Pages

Let's give space to Space!

  • News from the universe

    New findings about the Sun

    NASA’s Parker Solar Probe has completed 3 out of 24 planned missions around the corona of the Sun which had not been searched before.
    The Probe found a lot of unknown things such as a complicated active system of solar wind made of plasma, which is more unstable than when it is seen from the Earth. Another big surprise was the discovery of the rotation of the solar wind along with the Sun before it breaks free to flow almost radially. Then, the Probe also found that dust near the Sun begins to thin out. The new discoveries also include matters connected to two types of space weather events: energetic particle storms and coronal mass ejections.
    Nikodem D.

    The asteroid is a planet

    The asteroid Igea has obtained the promotion to planet because it isn't a satellite, it orbits around the sun and it has a spherical shape.

    The man on Mars but without bees.

    A team of scientists in Poland wanted to test how well bees could survive on the surface of Mars. The experiment failed because these insects didn't resist to confined conditions and ignored the pots of lavender and spirulina powder placed in the enclosed tent to test weather they would attempt pollination

    Zohar and Helga ready for the moon.

    Scientists are organizing a mission around the moon.Two dummies will be on board:Helga and Zohar and they will measure the amount of radiation astronauts could be exposed to.
    The difference between the dummies is that only one of them will wear a radiation protection vest.They chose female dummies because the female body is more vulnerable to radiation.
    This experiment has the aim to protect the astronauts who will and on the moon in 2024.

    AMINE ZAHOUANI 2A

    For the astronauts hibernation is much bitter.

    The European space Agency(ESA) Wants to organize mission to Mars.
    As the voyage is vero long, the scientists are studying the SUSPENDER-ANIMATION for the austronauts. This method is used in medicine to reduce body temperature and to create a Kind of hibernation. In this why the astronauts would wake up on the red planet After a six month trip. How ever this procedure is full of uknowns…

    EARTH LIKE PLANETS

    There are new earth like planets, that is planets situated in the so called habitable zone. The latest discovery is TOI 700D; it was dicovered by NASA's planet hunters TESS.
    The next step is to check the presence of an atmosphere , the chimical composition of the planet and also the presence of watervand oxigen.
    Federico Radice, Italy

    FIREBALL HUNT

    On the night of January 1st 2020 a fireball illuminated the sky of northern Italy.
    The hunt for debris of the bolide in the Po valley has started.
    Beacuse of its strajectory we can assume that this celestial body has come from the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.

    FIRST SPACE-BAKET BISCUITS

    Christina Koch, an astronaut of the ISS, posted photos of the first-ever biscuits made in space. There 5 biscuits, made with ready to bake dough, have already returned to Earth and will be analyzed by scientists.
    Twelve bottles of wine were also sent to the ISS. This is a 12- months experiment to study how the aging proces is affected by microgravity in the space.
    Gabriele Topazio 2A, Italy

    Failed mission: what a success!

    The rocket Falcon 9 took off from a NASA space base in Florida.
    The mission had the purpose of failing, that' s why it was a success.
    There were two dummies on board and they splashed down safely in the Atlantic Ocean.
    In the future the dummies will be replaced by two NASA astronauts.
    Ilaria

    Earth (at the time being) has two moons

    Astronomers from Minor Planet Center informed about a second natural satellite orbiting the Earth for 3 years.
    Its catalogue reference is 2020 CD3 and it is temporarily connected to the Earth’s gravitational force. It is just a small planetoid whose orbit crossed with the Earth’s orbit. Such objects collide sometimes with the Earth.
    So-called mini-moons sometimes appear to orbit the Earth and then continue their journey in the Solar System. 2020 CD3 is probably making its last route around the Earth. Such small objects don’t usually orbit Earth more than a few years because gravity of other planets make their orbits unstable.
    Some years ago astronomers discovered similar object: 2006 RH120. It completed four revolutions around the Earth in 2006-2007.
    So if you read sensational headlines about the Earth’s 2 moons, there’s nothing to be excited about but it’s practically true. At least for now.
    Igor, Poland

    Will Betelgeuse end as a supernova?

    Will Betelguese, one of the shiniest stars in our sky, explode soon? Scientists around the world have been observing why the star’s shine weakened. Recent researches suggest that something different is happening with the star than they previously thought. Betelguese, a big red giant in Orion's constellation weakened lately and scientists thought it would die but the level of its brightness started to be stable lately. The episode of "dimming" probably ended and the star may shine brighter again but it is still a mystery for scientists what caused this sudden and rapid dimming. Some think Betelguese started to lose brightness because of a rapid cooling of its surface. Other theory says that the star may have thrown a big amount of dust in our direction. This type of dust works as absorber of the light and it may have filled up the layer around this giant star.
    Nikodem, Poland

    New dicoveries on Mars

    The Curiosity rover discovered some traces of organic molecules - scientists say. This is another discovery that confirms the theory of life on Mars. The molecules are thiophenes - they contain coal and sulphur, the elements necessary for life. They occur on the Earth, too, e.g. in mushrooms, coal and mineral oil. Scientists claim that the source of thiophenes could have been some biologic processes of primitive forms of life. Researchers also take into consideration that thiophenes could have appeared on Mars after it was hit by a meteorite. Yet, if they are a result of biological processes, they can be traces of organisms which lived on Mars in the past. ''Extraordinary discoveries require extraordinary evidence''- NASA experts say and they continue research.
    Natalia and Antek, Poland

    Is our galaxy colliding with another galaxy?

