Latest news with #IBEX
The Star
9 hours ago
- Science
- The Star
Is China's Tiandu-1 first to enter resonant Earth-moon orbit? US raises doubts
China's Tiandu-1 satellite has entered a critical fuel-efficient orbit that synchronises with the motion of the Earth and moon, but claims that it is the first spacecraft to achieve the feat have been challenged by US and Canadian experts. The 3:1 resonant orbit – in which Tiandu-1 completes three loops of the Earth for every circuit made by the moon – is seen as a breakthrough for lunar infrastructure, including a BeiDou-like guidance system that will be needed for interplanetary exploration. Developer Deep Space Exploration Laboratory said that 'the Tiandu-1 navigation test satellite successfully carried out a key manoeuvre at perigee [the point in orbit when it is closest to Earth] on May 22 and precisely transitioned into a 3:1 Earth-moon resonant orbit'. 'This made Tiandu-1 the first spacecraft to enter a round-trip 3:1 Earth-moon resonant trajectory,' according to a statement on the website of the laboratory based in Hefei, Anhui province in central China. 'Its flight data will provide support for advancing technologies such as orbit maintenance, control, and autonomous navigation in complex gravitational environments.' Experts in the US and Canada immediately challenged the claim, pointing to Nasa's 15-year-old Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX) probe that entered a near-identical orbit in 2011, where it continues to operate. Jonathan McDowell, a Harvard astronomer and space historian, and Canada-based amateur stargazer Scott Tilley both said it was debatable whether Tiandu-1 could lay claim to the title, with the IBEX craft's achievement of near 3:1 resonance. 'Yes, indeed Tiandu-1 has entered a 3:1 resonance orbit. Whether it's the first is launched in 2008 uses a similar orbit,' Tilley said. According to McDowell, the advantage of resonant orbits is that they allow a spacecraft to operate far from Earth while avoiding the unpredictable, chaotic motion caused by frequent lunar fly-bys. 'The resonance provides stability,' he said. In a 3:1 resonance, the 61kg (135lb) Tiandu-1 – which launched alongside the Queqiao-2 lunar relay satellite last year – completes each petal of its three-lobed orbit around the Earth roughly every nine days – the same amount of time it takes the moon to complete one. In April, state news agency Xinhua reported that China's DRO-B satellite had departed lunar orbit, after helping to establish the 'world's first three-satellite constellation in cislunar space', and entered an Earth-moon resonant orbit. DRO-B, a 277kg Chinese satellite that was salvaged after being stranded in the wrong orbit due to a launch mishap last year, is currently in a 3:2 Earth-moon resonant orbit, according to Tilley, who is best known for helping Nasa to find its long-lost IMAGE satellite in 2018. The Canadian amateur astronomer, who tracks satellites in his spare time, said he noticed that DRO-B had vanished from its known lunar orbit more than a month ago and began searching for it. Using graphics and research papers, Tilley modelled a 3:2 resonance orbit – one that tours the gravitational balance points between Earth and the moon known as L3, L4, and L5. After an exhaustive search, he spotted DRO-B in such an orbit. DRO-B completes three circles around Earth in the time it takes the moon to complete two. The satellite traces a broad, triangular loop with lobes near the L3, L4, and L5 points, which it swings past roughly every 18 days. 'DRO-B is not transmitting all the time like it used to, and it's likely [to be] having minor power issues as its solar panel supports were damaged during the launch mishap,' Tilley said. He added that DRO-B's orbit was especially notable because this specific class of 3:2 resonance orbit had never been used before. 'Japan's Hiten lunar probe did visit some of these points, but didn't use a 3:2 resonance orbit.' According to Tilley, China's use of these orbits seemed to be all about testing navigation-related technologies. 'Having a system that covers the entire Earth-moon system for orbital determination and positioning would be very helpful,' he said. - SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
South China Morning Post
4 days ago
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
Did China's Tiandu-1 satellite beat US competitors with critical Earth-moon orbit?
