Latest news with #interstellar
New York Times
3 days ago
- Business
- New York Times
A (Partial) Defense of Elon Musk
Visionaries can be terrifying, far more terrifying than the selfish and venal, who are easy to predict and to understand. Visionaries with the means to realize their visions are the most terrifying of all. They are also rare — in any given historical period, there are just a few men (they are always men) who bend reality around themselves, disregarding criticism and caution. For better or worse, Elon Musk is a visionary. I have no doubt that he's volatile and reckless, but those who dismiss him as a fraud or an idiot have not been paying close attention. Yes, his time meddling with the federal government has come to an end. And yes, perhaps his foray into politics was, in part, a disappointment to him. But Mr. Musk's vision goes well beyond Washington. He has always been clear on this point and continues to tell anyone who will listen: 'Eventually, all life on Earth will be destroyed by the sun,' he told Fox News last month. 'The sun is gradually expanding, and so we do at some point need to be a multi-planet civilization, because Earth will be incinerated.' This is why, 23 years ago, Mr. Musk resolved to go to Mars — his first step toward interstellar colonization. He says he wants to die there ('just not on impact'). He also says that space exploration will lead to a process of mass psychological renewal. 'The United States,' he says, 'is literally a distillation of the human spirit of exploration. This is a land of adventurers.' His goal is to save humanity, not only from the future loss of our planet, but also from our own lethargy and cowardice. If he succeeds in this project, then Mr. Musk's time in Washington will be just a minor detail in the histories written on him. It's not as if this past year has done Mr. Musk long-term harm. Those indulging in schadenfreude at his apparent fall from grace don't seem to have noticed the success of his space program. In the first half of 2024, his SpaceX company launched seven times as much tonnage into space as the rest of the world put together, and Mr. Trump's Golden Dome (an imitation of Israel's Iron Dome) could well consume as many taxpayer dollars as NASA's Apollo project. Much of this funding will be diverted to SpaceX, given the need for an enormous number of satellites, meaning that Mr. Musk's fortune will grow still further as a result of his political interventions. Mr. Musk's obsession with space isn't just ideological — he is also making money from it. 'Pure philanthropy is all very well in its way,' as Cecil Rhodes once said, 'but philanthropy plus 5 percent is a good deal better.' Mr. Rhodes was another businessman, politician and visionary who bent reality around his will, one of these strange and polarizing figures who crop up throughout history and — to use one of Silicon Valley's favorite maxims — 'just do things.' One thing Mr. Rhodes did was make a lot of money, initially through the diamond trade, which he entered as a teenager, eventually to create in 1888 the De Beers diamond company. He would go on to become prime minister of the Cape Colony, the founder of Rhodesia and the most powerful agent of British imperialism in Africa, with all the violence that implies. He died in 1902, at age 48, as one of the richest men on earth. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Gizmodo
16-05-2025
- Science
- Gizmodo
NASA Revives Voyager Thrusters ‘Considered Dead' for 20 Years
NASA's Voyager 1 spacecraft has been in space for nearly 50 years, enduring the harsh environment of outer space while teams on the ground figure out ways to keep its aging hardware from falling apart. In the latest attempt to keep Voyager alive, engineers managed to bring the spacecraft's old thrusters back to life after being inoperable for decades. NASA's engineers revived a set of thrusters on board the Voyager 1 spacecraft to use as backup while the mission goes offline for ongoing upgrades to a radio antenna used to communicate with deep space missions, the space agency revealed this week. Voyager's primary roll thrusters had stopped working in 2004 after losing power in two small internal heaters, but the team managed to restart the thrusters while the spacecraft cruises through interstellar space at a distance of 15.14 billion miles away (24.4 billion kilometers). Voyager 1 launched in 1977, less than a month after its twin probe, Voyager 2, began its journey to space. The twin spacecraft rely on a set of primary thrusters that move them around to keep their antennas pointed toward Earth so they can send data and receive commands. The primary thrusters adjust the spacecraft's orientation—pitch and yaw—while separate thrusters control its roll. Those thrusters—a set of primary and backup units—rotate the spacecraft's antenna like a vinyl record, keeping each Voyager pointed toward a star they use to orient themselves in space. Engineers switch between the spacecraft's primary and backup thrusters to prevent them from clogging, but Voyager 1's primary roll thrusters broke 20 years ago and the spacecraft has been solely relying on its backup thrusters ever since. 'I think at that time, the team was OK with accepting that the primary roll thrusters didn't work, because they had a perfectly good backup,' Kareem Badaruddin, Voyager mission manager at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, said in a statement. 