MAVEN's Final Hour: Mars Orbiter Crisis + Historic ISS Evacuation Update & Lunar Timekeeping

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Welcome to Astronomy Daily, your source

for the latest space and astronomy news.

I'm Anna.

And I'm Avery.

It's Saturday, January 17th, 2026.

And we've got an absolutely packed episode for you today.

We really do.

And we're leading with some bittersweet news from Mars.

NASA's making what might be their final attempt

to contact the Maven Orbiter, which has been silent

for over a month now.

It's looking increasingly unlikely

that they'll be able to recover the spacecraft.

That's tough news.

But we've also got some incredible human achievements

to celebrate.

The SpaceX crew 11 astronauts have safely returned

to Houston following the first ever medical evacuation

from the International Space Station.

We'll get into the details of how

that historic operational fullness.

Europe's stepping up its launch game, too.

Ariane Space has announced they'll

be launching the first Ariane 64 rocket on February 12th.

That's the more powerful four booster version.

This is a big deal for European space capabilities.

We're also diving into some fascinating research today.

Scientists have been using CERN's particle accelerators

to simulate asteroid impacts.

And what they discovered about iron-rich space rocks

could change how we approach planetary defense.

Then we've got something that sounds like science fiction,

but is very real.

China has released the world's first practical software

for keeping time on the moon.

Yes, lunar timekeeping is now a thing.

And it's more important than you might think.

And we'll wrap up with some stunning new images from Hubble.

Even after 35 years in orbit, it's still showing us

where planets are born in proto-planetary disks

around young stars.

Lots to cover, so let's get started.

Let's start with that Mars story, Anna.

NASA's Maven Orbiter has been one of our most valuable assets

at Mars for over a decade.

What's the latest on the recovery efforts?

Well, it's not looking good, I'm afraid.

Maven, that's the Mars atmosphere

and volatile evolution orbiter, went silent on December 6th, 2025.

And NASA has been unable to reestablish contact ever since.

The spacecraft has been orbiting Mars since 2014,

providing invaluable data about the Martian atmosphere

and serving as a critical communications relay

for the curiosity and perseverance rovers.

So what exactly happened?

I mean, communications blackouts aren't completely

unusual for Mars missions, right?

You're right, they're not.

In this case, Maven passed behind Mars,

which temporarily blocks communication.

That's a routine occurrence.

But when it should have emerged on the other side,

NASA's deep space network couldn't regain contact.

What makes it worse is that this happened

right before a solar conjunction.

That's when the sun sits directly

between Earth and Mars, correct?

Exactly.

During solar conjunction, which occurs roughly every two years,

solar particles interfere with radio signals.

NASA temporarily halts all communications

with Mars missions during this period

to avoid sending corrupted commands

or receiving incomplete data that could damage spacecraft.

Though the conjunction basically meant NASA had to wait

before they could even try to recover Maven.

And that conjunction period just ended.

Right.

NASA said they wouldn't have contact

with any Mars missions until Friday, January 16th.

So as of today, they're making renewed attempts

to contact Maven.

But here's the concerning part.

Louise Proctor, the director of NASA's Planetary Science

Division, said on January 13th, and I quote,

we'll start looking again.

But at this point, it's looking very unlikely

that we are going to be able to recover the spacecraft.

That's pretty pessimistic language from NASA.

Do we know what might have caused the initial failure?

The leading theory is that Maven started rotating unexpectedly

after passing behind Mars.

This would have shifted the spacecraft out of its planned orbit

and potentially moved its antenna away from Earth.

But here's where it gets more complicated.

Maven has had aging hardware issues for years now.

What kind of issues are we talking about?

The spacecraft has had problems

with its onboard inertial measurement units or IMUs,

which are essential for orientation and space.

Back in 2022, Maven spent about three months in safe mode

because of IMU problems.

The mission team had to rely on backup systems

that have experienced accelerated wear and tear.

They even developed an alternative all-stellar navigation

mode that uses stars for orientation

instead of relying on the IMUs.

So it sounds like Maven has been living on borrowed time

for a while now.

