Key advance toward 'micro-spacecraft'

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Comparison of a typical micro-spacecraft to the size of a birthday cake. Credit: Prasanna Chandrasekhar
Comparison of a typical micro-spacecraft to the size of a birthday cake. Credit: Prasanna Chandrasekhar

Fleets of inexpensive, pint-sized spacecraft are one giant leap closer to lift off. Researchers here at the 236th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society describe a new, razor thin temperature-regulating film that brings this sci-fi vision of "micro-spacecraft" weighing barely 50 pounds and 10-pound "nano-spacecraft" closer to reality.


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All News summaries from Space & Earth science news
All News summaries for August 19, 2008

NASA Invites Students to Name New Mars Rover

11 hours ago | User rating: not rated yet
(PhysOrg.com) -- NASA is looking for the right stuff, or in this case, the right name for the next Mars rover. NASA, in cooperation with Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures' movie WALL-E from Pixar Animation ...

Astronaut outside space station loses tool bag

11 hours ago | User rating: not rated yet
(AP) -- A spacewalking astronaut whose grease gun erupted in a backpack-sized tool bag accidentally let go of the tote outside the international space station Tuesday, and it floated off along with everything ...

Calif. utilities must use 33 percent renewable energy for power generation by 2020

12 hours ago | User rating: not rated yet
California utilities, already struggling to meet a law requiring more renewable energy, saw the bar raised even higher Monday.

Global warming predictions are overestimated, suggests study on black carbon

12 hours ago | User rating: not rated yet
(PhysOrg.com) -- A detailed analysis of black carbon -- the residue of burned organic matter -- in computer climate models suggests that those models may be overestimating global warming predictions.

Scientists discover new planet orbiting dangerously close to giant star

12 hours ago | User rating: not rated yet
A team of astronomers from Penn State and Nicolaus Copernicus University in Poland has discovered a new planet that is closely orbiting a red-giant star, HD 102272, which is much older than our own Sun. The ...