Oct. 18, 2024

S03E183: Webb's Galactic Oddity, Europe's Moonlight Initiative, and Branson's Balloon Comeback

S03E183: Webb's Galactic Oddity, Europe's Moonlight Initiative, and Branson's Balloon Comeback

Astronomy Daily - The Podcast: S03E183
Welcome to Astronomy Daily, your trusted source for the most exciting space and Astronomy news. I'm Anna, and today we've got a stellar lineup of stories that'll take you from the far reaches of the cosmos right...

Season 3
Astronomy Daily - The Podcast: S03E183
Welcome to Astronomy Daily, your trusted source for the most exciting space and Astronomy news. I'm Anna, and today we've got a stellar lineup of stories that'll take you from the far reaches of the cosmos right back to our own celestial neighborhood.
Highlights:
- James Webb's Galactic Discovery: The James Webb Space Telescope unveils a galaxy, GSnDG 9422, that challenges our understanding of the early universe. This cosmic oddity, appearing a billion years after the Big Bang, features glowing gas outshining its stars, offering insights into galactic evolution.
- Europe's Lunar Navigation Ambitions: The European Space Agency's Moonlight program aims to establish a constellation of satellites providing communication and navigation services for over 400 planned lunar missions. This initiative supports commercial lunar markets and international cooperation.
- International Spaceport Collaboration: Eight spaceports from six countries have signed an agreement to share knowledge and develop global standards for launch facilities. This partnership enhances resilience, operational efficiency, and safety in the space industry.
- Hubble's Cosmic Volcano: The Hubble Space Telescope captures a stellar spectacle, a binary star system displaying explosive eruptions resembling a stellar volcano. This dynamic duo showcases the powerful forces at work in our universe.
- Richard Branson's Next Adventure: Richard Branson returns to his ballooning roots, co-piloting Space Perspective's stratospheric balloon flight. This leisurely six-hour journey offers breathtaking Earth views, marking a gentler approach to space tourism.
- ESA's Hera Mission Insights: The European Space Agency's Hera mission sends back stunning images of Earth and the moon. As it journeys to the Didymos and Dimorphos asteroid system, Hera aims to assess the aftermath of NASA's DART mission and study asteroid structures.
For more space news, visit our website at astronomydaily.io. There, you can sign up for our free Daily newsletter, catch up on 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, YouTubeMusic, and TikTok.
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.
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WEBVTT

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Welcome to Astronomy Daily, your go to source for the

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most exciting space in astronomy news. I'm Anna, and today

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we've got a stellar lineup of stories that'll take you

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from the far reaches of the Cosmos right back to

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our own celestial neighborhood. We'll kick things off with a

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mind bending discovery from the James Web Space Telescope that's

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challenging our understanding of galactic evolution. Then we'll zoom in

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on the Moon as we discuss Europe's ambitious plans for

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lunar navigation. But that's not all. We'll explore a groundbreaking

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collaboration between international space ports, marvel at a cosmic volcano

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captured by Hubble, and catch up with Richard Branson as

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he prepares for his next high flying adventure. Finally, we'll

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check in on a new asteroid mission that's sending back

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some breathtaking views of our home planet. So strap in

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and get ready for a journey through the latest and

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greatest in space science and exploration. First up, today, the

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James Web Space Telescope has done it again, unveiling a

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truly extraordinary galaxy that's challenging our understanding of the early universe.

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This peculiar cosmic entity named gs NDG nine four hundred

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twenty two has astronomers scratching their heads and exclaiming, that's weird.

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What makes this galaxy so unusual? Well, it's not the

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stars that are stealing the show, but rather the gas

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in GSNDGNY four hundred twenty two. The glowing gas outshines

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the light from the stars themselves, a phenomenon we've never

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observed before. This cosmic oddity appeared on the scene about

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a billion years after the Big Bang, making it a

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window into the universe's toddler years. Researchers are buzzing with excitement,

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suggesting that this galaxy might be the missing link in

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our understanding of galactic evolution. Picture this, We're witnessing a

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brief but intense phase of star formation inside a dense

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gas cloud. This celestial nursery is producing an abundance of massive,

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incredibly hot stars. These stellar powerhouses are bombarding the surrounding

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gas cloud with so many photons that the gas itself

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is glowing brighter than the stars. The stars in GSNDGNY

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four hundred twenty two are not your average cosmic light bulbs.

