. 24/7 Space News .
EXO WORLDS
Breakthrough Starshot launches tiny spacecraft in quest for Alpha Centauri
by Staff Writers
San Francisco CA (SPX) Jul 27, 2017


Breakthrough Starshot, announced on April 12, 2016, by Yuri Milner and Stephen Hawking, is a $100 million research and engineering program aiming to demonstrate proof of concept for light-propelled spacecraft that could fly at 20 percent of light speed and, in just over 20 years after their launch, capture images and other measurements of the exoplanet Proxima b and other planets in our nearest star system, Alpha Centauri.

Breakthrough Starshot, a multi-faceted program to develop and launch practical interstellar space missions, successfully flew its first spacecraft - the smallest ever launched.

On June 23, a number of prototype "Sprites" - the world's smallest fully functional space probes, built on a single circuit board - achieved Low Earth Orbit, piggybacking on OHB System AG's 'Max Valier' and 'Venta' satellites.

The 3.5-by-3.5 centimeterchips weigh just four grams but contain solar panels, computers, sensors, and radios. These vehicles are the next step of a revolution in spacecraft miniaturization that can contribute to the development of centimeter- and gram-scale "StarChips" envisioned by the Breakthrough Starshot project.

The Sprite is the brainchild of Breakthrough Starshot's Zac Manchester, whose 2011 Kickstarter campaign, "KickSat," raised the first funds to develop the concept.

The Sprites were constructed by researchers at Cornell University and transported into space as secondary payloads by the Max Valier and Venta satellites, the latter built by the Bremen-based OHB System AG, whose generous assistance made the mission possible.

The Sprites remain attached to the satellites. Communications received from the mission show the Sprite system performing as designed.

The spacecraft are in radio communication with ground stations in California and New York, as well as with amateur radio enthusiasts around the world. This mission is designed to test how well the Sprites' electronics perform in orbit, and demonstrates their novel radio communication architecture.

Breakthrough Initiatives - including most notably, Breakthrough Starshot and Breakthrough Listen - are a set of long-term astronomical programs exploring the Universe, seeking scientific evidence of life beyond Earth, and encouraging public debate from a planetary perspective.

EXO WORLDS
Turbulence in planetary cores excited by tides
Paris, France (SPX) Jul 26, 2017
Veritable shields against high-energy particles, planets' magnetic fields are produced by iron moving in their liquid core. Yet the dominant model for explaining this system does not fit the smallest celestial bodies. Researchers at the Institut de Recherche sur les Phenomenes Hors Equilibre and the University of Leeds have proposed a new model suggesting that turbulence in the liquid cores is d ... read more

Related Links
Breakthrough Starshot
Lands Beyond Beyond - extra solar planets - news and science
Life Beyond Earth


Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only


Comment using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

EXO WORLDS
Soyuz rocket rolled out, ready to launch

Astronauts gear up for space with tough Russian training

Russian sanctions won't affect cooperation in space

NASA Offers Space Station as Catalyst for Discovery in Washington

EXO WORLDS
Vega to launch two Earth Observation Satellites for Italy, Israel and France

Three Up, Three Down as NASA Tests RS-25 Flight Controller

Iran in 'successful' test of satellite-launch rocket

Aerojet Rocketdyne's RS-25 Flight Controller Goes Three for Three in SLS Test

EXO WORLDS
Portals to new worlds: Martian exploration near the North Pole

For Moratorium on Sending Commands to Mars, Blame the Sun

Tributes to wetter times on Mars

Opportunity will spend three weeks at current location due to Solar Conjunction

EXO WORLDS
China develops sea launches to boost space commerce

Chinese satellite Zhongxing-9A enters preset orbit

Chinese Space Program: From Setback, to Manned Flights, to the Moon

Chinese Rocket Fizzles Out, Puts Other Launches on Hold

EXO WORLDS
Good Night, Lisa Pathfinder

A Final Farewell to LISA Pathfinder

ASTROSCALE Raises a Total of $25 Million in Series C Led by Private Companies

LISA Pathfinder: bake, rattle and roll

EXO WORLDS
Multitasking monolayers

Writing with the electron beam: Now in silver

Scientists announce the quest for high-index materials

A new synthesis route for alternative catalysts of noble metals

EXO WORLDS
SETI Institute-Unistellar Partnership Promises to Revolutionize Amateur Astronomy

Holographic imaging could sample and identify living microbes in the outer solar system

Why looking for aliens is good for society

Breakthrough Starshot launches tiny spacecraft in quest for Alpha Centauri

EXO WORLDS
New Horizons Video Soars over Pluto's Majestic Mountains and Icy Plains

Juno spots Jupiter's Great Red Spot

New evidence in support of the Planet Nine hypothesis

NASA's New Horizons Team Strikes Gold in Argentina









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.