experience maximum eclipse almost precisely at sunrise, with eighty

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eight point two percent of the Sun's diameter covered. This

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will create the stunning visual effect of the Sun appearing

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as a delicate crescent with its points aimed nearly straight up,

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resembling two lobster claws emerging from beyond the eastern horizon.

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Similar impressive views await Atlantic Canada, with Halifax seeing eighty

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five point six percent coverage at seven seventeen am, Fredericton

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experiencing eighty seven percent at seven nineteen am, and Saint

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John's reaching eighty five point four percent at seven fifty

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two am. As always with solar eclipses, proper eye protection

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is essential. Unlike a total eclipse with its brief moments

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of totality, a partial eclipse can be observed more leisurely,

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but only through specially designed solar filters or eclipse glasses.

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Remember that looking at the Sun without proper protection is

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extremely dangerous. NASA's James Webb Space Telescope has made another

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groundbreaking discovery that's challenging our understanding of the early universe.

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An international team of astronomers has identified bright hydrogen emission

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from an incredibly distant galaxy observed just three hundred thirty

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million years after the Big Bang, a mere fraction of

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our universe's current thirteen point eight billion year age. The galaxy,

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designated Jade's GSC thirteen one, was first spotted in images

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taken by Webb's Near infrared camera as part of the

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James Webb Space Telescope Advanced Deep Extragalactic Survey. Researchers initially

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estimated its redshift, a measure of how far the galaxy's

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light has traveled and been stretched by the expansion of space,

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at around twelve point nine. To confirm this extreme distance,

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they then observed it using Web's Near infrared spectrograph instrument.

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The resulting spectrum not only confirmed the red shift at

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thirteen point zero, placing it firmly in the very early universe,

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but also revealed something completely unexpected, a distinctly bright wavelength

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of light. As Lyman alpha emission radiating from hydrogen atoms.

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This emission was far stronger than scientists thought possible during

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this ancient epic. What makes this finding so perplexing is

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that the early universe was filled with a thick fog

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of neutral hydrogen gas. This fog should have completely blocked

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such emissions until a process called realization cleared it away,

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a process that wasn't completed until about one billion years

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after the Big Bang. Yet here was jadas gsz thirteen

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to one shining through this cosmic fog more than six

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hundred million years earlier than should be possible. Roberto Myelino

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from the University of Cambridge and University College London explains

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why this is so significant. GSZ thirteen one is seen

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when the universe was only three hundred thirty million years old,

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yet it shows a surprisingly clear, telltale signature of Lyman

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alpha emission that can only be seen once the surrounding

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fog has fully lifted. This result was totally unexpected by

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theories of early galaxy formation and has caught astronomers by surprise.

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Before and during the realization era, the neutral hydrogen surrounding

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galaxies should have blocked any energetic ultraviolet light they emitted,

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much like colored glass filter's light. Until enough stars had

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formed to ionize this hydrogen gas, no such light, including

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Lyman alpha emission, should have been able to escape and

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reach Earth. We really shouldn't have found a galaxy like this,

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given our understanding of the way the universe has evolved,

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says Kevin Hanline from the University of Arizona. We could

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think of the early universe as shrouded with a thick

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fog that would make it exceedingly difficult to find even

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powerful lighthouses peeking through. Yet here we see the beam

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of light from this galaxy piercing the veil. Scientists aren't

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yet certain what caused this unexpected emission, but they have theories.

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One possibility is that the galaxy contains some of the

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u universe's first generation of stars, much more massive, hotter,

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and more luminous than stars formed later. Another explanation could

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be a powerful, active galactic nucleus driven by one of

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the first super massive black holes. Whatever the explanation, this

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discovery opens exciting new questions about the earliest chapters of

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our cosmic history and how the first stars and galaxies formed.

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The research was published in the journal Nature, marking another

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remarkable achievement for the Web telescope as it continues to

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transform our understanding of the universe's origins. China has taken

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another significant step forward in its space infrastructure with the

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successful launch of a new data tracking and relay communications satellite.

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The Tianlian two zero four lifted off on March twenty

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sixth at eleven fifty five a m Eastern time from

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the Sichang Satellite Launch Center in southwest China aboard a

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long March three B rocket. The China Aerospace Science and

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Technology Corporate KSC announced the mission's success about an hour

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after liftoff. While the launch was anticipated due to airspace

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closure notices, the exact payload wasn't revealed until after the

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successful deployment. Tianlian two zero four is now in geosynchronous

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transfer orbit and will eventually maneuver to take up its

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final position along the geostationary belt, approximately thirty five thousand,

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seven hundred eighty six kilometers above Earth's equator. From this

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vantage point, it will join China's second generation geostationary orbit

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data relay satellite constellation. These satellites serve a critical function

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for China's space program, providing data relay and telemetry, tracking,

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and command services for the nation's crewed spacecraft. This includes

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supporting the Tiangong space station and Shenho spacecraft, as well

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as assisting medium and low Earth orbit satellites and launch operations.