'And, frankly, they probably didn't think the Voyagers were going to keep going for another 20 years.' Twenty years later, the Voyagers continue to truck along, so the team decided to have another go at fixing Voyager 1's primary roll thrusters. The engineers behind the mission needed to get it done before May 4 when a 230-foot-wide (70-meter-wide) antenna in Canberra, Australia—part of NASA's Deep Space Network—would begin undergoing upgrades. The pause in communication will last until February 2026, with brief periods of operation in August and December. This particular radio antenna is the only dish with enough signal power to send commands to the Voyagers. That's a long period of silence, and mission engineers needed to make sure Voyager 1 would be okay on its own. In case the backup roll thrusters failed during this time, the spacecraft would face significant challenges that could terminate the mission. The dormant thrusters, for example, could automatically fire if the spacecraft drifts too far from its guide star, triggering a small explosion. 'These thrusters were considered dead. And that was a legitimate conclusion.' The team got to work on reexamining the issue that may have caused the primary roll thrusters to stop working. 'They began to suspect that an unexpected change or disturbance in the circuits that control the heaters' power supply had effectively flipped a switch to the wrong position,' NASA wrote. 'If they could turn the switch back to its original position, the heaters might work again, enabling them to reactivate the primary roll thrusters and use them if the backup roll thrusters that have been used since 2004 become completely clogged.' On March 20, the primary roll thrusters turned back on after a long hiatus. 'These thrusters were considered dead. And that was a legitimate conclusion,' Todd Barber, the mission's propulsion lead at JPL, said in a statement. 'It's just that one of our engineers had this insight that maybe there was this other possible cause and it was fixable. It was yet another miracle save for Voyager.' The Voyager probes, the first spacecraft to cross into interstellar space, have been exploring the unfamiliar region for nearly 48 years. During its flybys of Jupiter and Saturn, Voyager 1 contributed to the discovery of moons including Thebe and Metis, and a new ring around Saturn. NASA launched Voyager 2 on a trajectory toward the solar system's gas giants, Jupiter and Saturn, before going on to explore the icy giants Uranus and Neptune. All that traveling has taken a toll on the farthest human-made objects, and the spacecraft's days are numbered. The Voyagers are powered by heat from decaying plutonium, which is converted into electricity. Each year, the aging spacecraft lose about 4 watts of power. In an effort to conserve power, the mission team has turned off any systems that were deemed unnecessary, including a few science instruments. With the current energy-conserving plan, NASA engineers believe the twin spacecraft could continue operating into the 2030s, just making it past their golden anniversary in space.
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
NASA resurrects Voyager 1 interstellar spacecraft's thrusters after 20 years: 'These thrusters were considered dead'
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. NASA engineers have miraculously revived the Voyager 1 interstellar probe's backup thrusters — components that hadn't been used since 2004 and were long considered fully defunct. This remarkable feat became necessary because the spacecraft's primary thrusters, which control its orientation, have been degrading due to residue buildup. If its thrusters fail completely, Voyager 1 could lose its ability to point its antenna toward Earth, therefore cutting off communication with Earth after nearly 50 years of operation. To make matters more urgent, the team faced a strict deadline while trying to remedy the thruster situation. After May 4, the Earth-based antenna that sends commands to Voyager 1 — and its twin, Voyager 2 — was scheduled to go offline for months of upgrades. This would have made timely intervention impossible. NASA's twin Voyager spacecraft launched in 1977 with the primary mission of exploring the outer planets of our solar system — but upon accomplishing this original goal, the Voyagers then focused their attention on studying interstellar space. Voyager 1 exited the solar system in August of 2012, followed by Voyager 2 in November of 2018. Together, these spacecraft have traveled more than 29 billion miles (46.7 billion kilometers), making them the farthest human-made objects from Earth — and, along the way, they've provided unprecedented insights into our solar system. While both Voyager spacecraft remain operational, however, their age and immense distance from Earth have brought about significant technical challenges. The radioisotope power generators that keep them running gradually weaken each year, forcing NASA to recently shut down instruments and heaters to conserve energy in order to push the spacecrafts' systems beyond their limits. Voyager 1 also experienced a recent data glitch caused by a faulty chip; engineers resolved this with a clever software workaround. Yet despite these hurdles, the Voyagers continue to function — a testament to both their robust design and the ingenuity of the teams managing them. This recent development, in which NASA engineers revived Voyager 1's long-dormant backup thrusters, marks yet another remarkable feat of engineering and offers another lifeline for the aging spacecraft. The backup thrusters are essential for executing precise "roll maneuvers" that adjust Voyager 1's orientation, ensuring its antenna stays pointed toward Earth for reliable communication. The spacecraft's original roll thrusters failed back in 2004 after two small internal heaters, crucial for their operation, lost power and stopped functioning. After thorough assessment, engineers determined these heaters couldn't be repaired remotely, prompting them to switch reliance fully to the backup thrusters to maintain alignment of the star tracker — a key instrument that helps Voyager 1 navigate and stabilize