#space agencies

[somethingusefulfromflorida]

Why do SpaceX rockets look so bad? They're not cool! The Saturn V looked cool. The Space Shuttle looked cool. The Russian Soyuz and the Chinese Long March rockets look cool, as do their respective Soyuz and Taingong capsules. The SpaceX Starship looks like a little kid drew it after watching old cartoons. It looks a 4th grade science diorama made out of paper towel rolls and tin foil. It looks like a bottle rocket you'd fill with a garden hose and a bike pump. Did any actual engineers design it, or did the muskrat copy some concept art from the studio that owns Flash Gordon?

[thepastisalreadywritten]

CNN — Japan’s “Moon Sniper” robotic explorer landed on the lunar surface, but the mission may end prematurely since the spacecraft’s solar cell is not generating electricity, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency said.

The agency said it is currently receiving a signal from the lander, which is communicating as expected.

The uncrewed Smart Lander for Investigating Moon, or SLIM, mission landed just after 10:20 a.m. ET Friday (12:20 a.m. Saturday Japan Standard Time), according to telemetry data shared on JAXA’s live broadcast.

Currently, the lander is operating on limited battery power, only expected to last several hours.

The JAXA team is analyzing the data to determine the cause of the solar cell issue and the next steps for the lander.

It’s possible that the solar cell issue is due to the fact that the spacecraft is not pointing in the intended direction, JAXA officials said.

There is hope that as the solar angle changes on the moon, the solar cell may be able to charge again, but that may take some time and will depend on whether SLIM can survive the frigid lunar night, the team shared during a news conference.

The agency believes the mission has met the criteria to declare it a “minimum success,” because the spacecraft achieved a precise and soft lunar landing using optical navigation.

The touchdown makes Japan the third country this century — and the fifth ever — to land on the moon.

When asked to score the landing operation for SLIM, JAXA director general Dr. Hitoshi Kuninaka gave it a “60 out of 100,” while also mentioning that he is known for making “harsh comments.”

The team is also working to gather all of the scientific data obtained by the lander.

The lander was able to release its two lunar rovers, LEV-1 and LEV-2.

The LEV-1 rover moves using a hopping mechanism and is equipped with wide-angle visible light cameras, scientific equipment, and antennas that allow it to communicate with Earth.

And LEV-2, also outfitted with cameras, can change shape to move across the lunar surface.

The team is receiving a signal from LEV-1 and will see whether its cameras were able to capture any images.

JAXA officials said they will not definitively confirm the status of LEV-2 until more data is received.

The small-scale SLIM robotic explorer, which launched in September, goes by the nickname “Moon Sniper” because it carried new precision technology to demonstrate a “pinpoint” landing.

Previous lunar missions have been able to target and reach specific zones that spanned many kilometers, but the SLIM lander targeted a landing site that stretches just 100 meters (328 feet) across.

The lander’s “smart eyes” — an image-matching-based navigation technology — rapidly photographed the sloped lunar surface on approach and autonomously made adjustments as the spacecraft descended toward touchdown.

The JAXA team is still working to determine the accuracy of SLIM’s landing, which could take up to a month.

Moon Sniper’s journey

The Moon Sniper targeted a landing site near the small Shioli crater within a lunar plain called the Sea of Nectar that was created by ancient volcanic activity and lies just south of the Sea of Tranquility, where Apollo 11 landed in 1969.

The lander is designed to briefly study rocks at the site that could reveal insights into the moon’s origin.

When meteorites and other objects strike the moon, they create craters as well as rocky debris that litters the surface.

These rocks intrigue scientists because studying them is effectively like peering inside the moon itself.

Minerals and other aspects of the rocks’ composition can potentially shed more light on how the moon formed.

Landing near the sloped, rock-strewn areas around craters is a hazardous process that most missions usually avoid, but JAXA believes its lander has the technology to touch down safely on rocky terrain.

New space race

Multiple space agencies and countries have attempted moon landing missions over the past year, leading to a historic first as well as failures.

India became the fourth country — after the United States, the former Soviet Union and China — to execute a controlled landing on the moon when its Chandrayaan-3 mission arrived near the lunar south pole in August.

Meanwhile, Japanese company Ispace’s Hakuto-R lunar lander fell 3 miles (4.8 kilometers) before crashing into the moon during a landing attempt in April.

Russia’s Luna-25 also crash-landed in August during the country’s first attempt to return to the moon since the Soviet Union’s fall.

Astrobotic Technology’s Peregrine spacecraft — the first US lunar lander to launch in five decades — met a fiery end Thursday after a critical fuel leak made safely landing on the moon out of the question.

Part of the motivation behind the new lunar space race is a desire to access water trapped as ice in permanently shadowed regions at the lunar south pole.

It could be used for drinking water or fuel as humanity pushes the bounds of space exploration in the future.

This region is riddled with craters and strewn with rocks, leading to narrow landing sites.

The lightweight SLIM lander might be an effective design that could not only land in small areas of interest on the moon but also on planets such as Mars, according to JAXA.

[headlinehorizon]

AI Companions in Space: Support, Solace, and Science

Discover how space agencies are developing AI companions to combat loneliness, enhance mental health, and assist astronauts on long-duration missions. Get the latest news on this groundbreaking technology.

[that-ineffable-devil]

Another absolute need for S2: Edwin flirting back at Charles, at least once.

Charles, leaning over Edwin reading a book: I'm just saying, my smile is pretty convincing...

Edwin, looking up at Charles from under his lashes: I rather agree. It could convince me to do a great many things.

