Tag: Lunar

NASA launch controllers called off plans to load super-cold liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen into the first fully-assembled Space Launch System moon rocket Sunday for a countdown dress rehearsal, giving time for ground teams to troubleshoot problems with fans used to ventilate the giant rocket's mobile launch structure at the Kennedy Space Center.

The White House's fiscal year 2023 budget request for NASA totals $26 billion, including $7.5 billion for the agency's Artemis moon program, a boost over this year's budget to help pay for development of a second human-rated lander to ferry astronauts to the lunar surface.

NASA announced March 23 that it will support development of a second lander to transport astronauts to and from the lunar surface to provide competition with SpaceX for the later “sustainable” phase of the Artemis program.

The post NASA to support development of second Artemis lunar lander appeared first on SpaceNews.

Currencycloud launched a new tool called WeekendFX. The new tool enables clients to offer competitive FX rates on weekends when markets are closed. Currencycloud is launching WeekendFX in partnership with Visa, which acquired Currencycloud last July. Visa’s Currencycloud launched a new tool this week called WeekendFX. The new offering will do just as it sounds– Read more...

The post Currencycloud Debuts Weekend FX Trading appeared first on Finovate.

NASA's powerful new moon rocket, standing more than 30 stories tall, arrived on the launch pad early Friday for the first time at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, ready for a series of checkouts culminating in fueling test and simulated countdown in early April.

Aquarian Space said March 17 it has raised seed funding to deploy a high-speed communications network for the moon to meet anticipated demand from government and commercial lunar missions.

The post Another startup joins race to provide high-speed lunar communications appeared first on SpaceNews.

LOUISVILLE, CO, Mar 18, 2022 - (JCN Newswire) - Sierra Space, a leading commercial space company with 1,100 employees, more than 500 missions and over 30 years of space flight heritage, and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI), a leading company in the space development industry in Japan, announced that the companies have jointly signed a new Memorandum of Understanding (MOU).
The MOU agreement outlines plans for Sierra Space and MHI to collaborate on a wide range of technologies regarding the development of Orbital Reef, a commercially developed, owned and operated space station to be built in low Earth orbit (LEO) by investors Sierra Space and Blue Origin.

Sierra Space and MHI have commenced work on incorporating MHI expertise in the development of Orbital Reef, bringing in technologies and expertise from MHI's years of experience with the International Space Station (ISS) program.

"At Sierra Space we are building a platform in space to benefit life on Earth," said Tom Vice, Sierra Space CEO. "We are proud to formalize a long-standing relationship with MHI and look forward to leveraging its considerable technological expertise, as we continue building Orbital Reef and the next generation of space transportation."

"MHI is very excited to collaborate with Sierra Space and use MHI's technologies and experience earned over years to contribute to the development of Orbital Reef, the program led by Sierra Space, Blue Origin and their international partners," said Tomoe Nishigaya, Vice President and Senior General Manager of Space Systems at MHI. "We look forward to further collaboration with Sierra Space as to how MHI's technologies, products and services may provide better experience for users and customers of the space station. Additionally, MHI plans to cooperate with JAXA and other aerospace companies in Japan, leveraging strong relationships built through participation to the ISS program."

About Sierra Space

Sierra Space products and programs are working towards a more accessible space economy. The company is rapidly advancing toward the launch of the world's only winged commercial spaceplane, the Dream Chaser. As the next generation of space transportation, the Dream Chaser will perform cargo supply and return missions for NASA, set to begin in late 2022, delivering up to 12,000 pounds of cargo to the International Space Station (ISS) at a time. The return journey will carry critical data, generated by ISS researcher experiments, enabling earth-bound scientists to benefit from much faster access to these unique results. Dream Chaser is a reusable spaceplane, uniquely capable of a smooth 1.5 low-g re-entry for crew and cargo transportation with the ability to land on existing commercial runways worldwide.

Sierra Space is the developer of the Large Integrated Flexible Environment (LIFE) Habitat, a modular, three-story commercial habitation and science platform. The unique structure will provide opportunities for multiple businesses including manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, and other sectors, to optimize zero gravity benefits. The LIFE Habitat will be able to be deployed in low-Earth orbit, on the lunar surface, or lunar orbit, and as a transport vehicle to Mars. Both Dream Chaser and LIFE Habitat will launch using conventional rocket propulsion systems.

The Dream Chaser spaceplane and LIFE platform are central components of the joint partnership Orbital Reef commercial space station and mixed-use business park being developed in partnership with Blue Origin.

About MHI Group

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) Group is one of the world's leading industrial groups, spanning energy, logistics & infrastructure, industrial machinery, aerospace and defense. MHI Group combines cutting-edge technology with deep experience to deliver innovative, integrated solutions that help to realize a carbon neutral world, improve the quality of life and ensure a safer world. For more information, please visit www.mhi.com or follow our insights and stories on spectra.mhi.com.


Copyright 2022 JCN Newswire. All rights reserved. www.jcnnewswire.comSierra Space announced that the companies have jointly signed a new Memorandum of Understanding (MOU).

NASA will roll the Space Launch System, a heavy-duty rocket designed to send astronauts to the moon, out of the iconic Vehicle Assembly Building at the Kennedy Space Center on Thursday evening. A crawler-transporter originally built more than 50 years ago for the Apollo program will haul the towering rocket to its launch pad for a countdown dress rehearsal. The rollout is set to begin at 5 p.m. EDT (2100 GMT).

Blizzard has detailed the patch notes for the latest update for Overwatch. The March 15 update adds a new Sombra skin, changes up the game's map rotation, and kickstarts a new season of competitive Lockout Elimination.

The new Sombra skin is called Zhulong, and it celebrates Shanghai Dragons' win in the 2021 Overwatch League by giving the Hero a dragon-themed appearance. The skin will set you back 200 League Tokens (about $10 USD) and can only be unlocked until March 28.

The update also sees both the Horizon Lunar Colony and Paris maps getting rotated out of Quick Play and related modes, as well as the start of Competitive 6v6 Lockout Elimination Season 5. A few bug fixes have been implemented too.

We've detailed the full Overwatch March 15 update patch notes below. On the horizon, the Overwatch 2 beta is set to start in April. The beta will feature the new Push game mode, four new maps, new Damage Hero Sojourn, and reworks to various existing Heroes.

Overwatch March 15 Update Patch Notes

General

• Overwatch League Grand Finals Championship Skin
  • The new Sombra Skin "Zhulong" celebrates the Shanghai Dragons' achievement in becoming the 2021 Overwatch League champions. The skin is purchasable for a limited time for 200 Overwatch League Tokens.
• NVIDIA Reflex
  • The trigger flash option has been removed from the options screen. To enable the trigger flash display for your Reflex Analyzer monitor, please update to driver version 511.79 or later and update GeForce Experience to version 3.25 or later.

Competitive: 6v6 Lockout Elimination

• Season 5 of Competitive 6v6 Lockout Elimination has begun!

Maps

• Horizon Lunar Colony and Paris have been removed from Quick Play and related modes.

Bug Fixes

• General
  • Fixed a bug that caused the Contenders logo to be low resolution on Contenders skins
  • Fixed a bug that caused "Ban list is full" to appear in the chat repeatedly
  • Fixed a bug that caused friends to be visible on the "Recent Players" list
  • Fixed a bug on PC that caused microphone sound distortion
• Heroes
  • Echo
    • Fixed a bug that caused re-meching as a duplicated D.Va to grant too much Ultimate charge
• Maps
  • Watchpoint: Gibraltar
    • Addressed a geometry exploit

Torrance, Calif., Mar 15, 2022 - (JCN Newswire) - Honda today announced plans to install a stationary fuel cell power station on its corporate campus in Torrance, Calif. by early 2023. The station will serve as a proof of concept for the future commercialization of a power generation unit for use as a zero-emission backup power source for facilities such as data centers, which require reliable and clean auxiliary power generation to continue operations even in emergency situations. This new initiative will leverage Honda's fuel cell technology expertise as part of the company's global goal to achieve carbon neutrality for all products and corporate activities by 2050.

Honda's proof of concept fuel cell power station will utilize fuel cell components from Honda Clarity Fuel Cell vehicles in a flexible, four-quad parallel stationary fuel cell power generation system capable of generating up to 1152kW-DC/1MW-AC from an inverter. A unique advantage of the four-quad design is the flexibility to change the layout of the four individual fuel cell units to suit the installation environment, accommodating a cuboid, L-shape, Z shape or other packaging requirements.

The station will be connected to the data center on the American Honda campus in early 2023, providing a real-world power generation application to verify performance. This will enable Honda to advance its know-how in the power supply area, as well as supply chain development, grid connection access, construction specifications, AC/DC connection requirements and other critical areas.

"We will leverage the expertise Honda has established in creating multiple generations of fuel cell systems for the development of a fuel cell power generation station," said Mitsuru Kariya, senior vice president in charge of the R&D Business Unit of American Honda. "This project is an opportunity to further utilize our strengths in fuel cell technology to more quickly create, assess and advance a clean power generation system for potential commercial customers."

While Honda remains committed to developing fuel cell systems for passenger vehicles, the market for fuel cell systems to power larger trucks and transport ships, as well as stationary generation, is expanding rapidly in the U.S. and is expected to grow to over $86.7 billion annually by 2030. Data centers in particular require high-quality and reliable power, where any disruption in power supply can lead to downtime or problems such as data corruption and damage to servers.

Typical stationary backup generators rely on diesel fuel, which result in higher carbon emissions and local air pollutants. Backup power systems utilizing hydrogen fuel cells offer a promising future for clean, yet reliable and high-quality power generation, especially when operating on so-called "green" hydrogen made from renewable sources, with water vapor as the only emission.

Honda Fuel Cell Technology Leadership

Honda has led the industry over the past quarter-century in the development and deployment of fuel cell technology, including extensive real-world testing and customer deployments.

- In July 2002, the Honda FCX became the first fuel-cell vehicle certified by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and California Air Resources Board (CARB).
- In December 2002, Honda introduced the world's first production fuel-cell vehicle, to both the U.S. and Japan markets.
- In 2003, Honda became the first automaker with a fuel-cell vehicle to start and operate in sub-freezing temperatures.
- In 2005, Honda became the first automaker to lease fuel cell vehicles to individual retail customers.
- In 2008, Honda became the first manufacturer to build and produce a dedicated fuel-cell vehicle (FCX Clarity) on a production line specifically made for fuel-cell vehicles.
- In 2013, Honda and GM began working together on the co-development of a next-generation fuel cell system and hydrogen storage technologies.
- In 2017, Honda introduced the Honda Clarity Fuel Cell vehicle.
- In 2020, Honda Motor Co., Ltd. and Isuzu Motors Ltd. signed an agreement for joint research of the use of hydrogen fuel cells to power heavy-duty trucks, looking to expand fuel cell use by applying the zero-emission technology to larger vehicles.

In 2021, Honda announced its collaboration with Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) to develop a fuel cell system combined with a high differential pressure water electrolysis system that will help support a "circulative renewable energy system" to supply space and lunar stations with electricity, oxygen and water.

At FC Expo held in Japan during March 16 and 18, 2022, Honda will display a prototype of FC Power Unit co-developped with General Motors, a portable FC generator concept model.

Honda Commitment to the Environment

Honda is committed to addressing global environmental and energy issues by striving to realize carbon neutrality for all products and corporate activities by 2050. Honda proudly has the highest fleet average fuel economy and lowest CO2 emissions of any full-line automaker in America, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) latest data. To reduce CO2 emissions even further, Honda will strive to make battery-electric and fuel cell electric vehicles represent 100% of auto sales in the U.S. and globally by 2040.

Honda also is working to reduce the environmental impact of its business operations. To slash CO2 emissions from its North American manufacturing operations, Honda has entered into long-term virtual power purchase agreements (VPPAs) for renewable wind and solar power seeking to cover more than 60% of the electricity that Honda uses in North America. This enables the company to fully offset the remaining carbon intensive grid-supplied electricity used in its Ohio, Indiana, and Alabama automobile manufacturing operations. Honda also promotes environmentally responsible business practices with its suppliers and retail dealer partners across North America.

Learn more at https://csr.honda.com/environment/na-environmental-report/


Copyright 2022 JCN Newswire. All rights reserved. www.jcnnewswire.comHonda today announced plans to install a stationary fuel cell power station on its corporate campus in Torrance, Calif. by early 2023.

Agile Space Industries, a Durango, Colorado company focused on in-space chemical propulsion, is additively manufacturing thrusters for robotic lunar landers being built by Astrobotic Technology, ispace and Masten Space Systems.

The post Agile supplies thrusters for Astrobotic, ispace and Masten lunar landers appeared first on SpaceNews.

Be sure to stay hydrated! One of the best parts of VR technology is its ability to get you up and off the couch. In addition to first-person shooter games and fitness apps, Meta’s Quest 2 VR headset features a growing catalog of sports games that take full advantage of the Touch motion controllers to […]

The post Top 5 VR Sports Games On The Meta Quest 2 appeared first on VRScout.