In some ways, yes.

The spacecraft's inability to fully recover

from those 2022 outages led to missed observations

of significant solar flares and disrupted

its communications relay role.

That said, Maven still has enough fuel to remain in orbit

until at least 2030.

So the hardware could theoretically keep working

if they can just reestablish contact.

What's the impact going to be if they can't recover it?

I imagine the rovers depend on these orbiters

for communications.

That's a great point.

Maven has been a key communications relay

for the curiosity and perseverance

rovers with Maven offline.

NASA has had to shift more of that burden

to other orbiters, specifically Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter

and Mars Odyssey.

This puts increased pressure on those spacecraft

to maintain communications and support

surface science activities.

And scientifically, what are we losing?

Maven's scientific contributions have been enormous.

It's helped us understand how Mars lost its once thick

atmosphere and became the cold, dry world

it is today.

The data it collected on Martian weather patterns,

dust storms and auroras provided insights

into the planet's climate system

and potential habitability.

Without Maven, we'd have critical gaps

in our ongoing atmospheric studies of Mars.

So fingers crossed at these new contact attempts work out.

When will we know more?

NASA should have results from their latest attempts very soon.

But given the pessimistic tone from their leadership,

I think we need to prepare for the possibility

that Maven's remarkable decade-long mission

may have come to an end.

It would be a sad conclusion

to such a successful spacecraft,

but it's given us more than 10 years

of groundbreaking science.

Absolutely, and that's well beyond

its original design life, right?

Oh, definitely.

Like so many NASA missions,

it far exceeded expectations.

Let's hope there's one more surprise left in it.

Here's hoping.

Moving from Mars back to closer to home,

let's talk about that historic ISS medical evacuation

Avery.

This was really unprecedented.

It absolutely was.

The four astronauts of SpaceX's crew 11 mission

are now safely back in Houston

after splashing down off the coast

of Long Beach, California early Thursday morning.

This marked the very first medical evacuation

from the International Space Station

in its more than 25-year history.

Who were the crew members involved?

The crew consisted of NASA astronauts Zena Kardman

and Mike Finke,

Kimia Yui from Japan's Aerospace Agency,

and Cosmonaut Oleg Platonov from Roskosmos.

They launched back in early August

for what were supposed to be a standard six-month stay

aboard the station.

So they came home about five weeks early, correct?

That's right.

One of the four crew members experienced

a medical issue in orbit last week,

and NASA made the decision to bring the entire crew home

ahead of schedule.

Now, NASA has been very protective of medical privacy,

which is absolutely appropriate.

So they haven't disclosed which crew member had the issue

or what the specific medical problem was.

What do we know about how they're doing now?

According to NASA's latest update from Friday afternoon,

all four crew members are stable

and undergoing standard post-flight reconditioning

and evaluations at Johnson Space Center.

After splashing down,

they spend about a day and night

at a local medical facility in California

before flying to Houston.

I have to say, the fact that they described them as stable

and that they're doing standard post-flight evaluations

suggests this wasn't a dire emergency situation.

That's my read on it, too.

And NASA officials have been pretty clear

about describing this as a deliberate,

carefully plant operation rather than a panic situation.

In fact, one NASA representative said,

and I'm paraphrasing here,

this is NASA at its finest,

referring to how smoothly the evacuation

and splash down went.

And you walk us through what a medical evacuation

from the ISS actually involves?

This seems incredibly complex.

It is.

First, you have to understand

that the ISS has medical capabilities on board.

There's medical equipment, supplies,

and the crew receives training

to handle various medical situations.

They can consult with flight surgeons on the ground

in real time,

but sometimes ground-based medical care is simply necessary,

either for more advanced diagnostic equipment

or for treatment options that aren't available in orbit.

Though the decision to bring someone home

is never made lightly.

Exactly.

In this case, the medical issue required evaluation

and potential treatment

that couldn't be done on the station.

Once that call was made,

they had to prepare the crew drag and spacecraft,

the same one they arrived in,

named Endeavor, for an early departure.

This involves checking all systems,

planning the undocking and reentry trajectory,

coordinating with recovery teams

and making sure weather conditions

would be suitable for splashdown.

And they successfully executed all of that

in just a few days?

They did.

The crew undocked from the ISS on January 14th,

completed their deorbit burn

and splashed down safely early on January 15th.

Recovery teams were standing by

and quickly retrieved the capsule and crew.

The whole operation went remarkably smoothly.

What about the ISS itself?

How is it operating with a reduced crew?

That's a great question.

Right now, the station is operating

with what they're calling a skeleton crew

of just three people.

NASA astronaut Chris Williams

and two Ross Cosmos cosmonauts,

Sergei Kudtsvertskov and Sergei Mikhail.

That's less than half the normal complement

of seven crew members.

In three people effectively run the ISS?

They can maintain it and keep critical systems running,

but it definitely limits what science can be done.

The station won't return to its full operational capacity

until SpaceX's crew 12 mission arrives.

That's currently scheduled for February 15th,

though NASA and SpaceX are looking at

whether they can move that timeline up a bit.

I imagine this whole situation

must have been quite stressful for everyone involved.

No doubt, but what strikes me is how calmly

and professionally it was handled.

In one of the final communications before undocking,

crew 11 commander Mike Finke said

it was bittersweet to be leaving early.

He handed over command of the ISS to Chris Williams

and you could hear in his voice

that he would have preferred to complete the full mission,

but he also understood the necessity of coming home.

It really speaks to the incredible planning

and preparation that goes into human spaceflight.

Even in an off-nominal situation like this,

the systems and procedures worked exactly as designed.

And I think it's worth noting

that this won't affect other upcoming missions.

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman specifically stated

that this ISS evacuation shouldn't interfere

with the upcoming Artemis Toomoon mission,

which is still on track for a possible launch

as early as February 6th.

That's good to hear.

Well, here's hoping for a full recovery

for whichever crew member needed the medical attention.

And kudos to everyone involved

in executing such a complex operation so flawlessly.

Agreed, it really was NASA at its finest.

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Switching gears now to European spaceflight.

Avery, Europe is about to debut

a significantly more powerful version of its new rocket, right?

That's right, Anna.

Arian Space has announced that the first flight

of the Arian 6'4 will launch on February 12th

from the Guyana Space Center in French Guyana.

This is the four booster configuration of the Arian 6

and it represents a major step up in capability

for European launch services.

Let's back up a second for anyone

who might not be familiar with the Arian 6.

Can you give us the background?

Sure, the Arian 6 is Europe's newest heavy lift rocket

designed to replace the Arian 5,

which served for nearly three decades.

The inaugural flight was back in July 2024

and throughout 2025, Arian Space flew four more missions,

all carrying payloads for organizations like ESA,

UMETSAT and CNUS, the French Space Agency.

And all of those flights used the Arian 6'2 configuration?

Exactly.

The Arian 6'2 uses two P120C solid fuel boosters

strapped to the side of the rocket's core stage.

Each of those boosters produces roughly 4,500 kilo-noons

of thrust.

It's been doing great for medium lift missions,

with a capacity to deliver about 10.3 tons to low Earth orbit.

So the Arian 6'4 just adds two more boosters?

Right.

It uses four of those P120C boosters instead of two

and that makes a dramatic difference in capability.

The Arian 6'4 can deliver up to 21.6 tons to low Earth orbit,

more than double what the Arian 6'2 can handle.

That puts it in the heavy lift category,

competing with rockets like SpaceX's Falcon Heavy.

That's a significant jump.

What's driving the need for this more powerful version?

Well, this first mission actually gives us a perfect example.

The Arian 6'4's first flight will be launching satellites

for Amazon's Project Cooper broadband internet constellation.

Arian space has an 18-flight contract with Amazon

and this first mission, designated LE01,

which stands for Leo Europe 01,

will deploy 32 Cooper satellites.

Amazon's competing with SpaceX's Starlink, right?

That's right, Amazon already has about 180 satellites

in orbit and they're rapidly building out the constellation.