Charles, face blank, staring: *404 ERROR. RESPONSE NOT FOUND. PLEASE REBOOT.*

Edwin: *turns back to his book wearing the same satisfied, flirty smirk he wore as he walked away from the Cat King*

[not-the-living-ghost]

One thing that i really appreciate about dead boy detectives is that they never treat platonic relationships as if they are less important than romantic ones. charles’ “rejection” on the staircase is never truly treated as a rejection, because he loves edwin back in all the ways that matter. in the grand scheme of things, it doesn't really matter if they are dating or not because charles and edwin will always be charles and edwin no matter what

[six-demon-bag]

GEORGE REXSTREW as Edwin Payne JAYDEN REVRI as Charles Rowland (01.01) The Case of Crystal Palace DEAD BOY DETECTIVES (2024)

[rosefires20]

My brainrot today is thinking about just how incredible for a character Eowyn is.

Genuinely. The series might not have many female characters but the ones we do get go so fucking hard.

To me, Eowyn is literally the definition of defining being a woman for oneself. She rejects the roles she is given despite acknlowdging the importance and its mostly because she knows part of the reason is that she is a woman.

The reason why she is obsessed with Aragorn isn't because she loves him but because she wants what he has. She wants the freedom and courage and bravery that Aragorn has at every turn. She literally has multiple conversations during the Two Towers about how what she fears most is a cage. All this girl wants is the freedom to be and not be forced into a role. The best thing is that she literally gets that.

The segment of Return of the King about Eowyn and Faramir is literally about her piecing together what she truly wants. She doesn't want Aragorn. She wants freedom and the ability to choose. Faramir does nothing but encourage that in her. Their love story is literally one of the healthiest love stories I've seen in a long time because at the heart of it, their love is a place to return home to for both parties. Both go off to lead and help their people for a considerable amount of time before returning to each other but that does not diminish their bond. Even Faramir, I believe, falls in love with her bravery and dedication to her loved ones. The reason she went to Pelenor Fields and Gondor with the troops of Rohan was because she had things she wanted to fight for. She wanted to fight for herself, her people, and her loved ones. She is the one who protects Theoden after he is killed so that his body gets the treatment it deserves. She encourages Merry and helps him go to the battle because she sees her struggle in Merry. They feel helpless standing around when there are things to be doing.

Let's also not forget the fact that she was around Grima Wormtounge just as much as the King was. She was exposed to the same poison and awful words that eroded the king. It's even implied that her care for him is part of the reason why Theoden was savable when Gandalf showed up. She had the same power and bravery as everyone else even if she didn't see it in herself.

Then at the end of the day, SHE decides where she wants to go and what path she wants to walk. She walked the path of a warrior. The path of a princess/ruler. The path of a caretaker. But in the end she decides which elements truly mean something to her outside of gender definitions. That is what makes her character so incredible to me. In this she literally kills one of the biggest enemies in that battle with such a badass line.

[charlesemersonwinchesteriii]

i was getting ready for another day of spying and murdering, practicing my interrogator death stare with my piercing blue orbs. just then, enabran tain came in. “pack your things.” he said. “i’ve sold you to pay our debts. meet your new owners, the crew of deep space 9.”

[niko-sasaki-dbd]

Something something I love the dynamic George and Jayden have, cuz apart from being hilarious, it usually goes like this:

George taking every bloody chance he can to roast Jayden lmao sure there's a compilation somewhere.

But the second Jayden puts himself down even a little bit, he immediately answers with "No no no, don't say that."

Ten seconds later...

Jayden: I think your brain is one of your best qualities...

George: I have to make up for you not having one.

They are just my favourite comedy lately fr

[soni-dragon]

some dirks!

[spacedhuh]

you can't give me four paranormal besties and expect me not to draw them as weezer

[evilkaeya]

skk au where everything is the same except Chuuya and Dazai have literal red string of fate tied to their pinkies. It appears when Chuuya kicked Dazai down in Suribachi. No one else can see the string. They've tried to untie it, cut it, burn it, rip it, bomb it- but to no avail. There's no limit to the length of the string. No matter how far they go, they're always tied to each other.

[elexuscal]

Real World Space Agencies: Carefully selects astronauts not just for their intelligence, expertise, and physical fitness, but for their ability to remain calm under pressure, get along with others, and reduce interpersonal conflict

Goddard Futuristics:

[a-dream-seeking-light]

Impact crater on Mars

In the southern highlands of Mars, CaSSIS spotted ancient and eroded craters filled with sediment. This is the case of this relatively old, 15 km diameter crater in Tyrrhena Terra, showing its age in its flattened rim – younger craters have sharper, more defined rims – and the degraded ejecta blanket.

There is a central uplift section to the crater, as well as many smaller craters, which also suggests an advanced age.

Beautiful dark dunes appear in contrast with wind-blown, pinkish ripples winding their way around the terrain.

Like most CaSSIS imagery, the colours in this image are stretched to highlight the diversity of surface composition.

CREDIT ESA/TGO/CaSSIS

[vangoghcore]

by europeanspaceagency

[ozzgin]

Adopt a y/n is extremely funny, and I can imagine all the different ads for types of humans monsters could adopt. Like on those adoption websites they have a list of types of dogs with names and personalities that are available for being able to bring home. Like the other anon described themself, you got the mischievous one who only give attention for food, or a human who is skittish and easily startled, or a human who is friendly but a bit too horny all the time so they might flirt with your monster friends (honestly that is probably all the y/ns lol), one that is clingy and needs constant care, etc etc. -hand biter spouse

Someday I'll make a picrew using my poorly drawn doodles, so that everyone can customize their own blobsona. Then I'll upload everything in a monster hoe catalog and ship a copy into space, for potential aliens or cosmic monsters.

All I ask is that you remember me when you're being kidnapped by a multiverse creature, who cites my improvised shopping brochure as their source for finding you.