S03E188: Dragon's Descent, Shenzhou's Scientific Shift, and Starliner's Setbacks

0:00 Speaker 1: Welcome to Astronomy Daily, your go to podcast for the

0:02 Speaker 1: latest in space and astronomy news. I'm your host, Anna,

0:05 Speaker 1: and today we've got a packed episode covering everything from

0:08 Speaker 1: SpaceX missions to solar storms and satellite mishaps. Buckle up,

0:13 Speaker 1: space enthusiasts, because we're about to embark on a cosmic

0:17 Speaker 1: journey through today's most exciting developments in the world of

0:20 Speaker 1: space exploration and astronomical discoveries. After weeks of weather related delays,

0:27 Speaker 1: SpaceX's Crew eight mission has finally begun its journey back

0:30 Speaker 1: to Earth. The Dragon spacecraft, aptly named Endeavor, undocked from

0:34 Speaker 1: the International Space Station yesterday at five five pm Eastern time.

0:39 Speaker 1: This marked the end of a prolonged stay for the

0:41 Speaker 1: four astronauts aboard, who had been eagerly awaiting their return trip.

0:45 Speaker 1: The undocking process went smoothly, as Endeavor separated from the

0:48 Speaker 1: station while orbiting about two hundred and sixty miles above

0:51 Speaker 1: the Pacific Ocean. Now, the spacecraft is on a trajectory

0:54 Speaker 1: that will bring it back to our planet, with a

0:57 Speaker 1: splash down expected off the coast of Florida early tomorrow

1:00 Speaker 1: morning around three thirty a m. Eastern time. This return

1:03 Speaker 1: journey caps off the eighth long duration NASA and roscosmo's

1:07 Speaker 1: astronaut mission that SpaceX has conducted to the ISS. The crew,

1:11 Speaker 1: consisting of NASA astronauts Matthew Dominic, Michael Barrett, and Jeannette Epps,

1:15 Speaker 1: along with Russian cosmonaut Alexander Gribenkin, launched on March third

1:19 Speaker 1: and have spent over seven months in space. Their return

1:23 Speaker 1: was significantly delayed due to poor weather conditions in the

1:26 Speaker 1: splashdown area, primarily caused by Hurricane Milton. The storm's impact

1:31 Speaker 1: was so severe that it even led to the temporary

1:33 Speaker 1: closure of NASA's Kennedy Space Center. For those interested in

1:36 Speaker 1: watching the splash down live, NASA will be streaming the

1:39 Speaker 1: event on NASA Plus. Following the touchdown. A post splashdown

1:43 Speaker 1: news conference is scheduled for later in the morning, where

1:46 Speaker 1: we'll likely get more details about the mission and the

1:49 Speaker 1: crew's experiences. While on the subject of trips into space,

1:53 Speaker 1: China is gearing up for its fourteenth manned mission to

1:56 Speaker 1: the Tiangong Space Station, with the Shenzho nineteen space craft

2:00 Speaker 1: set to launch in the near future. The spacecraft and

2:02 Speaker 1: its long march to f rocket have already been moved

2:05 Speaker 1: to the service tower at the Juquan Satellite Launch Center

2:08 Speaker 1: in the Gobi Desert, where they'll undergo final checks before liftoff.

2:12 Speaker 1: This mission marks another significant step in China's ambitious space program,

2:17 Speaker 1: as it will be the eighth crew to live aboard Tiangong.

2:20 Speaker 1: While the names of the astronauts haven't been released yet,

2:22 Speaker 1: they'll be taking over from the current crew who've been

2:25 Speaker 1: on board since April. What's particularly interesting about this mission

2:29 Speaker 1: is the evolving nature of the tasks assigned to the astronauts.

2:33 Speaker 1: According to Wang Yan'an, chief editor of Aerospace Magazine, the

2:37 Speaker 1: Shenzho nineteen crew will be undertaking more advanced scientific and

2:40 Speaker 1: technological experiments than their predecessors. This shift in focus comes

2:45 Speaker 1: as the astronauts have become more familiar with life on

2:47 Speaker 1: the station and its systems are now fully operational. The

2:51 Speaker 1: Tiangong Space Station, completed in twenty twenty two, is a

2:55 Speaker 1: testament to China's growing space capabilities. Orbiting about four hundred

