Science

Space agencies are planning to send a crewed mission to Mars. The objective is to set up a permanent base on the Red Planet. However, a breakthrough is still awaited. According to NASA, it has plans to send humans to Mars by 2030 for exploration. This mission will advance its plans to build a house. However, building a concrete base is not an easy task. Scientists at the University of Manchester have now claimed to create a concrete-like material that could be helpful in building a house on Mars. The material is made of extraterrestrial dust. Notably, transporting bricks to Mars could be very expensive. According to an estimate, even transporting a brick can cost USD 2 million.

Scientists have demonstrated that human serum albumin can act as a binder for Mars or Moondust. This could produce material like concrete. Human serum albumin is a common protein from human blood. They have named the material as AstroCrete. Scientists said that they found incorporating urea can bolster the strength by more than 300 percent. This will result in stronger than ordinary concrete. The new discovery is seen as an advantage over other construction techniques that have been proposed for setting up a permanent base on Mars and Moon. Notably, scientists have been developing technologies that can produce concrete-like materials on Mars for building a house.

Scientists said that six astronauts can produce 500 kg of high-strength AstroCrete on Mars surface during a two-year mission. This would be crucial in building a house on the Red Planet. They said that each astronaut can produce enough AstroCrete if they use a mortar for sandbags. Notably, animal blood was used in past as a binder for mortar. Scientists said that the discovery is exciting and could address the challenges humans face in developing a permanent base on Earth’s neighbor. This could be a potential solution to form an extended structure. Mars has been the favorite destination for scientists to look for signs of life. NASA has launched several robotic missions. But no agency has managed to land humans on the planet so far.

The atmosphere at Jupiter is mostly made up of hydrogen and helium. This makes that gas giant like the Sun. The planet is as exotic as the Sun’s surface. It is covered in dense red, yellow, white, and brown clouds. This gives an illusion that Jupiter has stripes. In total, nine spacecraft have visited the planet. No mission has so far passed through the planet. According to NASA, it has plunged three spacecraft into gas planets. Two of them are Galileo and Cassini. Their plunge marked the end of their respective missions. Galileo’s mission ended in September 2003. The mission ended as the spacecraft plummeted into the gas giant’s atmosphere. The mission was launched in 1989. The mission studied Jupiter and its moons.

The Cassini spacecraft plunged into Saturn in 2017. Saturn is another gas giant and lies next to Jupiter. Galileo’s mission was, however, different. It arrived at Jupiter with a special passenger. The spacecraft carried a probe. The probe was designed to drop into Jupiter’s atmosphere. Notably, NASA’s contact with Galileo was lost just an hour after it reached around 93 miles into the atmosphere. The agency is not sure how deep the probe was able to travel before Jupiter’s high temperatures and pressures destroyed it. Scientists are also unaware of a spacecraft can survive through the atmosphere of Jupiter and Saturn to land or crash on a solid surface which the two gas giants may not have.

It is highly unlikely that a spacecraft remain intact during its passage through a Jupiter-like planet. The problem is that such a planet’s density, pressure, and temperature are very high and increase at different levels during the plunge. According to scientists, Jupiter’s center is filled with hydrogen which becomes a liquid metal. This makes the planet exotic just like the Sun. The third mission to Jupiter, Juno, is still active. Juno was launched in 2011. It entered the planet’s orbit in 2016. NASA has managed to figure out through Juno that the planet doesn’t have a solid core. Jupiter can be seen from Earth. It is the second brightest planet that s visible from Earth after Venus in the night.

Finding valuable resources beyond Earth is crucial for planning a permanent base for humans. The Moon could be such a possible destination. NASA is preparing to send astronauts to the Moon by 2024. But before that, the agency will send a rover to find water on the lunar surface. The rover will be launched in 2023. Water is among other valuable resources that are required for survival. NASA said that the mission will be very crucial in taking the first step in making its idea of exoplanetary colonization a reality. NASA’s plan is to send a rover to the South Pole. It will search for water. It is a fact that the Moon hosts water in good quantities in the north and south poles. But the problem is that water is not in liquid form.

