Competition appears to be fierce in Japan between scientists and startups to develop programs to deal with the ever-growing amount of space debris — rocket parts — that are already orbiting Earth at extremely high speeds. That number is likely to rise even further with the arrival of “mega-constellations” of satellites aimed at providing fast internet access everywhere.
In an interview with AFP, Ms Miki Ito, head of Japanese startup AstroScale, which works towards “sustainable” space, warned: “Simulations indicate that space will become unusable if this continues.” Improve the sky environment. Late. We are entering an age where many satellites will be launched one by one. And the space becomes more crowded.”
Accidents are already on the rise: In January, a Chinese satellite was hit by fragments from an old Soviet satellite. Last year, the thermocouple of the International Space Station’s (ISS) robotic arm was punctured by debris a few millimeters away.
Laser beams to defeat debris and keep it out of satellite orbit
“Smaller debris is a problem because it goes undetected,” as opposed to larger objects whose names, location and speed are “constantly tracked.” Japanese space agency researcher Toru Yamamoto explained.
There are rules of good practice to reduce space debris, such as moving obsolete satellites into “graveyard orbits.” But this is not enough, especially since there is currently no legally binding international text.
“A geostationary satellite faces 100 warnings of approaching debris every year,” said Tatanori Fukushima, an engineer at Japanese satellite operator Sky Perfect GAT.
Mr. Fukushima founded a startup looking for a solution: a laser beam that vaporizes the surface of space debris, creating a pulse of energy to propel the material into a new orbit.
Fukushima hopes to conduct its first test in space in the spring of 2025 in collaboration with various research institutes.
The astroscale concept is more advanced: a kind of magnet-powered space “dug truck” that recovers satellites at the end of their lives.
The company passed the first test last year and plans to conduct a second test by the end of 2024, in collaboration with OSI and OneWAP, the British operator of a group of low-orbit satellites.
“There is no universal cure”
Even weirder, another Japanese team has envisioned wooden satellites, a material that could be used entirely upon re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere.
The project by Kyoto University (western Japan) and the Sumitomo Forestry Group is still in its infancy: in March, pieces of wood were sent to the International Space Station to check their reaction to cosmic rays.
Fukushima said Japan is one of the most dynamic space nations in developing space debris solutions.
But companies around the world are also working to capture this growing market, which will emerge in 2030.
At the end of 2020, the European Space Agency signed a €100 million deal with Swiss start-up Clear Space to send the world’s first commercial mission to clean up space debris into orbit in 2025.
US companies are designing several satellite repair services to extend their use, for example refueling in space.
The space debris problem is complex enough to prevent the implementation of broad-based solutions. According to the same source, there is no universal cure.
Find accessible Android users G mail Their smartphones often face difficulty in managing their accounts, especially in light of many messages and the difficulty of deleting these messages at once, however, on the other hand, PC users can select multiple emails with the click of a button. Not in mobile use.
Smartphone users can select one message at a time to delete or archive it, or swipe controls can be customized for multiple functions.
According to a report by 9to5Google, the tech giant has added a ‘Select All’ button to Gmail on Android. A ‘Select All’ button is available in the desktop version of Gmail to select up to 50 emails at once.
The desktop version of Gmail also offers an additional “Select All Conversations in Inbox” option that users can click to select emails on a specific page.
The report claims that the Select All button will appear on both the Pixel and Samsung Galaxy, and the latest apps tool will reportedly be available on Android 14 (beta) and Android 13.
Google seems to be rolling out this server-side feature on a device-by-device basis, and it’s not directly tied to an app update, so not all users will see the change right away, and it’s only available to select users.
On Sunday, the American probe “OSIRIS-REx” dropped a valuable scientific payload in the Utah desert of the United States, the first samples of an asteroid brought to Earth by the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). It is the largest sample collected to date from a similar astronomical object.
Scientists believe that these samples, collected from the asteroid “Bennu” in 2020, will help clarify the origin of the solar system and the formation of Earth as a habitable planet.
The landing is scheduled to take place around 9 am local time (15:00 GMT) on Sunday at a military site normally used to test missiles.
The OSIRIS-REx probe sends a capsule containing samples to an altitude of 100,000 kilometers above Earth, about four hours before landing.
The capsule’s final descent into the Earth’s atmosphere takes 13 minutes as it enters at a speed of about 44,000 kilometers per hour, causing friction to raise the temperature to 2,700 degrees Celsius.
The descent, monitored by military sensors, will be slowed by two successive parachutes, providing a smooth landing if all goes well.
The landing strip is 58 kilometers long and 14 kilometers wide. Rich Burns, mission director at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, said during a press conference in late August that it was “like shooting a dart across the basketball court and hitting it right in the middle of the goal.”
If it is clear the night before that the capsule may not hit the designated area it may be decided not to launch it. At this point, the probe will orbit the Sun before attempting to relaunch the capsule in 2025.
Sandra Freund of Lockheed Martin, the manufacturer of the probe, cautioned that “(space) sample return missions are difficult because many problems can arise.”
NASA photo of a probe on the surface of the asteroid Bennu (AP).
