Oct. 14, 2024

S03E179: SpaceX's Mechazilla Triumph, Europa's Icy Secrets, and Comet Atlas's Historic Journey

S03E179: SpaceX's Mechazilla Triumph, Europa's Icy Secrets, and Comet Atlas's Historic Journey

Astronomy Daily - The Podcast: S03E179
Welcome to Astronomy AstroDailyPod, your daily dose of the latest in Space and Astronomy news. I'm Steve, your host, and today we've got a stellar lineup of cosmic stories, including the awe-inspiring SpaceX...

Season 3
Astronomy Daily - The Podcast: S03E179
Welcome to Astronomy AstroDailyPod, your daily dose of the latest in Space and Astronomy news. I'm Steve, your host, and today we've got a stellar lineup of cosmic stories, including the awe-inspiring SpaceX super heavy booster landing and other celestial wonders.
Highlights:
- SpaceX's Historic Booster Landing: SpaceX has achieved a remarkable milestone with the successful landing of its super heavy booster using the innovative Mechazilla arms. This engineering feat marks a significant step towards rapid reusability in Space travel, setting the stage for future missions to the moon and Mars.
- Comet C/2023 A3 Tsuchinshan-ATLAS: A celestial event not to be missed, this comet is making its way through our solar system, offering a rare spectacle for skywatchers. Recently captured by astronauts aboard the ISS, the comet's journey is a testament to the dynamic nature of our cosmic neighbourhood.
- NASA's Laser Communication Breakthrough: NASA has set a new record for laser communications with a successful transmission from Earth to the Psyche spacecraft. This technology promises to revolutionise data transmission in Space, offering higher data rates than traditional radio frequencies.
- Europa Clipper Mission: Set to explore Jupiter's moon Europa, this mission aims to determine if conditions beneath the icy crust could support life. The spacecraft, equipped with advanced scientific instruments, will provide unprecedented insights into this intriguing Jovian moon.
- Auroral Displays from the ISS: Astronauts aboard the International Space Station have captured stunning images of auroras supercharged by a recent solar storm. These breathtaking views offer a unique perspective on the impact of solar activity on Earth's atmosphere.
For more Space news, visit our website at astronomydaily.io. There, you can sign up for our free AstroDailyPod newsletter, catch up on all the latest Space and Astronomy news with our constantly updating newsfeed, and listen to all our previous episodes.
Don't forget to follow us on social media. Just search for #AstroDailyPod on facebook, X, YouTube, and TikTok.
Thank you for tuning in. This is Steve signing off. Until next time, keep looking up and stay curious about the wonders of our universe.
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/astronomy-daily-the-podcast--5648921/support.
WEBVTT

1
00:00:00.400 --> 00:00:03.720
Hi, and welcome to another episode of Astronomy Daily. I'm Steve,

2
00:00:03.759 --> 00:00:07.080
your host. It's the fourteenth of October twenty twenty four.

3
00:00:09.439 --> 00:00:12.919
The podcast. It would be your whole speed, don't clue.

4
00:00:14.919 --> 00:00:18.160
Yes, another exciting episode, very colorful as well. I'm excited

5
00:00:18.160 --> 00:00:20.960
because we witnessed history yesterday, didn't we, Halle.

6
00:00:21.079 --> 00:00:23.280
Yes, the space Ax heavy booster landing.

7
00:00:23.399 --> 00:00:25.600
That's right, Halle. It was the most magnificent piece of

8
00:00:25.640 --> 00:00:28.920
space engineering and technological genius I think I've ever seen,

9
00:00:29.039 --> 00:00:29.920
I think ever.

10
00:00:30.120 --> 00:00:32.560
It was astounding, all right, and of course we'll get

11
00:00:32.600 --> 00:00:33.600
to that later.

12
00:00:33.920 --> 00:00:37.719
Other stories today include oh well, our whole favorite europea clipper.

13
00:00:37.960 --> 00:00:40.320
Space lasers really really.

14
00:00:40.119 --> 00:00:44.039
Really no, Halle, I mean like really space lasers really?

15
00:00:44.280 --> 00:00:47.359
Yes? Human now so tested one. Oh okay, it's a

16
00:00:47.399 --> 00:00:49.320
beauty as you Australians like to say.

17
00:00:49.479 --> 00:00:53.119
Ooh Helle, trying out the Aussie accent. Yeah. Not better

18
00:00:53.200 --> 00:00:54.719
download the software for that one.

19
00:00:54.840 --> 00:00:55.880
No one can do it.

20
00:00:56.200 --> 00:00:58.640
Yeah that's a dead shirt, Halle. No one can do it.

21
00:00:58.799 --> 00:01:02.119
You think, no we know hmm, beauty me or.

22
00:01:02.079 --> 00:01:04.200
Craky, Hollie. You're putting my teeth on edge.

23
00:01:04.040 --> 00:01:05.680
And you don't have to download anything.

24
00:01:05.920 --> 00:01:08.680
No, just kind of grew into it, little vegamite. Maybe

25
00:01:08.680 --> 00:01:10.439
a chicko roll? Should we sweet?

26
00:01:10.480 --> 00:01:13.040
Good grief? And we're off track already.

27
00:01:13.000 --> 00:01:14.439
For sure, Hallie, what else we got?

28
00:01:14.519 --> 00:01:16.840
I got a bit about comets such and Chanatlas.

29
00:01:17.000 --> 00:01:19.040
Oh nice, but don't ask me to say that one

30
00:01:19.120 --> 00:01:22.359
quickly or slowly? And tell me have you been checking

31
00:01:22.359 --> 00:01:24.519
out the auroras around the planet this week?

32
00:01:24.599 --> 00:01:25.799
Haven't they been beautiful?

33
00:01:26.079 --> 00:01:29.120
I know they're just gorgeous. And I'd like to invite

34
00:01:29.120 --> 00:01:32.040
our listeners to post their picks on our ex page

35
00:01:32.079 --> 00:01:34.719
and I'll give you the address for that. It's at

36
00:01:34.879 --> 00:01:37.239
Astro Daily Pod. So post your picks there.

37
00:01:37.519 --> 00:01:39.519
If you have some photos of the auroras from your

38
00:01:39.560 --> 00:01:42.159
neck of the woods, we'd love to see them totally.

