Short Takes – 8-9-24 – Space Geek Edition

NASA Says Boeing Starliner Astronauts May Fly Home on SpaceX in 2025. NYTimes.com article. Pull quote: “Under the contingency plan, the next SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule would travel to the space station with only two astronauts instead of four. Ms. Williams and Mr. Wilmore would then join as full-fledged members of the space station crew for a half-year stay and return on the Crew Dragon around next February.”

NASA says chances are growing that astronauts may switch from Boeing to a SpaceX ride back to Earth. Phys.org article. Pull quote: “The next crew flight will be SpaceX's 10th for NASA. On Tuesday, it was delayed for a month until late September to allow for extra time to figure out how best to handle Starliner's return. Three NASA astronauts and one Russian are assigned to the flight, and managers on Wednesday declined to say who might be bumped.”

Drop it like it’s hot: Space Rider model falls gracefully. ESA.int article. Pull quote: “The Space Rider project is an uncrewed laboratory about the size of two minivans that will be able to stay in orbit for up to two months. The spacecraft comes in two parts, an orbital module that supplies everything it needs to fly around our planet and a reentry module that brings Space Rider and its experiments back to Earth.”

SpaceX targeting Aug. 26 for historic Polaris Dawn astronaut mission. Space.com article. Pull quote: “The news [August 26^th projected launch date], which the Polaris Dawn team announced today (Aug. 7) via a post on X, firms up a previously vague window; the most recent target for the groundbreaking mission was mid-August.”

Terraforming Mars could be easier than scientists thought. Science.org article. Pull quote: “Mars could warm by about 10°C within a matter of months, the team found, despite requiring 5000 times less material than other proposed greenhouse gas schemes. The 2 million tons of [9-micrometer-long rods] particles still represent about six Empire State Buildings, and roughly 0.1% of the industrial metals mined on Earth each year. But because the rods’ raw materials exist on Mars, people could mine them on the Red Planet, the team says, eliminating the need for transport from Earth.”

This futuristic space habitat is designed to self-assemble in orbit. TechnologyReview.com article. Pull quote: “Following a successful launch, the tiles would be thrown into space in a balloon-like structure or net to stop them from drifting away. The net would keep the tiles, which have strong magnets in their edges, close enough for magnetic attraction. The hope is that the tiles would then snap together on their own into the correct configuration the first time. If they don’t, the team can pulse a current through the magnets to break apart the incorrectly configured tiles and try again. Following assembly, electrical and plumbing systems can be mounted by hand.”