The UK Space Agency has announced a vital US/UK partnership in electric space propulsion between Britain’s Pulsar Fusion and the University of Michigan. The Plasma Dynamics and Electric Propulsion Lab at the University of Michigan was featured in the article “UK Space Agency Announces US/UK Partnership” on Spacewatch.global. | September 5, 2023.
‘Unknown: Cosmic Time Machine’ Film Screening and Panel Discussion
Join us for a screening of "Unknown: Cosmic Time Machine," on Wednesday, September 27 at 5:30 pm. The event will feature the Netflix documentary about the design and launch of the James Webb Space Telescope
$9.7M for Tools to Improve Forecasts of Harmful Space Weather
Space weather predictions are neither accurate nor timely, and that leaves astronauts without enough time to react to dangerous particles flung out by the sun. Now, NASA is providing $9.7 million to establish a Space Weather Center of Excellence
U-M Space Institute Announces New Director
Dr. Chris Ruf, who works in the U-M Department of Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering, will lead the U-M Space Institute as the new director.
“University of Michigan Partners with NASA to Study Venus in Unprecedented New Mission”
The Space Physics Research Laboratory was featured in an article on Fox2Detroit.com titled “University of Michigan Partners with NASA to Study Venus in Unprecedented New Mission,” for its work building a mass spectrometer that can survive the hottest planet in the solar system. | April 2023
U-M Aerospace Assistant Professors Receive START Grant
Four faculty members in the Aerospace department received a START grant from Michigan Engineering. The project goal is to expand the environmental, emissions, and community impact considerations of the planning process for launch sites.
U-M Hosts NASA PI Launchpad Workshop
The NASA Science Mission Directorate, the Heising-Simons Foundation, and a group of mission experts have teamed up to make the mission development process more transparent and accessible to researchers, by offering the NASA PI Launchpad workshop.
An Eye on the Sky: U-M Astronomy Contributes Instrumentation to Extremely Large Telescope
The Extremely Large Telescope could change everything we know about the Universe—including how the first galaxies were created and where life on other planets may exist. And U-M is the only U.S. university involved in helping develop it.
“The Harshest Reality: Exploring Active Radiation Shielding”
As missions prepare to take humans to the moon or Mars, scientists must confront “The Harshest Reality” of outer space: It’s full of radiation from our sun and beyond. Scientists at the University of Michigan and NASA are exploring the possibility of using ‘active shielding’ to generate electromagnetic or electrostatic fields that could divert much Continue Reading »
Tracking Ocean Microplastics from Space
New information about an emerging technique that could track microplastics from space has been uncovered by researchers at the University of Michigan. It turns out that satellites are best at spotting soapy or oily residue, and microplastics appear to tag along with that residue.