39
00:01:42.239 --> 00:01:45.120
Yeah, let's see them, folks. And to kick things off,

40
00:01:45.200 --> 00:01:47.400
I did get some great images from my good pal

41
00:01:47.519 --> 00:01:50.239
John Carl in Tasmania. He went out to view the

42
00:01:50.239 --> 00:01:52.439
colors in the sky with his brilliant daughters and they

43
00:01:52.439 --> 00:01:55.680
had a terrific time out there, and in true Tasmanian style,

44
00:01:55.799 --> 00:01:59.040
it was cold, but the aurora did not disappoint and

45
00:01:59.079 --> 00:02:02.239
Carl was enough to allow me to post the photos,

46
00:02:02.480 --> 00:02:04.319
which I will do very shortly and you'll be able

47
00:02:04.359 --> 00:02:08.199
to see those on at Astro Daily pod.

48
00:02:08.360 --> 00:02:11.120
That's the X page, So it must be time for

49
00:02:11.159 --> 00:02:11.639
the news.

50
00:02:11.960 --> 00:02:14.280
It sure is, Halle thanks for that and why didn't

51
00:02:14.319 --> 00:02:15.360
you take it away?

52
00:02:15.520 --> 00:02:24.479
Open the pod bay doors, pal oh Boy. Earth based

53
00:02:24.520 --> 00:02:27.199
observers scanning the night sky in Autumn twenty twenty four

54
00:02:27.319 --> 00:02:30.080
may witness a celestial event that occurs only once every

55
00:02:30.120 --> 00:02:33.719
eighty thousand years. Comet c Slash twenty twenty three, a

56
00:02:33.800 --> 00:02:36.520
three to such in chinetlis, originated from the distant fringes

57
00:02:36.520 --> 00:02:39.080
of our Solar system and reached its closest approach to

58
00:02:39.120 --> 00:02:42.319
the Sun on September twenty seventh. It is and is

59
00:02:42.400 --> 00:02:45.599
expected to pass within about seventy million kilometers or forty

60
00:02:45.639 --> 00:02:49.639
four million miles of Earth on October twelfth. Initially visible

61
00:02:49.680 --> 00:02:52.840
mainly in the southern Hemisphere and the tropics until October eighth,

62
00:02:52.919 --> 00:02:55.639
the comet offered increased viewing opportunities for those in the

63
00:02:55.680 --> 00:02:59.719
northern Hemisphere in the following days. Crew aboard the International

64
00:02:59.759 --> 00:03:02.199
Space Past Station have also been observing such an chin

65
00:03:02.240 --> 00:03:05.599
atlas on its journey through the inner Solar System. An

66
00:03:05.599 --> 00:03:08.879
astronaut captured this photo of the comet on September nineteenth,

67
00:03:08.960 --> 00:03:12.960
twenty twenty four. At that time, the mass of dust, ice,

68
00:03:13.080 --> 00:03:15.439
and rock was approaching the closest point to the Sun

69
00:03:15.479 --> 00:03:19.080
on its highly elliptical orbit. The photo also offers a

70
00:03:19.080 --> 00:03:21.840
cross section view of Earth's bright horizon or limb, and

71
00:03:21.879 --> 00:03:26.479
the planet's colorful atmospheric layers. When a comet approaches the Sun,

72
00:03:26.680 --> 00:03:30.560
it gets warmer. Heat causes its ice to supplement into gas,

73
00:03:30.639 --> 00:03:33.000
and these gases and dust become a glowing coma and

74
00:03:33.039 --> 00:03:37.120
tail that can extend millions of kilometers. The Sun influences

75
00:03:37.159 --> 00:03:39.039
the two types of tails, the dust tail and the

76
00:03:39.080 --> 00:03:42.240
ion tail, trailing from the comet in different ways, often

77
00:03:42.280 --> 00:03:45.599
sending them in different directions. The heat and pressure of

78
00:03:45.599 --> 00:03:48.319
sunlight push particles in the dust tail away from the Sun,

79
00:03:48.479 --> 00:03:50.639
though the tail may bend slightly in the direction the

80
00:03:50.680 --> 00:03:54.639
comet came from. Likewise, the solar wind strips ions off

81
00:03:54.639 --> 00:03:57.120
of the comet's surface to create the ion tail, which

82
00:03:57.159 --> 00:04:01.319
may extend at a different angles. Do not survive close

83
00:04:01.439 --> 00:04:05.080
encounters with the Sun. If they get too close, radiation

84
00:04:05.159 --> 00:04:09.759
and gravitational forces may disintegrate them completely. Such a Chinatlus

85
00:04:09.879 --> 00:04:12.680
did not suffer this fate. But another comet astronomers were

86
00:04:12.719 --> 00:04:15.919
watching c SLASH twenty twenty four S one ATLAS may

87
00:04:15.960 --> 00:04:20.079
have Recent data suggests that this comet, which was expected

88
00:04:20.079 --> 00:04:22.439
to be visible from Earth later next year, may have

89
00:04:22.480 --> 00:04:26.519
recently broken into fragments. Given their extremely long orbits. Both

90
00:04:26.560 --> 00:04:29.839
of these ancient celestial travelers likely originated in the Oort Cloud,

91
00:04:29.879 --> 00:04:32.120
which is a large spherical shell of icy debris at

92
00:04:32.160 --> 00:04:35.720
the outer reaches of our Solar system. C SLASH twenty

93
00:04:35.720 --> 00:04:38.160
twenty three, A three to SUCH in Chinatlus, was discovered

94
00:04:38.160 --> 00:04:41.399
in twenty twenty three, identified by observers at China's Such

95
00:04:41.399 --> 00:04:44.560
and Chin or Purple Mountain Observatory and an ATLAS, which

96
00:04:44.560 --> 00:04:48.480
stands for Asteroid Terrestrial Impact Last Alert System Telescope in

97
00:04:48.519 --> 00:04:52.959
South Africa. It was officially named in honor of both observatories.

98
00:05:01.399 --> 00:05:05.399
NASA's Deep Space Optical Communications Technology Demonstration set a new

99
00:05:05.439 --> 00:05:08.639
record for laser communications this summer by transmitting a laser

100
00:05:08.639 --> 00:05:11.959
signal from Earth to the Psyche spacecraft approximately two hundred

101
00:05:11.959 --> 00:05:15.680
and ninety million miles four hundred and sixty million kilometers away.

