Latest news with #JointUniversitiesProgrammeforIn-OrbitTraining
Observer
a day ago
- Science
- Observer
Etlaq set for Duqm-2 suborbital rocket launch
DUQM: Etlaq, the MENA region's first spaceport established at Duqm in the Sultanate of Oman, is preparing for its first experimental rocket launch of the year with the 'Duqm-2' mission. The launch is scheduled sometime between 10 pm on Tuesday and 6 am on Wednesday. At the heart of the mission is KEA-1, a 12-metre, guided, two-stage suborbital vehicle built by Stellar Kinetics, a New Zealand based vertically integrated orbital rocket manufacturing start-up. Fuelled by liquid oxygen and propane, the two-tonne KEA-1 will target a 500-kilometre apogee, while demonstrating advanced spaceflight capabilities, such as stage separation and active guidance, while also proving that the rocket can perform under Middle Eastern summer conditions and under tight development timelines. A key feature of the Duqm-2 launch is its use of hot staging — a technique in which the next stage's engines ignite before the previous stage has fully separated. This contrasts with traditional staging, where the first stage shuts down and detaches before the next stage ignites. Onboard the mission are a pair of education-centric research payload suites. The first is from UK based Joint Universities Programme for In-Orbit Training, Education and Research (JUPITER), representing a collaboration of the University of Surrey, the University of Portsmouth and the University of Southampton. The JUPITER payload consists of two satellites: a Jovian-O 6U cube satellite (CubeSat) carrying a prototype deployment system; and an earth observation instrument, DAVE (Dual Aperture for Viewing Earth), which is equipped with two small cameras - one to capture images and videos of Earth, and the other is a space-facing camera to monitor space debris. The second payload comes from Taiwan-based 'SIGHT Space', a student-founded space education initiative from the National Central University. SIGHT Space's SIGHT PocketQube II satellite is designed to measure real-time structural stress and environmental data (temperature, pressure, acceleration) during suborbital flight. It is part of an ongoing effort to build small, accessible satellite platforms for education, research and lightweight spaceflight validation. Significantly, the latest Duqm-2 mission follows the successful launch of Duqm-1 in December 2024, which marked Oman's entry into space. Earlier this year, Etlaq officials unveiled that Duqm-3, scheduled for launch in October, will have a more complex launch and operational procedures, while Duqm-4, scheduled during December, will also have different parameters. The missions are part of the spaceport's recently announced experimental rocket launch initiative, dubbed the Genesis Programme, which aims to develop Oman's space launch culture before full-scale commercial operations in 2027.
Miami Herald
12-06-2025
- Science
- Miami Herald
New super-black paint could fix satellite light pollution problem
By Dean Murray British researchers are working to solve the problem of Elon Musk's reflective satellites by painting them black. A new partnership between Surrey NanoSystems and the University ofSurrey is aiming to tackle what has become a major concern for astronomers worldwide. They are working on using Surrey NanoSystems's newest product, Vantablack 310, which is a super-black coating. When Vantablack 310 is applied to a surface, it reflects only 2% of incoming light, meaning it absorbs the remaining 98%. This high level of light absorption makes the coated surfaces appear extremely dark, helping to minimise the unwanted brightness from satellites that can disrupt the work of stargazers. More than 8,000 low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites already orbit Earth, and projections estimate a rise to 60,000 by 2030, partly driven by the development of mega-constellations. To combat this problem, satellite operators have begun experimenting with mitigation strategies, including dark coatings and changes to satellite position, though the negative impact on ground-based measurement persists. Surrey NanoSystems, with a heritage in ultra-black technologies, says their new solution, Vantablack 310, is a handleable, customer-applied coating, resistant to the challenging LEO environment. The technology will be trialled on the Jovian 1 mission, scheduled to launch in 2026, which will be the first satellite mission from JUPITER – the Joint Universities Programme for In-Orbit Training, Education and Research. One side of a shoebox-sized CubeSat will be coated with Vantablack 310, marking the first UK-led initiative to explore solutions for reducing satellite brightness. The initiative aims to not only improve space sustainability but also demonstrate the efficacy of Vantablack 310 as a hull-darkening solution. Dr. Keiran Clifford, Senior Technologist and project lead at Surrey Nanosystems, said: "Our latest coating technology, Vantablack 310, offers super-black performance across a wide range of viewing angles, while remaining robust to the challenging LEO environment. "We're proud to be working with our partners at the University of Surrey to deliver innovations in the satellite sector, ensuring sustainable and equitable access to a night sky for all." Researchers from the University of Surrey are developing ways to evaluate the experiment from Earth. The post New super-black paint could fix satellite light pollution problem appeared first on Talker. Copyright Talker News. All Rights Reserved.