The US space agency said that the mission’s objective is to find water in different states on the Moon. Besides, it will also look for hydrogen molecules. Scientists want to understand the form of water and its distribution on the surface. They also want to know exactly where to look for water when humans travel to the Moon. It will be a VIPER Mission. It will use NSS technology to look for water molecules. It will conduct searches beneath nearly a meter. It will be NASA’s first autonomous VIPER Mission to the moon. Moon doesn’t have its own atmosphere. Therefore, the weather conditions are extreme on its surface. NASA said that the rover will be designed to survive hot and cold temperatures.

NASA said that VIPER will follow a road map as it will travel on the lunar surface. The agency is working to develop a lunar road map. This will guide the rover to remain on a path and avoid challenges it will face. VIPER will be powered with solar energy. It will carry a rocker-bogie suspension system. The rover will have the capability to move in any direction. Its four wheels can be steered independently. NASA will study the lunar surface to find water and more as it prepares for returning humans to the Moon after five decades. NASA aims to land two astronauts including the first woman Moon under its Artemis program.

A Russian module on the International Space Station has developed cracks. The cracks were reported on Zarya. The cracks are said to be small. But it may widen. Zarya was the first ISS component launched to the space station. It was launched in 1998. The module provided services like electrical power, storage, and more to the rotating laboratory during the early stage of assembly. Interestingly, Zarya is funded by the United States. However, Russia built and launched the module. Russia has confirmed that superficial fissures have been observed in some places on Zarya. It remains unclear if the cracks pose any threat to the ISS.

Russia didn’t confirm if the cracks were causing any air to leak from the ISS. This is not the first time cracks have been developed on the space station. The laboratory had earlier reported similar cracks in 2019. At that time as well cracks were found on a Russian module. The module in the question was Zvezda. Cracks on Zvezda then resulted in a small air leak. The cracks were fixed by cosmonauts in 2020. In March this year, cosmonauts undertook an exercise to fix the cracks as air leaks persisted. The module was launched in 2000. Russia last month again reported a pressure drop in the module.

ISS is used for conducting space research by astronauts. The first component was launched in 1998. It has been hosting astronauts from around the world since 2000 in low Earth orbit. The space station is the largest structure to be ever launched by humans. The ISS is so huge that it can be seen from naked eyes. In July this year, Russia launched its long-delayed Nauka module. But the module’s thrusters unexpectedly fired after docking. This caused the ISS to shift from its track. It was even shoved 45 degrees. It was, however, repositioned to normal. The ISS is a collaborative project of the US, Canada, Russia, Japan, and Europe. Meanwhile, Russia is planning to set up its own space station.

Astronomers and scientists are racing to find signs of life beyond Earth. Although signs have been found that life could exist beyond Earth and even outside the Solar System, the lack of concrete evidence makes the task murkier. Astronomers have claimed to identify a new class of habitable planets outside the Solar System. They said that the discovery will give acceleration to the efforts for finding life beyond the Solar System. The end of the road to this finding could be the identification of biosignatures in the atmospheres of these exoplanets. This is because biosignatures are considered the signs of life on a planet that is habitable just like Earth. In scientific terms, exoplanets are just other planets that orbit other stars outside the Solar System.

Astronomers in past have discovered several exoplanets that are similar to Earth in size. These planets are the primary target for astronomers looking for signs of life. The just identified exoplanets have been dubbed as Hycean. This opens a new avenue in the search for life. Astronomers from the University of Cambridge said that these exoplanets could be habitable. They said that atmospheres at these exoplanets are likely to be hydrogen-rich. These exoplanets are more numerous. Besides, they are observable than planets that are similar to Earth. They added that these exoplanets can support life. Astronomers said that the probability of finding biosignatures on the new class of exoplanets is high and can be accomplished in two to three years.