itself in space. "I think at that time, the team was OK with accepting that the primary roll thrusters didn't work, because they had a perfectly good backup," Kareem Badaruddin, Voyager mission manager at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, which manages the mission for the agency, said in a statement . "And, frankly, they probably didn't think the Voyagers were going to keep going for another 20 years." To solve the problem, NASA's team had to reactivate Voyager 1's long-dormant backup roll thrusters and then attempt to restart the heaters that keep them operational. If the star tracker drifted too far from its guide star during this process, the roll thrusters would automatically fire as a safety measure — but if the heaters weren't back online by then, firing the thrusters could cause a dangerous pressure spike. So, the team had to precisely realign the star tracker before the thrusters engaged. Related Stories: — Voyager 1 spacecraft phones home with transmitter that hasn't been used since 1981 — NASA switches off Voyager instruments to extend life of the two interstellar spacecraft 'Every day could be our last.' — NASA shuts off Voyager 2 science instrument as power dwindles Because Voyager is so incredibly distant, the team faced an agonizing 23-hour wait for the radio signal to travel all the way back to Earth. If the test had failed, Voyager might have already been in serious trouble. Then, on March 20, their patience was finally rewarded when Voyager responded perfectly to their commands. Within 20 minutes of receiving the signal, the team saw the thruster heaters' temperature soar — a clear sign that the backup thrusters were firing as planned. "It was such a glorious moment. Team morale was very high that day," Todd Barber, the mission's propulsion lead at JPL, said in the statement. "These thrusters were considered dead. And that was a legitimate conclusion. It's just that one of our engineers had this insight that maybe there was this other possible cause, and it was fixable. It was yet another miracle save for Voyager." This achievement highlights the ingenuity and problem-solving skills of the engineers keeping Voyager operational after nearly five decades. Despite the technical hurdles and the spacecraft's age, Voyager 1 and 2 continue to send valuable data from beyond our solar system. Their ongoing mission offers a unique opportunity to deepen our understanding of interstellar space — knowledge that no other spacecraft has been able to provide so far.
Associated Press
13-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Associated Press
Zhang Zhehan's 'Scavenger' Concert in Hong Kong, China: An Immersive Audiovisual Feast
On May 10, Zhang Zhehan's 'Scavenger' themed concert came back to Hong Kong, China, transforming an open-air venue into a futuristic interstellar expanse. With a 50-meter extended stage stretching out expansively, meticulously arranged performances, and dynamic lighting matrices, the event immersed audiences in a surreal journey through a cosmic wasteland, blending art and technology into a multi-sensory experience. Innovative Stage Design, Custom Costumes & Thematic Story The concert's narrative unfolded through three VCR segments, anchored by the theme of 'Interstellar Scavenging.' In the opening act, the scene of a 'spaceship landing on an unknown planet' was depicted. Zhang made his appearance in a robe that was weathered and had a post-apocalyptic look, which was a patchwork of distressed fabrics and indigo-dyed denim. Lying in the center of the stage, he repeatedly whispered " Can you hear me? ", as if in the act of probing for alien life within the desolate landscape. During the fourth segment of the concert,the atmosphere shifted into a mellow and soothing Zhehan appeared on stage wearing a soft pink tailored walked gracefully down the extended stage, the satin ribbon on his collar fluttering like liquid moonlight in the evening breeze. As he sang heartfelt renditions of Lost Glacier and Moonlight, the audience was captivated. The way his silk accessory swayed in sync with the music mirrored the emotional ups and downs of the songs. This fleeting moment between the artist and his admirers created a dreamlike memory, where pastel hues and whispered melodies intertwined under the starlit sky. Hands-On Creative Vision: From Concept to Execution Zhang played an integral role in shaping the concert's artistic direction, from selecting the Scavenger theme to overseeing video production. During filming in desert conditions, he tirelessly rehearsed scenes, enduring sand-filled boots and grit-covered skin. 'It felt like being back on a film set,' he remarked. His creative input extended to visual effects. For the Primordial Theater backdrop, he proposed replacing a static wolf image with a dynamic animation of a snarling beast lunging forward as he sang the final line, 'Please clap and cheer, for you, me, and for all.' After multiple revisions, the team made his vision a reality. Celebrating with Fans: Birthday Wish & Musical Evolution The concert coincided with Zhang's birthday, with fans singing Happy Birthday as he blew out the candles. 'Time flies! I can still remember this day in 2023. It was my first concert in Thailand, and we all had an unforgettable birthday together.' With WU, the final single from his Scavenger album, Zhang rounds off a trilogy that started with Deep Blue and Datura. Over three years, his musical style has developed from lyrical storytelling to a bold combination of electronic rock and experimental genres. Looking ahead, he vows to push creative boundaries–to keep exploring art's possibilities, rooted in his inner voice and the natural world. Media Contact Company Name: Ranyimusic Contact Person: Ranyi Email: Send Email City: Beijing Country: China Website:
