Dr. Mojtaba Akhavan-Tafti, an associate research scientist at U-M Climate and Space, was featured in the article, “Crimson Trail Lights the Way at This U.P. Dark Sky Park” for MLive. The article highlights innovations in sustainable lighting for stargazing. | November 6, 2024
Seeing a Black Hole’s Jet in a New Light
By Matt Davenport, Originally published by VP for Communications-Michigan News
Research led by the University of Michigan has pored over more than two decades’ worth of data from NASA’s Chandra X-Ray Observatory to show there’s new knotty science to discover around black holes.
In particular, the study looks at the high-energy jet of particles being Continue Reading »
U-M Space Institute Supports Space Medicine at ResearchPalooza and Wins Service Award
The University of Michigan Space Institute participated at ResearchPalooza in September on the University of Michigan Medical School campus. During the event, experts from the U-M Space Institute raised awareness of existing opportunities for students, faculty, and university partners to engage in space medicine research and education.
Space Force Establishes $35M Institute for Versatile Propulsion and Power at U-M
To develop spacecraft that can “maneuver without regret,” the U.S. Space Force is providing $35 million to a national research team led by the University of Michigan. It will be the first to bring fast chemical rockets together with efficient electric propulsion powered by a nuclear microreactor.
“NASA, NOAA: Sun Reaches Maximum Phase in 11-Year Solar Cycle”
Elsayed Talaat, director of space weather operations at NOAA and a U-M Climate and Space alumnus, was featured in “NASA, NOAA: Sun Reaches Maximum Phase in 11-Year Solar Cycle” for the NASA Newsroom. Representatives from NASA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the international Solar Cycle Prediction Panel announced that the Sun Continue Reading »
Could One of Jupiter’s Moons Support Alien Life? U-M Scientists Are on the Case
NASA’s Europa Clipper, the organization’s latest mission to Jupiter’s system of moons, launched from Florida’s Kennedy Space Center. It’s the start of a grand journey to Europa, a moon that scientists believe has a salty ocean of water beneath its icy outer surface. When the spacecraft reaches its target in 2031, it will start collecting the data necessary for University of Michigan researchers to help determine whether the ocean could support life.
“U-M Selected by the U.S. Space Force for Research Development Institute”
Dr. Benjamin Jorns, an associate professor for Michigan Aerospace Engineering and the director of the Plasmadynamics and Electric Propulsion Laboratory (PEPL), was featured in “U-M selected by the U.S. Space Force for research development institute” for The Michigan Daily. The University will receive $34.9 million in funding to work alongside the Rochester Continue Reading »
JWST Finds First Exotic ‘Steam World’ Shrouded in Water Vapor
Nearly 100 light years away, there’s a planet unlike any we’ve seen before. The planet, known as GJ 9827 d, is roughly twice the size of Earth and has an atmosphere composed almost entirely of water vapor, according to a new study.
CLAWS Student Member Shares Lessons from the NASA Suits Challenge
The University of Michigan Collaborative Lab for Advancing Work in Space (CLAWS), a multidisciplinary student group that designs technology for human space exploration, participated in the NASA SUITS Challenge in May at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. Matthew Hart, a Michigan student and member of CLAWS, participated in this year’s NASA Suits Challenge.
First Data from XRISM Space Mission Provides New Perspective on Supermassive Black Holes
Some of the first data from an international space mission is confirming decades worth of speculation about the galactic neighborhoods of supermassive black holes.
More exciting than the data, though, is the fact that the long-awaited satellite behind it—the X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission or XRISM—is just getting started providing such unparalleled insights.