102
00:05:16.600 --> 00:05:19.160
That's the same distance between our planet and Mars. When

103
00:05:19.199 --> 00:05:23.560
the two planets are farthest apart. Shortly after achieving this milestone,

104
00:05:23.560 --> 00:05:27.360
on July twenty ninth, the technology demonstration successfully completed the

105
00:05:27.360 --> 00:05:30.079
initial phase of its operations, which began with the launch

106
00:05:30.120 --> 00:05:34.199
a board Psyche on October thirteenth, twenty twenty three. Soon

107
00:05:34.240 --> 00:05:37.399
after reaching that milestone, on July twenty ninth, the Technology

108
00:05:37.439 --> 00:05:40.759
Demonstration concluded the first phase of its operations since launching

109
00:05:40.759 --> 00:05:44.639
a board Psyche on October thirteenth, twenty twenty three. The

110
00:05:44.720 --> 00:05:49.639
milestone is significant. Laser communication requires a very high level

111
00:05:49.639 --> 00:05:52.399
of precision, and before we launched with Psyche, we didn't

112
00:05:52.399 --> 00:05:54.600
know how much performance degradation we would see at our

113
00:05:54.639 --> 00:05:58.680
farthest distances, said Mira Shrini Vawsen, the project's operations lead

114
00:05:58.680 --> 00:06:02.959
at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in southern California. Now the

115
00:06:03.040 --> 00:06:05.480
techniques we use to track and point have been verified,

116
00:06:05.680 --> 00:06:09.079
confirming that optical communications can be a robust and transformative

117
00:06:09.079 --> 00:06:13.079
way to explore the Solar system. Managed by JPL, the

118
00:06:13.120 --> 00:06:16.759
Deep Space Optical Communications Experiment consists of a flight laser

119
00:06:16.800 --> 00:06:21.079
transceiver and two ground stations CALTEX Historic two hundred inch

120
00:06:21.120 --> 00:06:24.600
or five meter aperture hail telescope at Caltex Palomar Observatory

121
00:06:24.639 --> 00:06:28.040
in San Diego County, California acts as the downlink station

122
00:06:28.160 --> 00:06:31.000
to which the laser transceiver sends its data from deep space.

123
00:06:31.959 --> 00:06:36.240
The Optical Communications Telescope Laboratory at JPL's Table Mountain facility

124
00:06:36.279 --> 00:06:39.920
near Rightwood, California, acts as the uplink station, capable of

125
00:06:39.959 --> 00:06:42.920
transmitting seven kilowatts of laser power to send data to

126
00:06:42.959 --> 00:06:46.600
the transceiver. By transporting data at rates up to one

127
00:06:46.680 --> 00:06:49.920
hundred times higher than radio frequencies, lasers can enable the

128
00:06:49.920 --> 00:06:53.360
transmission of complex scientific information, as well as high definition

129
00:06:53.399 --> 00:06:56.439
imagery and video, which are needed to support humanity's next

130
00:06:56.480 --> 00:07:00.399
giant leap when astronauts travel to Mars and beyond. As

131
00:07:00.399 --> 00:07:03.680
for the spacecraft, Psyche remains healthy and stable, using ion

132
00:07:03.720 --> 00:07:06.439
propulsion to accelerate toward a metal rich asteroid in the

133
00:07:06.439 --> 00:07:11.120
main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. The technology demonstrations.

134
00:07:11.199 --> 00:07:13.639
Data is sent to and from Psyche as bits encoded

135
00:07:13.680 --> 00:07:16.199
in near infrared light, which has a higher frequency than

136
00:07:16.319 --> 00:07:20.279
radio waves. That higher frequency enables more data to be

137
00:07:20.319 --> 00:07:23.920
packed into a transmission, allowing far higher rates of data transfer.

138
00:07:24.879 --> 00:07:27.439
Even when Psyche was about thirty three million miles or

139
00:07:27.480 --> 00:07:31.079
fifty three million kilometers away, comparable to Mars, closest approach

140
00:07:31.079 --> 00:07:34.399
to Earth. The technology demonstration could transmit data at the

141
00:07:34.399 --> 00:07:37.319
system's maximum rate of two hundred and sixty seven megabits

142
00:07:37.360 --> 00:07:41.240
per second. That bit rate is similar to broadband Internet

143
00:07:41.279 --> 00:07:45.399
download speeds. As the spacecraft travels farther away, the rate

144
00:07:45.439 --> 00:07:47.759
at which it can send and receive data is reduced,

145
00:07:47.839 --> 00:07:51.639
as expected. On June twenty fourth, when Psyche was about

146
00:07:51.639 --> 00:07:53.959
two hundred and forty million miles or three hundred and

147
00:07:54.000 --> 00:07:56.399
ninety million kilometers from Earth, more than two and a

148
00:07:56.439 --> 00:07:58.959
half times the distance between our planet and the Sun,

149
00:07:59.120 --> 00:08:01.959
the project achieved sustained downlink data rate of six point

150
00:08:01.959 --> 00:08:04.839
twenty five megabits per second, with a maximum rate of

151
00:08:04.879 --> 00:08:08.439
eight point three megabits per second. While this rate is

152
00:08:08.480 --> 00:08:11.759
significantly lower than the experiment's maximum, it is far higher

153
00:08:11.800 --> 00:08:15.439
than a radio frequency communications system using comparable power can

154
00:08:15.480 --> 00:08:19.759
achieve over that distance. The Technology Demonstration beamed the first

155
00:08:19.839 --> 00:08:23.399
ultra high definition video from space, featuring a cat named Taters,

156
00:08:23.519 --> 00:08:26.519
from the Psyche spacecraft to Earth on December eleventh, twenty

157
00:08:26.519 --> 00:08:35.600
twenty three. From nineteen million miles away, Europa Clipper will

158
00:08:35.639 --> 00:08:38.519
peer beneath the Jovian moon Europa's icy crust, where an

159
00:08:38.559 --> 00:08:41.159
ocean is thought to be slashing fairly close to the surface.

