WEBVTT 0 00:00:00.320 --> 00:00:02.600 Anna: Welcome to Astronomy Daily. I'm your host, 1 00:00:02.600 --> 00:00:04.800 Anna, and I'm thrilled you're joining us for 2 00:00:04.800 --> 00:00:07.120 another exciting dive into the cosmos. 3 00:00:07.520 --> 00:00:09.120 Today we'll be exploring the recent 4 00:00:09.120 --> 00:00:11.120 challenges faced by some ambitious 5 00:00:11.120 --> 00:00:13.560 spacecraft, uncovering surprising new 6 00:00:13.560 --> 00:00:15.640 discoveries about our very own Milky Way 7 00:00:15.640 --> 00:00:18.480 galaxy, and discussing a potential hidden 8 00:00:18.480 --> 00:00:20.400 family of asteroids that might be sharing 9 00:00:20.400 --> 00:00:23.240 Venus's orbit. Plus, we'll take a look 10 00:00:23.240 --> 00:00:25.440 ahead at what promises to be a very busy week 11 00:00:25.440 --> 00:00:27.910 for space launches around the globe. Stay 12 00:00:27.910 --> 00:00:30.510 with us. First up, 13 00:00:30.590 --> 00:00:32.510 let's talk about the challenges of lunar 14 00:00:32.510 --> 00:00:33.150 exploration. 15 00:00:33.630 --> 00:00:35.990 Japanese company ISPACE has announced that it 16 00:00:35.990 --> 00:00:37.950 believes its second lunar lander mission, 17 00:00:38.030 --> 00:00:40.670 named Resilience, crashed due to problems 18 00:00:40.670 --> 00:00:43.190 with its laser rangefinder. This crucial 19 00:00:43.190 --> 00:00:44.910 piece of equipment is designed to determine 20 00:00:44.910 --> 00:00:47.470 altitude during descent, but it reportedly 21 00:00:47.470 --> 00:00:50.350 suffered a hardware issue. During a press 22 00:00:50.350 --> 00:00:52.950 briefing, company executives explained that 23 00:00:52.950 --> 00:00:55.420 the laser rangefinder, meant to provide the 24 00:00:55.420 --> 00:00:57.900 first altitude data at 3 km above the 25 00:00:57.900 --> 00:01:00.500 surface, didn't give its initial measurement 26 00:01:00.500 --> 00:01:03.060 until the lander was less than 900 meters 27 00:01:03.060 --> 00:01:05.660 high. By then, the spacecraft was 28 00:01:05.660 --> 00:01:08.060 traveling much faster than planned, reaching 29 00:01:08.060 --> 00:01:10.699 66 meters per second compared to the 30 00:01:10.699 --> 00:01:13.220 intended 44 meters per second. The last 31 00:01:13.220 --> 00:01:15.780 telemetry from the lander at an altitude of 32 00:01:15.780 --> 00:01:18.700 192 meters, still showed it descending 33 00:01:18.700 --> 00:01:20.580 rapidly at 42 meters per second. 34 00:01:21.480 --> 00:01:23.600 Images later released by NASA's Lunar 35 00:01:23.600 --> 00:01:26.240 Reconnaissance Orbiter show a 16 meter wide 36 00:01:26.240 --> 00:01:28.520 crater marking the probable crash site. 37 00:01:29.320 --> 00:01:31.240 ISpace's executive vice president 38 00:01:31.560 --> 00:01:34.480 Yoshitsugu Hitachi clarified that this 39 00:01:34.480 --> 00:01:36.440 incident was different from their first 40 00:01:36.440 --> 00:01:39.440 mission in 2023, which failed due to 41 00:01:39.440 --> 00:01:42.000 a software error. While the software on 42 00:01:42.000 --> 00:01:44.400 Resilience worked as intended, the laser 43 00:01:44.400 --> 00:01:46.730 rangefinder was a different model but sourced 44 00:01:46.730 --> 00:01:48.610 from a new unnamed supplier. 45 00:01:49.090 --> 00:01:50.770 Investigations ruled out improper 46 00:01:50.770 --> 00:01:53.130 installation, leading the company to conclude 47 00:01:53.130 --> 00:01:55.170 the unit's performance simply degraded. 