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Welcome to Astronomy Daily, your source
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for the latest space and astronomy news.
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We're bringing you Tuesday, February 3rd's biggest
0:25
stories from across to Cosmos.
0:27
Today we're covering a setback in NASA's Artemis II
0:30
preparations, a bold new vision from Elon Musk that's
0:34
raising eyebrows across the space industry,
0:36
and NASA's announcement of a fifth private astronaut
0:39
mission to the International Space Station.
0:42
We'll also explore some dramatic solar activity
0:45
that's lighting up our sun, NASA's newest mission
0:48
to map the boundaries of our solar system,
0:50
and an exciting opportunity for aspiring space
0:53
professionals in Europe.
0:55
Let's dive right in with our top story today.
0:58
NASA's Artemis II mission hit a snag
1:00
during a critical pre-launch test over the weekend.
1:03
The wet-tress rehearsal countdown
1:05
was terminated at the T5 minute and 15 second mark
1:09
due to a liquid hydrogen leak.
1:11
For anyone not familiar, a wet-tress rehearsal
1:14
is essentially a full-launched emulation, where
1:17
they load the rocket with propellant
1:19
and run through the entire countdown sequence,
1:21
stopping just short of ignition.
1:23
It's one of the final major tests
1:25
before an actual launch.
1:28
And this particular leak occurred at the interface
1:31
of the tail service mast umbilical,
1:33
which had already experienced high concentrations
1:35
of liquid hydrogen earlier in the countdown.
1:38
The launch control team had to work to ensure
1:41
the space launch system rocket was in a safe configuration
1:44
and begin draining its tanks.
1:47
Now, it's worth putting this in perspective.
1:49
Hydrogen leaks are notoriously challenging
1:52
to deal with in rocketry.
1:53
Hydrogen is the smallest molecule,
1:56
which means it can escape through incredibly tiny gaps.
1:59
NASA actually dealt with similar issues
2:01
during the Artemis I countdown back in 2022.
2:05
That's a good point.
2:06
And while this is definitely a setback,
2:08
it's exactly why we do these rehearsals
2:10
to catch problems and fix them before astronauts are on board.
2:14
The Artemis II crew of Reed Wiseman, Victor Glover,
2:17
Christina Koch and Jeremy Hanson
2:19
are scheduled to become the first humans
2:21
to fly around the moon in over 50 years.
2:24
The team at Kennedy Space Center
2:26
will now need to analyze what went wrong,
2:29
make repairs and potentially schedule
2:31
another wet dress rehearsal.
2:33
This could impact the launch timeline,
2:35
though NASA hasn't announced any official changes
2:38
to the mission schedule yet.
2:39
We'll definitely be keeping a close eye on this one.
2:42
Moving on to our next story,
2:43
which involves some pretty ambitious claims from SpaceX.
2:47
Elon Musk has announced that SpaceX
2:49
has acquired his artificial intelligence company XAI
2:53
and with that acquisition comes a vision
2:55
that sounds like something straight out of science fiction,
2:58
orbital data centers.
3:00
The numbers here are staggering, Anna.
3:03
The information quoted unnamed sources saying XAI
3:06
was valid at $250 billion,
3:09
while SpaceX was valid at a trillion dollars.
3:12
That would make SpaceX the most valuable
3:15
private company in the world.
3:17
Though as one investment advisor quipped,
3:19
Musk essentially had a short negotiation with himself
3:23
since he held controlling interests in both companies.
3:26
But the real story here is what Musk plans to do
3:29
with this combined entity.
3:31
Right, Musk is proposing to put up to a million satellites
3:34
in low-earth orbit to create a constellation
3:37
of orbital data centers.
3:38
The idea is that these would address the major challenges
3:41
facing ground-based data centers,
3:43
the massive electricity requirements
3:45
and the water needed for cooling.
3:47
His pitch is compelling from an engineering standpoint.
