NASA’s About to Make a Big Announcement About Mars. Here’s What We Know. – ScienceAlert

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We're about to find out what's happening with NASA's beleaguered Mars Sample Return mission. In just a few hours at 1PM EDT NASA is going to host a media teleconference that sets out its recommendations for moving forward.

The mission has been ongoing for several years, with the deployment of the Perseverance rover in February 2021. Part of Perseverance's mission is to gather interesting samples of Martian rock to be collected by another mission and returned to Earth.

Last year, the future of the Mars sample return mission became shaky after an independent review determined that the program had "unrealistic budget and schedule expectations", an "unwieldy structure" and was "not arranged to be led effectively".

The House and Senate appropriations committees subsequently recommended a budget that included a cut of $454,080,000 to NASA's 2024 budget, specifically from the Mars Sample Return mission. NASA has also reduced spending on the mission, and laid off a large number of workers and contractors from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, which is leading the mission.

This has led to some alarm that the mission may be axed, and the canisters filled by Perseverance left useless on the surface of Mars. NASA's upcoming announcement offers a glimmer of hope yet maybe.

"Mars Sample Return has been a major long-term goal of international planetary exploration for the past two decades," the agency writes.

"NASA's Perseverance rover is collecting compelling science samples that will help scientists understand the geological history of Mars, the evolution of its climate, and prepare for future human explorers. The return of the samples will also help NASA's search for signs of ancient life."

The current plan has an orbiter launching in 2027, a lander launching in 2028, and pristine Mars samples coming to Earth in 2033. Fingers crossed the new recommendations offer a way to meet those timelines.

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NASA's About to Make a Big Announcement About Mars. Here's What We Know. - ScienceAlert

Supporting the future of Mars exploration with supercomputers – EurekAlert

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You may have flown a flight simulator in a computer game or at a science museum. Landing without crashing is always the hardest part. But thats nothing compared to the challenge that engineers are facing to develop a flight simulation of the very large vehicles necessary for humans to explore the surface of Mars. The Red Planet poses innumerable challenges to astronauts, not the least of which is getting there. Thats where the Department of Energy Office of Sciences user facility supercomputers come in. Researchers at DOEs Oak Ridge Leadership Computing Facility (OLCF) are working with NASA engineers and scientists tosimulate the process of slowing down a huge spacecraft as it moves towards Mars surface.

Landing spacecraft on Mars isnt new to NASA. The agency ran its first missions to the planet in 1976 with the Viking project. Since then, NASA has successfully carried out eight additional Mars landings.

What makes this goal different is the fact that its much more difficult to land the huge spacecraft required for human exploration than those for robotic missions. The robotic vehicles use parachutes to decelerate through Mars atmosphere. But a spacecraft carrying humans will be about 20 to 50 times heavier. A vehicle this large simply cant use parachutes. Instead, NASA will need to rely on retro-propulsion. This technology uses rockets that fire forwards to slow down the vehicle as it approaches the surface.

A number of challenges come with using retropropulsion. The high-energy rocket engine exhaust interacts with both the vehicle and the Martian atmosphere. Those dynamics change how the team needs to guide and control the vehicle. In addition, engineers cant fully replicate how a flight on Mars would go on Earth. While they can test spacecraft in wind tunnels and use other tools, those tools arent a perfect replacement or direct analog for the Martian environment.

To fill in the gaps, NASA turned to the OLCF supercomputers and their expert computer scientists. In theory, programs running on supercomputers could fully simulate the Martian environment and many of the complex physics associated with using retropropulsion.

The project team has relied on FUN3D, a long-standing suite of software tools that models how fluids including air move. Engineers created the first version of the code in the late 1980s and have continually made major improvements since then. Agencies and companies in aeronautics and space technology have used it to tackle major challenges.

The current Mars effort began in 2019 on Summit, OLCFs fastest computer at the time. The initial simulations assumed fixed conditions. They simulated just one point along the vehicles trajectory. Those early versions allowed scientists to evaluate the impacts of flight speeds, engine settings, and more. Further developments enabled engineers to explore real gas effects. They could account for the liquid oxygen-methane rocket engines and the carbon dioxide-heavy Martian atmosphere. Even these early simulations typically resulted in petabyte-sized datasets. It would take about 1,000 powerful home computers to store a single petabyte. But even these werent full simulations that wasnt possible yet.

The next step was to incorporate a whole new piece of software into the simulation the Program to Optimize Simulated Trajectories (POST2). NASA developed POST2 to analyze flight mechanics for a broad range of applications. While initial simulations relied on static conditions, POST2 allowed scientists to dynamically fly the vehicle in the simulation. The team engaged researchers from Georgia Techs Aerospace Systems Design Laboratory. They had previously developed unique strategies to couple POST2 with high-fidelity aerodynamic simulations. Incorporating POST2 also required engineers to change the project workflow. The softwares use was restricted to NASA computing systems for security reasons. As such, the team needed to ensure the NASA systems could communicate smoothly with Summit at OLCF. Resolving issues with firewalls, network interruptions, and other programs required a full year of planning for the cybersecurity and system administration teams at both facilities!

The latest advance involved moving the entire simulation over to the newest and most powerful computer at OLCF Frontier. The firstexascale computerin the world, Frontier is massively more powerful than previous supercomputers. With a series of coordinated runs over a two-week period, the team ran its most elaborate flight simulation to date. It was a 35-second closed-loop descent from 5 miles altitude to approximately 0.6 miles. The simulation slowed the vehicle from 1,200 miles per hour to approximately 450 miles per hour. POST2 was able to autonomously control the vehicle in a stable fashion using its eight main engines and four reaction control system modules.

