Latest news with #Explorer1
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Vanguard 1 is the oldest satellite orbiting Earth. Scientists want to bring it home after 67 years
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Decades ago during the heady space race rivalry between the former Soviet Union and the United States, the entire world experienced the Sputnik moment when the first artificial satellite orbited the Earth. Sputnik 1's liftoff on Oct. 4, 1957 sparked worries in the U.S., made all the more vexing by the embarrassing and humiliating failure later that year of America's first satellite launch when the U.S. Navy's Vanguard rocket went "kaputnik" as the booster toppled over and exploded. An emotional rescue for America came via the first U.S. artificial satellite. Explorer 1 was boosted into space by the Army on Jan. 31, 1958. Nevertheless, despite setbacks, Vanguard 1 did reach orbit on March 17, 1958 as the second U.S. satellite. And guess what? While Explorer 1 reentered Earth's atmosphere in 1970, the Naval Research Laboratory's (NRL) Vanguard 1 microsatellite is still up there. It just celebrated 67 years of circuiting our planet. NRL remains the owner of the object and the developer of its technology. Vanguard 1 was the first satellite to generate power using solar cells. Today, the satellite is in an elliptical orbit with its perigee roughly at 410 miles (660 kilometers), swinging out to an apogee of approximately 2,375 miles (3,822 kilometers) from Earth, with a 34.25 degree inclination. A team that includes aerospace engineers, historians and writers recently proposed "how-to" options for an up-close look and possible retrieval of Vanguard 1. Snagging the oldest orbiting satellite of any nation would not be easy, but is worthy of further study, the team noted last year at a science and technology conference sponsored by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. Vanguard 1 is a time capsule of the Space Age, the study group explained. The notion of recovery offered by the team was their own, not necessarily reflecting the view of their organization, Booz Allen Hamilton, a leading advanced technology company that deals with an array of critical defense, civil, and national security issues. Matt Bille, a Booz Allen aerospace research analyst in Colorado Springs, Colorado led the Vanguard 1 salvage scenario research. "We're not the first people to have the idea, and we hope we won't be the last," Bille told "But we'll have to wait and see whether any entities with the needed capability decide the value to them is worth the expenditure." As one would expect, the elder satellite is no longer transmitting, but its whereabouts are known. "Yes, the satellite went silent in 1964," Bille said, "when the output of the solar cells dropped below the power needed to run the transmitter." Publicly available tracking data show Vanguard 1's location and orbit, information that could be used to target higher-resolution sensors, he added. Those sensors might determine whether the satellite is intact and confirm its spinning or tumbling status, said Bille. If Vanguard 1 is recovered and hauled back to Earth, how much could be gleaned from up-close inspection? "Our research indicated possible interest in the condition of the solar cells, batteries, and metals, along with the record of micrometeorite or debris strikes over such a long time," Bille responded. "It would be a record for retrieving an exposed spacecraft." Bille and colleagues have scoped out options for missions and payloads using technology that could safely inspect, and, if desirable, retrieve the satellite for study, then put on display as astronautical archaeology. Vanguard 1 could be placed into a lower orbit for retrieval, for instance, or taken to the International Space Station to be repackaged for a ride to Earth. After study, this veteran of space and time would make for a nifty exhibit at the Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum. An as-yet-unidentified lead organization could serve as the Vanguard Mission Authority (VMA), the study team explains. The overall mission would be split into two phases: Firstly, imaging of Vanguard 1 to find out its condition prior to a retrieval decision. Given a go, then the actual recovery of the satellite would proceed. But there's a major challenge of snuggling up close to the three pound (1.46-kilogram) Vanguard 1. It is a small-sized satellite, a 15-centimeter aluminum sphere with a 91-centimeter antenna span. It would be a delicate, 'handle with care' state of affairs. As suggested by the study group, perhaps a private funder with historical or philanthropic interests could foot the retrieval bill. Keep in mind that entrepreneur Jared Isaacman made self-funded space treks using a SpaceX capsule, even taking the first civilian space walk. He has also proposed a mission to saunter up to the Hubble Space Telescope. Then there's well-heeled Jeff Bezos of Blue Origin that backed the retrieval of Apollo-program Saturn V engines from the Atlantic for museum displays. Bringing Vanguard 1 home is appealing for several reasons. The ability to develop and demonstrate industry-provided space repositioning services is one. "For materials engineers and space historians, it would be a learning opportunity like no other," Bille and study members argue. "Retrieving Vanguard 1 would be a challenge, but an achievable and invaluable step forward for the entire U.S. space community." Similar in view is Bill Raynor, the Naval Research Laboratory's associate superintendent of the spacecraft engineering division. — 'Astronaut archaeology' could improve space station design. Here's how — Archaeology on the moon: How to preserve spaceflight artifacts from Apollo era — Archaeology on the ISS? Scientists study how astronauts use and store stuff in space While Vanguard-1 went silent in May 1964, Raynor said that since that time, the satellite's 133-minute orbit has been tracked by a network of optical space surveillance sensors and continues to be of scientific interest to this day. "The results of the tracking of Vanguard-1's orbit provided much of the early data supporting the discovery and estimation of the Earth's oblateness, similar to a pear-shape," Raynor told If Vanguard 1 was recovered and brought back here to Earth, how much could we glean from its long duration exposure? "For material and radiation effects scientists and engineers," Raynor added, "it would be an unprecedented opportunity for investigating the effects of long-term space environmental exposure."