48 00:01:55.650 --> 00:01:57.410 Several factors could have caused this, 49 00:01:57.730 --> 00:02:00.370 including lunar surface conditions, reduced 50 00:02:00.370 --> 00:02:02.810 laser power, or even effects from the space 51 00:02:02.810 --> 00:02:04.610 environment like vacuum and radiation. 52 00:02:05.570 --> 00:02:08.290 Looking ahead, ISPACE is taking significant 53 00:02:08.450 --> 00:02:11.290 steps to prevent future issues. Chief 54 00:02:11.290 --> 00:02:14.050 Technology Officer Ryo Ujiya stated they will 55 00:02:14.050 --> 00:02:16.420 enhance testing for the laser rangefinder and 56 00:02:16.490 --> 00:02:18.690 and related sensors to better simulate high 57 00:02:18.690 --> 00:02:20.650 speed and low reflectivity conditions. 58 00:02:21.210 --> 00:02:23.130 They're also considering using a different 59 00:02:23.290 --> 00:02:25.690 flight proven laser rangefinder and 60 00:02:25.690 --> 00:02:27.930 augmenting it with other sensors like LIDAR 61 00:02:27.930 --> 00:02:29.930 or cameras for more robust navigation. 62 00:02:30.650 --> 00:02:32.609 These efforts will be supported by a new 63 00:02:32.609 --> 00:02:34.850 external review board, including former 64 00:02:34.850 --> 00:02:37.610 engineers from NASA and the Japanese space 65 00:02:37.610 --> 00:02:40.570 agency jaxa. Despite the setbacks, 66 00:02:41.050 --> 00:02:43.600 ISPACE remains committed to, with CEO 67 00:02:43.600 --> 00:02:46.480 Takeshi Hakamada emphasizing their resolve 68 00:02:46.480 --> 00:02:48.400 to keep improving and moving forward with 69 00:02:48.400 --> 00:02:51.040 their next missions, both still scheduled for 70 00:02:51.040 --> 00:02:51.920 2027. 71 00:02:52.800 --> 00:02:54.880 Moving on let's turn our attention to Europe, 72 00:02:55.200 --> 00:02:57.520 where the exploration company recently faced 73 00:02:57.520 --> 00:03:00.280 a setback with its Mission Possible Test 74 00:03:00.280 --> 00:03:02.960 vehicle. This European company, which 75 00:03:02.960 --> 00:03:05.440 aims to develop orbital spacecraft for cargo 76 00:03:05.440 --> 00:03:08.200 and eventually human transport, achieved a 77 00:03:08.200 --> 00:03:11.080 partial success and a partial failure in 78 00:03:11.080 --> 00:03:13.960 its latest test flight. The vehicle 79 00:03:13.960 --> 00:03:16.160 powered up and flew successfully in orbit 80 00:03:16.160 --> 00:03:18.240 before making a controlled RE entry into 81 00:03:18.240 --> 00:03:21.160 Earth's atmosphere. Crucially, it 82 00:03:21.160 --> 00:03:23.280 managed to re establish communication after 83 00:03:23.280 --> 00:03:26.040 the blackout period, suggesting it navigated 84 00:03:26.040 --> 00:03:27.920 the most thermally challenging part of 85 00:03:27.920 --> 00:03:30.840 reentry effectively. However, the company 86 00:03:30.840 --> 00:03:33.200 lost contact with the spacecraft just a few 87 00:03:33.200 --> 00:03:35.200 minutes before its planned touchdown in the 88 00:03:35.200 --> 00:03:37.770 ocean. In a candid update, the 89 00:03:37.770 --> 00:03:40.050 exploration company indicated that the most 90 00:03:40.050 --> 00:03:42.370 likely culprit was an issue with the 91 00:03:42.370 --> 00:03:44.890 deployment of its parachutes, which were 92 00:03:44.890 --> 00:03:47.170 designed to deploy at specific velocities 93 00:03:47.170 --> 00:03:49.810 during descent. This demonstration 94 00:03:49.810 --> 00:03:51.570 vehicle, measuring two and a half meters in 95 00:03:51.570 --> 00:03:53.690 diameter, aimed to test four key 96 00:03:54.570 --> 00:03:56.970 structural