With the immense power provided by Frontier at OLCF, NASA engineers are moving forward to tackle new frontiers in space travel.

Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert system.

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NASA needs a cheaper, faster way to bring Mars dirt back to Earth – The Verge

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Budget constraints have NASA looking for a faster and cheaper method to bring samples from Mars surface back to Earth. In a teleconference on Monday, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said that an independent review concluded that the agencys current plan to bring the first samples collected by the Mars rover Perseverance could cost up to $11 billion and would likely not be achievable until 2040. The fiscal 2025 budget for the space agency, as well as additional anticipated budget cuts, are behind how slowly the current plan is being executed.

That is unacceptable to wait that long, Nelson said about the mission to return samples of dust and rocks from Mars to Earth. Its the decade of the 2040s that were going to be landing astronauts on Mars.

NASA is planning to solicit ideas from its various centers and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory for a quicker, cheaper return mission. Nelson said the agency is aiming for a budget of under $7 billion and is hoping to bring the samples back in the 2030s.

The independent review, conducted last September, raised numerous concerns over the feasibility of NASAs Mars Sample Return Mission. NASA had originally estimated that the return missions launch would take place in 2027 or 2028, but the independent review concluded that this would be impossible due to technical issues, risks, and performance-to-date.

In an X post on Monday, SpaceX founder Elon Musk wrote that the company will be responding to NASAs solicitation for alternatives and that the companys Starship rocket has the potential to return serious tonnage in less than five years.

Starship has run into its own delays and challenges. The most recent launch of a prototype in March was successful, but SpaceX lost contact with the rocket just as it reentered the Earths atmosphere.

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NASA needs a cheaper, faster way to bring Mars dirt back to Earth - The Verge

This Documentary Explores The Loneliness Of A Mars Mission – Science Friday

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Listen to Universe of Art onApple Podcasts,Spotify,Google Podcasts,Stitcher,TuneInor your favorite podcasting app.

NASA is preparing to send humans to Mars. Although the launch date has been pushed back over the years, the agency says it wants to get there in the 2030s. And it has a lot on its to-do list. NASA needs to build new rockets, new habitable living spaces, new spacesuits, and new radiation shielding, just to name a few items.

But what if the one of the biggest challenges of these missions is not the engineering, but the mental health of the astronauts? Can all of the crew members get along with each other and stay alive over the course of three years in tight quarters and unforgiving environments? How will they cope with being separated from their families and friends for so long? And what lessons can they learn from astronauts whove lived on the International Space Stationand from our collective experience of isolation during the pandemic?

A new documentary, out March 8, explores all these questions and more. Its called The Longest Goodbye, and it dives intoNASAs Human Factors program, which includes a group of psychologists who are trying to figure out the best way to preserve astronauts mental health on a long and demanding mission.

Host D. Peterschmidt spoke to the films director, Ido Mizrahy, and one of its featured astronauts, Dr. Cady Coleman, about how NASA is thinking about tackling loneliness in space and what we can learn from astronauts whove already lived on the space station.

Plus, a listener shares his experience about performing a drumroll for the solar eclipse.

Universe of Art is hosted and produced by D. Peterschmidt, who also wrote the music. Our show art was illustrated by Abelle Hayford. Support for Science Fridays science and arts coverage comes from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.

Do you have science-inspired art youd like to share with us for a future episode? Send us an email or a voice memo touniverse@sciencefriday.com.

D. Peterschmidt

D. Peterschmidt is a producer, host of the podcast Universe of Art, and composes music for Science Fridays podcasts. Their D&D character is a clumsy bard named Chip Chap Chopman.

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This Documentary Explores The Loneliness Of A Mars Mission - Science Friday

NASA Is Asking for Help to Return Samples That Could Uncover Life on Mars – FLYING

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NASA Administrator Bill Nelson has shared the space agencys revised path forward for the Mars Sample Return program, a proposed NASA-European Space Agency (ESA) mission to return Martian rock and soil samples to Earth. NASAs Perseverance rover has been collecting rock and soil samples on the Red Planet since 2021.

The agency is asking the NASA community, including its Jet Propulsion Laboratory and other agency centers, to collaborate on out-of-the-box designs, using existing technology, that could return the samples.

NASA on Monday released its response to a September 2023 Independent Review Board (IRB) report analyzing Mars Sample Return and its costs. It estimated the missions budget at $8 billion to $11 billion, with the high end of that range being more than double previous estimates of $4.4 billion.

Under those constraints, Nelson said, the mission would not return samples until 2040, which he said is unacceptable.

Mars Sample Return will be one of the most complex missions NASA has ever undertaken, said Nelson. The bottom line is, an $11 billion budget is too expensive, and a 2040 return date is too far away. Safely landing and collecting the samples, launching a rocket with the samples off another planetwhich has never been done beforeand safely transporting the samples more than 33 million miles back to Earth is no small task. We need to look outside the box to find a way ahead that is both affordable and returns samples in a reasonable timeframe.

Nelson also pointed to Congress recent budget cuts as a contributing factor in the agencys current challenges.

The agencys response to the IRB report includes an updated mission design with reduced complexity; improved resiliency; risk posture; [and] stronger accountability and coordination.