3:51
In space, you have mere constant solar power
3:53
with no nighttime interruptions,
3:55
no atmospheric interference, and no need for water cooling.
3:59
As Musk wrote, it's always sunny in space.
4:03
He's framing this as a step towards becoming
4:05
a Kardashev Type II civilization,
4:08
one that can harness the sun's full power.
4:10
He even suggested that future AI satellites could be built on
4:14
and launched from the moon using electromagnetic mass drivers.
4:18
But here's where the skepticism comes in.
4:20
Industry observers are raising serious questions.
4:24
Jim Cashel, author of the Greek Connecting,
4:26
suggested the million satellite figure
4:29
might be more about publicity
4:30
and the potential SpaceX IPO than realistic planning.
4:35
And Martin Pierce from the information
4:37
pointed out the headspinning array
4:39
of technical and financial impediments.
4:42
Those challenges include protecting computers from radiation,
4:45
maintaining hardware in orbit,
4:48
the enormous expanse of getting everything into space,
4:51
and competing with tech giants like Google and Metta
4:54
who have cast-generating advertising businesses.
4:57
Some analysts suggest this move is financially motivated,
5:01
a way to throw a lifeline to XAI,
5:03
which merged with X last year
5:05
and has been facing financial troubles.
5:07
The timing ahead of a possible SpaceX IPO
5:11
is certainly interesting.
5:13
It's definitely an ambitious vision,
5:15
whether it's brilliant foresight
5:16
or science fiction remains to be seen.
5:19
Either way, it sparked a fascinating debate
5:21
about the future of space-based infrastructure.
5:24
Speaking of space infrastructure,
5:26
let's talk about something
5:27
that's actually happening right now.
5:29
NASA's commercial crew program.
5:32
NASA has ordered a fifth private astronaut mission
5:35
to the International Space Station from Axiom Space
5:38
with a launch targeted for no earlier than January 2027
5:42
from Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
5:44
This continues the series
5:46
of commercially sponsored crewed missions
5:48
to the orbital laboratory
5:50
under NASA's commercial space strategy.
5:52
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman
5:55
emphasized that commercial space activity
5:57
has become a present reality
5:59
rather than a distant prospect.
6:01
This mission, designated Axiom Mission 5,
6:04
is expected to spend up to 14 days aboard the station.
6:08
The final launch date will depend
6:10
on overall spacecraft traffic
6:12
and other operational planning factors.
6:14
Basically, coordinating the busy schedule
6:16
of visiting vehicles.
6:18
Dana Weagle, manager of NASA's
6:20
International Space Station program,
6:22
noted that these private astronaut missions
6:24
allow the station to serve as a proving ground
6:27
for new markets and technologies
6:29
while supporting science, research, and outreach
6:32
that contribute to a growing space economy.
6:35
Under this mission order,
6:36
Axiom Space will propose four crew members
6:39
for review by NASA and its international partners.
6:42
though undergo joint training with NASA,
6:45
partner agencies, and the launch provider.
6:47
What's particularly interesting
6:49
about this arrangement is the exchange of services.
6:52
Axiom Space will purchase mission services from NASA
6:56
like crew consumables, cargo delivery, and storage.
7:00
In return, NASA will acquire from Axiom Space
7:03
the capability to return scientific samples
7:06
that must remain cold during transit.
7:09
Jonathan Certain, president and CEO of Axiom Space,
7:12
said the four earlier Axiom missions
7:14
have expanded the global community of human space explorers
7:18
and yielded insights supporting development
7:20
of the planned Axiom Station.
7:22
That's the key here.
7:23
Axiom Station is intended to succeed
7:26
the International Space Station
7:27
as a next-generation commercial platform
7:30
once the current laboratory is retired.
7:32
These missions are helping build towards that future.
7:35
It's a great example of NASA's strategy
7:37
to transition low-earth orbit services to private providers
7:41
while the agency concentrates on deep space exploration
7:44
like the Artemis missions to the moon.
