spacetoday.net: space news from around the webin association with SpaceNews


Phoenix lander detects Martian snow
Posted: Tue, Sep 30, 2008, 7:07 AM ET (1107 GMT)
Phoenix Mars lander illustration (Univ. of Arizona) NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander has detected snow falling in the Martian atmosphere and is also finding new evidence of past liquid water on the planet, scientists said Monday. A laser instrument on the spacecraft detected the snow in clouds about four kilometers above the lander. The snow is currently vaporizing before reaching the ground although scientists suggested that the snow could eventually reach the ground as winter approached. Other instruments on the spacecraft have found traces of calcium carbonate and particles that could be clay; both substances form only in the presence of liquid water. The lander, designed to operate for three months, is now entering its fifth month on the Martian surface but is suffering from decreased power as the amount of sunlight available each day decreases in the polar regions. Project officials plan to operate the spacecraft as long as possible, although they said there will not be enough power to use the lander's robotic arm by the end of October.
<<previous article   next article>>
news in brief
Starship explodes during preparations for static-fire test
Posted: Sun, Jun 22 6:52 AM ET (1052 GMT)

French government leads investment in Eutelsat
Posted: Sat, Jun 21 8:38 AM ET (1238 GMT)

NASA further delays Ax-4 launch
Posted: Sat, Jun 21 8:34 AM ET (1234 GMT)

news links
Tuesday, July 1
Move over Starlink, here comes Kuiper
Gulf News — 4:58 am ET (0858 GMT)
USSF Seeks Industry Ideas For Space-Based Interceptors
Aviation Week — 4:57 am ET (0857 GMT)
Don’t forget about Iran’s space program
POLITICO — 4:54 am ET (0854 GMT)
EU Space Act is ‘orbital equivalent of GDPR’, says lawyer
Luxembourg Times — 4:53 am ET (0853 GMT)
Poland’s second ever astronaut is safe in space
Euro Weekly News — 4:49 am ET (0849 GMT)


about spacetoday.net   ·   info@spacetoday.net   ·   mailing list