Space Stories: JWST Exoplanet Images, Nearby Exoplanets Located, and Exoplanet Biosignatures,

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): Infrared view of the multi-planet system HR 8799. Colors are applied to filters from Webb’s NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera). A star symbol marks the location of the host star HR 8799, whose light has been blocked by the coronagraph. (NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, W. Balmer (JHU), L. Pueyo (STScI), M. Perrin (STScI))

Here are some recent stories of interest related to exoplanets.

—Webbtelescope.org: “NASA’s Webb Images Young, Giant Exoplanets, Detects Carbon Dioxide“

The first planet outside our solar system was discovered in the 1990’s, but it wasn’t until more than a decade later astronomers actually obtained a direct image of one. It’s extremely difficult to image an exoplanet, as stars in other planetary systems can be thousands of times brighter and bigger than their planets. NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope is equipped with a highly sensitive coronagraph, a tiny mask that blocks the light of the star, allowing Webb to image exoplanets. Webb’s new images of two iconic systems, HR 8799 and 51 Eridani, and their planets have stunned researchers, and provided additional information into the chemical make-up of the young gas giants.

—ABC News: “Several Planets Found Orbiting Star Less Than 6 light-years Away“

Astronomers have confirmed the existence of four planets orbiting a star less than 6 light-years away with help from some of the world’s most powerful telescopes. Research published in October 2024 revealed that one planet was rotating around Barnard’s Star, the second-closest single star system to Earth. But a combination of telescopes all over the world confirmed the presence of four small exoplanets, according to a study published last week in The Astrophysical Journal Letters.

—Universe Today: “Astronomers Think They’ve Found a Reliable Biosignature. But There’s a Catch“

The search for life has become one of the holy grails of science. With the increasing number of exoplanet discoveries, astronomers are hunting for a chemical that can only be present in the atmosphere of a planet with life! A new paper suggests that methyl halides, which contain one carbon and three hydrogen atoms, may just do the trick. Here on Earth they are produced by bacteria, algae, fungi and some plants but not by any abiotic, non biological processes. There is a hitch, detecting these chemicals is beyond the reach of current telescopes.

Blue Ghost: Mission Accomplished

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Image (Credit): Blue Ghost’s shadow on the lunar surface with the Earth on the horizon.(Firefly Aerospace)

NASA and Firefly Aerospace plan to have a news conference tomorrow at 2pm to discuss the end of the Blue Ghost mission on the Moon. The lunar lander set down on March 2. It began its mission immediately, knowing the disappearance of the Sun on March 16 would mark the end its work.

Those speaking at tomorrow’s news conference are:

  • Joel Kearns, deputy associate administrator for exploration, Science Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters in Washington;
  • Jason Kim, CEO, Firefly Aerospace;
  • Ray Allensworth, spacecraft program director, Firefly; and
  • Adam Schlesinger, Commercial Lunar Payload Services project manager, NASA Johnson.

In a press release earlier today, Firefly stated:

Firefly Aerospace…today announced it met 100 percent of its mission objectives for Blue Ghost Mission 1 after performing the first fully successful commercial Moon landing on March 2, completing more than 14 days of surface operations (346 hours of daylight), and operating just over 5 hours into the lunar night with the final data received around 6:15 pm CDT on March 16. This achievement marks the longest commercial operations on the Moon to date.

After a number of issues with the first commercial missions, this is very good news.

Crew-10 Members Heading to ISS

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Image (Credit): The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket standing ready earlier in the week to launch the Crew-10 members to the ISS. (SpaceX)

Yesterday saw the launch of the Crew-10 members from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral. The Crew-10 members heading to the International Space Station (ISS) are NASA astronauts Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Takuya Onishi, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Kirill Peskov.

This new crew will relieve the current ISS crew, which includes two astronauts (Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore) who arrived at the station last year on the Boeing Starliner only to stay longer than anticipated.

NASA has shown innovation by integrating Williams and Wilmore into the Expedition 72 crew and keeping them busy. Both of their attitudes have been positive throughout this process, regardless of all the drama back on Earth started by Elon Musk about a “rescue.”

NASA doesn’t do drama. We can expect a safe and professional transition of crews.

Update: The new crew arrived at the ISS safely Sunday morning.

Second Update: As of yesterday, March 8, the Crew-9 members, including NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, returned safely to Earth.

Image (Credit): The SpaceX Dragon Freedom spacecraft after it splashed down in the Gulf of America yesterday, returning Crew-9 to Earth. (NASA)

Space Quote: Musk Should Exit Washington and Return to Building Rockets

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Image (Credit): Mark Kelly from his time as a NASA astronaut. (NASA)

”I swore an oath to our Constitution, to protect and defend the Constitution. I have lived that oath my entire life... [The] only oath I can think of that maybe Elon has sworn is an oath to his checking account, to his pocketbook. An oath, maybe, to ruining the lives of veterans.”

-Statement by Senator Mark Kelly, as quoted by The Independent, after Elon Musk called him a traitor for visiting Ukraine and criticizing Russia’s invasion. The Senator, who served as both a Navy pilot and a NASA astronaut, said Mr. Musk should focus his time on building rockets, which is a bit of a slam given that the last two Starship tests ended in explosions. Senator Kelly later said he is getting rid of his Telsa car because it reminds him of the amount of damage Donald Trump and Elon Musk are doing to the country.

Space Stories: NASA Spinoffs, Moving the NASA HQ to Ohio, and the Many Moons of Saturn

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Credit: NASA

Here are some recent stories of interest.

—NASA: “NASA Releases its Spinoff 2025 Publication“

The work NASA conducts in space leads to ongoing innovations benefiting people on Earth. Some of these latest technologies, which have been successfully transferred from NASA to the commercial sector, are featured in the latest edition of Spinoff 2025 publication now available online. The publication features more than 40 commercial infusions of NASA technologies, including research originated at NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland.

—Cleveland.com: “NASA Urged to Move Headquarters to Ohio as D.C. Lease Expires“

When the National Aeronautics and Space Administration‘s lease on its current Washington, D.C. headquarters expires in 2028, Ohio members of Congress want NASA to move its headquarters to Ohio. In a Tuesday letter to Vice President JD Vance and President Donald Trump’s nominee to be NASA Administrator, Jared Isaacman, Ohio Congress members argue that bringing the headquarters of the nearly 18,000 employee agency to their state would align with broader government efforts to decentralize federal agencies and reinvigorate parts of the country outside Washington.

—USA Today: “Moon King: Astronomers Discover 128 New Moons Orbiting Saturn. Here’s What We Know.“

Astronomers have discovered 128 new moons orbiting Saturn, further solidifying the planet as the “moon king” of our solar system. Astronomers from Taiwan, Canada, France and the U.S. announced the discovery on Tuesday. The findings push Saturn’s moon count to 274, towering over the previous record-holder Jupiter, which has 95 moons. The recent discovery points to what astronomers have speculated for decades, that Saturn’s rings were caused by a massive collision about 100 million years ago, researcher Mike Alexandersen, an astronomer at the Center of Astrophysics, told USA TODAY. A collision of such size could explain the small moons that orbit Saturn.