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By NASA
Internal view of LignoSat’s structure shows the relationship among wooden panels, aluminum frames, and stainless-steel shafts.Credit: Kyoto University In December 2024, five CubeSats deployed into Earth’s orbit from the International Space Station. Among them was LignoSat, a wooden satellite from JAXA (Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency) that investigates the use of wood in space. Findings could offer a more sustainable alternative to conventional satellites.
A previous experiment aboard station exposed three species of wood to the space environment to help researchers determine the best option for LignoSat. The final design used 10 cm long honoki magnolia wood panels assembled with a Japanese wood-joinery method.
Researchers will use sensors to evaluate strain on the wood and measure its responses to temperature and radiation in space. Geomagnetic levels will also be monitored to determine whether the geomagnetic field can penetrate the body of the wooden satellite and interfere with its technological capabilities. Investigating uses for wood in space could lead to innovative solutions in the future.
A traditional Japanese wooden joining method, the Blind Miter Dovetail Joint, is used for LignoSat to connect two wooden panels without using glue or nails.Credit: Kyoto University Three CubeSats are deployed from space station, including LignoSat. Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA
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By NASA
This photomontage shows tubes containing samples from Mars, as collected by NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover. The agency’s Mars Sample Return Program plans to bring these samples back to study them in state-of-the-art facilities on Earth.Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS To maximize chances of successfully bringing the first Martian rock and sediment samples to Earth for the benefit of humanity, NASA announced Tuesday a new approach to its Mars Sample Return Program. The agency will simultaneously pursue two landing architectures, or strategic plans, during formulation, encouraging competition and innovation, as well as cost and schedule savings.
NASA plans to later select a single path forward for the program, which aims to better understand the mysteries of the universe, and to help determine whether the Red Planet ever hosted life. NASA is expected to confirm the program – and its design – in the second half of 2026.
“Pursuing two potential paths forward will ensure that NASA is able bring these samples back from Mars with significant cost and schedule saving compared to the previous plan,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson. “These samples have the potential to change the way we understand Mars, our universe, and – ultimately – ourselves. I’d like to thank the team at NASA and the strategic review team, led by Dr. Maria Zuber, for their work.”
In September 2024, the agency accepted 11 studies from the NASA community and industry on how best to return Martian samples to Earth. A Mars Sample Return Strategic Review team was charged with assessing the studies and then recommending a primary architecture for the campaign, including associated cost and schedule estimates.
“NASA’s rovers are enduring Mars’ harsh environment to collect ground-breaking science samples,” said Nicky Fox, who leads NASA’s Science Mission Directorate. “We want to bring those back as quickly as possible to study them in state-of-the-art facilities. Mars Sample Return will allow scientists to understand the planet’s geological history and the evolution of climate on this barren planet where life may have existed in the past and shed light on the early solar system before life began here on Earth. This will also prepare us to safely send the first human explorers to Mars.”
During formulation, NASA will proceed with exploring and evaluating two distinct means of landing the payload platform on Mars. The first option will leverage previously flown entry, descent, and landing system designs, namely the sky crane method, demonstrated with the Curiosity and Perseverance missions. The second option will capitalize on using new commercial capabilities to deliver the lander payload to the surface of Mars.
For both potential options, the mission’s landed platform will carry a smaller version of the Mars Ascent Vehicle. The platform’s solar panels will be replaced with a radioisotope power system that can provide power and heat through the dust storm season at Mars, allowing for reduced complexity.
The orbiting sample container will hold 30 of the sample tubes containing samples the Perseverance lander has been collecting from the surface of Mars. A redesign of the sample loading system on the lander, which will place the samples into the orbiting sample container, simplifies the backward planetary protection implementation by eliminating the accumulation of dust on the outside of the sample container.
Both mission options rely on a capture, containment and return system aboard ESA’s (European Space Agency’s) Earth Return Orbiter to capture the orbiting sample container in Mars orbit. ESA is evaluating NASA’s plan.
For more information on NASA’s exploration of Mars, visit:
https://www.nasa.gov/mars
-end-
Meira Bernstein / Dewayne Washington
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1100
meira.b.bernstein@nasa.gov / dewayne.a.washington@nasa.gov
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Last Updated Jan 07, 2025 LocationNASA Headquarters Related Terms
Missions Mars Sample Return (MSR) View the full article
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By Space Force
The inclusion of these C2 centers was a deliberate effort to add a layer of realism and enhance the exercise's effectiveness in preparing joint space forces for the challenges of the Great Power Competition.
