NASA Pushes Sustainability for Moon Missions with Recycling Initiative

Published

3 weeks ago

December 7, 2024

RTX

When astronauts return to the Moon under NASA’s Artemis program, their mission won’t just involve exploration—they’ll also need to tackle sustainability. Unlike the Apollo era, when astronauts left behind bags of waste, discarded equipment, and even golf balls, future lunar crews will focus on recycling and reusing materials to reduce costs and preserve the Moon’s pristine environment.

Recycling for the Future

NASA’s new LunaRecycle program aims to address the logistical and environmental challenges of lunar exploration. The cost of transporting supplies to the Moon is astronomical—up to $1.2 million per kilogram. To minimize this, NASA is offering $3 million in prizes to innovators worldwide who develop creative ways to recycle materials on the lunar surface.

Jennifer Edmunson, who leads the LunaRecycle initiative, emphasized the importance of this approach. “Flying anything from Earth is so expensive,” she said. “Any kind of recycling we can do is beneficial not only to the economy but also to preserving the Moon as the amazing place it is.”

The program encourages ideas for repurposing plastics, metals, and packaging materials into useful tools, containers, or even artistic elements to make lunar habitats more livable.

Mining Lunar Artifacts

While iconic artifacts like Neil Armstrong’s Apollo 11 footprints and the remains of early Soviet probes will remain untouched as part of space heritage, other lunar debris may be fair game for recycling. NASA is considering repurposing parts of old spacecraft, such as aluminium from defunct landers and satellites.

However, extracting and processing materials on the Moon presents significant technical hurdles. Challenges include working in low gravity, dealing with abrasive lunar dust, and managing toxic byproducts in the vacuum of space.

“You’d be operating in low gravity and surrounded by lunar dust, which is sticky and abrasive,” explained Geoff Brooks, a professor specializing in sustainable mineral processing. Brooks is researching how to use solar energy to process lunar minerals, including developing a “lunar steel” using silicon rather than Earth’s carbon-based methods.

A Closed-Loop System

NASA is also looking to the International Space Station (ISS) for inspiration. On the ISS, 98% of water—including astronaut urine—is recycled into drinking water through advanced systems. A similar closed-loop system could be employed on the Moon, with human waste potentially used as fertilizer for growing food.

NASA’s push for sustainability marks a stark contrast to the Apollo missions, which left behind a mix of scientific instruments, memorabilia, and waste. Now, the Artemis program represents a new era of thoughtful exploration, blending innovation with environmental stewardship.

Technology

Scientists Explore the Mystery of the Sun’s Lost Companion Star

Published

2 days ago

December 26, 2024

RTX

Our Sun, the central star of our Solar System, is somewhat of an anomaly in the Milky Way galaxy, where binary star systems—pairs of stars that orbit each other—are quite common. However, recent research suggests that the Sun may have once had a companion, a partner it has since lost to time. The big question now is: where did it go?

The Sun, orbiting in one of the Milky Way’s spiral arms, takes about 230 million years to make a full orbit around the galaxy. While it currently drifts alone, the nearest star to the Sun, Proxima Centauri, is located 4.2 light-years away—a distance so vast it would take thousands of years for even the fastest spacecraft to reach.

However, scientists are increasingly recognizing that most stars, unlike the Sun, form in pairs. In fact, binary star systems are so prevalent that some astrophysicists suggest that all stars may have originally formed as binary pairs. This leads to an intriguing question: could our Sun have once been part of such a system, only to lose its companion long ago?

Gongjie Li, an astronomer at the Georgia Institute of Technology, says it is certainly a possibility. “It’s very interesting,” he noted, pointing out that the absence of a companion star likely spared Earth from gravitational disruptions that might have made life on our planet impossible.

The idea that stars form in pairs is supported by recent findings. Sarah Sadavoy, an astrophysicist at Queen’s University in Canada, has shown that the process of star formation often leads to the creation of multiple stars. Her 2017 research indicated that star-forming regions, like the Perseus molecular cloud, preferentially create pairs of stars. However, not all stars in these systems remain together; some break apart within a million years.

If our Sun had a companion star, it likely would have had significant effects on our Solar System’s formation. For instance, Amir Siraj, an astrophysicist at Harvard University, suggests that the presence of such a companion could explain some of the features of the Oort Cloud—a vast, icy region far beyond Pluto. This distant shell of icy objects could have been influenced by the gravitational pull of the Sun’s missing twin, possibly even contributing to the hypothesized existence of Planet Nine, a yet-undiscovered planet in the outer reaches of our Solar System.

While finding our Sun’s companion star may be a difficult task, Konstantin Batygin, a planetary scientist at the California Institute of Technology, believes there may be clues yet to be uncovered. Recent simulations suggest that a binary companion could explain some of the structure of the Oort Cloud and the slight tilt of the Sun’s axis.