Astronomers said that Hycean planets are likely 2.6 times larger than the size of Earth. Their atmospheric temperature is nearly 200 degrees Celsius. However, the conditions of oceans might be favorable for microbial life. This is because the tidally might be on the sides having permanent night. The chances of receiving radiation from their stars are also very low. They said that Hycean-like worlds are common. They could be the most promising destinations for searching for signs of life. They added that understanding other factors like temperature, mass, and properties of atmospheres is also important before confirming that they are habitable just like Earth. Astronomers said that they are looking for molecular signatures similar to Earth. They exuded hope that Hycean could offer opportunities of finding several biosignatures.

Greece is experiencing an environmental calamity of historic magnitude, with 586 forest fires raging throughout the nation. This European country is experiencing one of its deadliest heatwaves in several decades, with firemen battling wildfires all over the country. Just in the last several days, there have been 63 coordinated evacuations. Over the last week, the fire has burned hundreds of houses and caused the evacuation of tens of towns. The previous few days were perhaps some of the most challenging for the nation. With high heat as well as months of famine among factors complicating firefighting operations.

Environmental officials have cautioned that the consequences of global warming on the region will be most devastating in southern Europe, where droughts are getting increasingly regular and drastic. On Monday, the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change issued a climate report which found that it is unambiguous that human activities are to blame for the climate catastrophe and verified that irreversible widespread rapid alterations had already begun. As per the study, researchers are more convinced than ever before about the links connecting the climate problem and weather events: worldwide, disasters that might have occurred perhaps once every decade or so, are now occurring 70% more frequently. As a result of the devastating droughts, heat waves, and wildfires have lengthened, leading to more catastrophic incidents.

On the 9th of August, firefighters and volunteer groups were using a water hose to contain a smoldering flame to try and suppress the fire in the settlement of Glatsona on Evia island. Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Greece’s Prime Minister, stated that any shortcomings in Greece’s emergency operation would be recognized, those guilty will be held accountable, and individuals whose property was damaged will be reimbursed. On Tuesday, the prime minister will preside over a cabinet meeting at which concrete steps to minimize the damage caused by the fires will be announced.

With floods and fires, the summertime of 2021 has become one of the most devastating periods throughout the world, indicating that the effects of global warming are already pervasive and intensifying. These disasters, and their link to human-caused global warming, is only one of the major topics discussed in a landmark climate report issued on Monday by the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). It is a component of the IPCC’s Sixth Assessment Report, which was developed by over 230 prominent scientists from across the globe. This is the most important climate study made by the scientific community in decades. According to the report, the following are the major challenges faced by humanity as a result of climate change.

C02 levels

Carbon dioxide emissions in the environment are greater today than they have been in the last 2 million years. Today, the atmosphere contains a minimum of 800,000 years’ worth of methane. Moreover, the rate of greenhouse gas emissions outpaces all climate cycles over the exact same time span.

Rising temperatures

Heat readings have surged quicker in the previous half-century than during any other timeframe in the last 2 millenniums. The mean global surface temperature was 1.1° Celsius warmer in 2011–2020 when compared to that from 1850–1900, with land heating faster than the ocean. This decade is expected to be warmer than any time since the previous interglacial period that occurred 125,000 years ago.

Ice melt

Rising air temperatures are melting icebergs at a previously unrecorded pace for the 21st century. The Arctic sea ice cover has gone lower than it has ever been in the past ten centuries. Glacier retreat has been unparalleled in the previous two millennia, with nearly all the glaciers in the world simultaneously receding since the 50s.

Heatwaves

Heatwaves are the most evident link between rising global temperatures and climate change. According to the research, they have gotten more regular and intense over most geographical regions since the 1950s. The latest anomalies would have been highly unlikely if the global climate had not been influenced by humans. It also mentions that oceanic heatwaves, which are abnormally high temperatures occurring in ocean waters, have roughly quadrupled since the 80s.

Precipitation

As atmospheric temperature increases, the air can store more water, resulting in greater precipitation. As a result, the intensity and frequency of heavy rainfall occurrences have escalated since 1950.