Measures were taken in anticipation of the possibility of a “hard landing”. A test was conducted in late August, during which a replica capsule was dropped from a helicopter.
When the capsule lands on Earth, a team checks its condition before placing it in a net that will be lifted by a helicopter and transported to a temporary “clean room.”
The next day, the sample is flown to the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.
At this center, the capsule opens into another sealed chamber. Priority is given to not contaminating the sample with contaminants so as not to spoil the analysis and give false results. The process takes days.
NASA plans to hold a press conference on October 11 to announce the preliminary results.
However, part of the specimen will be preserved untouched so that future generations can study it using techniques not yet available.
“OSIRIS-REx” was launched in 2016, and in 2020, “Bennu” surprised scientists while collecting a sample for a few seconds, as the probe’s arm stuck to the surface of the asteroid, which showed that it was much less than its density. I thought.
But thanks to this, NASA expects the sample to contain about 250 grams of material, more than the original 60 gram target. According to project manager Melissa Morris, it is “the largest sample ever collected from a location outside lunar orbit”.
This mission is a first for the United States. But Japan has already arranged two. In 2020, the Hayabusa probe returned fine grains from asteroid Itogawa, and in 2020, Hayabusa 2 returned about 5.4 g from asteroid Ryuku.
According to Melissa Morris, asteroids “Bennu” and “Ryuku” are similar in appearance, but “Bennu” may turn out to be completely different in its composition.
Asteroids are interesting because they are made of the original material of the Solar System 4.5 billion years ago. Although these materials changed on Earth, asteroids remained the same.
Dante Lauretta, the lead scientist at the University of Arizona, said that “Bennu” is rich in carbon and that the sample brought back “may represent the seeds of life carried by these asteroids at the beginning of our planet.” to this wonderful biosphere.”
“Bennu”, which is 500 meters in diameter, approaches the Earth once every six years around the Sun.
There is a small risk (1 in 2700 chance) of a collision with Earth in 2182, which would have a catastrophic impact. It would be useful to provide more information about its composition. Last year, NASA managed to bump into an asteroid and deflect it from its path.
The hashtag iOS 17 is trending on social media platform “X” and many other websites, iPhone fans are waiting for the new operating system, after Apple announced its launch. As Apple offers users more features with every update be it looks, designs or experiences, specialized websites have reported many amazing features of this update.
iOS 17 brings new features to improve what Apple does every day, so you can express yourself like never before when you call or message someone.
Most Important Features of iOS 17 Update: During its recent annual conference, Apple explained that the iOS 17 update will bring many important and exciting features to users of all its devices, and the most important of these features include:
– The iOS 17 update lets you personalize your phone calls, customize what people see when they call, and share content in new and convenient ways.
As for Messages, all your iMessage apps are in one place. If you press the new plus button, all the things you send often will be displayed – like photos, voice messages and your location.
One of the most important features is that you will be notified when you arrive safely, as the check-in app will automatically notify your friend or family member when you reach your destination, such as your home.
The iOS 17 update will also let you jump to the first message you don’t see in a conversation, and you can swipe right on any message to send a reply.
– As for search filters, you can quickly find the searched message by combining search filters to quickly narrow down the search.
The iOS 17 update also includes a number of big improvements like contact stickers for phone calls, improvements to AirDrop, and a full-screen standby experience while your iPhone is charging.
The update will offer live voicemail scanning, and a new Name Drop feature will allow iPhone users to exchange contact information by trying each other’s phones.
iOS 17 brings improvements and new features to autocorrect and predictive text.
iOS 17 will let FaceTime users send video messages to people they call but don’t answer.
– To meet the needs of people with cognitive disabilities, there will be an assistive accessibility feature that focuses on key features in apps and experiences.
– The Personal Voice feature allows people with aphasia to set up a voice that sounds like their own and use it with the Live Talk feature to communicate in calls and chats.
– Point and Speak feature allows visually impaired people to interact with physical objects with text labels.
As for the reminder service, the grocery lists feature automatically categorizes items and organizes them into different categories to make the shopping process easier. The list will save your preferences when you change the way you order.
– People Photo Album now better recognizes your favorite people and your family’s favorite cats and dogs.
Some components are delayed in the new update According to Apple, the iOS 17 update will not include all the features released, as some key components such as the Journal app will be delayed to later versions.
Journal application Journal is a new app that allows iPhone users to capture their daily experiences and memories in a detailed manner.
The app will allow users to add text, photos, music and audio recordings to their journal entries, and the app will also offer personalized recommendations based on the user’s recent activity on the device.
Steps to Update iOS 17 – First, back up all your important files to avoid any mistake, so back up your precious photos, videos and other files before setting them up to iCloud or any other storage service.
– Phone must be charged before updating.
-You should have some free space to download the update which is usually around 10GB.
– Connect to Wi-Fi network before starting iOS 17 updates.
How to download iOS 17? – First you need to go to Settings and then click on General.
– Then you need to click on software update and select new beta update item under automatic updates.
– The ability to install “iOS 17 Public Beta” will appear on the screen.