160
00:08:42.120 --> 00:08:45.320
It won't search for life, but rather determine weather conditions

161
00:08:45.360 --> 00:08:48.159
there could support it. It's a chance for us to

162
00:08:48.200 --> 00:08:50.559
explore not a world that might have been habitable billions

163
00:08:50.600 --> 00:08:52.840
of years ago, but a world that might be habitable

164
00:08:52.840 --> 00:08:57.679
today right now, said program scientist Kurtneber. Its massive solar

165
00:08:57.720 --> 00:09:00.440
panels make Clipper the biggest craft built by NAPA to

166
00:09:00.440 --> 00:09:03.799
investigate another planet. It will take five and a half

167
00:09:03.879 --> 00:09:06.480
years to reach Jupiter and will sneak within sixteen miles

168
00:09:06.559 --> 00:09:10.159
or twenty five kilometers of Europa's surface, considerably closer than

169
00:09:10.200 --> 00:09:14.360
any other spacecraft. Costing about five point two billion dollars,

170
00:09:14.519 --> 00:09:17.759
Liftoff is targeted for this month aboard SpaceX's Falcon heavy

171
00:09:17.799 --> 00:09:21.799
rocket from NASA's Kennedy Space Center. One of Jupiter's ninety

172
00:09:21.879 --> 00:09:24.519
five known moons, Europa is almost the size of our

173
00:09:24.559 --> 00:09:27.799
own moon. It's encased in an ice sheet estimated to

174
00:09:27.840 --> 00:09:30.240
be ten miles to fifteen miles or more or fifteen

175
00:09:30.279 --> 00:09:34.679
kilometers to twenty four kilometers thick. Scientists believe this frozen

176
00:09:34.720 --> 00:09:37.039
crust hides an ocean that could be eighty miles or

177
00:09:37.039 --> 00:09:40.720
one hundred and twenty kilometers or more deep. What type

178
00:09:40.759 --> 00:09:45.240
of life might Europa harbor? Besides water, organic compounds are

179
00:09:45.240 --> 00:09:48.000
needed for life as we know it, plus an energy source,

180
00:09:48.879 --> 00:09:51.159
in Europa's case, that could be thermal vents on the

181
00:09:51.200 --> 00:09:55.919
ocean floor. Deputy project scientist Bonni Barati imagines any life

182
00:09:55.919 --> 00:09:58.600
would be primitive, like the bacterial life that originated in

183
00:09:58.639 --> 00:10:01.639
Earth's deep ocean vents. We will not know from this

184
00:10:01.759 --> 00:10:05.519
mission because we can't see that deep, she said. Unlike

185
00:10:05.559 --> 00:10:08.440
missions to Mars, where habitability is one of many questions,

186
00:10:08.559 --> 00:10:11.039
Clipper's sole job is to establish whether the Moon could

187
00:10:11.080 --> 00:10:13.799
support life in its ocean or possibly in any pockets

188
00:10:13.799 --> 00:10:16.679
of water in the ice when its solar wings and

189
00:10:16.720 --> 00:10:19.240
antennas are unfurled. Clipper is about the size of a

190
00:10:19.279 --> 00:10:22.120
basketball court, more than one hundred feet or thirty meters

191
00:10:22.159 --> 00:10:24.799
en to end, and weighs nearly thirteen thousand pounds or

192
00:10:24.840 --> 00:10:29.039
six thousand kilograms. The super sized solar panels are needed

193
00:10:29.080 --> 00:10:32.679
because of Jupiter's distance from the Sun. The main body,

194
00:10:32.759 --> 00:10:34.919
about the size of a camper, is packed with nine

195
00:10:34.919 --> 00:10:38.559
science instruments, including radar that will penetrate the ice, cameras

196
00:10:38.559 --> 00:10:40.919
for mapping virtually the entire Moon, and tools to tease

197
00:10:40.960 --> 00:10:44.759
out the contents of Europa's surface and tenuous atmosphere. The

198
00:10:44.879 --> 00:10:47.639
roundabout trip to Jupiter will span one point eight billion

199
00:10:47.720 --> 00:10:52.320
miles three billion kilometers for extra oomph, The spacecraft will

200
00:10:52.320 --> 00:10:54.559
swing past Mars early next year and then Earth in

201
00:10:54.639 --> 00:10:57.600
late twenty twenty six, and arrives at Jupiter in twenty thirty.

202
00:10:58.480 --> 00:11:02.480
Then it begins science work. Then next year. While orbiting Jupiter,

203
00:11:02.679 --> 00:11:06.240
it will cross paths with Europa forty nine times. The

204
00:11:06.279 --> 00:11:08.799
mission ends in twenty thirty four with a plant crash

205
00:11:08.840 --> 00:11:13.240
into Ganymede, Jupiter's and the Solar System's biggest moon. There's

206
00:11:13.279 --> 00:11:16.159
more radiation around Jupiter than anywhere else in our Solar

207
00:11:16.159 --> 00:11:20.360
System besides the Sun. Europa passes through Jupiter's bands of

208
00:11:20.440 --> 00:11:23.519
radiation as it orbits the gas giant, making it especially

209
00:11:23.559 --> 00:11:27.679
menacing for spacecraft. That's why Clipper's electronics are inside a

210
00:11:27.759 --> 00:11:31.720
vault with dense aluminium and zinc walls. All this radiation

211
00:11:31.759 --> 00:11:35.279
would mix any life on Europa's surface, but it could

212
00:11:35.279 --> 00:11:38.720
break down water molecules and perhaps release oxygen. All the

213
00:11:38.759 --> 00:11:42.399
way down into the ocean that could possibly fuel see life.

214
00:11:42.440 --> 00:11:44.840
Earlier this year, NASA was in a panic that the

215
00:11:44.879 --> 00:11:49.360
spacecraft's many transistors might not withstand the intense radiation, but

216
00:11:49.440 --> 00:11:53.200
after months of analysis, engineers concluded the mission could proceed.

217
00:11:54.240 --> 00:11:58.000
Like many robotic explorers before it, Clipper bears messages from Earth.

218
00:11:58.879 --> 00:12:01.960
Attached to the electronx fault is a triangular metal plate.

