Speaker 1: Welcome to Astronomy Daily. I'm anna, and today we have
an incredible lineup of stories that showcase the cutting edge
of space exploration and astronomical discoveries. We'll dive into a
fascinating breakthrough regarding the mysterious dark matter in our galaxy's
GD one stellar stream, explore China's ambitious testing of multiple
rocket engines, and catch up with NASA's Artemus one Oriyan
spacecraft as it returns home to Kennedy Space Center. We'll
also look at SpaceX's upcoming launch of not one, but
two private lunar landers, and discover how NASA is developing
new radiation resistant computers to handle the harsh environment of space.
It's a packed show that highlights just how quickly space
technology and our understanding of the Cosmos continue to evolve.
So let's get started. Let's kick the news off today
with a quick update. Blue Origin, the space venture founded
by Jeff Bezos, has postponed the inaugural flight of its
new Glen rocket. The launch, initially set for early Monday
morning at CAIS sape Canaveral, faced multiple delays due to
technical issues and unfavorable weather conditions. An icing problem in
a purge line crucial for the rocket's hydraulic systems was
identified during the countdown. This, combined with high seas affecting
the booster's planned ocean landing, led to the decision to
stand down. The company now aims for a potential launch
on Thursday, with a three hour window starting at one
a m Eastern time. Standing at three hundred and twenty feet,
the new Glen rocket is named in honor of astronaut
John Glenn. It's designed to carry heavy payloads and features
a reusable first stage booster, marking a significant step forward
in Blue Origin's mission to make space travel more sustainable
and cost effective. This mission, dubbed NNG one, is set
to carry a prototype of the Blue Ring spacecraft, intended
for future deep space missions. A successful launch would position
Blue Origin as a formidable competitor in the commercial space sector,
challenging the dominance of Elon Musk's SpaceX. While the delay
is undoubtedly a setback, it's a reminder of the complexities
involved in space exploration. Each challenge presents an opportunity for
growth and innovation. As Jeff Bezos himself has emphasized gratitem
ferocit step by step ferociously will keep you updated on
Blue origins, progress and the rescheduled launch. Astronomers may have
finally cracked a long standing cosmic mystery about one of
our galaxy's most intriguing features, the GD one stellar stream.
This ribbon like structure of stars, which stretches across our
galaxies halo, has puzzled scientists for years due to its
unusual patterns of gaps and spurs that seem to defy
conventional explanations. A team led by researchers at the University
of California Riverside has proposed an exciting solution involving dark matter,
but not just any dark matter. Their research suggests these
distinctive features were created by what's called a self interacting
dark matter sub halo, a dense concentration of dark matter
that behaves differently than the traditional cold dark matter model
we're familiar with. What makes this discovery particularly fascinating is
that the density needed to create these unusual patterns in
GD one is much higher than what we'd expect from
conventional dark matter theories. The research team found that only
a collapsing subhilo of self interacting dark matter could achieve
the necessary density to produce these distinctive features we observe.
This isn't just about solving one mysterious structure in our galaxy.
If confirmed, these findings could fundamentally change our understanding of
dark matter itself. Remember, dark matter makes up about eighty
five percent of all matter in the universe, yet we
still know remarkably little about its true nature. This research
suggests that dark matter particles might interact with each other
through a new kind of force, rather than being completely
invisible to one another as previously thought. The team used
sophisticated computer simulations to model how this sell interacting dark
matter would behave, and the results matched perfectly with the
observed features in the GD one stream. It's like finding
the missing piece of a puzzle that's been sitting on
the table for years, suddenly revealing a whole new picture
of how our galaxy works. What's particularly exciting about this
discovery is that it opens up new ways to study
dark matter. By looking at stellar streams like GD one,
we might be able to better understand not just where
dark matter is, but how it behaves and interacts with itself,
something that could revolutionize our understanding of the universe's fundamental structure. Next,
a little mystery from China that has set the space
community buzzing. In a remarkable display of technological advancement, China's
space program has taken a significant leap forward, conducting tests
of five different rocket engines all in a single day.
The China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation or CASSI, carried
out these tests at two separate locations, beij and Laiwan
County in Hebei Province. One of the most notable tests
involved a new hydrogen oxygen engine designed for upper stage rockets.
During its one hundred second test, firing, engineers gathered crucial
performance data that could pave the way for future missions.
This wasn't just any routine test. It's believed to be
connected to China's ambitious plans for crude lunar missions, specifically
their long March tenth launcher program. But that's not all
that was tested that day. In Beijing, engineers put three
different engines through their paces, a main engine, an upper
stage engine, and a reaction in orbit control engine. While
specific details about which rockets these engines are destined for
remain under wraps, it's clear that China is developing multiple
launch capabilities simultaneously. Perhaps most intriguingly, the testing day included
a methane liquid oxygen engine at the Laiuan facility. This
type of engine represents the cutting edge of rocket technology,
with several Chinese companies already developing similar systems. It's worth
noting that Cassie is working on a particularly powerful version
for their long March ninth Mega rocket project. These tests
signal China's commitment to developing a diverse range of rocket technologies,
from deep space exploration vehicles to heavy lift rockets. According
to KSC engineers, this is just the beginning. They're planning
to conduct even more research and testing of various engine
types for China's major space projects, suggesting we might see
several new Chinese rockets debut in the coming year. This
coordinated testing effort demonstrates China's growing capabilities in space technology
and their determination to become a major player in space exploration.
