“Space Ventura,” Space Detective

This is an odd business opportunity, and one which Air and Space Evidence Ltd. looks keen and ready to exploit. Their work seems to identify a gap that civil local government services haven’t yet addressed: solving crimes using Earth Observation imagery. The company isn’t just focusing on capital crimes, such as murder (although this NewScientist story talks about […]

A Landmark Anniversary for Space?

Oct. 3, 1942–72 years ago–an A-4 test rocket was launched from Peenemuende Army Research Center. The fourth A-4 to be tested, it was the first to successfully fly. It was also the first rocket to reach the edges of outer space (it flew about 85-90 kilometers above the Earth). If you’ve never heard of the A-4, […]

Groovy Man! Satellite Helps with Earthquake

The European Space Agency (ESA) announced the results of a decision to use California’s Napa Valley earthquake as an opportunity to show how satellites might be able to provide information. In this case, the ESA tasked their low earth orbiting (LEO) Sentinel-1 satellite‘s Synthetic Aperture Radar Interferometry payload to take a look at the affected area. The […]

The Safe Way to Observe a Volcano

I suppose it isn’t ironic to anyone that Iceland is home to some hot attractions, such as volcanoes. On August 28, 2014, their Bardarbunga (sounds like something out of Ninja Turtles) volcano erupted a bit. All sorts of tools have been used to observe the angry mountain: webcams, helicopters, cars, and planes. Of course, most […]

Copenhagen Suborbitals HEAT-2X: Slight Setback

Rocket engines, especially new ones, sometimes just don’t do what they’re supposed to do. Copenhagen Suborbitals tested their HEAT-2x rocket engine this last Saturday, but the engine failed the test. Rocket science is hard. For those who didn’t see this last Saturday’s post, Copenhagen Suborbitals is an all-volunteer launch agency out of Denmark that ultimately […]