performance in orbit, surviving RE 97 00:03:56.970 --> 00:03:59.770 entry, autonomous navigation, and recovery in 98 00:03:59.770 --> 00:04:02.250 real world conditions. It only clearly failed 99 00:04:02.250 --> 00:04:04.370 in this final critical task of recovering the 100 00:04:04.370 --> 00:04:06.910 vehicle M. Despite this challenge, the 101 00:04:06.910 --> 00:04:09.270 company's transparent and rapid communication 102 00:04:09.910 --> 00:04:11.790 acknowledging the partial failure within 103 00:04:11.790 --> 00:04:14.430 hours of the launch is quite refreshing in 104 00:04:14.430 --> 00:04:16.870 the space industry. The Mission Possible 105 00:04:16.950 --> 00:04:19.230 vehicle was developed at a relatively low 106 00:04:19.230 --> 00:04:21.990 cost of about $20 million in just 107 00:04:21.110 --> 00:04:24.110 2.5 years, demonstrating 108 00:04:24.110 --> 00:04:25.710 the company's aggressive timeline and 109 00:04:25.710 --> 00:04:28.110 commitment. While it's possible the 110 00:04:28.110 --> 00:04:29.910 exploration company might conduct another 111 00:04:29.910 --> 00:04:32.760 subscale demonstration, this mission 112 00:04:33.000 --> 00:04:35.320 represents a significant step forward for 113 00:04:35.320 --> 00:04:37.960 Europe's commercial space sector, which has 114 00:04:37.960 --> 00:04:40.200 historically lagged behind the US And China. 115 00:04:41.080 --> 00:04:43.520 The ability to launch a fairly large vehicle 116 00:04:43.520 --> 00:04:45.720 and bring it back through Earth's atmosphere 117 00:04:45.960 --> 00:04:48.240 less than four years after the company's 118 00:04:48.240 --> 00:04:50.440 founding is a credible and promising start. 119 00:04:51.160 --> 00:04:53.400 They are now focused on developing their full 120 00:04:53.400 --> 00:04:56.240 size Nix cargo spacecraft with a potential 121 00:04:56.240 --> 00:04:58.280 flight as early as 2028. 122 00:04:59.860 --> 00:05:01.620 Now let's shift our gaze closer to home 123 00:05:01.780 --> 00:05:03.620 within our own cosmic neighborhood. 124 00:05:04.100 --> 00:05:06.060 Astronomers have recently developed a 125 00:05:06.060 --> 00:05:07.980 groundbreaking new method for accurately 126 00:05:07.980 --> 00:05:10.260 mapping the outer gas disk of the Milky Way, 127 00:05:10.500 --> 00:05:12.900 and what they've found is quite surprising. 128 00:05:13.380 --> 00:05:15.620 It turns out our galaxy's structure is far 129 00:05:15.620 --> 00:05:17.380 more complex than previously thought, 130 00:05:17.620 --> 00:05:19.220 complete with what they describe as 131 00:05:19.220 --> 00:05:22.100 flocculant or tufty looking gas clouds. 132 00:05:22.260 --> 00:05:24.220 This innovative approach, pioneered by 133 00:05:24.220 --> 00:05:26.540 Sukanya Chakrabarti of the University of 134 00:05:26.540 --> 00:05:28.740 Alabama and Peter Craig from msu, 135 00:05:29.300 --> 00:05:31.620 relies on determining the precise distances 136 00:05:31.620 --> 00:05:34.420 to very young stars within the outer disk. 137 00:05:34.820 --> 00:05:36.940 They leverage data from the European Space 138 00:05:36.940 --> 00:05:39.100 Agency's Gaia satellite, which has 139 00:05:39.100 --> 00:05:40.900 meticulously measured the brightness, 140 00:05:40.980 --> 00:05:43.900 positions, motions, and, crucially, the 141 00:05:43.900 --> 00:05:46.260 distances to nearly 2 billion Milky Way 142 00:05:46.260 --> 00:05:48.820 stars. As Chakrabarti emphasized, 143 00:05:49.140 --> 00:05:51.100 distance is one of the most Fundamental 144 00:05:51.100 --> 00:05:52.740 things you can measure in the universe. 