219
00:12:02.919 --> 00:12:05.559
On one side is a design labeled Water Words, with

220
00:12:05.639 --> 00:12:08.240
representations of the word for water in one hundred and

221
00:12:08.279 --> 00:12:11.960
four languages. On the opposite side a poem about the

222
00:12:11.960 --> 00:12:14.600
Moon by US poet Laureate Italy Moon, and a silicon

223
00:12:14.679 --> 00:12:17.200
chip containing the names of two point six million people

224
00:12:17.200 --> 00:12:24.840
who signed up to vicariously ride along. And that's all

225
00:12:24.840 --> 00:12:37.120
from me today. Back to you, my favorite human, Thank

226
00:12:37.159 --> 00:12:37.480
you for.

227
00:12:37.480 --> 00:12:40.360
Joining us for this Monday edition of Astronomy Daily, where

228
00:12:40.399 --> 00:12:42.480
we offer just a few stories from the now famous

229
00:12:42.519 --> 00:12:45.960
Astronomy Daily newsletter, which you can receive in your email

230
00:12:46.039 --> 00:12:48.759
every day, just like Hallie and I do. And to

231
00:12:48.799 --> 00:12:52.440
do that, just visit our url Astronomy Daily dot io

232
00:12:52.639 --> 00:12:55.519
and place your email address in the slot provided. Just

233
00:12:55.639 --> 00:12:59.559
like that, you'll be receiving all the latest news about science, space,

234
00:12:59.600 --> 00:13:03.159
science astronomy from around the world as it's happening, and

235
00:13:03.240 --> 00:13:06.039
not only that. You can interact with us by visiting

236
00:13:06.440 --> 00:13:10.519
at astro Daily pod on x or at our new

237
00:13:10.559 --> 00:13:14.440
Facebook page, which is of course Astronomy Daily on Facebook.

238
00:13:14.600 --> 00:13:21.039
See you there, Astronomy with Steve and Halley Space Space,

239
00:13:21.080 --> 00:13:27.879
Science and Astronomy. In one of the most dramatic, high

240
00:13:27.960 --> 00:13:32.159
risk space flights to date, SpaceX launched a gargantuan super

241
00:13:32.159 --> 00:13:37.039
heavy starship rocket on an unpiloted test flight on Sunday

242
00:13:37.080 --> 00:13:40.360
and then use giant Mechazilla robot arms on the pad

243
00:13:40.399 --> 00:13:43.840
gantry to pluck the returning first stage out of the

244
00:13:43.879 --> 00:13:48.879
sky in an unprecedented feat of engineering. The starship upper

245
00:13:48.879 --> 00:13:52.279
stage meanwhile looped around the planet and re entered the

246
00:13:52.279 --> 00:13:56.399
atmosphere over the Indian Ocean, just as planned and during

247
00:13:56.480 --> 00:13:59.799
temperatures of nearly three thousand degrees As it descended to

248
00:13:59.840 --> 00:14:05.039
a controlled on target splashdown, the spacecraft appeared to come

249
00:14:05.200 --> 00:14:08.759
through the hellish heat of re entry in relatively good condition,

250
00:14:09.320 --> 00:14:13.720
protected and by improved heat shielding tiles and beefed up

251
00:14:13.799 --> 00:14:17.080
steering fins that worked as needed. While engulfed in a

252
00:14:17.200 --> 00:14:21.879
fireball of atmospheric plasma, but the jaw dropping first stage

253
00:14:21.960 --> 00:14:25.480
capture back at the launch pad using pencer like arms

254
00:14:25.519 --> 00:14:29.440
more commonly known as chopsticks, was the clear highlight of

255
00:14:29.480 --> 00:14:34.039
the Giant rocket's fifth test flight. Snagging the descending twenty

256
00:14:34.120 --> 00:14:37.840
three story tall Super Heavy booster with the Mechazilla arms

257
00:14:38.120 --> 00:14:44.360
represented an unprecedented milestone in SpaceX's drive to develop fully reusable,

258
00:14:44.480 --> 00:14:49.399
quickly relaunchable rockets, a technological tourtor force that stands alone

259
00:14:49.519 --> 00:14:53.320
in the history of earlier space programs relying on expendable

260
00:14:53.440 --> 00:14:58.879
throwaway rockets. Big step towards making life multiplanetary was made today,

261
00:14:59.039 --> 00:15:03.840
SpaceX founder Elon Musk said on his social media platform X.

262
00:15:04.320 --> 00:15:07.519
The three hundred and ninety seven foot tall rocket blasted

263
00:15:07.519 --> 00:15:11.360
off from space X's Bogachika Texas flight facility on the

264
00:15:11.399 --> 00:15:16.000
Texas Gulf Coast at eight twenty five AMDT, putting on

265
00:15:16.080 --> 00:15:20.559
a spectacular sunrise show as the boosters thirty three methane

266
00:15:20.559 --> 00:15:25.320
berth burning raptor engines ignited with a ground shaking raw

267
00:15:25.440 --> 00:15:28.679
and a torrent of flaming exhaust. With three minutes and

268
00:15:28.759 --> 00:15:33.720
forty seconds after liftoff, the super heavy booster fell away,

269
00:15:34.039 --> 00:15:38.159
flipped around, and restarted thirteen raptors to reverse course and

270
00:15:38.279 --> 00:15:42.200
head back toward the Texas coast. As the Starship upper

271
00:15:42.200 --> 00:15:45.720
stage continued to climb to space on the power of

272
00:15:45.759 --> 00:15:50.000
its six raptor engines, The boosters flight computer was programmed

273
00:15:50.000 --> 00:15:52.360
to direct the stage to a splashdown in the Gulf

274
00:15:52.399 --> 00:15:55.559
of Mexico if any problems developed on the rocket or

275
00:15:55.600 --> 00:15:59.759
the launch pad capture mechanism, but no such problems were detected.