    The Milky Way has an unusual shape, similar to the letter "S", which may be the result of a relatively recent or still ongoing collision with another galaxy - we read in American “Newsweek". The outer edges of our galaxy are curved slightly upwards (at one end) and slightly downwards (at the other) in relation to the inner part, which resembles a flat disk.. There are several hypotheses explaining this phenomenon. Measurements made by astronomers have shown that the galaxy's branches move very fast, circling the centre of the galaxy every 600-700 million years. This can be the result of a collision of the Milky Way with another galaxy, perhaps the SagDEG dwarf galaxy located around the world. 65,000 light years from Earth. Astronomers believe that the Milky Way will eventually consume the SagDEG galaxy. Both galaxies were supposed to collide 300-900 million years ago.
    Max, Poland

    NASA fixed the Martian lander by telling it to hit itself with a shovel

    Sometimes the simplest solutions turn out the best, also for space technologies. The Martian lander InSight broke down and now it fixed itself when the scientists told it to hit itself with a shovel.
    InSight was launched in May 2018 and in November 2018 it landed on Mars. It made important measurements: it explored the structure of the Martian ground and confirmed the existence of the seismic movements on the Red Planet. It also took many photos.
    In March the lander reported a problem: while boring under the surface of the planet, one of its arms that works like a pneumatic hammer jammed on.
    After unsuccessful attempts of fixing it, scientissts decided to apply the simplest solution: the lander hit itself with its arm featured with a shovel and moved the jammed arm from the trap. Now InSight is mobile again and can continue its mission!
    Zosia, Poland

    Astronomers discovered a new type of pulsating stars

    One-sided pulsating stars are a new kind of variable stars, discovered by international group of scientists lead by researchers from Copernicus Astronomy Centre in Warsaw.

    Many of the stars change their brightness. The reason for this can be different, but pulsating stars are quite a big category. Rhythmical pulsations on stars’ surfaces may have short or long periods, wide range of amplitudes and different reasons. All known stars have one common feature: oscillations were always visible from all sides of the star.

    Now the astronomers discovered stars which pulse only on one of hemispheres: such stars are n a binary star system, and second one is distorting oscillations by the influence of gravity.

    Possibility of existence of one-sided pulsing stars was considered in 1940s. Until the latest discoveries, there hadn’t been any observational evidence to prove that objects like that really exist.
    Tosia, Poland

    Bases on the Moon Made of the Astronauts’ Urine?

    European scientists invented concrete that can be created from lunar soil and urea (ingredient of urine). First tests give optimistic results.
    NASA, ESA and Chinese space agency get ready to build bases on the Moon in the coming decades. Scientists have to solve radiation, high temperatures, meteorites, and logistic problems, which include transportation of building materials.
    This last problem may be solved in a surprising way. The specialist from Italy, Norway, Spain and the Netherlands invented a way to produce cement from lunar regolith (loose material present on the surface) with the urea. This substance can be obtained from human urine. They made a lot of research. In subsequent tests, urea-based material (geopolymer concrete) held heavy loads with minimal deformation. After eight cycles of freezing and defrosting (similar to the processes on the Moon), the durability of the structure increased even more.
    Ania, Poland

    Water on the Moon

    NASA scientists have recently discovered water on the Moon. The discovery of the presence of water on the sunlit side of the only natural Earth’s satellite was made by a telescope called Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA). SOFIA detected molecules of water (H2O) on Clavius crater, one os the biggest Moon’s craters located in its southern hemisphere (it is visible from the Earth).

    In scientists' opinion, the discovery proves that there is a chance that water exists all over the Moon, not just in cold and shady places.

    Water plays a key role in human life but sending it into the space is pretty expensive. The fact that water was found on the Moon may mean that we will be able to use it instead of taking it from the Earth into the space – said Casey Honniball from NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland.
    Kinga and Kuba, Poland

    Michael Collins

    He was 90 years old. He had been struggling with the cancer for some time and died on 28th April. Michael Collins was the pilot of the Apollo 11 rocket command module. On 21st July 1969, the ship successfully landed on the moon. While Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin were exploring the surface of the Silver Globe, Collins was orbiting in the spacecraft. He never “set foot on the moon” but he was the first man in the history who had a spacewalk two times. He was also the first man in the history who moved from one spacecraft to another using a maneuvering jet pistol.
    Kuba, Poland

    Perseverance and Ingenuity

    On 18th February, the Perseverance, a planetary rover of NASA's Mars 2020 mission landed on the Martian Jezero crater to explore the crater. The rover is equipped with seven devices to conduct scientific and technological research on Mars exploration.
    Along with the Mars rover, the Ingenuity drone arrived on Mars, which, after postponing the date of its first flight several times, rose in the Martian atmosphere on 19th April. The flight lasted only 40 seconds, and Ingenuity reached a height of 3 metres. Not much, but the importance of this event has been compared to the Wright brothers' first flight.
    The purpose of the Ingenuity mission is to test the capabilities and technology of flight in the thin Martian atmosphere.
    Mikołaj, Poland

    Chinese Space Station

    A month after sending Tiangong Chinese Space Station's 1st module into orbit, an unmanned space cargo ship Tianzhou 2 flew toward the module.
    The first supply mission has to prepare the station for the arrival of the first astronauts in June.


    The ship was properly launched into orbit and it unfolded the solar panels that provide it with energy.



    The 1st module, already placed in orbit, weighs 22t, it is 16.6m long and its diameter is 4.2m. It has 5 dock ports. Solar panels will provide 27Kwh electrical Energy.
    The flight of the first astronauts is planned for June 10th and the next one is planned for October 2021.

    Chinese Space station should work for at least 10 years and It is supposed to be a platform for conducting researches in a state of weightlessness in the areas such as biology, medicine, astrophysics or mechanics.
    Kuba, Poland