It said it will solicit proposals from the industry that could return samples in the 2030s, with responses expected in the fall. These alternative mission designs, NASA said, would reduce cost, risk, and mission complexity. It is unclear exactly what kind of solution the agency is seeking. But it emphasized leveraging existing technologies that do not require large amounts of time and money to develop.

Without more funding, according to NASA, Mars Sample Return could dip into money allocated for projects at the Goddard Space Flight Center, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and other centers. Projects such as Dragonfly, a mission to Saturns largest moon, Titan, could be discontinued, warned Nicola Fox, associate administrator of NASAs Science Mission Directorate.

Plans for a Mars sample return mission have been proposed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory since 2001. The samples are expected to help researchers understand the formation and evolution of the solar system and habitable worlds, including our own. They could be used to learn whether there was ancient life on Mars and aid in the search for life elsewhere in the universe.

NASAs Perseverance rover landed on Mars in 2021 and has been collecting samples since. Originally, the plan was to return them to Earth in 2033 using a rocket, orbiter, and lander. However, the IRB report found that the orbiter and lander likely would not leave the Earth until that year.

A Sample Retrieval Lander would deploy a small rocket to collect samples from Perseverance, using an ESA-provided robotic arm. Sample recovery helicoptersbased on the successful Ingenuity autonomous Mars helicopter and also capable of collecting sampleswould serve as backup.

A Mars Ascent Vehicle, which would be the first rocket to launch off the Mars surface, would carry samples to the planets orbit, where they would be captured by an Earth Return Orbitealso designed by ESAand brought back to Earth.

The initiative would be the first international, interplanetary mission to return samples from another planet and, according to NASA, would return the most carefully selected and well-documented set of samples ever delivered from another planet.

Earlier this year, the space agency marked the 20-year anniversary of its twin Spirit and Opportunity rovers arrival on the Martian surface, where they provided the first compelling evidence that the red planet once held water.

NASAs Curiosity rover is currently surveying a region of the planet thought to have been carved by a river billions of years ago. Its explorations could lead to further discoveries about life on Mars.

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SpaceX’s giant Starship will be 500 feet tall for Mars missions, Elon Musk says (video) – Space.com

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SpaceX's Starship, the largest rocket in the world, will get even bigger as the company continues to target Mars missions in the future.

Elon Musk, the billionaire founder of SpaceX, told employees on April 4 that Starship will eventually be as tall as 500 feet (150 meters), roughly 20% higher than the massive system aboard the Super Heavy rocket right now.

What's more, advances in reusability will have each launch cost roughly $3 million each, Musk predicted; that's less than a third of what a (much smaller) Falcon 1 rocket launch cost in 2004 when inflation is taken into account. (The figure two decades ago was $5.9 million, according to NBC, which is roughly $9.5 million in 2024 dollars.)

"These are sort of unthinkable numbers," Musk said in the Starship update, released publicly April 6, roughly one month after the third and last test flight to date. "Nobody ever thought that this was possible, but we're not breaking any physics to achieve this. So this is within the bounds, without breaking physics. We can do this."

Related: SpaceX fires up huge Super Heavy booster ahead of 4th Starship test flight (photos, video)

Musk tends to deliver Starship updates at least once a year to highlight progress the company is making toward its long-term plans of settling Mars. Indeed, the last year has seen three Starship launches, so there has been progress made recently. Musk didn't, however, address delays in launching Starship that have contributed to pushing back the launch date for the first moon landing under the NASA-led Artemis program.

SpaceX was named the vendor for the Artemis 3 landing mission that, until recently, was set for 2025. In January, NASA elected to hold the launch date another year, to 2026, due to a range of technical issues. Aside from Starship not being ready the agency wants many successful launches before approving it for astronaut flights Artemis 3 was also delayed due to slow progress on spacesuits and problems with the mission's Orion spacecraft, among other factors.

Breaking space news, the latest updates on rocket launches, skywatching events and more!

However, Musk's words about Artemis, to employees, focused on Starship's future capabilities: orbiting the Earth and refilling its tanks, both of which have yet to be proven on its three test flights.

"This will ... be very important for the Artemis program for the NASA to get back to the moon," Musk said of those capabilities. He also envisions a "Moon Base Alpha" that would include ships "specialized for going to and from the moon", meaning there would be no heat shield or flaps due to the lack of atmosphere.

Related: NASA celebrates SpaceX Starship's 3rd test flight, but more work needed ahead of Artemis moon missions

Musk's 45-minute speech touched on the usual themes for his Red Planet updates, focusing on how to send a lot of cargo out there for eventual settlers. He noted that would take thousands of launches to do; for perspective, Musk said the company has completed 327 successful Falcon series launches and about 80 percent of those had reused boosters (a key factor in reducing cost.)

SpaceX is by far the most active launching entity on Earth, and Musk forecasts the company will send roughly 90 percent of orbital mass aloft this year compared to China's 6 percent (the second-largest entity.)

Starship's next and fourth spaceflight attempt, expected to take place in May, aims to have the first stage of Super Heavy land "on essentially a virtual tower" in the Gulf of Mexico, Musk said. Once the company safely gets that done, they will consider using the launching area at Starbase, in south Texas, for future landings as soon as Flight 5. (Musk pegged the chances of success on Flight 4 at 80% or 90%.)

Musk also wants to perform two splashdowns of the upper stage of Starship in a row, in a controlled fashion, before sending it to Starbase on a future flight. "We do not want to rain debris over Mexico or the U.S.," he said. "My guess is probably next year when we will be able to reuse Starship."