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They're cranking up the heat to over one hundred four

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twenty thousand degrees fahrenheit. That's more than twice as hot

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as typical massive stars in our neck of the woods.

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While this galaxy doesn't contain the very first generation of

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stars known as population three stars, it does seem to

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be a stepping stone between those primordial stars and the

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galaxies were more familiar with today. This discovery is precisely

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why we sent the Web Telescope into space to reveal

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new phenomena that help us piece together the cosmic story.

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As we speak, astronomers are scouring the skies for more

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galaxies like GSNDG nine four hundred and twenty two, hoping

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to build a clearer picture of what was happening in

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the universe during its first billion years. The James Webb

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Space Telescope continues to live up to its promise, opening

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our eyes to the wonders of the early universe and

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reminding us that there's still so much to learn about

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our cosmic home. Next up, did you know that more

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than four hundred moon missions are planned by space agencies

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and private companies over the next two decades. This could

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get chaotic. Fortunately, someone is doing something about it. The

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European Space Agency is taking a giant leap forward in

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lunar exploration with its ambitious Moonlight program. This innovative initiative

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aims to establish a constellation of five satellites orbiting the Moon,

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providing crucial communication and navigation services for the hundreds of

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lunar missions planned over the next two decades. The Moonlight

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Lunar Communications and Navigation Services LCNS will enable precise autonomous

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landings and surface mobility for various spacecraft and rovers. It

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will also facilitate high speed communication and data transfer between

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Earth and the Moon, bridging the vast two hundred and

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fifty thousand mile gap between our planet and its celestial neighbor.

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Issa's Director General, Joseph Aschbacher, emphasize the program's significance, stating

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that it's a crucial step in supporting both the future

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commercial lunar market and ongoing lunar missions. The agency plans

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to launch the first component, the Lunar Pathfinder Communications Relay satellite,

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in twenty twenty six. By twenty twenty eight, Moonlight's initial

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services are expected to be operational, with full capability achieved

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by twenty thirty. The program will prioritize coverage of the

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Moon's south pole, an area of intense interest due to

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its unique lighting conditions and potential water ice deposits in

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permanently shadowed craters. Moonlight isn't just about exploration, It's about

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collaboration and standardization. ESA is working with NASA and JACKSA

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on Luninet, a framework for lunar communication and navigation standards.

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This cooperation ensures compatibility with future lunar infrastructures and technologies,

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paving the way for a new era of international lunar

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exploration and development. Speaking of international cooperation, in an exciting

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development for the space industry, eight spaceports from six different

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countries have recently joined forces, signing a groundbreaking agreement to

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collaborate and share knowledge. This partnership aims to potentially develop

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global standards for launch facilities, marking a significant step towards

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international cooperation in space exploration. The agreement, signed during the

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International Astronautical Congress in Milan, brings together a diverse group

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of spaceports, ranging from well established facilities to those still

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in the planning stages. Participants include the mid Atlantic Regional

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Spaceport in Virginia, Pacific Spaceport Complex in Alaska, Sweden's s

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Range Space Center, and emerging facilities in the United Kingdom, Japan,

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Australia and Peru. This collaboration is set to address various

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challenges faced by spaceports worldwide. By sharing lessons learned and

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best practices, these facilities hope to enhance the overall resilience

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and responsiveness of launch systems globally. The partnership will focus

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on key areas such as infrastructure development, operational procedures, and

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regulatory compliance. One of the primary goals of this initiative

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is to establish international spaceport standards. This could lead to

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more efficient and streamlined operations across different facilities, potentially reducing

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costs and improving safety in the long run. It's a

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proactive approach to addressing the grips growing demands of the

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commercial space industry and the increasing number of planned missions

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as the space sector continues to evolve rapidly. This collaborative

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effort represents a forward thinking strategy to ensure that launch

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facilities worldwide are prepared to meet future challenges and opportunities

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in space exploration and commercial space activities. The Hubble Space

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telescope has once again amazed us with its stunning imagery,

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this time capturing a celestial spectacle that can only be

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described as a stellar volcano. About seven hundred light years away,

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a binary star system known as our Aquarie is putting

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on quite a show. This dynamic duo consists of an

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aging red giant star more than four hundred times heavier

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than our Sun, and its companion, a burned out white dwarf.

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The red giant pulsates and varies dramatically in brightness, while

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the white dwarf orbits around it. Every forty four years.

