This week’s image is from the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA). It shows taikonaut Li Cong on a spacewalk outside China’s Tiangong station on July 3, 2024.
The space station was first launched in April 2021 and has been permanently crewed since June 2022. The current crew, called Shenzhou 18, consists of Commander Ye Guangfu, Operator Li Cong, and System Operator Li Guangsu.
Nature Communications abstract of the study findings:
Charon, Pluto’s largest moon, has been extensively studied, with research focusing on its primitive composition and changes due to radiation and photolysis. However, spectral data have so far been limited to wavelengths below 2.5 μm, leaving key aspects unresolved. Here we present the detection of carbon dioxide (CO2) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) on the surface of Charon’s northern hemisphere, using JWST data. These detections add to the known chemical inventory that includes crystalline water ice, ammonia-bearing species, and tholin-like darkening constituents previously revealed by ground- and space-based observations. The H2O2 presence indicates active radiolytic/photolytic processing of the water ice-rich surface by solar ultraviolet and interplanetary medium Lyman-α photons, solar wind, and galactic cosmic rays. Through spectral modeling of the surface, we show that the CO2 is present in pure crystalline form and, possibly, in intimately mixed states on the surface. Endogenically sourced subsurface CO2 exposed on the surface is likely the primary source of this component, with possible contributions from irradiation of hydrocarbons mixed with water ice, interfacial radiolysis between carbon deposits and water ice, and the implantation of energetic carbon ions from the solar wind and solar energetic particles.
Citation: Protopapa, S., Raut, U., Wong, I. et al. Detection of carbon dioxide and hydrogen peroxide on the stratified surface of Charon with JWST. Nat Commun 15, 8247 (2024).
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-51826-4
Study-related stories:
“As the U.S. has flailed, China and its partners have marched forward, notching one success after another. There is no reason to believe they will not be first to send a crewed mission to the lunar south pole, where only a half dozen or so promising regions exist to safely land. Depending on how the currently vague noninterference rules are interpreted and enforced by the Chinese (and others), significant parts of the moon might end up off-limits for anyone else to explore or mine. We do not know for certain how China might behave on the lunar surface—this is part of the conundrum—but terrestrial conflicts in the South China Sea and China’s regular infractions of sovereign airspace give scant rationale for optimism.”
-Quote from an article in Scientific American titled “NASA Needs a ‘Lunar Marathon’ to Match China on the Moon.” The author of the piece is Thomas Zurbuchen, who previously worked at NASA and is now is professor and director of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology’s ETH Zürich | Space. For another take on where the US is with its Artemis lunar program, you can read an ARS Technica article titled “The Politically Incorrect Guide to Saving NASA’s Floundering Artemis Program.”
True or False: Neptune has orbited the Sun a total of five times since it was first discovered.
Take a guess and then check your answer by going to the “Astronomy Question Answer Sheet” page.
The other week, Elon Musk said he was planning to send five uncrewed Starship rockets to Mars in two years, followed by manned flights after that. Why the sudden announcement? It was not clear, but he does have money to burn and also a desire for attention.
In his Twitter/X posting, he said:
SpaceX plans to launch about five uncrewed Starships to Mars in two years.
If those all land safely, then crewed missions are possible in four years. If we encounter challenges, then the crewed missions will be postponed another two years.
Of course, he has yet to prove that the Starship is ready for assist NASA with the Artemis mission to place astronauts on the Moon. The rocket is getting better with every test, but the Starship problems are likely to delay the entire lunar mission. Yet he is already eyeing Mars?
If you read the full post, it appears he is using the Starship announcement to poke at California and Kamala Harris. He also seems to be ready to blame everyone but himself if he cannot meet his self-imposed Mars timetable.
One might ask if Mr. Musk has any idea where his Starship astronauts will be staying under this timetable. I have not heard of any great plans to build the necessary infrastructure to host a colony on the surface of Mars. Does he have a plan?
Mr. Musk had enormous problems meeting his proposed deadline for a Tesla pickup truck here on Earth, and the truck he eventually rolled out has has been less than a stellar vehicle given the hype. So any timetable on a Mars mission seems like mere fantasy at this point.
By the way, if Mr. Musk is so interested in protecting Earthlings from a dangerous future, he already has the ability to tamp down the rage and hate on Twitter/X and cease his calls for civil wars.
It is already in his power to make the Earth a better place to live while we plan for Mars. He just doesn’t seem to be all that interested.
Our Awesome Universe 