Tropical cyclones

Tropical storms and cyclones patterns are changing as sea temperatures rise and additional atmospheric moisture is present. During the previous 40 years, the global frequency of big storms has increased substantially.

Scientists from Harvard University have conducted a new study that has shown that exposure to increased levels of fine particle pollution that is present in wildfire smoke might be the cause of thousands of more COVID19 infections. The study has noted that wildfire smoke might as well have led to more deaths among people who have tested positive for COVID19. Experts have said that some counties in California and Washington State have been badly hit by wildfire last year. The authors of the study have found that nearly 20 percent of COVID19 cases have been attributed to higher levels of wildfire smoke. They have said that higher levels of wildfire smoke might have triggered an elevated rate of deaths linked to COVID19 in some counties. Dr. Francesca Diminici, who is a professor of biostatistics at Harvard University, has said that the interplay between smoke and COVID19 infection is a deadly combination as the world continues to face these wildfires each year. Dr. Francesca Diminici is also one of the authors of the new study. Dr. Diminici has said that the pandemic has been one of the disasters that people living in Western America have faced last year. In recent history, California has witnessed five of the six massive wildfires last year. Currently burning Dixie fire has secured number two position in the largest fires list. As per the report, smoke from many other fires has covered Western states of the US in 2020. Experts have said that massive plumes have triggered record-breaking smoke storms that have suffocated states such as Oregon and Washington. The findings of the new study have been reported in the journal called Science.

Many past studies have shown that higher levels of air pollution can deteriorate the severity of symptoms of COVID19 and shoot up the spread of the virus as well. Nevertheless, it is unclear how the SARS-CoV-2 virus and pollution particles intermingle in the air. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has suggested on its website that wildfire smoke can cause irritation in the lungs and can make people more susceptible to lung infections. The CDC has said that wildfire smoke can also make people more vulnerable to the SARS-CoV-2 virus that leads to COVID19 infection. A study that has been released early this year has shown that the rate of COVID19 positivity has shot up majorly in Washoe County during the time of high levels of wildfire smoke. This study has been done by experts from the Desert Research Institute Nevada. The authors of the new study from Harvard University have created statistical models to examine the link between wildfire smoke and SARS-CoV-2 infection. They have looked at the data of 92 counties in Oregon, Washington, and California where wildfires have taken place from March 2020 to December 2020. During this time, nearly more than 73000 people have lost their lives due to COVID19 in these three states. Experts have continued to collect data on COVID19 cases and deaths in those 92 counties. With the help of satellite sensors, they have found exactly when wildfires have been burning in these states. They have used ground-level sensors to monitor the levels of fine particulate matter that is known as PM2.5. Experts have said that PM2.5 is a key pollutant in wildfire smoke. They have waited for a month to determine the health impacts of high levels of wildfire smoke. The authors of the study have seen strong evidence of a link between a higher risk of COVID19 infection and deaths and elevated levels of particulate matter.