China's Tiandu-1 satellite has entered a critical fuel-efficient orbit that synchronises with the motion of the Earth and moon, but claims that it is the first spacecraft to achieve the feat have been challenged by US and Canadian experts. The 3:1 resonant orbit – in which Tiandu-1 completes three loops of the Earth for every circuit made by the moon – is seen as a breakthrough for lunar infrastructure, including a BeiDou-like guidance system that will be needed for interplanetary exploration. Developer Deep Space Exploration Laboratory said that 'the Tiandu-1 navigation test satellite successfully carried out a key manoeuvre at perigee [the point in orbit when it is closest to Earth] on May 22 and precisely transitioned into a 3:1 Earth-moon resonant orbit'. A Deep Space Exploration Laboratory schematic of the Tiandu-1 satellite taking part in a laser ranging experiment in April, before it was moved into the 3:1 resonance orbit. Credit: DSEL 'This made Tiandu-1 the first spacecraft to enter a round-trip 3:1 Earth-moon resonant trajectory,' according to a statement on the website of the laboratory based in Hefei, Anhui province in central China. 'Its flight data will provide support for advancing technologies such as orbit maintenance, control, and autonomous navigation in complex gravitational environments.' Experts in the US and Canada immediately challenged the claim, pointing to Nasa's 15-year-old Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX) probe that entered a near-identical orbit in 2011, where it continues to operate. Jonathan McDowell, a Harvard astronomer and space historian, and Canada-based amateur stargazer Scott Tilley both said it was debatable whether Tiandu-1 could lay claim to the title, with the IBEX craft's achievement of near 3:1 resonance. 'Yes, indeed Tiandu-1 has entered a 3:1 resonance orbit. Whether it's the first is debatable…IBEX launched in 2008 uses a similar orbit,' Tilley said.
Business Times
5 days ago
- Business
- Business Times
Europe: Shares flat amidst inflation data, trade jitters
EUROPE'S benchmark stock index ended little changed on Tuesday, as investors ceded ground under the dual pressure of softening economic indicators and persistent global trade anxieties. The pan-European Stoxx 600 closed flat at 548.42 points. Stocks in Germany rose 0.7 per cent, while those in France gained 0.3 per cent. London's FTSE edged up 0.1 per cent, while Spain's IBEX dropped 0.5 per cent. On the macroeconomic front, cooling inflation across the bloc - now comfortably below the European Central Bank's target - added to expectations for an aggressive pivot towards monetary easing. The ECB has cut interest rates seven times since last June, and money markets have all but fully baked in a 25-basis-point rate cut on Thursday, slated to pare the region's interest rate to 2 per cent. Traders are bracing for further dovish action, anticipating at least 55 basis points, or two more quarter-point cuts, including Thursday's, by year-end. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up 'This (the data) indicates that price growth in May removes some pressure from the ECB on its dual mandate, and that has reinforced to markets that they are correct with pricing in further rate cuts,' said Daniela Hathorn, senior market analyst at Meanwhile, the Netherlands' 10-year bond hit a session-high of 2.745 per cent amidst a concerted sell-off as a political rupture sent shockwaves through the Netherlands. This followed the collapse of the Dutch government as far-right leader Geert Wilders' incendiary decision to withdraw his party from the ruling coalition could plunge the country into a snap election. Elsewhere, the Swiss benchmark index ticked up 0.3 per cent. May's inflation data surprisingly tipped into negative territory, marking the first consumer price deflation in over four years. The omnipresent spectre of global trade tensions continued to cast a long shadow, exacerbated by persistent legal wrangling surrounding US President Donald Trump's tariffs. The administration's appeal to pause a second court ruling against certain tariffs only deepened the uncertainty surrounding their implementation. Reinforcing these fears, the Paris-based Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) slashed its global growth forecasts, specifically noting the escalating and disproportionate economic drag exerted by Trump's trade war on the US economy. A Reuters report said that the White House has pressed allies for their most robust trade proposals by Wednesday. Furthermore, a highly anticipated call between Trump and his Chinese counterpart is due this week. Media stocks fell 1.1 per cent, extending their decline from the previous session. Basic resources lost 0.8 per cent, in tandem with copper prices. Among individual names, healthcare stocks were the biggest drag on the index, with GSK dropping 2.1 per cent after Berenberg downgraded its rating to 'hold' from 'buy'. British water utility Pennon Group fell 6.6 per cent after it swung to an annual pretax loss. UBS gained 5.3 per cent after Jefferies upgraded the bank's stock to 'buy' from 'hold'. The energy sector rose 1 per cent- the most among sectors as oil prices jumped nearly 1 per cent. REUTERS