Overall, Musk plans for multiple Starship launches to take place this year, and suggests SpaceX will build an additional six spacecraft by the end of 2024. A new rocket factory for the company should be available in 2025, which would make production even faster.

Future versions of Starship will include a "Starship 2" to send 100 tons of payload to low-Earth orbit and the 500-foot "Starship 3" for 200 or more tons. Bigger vehicles, Musk stressed, will mean fewer (four or five) refueling missions in low Earth orbit to get a Starship ready for the journey to Mars someday.

Of these milestones, Musk said it would be "very much a success-oriented schedule." His speech did not mention the Federal Aviation Administration, which must approve each one of the launches, nor ongoing criticism of the environmental impact of Starship on the ecologically sensitive area near Starbase.

That impact may continue to grow, as Musk said it would take roughly 10 launches a day to send hundreds of vehicles to Mars every two years (when the planet is closest) to make a long-term settlement feasible. As for the number of Mars-bound people, that would be roughly a million folks, he said that matches predictions he made at least as far back as 2017. Musk also says he wants to get the settlement going "in 20 years." He said the same thing in 2011.

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NASA rethinks plan to return rare Mars samples to Earth – The Albany Herald

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NASA is seeking a faster, cheaper way to bring Mars samples to Earth – News-Press Now

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NASA is seeking a faster, cheaper way to bring Mars samples to Earth - The Caledonian-Record

JPL chief Laurie Leshin on science, Mars and budget infighting – SpaceNews

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The Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, is home base for building pioneering spacecraft that have probed every planet in our solar system, including the Sun.

Federally funded by NASA and managed by Caltech, JPL and its cadre of engineers and scientists are led by Laurie Leshin, the first woman to serve as JPL director, who took on the role in May 2022 following a career as a geochemist in academia and NASA.

Leshin points to space technology achievements, but has also been plagued by program setbacks and space budget woes, especially regarding the JPL-led Mars Sample Return project.

Leshin spoke with SpaceNews about JPLs path forward and steps to retain and bolster the revered laboratorys capabilities.

How do you characterize your concerns about NASAs overall budget and its impact on JPL?

There is good news for sure, such as the VERITAS Venus orbiter coming back and that were now re-planning and ramping back up. Most of the [NASA] science budget is fairly flat which, while not great, is not terrible. Planetary science, however, finds itself in a very, very difficult position. It is a fairly unprecedented threat to the nations deep space capability which is resident at JPL, so I have major concerns.

How impactful were Februarys budget-related layoffs on the labs future?

We hire only great people. So we will miss all those who were laid off. Were supporting them in every way we can think of through their transition. While it cut to depth, it did not eliminate any core capability. We worked very hard in spite of having to make the deep cuts and to make sure those capabilities were intact.

What is an example of a core capability at JPL?

Our nations Mars exploration capability is resident at the lab. No other organization has landed on Mars in the United States except us with partners always, but we have led every one of those missions. But if the budget challenges continue or decisions continue to be deferred, those capabilities will be at risk. I dont know how to say it other than that.

Our job as a nation is to have some hard conversations about what being spacefaring for the future really means. How do we make sure that theres Mars in our moon-to-Mars program? Theres no moon-to-Mars without Mars and theres no Mars without JPL.

Any other NASA budget concerns?

A science versus human spaceflight moment is not good for our community. We all need to pull together to support the diverse portfolio that NASA has. In tight budget times, we tend to fight with each other and that is always a bad idea.

JPL leads the development of the Europa Clipper mission. All on track for liftoff this October?

Europa Clipper just came out of JPLs thermal vacuum chamber. You shake it. You bake it. You look for magnetic cleanliness. End-to-end missions tests to simulate launch, solar array deployment, deep space cruise, orbit insertion at Jupiter, flybys of Europa. Weve done all of that. Were in really good shape. Were on track to ship it to Florida in the May timeframe and get it ready to fly on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy.

Theres another look looming at the costly and complex Mars Sample Return program. Whats coming?

I cant talk about it at this time. That review is coming relatively soon to be released in the spring. NASA has funding challenges. Its a really important set of decisions they are making. Mars Sample Return was the next big thing at JPL. So we need to make sure that gets back on track as quickly as possible.

So you see a way forward for Mars Sample Return?

Its a difficult moment. Theres a way to move forward with this mission that will cost less on an annual basis than the prior plan and its very much in line with what weve spent on other large missions. NASA has a chance to go down that path. I hope they will and then Ill breathe.

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JPL chief Laurie Leshin on science, Mars and budget infighting - SpaceNews

Could these big expandable habitats help humanity settle the moon and Mars? – Space.com

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COLORADO SPRINGS Max Space wants to help humanity expand into the final frontier.

The startup is developing a range of inflatable space habitats, the largest of which could provide as much internal volume as a sports stadium. These plans, which Max Space unveiled on Tuesday (April 9) here at the 39th Space Symposium, are designed to help our species make the difficult leap off its home planet.

"The problem with space today is, there isn't enough habitable space in space," Max Space co-founder Aaron Kemmer said in a statement on Tuesday. "Unless we make usable space in space a lot less expensive, and much much larger, humanity's future in space will remain limited."

Related: Living on the moon: What it would be like (infographic)

Back in 2010, Kemmer co-founded the off-Earth manufacturing company Made In Space, which has sent multiple 3D-printing devices to the International Space Station (ISS) over the years. (Made In Space was acquired by Redwire in 2020.)

He says that experience helped convince him that expandable habitats are the future, citing one of the machines Made In Space modified for use on the ISS.

