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#41
In the Media... / NASA engineers discover why Vo...
Last post by Rick - Apr 06, 2024, 08:48:48A little more detail...
NASA engineers discover why Voyager 1 is sending a stream of gibberish from outside our solar system
For the past five months, the Voyager 1 spacecraft has been sending a steady stream of unreadable gibberish back to Earth. Now, NASA engineers finally know why.
The 46-year-old spacecraft sends regular radio signals as it drifts further from our solar system. But in November 2023, the signals suddenly became garbled, meaning scientists were unable to read any of its data, and they were left mystified about the fault's origins.
In March, NASA engineers sent a command prompt, or "poke," to the craft to get a readout from its flight data subsystem (FDS) — which packages Voyager 1's science and engineering data before beaming it back to Earth.
After decoding the spacecraft's response, the engineers have found the source of the problem: The FDS's memory has been corrupted.
More: https://www.livescience.com/space/space-exploration/nasa-engineers-discover-why-voyager-1-is-sending-a-stream-of-gibberish-from-outside-our-solar-system
NASA engineers discover why Voyager 1 is sending a stream of gibberish from outside our solar system
For the past five months, the Voyager 1 spacecraft has been sending a steady stream of unreadable gibberish back to Earth. Now, NASA engineers finally know why.
The 46-year-old spacecraft sends regular radio signals as it drifts further from our solar system. But in November 2023, the signals suddenly became garbled, meaning scientists were unable to read any of its data, and they were left mystified about the fault's origins.
In March, NASA engineers sent a command prompt, or "poke," to the craft to get a readout from its flight data subsystem (FDS) — which packages Voyager 1's science and engineering data before beaming it back to Earth.
After decoding the spacecraft's response, the engineers have found the source of the problem: The FDS's memory has been corrupted.
More: https://www.livescience.com/space/space-exploration/nasa-engineers-discover-why-voyager-1-is-sending-a-stream-of-gibberish-from-outside-our-solar-system
#42
In the Media... / Re: Chunks of deorbiting ESA s...
Last post by Rick - Apr 04, 2024, 16:59:42I expect they've been arguing over who foots the bill for weeks already...
I suspect they'll be a lot more careful about how they drop that kind of high density garbage out of orbit in future, though.
I suspect they'll be a lot more careful about how they drop that kind of high density garbage out of orbit in future, though.
#43
In the Media... / Re: News of the Voyager missio...
Last post by Dave A - Apr 04, 2024, 14:57:35Really incredible that we can still communicate with Voyager 1- lets hope this continues
#44
In the Media... / Re: Chunks of deorbiting ESA s...
Last post by Dave A - Apr 04, 2024, 14:54:21As well as Nasa, wont ESA and Roscosmos be liable too
#45
In the Media... / Re: Boffins build world's larg...
Last post by Carole - Apr 04, 2024, 14:19:28Wow
#46
In the Media... / Re: Chunks of deorbiting ESA s...
Last post by Carole - Apr 04, 2024, 14:18:46Oh my goodness. Presume NASA will have to pay for the house repairs.
#47
In the Media... / Re: News of the Voyager missio...
Last post by Carole - Apr 04, 2024, 14:14:37Good news - glad they never gave up.
#48
In the Media... / NASA's FY2025 budget request m...
Last post by Rick - Apr 04, 2024, 11:59:26NASA's FY2025 budget request means tough times ahead for Chandra and Hubble
NASA has published its budget request for the fiscal year 2025, and it is not good news for the Hubble Space Telescope or the Chandra X-ray Observatory.
The total budget request is unchanged from FY2023's Operating Plan, meaning that it had to make some tough decisions to accommodate increases elsewhere in the agency's remit. This means that should things go through as planned, the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) is in line for some cuts while Chandra's funding is set to dwindle to what NASA described as "minimal operations."
To put this in context, Chandra has enjoyed a prodigiously long mission, having managed more than 24 years of a planned five-year mission in orbit. It was deployed from Space Shuttle Columbia in 1999 and has been a boon to X-ray astronomers ever since.
Those days, however, seem to be coming to an end. Although the spacecraft continues to return useful science, ever-tightening purse strings dictate that NASA managers need to balance the cost of keeping Chandra running against future missions and other operational needs.
More: https://www.theregister.com/2024/03/12/nasas_fy2025_budget_request_means/
NASA has published its budget request for the fiscal year 2025, and it is not good news for the Hubble Space Telescope or the Chandra X-ray Observatory.