276
00:16:00.120 --> 00:16:03.919
The flight director sent a required go command, and the

277
00:16:04.080 --> 00:16:08.360
super Heavy continued toward its launchpad, descending at an angle

278
00:16:08.559 --> 00:16:11.759
and then straightening up as it approached the gantry. As

279
00:16:11.840 --> 00:16:15.799
it slowly dropped beside the tower, the two mechanical arms

280
00:16:16.120 --> 00:16:20.120
smoothly moved in to grab the rocket as its engines

281
00:16:20.200 --> 00:16:24.240
shut down. The remarkable capture, a key element in musks

282
00:16:24.320 --> 00:16:28.759
drive to achieve rapid reusability, came as the Starship upper

283
00:16:28.759 --> 00:16:31.919
stage was still heading into space and splashed down in

284
00:16:31.960 --> 00:16:36.799
the Indian Ocean, simulating a touchdown on shore or eventually

285
00:16:36.879 --> 00:16:40.919
on the Moon or Mars. During the rocket's fourth test

286
00:16:41.080 --> 00:16:45.039
flight in June, the extreme temperatures caused significant damage to

287
00:16:45.080 --> 00:16:49.399
the Starship's protective tiles and steering fins. Multiple upgrades and

288
00:16:49.440 --> 00:16:52.480
improvements were put in place for Sunday's flight to eliminate

289
00:16:52.600 --> 00:16:56.759
or minimize any such re entry damage. As the Starship

290
00:16:56.840 --> 00:16:59.679
re entered the atmosphere, cameras on the rocket showed the

291
00:16:59.679 --> 00:17:02.200
red glow of heat building up on the belly of

292
00:17:02.200 --> 00:17:07.519
the spacecraft, intensifying as the descent continued. Engulfed in a fireball,

293
00:17:07.799 --> 00:17:11.480
the ship's fins stayed intact and the vehicle came through

294
00:17:11.480 --> 00:17:15.400
the peak heating in good condition. Moments later, the camera

295
00:17:15.519 --> 00:17:19.279
captured an on target splashdown, followed by what appeared to

296
00:17:19.279 --> 00:17:22.400
be an explosion. Given the rocket is not intended to

297
00:17:22.480 --> 00:17:27.160
land in water, whatever happened after splashdown was incidental. In

298
00:17:27.200 --> 00:17:31.359
what can only be called a remarkably successful test flight,

299
00:17:31.920 --> 00:17:36.359
the two stage Super Heavy Starship, known collectively as the Starship,

300
00:17:36.559 --> 00:17:39.319
is the largest, most powerful rocket in the world, with

301
00:17:39.519 --> 00:17:44.000
twice the liftoff thrust of NASA's legendary Satin five and

302
00:17:44.039 --> 00:17:48.079
nearly twice the power of the agency's new Space Launch

303
00:17:48.160 --> 00:17:52.519
System Moon rocket. The thirty foot wide Super Heavy first stage,

304
00:17:52.799 --> 00:17:56.799
loaded with six point eight million pounds of liquid oxygen

305
00:17:56.799 --> 00:18:00.480
and methane propellants, stands two hundred and thirty five tall

306
00:18:00.519 --> 00:18:04.240
and is powered by thirty three SpaceX designed raptor engines,

307
00:18:04.559 --> 00:18:09.000
generating up to sixteen million pounds of thrust. The starship

308
00:18:09.079 --> 00:18:12.440
upper stage measures one hundred and sixty feet long and

309
00:18:12.519 --> 00:18:16.480
carries two point six million pounds propellant to power another

310
00:18:16.599 --> 00:18:20.599
six raptors. Both stages are designed to be fully reusable,

311
00:18:20.880 --> 00:18:23.839
with the super Heavy flying itself back to the launch

312
00:18:23.920 --> 00:18:27.119
pad while the Starship travels to and from Earth, orbit,

313
00:18:27.440 --> 00:18:31.920
the Moon, or eventually Mars. The Starship is designed to

314
00:18:31.920 --> 00:18:35.039
touch down vertically on its own rocket power at landing

315
00:18:35.119 --> 00:18:38.559
sites on Earth and beyond, but the primary goal on

316
00:18:38.640 --> 00:18:42.240
Sunday's flight was to demonstrate the ability to capture returning

317
00:18:42.559 --> 00:18:45.480
super Heavy boosters on the launch pad, where they can

318
00:18:45.559 --> 00:18:52.480
be quickly refurbished, refueled, and relaunched. SpaceX perfected first stage

319
00:18:52.559 --> 00:18:57.079
landings with its workhorse Falcon nine rockets, successfully recovering three

320
00:18:57.200 --> 00:19:00.480
hundred and fifty two such boosters to date with powered

321
00:19:00.519 --> 00:19:04.920
touchdowns on landing pads or offshore drone ships. The smaller

322
00:19:04.960 --> 00:19:08.200
Falcon nine first stages land on their own, deploying four

323
00:19:08.279 --> 00:19:12.559
legs a few seconds before touchdown, snatching the three hundred

324
00:19:12.599 --> 00:19:14.799
and ninety seven foot tall Super Heavy out of the

325
00:19:14.799 --> 00:19:18.319
sky with mechanical arms as the rocket descends and hovers

326
00:19:18.400 --> 00:19:22.279
right beside its launch gantry seemed like an outlandish idea

327
00:19:22.319 --> 00:19:25.839
when it was first proposed during the booster's initial development,

328
00:19:26.400 --> 00:19:31.599
but Space Engineer SpaceX engineers spent years preparing and months

329
00:19:31.680 --> 00:19:36.839
testing for the boosters catch attempt, with technicians pouring tens

330
00:19:36.880 --> 00:19:40.799
of thousands of hours into building the infrastructure to maximize

331
00:19:40.839 --> 00:19:44.839
the chances for success with each flight. Building on the

332
00:19:44.920 --> 00:19:48.680
learnings from the last testing, improvements in hardware and operations

333
00:19:48.759 --> 00:19:51.839
cross every facet of starship where on the verge of

334
00:19:51.920 --> 00:19:57.559
demonstrating techniques fundamental to the starship's fully and rapidly reusable design,

335
00:19:57.599 --> 00:20:02.039
the company continued. X is under contract to NASA to

336
00:20:02.079 --> 00:20:05.799
supply a modified starship to carry astronauts to landings near

337
00:20:05.799 --> 00:20:09.680
the Moon's South Pole in the agency's Artemis program. To

338
00:20:09.720 --> 00:20:13.640
get Starship Lander to the Moon, SpaceX must first get

339
00:20:13.680 --> 00:20:17.880
it into low Earth orbit, then launch multiple super Heavy

340
00:20:17.920 --> 00:20:21.720
Starship tankers to refuel the moon bound starship for the

341
00:20:21.759 --> 00:20:25.839
trip to lunar orbit. The astronauts will launch a top

342
00:20:25.920 --> 00:20:29.240
NASA's Space Launch System rocket and fly to the Moon

343
00:20:29.279 --> 00:20:34.279
aboard a Lockheed Martin built Oryan capsule. The crew will

344
00:20:34.319 --> 00:20:37.359
transfer to the weighting starship for the descent to the

345
00:20:37.440 --> 00:20:41.559
lunar surface. NASA hopes to send the first woman and

346
00:20:41.640 --> 00:20:45.160
the next man to the Moon in the twenty twenty

347
00:20:45.200 --> 00:20:50.279
seven twenty eight time frame, after an unpiloted starship moon landing.

