NASA is going to send a nuclear helicopter to Titan and ride the "Soviet" comet

Comments

[corporal]

But about such travels and we once dreamed ....

the launch of the mission will take place in mid-2025. At the same time, DragonFly will arrive at Titan only in 2034,

And many of us will not see this. It is a pity.

[Chertt]

I would like to hear from Roscosmos about our promising projects. Inadequate funding and the like we have already heard. But does Russia have development directions?

[Tsoy]

Quote: Chertt

But does Russia have development directions?

Moon with projects Luna-25, Luna-26, Luna-27, Luna-28. ExoMars 2020 in partnership with ESA. DSG with NASA. Nothing ambitious before 2030 will be.

[Plate]

They promise to make a nuclear electric propulsion system by the end of this decade yet.

[Anyone]

Seriously? Dragging Glushko Valentin Petrovich and all the designers of “Daisies” in a coffin turned over from such “news”))

[Plate]

What did I say that?

[Anyone]

I meant that this has already been implemented.

[Lexus]

I would like to hear from Roskosmos

I would like to SEE. In Roskosmos they still learned to speak, but apparently forgot how to do ...

[opus]

Quote: Chertt

I would like to hear from Roscosmos about our promising projects.

Let it be for now
Finally, the cause of the accident "Frigate"

Unfortunately, the overclocking unit only once, before the start, decided which way to turn it to, and did not update the algorithm of its actions. As a result, when the rocket turned at 174 degrees, they added to the angle at which the booster was about to turn. At the time of separation, the error was 363 ° (174 ° + 175 ° = 349 °, obviously, the missile maneuvers not mentioned were added), however, instead of recounting the direction of movement, the accelerating block went a long way. The “frigate” can rotate at a speed of up to one degree per second, and a minute before turning on the engine, it managed to turn clockwise in 55 degrees. The gained rotation speed led to the fact that within a minute of the first engine start-up the unit actually slowed down, and therefore fell earlier than the third stage.

[ALEX_SHTURMAN]

Unfortunately, as long as Roscosmos is run by "effective managers" and not enthusiasts, dreamers, engineers and visionaries, it will remain so. It feels like the Roscosmos leadership is not interested in long-range exploration of outer space at all, we don't even have money for a normal telescope. What can we even say about interplanetary stations.

[Chertt]

Quote: ALEX_SHTURMAN

Unfortunately, so far “effective managers” are at the helm of Roscosmos, and not so enthusiasts, visionaries, dreaming engineers.

I completely agree, neither diminish nor add. Space is an idea, a dream. And if you want to earn loot, go oil barges

[Anyone]

Do not flatter yourself - effective managers are at the head of everything that is connected with cutting grandmas (crossed out) with budget financing.

[Nix1986]

It seems to me that you need to focus on the colonization of the moon as an experimental site and work out many decisions before the Mars, most of the funds should be directed to this. From missions to other planets for the study of only scientific experience, there is no practical benefit there.

[FID]

The Chinese are doing so ... But, we are the "great cosmic ..." Where are we? Question to our "patriots" - where are WE?

[Nix1986]

I was more pissed off by this news "http://tass.ru/kosmos/4801166". Do not want to invest in space, enough from oil to the villas - so do not bother others damn it. Commercialization of the industry will dramatically accelerate progress in it.

[corporal]

Quote: SSI

Question to our "patriots" - where are WE?

We joke about trampolines, and turn spacecraft into bathyscaphes.

[Plate]

I agree with you. Moreover, as for me, existing technologies, albeit not as effective as we would like, can ensure that a person stays on the moon for a short period of time (the main thing is to fly away on time so that the radiation dose is not too large). But even this will be a great experience for humanity if a person creates a refuge for himself, even if not the best, on another celestial body.

[Nix1986]

The main thing is to work out the experience of building dwellings on other planets underground, how much it shields from cosmic radiation, and many nuances. You can even try to extract the same Helium 3 and recoup part of the cost of these missions. But... we are where we are.

[Plate]

I do not see the need for the extraction of helium-3 at this stage. A waste of money will be. There are still no fusion reactors. Here it would be possible to send geologists there for a more detailed study of the chemical composition of the lunar surface in place. But still, the initial task is to learn how to organize shelters for people in such places, yes.

[Nix1986]

I said helium 3 as an example, and yes, to work out the issues of construction, accommodation and supplies as much as possible and to commercialize this industry faster so that the business starts investing.

[PlotnikoffDD]

the New Horizons spacecraft is currently heading towards Pluto,

Who wrote this? At first I thought that the article was five years ago.

[FID]

The NASA program is called - The New Frontier, it's just that ours are a little late, I'm sorry ...

[Tsoy]

New Horizons is currently heading towards Pluto.

He has already flown to the asteroid belt.

[FID]

Quote: Choi

He has already flown to the asteroid belt.