7:48
Now let's turn our attention
7:49
to some dramatic activity happening much closer to home
7:54
The sun has been putting on quite a show over the past 24 hours.
7:59
A rapidly growing sunspot has fired off
8:02
at least 18 M-class flares and three X-class flares,
8:07
including an intense X-8.3 eruption.
8:11
The strongest solar flare of 2026 so far.
8:14
To put that in perspective for our listeners,
8:17
solar flares are ranked from A, B, and C up to M and X
8:21
with each letter representing a 10-fold increase in energy.
8:25
So X-class flares are the most powerful explosions
8:29
the sun can produce.
8:30
And the number after the X tells you how intense it is
8:35
The culprit is sunspot region 4366,
8:39
which spaceweather.com described as a solar flare factory.
8:44
This region has grown rapidly in just a few days
8:46
and shows no signs of slowing down.
8:49
The X-8.3 flare peaked at 6.57 pm Eastern time
8:54
on February 1, unleashing a blast of extreme ultraviolet
8:59
and X-ray radiation that ionized Earth's upper atmosphere.
9:03
This triggered strong R-3 radio blackouts
9:06
across parts of the South Pacific.
9:08
Eastern Australia and New Zealand
9:10
reported shortwave radio disruptions.
9:13
These blackouts happen because the intense radiation
9:16
from the flare alters the ionosphere,
9:19
which radio signals bounce off of for long-distance communication.
9:23
Now, what everyone wants to know is,
9:25
will we see auroras from this?
9:27
Scientists are watching for coronal mass ejections
9:30
that could follow these flares.
9:32
Early analysis of a CME linked to the X-8.3 eruption
9:36
suggests most of the solar material will pass north
9:41
There's a possibility of a glancing blow around February 5,
9:45
which could briefly elevate geomagnetic activity
9:48
and increase the chances of auroras at high latitudes.
9:51
But forecasters stress it's too early to know for certain.
9:55
The bigger concern is that some spot AR-4366 remains highly active
10:01
and continues to rotate into an Earth-facing position.
10:04
That raises the chance that future eruptions
10:07
could launch CMEs more directly toward our planet.
10:11
Noah forecasters expect more exciting space weather activity
10:14
from this region in the coming days.
10:16
So aurora casers should definitely keep an eye
10:19
on space weather forecasts over the next week.
10:22
It's a great reminder that we're still in solar maximum,
10:25
the period of greatest solar activity
10:27
in the sun's 11 year cycle.
10:30
We can expect more of these dramatic events
10:32
over the next year or so.
10:35
From watching the sun, let's zoom out
10:37
to the boundaries of our entire solar system.
10:41
DASA's IMAP mission, that's the interstellar mapping
10:44
and acceleration probe, officially began its two-year
10:47
primary science mission on February 1.
10:51
IMAP's job is to explore and map the boundaries
10:54
of our heliosphere, which is the protective bubble
10:57
created by the solar wind that encapsulates
10:59
our entire solar system.
11:01
Think of it as our cosmic shield against interstellar radiation.
11:06
The mission launched on September 24th, 2025,
11:09
and relies on 10 scientific instruments
11:12
to chart what's happening in space.
11:14
That includes high energy particles
11:16
from the sun, magnetic fields in interplanetary space,
11:19
and even dust from exploded stars in interstellar space.
11:24
What makes this particularly exciting
11:26
is that IMAP is investigating some of the most important
11:29
questions in heliophysics, how charged particles
11:32
from the sun get energized, and how the solar wind
11:35
interacts at its boundary with interstellar space.
11:39
And there's a practical benefit, too.
11:41
Some of IMAP's data is being fed into the eyelert system,
11:45
which stands for IMAP active link for real time.
11:48
This broadcasts near real time observations
11:51
of space weather headed toward Earth.