145 00:05:52.980 --> 00:05:55.460 Unless you know distances, you can't map 146 00:05:55.460 --> 00:05:58.420 anything. This is a significant departure 147 00:05:58.420 --> 00:06:00.220 from traditional mapping methods that use 148 00:06:00.220 --> 00:06:03.220 kinematic distances which assume a model for 149 00:06:03.220 --> 00:06:05.940 the galaxy's velocity fields. These 150 00:06:05.940 --> 00:06:08.540 older methods can be imprecise, especially 151 00:06:08.620 --> 00:06:11.300 for gas clouds which appear much fleecier and 152 00:06:11.300 --> 00:06:13.380 more disturbed than the smoother patterns 153 00:06:13.380 --> 00:06:15.700 seen in stars. To overcome these 154 00:06:15.700 --> 00:06:18.220 inaccuracies, the team used a clever pattern 155 00:06:18.220 --> 00:06:20.820 matching technique. They observed that the 156 00:06:20.820 --> 00:06:23.580 spiral structure in the gas clouds of nearby 157 00:06:23.580 --> 00:06:26.220 galaxies closely mirrors the structure of 158 00:06:26.220 --> 00:06:29.220 young stars less than 400 million years old, 159 00:06:29.380 --> 00:06:32.180 which are born from these gas clouds. By 160 00:06:32.180 --> 00:06:34.620 pairing young stars with known locations to 161 00:06:34.620 --> 00:06:37.500 nearby clumps of gas, they created a new map 162 00:06:37.500 --> 00:06:39.500 that isn't dependent on the problematic 163 00:06:39.500 --> 00:06:42.180 kinematic assumptions. For highly accurate 164 00:06:42.180 --> 00:06:44.860 distance markers, they relied on Cepheid 165 00:06:44.860 --> 00:06:47.710 variable stars which pulsate with a, uh, 166 00:06:47.740 --> 00:06:50.220 regular rhythm, allowing astronomers to 167 00:06:50.220 --> 00:06:52.420 calculate incredibly precise distances. 168 00:06:53.670 --> 00:06:55.350 The results are transforming our 169 00:06:55.350 --> 00:06:57.750 understanding. Craig noted that their new 170 00:06:57.750 --> 00:07:00.350 maps nicely demonstrate that the spiral 171 00:07:00.350 --> 00:07:03.310 structure in the gas disk of the Milky Way is 172 00:07:03.310 --> 00:07:05.830 highly flocculant and that the overall 173 00:07:05.830 --> 00:07:08.750 structure of the disk is complex. This 174 00:07:08.750 --> 00:07:11.270 technique combining pattern matching with 175 00:07:11.270 --> 00:07:14.230 accurate stellar distances promises to 176 00:07:14.230 --> 00:07:16.270 significantly improve our understanding of 177 00:07:16.270 --> 00:07:18.310 the prevalence and shapes of the clouds in 178 00:07:18.310 --> 00:07:21.050 the hydrogen disk. Beyond that, 179 00:07:21.130 --> 00:07:23.810 these more accurate maps can enhance three 180 00:07:23.810 --> 00:07:26.570 dimensional dust maps of the entire galaxy 181 00:07:26.730 --> 00:07:29.250 and help astronomers identify disturbances 182 00:07:29.250 --> 00:07:32.130 within the disk, such as interactions with 183 00:07:32.130 --> 00:07:35.050 nearby dwarf galaxies or even the presence 184 00:07:35.050 --> 00:07:38.050 of dark matter. It's a truly exciting 185 00:07:38.050 --> 00:07:39.610 development that paints an even more 186 00:07:39.610 --> 00:07:41.530 intricate picture of our home galaxy 187 00:07:42.890 --> 00:07:44.890 moving from the intricate patterns within our 188 00:07:44.890 --> 00:07:45.690 own Milky Way. 189 00:07:46.140 --> 00:07:47.940 Let's turn our attention to an exciting 190 00:07:47.940 --> 00:07:50.420 discovery much closer to home, right in our 191 