Yes, what are you? And I, I thought, that the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, and the New Horizons is already in the Oort Cloud or in the Kuiper Belt (rather in Kuiper ..) ...

[Tsoy]

Quote: SSI

The Oort Cloud or Coiper Belt (most likely in Kuipert ...) ...

Of course to the Kuiper Belt. My mistake.

Having completed its mission to study Pluto, the station New Horizons went to the Kuiper belt. Its main purpose is the 2014 MU69 object, which is about 45 kilometers across. It is located in the Kuiper belt, a little-studied region of the Solar system from the orbit of Neptune (30, a.e., from the Sun) to a distance of about 55, a.e. from the sun.

Like the asteroid belt, the Kuiper belt consists of small bodies: the material remaining after the formation of the solar system. Unlike asteroid belt objects, which are mainly formed by rocks and metals, Kuiper belt objects are volatile substances such as methane, ammonia and water. Since the belt was opened in 1992, the number of known objects has exceeded one thousand; even more 70 000 with a diameter over 100 km has not yet been discovered.

Convergence with 2014 MU69 should occur 1 January 2019 year. On the way to it, the station continues to collect data on other celestial bodies. 2 November 2015 of the year, the first photographs of the Kuiper belt’s internal object were obtained from a relatively close distance: the station photographed an 1994 JR1 object with a diameter of 150 kilometers, moving against a background of stars. At the time of the shooting, New Horizons were located in 280 millions of kilometers from 1994 JR1 and 5,3 a billion kilometers from the Sun.

[Andrey787]

Before the flight, 31 days and somewhere 36 million km !!!
See you soon !!!

[Whowhy]

If the atmospheric pressure on Titan is 1,5 times higher than on Earth, then the density of the atmosphere, respectively, is the same times higher. On the one hand, along with low gravity, this requires less engine power, and on the other, such a “suitcase” as in the picture will blow like a fluff ....

[Anyone]

The density of the air will be higher than that of nitrogen. And on Titan, the atmosphere is nitrogen.

[astepanov]

The density of nitrogen and air is almost the same - firstly, because air is basically nitrogen, and secondly because the molecular masses of oxygen and nitrogen differ slightly (32:28).

[UVB]

New Horizons spacecraft is currently heading for Pluto

Outdated information. The device came closest to Pluto on July 14, 2015, and is currently moving towards one of the objects in the Kuiper belt.

[Ural resident]

Very interesting.
At one time, enthusiastically read books of the 60-70s about our expeditions.
Particularly interesting were the expeditions of our probes to Venus.
Well, Voyager, of course
It seemed another 20-30 years and all the secrets of the nearest planets will be revealed.

[sa-ag]

RTG + batteries + electric motors?

[zzdimk]

Who advised reading a book about the lunar apocalypse? Isaac Asimov with his Establishment is much cooler! And this opus about the fragments of the moon is turbidity.

[Days]

And when Isaac Asimov and Arthur Clark are over - go to Alastair Reynolds. A worthy successor to science fiction.

[da Vinci]

I just can't understand: why are the Merdyukovs, Chubais, Rogozins, Medvedevs so tenacious in power? What makes them so valuable??? Sometimes geniuses screw up, but these guys were never geniuses (well, except for the red-haired one with the vouchers) ? Unfortunately, I increasingly recall historical parallels, when they said that Nick 2 knew nothing, and that it was all his court camarilla. No-no, I am not campaigning for either the horse or Navalny - It's just a shame for such a large country with a huge number of smart people.

[CTABEP]

Kmk, a little off topic VO, but the article is excellent! It is a pity, of course, that these are not our plans, but still for humanity as a whole, this will be a significant milestone in space exploration. The "nuclear" copter was doubly pleased, just a car from my childhood dreams :).

[Stilet]

It is unfortunate that others, not us, collect information and know for the time being the near space enriched with Knowledge and technologies, which they will then use in their development.

[Andrey787]

Thank you, the article is interesting !!!

But a few questions arise ???

1) Why fly to Comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko ???
She has already been thoroughly studied. There are millions more of other comets - not studied ...

2) Why create a quadrocopter for Titanium ???
A fairly complex mechanism i.e.
a) very expensive to develop, in relation to such a space program (positioned as cheap),
b) the probability of failure and failure of the mission is very high.

“It seems easier, cheaper, and much more efficient (we’ll get more data) if you create an orbiter, you can simultaneously study Saturn with other satellites.”

- Well, if you want to get onto Titan itself, then again the balloon mission seems to me: cheaper, easier, more reliable and quite informative. By the way, from a balloon, you can drop it into interesting places - micro probes (low-living and cheap), the size and weight of a tablet or wristwatch, to determine the chemical and physical parameters of landing places and transfer data directly to the balloon, to simplify the probes (you can use them also to do, to study the seas, rivers, currents, unrest, etc. or part of immersed, to study the bottom), there are many options !!!