The total budget request is unchanged from FY2023's Operating Plan, meaning that it had to make some tough decisions to accommodate increases elsewhere in the agency's remit. This means that should things go through as planned, the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) is in line for some cuts while Chandra's funding is set to dwindle to what NASA described as "minimal operations."
To put this in context, Chandra has enjoyed a prodigiously long mission, having managed more than 24 years of a planned five-year mission in orbit. It was deployed from Space Shuttle Columbia in 1999 and has been a boon to X-ray astronomers ever since.
Those days, however, seem to be coming to an end. Although the spacecraft continues to return useful science, ever-tightening purse strings dictate that NASA managers need to balance the cost of keeping Chandra running against future missions and other operational needs.
More: https://www.theregister.com/2024/03/12/nasas_fy2025_budget_request_means/
#49
In the Media... / Voyager 1 starts making sense ...
Last post by Rick - Apr 04, 2024, 11:57:46Voyager 1 starts making sense again after months of babble
Engineers are hopeful the veteran spacecraft Voyager 1 has turned a corner after spending the past three months spouting gibberish at controllers.
On March 1, the Voyager team sent a command, dubbed a "poke," to get the probe's Flight Data System (FDS) to try some other sequences in its software in the hope of circumventing whatever had become corrupted.
Readers of a certain vintage will doubtless have memories of poke sheets for various 1980s games. Not that this hack ever used a poke to get infinite lives in Jet Set Willy, of course.
While Voyager 1's lifespan is not infinite, it has endured far longer than anticipated and might be about to dodge yet another bullet. On March 3, the mission team saw something different in the stream of data returned from the spacecraft, which had been unreadable since December.
More: https://www.theregister.com/2024/03/14/voyager_1_not_dead/
Engineers are hopeful the veteran spacecraft Voyager 1 has turned a corner after spending the past three months spouting gibberish at controllers.
On March 1, the Voyager team sent a command, dubbed a "poke," to get the probe's Flight Data System (FDS) to try some other sequences in its software in the hope of circumventing whatever had become corrupted.
Readers of a certain vintage will doubtless have memories of poke sheets for various 1980s games. Not that this hack ever used a poke to get infinite lives in Jet Set Willy, of course.
While Voyager 1's lifespan is not infinite, it has endured far longer than anticipated and might be about to dodge yet another bullet. On March 3, the mission team saw something different in the stream of data returned from the spacecraft, which had been unreadable since December.
More: https://www.theregister.com/2024/03/14/voyager_1_not_dead/
#50
In the Media... / Swift enters safe mode over gy...
Last post by Rick - Apr 04, 2024, 11:56:28Swift enters safe mode over gyro issue while NASA preps patch to shake it off
NASA's Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory has dropped into safe mode after one of the spacecraft's three gyroscopes showed signs of degradation.
The fix will require a software update to permit the spacecraft to continue with its two remaining gyros.
The spacecraft, which was launched in 2004 for a planned two-year mission, is designed to study gamma-ray bursts (GRBs). It was originally called the Swift Gamma-Ray Burst Explorer but was later renamed for its Principal Investigator, Neil Gehrels.
As with several other NASA missions – for example, Chandra – Swift's future is uncertain. Although a 2022 Senior Review panel deemed Swift the top-ranked satellite among operating missions other than Hubble and Chandra, its extended mission operations only run through FY2025. NASA is due to conduct the next Senior Review in spring next year.
More: https://www.theregister.com/2024/03/19/swift_enters_safe_mode/
NASA's Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory has dropped into safe mode after one of the spacecraft's three gyroscopes showed signs of degradation.
The fix will require a software update to permit the spacecraft to continue with its two remaining gyros.
The spacecraft, which was launched in 2004 for a planned two-year mission, is designed to study gamma-ray bursts (GRBs). It was originally called the Swift Gamma-Ray Burst Explorer but was later renamed for its Principal Investigator, Neil Gehrels.
As with several other NASA missions – for example, Chandra – Swift's future is uncertain. Although a 2022 Senior Review panel deemed Swift the top-ranked satellite among operating missions other than Hubble and Chandra, its extended mission operations only run through FY2025. NASA is due to conduct the next Senior Review in spring next year.
More: https://www.theregister.com/2024/03/19/swift_enters_safe_mode/