2022 space stories that are out of this world
Of the successful scientific operations of NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope with the fall of the Orion space capsule, 2022 has seen many victories.
Here are the most important moments to remember:
Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART)
NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission successfully altered the orbit of an asteroid millions of miles away. After two weeks of analysis after the spacecraft hit Dimorphos, the first time humanity deliberately changed the motion of a celestial object and the first large-scale demonstration of asteroid deflection technology, the scientists found that the kinetic impact had shortened the moon’s orbit around its parent asteroid. Didymos for 32 minutes. Previously, Dimorphos took 11 hours and 55 minutes to orbit Didymos. The measurement has a margin of uncertainty of approximately plus or minus two minutes.
NASA WEBB TELESCOPE IMAGE REVEALS FIRST STAR FORMATION IN ‘RARE’ FIND
In this image provided by NASA, debris is ejected from the asteroid Dimorphos, right, minutes after the intentional collision by NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirect Test (DART) mission on September 26, 2022, captured by the upcoming LICIACube of the Italian Space Agency. On Tuesday, October 5, 2022l, NASA said that the spacecraft managed to change its orbit.
((ASI/NASA via AP))
Black hole in the Milky Way
Astronomers released the first image of the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way. The colorful image was produced by the international Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) collaboration, using observations from a worldwide network of radio telescopes. The black hole is about 27,000 light-years from Earth and 4 million times more massive than our sun.
The Perseverance rover collects Martian samples
NASA’s Perseverance rover is expected to begin building the first sample repository on another world. According to NASA, this will mark a crucial milestone in the Mars Sample Return campaign, which aims to bring samples from Mars to Earth for a closer study. Over the course of about 30 days, Perseverance will deposit a total of 10 tubes carrying samples representing the diversity of the rock disc in Jezero Crater.
Orion spacecraft splashes after lunar flyby
Sagittarius A (asterisk) captured by the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) collaboration.
(Credit: EHT Collaboration)
IMPORTANT NASA IMAGES REVEAL SURFACE WITH IO VOLCANO
NASA’s Orion space capsule splashed into the ocean after 25 days unmanned test flight around the moon, concluding a mission that paves the way for astronauts on the next lunar flyby. The capsule splashed down in western Baja California, more than 300 miles south of the original target area.
The James Webb Space Telescope begins science operations
NASA and its international partners released the full series of the first full-color images and data from the James Webb Space Telescope. The images include the exoplanet WASP-96 b, which is a hot gas giant located nearly 1,150 light-years from Earth. In another photograph shared via an international broadcast, the Southern Ring, or “Eight-Burst”, shows in more detail the planetary nebula, which was previously hidden from astronomers. Next, in an image presented by European Space Agency (ESA) partners, Stephan’s Quintet, a visual grouping of five galaxies, is seen in a new light, some 290 million light-years away. The final image showed the bright view of the Carina Nebula, a stellar nursery, with new stars that were previously completely hidden. The “Cosmic Cliffs” captured by Webb are the edge of the gas giant cavity within the star-forming region of the Carina Nebula called NGC 3324. The Carina Nebula, which is in the Milky Way, is about 7,600 light years away. It is home to many massive stars that are several times larger than the sun.
Since then, the telescope has helped astronomers discover the first confirmed galaxies to date.
What looks a lot like rugged mountains on a moonlit evening is actually the edge of a nearby, young, star-forming region NGC 3324 in the Carina Nebula. Captured in infrared light by the Near Infrared Camera (NIRCam) on NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope, this image reveals previously obscured areas of star birth.
(IMAGE: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI)
NASA’s Native American astronaut makes history
NASA astronaut Nicole Mann made history as the first Native American woman to launch into space. Mann, a member of the Wailacki of the Round Valley Indian Tribes, traveled to the International Space Station as the commander of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 mission aboard the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft.
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Launch of the Axiom-1 private spaceflight
Axiom Mission 1, the first private crewed mission to the International Space Station (ISS), launched in April. SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket and Crew Dragon Endeavor lifted off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The Ax-1 mission sent four private space travelers on a 10-day flight to do science and push the limits of commercial spaceflight.
Bradford Betz of Fox News and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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