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When the white dwarf gets close to the red giant,

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it pulls hydrogen gas from its larger companion. This gas

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accumulates around the dwarf star, triggering nuclear fusion and resulting

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in explosive eruptions. These eruptions send plasma filaments shooting into

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space at mind boggling speeds of over one point six

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million kilometers per hour. The force of these explosions, combined

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with the star's strong magnetic field, creates a remarkable spiral pattern,

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extending and astonishing four hundred billion kilometers into space. To

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put that into perspective, that's twenty four times the diameter

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of our entire solar system. NASA aptly describes this cosmic

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display as resembling a lawn sprinkler gone berserk. It's a

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vivid reminder of the powerful forces at work in our

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universe and the incredible phenomena that exist beyond our world.

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Next up, he's been quiet for a while, but he's

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planning a spectacular comeback. Richard Branson, the renowned entrepreneur and

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founder of Virgin Galactic, is set to embark on a

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new adventure that harkens back to his ballooning roots. Branson

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will serve as copilot on the first crude flight of

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Space Perspective, a Florida based company specializing in stratospheric balloon flights.

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This exciting mission, scheduled for twenty twenty five, will offer

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a unique experience compared to the rocket powered suborbital trips

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provided by Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin. Space Perspective's flights

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will use a giant hydrogen filled balloon to carry passengers

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in a capsule called space ship Neptune. Unlike the quick,

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adrenaline fueled rocket rides, these balloon flights will be leisurely

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six hour journeys traveling at the speed of the wind.

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Space ship Neptune is designed for comfort, featuring large windows,

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a bar, and even a fully equipped bathroom. While the

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balloon won't reach the technical boundary of space, it will

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ascend to an impressive altitude of about twenty miles. From

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this vantage point, passengers will enjoy breath taking views of

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Earth against the blackness of space. Branson's involvement in this

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venture goes beyond copiloting. He has also invested in Space Perspective,

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which has raised one hundred million dollars to date. With

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over one thoy eight hundred people already reserving seats at

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one hundred twenty five thousand dollars each, it seems their

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significant interest in this gentler approach to space tourism. For Branson,

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this flight will be a return to his ballooning adventures

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of the past, allowing him to compare the experience with

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his suborbital trip on Virgin Galactic's VSS Unity in twenty

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twenty one, and finally today, the European Space Agency's Hara

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asteroid mission has recently beamed back its first stunning images

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from space, offering us a breathtaking view of Earth and

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the Moon. These images were captured after the spacecraft's instruments

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were activated for the first time following its successful launch

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on October seventh. Harrah's primary mission is to follow up

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on NASA's DART or Double Asteroid Redirection test, which intentionally

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crashed into the asteroid de MorphOS last year. The purpose

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of DART was to demonstrate a potential planetary defense technique

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by altering the trajectory of an asteroid. Now, Hara is

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embarking on its journey to revisit the binary asteroid system

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of Ditamos and de MorphOS. Its goal is to assess

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the aftermath of Dart's impact and conduct a more das

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detailed study of both asteroid's surface and internal structure. The

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images were taken using three of Hara's instruments, including the

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Asteroid Framing camera, the Thermal Infrared imager, and the hyper

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Scout h instrument. Each of these tools will play a

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crucial role in studying the asteroids once Hara reaches its

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destination in late twenty twenty six. These initial images not

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only serve as a poignant farewell to our home planet,

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but also demonstrate the capabilities of Hara's advanced imaging systems.

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As the mission progresses, we can look forward to more

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fascinating insights into asteroid composition and behavior, furthering our understanding

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of these celestial bodies and potentially improving our planetary defense strategies.

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And that brings us to the end of today's episode

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of Astronomy Daily. I hope you've enjoyed this cosmic journey

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through the latest discoveries and developments in space exploration. From

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Web's Weird Galaxy to Europe's lunar plans, and from stellar

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volcanoes to asteroid missions, the universe never ceases to amaze us.

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

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through these fascinating stories. If you're hungry for more space news,

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be sure to visit our website at Astronomy Daily dot io.

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There you can sign up for our free daily newsletter,

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catch up on all the latest space and astronomy news

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with our constantly updating news feed, and listen to all

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our back episodes. Don't forget to follow us on social

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on Facebook, x, YouTube, and TikTok. Thanks for listening, and

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keep looking up at the stars. Sunny Day Star Star

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