Business Recorder
5 days ago
- Business
- Business Recorder
European shares flat amidst inflation data, trade jitters
FRANKFURT: Europe's benchmark stock index ended little changed on Tuesday, as investors ceded ground under the dual pressure of softening economic indicators and persistent global trade anxieties. The pan-European STOXX 600 closed flat at 548.42 points. Stocks in Germany rose 0.7%, while those in France gained 0.3%. London's FTSE edged up 0.1%, while Spain's IBEX dropped 0.5%. On the macroeconomic front, cooling inflation across the bloc — now comfortably below the European Central Bank's target — added to expectations for an aggressive pivot towards monetary easing. The ECB has cut interest rates seven times since last June, and money markets have all but fully baked in a 25-basis-point rate cut on Thursday, slated to pare the region's interest rate to 2%. Traders are bracing for further dovish action, anticipating at least 55 basis points, or two more quarter-point cuts, including Thursday's, by year-end. 'This (the data) indicates that price growth in May removes some pressure from the ECB on its dual mandate, and that has reinforced to markets that they are correct with pricing in further rate cuts,' said Daniela Hathorn, senior market analyst at Meanwhile, the Netherlands' 10-year bond hit a session-high of 2.745% amidst a concerted sell-off as a political rupture sent shockwaves through the Netherlands. This followed the collapse of the Dutch government as far-right leader Geert Wilders' incendiary decision to withdraw his party from the ruling coalition could plunge the country into a snap election. Elsewhere, the Swiss benchmark index ticked up 0.3%. May's inflation data surprisingly tipped into negative territory, marking the first consumer price deflation in over four years. The omnipresent spectre of global trade tensions continued to cast a long shadow, exacerbated by persistent legal wrangling surrounding US President Donald Trump's tariffs. The administration's appeal to pause a second court ruling against certain tariffs only deepened the uncertainty surrounding their implementation.
Yahoo
31-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
IBEX (NASDAQ:IBEX) Is Reinvesting To Multiply In Value
To find a multi-bagger stock, what are the underlying trends we should look for in a business? In a perfect world, we'd like to see a company investing more capital into its business and ideally the returns earned from that capital are also increasing. This shows us that it's a compounding machine, able to continually reinvest its earnings back into the business and generate higher returns. With that in mind, the ROCE of IBEX (NASDAQ:IBEX) looks attractive right now, so lets see what the trend of returns can tell us. This technology could replace computers: discover the 20 stocks are working to make quantum computing a reality. For those who don't know, ROCE is a measure of a company's yearly pre-tax profit (its return), relative to the capital employed in the business. The formula for this calculation on IBEX is: Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) ÷ (Total Assets - Current Liabilities) 0.26 = US$49m ÷ (US$275m - US$89m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to March 2025). So, IBEX has an ROCE of 26%. That's a fantastic return and not only that, it outpaces the average of 14% earned by companies in a similar industry. See our latest analysis for IBEX In the above chart we have measured IBEX's prior ROCE against its prior performance, but the future is arguably more important. If you'd like to see what analysts are forecasting going forward, you should check out our free analyst report for IBEX . We'd be pretty happy with returns on capital like IBEX. Over the past five years, ROCE has remained relatively flat at around 26% and the business has deployed 96% more capital into its operations. Returns like this are the envy of most businesses and given it has repeatedly reinvested at these rates, that's even better. If these trends can continue, it wouldn't surprise us if the company became a multi-bagger. One more thing to note, even though ROCE has remained relatively flat over the last five years, the reduction in current liabilities to 32% of total assets, is good to see from a business owner's perspective. Effectively suppliers now fund less of the business, which can lower some elements of risk. In summary, we're delighted to see that IBEX has been compounding returns by reinvesting at consistently high rates of return, as these are common traits of a multi-bagger. Therefore it's no surprise that shareholders have earned a respectable 64% return if they held over the last three years. So while the positive underlying trends may be accounted for by investors, we still think this stock is worth looking into further. On a final note, we've found 1 warning sign for IBEX that we think you should be aware of. High returns are a key ingredient to strong performance, so check out our free list ofstocks earning high returns on equity with solid balance sheets. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Sign in to access your portfolio