"It's like a three-story system on Earth, and all the engineering wasn't to make it work in space it was actually to get it down to a locker [size], just because there wasn't enough real estate in there," Kemmer told Space.com in an interview here at the symposium on Tuesday.

Breaking space news, the latest updates on rocket launches, skywatching events and more!

Expandable habitats, as the name suggests, launch in compressed form to fit inside rocket fairings but increase in size greatly when deployed in space. They therefore offer much more bang for the buck volume-wise than traditional "tin can" module designs.

An expandable habitat with 100 cubic meters (3,530 cubic feet) of pressurized volume, for example, would be "at least an order of magnitude cheaper" than a comparable metallic one, Kemmer said. (For perspective: The ISS offers 388 cubic meters, or 13,700 cubic feet, of habitable volume, not including the space provided by visiting vehicles.)

This is not a sci-fi concept; three expandable module prototypes are actually circling Earth right now. They are Genesis 1 and Genesis 2, which are free fliers that launched in 2006 and 2007 respectively, and the Bigelow Expandable Activity Module (BEAM), which has been attached to the ISS since 2016.

All three were built by Nevada-based company Bigelow Aerospace, which closed its doors in 2020. The pressure-restraining hulls for Genesis 1 and Genesis 2 were designed and manufactured by Thin Red Line Aerospace, a small Canadian company run by Maxim de Jong Max Space's other co-founder.

The new startup, which has been in operation for about a year, is commercializing Thin Red Line Aerospace technology, Kemmer and de Jong said. But that tech isn't just a Genesis retread.

"It's a very, very, very different approach, where you're just putting fibers in an uncoupled scenario where they don't conflict with one another," de Jong told Space.com on Tuesday. The result, he and Kemmer said, is a cost-effective module that expands in a predictable and reliable way, and is highly scalable to larger sizes.

The new tech will get its first off-Earth test just two years from now, if all goes according to plan: Max Space has booked a spot on a SpaceX rideshare launch in 2026.

That mission will send a module the size of two large suitcases to orbit. However, that's the habitat's compressed configuration. Once deployed, it will expand to a pressurized volume of 20 cubic meters (706 cubic feet).

This deployment will set a new record for expandable habitats. The two Genesis prototypes both feature 11.5 cubic meters (406 cubic feet) of internal volume, while BEAM has 16 cubic meters (565 cubic feet).

Max Space has already built a full-size prototype of the first flight unit, which the company is using for ground testing, Kemmer said. It has started manufacturing the flight vehicle, which will not feature life-support systems but will have the same shielding and strength as human-rated versions.

Related: NASA's moon-orbiting space station will be claustrophobic, architect says

Max Space plans to keep moving fast after this pioneering module makes it to orbit. The startup aims to launch its first 100-cubic-meter (3,531 cubic feet) module in 2027 and to get a 1,000-cubic-meter (35,314 cubic feet) behemoth up by 2030. Even larger variants could potentially launch thereafter, aboard SpaceX's Starship megarocket or Blue Origin's New Glenn vehicle, the company said.

The goal is to provide a variety of destinations to a range of customers, from pharmaceutical companies that want to mass-produce medicines in microgravity to commercial space stations that want to expand their living space all the way to movie studios looking to film in orbit.

"We have several space production companies that we're talking to," Kemmer said. The company has already secured some customer contracts, including from the U.S. Space Force, he added.

But Earth orbit will be just the starting point for Max Space modules, if all goes according to plan.

"My dream is to have a city on the moon before I die," Kemmer said. "So I look at this like, this is going to be the habitat, the structures, that are going to go inside the lava tubes buried under the [lunar] surface."

The company's modules would then make their way to Mars, if all goes well, for Max Space wants to be a key enabler of off-Earth settlement. Indeed, that's why Kemmer and de Jong founded the company to help humanity extend its footprint out into the solar system.

"That was the entire reason," Kemmer said.

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Could these big expandable habitats help humanity settle the moon and Mars? - Space.com

NASA rethinks plan to return rare Mars samples to Earth – AppleValleyNewsNow.com

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NASA rethinks plan to return rare Mars samples to Earth - AppleValleyNewsNow.com

NASA seeks faster, cheaper way to bring Mars rocks to Earth – The Elkhart Truth

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NASA seeks faster, cheaper way to bring Mars rocks to Earth - The Elkhart Truth

NASA seeks faster, cheaper way to bring Mars rocks to Earth – Citizentribune

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NASA seeks faster, cheaper way to bring Mars rocks to Earth - Citizentribune

Elon Musk Doubles Down on Mars Dreams and Details What’s Next for SpaceX’s Starship – Singularity Hub

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Elon Musk has long been open about his dreams of using SpaceX to spread humanitys presence further into the solar system. And last weekend, he gave an updated outline of his vision for how the companys rockets could enable the colonization of Mars.

The serial entrepreneur has been clear for a number of years that the main motivation for founding SpaceX was to make humans a multiplanetary species. For a long time, that seemed like the kind of aspirational goal one might set to inspire and motivate engineers rather than one with a realistic chance of coming to fruition.

But following the successful launch of the companys mammoth Starship vehicle last month, the idea is beginning to look less far-fetched. And in a speech at the companys facilities in South Texas, Musk explained how he envisions using Starship to deliver millions of tons of cargo to Mars over the next couple of decades to create a self-sustaining civilization.

Starship is the first design of a rocket that is actually capable of making life multiplanetary, Musk said. No rocket before this has had the potential to extend life to another planet.