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The Tianlian network performs a role similar to NASA's tracking

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and data relay satellite system, with satellites strategically positioned around

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geostationary orbit to die nearly continuous coverage. According to CASCI,

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this newest addition to the fleet features several technical upgrades

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compared to its predecessor, Tanlian two zero three, which was

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launched in July twenty twenty two. These improvements include enhanced

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transmission capacity and faster response speeds, aimed at meeting China's

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growing needs for data relay and tracking services, while also

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strengthening the autonomy and security of their second generation relay system.

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The Tianlian program has a long history, beginning with China's

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first Tanlian satellite, launched in two thousand and eight. The

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earlier Tanlian I series satellites have now been moved to

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graveyard orbits above the geostationary Belt, while the newer generation

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continues active service. Like earlier satellites in the series. Tanlian

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two zero four was developed by the China Academy of

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Space Technology, a major spacecraft making institute under CASCI. This

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launch marks China's fifteenth orbital mission of twenty twenty five,

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demonstrating the country's increasingly ambitious space program. With expanded spaceport capabilities,

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ongoing Mega constellation projects, and new launch vehicles set to debut,

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China could potentially target around one hundred or more launches

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this year, far exceeding their previous national record of sixty

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eight launches set last year. The country's space agenda remains

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packed with other major upcoming missions, including the Shenzho twenty

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and twenty one crude flights to the Tiangong Space Station

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and the chian Win two Near Earth asteroid sample return

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mission expected to launch around May. Let's move a bit

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further out into space now, looking ahead to one of

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NASA's most anticipated deep space missions. New research presented at

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the twenty twenty five Lunar and Planetary Science Conference has

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revealed how the Europa Clipper will help identify potential landing

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sites for a future mission. To Jupiter's icy moon. This

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strategic reconnaissance capability could prove crucial for the next phase

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of exploring this ocean world. The Europa Clip, scheduled to

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reach the Jovian System in April twenty thirty, will follow

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a complex orbital pattern around Jupiter, performing forty nine close

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flybys of Europa. Unlike Mars orbiters that follow relatively simple

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circular paths, the clipper can't orbit Europa directly due to

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Jupiter's intense radiation environment, which would damage the spacecraft. Instead,

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it will follow carefully designed looping orbits that minimize radiation

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exposure while still allowing close study of the moon. Planetary

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geologist Jennifer Scully and her team at NASA's Jet Propulsion

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Laboratory have carefully assessed which of these flybys would be

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most suitable for identifying future landing sites. They determined that

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any reconnable flyby must meet three key requirements proper lighting

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conditions with the surface in sunlight, specific incidence angles between

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thirty and sixty degrees, and an altitude of approximately fifty

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to one hundred kilometers to ensure appropriate image resolution without blurring.

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Based on these criteria, the researchers identified twelve flybys as

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fully reconnable and another thirteen as supporting. Most notably, a

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flyby designated E nineteen stands out as particularly valuable for

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landing site selection. Its ground track extends over seven hundred

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kilometers and covers a fascinating transition between Europa's ridged planes

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and a region called Powis Reggio, one of the Moon's

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mysterious chaos terrains, where the surface appears jumbled and disrupted,

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potentially offering clues about the ocean beneath. The Europa clippers.

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Sophisticated Europa imaging system, with its narrow and wide angle cameras,

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will collect crucial data for what's known as terrain relative navigation.

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This is the same guidance system that allowed NASA's Perseverance

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rover to safely navigate to its landing site on Mars.

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A future Europa lander would use these detailed surface images,

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combined with real time camera data to guide itself safely

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to the surface. The researchers note that their current assessments

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are based on older data from the Galilee omission, and

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rankings will likely change once the Europa Clipper begins returning

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high resolution images. Some potential landing areas haven't even been

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photographed at high resolution yet, highlighting just how much we

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still have to discover about this intriguing world. This research

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provides a critical roadmap for mission planners as they prepare

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for the Europa Clippers operations in the twenty thirties and

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lay groundwork for what could eventually become humanity's first landing

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on an ocean world beyond Earth. And that wraps up

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today's episode of Astronomy Daily. From the Space Force certifying

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ULA's Vulcan rocket to the upcoming partial solar eclipse, Web's

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surprising discovery of ancient light, China's new data relay satellite,

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and the Europa Clippers mission to scout landing sites on

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Jupiter's ocean moon. We've journeyed across the Solar System and beyond.

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I'm anna and it's been my pleasure to bring you

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these fascinating stories from across the cosmos. Whether you're a

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seasoned astronomer or just curious about what lies beyond our atmosphere,

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I hope you've enjoyed today's cosmic update. Visit our website

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at Astronomydaily dot io, where you can sign up for

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our free daily newsletter and listen to all our episodes.

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You can also find us on social media. Just search

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for Astro Daily Pod on x YouTube, Facebook, Tumblr, and TikTok.

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Until next time, keep looking up start starzon