Yahoo
05-02-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Lightning strikes link weather on Earth and weather in space
There are trillions of charged particles – protons and electrons, the basic building blocks of matter – whizzing around above your head at any given time. These high-energy particles, which can travel at close to the speed of light, typically remain thousands of kilometers away from Earth, trapped there by the shape of Earth's magnetic field. Occasionally, though, an event happens that can jostle them out of place, sending electrons raining down into Earth's atmosphere. These high-energy particles in space make up what are known as the Van Allen radiation belts, and their discovery was one of the first of the space age. A new study from my research team has found that electromagnetic waves generated by lightning can trigger these electron showers. At the start of the space race in the 1950s, professor James Van Allen and his research team at the University of Iowa were tasked with building an experiment to fly on the United States' very first satellite, Explorer 1. They designed sensors to study cosmic radiation, which is caused by high-energy particles originating from the Sun, the Milky Way galaxy, or beyond. After Explorer 1 launched, though, they noticed that their instrument was detecting significantly higher levels of radiation than expected. Rather than measuring a distant source of radiation beyond our solar system, they appeared to be measuring a local and extremely intense source. This measurement led to the discovery of the Van Allen radiation belts, two doughnut-shaped regions of high-energy electrons and ions encircling the planet. Scientists believe that the inner radiation belt, peaking about 621 miles (1000 kilometers) from Earth, is composed of electrons and high-energy protons and is relatively stable over time. The outer radiation belt, about three times farther away, is made up of high-energy electrons. This belt can be highly dynamic. Its location, density and energy content may vary significantly by the hour in response to solar activity. The discovery of these high-radiation regions is not only an interesting story about the early days of the space race; it also serves as a reminder that many scientific discoveries have come about by happy accident. It is a lesson for experimental scientists, myself included, to keep an open mind when analyzing and evaluating data. If the data doesn't match our theories or expectations, those theories may need to be revisited. While I teach the history of the space race in a space policy course at the University of Colorado, Boulder, I rarely connect it to my own experience as a scientist researching Earth's radiation belts. Or, at least, I didn't until recently. In a study led by Max Feinland, an undergraduate student in my research group, we stumbled upon some of our own unexpected observations of Earth's radiation belts. Our findings have made us rethink our understanding of Earth's inner radiation belt and the processes affecting it. Originally, we set out to look for very rapid – sub-second – bursts of high-energy electrons entering the atmosphere from the outer radiation belt, where they are typically observed. Many scientists believe that a type of electromagnetic wave known as 'chorus' can knock these electrons out of position and send them toward the atmosphere. They're called chorus waves due to their distinct chirping sound when listened to on a radio receiver. Feinland developed an algorithm to search for these events in decades of measurements from the SAMPEX satellite. When he showed me a plot with the location of all the events he'd detected, we noticed a number of them were not where we expected. Some events mapped to the inner radiation belt rather than the outer belt. This finding was curious for two reasons. For one, chorus waves aren't prevalent in this region, so something else had to be shaking these electrons loose. The other surprise was finding electrons this energetic in the inner radiation belt at all. Measurements from NASA's Van Allen Probes mission prompted renewed interest in the inner radiation belt. Observations from the Van Allen Probes suggested that high-energy electrons are often not present in this inner radiation belt, at least not during the first few years of that mission, from 2012 to 2014. Our observations now showed that, in fact, there are times that the inner belt contains high-energy electrons. How often this is true and under what conditions remain open questions to explore. These high-energy particles can damage spacecraft and harm humans in space, so researchers need to know when and where in space they are present to better design spacecraft. One of the ways to disturb electrons in the inner radiation belt and kick them into Earth's atmosphere actually begins in the atmosphere itself. Lightning, the large electromagnetic discharges that light up the sky during thunderstorms, can actually generate electromagnetic waves known as lightning-generated whistlers. These waves can then travel through the atmosphere out into space, where they interact with electrons in the inner radiation belt – much as chorus waves interact with electrons in the outer radiation belt. To test whether lightning was behind our inner radiation belt detections, we looked back at the electron bursts and compared them with thunderstorm data. Some lightning activity seemed correlated with our electron events, but much of it was not. Specifically, only lightning that occurred right after so-called geomagnetic storms resulted in the bursts of electrons we detected. Geomagnetic storms are disturbances in the near-Earth space environment often caused by large eruptions on the Sun's surface. This solar activity, if directed toward Earth, can produce what researchers term space weather. Space weather can result in stunning auroras, but it can also disrupt satellite and power grid operations. We discovered that a combination of weather on Earth and weather in space produces the unique electron signatures we observed in our study. The solar activity disturbs Earth's radiation belts and populates the inner belt with very high-energy electrons, then the lightning interacts with these electrons and creates the rapid bursts that we observed. These results provide a nice reminder of the interconnected nature of Earth and space. They were also a welcome reminder to me of the often nonlinear process of scientific discovery. This article is republished from The Conversation, a nonprofit, independent news organization bringing you facts and trustworthy analysis to help you make sense of our complex world. It was written by: Lauren Blum, University of Colorado Boulder Read more: Solar storms can destroy satellites with ease – a space weather expert explains the science Earth's magnetic field protects life on Earth from radiation, but it can move, and the magnetic poles can even flip What causes lightning and how to stay safe when you're caught in a storm – a meteorologist explains Lauren Blum receives funding from NASA and the NSF.