Having access to the more powerful Arian 6'4

means they can launch more satellites at once,

which speeds up the deployment schedule

and reduces the total number of launches needed.

Is there anything else notable about this particular flight?

Yes, actually, this will be the first Arian 6' mission

to use the rocket's larger 20-meter-long fairing.

All previous flights used a shorter 14-meter-faring.

The longer fairing provides more volume for larger payloads,

or in this case, for fitting more satellites

into the payload stack.

How long will the mission last?

Arian space hasn't published the complete mission breakdown yet,

but they've stated the entire flight

will last one hour and 54 minutes.

That presumably includes deploying all 32 satellites

and then de-orbiting the rocket's upper stage

in a controlled manner,

which is important for reducing space debris.

What does this mean for Arian space's launch cadence

going forward?

They're being pretty ambitious.

Arian space is aiming to double the number

of Arian 6 launches this year compared to 2025.

That would mean as many as eight Arian 6 flights

over the next 12 months,

given that they're still ramping up operations

with what is still a fairly new rocket,

that's a challenging goal, but it shows their confidence.

Are there any other upgrades in the works?

Actually, yes.

The company is developing an upgraded version

of the solid fuel booster called the P-160C.

It carries an additional 14 tons of solid propellant

compared to the current P-120C.

That upgrade has already been fully qualified

for use on both the Arian 6-2

for medium lift missions,

the Arian 6-4 for heavy lift,

the Vega C for smaller payloads,

and these future upgrades.

Europe is positioning itself to be very competitive

in the commercial launch market.

And that's crucial,

especially as we see increasing competition

from SpaceX, China, and other emerging launch providers.

Will the February 12th launch be publicly viewable?

Arian space typically provides live coverage

of their launches,

so I'd expect we'll be able to watch

this historic first flight of the Arian 6-4.

It should be quite a sight.

Those four boosters firing together

should make for an impressive lift off.

I'll definitely be watching.

It's great to see Europe maintaining

and expanding its independent access to space.

Anna, let's talk about planetary defense.

Scientists have been conducting

some fascinating experiments

using particle accelerators to understand

how asteroids might respond to deflection attempts.

This is really cool work, Avery.

An international research team

used CERN's high radiation to materials facility

that's high-rad mat

to simulate what happens

when high-energy impacts strike iron-rich asteroids.

And what they found could significantly change

our approach to planetary defense.

Before we get into the results,

can you set up the context?

Why is this research important?

Sure.

We know there are around 37,000 known near-earth asteroids

and 120 short-period comets

whose orbits bring them close to Earth.

While scientists are confident

that none of the known potentially hazardous objects

will strike Earth within the next century,

we know that eventually planetary defense measures

will be needed.

And NASA's Dart mission demonstrated one approach,

the kinetic impactor.

Exactly.

In 2022, Dart successfully struck the asteroid Demorphus

and altered its orbit.

But to do this reliably

and develop effective defense strategies,

we need to understand how different types of asteroids

respond to impacts.

That's where this new research comes in.

So they focus specifically on iron-rich asteroids.

Right.

What astronomers call M-type asteroids.

These are thought to be exposed metallic cores

of ancient proto-planets

that were shattered in collisions billions of years ago.

They're made primarily of iron and nickel,

unlike the more common rocky asteroids or icy comets.

How did they simulate an asteroid impact

in the lab?

This is where it gets really clever.

They used a sample of the Campo delcio iron meteorite,

which is a well-studied iron meteorite from Argentina.

They subjected it to extremely energetic 440 GEV proton

beams at CERN's high-rad matte facility at CERN.

That's an incredibly high-energy level.

And how did they measure what happened to the sample?

They used a technique called Doppler vibrametry,

which can detect tiny surface vibrations.

This allowed them to capture real-time data

on how the material responded to rapidly increasing stress,

all without destroying the sample.

They could see exactly how iron behaved

under extreme conditions.

What did they discover?

This is where it gets really interesting.

The results showed that M-type asteroids

can absorb significantly more energy without fragmenting

than conventional models predicted.

But even more surprisingly, the meteorite actually

got tougher as it was subjected to increasing stress.