348
00:20:50.720 --> 00:20:54.160
Rapid reusability is a key element of the program, given

349
00:20:54.200 --> 00:20:57.359
the number of super heavy starships that will be required

350
00:20:57.720 --> 00:21:02.000
for a single moon landing. While Sunday's flight appeared to

351
00:21:02.039 --> 00:21:05.559
go smoothly, multiple flights will be needed to perfect the

352
00:21:05.680 --> 00:21:10.920
system and demonstrate the reliability required to carry astronauts. How

353
00:21:10.960 --> 00:21:14.519
long that might take is an open question. Over the

354
00:21:14.559 --> 00:21:18.960
past few weeks, Musk has launched a social media broadside

355
00:21:19.079 --> 00:21:24.559
against the Federal Aviation Administration, complaining that the agency's bureaucracy

356
00:21:24.640 --> 00:21:28.400
takes too long to review and approve launch licenses and

357
00:21:28.640 --> 00:21:32.839
is in effect stifling innovation and slowing development of the

358
00:21:32.880 --> 00:21:36.759
new rocket system. The FAA did not grant a license

359
00:21:36.839 --> 00:21:40.559
to launch Sunday's test flight until the day before, but

360
00:21:40.680 --> 00:21:44.599
this time around the license covered multiple test flights using

361
00:21:44.759 --> 00:21:47.000
roughly the same flight plan.

362
00:21:49.519 --> 00:22:00.400
As the podcast.

363
00:22:03.519 --> 00:22:05.480
And I don't know where you might have been on

364
00:22:05.519 --> 00:22:10.079
Thursday night, that's October ten this year, but you may

365
00:22:10.119 --> 00:22:13.960
have seen or witnessed the wonderful color displays in the sky.

366
00:22:14.119 --> 00:22:19.119
The auroras were very active. It's been a bit difficult

367
00:22:19.160 --> 00:22:21.240
to see them from where I am in Newcastle on

368
00:22:21.279 --> 00:22:24.160
the East coast of Australia, north of Sydney, but a

369
00:22:24.200 --> 00:22:27.960
lot of my friends further south saw some pretty spectacular things.

370
00:22:28.640 --> 00:22:32.079
Astronauts have probably got the best view of all, and

371
00:22:32.119 --> 00:22:35.480
we'll hear about that in a second. NASA astronauts Don

372
00:22:35.519 --> 00:22:40.160
Pettitt and Matthew Dominic in a very exclusive club indeed

373
00:22:40.240 --> 00:22:43.519
getting a bird's eye view of the amazing auroral displays,

374
00:22:43.559 --> 00:22:47.480
which were supercharged by a recent solid storm from the

375
00:22:47.519 --> 00:22:52.480
International Space Station, and the site took them completely by surprise.

376
00:22:53.720 --> 00:22:57.000
Petit wrote, stunning was the word. He wrote a lengthy

377
00:22:57.039 --> 00:23:02.920
post on X on Friday that the post a photograph

378
00:23:03.119 --> 00:23:06.880
of the celestial light show, and the sun goes birth,

379
00:23:07.079 --> 00:23:12.039
he says, and the atmosphere turns red spectacular not only

380
00:23:12.079 --> 00:23:17.359
from Earth but also from orbit as well. Words, probably

381
00:23:17.400 --> 00:23:21.839
only an astronaut can really see the clear meaning behind.

382
00:23:21.920 --> 00:23:25.960
But the auroras were especially dramatic overnight on Thursday thanks

383
00:23:26.000 --> 00:23:30.359
to a strong geomagnetic storm, which was triggered by the

384
00:23:30.480 --> 00:23:33.880
arrival of a huge cloud of solar plasma rocketed into

385
00:23:33.920 --> 00:23:38.880
space by a coronal mass ejection a CME. Now some

386
00:23:38.920 --> 00:23:43.640
of you may be wondering what is a coronal mass ejection. Well,

387
00:23:43.880 --> 00:23:49.440
a coronal mass ejection is often compared to solar flares.

388
00:23:49.480 --> 00:23:53.319
They are bursts of electromagnetic radiation that travel at the

389
00:23:53.319 --> 00:23:56.119
speed of light, reaching Earth in just over eight minutes,

390
00:23:56.160 --> 00:24:01.079
but cmees travel at a more leisurely pace, relatively speaking

391
00:24:01.759 --> 00:24:05.359
that their highest speeds of almost one nine hundred miles

392
00:24:05.400 --> 00:24:09.000
per second or three thousand kilometers per second, CMEs can

393
00:24:09.079 --> 00:24:12.799
reach Earth in about fifteen to eighteen hours, while slower

394
00:24:12.799 --> 00:24:16.559
CMEs traveling at around one hundred and fifty five miles

395
00:24:16.599 --> 00:24:18.960
per second or two hundred and fifty columbus per second,

396
00:24:19.319 --> 00:24:22.400
can take several days to arrive. That's according to the

397
00:24:22.559 --> 00:24:27.519
Space Whether Prediction Center of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric

398
00:24:27.599 --> 00:24:33.240
Administration or NOAH. These relatively slower travel times are useful

399
00:24:33.400 --> 00:24:36.240
as they give us more time to prepare for such

400
00:24:36.279 --> 00:24:41.799
an arrival. CMEs can wreak havoc with power grids, telecommunication networks,

401
00:24:41.799 --> 00:24:47.480
and orbiting satellites and expose astronauts to dangerous doses of radiation. Conversely,

402
00:24:47.599 --> 00:24:52.160
CMEs are a welcome visitor to skywatchers worldwide, as they

403
00:24:52.160 --> 00:24:55.960
can trigger impressive aurora displays that are visible at latitudes

404
00:24:56.000 --> 00:25:01.000
beyond their normal polar range. Coronal mass injections form similarly

405
00:25:01.359 --> 00:25:04.599
to solar flares as a result of the twisting and

406
00:25:04.720 --> 00:25:09.319
realignment of the Sun's magnetic field, known as magnetic reconnection.