In a slightly rambling opening to the speech, Musk explained that making humans multiplanetary could be an essential insurance policy in case anything catastrophic happens to Earth. The red planet is the most obvious choice, he said, as its neither too close nor too far from Earth and has many of the raw ingredients required to support a functioning settlement.

But he estimates it will require us to deliver several million tons of cargo to the surface to get that civilization up and running. Starship is central to those plans, and Musk outlined the companys roadmap for the massive rocket over the coming years.

Key to the vision is making the vehicle entirely reusable. That means the first hurdle is proving SpaceX can land and reuse both the Super Heavy first stage rocket and the Starship spacecraft itself. The second of those challenges will be tougher, as the vehicle must survive reentry to the atmospherein the most recent test, it broke up on its way back to Earth.

Musk says they plan to demonstrate the ability to land and reuse the Super Heavy booster this year, which he thinks has an 80 to 90 percent chance of success. Assuming they can get Starship to survive the extreme heat of reentry, they are also going to attempt landing the vehicle on a mock launch pad out at sea in 2024, with the aim of being able to land and reuse it by next year.

Proving the rocket works and is reusable is just the very first step in Musks Mars ambitions though. To achieve his goal of delivering a million people to the red planet in the next 20 years, SpaceX will have to massively ramp up its production and launch capabilities.

The company is currently building a second launch tower at its base in South Texas and is also planning to build two more at Cape Canaveral in Florida. Musk said the Texas sites would be mostly used for test launches and development work, with the Florida ones being the main hub for launches once Starship begins commercial operations.

SpaceX plans to build six Starships this year, according to Musk, but it is also building what he called a giant factory that will enable it to massively ramp up production of the spacecraft. The long-term goal is to produce multiple Starships a day. Thats crucial, according to Musk, because Starships initially wont return from Mars and will instead be used as raw materials to construct structures on the surface.

The company also plans to continue development of Starship, boosting its carrying capacity from around 100 tons today to 200 tons in the future and enabling it to complete multiple launches in a day. SpaceX also hopes to demonstrate ship-to-ship refueling in orbit next year. It will be necessary to replenish the fuel used up by Starship on launch so it has a full tank as it sets off for Mars.

Those missions will depart when the orbits of Earth and Mars bring them close together, an alignment that only happens every 26 months. As such, Musk envisions entire armadas of Starships setting off together whenever these windows arrive.

SpaceX has done some early work on what needs to happen once Starships arrive at the red planet. Theyve identified promising landing sites and the infrastructure that will need setting up, including power generation, ice-mining facilities, propellant factories, and communication networks. But Musk admits theyve yet to start development of any of these.

One glaring omission in the talk was any detail on whos going to be paying for all of this. While the goal of making humankind multiplanetary is a noble one, its far from clear how the endeavor would make money for those who put up the funds to make it possible.

Musk estimates that the cost of each launch could eventually fall to just $2 to $3 million. And he noted that profits from the companys Starlink satellites and Falcon 9 launch vehicle are currently paying for Starships development. But those revenue streams are unlikely to cover the thousands of launches a year required to make his Mars dreams a reality.

Still, the very fact that the questions these days are more about economics than technical feasibility is testament to the rapid progress SpaceX has made. The dream of becoming a multiplanetary species may not be science fiction for much longer.

Image Credit: SpaceX

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Elon Musk Doubles Down on Mars Dreams and Details What's Next for SpaceX's Starship - Singularity Hub

Debris From NASA Asteroid Collision May Hit Mars – Newsweek

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A NASA experiment that sent a spacecraft slamming into the side of an asteroid may have sent debris flying into space, possibly into the path of Mars.

The asteroid, named Dimorphos, was hit by NASA's Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) in September 2022 as part of an experiment to investigate how the asteroid's path would be deflected.

In the months since, scientists have found that not only was the asteroid's orbit around its larger companion Didymos altered by 32 minutes, but its shape was totally changed by the collision.

Now, according to a pre-print paper by researchers from Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory and the DART teamyet to be published in a peer-reviewed journalsome of the boulders flung off during the impact may be on a collision course with Mars.

Dimorphos is 525 feet in diameter, and orbits a larger, 2,560-foot asteroid known as Didymos. The DART mission was designed to test how slamming a spacecraft into the side of an asteroid would impact how it travels through space, and therefore if doing so could successfully deflect a space rock from a collision with Earth.

A paper in the journal Nature Astronomy from earlier this year revealed that the DART impact resulted in "more than 1.32.2107kg" being flung out into space from the collision, which was equivalent to around 0.3 to 0.5 percent of the mass of the entire asteroid. This caused 8 percent of Dimorphos' mass to be displaced around the asteroid, causing the rock to entirely change shape.

Now, the new pre-print says that the ejecta thrown out into the solar system consisted of 37 boulders, some of which measured up to 22 feet across.

"We did not expect that many boulders that were that big to be blown off," Andy Rivkin, an astronomer at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory and a member of the DART team, told National Geographic.

According to the paper, none of the boulders will threaten the Earth, with the closest passing at a distance of around 1.9 million miles in about 2,500 years.

"On the contrary, the Mars MOID [minimum orbit intersection distance] will be very small in four instances, two near 6 kyr [thousand years] and the other two near 15 kyr. Therefore, there may be a chance for them to impact Mars in the future," the researchers wrote in the paper.

So the asteroid's ejecta might collide with our Red Planet neighbor, but not for several thousand years.

