Concordia researchers developed a 3D-printing method combining recycled PEKK plastic with lunar soil simulant. The material successfully produced components for future lunar infrastructure, while recycling the high-performance plastic three times without significant degradation.

Using observations from NASA's Juno spacecraft, an international team led by Shandong University shows that magnetic reconnection in Jupiter's magnetodisk breaks magnetic field lines and deforms the current sheet into a rippling structure that rotates with the planet. The finding reveals a highly structured magnetodisk and offers new insight into how energy and particles are transported in giant-planet magnetospheres.

Scientists discovered a star leisurely snacking on a closely orbiting brown dwarf. This is the first observation of a low-mass object slowly and steadily consuming material from another low-mass object, rather than quickly engulfing it.

Astronomers from the University of Warwick have discovered the first example of a second-generation planet orbiting a white dwarf, a world that appears to have formed from the remains of the dead star it now orbits. 

Evidence for hypernovae, theorised to be the most powerful explosions in the Universe, has been disputed in two papers by University College London (UCL) researchers.

Researchers at the University of Osaka have developed a method for distinguishing the L- and D-forms of amino acids based on current waveforms generated by single molecules passing through a nanogap. The L/D ratio of amino acids is a potential biosignature of life. Major features of the amino acid composition were captured for astrobiologically relevant samples. The method could be used to develop electrical instruments for extraterrestrial life detection.

NASA has selected a Planetary Science Institute-led proposal to investigate whether a potentially large underground cave extends beyond the opening of a lunar pit. Such a cave may one day provide a safe haven for astronauts to escape the radiation and extreme temperature swings present at the lunar surface. The project will be funded through NASA’s Payloads and Research Investigations on the Surface of the Moon (PRISM) program, which sends scientific instruments to the Moon on spacecraft provided by the Commercial Lunar Payloads Services (CLPS) initiative providers.

Astronomers using Georgia State University’s Center for High Angular Resolution Astronomy (CHARA) Array have found that nearby stars darken toward their edges more strongly at near-infrared wavelengths than predicted by several widely used models of stellar atmospheres, providing a new benchmark for understanding how stars are structured.

Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) has successfully launched a satellite carrying pioneering perovskite solar cells developed locally for testing in space, together with artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities designed to analyse images directly in orbit. The CRIMSON-1 satellite will gather real-world performance data on lightweight perovskite solar cells in the harsh environment of space, while also testing technologies that could help future spacecraft analyse raw data before beaming it back to Earth.

CRIMSON-1 is NTU’s 14th satellite launched into space and it is among the first projects supported by the National Space Agency of Singapore (NSAS) under Singapore’s Space Access Programme (SAP) as part of the national Space Technology Development Programme.

The programme gives Singapore researchers and companies opportunities to test technologies such as advanced materials, solar cells and edge computing systems in orbit, build flight heritage and shorten the path from laboratory development to space validation. The satellite is also supported by the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA), which secured satellite spectrum and orbital resources from the International Telecommunication Union for its operation.

 

CRIMSON-1 was launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on the Transporter-18 rideshare mission from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, United States, on 1 October.