Mercury, located nearer to the Sun than Earth and much smaller, serves as an historical record of early events within our Solar System without being erased by water and ice erosion. Its sun-baked surface has preserved evidence of Earth’s early history without degradation from water and ice erosion. Chen-Wan Yen of JPL performed meticulous calculations…
In 1991, the United States Postal Service released a set of stamps depicting each planet and noting which spacecraft had explored it. Pluto’s stamp featured an artist’s rendition of an uninhabitable planet with no features and the words: “NOT YET EXPLLORED.” New Horizons successfully reached Pluto and discovered that its moons Charon, Nix, Hydra and…
SpaceX finally achieved orbit with its Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft after years of failure, fulfilling their ambitious plans to transport people and cargo to Mars and other solar system destinations. At the core of these vehicles are powerful rocket engines which use methane and oxygen fuel for thrust, with any excess being recycled…
Images showing what has been called “otherworldly wreckage” on Mars have made headlines recently, yet the debris seen is actually parts of landing equipment used during NASA’s Ingenuity and Perseverance missions in 2021. NASA reports that both its parachute and cone-shaped backshell were released at incredible speeds upon entry to Mars’ atmosphere, though their coating…
Have you seen satellites zipping across the sky, taking minutes to travel from horizon to horizon? They appear tranquil but in reality are moving at hundreds of kilometers per second! Satellites help us explore our world and solar system with greater depth. They provide weather forecasts, route cell phone calls, and take pictures of Earth…
Before recently, Venus was considered a low priority planet to explore; however, the discovery of phosphine on Venus has reignited interest in this hellish realm. Ancients believed Venus had an environment similar to Earth with jungle-like foliage and carbonated oceans, but radio observations of brightness temperatures suggested otherwise – suggesting its surface must have been…
Space Craft Manufacturing of west central Missouri stands out when it comes to customized home-on-wheels. Their flexible approach enables them to craft trailers that meet the needs of road rambling retirees as well as carnival and circus performers alike. Space Craft RVs differ from mass-produced RVs by offering customized features, including fully ducted, fiberglass ceilings…
For spacecraft to reach Mars, they must first escape Earth’s gravity by using powerful rocket fuel and launch at exactly the right moment – both planets orbit around the Sun at different speeds and distances; every 26 months or so they come closer together, making travel to Mars much simpler. Spirit A six-wheeled vehicle equipped…
Spacecraft parts refer to all components of spaceships or robots designed to travel beyond Earth’s atmosphere and explore outer space, such as satellites orbiting Earth, rovers sent out to other planets, or Apollo capsules that carried astronauts between Earth and the Moon. Spacecraft systems include multiple subsystems that vary based on mission requirements. These may…
