Aerospace is identifying opportunities to improve wildfire detection and monitoring capabilities, efforts that could ultimately protect biodiversity, infrastructure, and human life, as well as mitigate wildfires’ financially damaging effect. — In 2021, more than 2.5 million acres burned due to California’s wildfires. The estimated economic loss was between $70 billion and $90 billion in the United States, with over half of that attributed to a California wildfire season aggravated by drought and intensified temperatures. …

SpaceX’s Starlink constellation lost 40 satellites last week due to unanticipated effects of a geomagnetic storm. As we enter a new 11-year solar cycle, many of these constellations will experience previously untested conditions. We asked our space weather expert about what this will mean for future LEO constellations. — SpaceX’s Starlink provides high-speed, low-latency broadband internet across the globe using a fleet of satellites in Low Earth Orbit. More than 2,000 Starlink satellites have been launched by SpaceX as of January, 2022.

Shrinking technology and lower costs are making on-orbit servicing, assembly, and manufacturing an area of emerging technology and growth in the space domain. — On-orbit servicing, assembly, and manufacturing (OSAM) refers to the use of refuelers and space tugs for on-orbit maneuvering and refueling. Several companies are now competing in the trade space of these exciting missions in the U.S. and European marketplace.

Our Space Debris Expert is back to answer questions about protecting the International Space Station, the consequences of a debris cloud, and how we track space debris. — Astronauts are at risk while inside the International Space Station (ISS) and while outside the station conducting spacewalks. …

The Moon is a hostile environment — extreme temperatures, low gravity, and radiation await the next generation of astronauts. Scientists have patented a method for turning a plentiful lunar resource into building blocks for potential habitats. — Advancing space exploration capabilities has long been an area of intense interest to human civilization, not only for the potential to improve conditions on Earth but also to better understand the mysteries of the universe.

A renewed interest in launch rideshares for small satellites is enabling more frequent opportunities to reach orbit at a competitive price. We look at who’s involved and what’s next for the industry. — Generally, rockets go to space to place satellites with a payload, like a camera or radio, for observation or communication. Around they year 2000, it became increasingly easy to make small, inexpensive satellites to rideshare into space as part of a larger satellite launch.

CarbonWatch has the ability to identify and monitor the largest sources of carbon emissions from humans, day and night. — The five percent of carbon emissions in the atmosphere, biosphere, and oceans attributable to human activity has disrupted the Earth’s natural carbon cycle and is driving long-term climate change. The ability to regularly identify and monitor the largest sources of human carbon generation will have a significant impact on how…

When NASA’s Orion re-enters Earth’s atmosphere, it will endure temperatures of 5,000 degrees. How do we ensure the spacecraft —and those inside—survive the ride? — If all goes according to plan, NASA’s Orion space capsule will transport its first crew of astronauts to the moon by 2024. When it comes screeching back through Earth’s atmosphere, it will generate temperatures hot enough to melt rock. To protect the capsule and its inhabitants, Orion is equipped with…

A new project would turn the solar system into a giant optical lens. — When Galileo pointed his homemade telescope at Jupiter and its moons more than 400 years ago, he fundamentally changed how humanity viewed its place in the cosmos. Since then, astronomers have learned to peer farther and farther into the reaches of the universe, first by building better telescopes, then by…

A 25-meter asteroid could devastate an area of Earth the size of Manhattan. Here’s how artificial intelligence can make sure that doesn’t happen. — It’s a classic science fiction storyline: An asteroid is on target to smash into Earth and send humans the way of the dinosaurs. It’s not total fantasy. In 1908, a meteoroid slammed into Russia near the Tunguska River in Siberia and destroyed an area the size of Manhattan. …

A CubeSat investigated its twin satellite from 22 meters away in a demonstration of the type of technology that could change satellites forever. — With some technical panache, one of The Aerospace Corporation’s CubeSats maneuvered itself within 22 meters of its sibling CubeSat and snapped a series of photos — all while orbiting at 17,000 miles per hour. This incredibly difficult technology demonstration, performed by a satellite the size of a tissue box, paves…

Breakthroughs in evolutionary computation could hold the future of satellite constellation design. — Designing a system of satellites is a mind-bogglingly complex game of tradeoffs. Mission planners must weigh objectives such as lifespan and coverage against constraints like cost and scheduling, all while contending with the physics of space. Add orbital congestion and other threats to the equation and the problem can become…

Engineers are rethinking the way satellites are designed to make them faster to build and easier to launch. — While the rest of our technology, from laptops to cellphones, becomes faster and cheaper to build, satellites are still a lot of work. Since the days of Explorer 1, marrying a satellite’s payloads to the bus that provides power, telemetry and communications has been a complex, time-intensive process unique to…

When Hurricane Sally hit the Gulf Coast region of the United States, a pair of tiny AeroCubes shot the eye of the storm. — A pair of small satellites, known as Rogue Alpha/Beta CubeSats, sent compelling imagery of Hurricane Sally to Earth via laser communications, demonstrating how small satellites can deliver large amounts of data for weather and other research. More than 1 gigabyte of data was downloaded from the two CubeSats, a bandwidth…

To put astronauts on the moon and Mars, NASA needs a new EVA suit — the first in 40 years. Here’s what the suit needs to do and how it’s being designed. — After years of robotic exploration, NASA is now ramping up plans to send humans to space again. This ambitious strategy includes more spacewalks, construction of a station in lunar orbit, and eventually planetary exploration including the moon and Mars.

Unique nighttime imagery sensors help rescuers anticipate a fire’s evolution based on temperature and smoke plume movement. — A single spark in remote wilderness can ignite massive fires that devastate surrounding communities, destroying homes and taking lives. Emergency personnel and the public rely on satellites high above the Earth to detect these fires early and track their spread. When a lightning storm set Northern California ablaze in August…

To teach satellites to interact and dock in space, engineers found a possible solution on Sunday Night Football. — How do you teach a satellite to park? As spacecraft transition from standalone vehicles to swarms of “self-driving” robots that interact and dock on their own in space, engineers need a way to test those maneuvers here on Earth. An Aerospace team found a possible solution on Sunday Night Football™.

Creating unique shapes for rocket motors with 3D printing could lead to less expensive and more efficient rocket propellants. — Solid, liquid, or gas? That might sound like a question on your high school physics test, but it’s an important consideration when powering a rocket into space. A team from Aerospace successfully tested a new type of 3-D printed rocket motor that could potentially lead to less expensive and more…

The chamber will test the newer, high-powered thrusters needed for future space exploration. — Deep inside a laboratory at The Aerospace Corporation’s El Segundo campus, scientists are recreating the vacuum of space here on Earth. Aerospace’s electric propulsion lab specializes in testing electric thrusters in space-like conditions, and they recently installed a new vacuum chamber that will enable them to test the newer, high-powered…

Engineers take to the skies to measure the environmental and atmospheric effects of wildfires and the smoke they generate. — As the world’s climate heats up, many states in the western United States are experiencing increasingly larger and more devastating wildfires, along with a corresponding increase in dangerous air quality from wildfire smoke. …