Saturn's Timeless Rings, Europe's Satellite Ambitions, and SpaceX's Launch Frenzy: S03E234

0:00 Speaker 1: Welcome to Astronomy Daily, your daily dose of the latest

0:03 Speaker 1: space and astronomy news. I'm your host, Anna, and today

0:06 Speaker 1: we have a packed show covering everything from Saturn's rings

0:10 Speaker 1: to the latest space launches and groundbreaking observations. We've got

0:13 Speaker 1: a lot to cover, so let's get started. A fascinating

0:17 Speaker 1: debate has emerged in the scientific community about the age

0:20 Speaker 1: of Saturn's rings. You might have heard the popular fact

0:23 Speaker 1: that sharks are older than Saturn's rings. Well that might

0:27 Speaker 1: not be true after all. A new study published in

0:30 Speaker 1: Nature Geoscience is challenging our understanding of these iconic features.

0:34 Speaker 1: Until recently, scientists believed Saturn's rings were relatively young, forming

0:39 Speaker 1: somewhere between one hundred to four hundred million years ago.

0:43 Speaker 1: This theory was based on their remarkably clean and bright appearance,

0:47 Speaker 1: as observed by the Cassini mission in two thousand and four.

0:50 Speaker 1: The thinking went that if the rings were billions of

0:52 Speaker 1: years old, they would have become darkened and dirty from

0:56 Speaker 1: countless micro meteoroid impacts over time. However, the searchers have

1:00 Speaker 1: now proposed an intriguing alternative explanation for their pristine condition.

1:06 Speaker 1: Using computer simulations, they discovered that when micro meteoroids crash

1:10 Speaker 1: into the icy ring particles, they don't simply collect on

1:14 Speaker 1: the surface as previously thought. Instead, these impacts actually vaporize

1:18 Speaker 1: the micro metioroids, turning them into charged particles that either

1:22 Speaker 1: get pulled into Saturn itself or are flung out into

1:24 Speaker 1: deep space. This new understanding suggests that Saturn's rings could

1:28 Speaker 1: actually be as old as the Solar system itself, approximately

1:32 Speaker 1: four point six billion years old. The rings have managed

1:35 Speaker 1: to stay clean and bright all this time because they

1:37 Speaker 1: have an efficient natural cleaning mechanism, rather than being young.

1:42 Speaker 1: So while we might need to retire that fun fact

1:44 Speaker 1: about sharks being older than Saturn's rings, there's still plenty

1:48 Speaker 1: of astronomical wonder to share. For instance, did you know

1:51 Speaker 1: that the Southern Cross constellation contains multiple stars younger than

1:54 Speaker 1: twenty million years old. That's younger than mammals, birds, and

1:57 Speaker 1: even flowering plants. It seems everyone is wanting to get

2:01 Speaker 1: into competition with SpaceX these days, particularly the Europeans and China.

2:08 Speaker 1: In news today, the European Union has just taken a

2:10 Speaker 1: major step forward in securing its space based communications infrastructure

2:15 Speaker 1: by signing contracts for an ambitious new satellite constellation project

2:20 Speaker 1: named iris TOO, which stands for Infrastructure for Resilience, Interconnectivity

2:24 Speaker 1: and Security by Satellite. This eleven billion euros initiative will

2:29 Speaker 1: revolutionize Europe's satellite communications capabilities. The project will deploy nearly

2:34 Speaker 1: two hundred and ninety satellites across multiple orbital layers, with

2:38 Speaker 1: the first launches scheduled to begin in twenty twenty nine.

2:42 Speaker 1: These satellites will work together to provide secure connectivity services

2:46 Speaker 1: for EU member states and government authorities, while also delivering

2:50 Speaker 1: high speed broadband access to European citizens and businesses, including

2:54 Speaker 1: those in currently underserved areas. What makes IRIS TOO particularly

2:59 Speaker 1: noteworthy is its multi orbital approach. The constellation will feature

3:03 Speaker 1: satellites operating at different altitudes eighteen in medium orbit at

3:07 Speaker 1: about eight thousand kilometers, two hundred and sixty four in

3:11 Speaker 1: low orbit at roughly one thousand, two hundred kilometers and

3:14 Speaker 1: ten more between four hundred and fifty and seven hundred

3:17 Speaker 1: fifty kilometers from Earth. This layered configuration will enable comprehensive

3:21 Speaker 1: global coverage and allow the satellites to communicate with each

3:25 Speaker 1: other while routing all data through European ground stations. This

3:29 Speaker 1: project represents what EU officials are calling a paradigm shift

3:33 Speaker 1: in European space capabilities. For the first time, the EU

3:37 Speaker 1: s space program will explicitly contribute to defense needs, reducing

3:41 Speaker 1: dependence on non European providers and strengthening the Union's autonomy

3:46 Speaker 1: in satellite communications. The system is scheduled to become fully

3:50 Speaker 1: operational by twenty thirty, with some initial services beginning as

3:53 Speaker 1: early as twenty twenty five through a preliminary program called guvsatcom.