Despite the challenges, the idea that our Sun had a companion star raises intriguing questions about the formation of exoplanetary systems. As astronomers continue to explore distant regions of space, they may eventually uncover more evidence of our Sun’s lost twin—offering insights not only into the history of our own Solar System but also into the diverse ways stars and planets come into being across the universe.

Technology

Journalism Body Urges Apple to Remove AI Feature After Misleading Headline

Published

1 week ago

December 19, 2024

RTX

A leading journalism group has called for Apple to remove its new generative AI feature following an incident in which the technology created a misleading headline about a high-profile murder case in the United States.

The BBC lodged a complaint with Apple after its Apple Intelligence tool, which uses artificial intelligence to summarise and group together notifications, falsely created a headline suggesting that Luigi Mangione, accused of the murder of healthcare insurance CEO Brian Thompson, had shot himself. The claim was inaccurate, as Mangione has not made any such action.

Following the error, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) voiced concerns about the risks posed by generative AI tools to media outlets. The group stressed that the incident demonstrated the AI’s unreliability and immaturity in providing trustworthy information to the public.

Vincent Berthier, head of RSF’s technology and journalism desk, stated, “AIs are probability machines, and facts can’t be decided by a roll of the dice.” He added that the misattribution of false information to a respected media outlet like the BBC undermines the credibility of both the news outlet and the public’s trust in the information they receive.

Apple Intelligence, which was launched in the UK last week, allows users to group notifications, including news summaries, to reduce interruptions from constant alerts. The feature is available on devices running iOS 18.1 or later, including the iPhone 16, iPhone 15 Pro, and iPhone 15 Pro Max, as well as some iPads and Macs.

The BBC spokesperson confirmed the corporation had contacted Apple regarding the issue, urging them to address the problem. However, it has not yet been confirmed if the company has responded. In addition to the misleading headline regarding Mangione, the notification summary also provided accurate details on unrelated topics, including the political situation in Syria and updates on South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol.

This is not the first instance of Apple Intelligence misrepresenting news. In November, three articles from the New York Times were grouped together in one notification, which included the false claim that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had been arrested. The notification misrepresented an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court, leading to confusion about the actual content of the articles. The New York Times has not commented on the incident.

Apple has yet to respond to the complaints, but the company’s notification feature has raised broader concerns regarding the reliability of AI-generated news summaries. While users can report issues with notifications, Apple has not disclosed how many reports it has received. As the debate continues, the accuracy of generative AI in journalism remains a hot topic.

Technology

NASA Astronauts Face Extended Stay on ISS Amid Spacecraft Delays

Published

1 week ago

December 18, 2024

RTX

NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, originally slated for a short mission aboard the International Space Station (ISS), will now remain in orbit until at least late March or April due to delays with spacecraft launches.

The pair, who traveled to the ISS in June aboard Boeing’s experimental Starliner spacecraft, were initially expected to return after a week. However, technical issues with the Starliner extended their stay to February 2024. Now, further delays with a new crew launch have pushed their return even further.

Delayed Crew Rotation

NASA announced that the next crew rotation, which includes four astronauts traveling aboard a SpaceX Dragon capsule, has been postponed by more than a month. The capsule, currently under preparation by SpaceX, is expected to be flight-ready no earlier than late March.

This Dragon capsule will bring Wilmore, Williams, and two other ISS crew members—NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov—back to Earth as part of the standard crew rotation process.

NASA considered deploying an existing SpaceX capsule to accelerate the crew change but ultimately decided to await the readiness of the new spacecraft, citing it as the optimal solution for mission safety and efficiency.

Astronauts Well-Stocked and Safe

NASA assured the public that the delay poses no risk to the crew aboard the ISS.

“The International Space Station recently received two resupply flights in November and is well-stocked with everything the crew needs, including food, water, clothing, and oxygen,” NASA stated. The resupply missions also delivered special items for the crew to celebrate the holiday season in space.

Most ISS missions span six months, with some extending to a full year. The additional delay is not expected to significantly impact the crew, although it means missing cherished holidays at home.

Dr. Simeon Barber, a space expert from the Open University, commented, “They are probably disappointed about missing Christmas with their families, but for many astronauts, being aboard the ISS is a dream come true. An extra two months is a manageable extension.”

Boeing’s Starliner and SpaceX Challenges

Wilmore and Williams’ mission has also drawn attention to Boeing’s Starliner program, which has faced delays and technical challenges. Starliner was originally intended to serve as a reliable transportation option for ISS crew rotations alongside SpaceX’s Dragon capsules.

As NASA and private partners continue to refine their systems, the delays highlight the complexities of ensuring safe and reliable space travel.

The rescheduled launches underscore the critical role of commercial partners in supporting NASA’s operations while emphasizing the need for meticulous preparation in human spaceflight.