Health experts have said that they have found that the percentage of the total number of COVID19 infections and deaths that are attributed to high levels of particulate matter has been extensive in some counties. The findings of the study have shown that the counties of Whitman, Wash, Butte, and Calif have shown some of the massive impacts of high levels of wildfire smoke on the number of COVID19 cases and deaths linked to the virus. The authors of the study have claimed that 18.2 percent of COVID19 incidents in Whitman County last year can be attributed to poor air quality due to wildfire smoke. Around 17.3 percent of cases in Butte County might have taken place due to the high levels of particulate matter in the air, said the experts. As wildfires have smoldered many huge areas of Western America in past years, health experts have witnessed many health issues that are linked to ingesting heavy amounts of smoke. Health officials have warned that smoke can aggravate respiratory issues such as asthma or chronic pulmonary disease. They have said that some mental health issues such as anxiety and depression as well can turn worse under a blanket of smoke. An air quality policy expert from the Washington State Department of Health, Dr. Kaitlyn Kelly has said that breathing in wildfire smoke with COVID19 infection can exacerbate the signs and symptoms of the patients. Scientists who have been studying air quality have claimed that it is possible that smoke particles in the air might contain the SARS-CoV-2 virus as well. Dr. Irva Hertz-Picciotto has said that when there is a high prevalence of particles in the air, these microbes can easily get inside the lungs. Dr. Picciotto is an environmental epidemiologist at the University of California. She has been studying the effects of wildfire smoke on COVID19 infection. She has claimed that massively increased levels of PM2.5 can promote the spread of the virus. She has not been part of the Harvard study. Dr. Picciotto has been monitoring the overall health of people living in California who have been affected by wildfire since 2017 in a long-term study. The authors of the new study have done a study last year that has found that air pollution exposure is linked to a higher rate of COVID19 deaths. The new study has found that nearly 41 percent of COVID19 deaths are linked to high levels of wildfire smoke in Butte County.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has awarded Europa Clipper mission’s a launch service contract to SpaceX. The mission is scheduled to be launched in the year 2024. This would be the first detailed mission to find more about Jupiter’s moon Europa. The spacecraft will be launched onboard the Falcon Heavy rocket of SpaceX. The rocket will blast off from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Centre of the US space agency. The total cost of the contract for the launch of the mission is USD 178 million approx. Europa Clipper’s mission will help scientists at the agency to conduct a detailed survey of Jupiter’s icy moon.

Europa is around 90 percent the size of the moon of our Earth. The study will help scientists understand whether the icy moon has conditions favorable for life. This will be done with the help of a sophisticated suite of science instruments to dig the surface of the moon in order to explore more about it. The main objective of the mission is to produce high-resolution images of the surface of the moon. These images will help researchers to understand the moon in a better way. Also, the mission will focus on finding out signs of any recent or ongoing geological activity. Determining the depth of salinity, measuring the thickness of icy shells on the moon, and searching for subsurface lakes are some of the other important tasks of the mission.

The launch of the Europa Clipper will be managed by the Launch Service Program of the US space agency. The development of the Europa Clipper mission is being led by the agency’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. Meanwhile, the Falcon Heavy rocket of SpaceX was first launched in the year 2018. A year later, it started flying satellites in space. Now Falcon Heavy rocket is all set to lift with NASA’s Europa Clipper mission in the year 2024.

Ingenuity has completed its most challenging flight. Ingenuity is a helicopter designed and developed by NASA to fly on Mars. It arrived at the Red Planet in February along with the Perseverance rover. The helicopter has so far conducted nine flights on the planet. According to NASA, the ninth flight was the most challenging for Ingenuity since its arrival. The helicopter broke several of its records. According to the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, which oversees the mission, the helicopter flew for 166.4 seconds in the Martian atmosphere. It broke the previous record of 139.9 seconds. The helicopter had achieved this feat during its sixth flight in May.

The helicopter weighs 4 pounds. Its height is 19 inches. It covered a distance of 625 meters during the ninth flight. This is more than twice the previous highest distance the helicopter had covered. Ingenuity’s last highest distance during a flight was 266 meters. It made this record during the fourth flight in April. Besides, the helicopter also hit a speed of 5 meters per second. This is 1 mph faster than the previous record achieved during the sixth flight. Ingenuity is the only object that has flown on any planet outside Earth. NASA becomes the only agency to achieve this feat. A controlled flight in a thin Martian atmosphere is full of challenges. Ingenuity has carbon-fiber blades. These blades are arranged into two rotors. The rotors can complete 2,400 revolutions in a minute.

The helicopter has survived all the challenges on the planet. NASA said that it has surpassed expectations. It is a demonstration of the technology by NASA that can redefine the human approach towards Mars’ exploration. More advanced versions of the helicopter can be developed and sent to the planet to explore the Earth’s neighbor. It can help scientists to find safe routes for rovers so that they can move quickly on the surface. It will help scientists to explore areas that are difficult to reach by a rover. NASA said that more test flights will be conducted to push Ingenuity to its limit. This will help the agency to refine the technology and its design as well.

