Date: 20/08/2016 12:29:24
From: mollwollfumble
ID: 944017
Subject: Another Opportunity

Apologies in advance, couldn’t resist choosing “Another Opportunity” as a thread title.

The ESA spacecraft Schiaparelli will be landing on Mars 29th October this year, almost within spitting distance of the NASA Mars rover Opportunity.

http://m.esa.int/Our_Activities/Space_Science/Mars_Express/Spotlight_on_Schiaparelli_s_landing_site

For other news from ESA, see http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Space_News

Cassini is now so far away that communication with it has become an interesting technical challenge.

Cubesats dock together in a new docking strategy.

Europe citizens debate on science.

Aladin wind probe ready for Aeolus. 2 August 2016 It has been years in the making, but one of the trickiest pieces of space technology ever developed

Hexapods designed originally for the JWST are being spun off for boat and oil rig stabilisation.

Cryosat , most accurate satellite sea level monitoring ever.

Permanent underwater astronaut training base set up off the coast of Florida.

Active tracking of astronaut radiation exposures to replace passive dosimeters.

Sentinel-2B will be the next satellite launched for Europe’s environmental Copernicus programme. In 2017, it will join its identical twin, Sentinel-2A, to supply high-resolution images for numerous applications, from monitoring the health of the world’s vegetation and changes the way land is used, to mapping regions struck by natural disasters. The two satellites orbiting 180° apart and their 290 km-wide swaths allows Earth’s main land surfaces, large islands, and inland and coastal waters to be covered every five days.

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Date: 23/08/2016 09:10:33
From: Divine Angel
ID: 945119
Subject: re: Another Opportunity

mollwollfumble said:

Cassini is now so far away that communication with it has become an interesting technical challenge.

Aww Cassini only has a year left of life before hurtling into Saturn.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cassini%E2%80%93Huygens_retirement

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Date: 23/08/2016 09:12:59
From: Divine Angel
ID: 945120
Subject: re: Another Opportunity

Spacecraft disposal

The chosen mission ending involves a series of close Saturn passes, approaching within the rings, then an entry into Saturn’s atmosphere on September 15, 2017 to destroy the spacecraft. This method was chosen because it is imperative to ensure protection and prevent biological contamination to any of the moons of Saturn thought to offer potential habitability.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cassini%E2%80%93Huygens

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