3:58 Speaker 1: The project's funding comes fromulti sources, including six billion euro

4:02 Speaker 1: from the EU budget, contributions from the European Space Agency,

4:06 Speaker 1: and significant private investment. This ambitious undertaking isn't just about

4:11 Speaker 1: European independence, it's also open to international cooperation. Several countries,

4:16 Speaker 1: including Japan, South Korea and Australia, have already expressed interest

4:21 Speaker 1: in accessing commercial services through the system, demonstrating its potential

4:25 Speaker 1: global impact. Speaking of SpaceX, the company is gearing up

4:30 Speaker 1: for what could be their most ambitious week yet, with

4:33 Speaker 1: an incredible seven Falcon nine launches scheduled. This remarkable lineup

4:38 Speaker 1: showcases the company's growing capability to maintain an unprecedented launch

4:42 Speaker 1: cadence while serving diverse mission requirements. The week kicked off

4:46 Speaker 1: with the successful launch of a GPS satellite for the

4:49 Speaker 1: US Space Force, designated as the Rapid Response Trailblazer one mission.

4:54 Speaker 1: This launch demonstrated the military's ability to compress their typical

4:57 Speaker 1: two year mission planning cycle into just six month months,

5:00 Speaker 1: marking a significant advancement in rapid response capabilities. Following this,

5:06 Speaker 1: SpaceX has planned launches for multiple commercial customers, including the

5:10 Speaker 1: three BM Power satellites for SES, which will provide enhanced

5:14 Speaker 1: Internet connectivity services from medium Earth orbit. The ASTRAINUS Block

5:18 Speaker 1: two mission will carry four innovative microgeo satellites designed to

5:22 Speaker 1: deliver broadband services to specific regions, including the Philippines and

5:26 Speaker 1: maritime customers. The National Reconnaissance Office will also see their

5:30 Speaker 1: NROL one hundred forty nine mission take flight from Vandenberg

5:34 Speaker 1: Space Force Base, while the Bandwagon two Ride Share mission

5:37 Speaker 1: will carry approximately fifteen small satellites to orbit. The United

5:42 Speaker 1: Arab Emirates THIAH four NNGS communications satellite is also scheduled

5:46 Speaker 1: for launch this week. Capping off this remarkable series of

5:50 Speaker 1: launches will be another batch of Starlink satellites. Continuing the

5:53 Speaker 1: expansion of SpaceX's Global Internet Constellation. If all goes according

5:58 Speaker 1: to plan, these launches will push SpaceX past one hundred

6:01 Speaker 1: and thirty missions for the year, further cementing their position

6:05 Speaker 1: as the world's most prolific launch provider. Each of these

6:09 Speaker 1: missions demonstrates not only SpaceX's reliable launch capabilities, but also

6:13 Speaker 1: their ability to support a wide range of customers, from

6:17 Speaker 1: military and intelligence agencies to commercial telecommunications providers and their

6:22 Speaker 1: own satellite Internet constellation. NASA's upcoming Da Vinci mission is

6:27 Speaker 1: set to revolutionize our understanding of Venus with groundbreaking new capabilities.

6:32 Speaker 1: Scheduled for launch in the early twenty thirties, this ambitious

6:35 Speaker 1: mission will deploy both an orbiting spacecraft and a descent

6:38 Speaker 1: probe to study our mysterious neighbor like never before. The

6:42 Speaker 1: descent probe will be the first of its kind to

6:45 Speaker 1: brave Venus' atmosphere in the twenty first century. About three

6:48 Speaker 1: feet wide, this specially designed sphere will plunge through the

6:52 Speaker 1: planet's thick corrosive clouds, capturing high resolution images and taking

6:57 Speaker 1: detailed measurements as it descends. One of Da Vinci's most

7:01 Speaker 1: exciting targets is the Alpha rangio region known as a tasera.