Scientists have claimed that lakes beneath the south pole of Mars may not be real. Researchers had in 2018 claimed to make a surprising discovery on the Red Planet. They detected signals from a radar instrument to reveal a liquid subsurface lake on the planet’s South Pole. The discovery was made during a detailed analysis of data obtained from the Mars Express orbiter. It is a space exploration mission by the European Space Agency. It was launched in 2003. However, NASA scientists and Arizona State University researchers have now said that subsurface lakes may not really be lakes. They too detected similar radar reflections near the South Pole. They said that many fall in regions that are too cold and make it difficult for water to stay in its original form.

Scientists said that loss of energy is reported in radar waves when they travel through a material. Therefore, the reflections should be less bright when coming from deep than those from a surface. The latest study said that there could be other reasons for bright subsurface reflections. It said that the 2018 studies claimed that a liquid water component resulted in bright reflections. Notably, when water is in its real form, which is liquid, it appears bright to radar. The region where radar detected liquid water is called South Polar Layered Deposits. Scientists said that temperatures in these areas are estimated to be around minus 63 degrees Celsius. They said that water would be frozen at this temperature even if salty minerals are present.

The Jet Propulsion Laboratory of NASA said that scientists detected signals more widespread than what was reported in the original paper. The study said that these radar reflections could be indicative of something else in the region. Notably, the Mars Express is the second-longest-surviving orbiter. It still provides data related to Mars’ atmosphere, surface, and subsurface. The orbiter uses a radar sounder to study the composition of Mars’ subsurface. NASA’s Mars Odyssey is the longest surviving orbiter. It is still active since its launch in 2001. Several countries have sent orbiter missions to Mars. But the US and China are the only two countries that have landed rovers on the Red Planet. While NASA has sent several robotic missions, China achieved the feat in May 2021.

Virgin Galactic founder and billionaire Richard Branson created history on Sunday by flying to the edge of space aboard the Virgin Galactic spaceplane. This is a big achievement for both Branson as well as Virgin. While this was the British billionaire’s first trip to space, it was also the first time when his company has flown a full crew cabin. The carrier aircraft VMS Eve along with the SpaceShipTwo Unity rocket took off at around 8.40 am. The aircraft was handled by former NASA research pilot Kelly Latimer and former NASA astronaut CJ Sturckow. Branson was joined by three employees of the company – Beth Moses, Colin Bennett, and Sirisha Bandla. The pilots at the control of Unity were Dave Mackay and Michael Masucci.

The Unity rocket reached speeds of Mach 3 within minutes of separating from the aircraft and reached a peak altitude of 86 km. The height reached was enough to see the curvature of the Earth. For those who are unaware, the aircraft has been named VMS Eve after Branson’s mother Eve. His mother died of Covid-19 complications in January this year. Describing it as the ‘experience of a lifetime,’ Branson told journalists that the ‘whole thing was just magical.’ The 70-year-old Virgin Galactic founder said that his mother has been a major source of inspiration behind this journey.

Branson tapped a message using a camera onboard the spaceplane. The message addressed to all the kids said – “I was once a child and had dreams. Now I am an adult in a spaceship. If we can do this, just imagine what all can be done by your generation.” At the height of 50 miles, the vehicle remained weightless for a few minutes. This allowed the passengers to enjoy the views of the space. SpaceShipTwo was then glided back to a runway landing. Branson has now announced that it would offer two seats in the upcoming flight through an Omaze contest. The contest also encourages donations for the nonprofit Space for Humanity.

The Ingenuity helicopter has completed another flight on Mars. This was the eighth flight since its arrival in February. NASA said that the flight was successful. The helicopter flew for 77.4 seconds. It covered a distance of 160 meters to land at a new spot on the Martian surface. The new site is nearly 133 meters from the Perseverance rover. Ingenuity arrived on Mars attached to the belly of Perseverance. The rover landed at the Jezero Crater. NASA’s Ingenuity is the first of its kind instrument to fly on any other planet. NASA is the only space agency to craft powered and controlled flight on another planet. NASA wants to demonstrate the technology through the helicopter as it prepares for a manned mission to the Red Planet. The agency is conducting planned test flights.