In the rare occurrence of these rocks hitting Mars, they may burn up in the planet's thin atmosphere, or alternatively, collide with its surface, creating a large impact crater.

"Given the rarefaction of the Martian atmosphere, we expect the boulders to arrive intact on the ground and excavate a small impact crater," the researchers wrote.

This could pose an issue for a future Mars-based civilization.

"The issue that a possible human settlement will be facing on Mars linked to meteor showers will be not far from the challenges that a human settlement on the moon will face in case of an incoming object hitting the ground," Stefania Soldini, an associate professor in space engineering at the University of Liverpool in the U.K., told Newsweek. "I think the mitigation strategies that are going to be developed to guarantee the safety of a human settlement on the moon could be applied for Mars."

Soldini pointed out that Mars' atmosphere could offer protection from smaller objects whereas the moon has no atmosphere. Current efforts by NASA, the European Space Agency and Japan's space agency to protect Earth from potential dangers originating in space will also be of value for future human settlements on Mars, she said.

The latest study is important for the implications of the DART experiment, as it means any ejecta from the surface of asteroids caused by the impact of spacecraft sent up to deflect them must be monitored, as this too could end up posing a threat to the Earth one day.

"The results presented here provide a further indication that some meteorites found on Earth originated in collisions of around 100 m [328 feet] near-Earth asteroids with projectiles of around 1 m [3 feet] in size," the researchers wrote.

Thankfully, none of the 33,000 near-Earth asteroids being tracked by NASA are heading towards our home planet any time soon.

Do you have a tip on a science story that Newsweek should be covering? Do you have a question about space? Let us know via science@newsweek.com.

Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

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Debris From NASA Asteroid Collision May Hit Mars - Newsweek

Litecoin Falls 10% In Bearish Trade By Investing.com – Investing.com

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Investing.com - Litecoin was trading at $80.546 by 14:06 (18:06 GMT) on the Investing.com Index on Saturday, down 10.22% on the day. It was the largest one-day percentage loss since April 12.

The move downwards pushed Litecoin's market cap down to $6.085B, or 0.25% of the total cryptocurrency market cap. At its highest, Litecoin's market cap was $25.609B.

Litecoin had traded in a range of $80.523 to $86.522 in the previous twenty-four hours.

Over the past seven days, Litecoin has seen a drop in value, as it lost 18.24%. The volume of Litecoin traded in the twenty-four hours to time of writing was $1.040B or 0.81% of the total volume of all cryptocurrencies. It has traded in a range of $80.4295 to $105.8900 in the past 7 days.

At its current price, Litecoin is still down 80.82% from its all-time high of $420.00 set on December 12, 2017.

Bitcoin was last at $66,600.4 on the Investing.com Index, down 2.27% on the day.

Ethereum was trading at $3,186.23 on the Investing.com Index, a loss of 4.24%.

Bitcoin's market cap was last at $1,314.242B or 54.83% of the total cryptocurrency market cap, while Ethereum's market cap totaled $384.332B or 16.04% of the total cryptocurrency market value.

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Litecoin Falls 10% In Bearish Trade By Investing.com - Investing.com

Top Altcoin To Buy: Analysts Forcast $10 For BlockDAG By 2025 Amid Litecoin Price Surge Leaving Injective Crypto … – Blockchain Magazine

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April 12, 2024 by Carolyna Mavis

225

While Litecoin and Injective (INJ) continue to make waves with predictions of reaching new price heights, BlockDAG has swiftly moved into the spotlight, boasting a remarkable 350% increase from its initial presale price. With a $16.3 Million presale and an ambitious forecast of hitting $10 by 2025, BlockDAG isnt just keeping pace but setting the

While Litecoin and Injective (INJ) continue to make waves with predictions of reaching new price heights, BlockDAG has swiftly moved into the spotlight, boasting a remarkable 350% increase from its initial presale price. With a $16.3 Million presale and an ambitious forecast of hitting $10 by 2025, BlockDAG isnt just keeping pace but setting the bar high. BlockDAGs unique approach and impressive presale success make it the best altcoin to buy in 2024, promising substantial 30,000x ROI potential.

Litecoin has made significant gains recently, reaching an eight-month peak of $112.70 on April 1. This surge is attributed to investors positioning themselves ahead of the forthcoming Bitcoin halving. On-chain data indicates that Litecoin miners are accumulating their block rewards rather than selling them, which is a bullish signal.

So far in April, miners have accumulated 20,000 LTC, bringing their total reserves to 1.78 Million LTC. This accumulation suggests confidence in future price appreciation and reduces short-term market supply, potentially leading to upward price pressure. The current uptrend signals a $120 target for Litecoin, based on miners continued accumulation. Initial resistance is at $114, with $95 as potential support in a market downturn.

Injective (INJ) tokens are in a consolidation phase, with traders watching closely for a potential move towards $40. Recent data shows steady growth in daily active addresses and network expansion, suggesting increased user engagement and a possible accumulation phase. On-chain metrics reveal that many addresses acquired INJ between $23 and $31.50, with a significant portion currently in profit.

INJs price faces resistance at key moving averages, with the Relative Strength Index (RSI) signalling potentially oversold conditions, while the Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) indicates the bearish sentiment. The possibility of reaching $40 depends on a shift in market momentum, with technical indicators suggesting a potential reversal. However, if bearish pressure persists, INJ may revisit support around $30.

BlockDAG stands apart in the cryptocurrency presale market, promising an impressive 30,000X ROI potential after its technical whitepaper release. Unlike traditional blockchains, BlockDAG adopts a Directed Acyclic Graph (DAG) structure, enhancing security, scalability, and decentralisation.