2:59 Speaker 1: kilometers above Earth, it's one of the most complex space

3:02 Speaker 1: structures ever built, consisting of a core module and two

3:06 Speaker 1: science capsules. As China continues to push the boundaries of

3:09 Speaker 1: its space exploration. We can expect to see even more

3:12 Speaker 1: ambitious missions and groundbreaking research coming from the Tiangong Space

3:16 Speaker 1: Station in the future. And now a look at Boeing's

3:19 Speaker 1: latest woes. Boeing's CST one hundred star Liner program is

3:24 Speaker 1: facing yet another setback, as the aerospace giant has announced

3:27 Speaker 1: a new two hundred and fifty million dollars charge against

3:31 Speaker 1: earnings in the third quarter. This latest financial hit brings

3:34 Speaker 1: the total losses on the Starliner project to a staggering

3:37 Speaker 1: one point eight five billion dollars. The charge is primarily

3:41 Speaker 1: due to scheduled delays and higher testing and certification costs.

3:44 Speaker 1: It's a significant blow to Boeing's Defense, Space and Security

3:48 Speaker 1: business unit, which has been grappling with challenges across several

3:51 Speaker 1: fixed price programs. Despite these mounting losses, Boeing's new CEO,

3:56 Speaker 1: Kelly Ortberg, has made it clear that the company won't

3:59 Speaker 1: be walking away from troubled programs like Starliner. In a

4:02 Speaker 1: recent earnings call, Ortberg emphasized that abandoning such contracts is

4:06 Speaker 1: not a viable option for Boeing. Instead, the company is

4:09 Speaker 1: focusing on improving its risk management and working more closely

4:12 Speaker 1: with customers to address potential issues before they escalate. Ortberg

4:16 Speaker 1: acknowledge that there's no quick fix for these challenging contracts,

4:20 Speaker 1: but stress the importance of seeing them through. This commitment

4:24 Speaker 1: to the Starliner program comes at a time when Boeing

4:27 Speaker 1: is also evaluating ways to streamline its business. While the

4:30 Speaker 1: core commercial, aviation and defense sectors are safe, the company

4:34 Speaker 1: may consider divesting from some fringe areas to improve efficiency

4:37 Speaker 1: and focus. As Boeing continues to navigate these choppy waters,

4:41 Speaker 1: the space industry will be watching closely to see how

4:44 Speaker 1: the Starliner program evolves and whether the company can turn

4:47 Speaker 1: the tide on its substantial losses. Now this is a

4:51 Speaker 1: pretty novel idea. In a fascinating development, researchers have uncovered

4:55 Speaker 1: a new way to study extreme space weather events by

4:58 Speaker 1: examining tree rings. This discovery could revolutionize our understanding of

5:02 Speaker 1: solar storms and their potential impacts on Earth. Solar storms,

5:06 Speaker 1: while often providing us with beautiful auroral displays, can pose

5:10 Speaker 1: serious threats to our technology and infrastructure. These events can

5:13 Speaker 1: disrupt satellite communications, GPS systems, and even power grids. But now,

5:18 Speaker 1: thanks to the work of a team led by Amy

5:20 Speaker 1: Hessel from the Everly College of Arts and Sciences. We

5:23 Speaker 1: have a new tool to study these phenomena. When severe

5:26 Speaker 1: solar storms occur, they produce energetic particles that interact with

5:30 Speaker 1: our atmosphere, creating radiocarbon, an unstable radioactive isotope of carbon.

5:36 Speaker 1: Trees absorb this carbon from the air as they grow,

5:39 Speaker 1: leaving a record of these events in their annual rings.

5:43 Speaker 1: The team has identified evidence of several extreme solar storms,

5:46 Speaker 1: known as miake events, in tree ring records dating back

5:49 Speaker 1: thousands of years. These findings challenge previous assumptions about how

5:53 Speaker 1: trees absorb radiocarbon, suggesting a more complex process than initially thought.

5:58 Speaker 1: This research isn't just academic, It has real world implications

6:02 Speaker 1: for our safety and preparedness. Understanding the frequency and intensity

6:06 Speaker 1: of past solar storms can help us better prepare for

6:08 Speaker 1: future events, potentially saving lives and protecting critical infrastructure. As

6:13 Speaker 1: we continue to rely more heavily on technology vulnerable to

6:16 Speaker 1: space weather. This new method of studying solar storms through

6:20 Speaker 1: tree rings could prove invaluable in our efforts to safeguard

6:23 Speaker 1: our modern world against the unpredictable moods of our sun.