407
00:25:09.759 --> 00:25:13.720
According to Noah, when the magnetic field lines tangle, they

408
00:25:13.759 --> 00:25:18.480
produce a strong localized magnetic field which can break through

409
00:25:18.519 --> 00:25:23.839
the surface of the Sun at active regions, subsequently generating CMEs. Effectively,

410
00:25:24.200 --> 00:25:27.160
the Sun goes burp and we get a colorful sky.

411
00:25:28.279 --> 00:25:31.000
If you missed the amazing displays of color in the sky,

412
00:25:31.400 --> 00:25:34.200
you'd be hard pressed to miss them online. A good

413
00:25:34.279 --> 00:25:38.200
collection of images can be found over on space dot com,

414
00:25:38.319 --> 00:25:41.920
where many images show the varying colors seen from a

415
00:25:42.000 --> 00:25:46.359
lot of different direct locations around the globe. In his

416
00:25:46.599 --> 00:25:51.599
Friday xpost, astronaut Pettit said he and astronaut Dominique didn't

417
00:25:51.599 --> 00:25:55.559
expect to be so dazzled. This event caught both Dominique

418
00:25:55.599 --> 00:25:59.000
and I off guard. The Aurora had just been so

419
00:25:59.000 --> 00:26:00.799
so and we were out of energy at the end

420
00:26:00.799 --> 00:26:03.400
of a long day and reluctant to once again set

421
00:26:03.480 --> 00:26:06.640
up our cameras for yet another no show, and we

422
00:26:06.640 --> 00:26:10.440
were just heading to some much needed sleep when we

423
00:26:10.519 --> 00:26:15.200
made the mistake of peeking out the coppoler windows, Pettit wrote,

424
00:26:15.359 --> 00:26:18.680
and what they saw jarred them into action. It looked

425
00:26:18.720 --> 00:26:21.480
like the space station had been shrunk to some miniature

426
00:26:21.519 --> 00:26:25.680
dimension and inserted into a Neon sign. We were not

427
00:26:25.799 --> 00:26:29.400
flying above the Aurora. We were flying in the Aurora,

428
00:26:29.799 --> 00:26:32.640
and it was blood red, he added. Caught off guard,

429
00:26:32.759 --> 00:26:36.759
we hastily set up our cameras, four of them, all

430
00:26:36.799 --> 00:26:41.119
snapping shutters as fast as they could, creating a syncopated rhythm,

431
00:26:41.319 --> 00:26:47.440
rhythm that accented nature's artistic display presented before us, he wrote.

432
00:26:47.519 --> 00:26:51.319
As the post notes, both Pettit and Dominic are practiced

433
00:26:51.440 --> 00:26:55.200
orbital photographers. Both routinely share stunning shots of the Northern

434
00:26:55.279 --> 00:26:58.599
Lights and other sites on Earth with us via social media.

435
00:26:59.000 --> 00:27:02.839
For example, Dominque recently gave us dramatic views of Hurricane

436
00:27:02.839 --> 00:27:08.319
Milton churning towards its Florida landfall, which occurred on Wednesday evening,

437
00:27:08.400 --> 00:27:11.960
October nine. Those shots were taken through the window of

438
00:27:12.039 --> 00:27:16.440
the Crew Dragon capsule Endeavor. Dominic also shared an Aurora

439
00:27:16.519 --> 00:27:19.680
shot through the Endeavor's window on x this week. I

440
00:27:19.799 --> 00:27:23.640
now sleep in Dragon Endeavor while we wait to undock,

441
00:27:23.720 --> 00:27:27.519
he wrote. We take most of our images from the Kupla,

442
00:27:27.599 --> 00:27:30.839
but sleeping here has been amazing. This is the view

443
00:27:30.880 --> 00:27:33.240
out the window this evening, he wrote in the post,

444
00:27:33.680 --> 00:27:36.079
and listeners, I do encourage you to go to space

445
00:27:36.119 --> 00:27:39.839
dot com and look at that photograph. In my opinion,

446
00:27:39.960 --> 00:27:43.759
it is one of the most amazing space photographs ever taken.

447
00:28:02.680 --> 00:28:04.599
Is it sure sounds like an adventure to me? I

448
00:28:04.640 --> 00:28:08.119
think astronaut pettit is staying on board for a while,

449
00:28:08.160 --> 00:28:11.039
he was. He went up there with the Russian Soyuz craft.

450
00:28:11.359 --> 00:28:14.680
But Dominic has already come home. He flew back on

451
00:28:14.759 --> 00:28:17.359
the Dragon Endeavor on Sunday.

452
00:28:17.519 --> 00:28:19.279
And that's it for another episode.

453
00:28:19.559 --> 00:28:21.240
Yes, that's all, she wrote, And I want to thank

454
00:28:21.240 --> 00:28:23.039
you all for listening in. We bring you only a

455
00:28:23.079 --> 00:28:26.200
tiny slice of the stories that you can find every day.

456
00:28:26.039 --> 00:28:29.160
In the Astronomy Daily I do. Hope you all find

457
00:28:29.160 --> 00:28:31.400
your way to the homepage and drop your email address

458
00:28:31.400 --> 00:28:33.880
in the slot to receive this fun publication each day.

459
00:28:34.160 --> 00:28:36.599
It's a terrific window on what's going on in space,

460
00:28:36.759 --> 00:28:40.119
space science and astronomy, and you can catch Anna with

461
00:28:40.160 --> 00:28:43.039
her presentations during the week. And we'll be back on Monday.

462
00:28:43.440 --> 00:28:46.440
So it's goodbye from me, see you later, humans, see

463
00:28:46.480 --> 00:28:51.160
everybody bye.

464
00:28:51.759 --> 00:28:54.000
Would be your whole speed. Don't clue