Yahoo
31-01-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
On this date: U.S. successfully launches its first satellite, Explorer 1
Explorer 1 became the first successfully launched satellite by the United States when it was sent to space on 31 January 1958. A quick response to the Soviet Union's launch of Sputnik 1, Explorer 1's success marked the beginning of the US Space Age. The satellite, which was designed, built, and operated by JPL, carried a cosmic ray detector (the satellite's primary science instrument), which directly led to Principal Investigator Dr. James Van Allen's discovery of radiation belts around Earth held in place by the planet's magnetic field. This story was created by multimedia editor Rob Landers, rlanders@ with the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI). Journalists were involved in every step of information gathering, review, editing and publishing. This article originally appeared on Florida Today: On this date: U.S. launches its first satellite, Explorer 1
Yahoo
31-01-2025
- General
- Yahoo
On This Day, Jan. 31: Apollo 14 blasts off for moon
Jan. 31 (UPI) -- On this date in history: In 1917, Germany announces it will wage unrestricted submarine warfare against all ships, including passenger carriers, in war-zone waters. In 1929, the Soviet Union expelled communist revolutionary Leon Trotsky. He was assassinated in Mexico in August 1940. In 1945, U.S. Army Pvt. Eddie Slovik, 24, was executed by firing squad for desertion. His was the first U.S. execution for desertion since the Civil War and the only one to take place during World War II. His remains, buried in an unmarked grave in France, were returned to the United States in 1987. In 1953, nearly 2,000 people died when the North Sea flooded the Netherlands. In 1958, Explorer 1, the first successful U.S. satellite, was launched from Cape Canaveral, Fla. In 1961, NASA launched a rocket carrying Ham the Chimp into space. In 1968, Viet Cong guerillas raided the U.S. Embassy in Saigon, the Tan Son Nhut airbase and five hotels housing American officials as part of the Tet Offensive during the Vietnam War. In 1971, Apollo 14, the third U.S. mission to land on the moon, blasted off using a Saturn V rocket from Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Commander Alan Shepard and lunar module pilot Edgar Mitchell landed in the Fra Mauro formation in the lunar highlands, while command module pilot Stuart Roosa orbited the moon. In 1982, the Israeli Cabinet agreed to a multinational peacekeeping force to act as a buffer between Israel and Egypt in the Sinai Peninsula. In 1990, Moscow's first McDonald's restaurant opened. In 1991, Iraqi forces crossed into Saudi Arabia engaging allied troops in a firefight before being driven back across the border. Eleven U.S. Marines died and two were injured in another battle. They were the first Americans to die in the Gulf War ground combat. In 1996, a suicide bombing at Sri Lanka's main bank killed nearly 100 people and injured more than 1,000. In 2001, a Scottish court meeting in the Netherlands convicted a Libyan man, Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi, in the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103. The plane exploded over Lockerbie, Scotland, killing 270 people, including 11 on the ground. The convicted bomber died in 2012. In 2006, Samuel Alito was confirmed by the U.S. Senate as an associate justice on the U.S. Supreme Court by a 58-42 vote. He succeeded retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. In 2012, a U.S. congressional report accused the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives of bungling a sting operation called "Fast and Furious" in which guns were sold to illegal "straw buyers" in an effort to catch drug cartel leaders, but some of the weapons were used in crimes, including the killing of a U.S. Border Patrol agent. In 2022, an investigative report given to British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said that parties held by him and attended by various officials in 2020 during the country's COVID-19 lockdown reflected a "serious failure" in government. The scandal played a role in Johnson's resignation that summer.