Wait, it got stronger under stress?

Yes, the researchers found that the iron dissipated more

energy as stress increased, suggesting

that the internal structure of asteroids

can redistribute and amplify stress in unexpected ways,

similar to what we see in complex composite materials.

That seems counterintuitive.

You'd expect materials to weaken under extreme stress,

not strengthen.

That's exactly why this is such an important finding.

It contradicts what conventional models have suggested.

One of the studies co-authors, Professor Gianluca Gregori

from the University of Oxford, said,

this is the first time they've been able to observe

in real-time how an actual meteorite sample deforms,

strengthens and adapts under extreme conditions

without destroying it.

So what does this mean for planetary defense strategies?

A couple of things.

First, it means that iron-rich asteroids

might be harder to deflect than we thought,

because they can absorb more energy

without breaking apart.

But it also suggests that we could potentially

deliver energy deep inside an asteroid

without fragmenting it.

Back to be useful if you want to push an asteroid

rather than shatter it.

Exactly.

The research also helps explain a long-standing puzzle

in planetary defense.

Why there's often a discrepancy between what we infer

from meteorite breakup in Earth's atmosphere

and actual laboratory measurements of meteorite strength?

This study shows that internal stress redistribution

within the heterogeneous structure of meteorites

can explain that difference.

This sounds like a good informed new deflection methods.

That's the hope.

The data could help develop redirection techniques

that push asteroids more effectively

while keeping them intact.

After all, the last thing you want

when deflecting an asteroid is to break it into multiple pieces

that might still pose a threat.

Have they tested this with other types of asteroid materials?

This particular study focused on iron meteorites,

but the methodology could be applied to other types of asteroids,

rocky asteroids, carbonaceous asteroids, and so on.

Each type would likely behave differently

under extreme stress.

And understanding those differences

is crucial for developing a comprehensive planetary defense

toolkit.

I think what's particularly valuable here

is that they've developed a technique

that can test actual meteorite samples non-destructively.

That means we can build up a library of data

on how different asteroid materials behave

without having to rely solely on computer simulations

or destroying precious samples.

And as we continue to study asteroids

with missions like Osiris X and Hayabusa II,

we'll have more samples to test.

Exactly.

The combination of sample return missions, laboratory testing

like this, and missions like Dart

that demonstrate actual deflection techniques,

it's all building toward a real capability

to protect Earth from asteroid impacts.

It's reassuring to know that even though we don't face

an immediate threat, we're doing the groundwork now,

so we'll be prepared when we need to be.

Absolutely.

And this research was just published in Nature Communications.

So it's getting a lot of attention

from the planetary defense community.

Avery, our next story sounds like something

out of science fiction, but it's very much real

and increasingly necessary.

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China has released the world's first practical software

for keeping time on the moon.

Lunar timekeeping software.

When you say it out loud,

it really drives home how much space exploration has advanced.

Why do we need to keep time differently on the moon?

It all comes down to Einstein's theory

of general relativity.

Time doesn't pass at the same rate everywhere.

It's affected by both gravity and velocity.

The moon's gravity is weaker than Earths,

which means time actually passes slightly faster

on the moon than it does on Earth.

How much faster are we talking about?

About five-sixth millionths of a second per day.

Now, that might not sound like much,

but it adds up over time,

and it can seriously disrupt navigation systems,

especially when you're trying to do precision work

on the lunar surface.

So this is a precision navigation issue.

Exactly.

Think about GPS on Earth.

The satellites constantly have to correct

for relativistic effects caused by gravity and motion.

Those corrections are what allow your phone

to pinpoint your location within just a few meters.

Without accounting for relativity,

GPS would be useless within minutes.

And the moon is about to have a similar need

for precision navigation.

Right.

In the past, this wasn't really a problem

because lunar missions were rare, short,

and mostly isolated.

Engineers could just use Earth time

and apply mission-specific fixes when needed,

but that's changing rapidly.

Because we're about to have multiple spacecraft

and eventually humans operating on the moon simultaneously.

Exactly.

