SETI

Seth Shostak of the SETI Institute told Congress this past week that researchers could survey one million star systems for signs of intelligent life by 2037.

Shostak has previously said he thinks we could find intelligent signals by 2025.

Bigelow

Robert Bigelow told Congress recently that establishing a base on the Moon is the next logical step in human space exploration.

Bigelow Aerospace manufactures inlatable modules that could be used to build such a base.

Dragonfly

NASA is looking at a drone that could cover large areas of Titan in its low gravity and thick atmosphere.  It would land several times along the way.

Dragonfly could launch in the mid-2020s.

Terraforming Mars, Sort Of

Researchers are proposing terreaforming a small area on Mars by directing an asteroid to crash into the planet, creating a lake that would last thousands of years.

They suggest starting the process in 2036.

New Record

Peggy Whitson  broke the American  record for most days in space yesterday.

She is scheduled to remain in space until September.

Out, Not Up

When people talk about ISS, for example, they generally say it's "up," even though up and down have no particular meaning once we get beyond the atmosphere-- until we reach another world.  We should say ISS is "out" from Earth.

Out also suggests we are on a journey.  We are.

Opportunity

The rover Opportunity is still exploring Mars after 13 years.

It is about to attempt to reach and enter a valley to investigate whether the valley was cut by flowing water.

Perspective

Verizon recently reported quarterly earnings of roughly $30 billion.

NASA's annual budget is roughly $19 billion.

Looking For Life

Astronomers have found what may be the best exoplanet yet to search for life-- a super-Earth orbiting within the habitable zone of a red dwarf star only 40 light years away.

Red dwarfs are the most common stars in the universe, so showing they can nurture life would be a game changer.

2014 JO25

A huge asteroid designated 2014 JO25 will pass within a million miles of Earth today.

If it struck Earth, it would cause major damage.

Lunar Summit

A conference bringing together representatives of space agencies from around the world and people from the private sector is set for October in Hawaii.  The goal will be to develop a plan to build a base on the Moon.

The conference is being called The  Lunar Summit.

Silicon-Based Life

A new set of experiments suggests silicon-based life is, in fact, possible.

That would greatly increase the possibility of life elsewhere in the universe.

To The Moon

Several government space agencies, including those in China and Russia, support building a base on the Moon before sending humans to Mars.

They also support an international program to build the lunar base.

Life?

NASA has announced that chemical reactions that could support life likely take place inside Saturn's moon, Enceladus.  Jupiter's moon Europa is also a strengthening possibility to support life.

It should be noted that both those worlds are well outside the Sun's habitable zone.

Space Shuttle

Twenty years after Gagarin's flight, the Space Shuttle launched on its maiden flight.

It was the first maiden flight of a space vehicle to carry a human crew.

Gagarin

Today is the 56th anniversary of Yuri Gagarin's flight into space.

It was his only spaceflight.

Metallic Mars

NASA's MAVEN probe has detected metals, such as iron and magnesium, in the atmosphere of Mars.

It's the first time metals have been established as a permanent feature of a planetary atmosphere beyond Earth.

Planetary Defense

A small asteroid passed within a million miles of Earth recently.

An asteroid strike is a natural disaster that could possibly be stopped.  Planetary defense efforts, though, need to be increased.

Blue Moon Cargo

Blue Origin is developing a program called "Blue Moon" that could deliver large cargo shipments to the Moon's surface to support human settlement.

Blue Moon could deliver as much as 10,000 pounds of cargo per flight and would be reusable.

Exoplanet Atmosphere

Astronomers have, for the first time, detected an atmosphere around an exoplanet only slightly larger than Earth.

The atmosphere is thick, suggesting a Venus-like world.  On the other hand, there is some indication that the main atmospheric component is water vapor, which conjures a water world with an atmosphere of steam.

Bezos

Jeff Bezos said yesterday he will sell $1 billion worth of Amazon stock annually to support Blue Origin.

BO's first passengered, suborbital flight is currently scheduled for next year.

TRAPPIST-1e

A new study using computer modeling finds TRAPPIST-1e is the only world in that system that may be able to support life.

The other six Earth-sized planets world be either too hot or too cold.

Hunting Planet Nine

Some 60,000 citizen scientists, working through the Zoouniverse.org website, have identified four candidates to be Planet Nine.

Astronomers will now closely study each.

Mars Base Camp

Lockheed Martin is developing a Mars Base Camp concept, a six-person space station in orbit around Mars from which astronauts could remotely explore Mars and support human expeditions to the surface.

The station could be place in 2028.

Reusability

Elon Musk says SpaceX may try for a completely reusable Falcon 9.

Already, with only a reusable booster stage, the costs per launch should drop significantly very soon.