Tag: aerosapce

AIAA Statement on Norms of Behavior for Commercial Space Operations by The Hague Institute for Global Justice

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

January 4, 2024 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) CEO Dan Dumbacher made the following statement:

“On behalf of the 30,000 professional and student members of AIAA, we are pleased to sign The Washington Compact on Norms of Behavior for Commercial Space Operations by The Hague Institute for Global Justice. Through this important step, AIAA joins scores of illustrious organizations and individuals who also share the common vision that civil space exploration and development should be conducted in a manner that prevents conflict and supports cooperation, peace, and prosperity.

AIAA sees space as an essential part of everyday life on Earth, with further exploration and innovation leading to an off-world future. We believe global collaboration, including the growing influence of space commerce, will help us expand the human neighborhood beyond low Earth orbit to the moon and on to Mars.”

Media Contact: Rebecca B. Gray, [email protected], 804-397-5270 cell

About AIAA
The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is the world’s largest aerospace technical society. With nearly 30,000 individual members from 91 countries, and 100 corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia, and government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space, and defense. For more information, visit aiaa.org, and follow AIAA on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram.

How Space Travel Affects Astronauts’ Physiology

UPI reports that when astronauts “travel to space, the experience depletes their red blood cells and bone, according to a new study.” Fortunately, it appears their bodies “can eventually replenish them after they’ve returned to Earth, thanks to fat stored in the bone marrow.” University of Ottawa Rehabilitation Physician and Researcher Guy Trudel, one of the authors of the study, said, “We found that astronauts had significantly less fat in their bone marrow about a month after returning to Earth. We think the body is using this fat to help replace red blood cells and rebuild bone that has been lost during space travel.” The new research “builds on Trudel’s earlier work, which found that astronauts’ bodies destroyed 54% more red blood cells during space travel than they normally would on Earth.” It’s known as “space anemia.” The research “is part of MARROW, which is an experiment looking at bone marrow health and blood production in space, with funding from the Canadian Space Agency.”
Full Story (UPI)

Boeing Engineers Break World Record for Longest Paper Airplane Flight

CNN reported that three engineers from The Boeing Company broke the world record for the farthest flight by paper airplane with a new distance of 289 feet, 9 inches, beating out the previous record of 252 feet, 7 inches. The success came after months of effort, including nearly 500 hours of studying origami and aerodynamics, and of testing multiple prototypes. The engineers’ design focused on speed and on minimizing drag.
Full Story (CNN)

NASA Selects Design Concepts for Lunar Nuclear Power Stations

SPACE reports that NASA “and the U.S. Department of Energy selected three design concept proposals that the government hopes could be ready for use on the moon by the end of the 2020s, to support the space agency’s Artemis program of lunar exploration.” NASA sees the $5 million contracts “as potentially useful for the exploration of Mars and other deeper-space destinations.” The selected teams “are led by Lockheed Martin, Westinghouse and IX (a joint venture of Intuitive Machines and X-Energy)” and are to “provide NASA critical information from industry that can lead to a joint development of a full flight-certified fission power system.”
Full Story (SPACE)