Category Archives: Space Science

Asteroids & Comets, Space Science, Space Systems

Video: Hayabusa-2 deploys MASCOT lander onto asteroid Ryuga

The Japanese Hayabusa-2 spacecraft continues its deployment of remote-control systems onto the asteroid Ryuga (see earlier posting here about deployment of two micro-rovers). On Wednesday the spacecraft released the MASCOT (Mobile Asteroid Surface Scout) lander, which was built by the German Aerospace Center (DLR) and the French Space Agency (CNES).

MASCOT has four primary scientific tools to study the surface of the small asteroid:

  • MicrOmega – a hyperspectral infrared microscope to analyze the mineralogical properties of the surface materials.
  • MASCAM – “a multispectral wide field camera to provide geological images of the asteroid”.
  • MARA – a radiometer “to determine the surface temperature and the thermal inertia of the asteroid”.
  • MASMAG – a magnetometer, which measures magnetic field strength.

This video previewed the MASCOT mission, which lasted about 17 hours before its batteries ran out:

Artist’s view of the deployment of MASCOT:

“Left: Illustration of MASCOT separating from Hayabusa2. Right: Illustration of MASCOT landing on the surface of Ryugu. (Image credit: JAXA)”

The target area for the MASCOT “landing”:

“MASCOT landing site candidate region (light blue area). Since MASCOT is expected to bounce several times after first touching down, a reasonably wide region is selected. (Image credit: JAXA, University of Tokyo, Kochi University, Rikkyo University, Nagoya University, Chiba Institute of Technology, Meiji University, University of Aizu, AIST, CNES, DLR). “

See also

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Chasing New Horizons: Inside the Epic First Mission to Pluto

 

Space Music, Space Science

Space Music: The Planets at 100 + A new suite of Planets for 2018

On the 100th anniversary of the debut of Gustav Holst’s Planets Suite, Brian Cox compares the actual planets to their personas in the music: Brian Cox on Holst’s Planets then and now – The Guardian

When The Planets was completed in 1916, little was known about the physical nature of the worlds represented musically by Gustav Holst, and he didn’t care. His focus was on the planets as metaphors for different facets of the psyche; War, Peace, Jollity, Old Age, Messenger, Magician and Mystic. Indeed, Holst wrote parts of the work as stand-alone pieces and co-opted them later.

Today we have visited all the planets and our discoveries have replaced their ancient astrological characters. At first sight, this new knowledge might appear to jar with Holst’s work, but this would be a superficial conclusion to draw. The planets have histories far richer than Holst could have imagined and reality delivers more powerful metaphors than myth. Set against what we now know, Holst’s work catalyses new ideas and generates powerful intellectual challenges which enrich and inform important debates in progress today, as art with depth can and perhaps must do.

Here is one orchestral rendition of the Suite:

https://youtu.be/wQsKsjgv-D4

A review of each planet: ‘The Planets’ at 100: A listener’s guide to Holst’s solar system | MPR News

A music project has created a new 21st Century version of the Planets suite: The Planets 2018 – Ligeti Quartet – SOUND UK

The idea to reimagine The Planets using modern science came from the young British composer Samuel Bordoli who, along with producers Sound UK, paired up each musician with a planet and a mentor and asked them each to write a five-minute piece for string quartet. Titled The Planets 2018, the results are to be performed by the Ligeti Quartet in planetariums across the country from Saturday.

The timing is neat. Not only does the first concert mark 100 years to the day that Holst first debuted his Planets suite, but Greenwich – where the planetarium tour begins – is the location where astronomers conclusively disproved Lowell’s claim of a Martian army building waterways 33.5 million miles away.

 

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Chasing New Horizons: Inside the Epic First Mission to Pluto

Asteroids & Comets, Space Science, Space Systems

The Japanese Hayabusa-2 spacecraft deployed two rovers onto the asteroid Ryugu

On Friday the Japanese spacecraft Hayabusa-2 has successfully placed two mini-rovers named MINERVA-II1A and MINERVA-II1B onto the near earth asteroid Ryugu, which is about 1 kilometer (0.6 mi) in diameter:  They Made It! Japan’s Two Hopping Rovers Successfully Land on Asteroid Ryugu.

Hayabusa-2 came within 55 meters of the surface of the asteroid to release the rovers. The spacecraft then moved back about 20 km from the surface. The rovers will explore the surface by short jumps or hops from one spot to another.

Here is a sampling of postings on Tweeter as the spacecraft approached the asteroid and then deployed the rovers: Tweets  by HAYABUSA2@JAXA (@haya2e_jaxa) | Twitter:

 

 

The ambitious mission is really just getting started:

  • The larger rover MASCOT will be deployed to the surface in October.
  • The mini-hopper MINERVA-II2 will be deployed in 2019.
  • Samples of the asteroid will be returned to earth in 2020.

Find more images from the spacecraft at Navigation Images from the MINERVA-Ⅱ1 deployment operation | Galleries | JAXA HAYABUSA2 PROJECT.

Animations of the mission events and technologies:

A press conference on the event:

 

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Asteroids & Comets, Pluto and beyond, Space Science

Video: Where we are – Science spacecraft locations for Oct. 2018

Emily Lakdawalla of the Planetary Society gives

a tour of the spacecraft currently exploring from within our solar system. All planets and spacecraft locations are shown at their location for October 1st, 2018.

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Asteroids & Comets, Space Science, Space Systems

Video: The Dawn misison to Vesta and Ceres

An overview of NASA’s Dawn mission, the first time a probe has orbited two different celestial bodies:

NASA’s Dawn spacecraft turned science fiction into science fact by using ion propulsion to explore the two largest bodies in the main asteroid belt, Vesta and Ceres. The mission will end this fall, when the spacecraft runs out of hydrazine, which keeps it oriented and in communication with Earth. For more info on the mission, visit https://dawn.jpl.nasa.gov

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