11:53
That data can inform forecasters
11:55
who issue warnings about potential adverse space weather
11:58
effects on spacecraft and astronauts.
12:01
Though IMAP is both advancing
12:03
or scientific understanding and providing
12:05
practical benefits for space operations.
12:08
The mission is led by David McComis, a principal investigator
12:12
and professor at Princeton University
12:14
with an international team of 27 partner institutions.
12:18
Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory
12:20
managed development and operates the mission.
12:23
It's the fifth mission in NASA's Solar Terrestrial Probes
12:26
program, and it's going to give us unprecedented insights
12:29
into the edge of our solar neighborhood
12:31
over the next two years.
12:33
Beaking of opportunities to advance our understanding
12:35
of space, let's wrap up with some news
12:38
for aspiring space professionals.
12:40
The European Space Agency has opened applications
12:43
for its 2026 graduate trainee program,
12:46
offering an incredible opportunity for recent graduates
12:49
passionate about engineering, science, IT, or business.
12:53
This is a unique professional experience
12:56
where trainees become part of teams of scientists,
12:59
engineers, and business professionals from all over Europe,
13:03
working together on inspiring space missions
13:06
in an international, multicultural environment.
13:10
The positions are one-year contracts
13:12
with possible extension to a second year.
13:14
trainees get 2.5 days of paid leave per month
13:18
and receive a monthly salary that's exempt
13:20
from national income tax and ESA member states.
13:23
ESA also reimburses travel expenses
13:26
at the beginning and end of the contract.
13:28
Provides an expatriation or installation allowance
13:31
for those moving from another country
13:34
and includes affiliation to ESA's comprehensive
13:37
social security and pension schemes.
13:39
To be eligible, you need to be a student
13:41
in the final year of a master's degree
13:44
or a recent graduate.
13:45
You must have graduated by the time you start your traineeship
13:48
and be able to provide a copy of your diploma
13:51
within three months of starting.
13:53
Important note, you shouldn't have more than one year
13:56
of professional experience after graduation.
13:59
And you must be a citizen of one of the ESA member states,
14:02
associate members, European cooperating states,
14:06
or Canada as a cooperating state.
14:09
ESA is holding three information sessions in early February
14:12
where prospective applicants can learn more
14:14
about the program and ask questions.
14:16
The first one is February 5th.
14:19
There is another on February 12th
14:20
and a third on February 17th.
14:23
Each candidate can submit up to three applications.
14:26
So it's worthwhile exploring multiple opportunities
14:29
that match your academic background and aspirations.
14:32
All the details in application portal
14:34
can be found at jobs.esa.int.
14:38
I'll be sure to add that link in the show notes.
14:40
This is genuinely a fantastic opportunity
14:43
for anyone looking to start a career in Europe space sector.
14:47
ESA has a long history of groundbreaking missions
14:49
and continues to be at the forefront of space exploration,
14:53
earth observation, and space science.
14:55
It's programs like this
14:57
that help develop the next generation of space professionals
15:00
who will be working on tomorrow's missions
15:02
to explore our solar system and beyond.
15:05
And that wraps up today's episode of Astronomy Daily.
15:09
We've covered everything from challenges
15:10
with Artemis II preparations
15:12
to ambitious visions for orbital data centers.
15:15
On going commercial space station missions,
15:18
dramatic solar activity,
15:20
the start of a new NASA mission
15:21
mapping our cosmic neighborhood
15:23
and opportunities for the next generation of space professionals.
15:27
As always, there's never a dull moment in space exploration.
15:31
If you want to stay connected with us
15:33
and get more space news throughout the week,
15:35
visit our website at astronomydaily.io.
15:39
You can also find us on social media
15:41
at AstroDailyPod on X, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok,
15:45
YouTube, and Tumblr.
15:46
Thanks for joining us today.
15:48
Keep looking up and we'll see you tomorrow
15:51
with more news from the cosmos.
15:53
Until then, clear skies everyone.
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