Ingenuity was built by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. It also manages the helicopter’s technology demonstration project. The helicopter had in May developed a navigational glitch. This was the first problem since its arrival. Ingenuity encountered the problem during its sixth flight since April 19. It even went on an excursion of 20 degrees. But it maintained flight and managed to land safely at the designated site. According to NASA, Ingenuity had developed a glitch in the navigation camera. It reported a loss of an image. The issue was reported in all later navigation images. NASA said that Ingenuity’s sensors indicated a spike in power consumption moments before the landing. The helicopter landed safely because of its certain design features.

Ingenuity is designed to fly from one place to another. The helicopter has so far delivered promising results. It could redefine the approach of scientists towards Mars as they plan a crewed mission to explore Earth’s neighbor. The mini helicopter during its fifth flight completed a one-way trip. NASA said that Ingenuity’s flights are a great achievement. It said that Ingenuity brings both strength and skill to create aircraft to fly on another planet in the future. The agency had earlier released a recording of audio and video of Ingenuity. The helicopter weighs 1.8 kg. NASA said that Ingenuity’s controlled flight adds a new chapter to humans’ efforts to search for life beyond Earth.

American space agency NASA has been named as the best place to work in the country. This is the ninth consecutive year when the agency has retained the top rank. The ranking was released by Partnership for Public Service and Boston Consulting Group. They said that NASA is the best place to work in the government in the United States. Besides, the agency has also invited praise for its response to the Covid-19 pandemic. It is among the large agencies that fought against the pandemic and maintained the pace of work. The latest ranking shows how NASA is focused and dedicated when it comes to pursuing missions which includes developing a technology to send humans deep into space for exploration and on Mars.

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said that the latest ranking is a testament to the agency’s world-class workforce that is committed to taking space science to a new level. He added that NASA staff performed through the most difficult circumstances to execute and further advance the projects. Earlier in 2020, NASA reported the highest satisfaction results among its employees. The ranking is based on feedback received during the Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey. The survey involved nearly 6,24,800 employees at 482 offices. The ranking was first published in 2003. An independent US government agency, it was established in 1958 and has its headquarters based in Washington. The agency is responsible for launching space missions.

NASA has led the world in space exploration for more than six decades of the journey. The agency is now working on an Artemis program that will see America’s return to the Moon. It is also working on a mission for human exploration of Mars. Meanwhile, NASA has given a new name to a manikin headed to the Moon under the Artemis mission. The agency has named the manikin as Commander Moonikin Campos. The name honors Arturo Campos. He was an electrical engineer. Arturo was a key man in successfully bringing Apollo 13 back to Earth after the spacecraft’s service module oxygen tank ruptured. The manikin is set to fly aboard the Orion spacecraft during the Artemis 1 mission later this year.

The next scheduled launch of SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy has been delayed by several months. The launch has been delayed as the US military delayed two upcoming missions because of issues unrelated to the rocket. US Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC) has said that the launch has been pushed to October 2021. Earlier, the launch of Space Force’s first SpaceX Falcon Heavy was scheduled for July 2021. The mission has been named USSF-44. It was delayed to accommodate payload readiness. There are indications that significant delays in the main geostationary satellite payload of the mission last year may have been responsible for an earlier launch delay.

US SMC Colonel Robert Bongiovi also said that the USSF-52 mission has also been pushed back. Both the missions were supposed to carry the highest-priority national security payloads of the US Military. With this, there is only a scheduled launch of the Falcon Heavy this year. Deputy director of SMC’s launch enterprise Colonel Douglas Pentecost said that the USSF-52 mission was scheduled for October launch but has now been pushed to 2022. Pentecost said that the decision to move the launch to next year has been taken on the basis of ‘launch manifest priorities.’ This mission was earlier scheduled for launch in October this year.