00:07:50.420 --> 00:07:52.860 solar system. Astronomers are currently 192 00:07:52.860 --> 00:07:55.020 delving into a little known and largely 193 00:07:55.020 --> 00:07:57.820 unseen group of asteroids that quietly share 194 00:07:57.820 --> 00:08:00.100 Venus's orbit around the Sun. These 195 00:08:00.100 --> 00:08:02.580 fascinating space rocks, dubbed Venus Co 196 00:08:02.580 --> 00:08:05.140 orbital asteroids, might be far more numerous 197 00:08:05.140 --> 00:08:08.140 than we ever imagined. To date, only 198 00:08:08.140 --> 00:08:10.300 about 20 of these unique asteroids have been 199 00:08:10.300 --> 00:08:12.660 confirmed. However, a new study led by 200 00:08:12.660 --> 00:08:14.860 Valerio Carruba from Sao Paulo State 201 00:08:14.860 --> 00:08:16.850 University in Brazil the suggest that 202 00:08:16.850 --> 00:08:18.610 hundreds more could be lurking just out of 203 00:08:18.610 --> 00:08:21.330 sight. Karuba excitingly compared this 204 00:08:21.330 --> 00:08:23.570 potential discovery to discovering a 205 00:08:23.570 --> 00:08:26.410 continent you didn't know existed. The reason 206 00:08:26.410 --> 00:08:28.410 so few have been found until now is their 207 00:08:28.410 --> 00:08:31.090 elusiveness. They appear close to the sun in 208 00:08:31.090 --> 00:08:33.330 our sky, making them difficult for ground 209 00:08:33.330 --> 00:08:35.850 based telescopes to spot. And their rapid 210 00:08:35.850 --> 00:08:37.930 movement adds to the tracking challenge. 211 00:08:38.810 --> 00:08:40.730 To investigate this hidden population, 212 00:08:41.210 --> 00:08:43.690 Karuba's team ran extensive computer 213 00:08:43.690 --> 00:08:46.620 simulations modeling the orbits of hundreds 214 00:08:46.620 --> 00:08:49.140 of hypothetical Venus Co orbital asteroids 215 00:08:49.460 --> 00:08:52.420 over a staggering 36,000 years into 216 00:08:52.500 --> 00:08:55.060 the future, they found that many of these 217 00:08:55.060 --> 00:08:57.420 objects could remain gravitationally bound to 218 00:08:57.420 --> 00:09:00.220 Venus's orbit for an average of about 12,000 219 00:09:00.220 --> 00:09:03.180 years. Interestingly, their orbits appeared 220 00:09:03.180 --> 00:09:05.860 chaotic, meaning small shifts over long 221 00:09:05.860 --> 00:09:07.980 periods could eventually push them onto 222 00:09:07.980 --> 00:09:10.220 different paths, including some that might 223 00:09:10.220 --> 00:09:13.090 bring them closer to Earth. However, there's 224 00:09:13.090 --> 00:09:15.810 no need for alarm. Experts, including 225 00:09:15.810 --> 00:09:18.290 astronomer Scott Shepard from the Carnegie 226 00:09:18.290 --> 00:09:21.050 Institution for Science, emphasize that none 227 00:09:21.050 --> 00:09:22.850 of the known asteroids pose an immediate 228 00:09:22.850 --> 00:09:25.570 threat, and the timescales involved span many 229 00:09:25.570 --> 00:09:28.170 thousands of years. The likelihood of one 230 00:09:28.170 --> 00:09:29.970 colliding with Earth anytime soon is 231 00:09:29.970 --> 00:09:32.690 extremely low. Despite the low risk, 232 00:09:32.930 --> 00:09:35.170 understanding these objects is crucial for 233 00:09:35.170 --> 00:09:37.050 building a more complete picture of near 234 00:09:37.050 --> 00:09:39.750 Earth space. Because they're so hard to spot 235 00:09:39.750 --> 00:09:42.030 from Earth, the team also explored new 236 00:09:42.030 --> 00:09:44.750 detection methods. Their simulations suggest 237 00:09:44.750 --> 00:09:47.310 that a spacecraft orbiting