6:28 Speaker 1: Next in a fascinating blend of science fiction and reality,

6:31 Speaker 1: miniature monoliths inspired by the iconic film two thousand and one,

6:36 Speaker 1: A Space Odyssey, have recently made their journey to space.

6:40 Speaker 1: These small black slabs, modeled after the mysterious monoliths from

6:43 Speaker 1: Stanley Kubrick's Masterpiece, hitched a ride on Blue Origin's New

6:47 Speaker 1: Shepherd vehicle. The mission, known as n S twenty seven,

6:50 Speaker 1: launched from Blue Origins facility in West Texas. The tiny monoliths,

6:55 Speaker 1: measuring just zero point four by one point six by

6:57 Speaker 1: three point five inches, were part of a unique payload

7:00 Speaker 1: aboard the RSS Carmen Line capsule. This uncrude flight marked

7:04 Speaker 1: the first mission for Blue Origin's second human rated launch vehicle.

7:08 Speaker 1: The monoliths were flown for Space Manic, a satellite mission integrator,

7:12 Speaker 1: in collaboration with Croatian publisher Amaranthine Books. Upon their return

7:16 Speaker 1: to Earth, these spacefaring replicas will be paired with special

7:20 Speaker 1: editions of Clark's novel, creating a truly out of this

7:23 Speaker 1: world collectible for sci fi enthusiasts. But the monoliths weren't

7:27 Speaker 1: alone on their cosmic journey. The New Shepherd vehicle carried

7:31 Speaker 1: eleven other payloads, including navigation sensors for Blue Origin's moon

7:35 Speaker 1: landing program, and student designed postcards. The mission successfully reached

7:39 Speaker 1: above the Carmen Line, the boundary between Earth's atmosphere and space,

7:43 Speaker 1: before safely returning to Terra Firma. It's worth noting that

7:46 Speaker 1: this isn't the first time two thousand and one a

7:49 Speaker 1: space Odyssey has inspired real space missions. Back in two

7:52 Speaker 1: thousand and one, NASA astronaut Thomas Jones carried a copy

7:56 Speaker 1: of the book and a miniature monolith aboard the space

7:58 Speaker 1: Shuttle Atlantis, enting the film's enduring influence on space exploration. Finally, today,

8:04 Speaker 1: the hits keep coming for Boeing. In a surprising turn

8:07 Speaker 1: of events, Intelsat has declared its Intelsat thirty three E

8:10 Speaker 1: communications satellite a total loss following an unexpected breakdown on

8:15 Speaker 1: October nineteenth. This satellite, which had been in operation for

8:19 Speaker 1: just seven years, was expected to have a lifespan of

8:22 Speaker 1: fifteen to twenty years. The sudden failure has left Intelsat

8:26 Speaker 1: scrambling to move affected customers in Europe, Africa, and parts

8:29 Speaker 1: of the Asia Pacific region to other platforms. What's particularly

8:33 Speaker 1: concerning is the debris field created by this incident. The

8:36 Speaker 1: US Space Force has reported tracking around twenty pieces shortly

8:39 Speaker 1: after the breakdown, while other tracking companies have observed even

8:43 Speaker 1: more fragments. Swiss company s TOA Systems noted forty pieces

8:47 Speaker 1: and US based Exoanalytics Solutions spotted fifty seven fragments. This

8:52 Speaker 1: sudden increase in space debris poses a potential threat to

8:55 Speaker 1: other satellites in geostationary orbit. Intelsat is currently working with

8:59 Speaker 1: the satellite manufacturer Boeing and government agencies to analyze data

9:03 Speaker 1: and determine the cause of the failure. This isn't the

9:06 Speaker 1: first time Intelsat has faced satellite issues. The Intelsat thirty

9:10 Speaker 1: three E had already experienced propulsion system problems that had

9:13 Speaker 1: reduced its expected operational lifetime. Additionally, its predecessor, Intelsat twenty

9:18 Speaker 1: nine E, failed after only three years in orbit. As

9:22 Speaker 1: the investigation continues, this incident serves as a stark reminder

9:26 Speaker 1: of the challenges and unpredictability of satellite operations. It also

9:29 Speaker 1: highlights the growing concern over space debris and the need

9:32 Speaker 1: for improved satellite durability and debris mitigation strategies in our

9:37 Speaker 1: increasingly crowded orbital environment, and that wraps up our cosmic

9:42 Speaker 1: journey for today. I hope you've enjoyed this episode of

9:45 Speaker 1: Astronomy Daily as much as I've enjoyed bringing it to you.

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