With these successful tests, they're laying the groundwork for increasingly
ambitious missions, from lunar exploration to potential Mars voyages. Meanwhile,
back in the States, the Artemis Ones Orion spacecraft has
made its way back to Kennedy Space Center after completing
an extensive eleven month testing campaign in Ohio. Now designated
as the Orion Environmental Test Article or ETA, this spacecraft
has already proven its worth during its historic journey around
the Moon, but its mission to advance space exploration is
far from over. After splashing down in the Pacific Ocean
following its lunar adventure, the spacecraft was transported across the
country to Florida, where it underwent its first round of modifications.
But it was at NASA's Neil Armstrong Test Facility in Sandusky, Ohio,
where the real intensive testing took place, preparing it for
even more challenging future missions. Now back at Kennedy's Multi
Payload Processing Facility, engineers are gearing up for a crucial
series of tests focusing on the spacecraft's propulsion systems. Of
particular interest are the twelve reaction control system thrusters, which
will undergo simulated hot fire testing. These thrusters are absolutely
vital for controlling the spacecraft's rotation during orbit, re entry,
and potential abort scenarios. But the testing doesn't stop there.
The spacecraft will soon make its way to Kennedy's Space
system's processing facility for acoustic noise demonstration tests. These evaluations
are crucial for improving future acoustic testing procedures, benefiting both
NASA and their primary contractor, Lockheed Martin. Perhaps most intriguingly,
teams will be carefully removing certain pieces of hardware from
the ETA for reusability studies. The knowledge gained from examining
these components could prove invaluable for future Artemis missions as
NASA continues its ambitious plans to establish a sustainable human
presence on the Moon and eventually venture to Mars. This
methodical testing and evaluation process demonstrates NASA's commitment to ensuring
the safety and success of future deep space missions and
not to be left behind. In an exciting development for
lunar exploration, SpaceX is preparing to launch two private lunar
landers aboard a single Falcon nine rocket from NASA's Kennedy
Space Center. The launch window opens early Wednesday morning at
one eleven a m Eastern time, marking what promises to
be a busy year of missions to the Moon. The
two spacecraft sharing this historic ride are Firefly Aerospace's Blue
Ghost Mission IE and IE space is Resilience lander. Blue Ghost,
part of NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services program, will carry
scientific instruments to the lunar surface, while Resilience represents IE
space's second attempt at achieving a successful moon landing. These
missions will follow distinctly different trajectories. After separation from the
Falcon nine, blue Ghost will spend about twenty five days
in Earth orbit before initiating its journey to the Moon.
After another twenty days, including four days of transit and
sixteen days in lunar orbit, it will attempt to touch
down in Merrichrisium, the Sea of Crises. Once on the surface,
it will conduct two weeks of scientific operations before capturing
one final dramatic image of the lunar sunset. Resilience, on
the other hand, will take a more gradual approach, spending
four to five months reaching its destination. This extended timeline
reflects lessons learned from Icepace's first mission, which reached lunar
orbit but unfortunately crashed during its landing attempt last April.
The spacecraft features significant upgrades to both hardware and software,
aiming to succeed where its predecessor fell short. The mission's
target is Mare Frigoris, the Sea of Cold in the
Moon's northern hemisphere. There, it will deploy a small rover
named Tenacius, which will collect lunar dust samples as part
of a NASA contract. This careful, milestone based approach demonstrates
I Space's commitment to achieving the first successful private Japanese
landing on the Moon. These launches kick off what promises
to be an extraordinarily active year for lunar exploration, with
multiple missions planned by various companies and space agencies. From
Intuitive Machines upcoming IM two mission to Blue Origins development
of their lunar lander. We're witnessing the dawn of a
new era in commercial lunar exploration. Computers have become absolutely
essential for space exploration, but they face a serious challenge
that we don't have to worry about here on Earth. Radiation.
While our planet's magnetic field and atmosphere protect our electronics
from harmful radiation, spacecraft computers have to cope with direct
exposure to high energy particles from the Sun and cosmic rays.
The effects can be severe. Even a single blast of
radiation can cause what scientists call a single event effect,
potentially corrupting data or causing system crashes that could jeopardize
entire missions. That's why NASA is now testing an innovative solution,
the Radiation Tolerant Computer, or RATYPC for short. This remarkable
piece of technology is scheduled for its first real world
test aboard the upcoming Blue Ghost lunar mission. What makes
the rad PC special is its ability to monitor and
repair itself in real time. It uses special processors called
programmable gait arrays that can detect when they've been struck
by radiation and automatically fix any damage without interrupting normal operations.
The system also includes radiation sensors or docimeters that will
continuously measure radiation levels during the journey to the moon.
This will provide valuable data about how radiation levels change
as spacecraft move through Earth's magnetosphere and into deep space,
as well as detailed information about radiation conditions at the
landing site. If successful, the rad PC could revolutionize space computing.
Its self healing capabilities could make future spacecraft computers far
more resilient and reliable, especially for long duration missions where
radiation exposure is inevitable. This kind of advancement is crucial
as we push further into space, whether it's establishing a
permanent presence on the Moon or eventually sending humans to Mars.
And that brings us to the end of today's episode
of Astronomy Daily. I'm Anna and I've loved sharing these
fascinating stories about space exploration and discovery with you. From
dark matter mysteries to innovative space computers. It's incredible to
see how our understanding of the cosmos continues to evolve.
If you want to stay up to date with all
the latest developments in space and astronomy, head over to
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looking up and wondering about the mysteries that await us
in the vast expanse of space. So yeah,