Dr. Cheng Li, an assistant professor at U-M Climate and Space, was featured in “The Seven Most Interesting Discoveries We’ve Made by Exploring Saturn” for Smithsonian Magazine. Li unveiled the cause of Saturn’s giant storms that sometimes last for months. | September 16, 2024
Tag: space
“USSF Announces Selections for Advanced Space Power, Propulsion Research”
The University of Michigan was featured in “USSF Announces Selections for Advanced Space Power, Propulsion Research” for United States Space Force News. The United States Space Force, in partnership with the Air Force Research Laboratory, selected Rochester Institute of Technology and University of Michigan to lead the USSF University Consortium/Space Strategic Technology Institute Continue Reading »
Leinweber Innovation Lab Celebrates Grand Opening
A new, revolutionary space celebrated a grand opening on Tuesday, September 10, 2024, as project leaders cut the ribbon to present the Leinweber Innovation Laboratory to the University of Michigan and the greater science community.
“Awaiting their Return from Space”
Dr. Mojtaba Akhavan-Tafti, an assistant research scientist at U-M Climate and Space, discussed the challenges of a “space rescue” for stranded astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams on Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft, as well as the risks involved with the Boeing Crew Flight Test in the episode “Awaiting their Return from Space” published on The Continue Reading »
In Six New Rogue Worlds, Webb Telescope Finds More Star Birth Clues
An international collaboration that included the University of Michigan has spotted six likely rogue worlds—objects with planetlike masses but untethered from any star’s gravity—using the James Webb Space Telescope, or JWST.
The discovery includes the lightest rogue planet candidate ever identified with a dusty disk around it. The elusive objects offer new evidence that the same cosmic processes that give birth to stars may also play a common role in making objects only slightly bigger than Jupiter.
Enduring the Fireball of Spacecraft Re-entry through Improved Radiative Heating Prediction
When we think about space missions, our minds often drift to unforgettable moments from the Apollo missions, the Space Shuttle Orbiter, or blockbuster movies. Among the many lasting memories from these endeavors, the image of the spacecraft engulfed in fiery plasma before safely landing back on Earth may be the most significant, as it symbolizes a successful mission. At the University of Michigan Department of Aerospace Engineering, researchers are working to better understand the complex scientific and engineering efforts behind these awe-inspiring scenes to ensure our astronauts continue to get home safely.
MRover Brings Home Top Ten Finish in International Competition
The University of Michigan Mars Rover Team (MRover) team took home a ninth place win at this year’s University Rover Challenge (URC) which took place over the weekend of May 29 at the Mars Desert Research Station (MDRS). The top ten finish was a cause for celebration for the team after a major setback last August, 2023, when the team lost all of their tools and equipment in a fire, forcing them to restart late into their design cycle.
“One Giant Leap” Still Resonates Today
July 20, 1969, just before 11 p.m. EDT, Neil Armstrong stepped foot on the Moon. That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind. On Earth, families huddled around the television, glued to the grainy image that transcended life as they knew it.
Joel Bregman, H.D. Curtis Professor of Astronomy at LSA, was 17. “Everyone had been focused on the space race for years. They’d stop school and stream video or audio of every milestone,” he says. “Landing on the Moon seemed like out of science fiction. We didn’t know if it could be done. That night, I watched with my family, including my grandmother, who was born in Ukraine in the last 1800s—she’d witnessed the first car, first airplane, and now the first Moon landing. It was absolutely astonishing. Like a dream.”
NASA Announces Winners of Inaugural Human Lander Challenge
On June 27, 2024, NASA announced the University of Michigan team to be the winner of the inaugural Human Lander Challenge, a challenge designed to provide solutions for landing humans on the moon.
NASA’s 2024 Human Lander Challenge (HuLC) Forum brought 12 university teams from across the United States to Huntsville, Alabama, near the agency’s Marshall Space Flight Center, to showcase their innovative concepts for addressing the complex issue of managing lunar dust.
“University of Michigan Wins NASA’s Lunar Lander Challenge Award”
A University of Michigan student team was featured in “University of Michigan Wins NASA’s Lunar Lander Challenge Award” for United Press International. NASA announced the University of Michigan team to be the winner of the inaugural Human Lander Challenge, a challenge designed to provide solutions for landing humans on the moon. | July