closer to Venus 238 00:09:47.310 --> 00:09:49.590 would have a much better chance. And the 239 00:09:49.590 --> 00:09:52.190 newly commissioned Vera C Rubin Observatory, 240 00:09:52.590 --> 00:09:54.390 though not specifically designed for the 241 00:09:54.390 --> 00:09:56.750 inner solar system, could potentially catch 242 00:09:56.750 --> 00:09:58.710 some of these hidden asteroids during its 243 00:09:58.710 --> 00:10:01.470 special twilight observing campaigns. Further 244 00:10:01.470 --> 00:10:03.830 into the future, a proposed mission concept 245 00:10:03.830 --> 00:10:06.290 called Crown and envisions a fleet of small 246 00:10:06.290 --> 00:10:09.010 spacecraft near Venus specifically designed 247 00:10:09.010 --> 00:10:11.890 for this search. These efforts promise to 248 00:10:11.890 --> 00:10:13.810 unveil many more of these dynamically 249 00:10:13.810 --> 00:10:16.530 intriguing objects, adding another layer to 250 00:10:16.530 --> 00:10:18.450 our understanding of the solar system's 251 00:10:18.450 --> 00:10:19.450 diverse inhabitants. 252 00:10:20.890 --> 00:10:23.290 From hidden asteroids to perplexing planets, 253 00:10:23.530 --> 00:10:26.090 astronomers have been busy unraveling cosmic 254 00:10:26.090 --> 00:10:28.330 mysteries. And speaking of mysteries, 255 00:10:28.570 --> 00:10:30.370 scientists may have finally cracked the 256 00:10:30.370 --> 00:10:32.770 curious case of what are known as double hot 257 00:10:32.770 --> 00:10:35.760 Jupiters. These are rare exoplanet pairs 258 00:10:35.760 --> 00:10:37.640 found in binary star systems, with one 259 00:10:37.640 --> 00:10:40.120 scorching gas giant orbiting each of the twin 260 00:10:40.120 --> 00:10:42.920 stars. This arrangement has long puzzled 261 00:10:42.920 --> 00:10:45.720 scientists, seeming to defy our understanding 262 00:10:45.720 --> 00:10:48.680 of how planets form. But now a team 263 00:10:48.680 --> 00:10:50.760 of astronomers believes they have the key to 264 00:10:50.760 --> 00:10:53.560 this celestial puzzle, a process known as von 265 00:10:53.560 --> 00:10:56.560 Zypolidov Kozai or zlk. Migration 266 00:10:57.040 --> 00:10:59.280 team leader and Yale University astronomer 267 00:10:59.280 --> 00:11:02.145 Melena Rice describes it as a dance of sorts 268 00:11:02.145 --> 00:11:04.760 of essentially in a binary star system, 269 00:11:05.000 --> 00:11:07.000 the gravitational influence of the second 270 00:11:07.000 --> 00:11:09.520 star can significantly shape and warp the 271 00:11:09.520 --> 00:11:11.920 orbits of planets, causing them to migrate 272 00:11:11.920 --> 00:11:14.840 inward towards their parent stars. The 273 00:11:14.840 --> 00:11:17.120 researchers propose that this mechanism leads 274 00:11:17.120 --> 00:11:20.000 to a mirrored migration process, resulting in 275 00:11:20.000 --> 00:11:22.120 both stars in the binary system ending up 276 00:11:22.120 --> 00:11:24.680 with their own hot Jupiter. To reach this 277 00:11:24.680 --> 00:11:26.800 conclusion, Rice and her colleagues performed 278 00:11:26.800 --> 00:11:29.080 numerous simulations of binary stars with two 279 00:11:29.080 --> 00:11:31.800 planets using powerful computing clusters and 280 00:11:31.800 --> 00:11:34.160 data from sources like NASA's Exoplanet 281 00:11:34.160 --> 00:11:36.920 Archive and the European Space Agency's Gaia 282 00:11:36.920 --> 00:11:39.520 mission. The unintended yet 283 00:11:39.520 --> 00:11:42.400 exciting consequence of this research is that 284 00:11:42.400 --> 00:11:44.800 it makes our planet formation models a whole 285 00:11:44.800 --> 00:11:47.160 lot more interesting. We typically expect 286 00:11:47.160 --> 00:11:49.480 giant planets to form much further away from 287 00:11:49.480 --> 00:11:52.440 their host stars. Which is precisely why Hot 288 00:11:52.440 --> 00:11:55.400 Jupiters, especially pairs of them, have been 289 00:11:55.400 --> 00:11:57.900 such a captivating subject of studying. For 290 00:11:57.900 --> 00:12:00.100 future discoveries, the team suggests 291 00:12:00.100 --> 00:12:02.700 revisiting binary systems where just one Hot 292 00:12:02.700 --> 00:12:05.100 Jupiter has already been found. The crucial 293 00:12:05.100 --> 00:12:07.860 factor, however, is that these parent stars 294 00:12:07.860 --> 00:12:10.820 need to have a moderate separation, not too 295 00:12:10.820 --> 00:12:13.420 close and not too far apart, just the right 296 00:12:13.420 --> 00:12:15.460 distance for this gravitational dance to 297 00:12:15.460 --> 00:12:15.980 unfold. 298 00:12:17.500 --> 00:12:20.220 Next up, the global launch manifest continues 299 00:12:20.220 --> 00:12:22.300 to be as busy as ever. As we approach the 300 00:12:22.300 --> 00:12:25.090 halfway point of 2025 this week, 301 00:12:25.090 --> 00:12:26.690 we're looking at a packed schedule 302 00:12:26.770 --> 00:12:29.410 highlighted by multiple SpaceX Falcon 9 303 00:12:29.410 --> 00:12:31.850 missions, including a significant private 304 00:12:31.850 --> 00:12:33.650 crewed flight to the International Space 305 00:12:33.650 --> 00:12:36.570 Station. First up, Axiom Space aims to return 306 00:12:36.570 --> 00:12:38.970 crew to the iss with its fourth private 307 00:12:38.970 --> 00:12:41.570 mission, AX4, launching today if all goes 308 00:12:41.570 --> 00:12:44.090 according to plan. From Florida Commanding 309 00:12:44.090 --> 00:12:46.410 this flight is Peggy Whitson, a former NASA 310 00:12:46.410 --> 00:12:48.650 astronaut, making this her second commercial 311 00:12:48.650 --> 00:12:50.410 mission and further extending her record for 312 00:12:50.410 --> 00:12:52.570 the longest cumulative time in space by an 313 00:12:52.570 --> 00:12:55.130 American. Joining her are Shubanshu 314 00:12:55.130 --> 00:12:57.490 Shukla from India and mission specialists 315 00:12:57.490 --> 00:12:59.930 Slawash Usnanski, Wisniewski of Poland and 316 00:12:59.930 --> 00:13:02.690 Tibor Kapu of Hungary, all making their first 317 00:13:02.690 --> 00:13:04.210 space flights and marking significant 318 00:13:04.290 --> 00:13:07.010 milestones for their nations. This mission 319 00:13:07.010 --> 00:13:09.010 also debuts crew Dragon 320 00:13:09.010 --> 00:13:11.490 C213, the final capsule ever 321 00:13:11.490 --> 00:13:14.370 manufactured completing SpaceX's fleet. The 322 00:13:14.370 --> 00:13:16.290 Falcon 9 booster will attempt a, uh, return 323 00:13:16.290 --> 00:13:19.100 to launch site landing. Beyond the 324 00:13:19.100 --> 00:13:21.420 crewed mission, SpaceX is maintaining its 325 00:13:21.420 --> 00:13:23.700 impressive pace with three Starlink satellite 326 00:13:23.700 --> 00:13:25.740 deployments also on the docket. This week, 327 00:13:26.140 --> 00:13:28.340 two Falcon 9 flights will launch from Cape 328 00:13:28.340 --> 00:13:30.820 Canaveral carrying Starlink V2 mini 329 00:13:30.820 --> 00:13:33.140 satellites into low Earth orbit, while the 330 00:13:33.140 --> 00:13:35.380 third lifts off from Vandenberg Space Force 331 00:13:35.380 --> 00:13:38.140 Base in California. These launches underscore 332 00:13:38.140 --> 00:13:41.140 SpaceX's aggressive goal of completing 170 333 00:13:41.140 --> 00:13:43.740 orbital flights this year. Elsewhere on the 334 00:13:43.740 --> 00:13:45.820 launch pad, Rocket Lab aims to continue its 335 00:13:45.820 --> 00:13:48.100 record cadence with the 67th electron 336 00:13:48.100 --> 00:13:50.830 mission, symphony in the Stars from New 337 00:13:50.830 --> 00:13:53.670 Zealand. Slightly delayed for checkouts, 338 00:13:53.670 --> 00:13:55.910 this confidential commercial payload is set 339 00:13:55.910 --> 00:13:58.310 for a 650 kilometer orbit. 340 00:13:58.550 --> 00:14:01.070 Blue Origin also has its fifth New Shepard 341 00:14:01.070 --> 00:14:03.130 suborbital flight of 2025 342 00:14:03.330 --> 00:14:06.190 NS33, expected to carry a crew of 343 00:14:06.190 --> 00:14:08.390 six passengers, just above the Carmen line 344 00:14:08.470 --> 00:14:10.630 for a brief period of microgravity after 345 00:14:10.630 --> 00:14:13.430 being scrubbed last weekend. And 346 00:14:13.430 --> 00:14:16.070 finally, a momentous launch marks the end of 347 00:14:16.070 --> 00:14:18.920 an era, the 50th and final mission for 348 00:14:18.920 --> 00:14:21.920 the Japanese H2A rocket. This 349 00:14:21.920 --> 00:14:24.440 swan song flight, delayed due to an 350 00:14:24.440 --> 00:14:27.440 electrical issue, will carry the GOSAT GEO 351 00:14:27.440 --> 00:14:29.760 Water Earth Observation payload from the 352 00:14:29.760 --> 00:14:32.280 Tanegashima Space Center. This satellite is 353 00:14:32.280 --> 00:14:34.560 designed to monitor greenhouse gases and 354 00:14:34.560 --> 00:14:36.920 measure water on Earth's surface and in the 355 00:14:36.920 --> 00:14:39.640 atmosphere. The H2A, with an 356 00:14:39.640 --> 00:14:41.960 impressive track record, is being phased out 357 00:14:41.960 --> 00:14:44.830 in favor of its successor, the H3 family. 358 00:14:46.750 --> 00:14:48.790 And with that news, we wrap up today's 359 00:14:48.790 --> 00:14:51.470 episode of Astronomy Daily, where we explored 360 00:14:51.470 --> 00:14:53.750 everything from lunar lander challenges and a 361 00:14:53.750 --> 00:14:56.590 European spacecraft's re entry setback to the 362 00:14:56.590 --> 00:14:59.310 clumpy nature of our Milky Way and the hidden 363 00:14:59.310 --> 00:15:01.990 asteroids of Venus. Plus the fascinating 364 00:15:01.990 --> 00:15:04.510 dance of double hot Jupiters and a look at 365 00:15:04.510 --> 00:15:07.390 the busy week ahead for space launches. Thank 366 00:15:07.390 --> 00:15:09.950 you for joining us. I'm Anna your your host 367 00:15:10.030 --> 00:15:11.830 and I hope you enjoyed this dive into the 368 00:15:11.830 --> 00:15:14.510 cosmos. Remember, you can visit 369 00:15:14.510 --> 00:15:16.910 Astronomy Daily IO to catch up on all the 370 00:15:16.910 --> 00:15:19.150 latest space and astronomy news with our 371 00:15:19.150 --> 00:15:21.270 constantly updating newsfeed and listen to 372 00:15:21.270 --> 00:15:24.230 all our back episodes. Subscribe to Astronomy 373 00:15:24.230 --> 00:15:26.350 Daily on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, 374 00:15:26.670 --> 00:15:28.510 YouTube Music or wherever you get your 375 00:15:28.510 --> 00:15:31.230 podcasts. We'll see you again tomorrow. In 376 00:15:31.230 --> 00:15:32.590 the meantime, keep looking up 377 00:15:35.880 --> 00:15:36.920 stories be told 378 00:15:43.720 --> 00:15:44.280 stories.