Foreign News
Propulsion failure threatens US Moon mission
The company behind America’s latest mission to soft-land on the Moon is battling to save the project.
Pittsburgh-based Astrobotic says its Peregrine spacecraft has a faulty propulsion system that’s lost “critical” amounts of fuel. The issue has already made it difficult for the craft to point its solar panels at the Sun to generate electricity and may now scupper the planned touch-down.
Astrobotic has begun talking about reassessing its mission goals. In other words, it’s thinking about what can be salvaged from its original objectives.
The 1.2-tonne lander was launched early on Monday from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on a Vulcan rocket. Its aim was to become the first American mission in half a century to make a controlled landing on the Moon and the first ever commercial endeavour to achieve the feat.
The US space agency (Nasa) had purchased capacity on the lander for five instruments to study the lunar surface environment ahead of sending astronauts there later this decade.
Peregrine’s problems emerged shortly after communications had been established with ground controllers, following its release from the top of the Vulcan. Engineers noticed the spacecraft was struggling to maintain a stable lock on the Sun, meaning its solar cells were not receiving a constant supply of sunshine to recharge the onboard battery. Power levels were reported to be reaching operationally low levels.
Astrobotic’s engineers eventually identified the root cause as a failure in the propulsion system, a situation apparently confirmed by a picture from the craft showing disturbed layers of insulation. And although they were able to successfully re-point the spacecraft and charge the battery, it was evident, the company said, that Peregrine was losing propellant. “The team is working to try and stabilise this loss, but given the situation we have prioritised maximising the science and data we can capture,” a statement read. “We are currently assessing what alternative mission profiles may be feasible at this time.”
Astrobotic is the first of three US companies to send a lander to the Moon this year under a new private-public partnership with Nasa.
The agency is buying transport services from the Pittsburgh firm and two other commercial ventures – Intuitive Machines and Firefly. Together, the trio had planned six missions to the lunar surface in 2024.
All three US companies have Nasa as a “customer”, but the agency is “not in charge” of their projects. It is the firms themselves who have designed the spacecraft and are in command as the missions progress.
Nasa believes this arrangement will introduce more innovation and reduce costs over time. And the agency says it is prepared for some of the missions not to work.
Speaking to the BBC last month, deputy administrator Pam Melroy, said: “What we have learned from our commercial partners is if we have a high enough cadence, we can relax some of the requirements that make it so costly, and have a higher risk appetite. And if they fail, the next one is going to learn and succeed.”
(BBC)
Bangladeshi security forces clashed with supporters of deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, leaving at least three people dead and many injured.
Violence broke out Wednesday in the southern town of Gopalganj when members of Hasina’s Awami League tried to disrupt a rally by the National Citizens Party (NCP), which is made up of students who spearheaded the unrest that toppled the leader last year.
[Aljazeera]
An “unbelievably rare” piece of Mars – the largest ever found on Earth – has sold for $4.3m (£3.2m) at a New York auction on Wednesday.
The meteorite known as NWA 16788 weighs 54lb (24.5kg) and is nearly 15in (38.1cm) long, according to Sotheby’s.
It was discovered in a remote region of Niger in November 2023 and is 70% larger than the next biggest piece of Mars that has been recovered, the auction house said.
Meteorites are the remains of rock left after an asteroid or comet passes through Earth’s atmosphere.
Sotheby’s auction house described the meteorite, a reddish brown rock, as “unbelievably rare”. Only about 400 Martian meteorites have ever been found on Earth.
“This is the largest piece of Mars on planet Earth. The odds of this getting from there to here are astronomically small,” Cassandra Hatton, vice-chairman of science and natural history at Sotheby’s, said in a video posted online.
“Remember that approximately 70% of Earth’s surface is covered in water. So we’re incredibly lucky that this landed on dry land instead of the middle of the ocean where we could actually find it.”
It remains unclear where the meteorite will end up as information about the sale will remain private.
Additional taxes and fees brought the total price of the rock up to about $5.3m, Sotheby’s said.
At the Wednesday auction, which featured more than 100 items, a Ceratosaurus skeleton from the late Jurassic period sold for $26m and the skull of a Pachycephalosaurus sold for $1.4m.
[BBC]
The Trump administration says it has launched an investigation into Brazil’s “unfair” trading practices.
It will include the Brazilian government’s policies “related to digital trade and electronic payment services; unfair, preferential tariffs; anti-corruption interference”, a statement from the US trade representative said.
The investigation seeks to determine whether they are “unreasonable or discriminatory and burden or restrict US commerce.”
Last week, US President Donald Trump urged Brazilian authorities to end their prosecution of the country’s former President Jair Bolsonaro, accusing them of carrying out a “witch hunt”.
US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said the probe was being launched at Trump’s direction “into Brazil’s attacks on American social media companies as well as other unfair trading practices that harm American companies, workers, farmers, and technology innovators”.
“I have determined that Brazil’s tariff and non-tariff barriers merit a thorough investigation, and potentially, responsive action,” he said.
Greer accused Brazil of disadvantaging American exports by offering lower tariffs to other trade partners.
Investigators will look into alleged attempts by Brazil to penalise US companies involved in digital trade and services for not censoring political speech.
The office also alleged a lack of adequate enforcement of intellectual property rights, harming US workers “whose livelihoods are tied to America’s innovation- and creativity-driven sectors.”
Trump first threatened the investigation in a letter to Brazil’s president, Luiz Inacio Lula de Silva last week. In the same letter, the US president announced a 50% tariff on Brazil starting on 1 August. Lula said in response that Brazil would match any increase in tariffs.
Last year, trade between the two countries was worth $90bn (£67.2bn).
Washington reported a trade surplus with Brazil of $7.4bn in 2024, a 33% percent increase on the previous year.
[BBC]
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