Both the missions are planned to take off from pad 39A of Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Multiple military payloads will be launched by the Falcon Heavy into a high-altitude geosynchronous orbit during the USSF-44 mission. These satellites will be positioned at a height of over 22,000 miles above the equator. The USSF-44 mission of SpaceX would be the most demanding launch yet as the upper stage flight profile will last for more than five hours. SpaceX has now at least five Falcon Heavy launches scheduled for the next year. USSF-52 mission is expected to be the first in the lineup for next year. This will be followed by the launch of ViaSat-3.

The Mars helicopter has added a new chapter to human’s efforts to explore the planet. The helicopter was designed by NASA. It is named Ingenuity. The helicopter was sent to Mars along with the Perseverance rover. NASA has now released an audio clip of Ingenuity humming in the thin air of Mars. The clip was released just before Ingenuity’s fifth test flight on the planet. The low hum is coming from the spinning blades. The blades complete more than 2,500 revolutions every minute. The blades are barely audible. It only sounds like a far-away mosquito flying. The mini-helicopter has so far performed four test flights. The helicopter weighs 1.8 kg.

The low hum is because of the distance between the Perseverance rover’s microphone and the helicopter. Ingenuity was more than 260 feet far from the rover. Mars’ rumbling wind gusts also obstructed the helicopter’s sound from reaching the microphone. NASA scientists used technology to isolate the helicopter’s sound so that it can be heard. The sound of the helicopter’s blades was recorded on April 30 during Ingenuity’s fourth test flight. Ingenuity is the first helicopter by any space agency to fly in the Martian atmosphere. It arrived at the Red Planet on February 18, attached to the belly of Perseverance. Ingenuity performed the first flight on April 19. The agency named the site of its takeoff and landing as Wright Brothers Field.

NASA invested USD 85 million in developing the technology. It is the first every scientific equipment by the agency to fly in another world. NASA expected that the mission will last for not more than one month, but it extended the mission’s duration by one month. The agency will fly the helicopter multiple times to demonstrate the technology. Ingenuity’s success is will redefine the scientific approach for Mars exploration. NASA’s latest Mars probe will look for signs of microbial life on the planet. It said that Perseverance has completed the first phase. It will now start hunting for rocks on Mars with signs of microscopic life. It will collect sore samples that will return to Earth in the future.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has decided to extend the ongoing mission of the Mars Ingenuity helicopter. The decision has been taken after another successful flight test of Ingenuity. This was the fourth flight test of Ingenuity, the four-pound remote-controlled aircraft. Originally, NASA had planned five test flights of the aircraft. It has traveled around 900 feet at an average speed of 8 miles per hour. Like its previous flight test, Ingenuity flew at a height of 16.5 feet. NASA said that the helicopter when ‘farther and faster’ than ever before. “Success. Ingenuity has completed fourth flight. It took more photos of the Martian surface this time. They will come in a later data downlink,” NASA tweeted.

According to the US space agency, the distance covered by the helicopter is double than what it covered during the third flight. Also speed attained by Ingenuity was double than it attends during the last flight on April 25. NASA was satisfied by the outcomes of the third test. “Flight test of Ingenuity has been a resounding success,” said associate administrator for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, Thomas Zurbuchen. “As the helicopter is still in excellent health, NASA plans to use to benefit future aerial platforms.”

This means that the US space agency is extending the mission of Ingenuity. Perseverance rover has been closely monitoring the flight test of the helicopter from distance. The rover will continue to do its other work. It will also restart the investigation landing site of Jezero Crater for signs of past life on the planet. As for Ingenuity, it will conduct the fifth and final flight test as planned originally. Unlike previous flights, it will be a one-way trip. If the helicopter remains functional and technically sound, it will conduct subsequent flights from the new landing site. The new landing site will still be fairly close to where Perseverance is looking for signs of past life.