Its high transaction throughput, near real-time processing, and low fees position it as a superior platform for decentralised application development. Additionally, its compatibility with Ethereums virtual machine aids developers in smoothly utilising BlockDAGs advanced features.

The presale of BDAG tokens has already garnered significant attention, with early investors enjoying a 50% increase with each batch progression. Having surpassed $16.3 Million in presale and $2.1 million in miner sales, BlockDAG is quickly becoming the go-to investment for those seeking exponential returns. The platforms commitment to solving blockchain limitations while fostering a decentralised ecosystem of applications underscores its potential to redefine the crypto landscape.

BlockDAG has set a new benchmark in crypto, outshining trends set by Litecoin and INJ crypto with its $16.3 Million presale success and the anticipation of a 30,000x ROI. As Litecoin and INJ await movements, BlockDAGs 350% surge in presale price highlights its potential as a groundbreaking investment. Positioned as the top altcoin for 2024, BlockDAG offers significant returns and introduces innovative blockchain technology, making it an attractive opportunity for investors seeking the next big thing in crypto.

Join BlockDAG Presale Now:

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Top Altcoin To Buy: Analysts Forcast $10 For BlockDAG By 2025 Amid Litecoin Price Surge Leaving Injective Crypto ... - Blockchain Magazine

Why Litecoin (LTC) Is on the Verge of a Major Pullback – BeInCrypto

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Litecoins (LTC) price is stuck in a bearish pattern that could halt its ongoing rally and push the altcoin downward.

To make this worse, LTC is currently witnessing no support from its investors, which could extend the losses.

Litecoins price has been in an uptrend for the past two weeks. However, this Silver to Bitcoins Gold path could change soon. Even LTC holders do not seem very bullish at the moment.

The reason behind this is the lack of incentive among investors. As noted on the Network Realized Profit/Loss metric, LTC holders have observed the largest single-day losses since June 2023.

These losses in the last 24 hours are considered a preliminary signal of potential selling. Since investors want to offset their losses, they will likely opt to sell their assets, resulting in a decline in the price.

This sentiment is further substantiated by the downtick in the Mean Coin Age of Litecoin tokens. This metric measures the average age of all circulating coins within a network. It helps gauge the level of hodling or circulating activity among investors.

Instances of uptick align with holding on to supply, while downtick suggests an increase in circulation of supply among investors. Thus, without the support of investors, Litecoins price could witness a correction.

Read More: 7 Best Litecoin (LTC) Wallets for 2024

Litecoins price is currently moving within a rising wedge. This pattern is a bearish formation characterized by converging trendlines slanting upwards, indicating a weakening bullish trend. It typically suggests an impending price reversal with potential downward movement.

Based on the target predicted by the pattern, Litcoin could observe a 30.77% correction over the coming days, bringing its price down to $69. The consistent volume decline further supports the bearish thesis, as Litecoins price is already falling through the pattern.

However, LTC is bound to witness support at $93, which marks the 61.8% Fibonacci Retracement. Bouncing off this support floor, marked at $93, would allow the altcoin to reclaim $100 and potentially invalidate the bearish outlook.

Disclaimer

In line with the Trust Project guidelines, this price analysis article is for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial or investment advice. BeInCrypto is committed to accurate, unbiased reporting, but market conditions are subject to change without notice. Always conduct your own research and consult with a professional before making any financial decisions. Please note that ourTerms and Conditions,Privacy Policy, andDisclaimershave been updated.

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Why Litecoin (LTC) Is on the Verge of a Major Pullback - BeInCrypto

LITECOIN PRICE ANALYSIS & PREDICTION (April 12) LTC Finds Support But Yet To Regain Strength Due To Low … – NullTX

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Litecoin showed sign of strength yesterday but the price seems to be down today following 2% drops overnight. However, it has found support daily but the volume is not strong enough activate a buy.

Starting this month on a weak note due to the recent bearish sentiment in the market, Litecoin witnessed a notable reduction and later found support above $93. Following a slight increase, it encountered resistance again and rolled back to the mentioned price level.

On Wednesday, the price bounced again and closed with a bullish pin bar, leading to yesterdays notable increase. Unfortunately, the bulls are yet to reiterate actions today as the price remains calm on the daily chart.

Technically, the asset has undergone re-accumulation phase and its now looking set to continue its swing high with the recent bullish candle formation. But as it stands now, trading volume level is low from the bulls sides to activate a buy.

While that support level continued to hold as monthly lows, we can expect LTC to resume its bullish pattern: higher highs and higher lows movement, as seen in the daily price chart. If that happens, it may create a new resistance at around $130.

Losing this monthly low on the other hand could result into a more drag downs before increasing. Regardless of the above, the trend remains bullish on a mid-term perspective.

Having found a solid support level, we can expect a buy to $105.7 and $109.8. Increasing above the $113 and $115 resistance levels could trigger a breakout of structure from a mid-term perspective.

In the opposite direction, the $88 level is the next support to watch if the price dips below the holding $93.1 support. Far below this level lies $81.

Key Resistance Levels: $105.7, $109.8, $115

Key Support Levels: $93.1, $88, $81

Disclosure: This is not trading or investment advice. Always do your research before buying any cryptocurrency or investing in any services.

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LITECOIN PRICE ANALYSIS & PREDICTION (April 12) LTC Finds Support But Yet To Regain Strength Due To Low ... - NullTX