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By Space Force
The activation of S4S was part of U.S. Space Force’s plan to normalize the presentation of space forces across combatant commands and most efficiently meet the challenges presented by the dynamic national security environment and the return to Great Power Competition.
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By NASA
NASA has taken a big step forward in how engineers will assemble and stack future SLS (Space Launch System) rockets for Artemis Moon missions inside the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
The VAB’s High Bay 2 has been outfitted with new tooling to facilitate the vertical integration of the SLS core stage. That progress was on full display in mid-December when teams suspended the fully assembled core stage 225 feet in the air inside the high bay to complete vertical work before it is stacked on mobile launcher 1, allowing teams to continue solid rocket booster stacking simultaneously inside High Bay 3 for Artemis II.
The fully assembled SLS (Space Launch System) core stage for the Artemis II test flight is suspended 225 feet in the air inside the newly renovated High Bay 2 at Kennedy’s Vehicle Assembly Building. The core stage was lifted to enable engineers to complete work before it is stacked on mobile launcher 1 with other rocket elements. With the move to High Bay 2, technicians now have 360-degree tip to tail access to the core stage, both internally and externally.NASA With the move to High Bay 2, technicians with NASA and Boeing now have 360-degree tip to tail access to the core stage, both internally and externally. Michigan-based supplier Futuramic Tool and Engineering led the design and build of the Core Stage Vertical Integration Center tool that will hold the core stage in a vertical position.
“High Bay 2 tooling was originally scheduled to be complete for Artemis III. We had an opportunity to get it done earlier and that will put us in a good posture to complete work earlier than planned prior to moving the core stage for Artemis II into the full integrated stack over into in High Bay 3,” said Chad Bryant, deputy manager of the NASA SLS Stages Office. “This gives us an opportunity to go in and learn how to rotate, lift, and move the core stage into the high bay.”
This move also doubles the footprint of useable space within the VAB, giving engineers access to both High Bay 2 and High Bay 3 simultaneously, while also freeing up space at NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans to continue work on the individual elements for future SLS core stages.
High Bay 2 has a long history of supporting NASA exploration programs: during Apollo, High Bay 2, one of four high bays inside the VAB, was used to stack the Saturn V rocket. During the Space Shuttle Program, the high bay was used for external tank checkout and storage and as an extra storage area for the shuttle.
Under the new assembly model beginning with Artemis III, all the major structures for the SLS core stage will continue to be fully produced and manufactured at NASA Michoud. Upon completion of manufacturing and thermal protection system application, the engine section will be shipped to Kennedy for final outfitting.
The 212-foot-tall SLS (Space Launch System) core stage for NASA Artemis II is seen being moved from a horizontal position to a vertical position in High Bay 2 at the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. With the move to High Bay 2, NASA and Boeing technicians now have 360-degree access to the core stage both internally and externally. (NASA) “Core stage 3 marks a significant change in the way we build core stages,” said Steve Wofford, manager of the SLS Stages Office. “The vertical capability in High Bay 2 allows us to perform parallel processing from the top to bottom of the stage. It’s a much more efficient way to build core stages. This new capability will streamline final production efforts, allowing our team to have 360-degree access to the stage, both internally and externally.”
The fully assembled core stage for Artemis II arrived July 23, 2024, at Kennedy, where it remained horizontal inside the VAB transfer aisle until its recent lift into the newly outfitted high bay.
Teams at NASA Michoud are outfitting the remaining core stage elements for Artemis III and preparing to horizontally join them. The four RS-25 engines for the Artemis III mission are complete at NASA’s Stennis Space Center in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, and will be transported to NASA Kennedy in 2025. Major core stage and exploration upper stage structures are in work at NASA Michoud for Artemis IV and beyond.
NASA is working to land the first woman, first person of color, and its first international partner astronaut on the Moon under Artemis. SLS is part of NASA’s backbone for deep space exploration, along with the Orion spacecraft, supporting ground systems, advanced spacesuits and rovers, the Gateway in orbit around the Moon, and commercial human landing systems. SLS is the only rocket that can send Orion, astronauts, and supplies to the Moon in a single launch.
News Media Contact
Jonathan Deal
Marshall Space Flight Center
Huntsville, Ala.
256-544-0034
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