Saturday Space Reads
Because we all need a little space on Saturday.
Like a chef constructing a tasty to-go box for a Doordasher that will never come, NASA’s Perseverance assembles tubes of Martian material for a continuously deferred MSR pickup. With the Mars Sample Return mission hanging in the balance, scientists worry that their questions about the Red Planet’s history may remain unanswered. While arguments continue about mission’s value, proponents of the science potential attest that it’s their just their “Webb moment.”
Turn around, bright eyes. While their gazes have historically been trained on the sky, astronomers are coming around to a new reality – one in which they must use their observatory powers to save Earth’s climate from its impending demise.
The word “mauve” tends to conjure an image of a pale purple sweater (you know, the one your Aunt keeps buying you from Anthropologie) but to astronomers, MAUVE stands for MUSE and ALMA Unveiling the Virgo Environment. The program studies stellar feedback – or radiation, particle winds, and other materials that stars blast out – and how it contributes to gas outflows from galaxies.
A new book documents the flawed humanity that led to disaster in a 1986 space mission. Credit: NYT
We may be living in a time of flamethrowing robot dogs and 3D-printed chocolate, but even the most advanced technology will still hinge on a human element – for better and for worse. In a new book about NASA's devastating Challenger accident, journalist Adam Higginbotham reminds us that “every decision was made by people weighing risks versus expediency, their minds distorted by power, money, politics and yes-men,” in the words of NYT reviewer Rachel Slade.
Space vehicles are not always doomed by the hands of humans, though. A relatively low stakes build – depending on your personality – is the new Apollo Lunar Roving Vehicle, which is coming to a store near you from LEGO.
From electric car batteries to future lunar abodes, there’s a clear need for space minerals. Companies like AstroForge have turned toward asteroid mining but kick-starting a new industry – let alone a new company – takes serious guts. Read about the current players setting foot in the wild west of asteroid mining.
Anyone who has redone their bathroom knows the job is always tougher than you think it’s going to be. Have you ever wondered what it would be like to refurb a space telescope? With JWST often hogging all the attention, we’re happy to share this day-by-day story of Hubble’s arduous final servicing mission back in 2009.
As global military presence in space transitions from simple monitoring to active warfare, nations argue over “who started it.” For one, a Chinese government statement from earlier this year accused the U.S. of painting China as a space threat only as an excuse “to expand its forces in outer space and maintain military hegemony.”
Is Fox / Fuzzy Door, Seth McFarlane, etc., FINISHED with COSMOS ? I had it on Hulu & have it via Tubi at present.