SPACE JUNK /   IT'S OUR MESS-IT'S OUR  RESPONSIBLITY TO CLEAN IT UP 

A short film by Melrae Pictures that tells the story of how our space junk problem might jeopardize space exploration for future generations. www.spacejunk3d.com

Swiss Space Center at EPFL just launched the "CleanSpace One" project. The aim is to design and build a satellite that will chase, grab and destroy a space debris - namely one of the first Swiss satellites, Swisscube-1 or TIsat-1.

THE RINGS OF PERSEPHONE / "A PERMANENT PLACE IN SPACE"

CAMERA TEST SEQUENCE

This short animatic attempts to capture the mood of what I want Persephone to depict.  The animatic has been captured in black and white to allow me to easily render and manipulate the camera around the model.  I will create a coloured version of the scheme and place a more convincing/relevant background in the scenes once I am satisfied with how the camera maneuvers throughout the space.

2013 INTERIM PORTFOLIO  / DIPLOMA YEAR II

ASTEROID 2012 DA14 / ASTEROID TO PASS CLOSE BY EARTH TODAY

On Friday evening asteroid 2012 DA14 skims closer to our planet than any other known asteroid. Although invisible to the naked eye, binoculars can bring the space rock into focus.  Space rock 2012 DA14 is only 50 metres across. It will pass the Earth on Friday evening (UK time) just 17,100 miles above our heads. Allegedly there is no danger of a collision, even though Russia was hit by a meteor shower earlier today- Meteor strike injures hundreds in central Russia

Asteroid 2012 DA14 will pass closer to the Earth than many artificial satellites. It will pass from the southern to northern hemisphere and set the record for the closest pass of any known asteroid since systematic surveys of the sky began in the mid-1990s.

A METEORITE SHOWER HITS RUSSIA   /  INJURING  HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE..

More than 900 people have been injured after a meteor strike in central Russia, the country’s interior ministry said. Fragments of at least one meteorite - the weight of a double-decker bus  -were seen falling from the sky in the Chelyabinsk region at around 9am local time, around 1,500km east of Moscow.

A regional governor said 950 people have been injured. Russia’s Ministry of Emergencies said at least 82 children were hurt and 34 adults and 12 children were being treated in hospital. Two people are in intensive care.

THE TRASH DISC BY NASA   /  RECYCLING FOR CHEAPER SPACE TRAVEL.....

It seems now that space debris considerations have entered the daily agenda of most space agencies worldwide, other environmental issues are slowly following. As noticed appreciatively by many “green” writers in the past weeks, NASA has embarked on a project that should develop a way to utilize garbage produced by astronauts in space.

Researchers at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center are currently testing special tiles made from garbage such as plastic bottles, old clothes, duct tape, and foil drink pouches that might be used in the future to add, for example, radiation shielding.  Nowadays, most of the trash produced at the International Space Station is simply loaded into automated transfer vehicles and left to burn during re-entry. Such a strategy would be impossible once a long-haul mission, such as to Mars or an asteroid, is considered.

http://www.nasa.gov/centers/kennedy/exploration/researchtech/trashdiscs.html

INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION RECYCLING / TURNING URINE INTO WATER 

Astronauts on the International Space Station have to recapture every possible drop. That includes water evaporated from showers, shaving, tooth brushing and hand washing, plus perspiration and water vapour that collects within the astronauts' space suits. They even transfer water from the fuel cells that provide electric power to the space shuttle. NASA, until recently had not attempted to tap one major potential source of water: urine. The deployment of the new Water Recovery System on Friday, Nov. 14 2008, made it possible to double to six the number of crew members who can live aboard the International Space Station. Michigan Tech researchers helped optimise the design, increasing its efficiency by 30 percent.

DEEP SPACE INDUSTRIES / MINING THE UNIVERSE FOR THE FUTURE

Deep Space Industries believes the human race is ready to begin harvesting the resources of space both for their use in space and to increase the wealth and prosperity of the people of planet Earth.  DSI will build on the incredible heritage of the first age of space exploration and harness the power of a new age of information to locate, explore, harvest and utilize the vast numbers of asteroids in Earth’s community. We will do so by being creative and practical – taking small steps to begin with, and giant leaps when we can – to supply our customers and provide a new and hopeful future for humanity.  http://deepspaceindustries.com/ 

PLANETARY RESOURCES / HARNESSING OUR RESOURCE-RICH ASTEROIDS

A newly unveiled company with some high-profile backers (including filmmaker James Cameron and Google co-founder Larry Page) is set to announce plans to mine near-Earth asteroids for resources such as precious metals and water.  

Planetary Resources, intends to sell these materials, generating a healthy profit for itself. But it also aims to advance humanity's exploration and exploitation of space, with resource extraction serving as an anchor industry that helps our species spread throughout the solar system.

http://www.planetaryresources.com

EUROPE'S 3D PRINTED MOON BASE VISION / BY FOSTER + PARTNERS

Foster + Partners are exploring the possibilities of 3D printing buildings on the moon using lunar soil.  The London architecture firm is working with the European Space Agency to investigate methods for constructing lunar homes and has designed a four-person residence that would shelter its inhabitants from dramatically changing temperatures, meteorites and gamma radiation.

http://www.dezeen.com/2013/01/31/foster-partners-to-3d-print-buildings-on-the-moon/