7:06 Speaker 1: These unique geological formations found only on Venus are thought

7:10 Speaker 1: to be ancient continents that could hold the secrets of

7:13 Speaker 1: the planet's past. The mission will capture the first close

7:16 Speaker 1: up photographs of Venus's surface in over forty years. The

7:21 Speaker 1: probe's journey through venus atmosphere will be equally groundbreaking. As

7:25 Speaker 1: it descends from ninety thousand feet above the surface, it

7:28 Speaker 1: will analyze the chemical composition of the lower atmosphere at

7:31 Speaker 1: regular intervals. This data could help scientists determine if Venus

7:36 Speaker 1: currently has active volcanoes and provide crucial insights into the

7:39 Speaker 1: planet's water history if there is indeed one. To accomplish

7:44 Speaker 1: these ambitious goals, Da Vinci will employ cutting edge technology

7:48 Speaker 1: that wasn't available to previous Venus missions. The probe features

7:51 Speaker 1: advanced ceramic and silica insulation to protect its sensitive electronics

7:55 Speaker 1: from venus extreme heat, and specialized acid resistant materials that

7:59 Speaker 1: are five times stronger than steel for its parachute system.

8:03 Speaker 1: If successful, DA Vinci will help us understand why Venus,

8:06 Speaker 1: despite forming from similar materials as Earth, evolved into such

8:10 Speaker 1: a drastically different world. This mission could finally unlock some

8:14 Speaker 1: of the most persistent mysteries about our nearest planetary neighbor

8:18 Speaker 1: and help us better understand the evolution of rocky planets

8:21 Speaker 1: throughout the universe. Finally, today, the iconic M eighty seven

8:27 Speaker 1: black hole, which made headlines in twenty eighteen when scientists

8:30 Speaker 1: captured its first ever image using the Event Horizon telescope,

8:34 Speaker 1: has now surprised researchers with a powerful and unexpected eruption.

8:38 Speaker 1: During observations in April and May twenty eighteen, the black

8:41 Speaker 1: hole produced an intense gamma ray flare that lasted approximately

8:46 Speaker 1: three days, marking its first major outbursts since twenty ten.

8:50 Speaker 1: Located fifty five million light years away at the heart

8:53 Speaker 1: of galaxy M eighty seven, this super massive black hole

8:57 Speaker 1: is truly massive, containing the equivalent mass of five point

9:00 Speaker 1: four billion suns. Unlike our galaxies relatively quiet central black hole,

9:06 Speaker 1: M eighty seven's black hole is a voracious feeder, constantly

9:10 Speaker 1: consuming surrounding matter and producing powerful jets of material. These

9:14 Speaker 1: jets are created as matter swirls around the black hole

9:16 Speaker 1: in what's called an accretion disc. The black hole's intense

9:20 Speaker 1: magnetic fields channel this material toward its poles, accelerating particles

9:25 Speaker 1: to nearly the speed of light before blasting them into space.

9:28 Speaker 1: The recent gamma ray flare was connected to one of

9:31 Speaker 1: these jets, which extends to a mind boggling distance tens

9:35 Speaker 1: of millions of times wider than the black hole itself.

9:38 Speaker 1: What makes this discovery particularly significant is that it provides

9:42 Speaker 1: scientists with an unprecedented opportunity to study how these jets

9:46 Speaker 1: form and accelerate particles to such extreme energies. The event

9:51 Speaker 1: Horizon telescope's observations, combined with data from multiple space based observatories,

9:56 Speaker 1: revealed annual changes in the jet's angle and correlate with

10:00 Speaker 1: the black holes event Horizon. This collaborative effort between ground

10:04 Speaker 1: and space based telescopes has given scientists new insights into

10:08 Speaker 1: the complex relationship between supermassive black holes and their powerful jets.

10:13 Speaker 1: The findings could help resolve long standing questions about the

10:17 Speaker 1: origin of cosmic rays detected on Earth and advance our

10:21 Speaker 1: understanding of how these cosmic giants influence their surrounding space.

10:26 Speaker 1: Thanks for tuning into another episode of Astronomy Daily. I'm

10:29 Speaker 1: anna and I hope you've enjoyed today's journey through the

10:32 Speaker 1: latest discoveries in space and astronomy. If you want to

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11:04 Speaker 1: Put the phone down, look up, and keep wondering about

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