Under those conditions, relying on custom fixes

for each mission becomes risky and inefficient.

You need a standardized lunar time reference

that everyone can use.

So what exactly did the Chinese team create?

Researchers from the Purple Mountain Observatory in Nanjing

developed detailed software called LTE440.

That stands for Lunar Time Ephemeras.

It's based on modern planetary data

and tracks how lunar time drifts relative to Earth time.

The software automates calculations

that once required deep expertise in relativity

and celestial mechanics.

How accurate is it?

Remarkably accurate.

The researchers found their method stays accurate

to within a few tens of nanoseconds

even when projected over 1,000 years.

And to keep daily differences within

about 10 nanoseconds,

the calculations need to be accurate to parts in 10 trillion.

Their tests show LTE440 meets that standard.

Why such extreme precision?

Well, navigation is one driver, but there's also science.

The moon offers unique conditions for astronomy,

no atmosphere, minimal interference.

One promising idea is Earth Moon

very long baseline interferometry

where you link radio telescopes on Earth

and the moon to create sharper images of distant objects.

And that requires extremely precise timing.

Right, signals recorded on both bodies

need to be timestamped to better than a microsecond.

To allow for instrument noise,

the underlying time model needs to be even more accurate

hence the extreme precision requirements.

How does the software actually work?

Instead of using long equations,

they used a numerical approach based

on a planetary model called DE440,

which tracks the positions and velocities

of solar system bodies with high precision.

From that data, they computed how time near the moon

differs from a solar system reference time.

The software stores these results in compact files

that can be quickly interpolated.

What effects lunar time most?

The moon's motion and the sun's gravity dominate the effect.

But Earth, Jupiter, and even distant objects

in the Kuiper belt, adds smaller effects.

There are monthly and yearly patterns

that range from milliseconds down to microseconds.

I'm curious about the international response to this.

Is China the only one working on this?

That's a great question.

Jonathan McDowell and astronomer at Harvard

told reporters that similar efforts are underway

in the United States, but he's not aware

of another openly available tool like this.

He emphasized that this shows China is serious

about lunar exploration and is being quite open

about sharing its lunar-related research.

That's actually encouraging

from an international cooperation standpoint.

I think so too.

And it's worth noting that in 2024,

the International Astronomical Union adopted a framework

calling for the moon to have its own time reference.

So this software really builds

on that international consensus.

What are the practical implications for upcoming missions?

As lunar activity increases, and we're talking

about NASA's Artemis program, China's own lunar base plans,

commercial lunar landers, and more,

reliable timekeeping will support safer landings,

smoother navigation, and better coordination

between missions.

Eventually, we'll likely see lunar GPS style systems

that depend on this kind of precise timekeeping.

It really is laying the groundwork

for sustained human presence on the moon.

Absolutely.

And the researchers emphasize that LTE-440

is just an early step.

Future versions will need to support real-time navigation

and networks of lunar clocks.

But the release marks a shift from abstract planning

to practical infrastructure.

It's one of those things that sounds mundane,

time-software, but is actually fundamental

to making lunar operations work.

Exactly.

You can have the fanciest rockets and landers in the world,

but if your spacecraft can't agree on what time it is,

you're going to have problems.

This is the kind of unsexy but essential infrastructure

work that makes the exciting stuff possible.

Or our final story today, let's talk

about the Hubble Space Telescope.

After 35 years in orbit, it's still

delivering incredible science.

It really is remarkable.

NASA just released a new gallery of Hubble images

showing proto-planetary disks around young stars,

essentially the birthplaces of planets.

And these images beautifully illustrate

one of Hubble's original mission goals,

understanding how planets form.

Can you walk us through what we're seeing in these images?

Sure.

When stars form, they're surrounded by gas and dust

left over from the formation process.

In the early stages, this is called a circumstellar disk.

But once planets start forming in the disk,

we call it a proto-planetary disk.

These disks are where planetary systems

like our own solar system come from.

What makes these particular images special?

Hubble captured them using two different approaches.

The visible light images, taken with Hubble's advanced

camera for surveys, show four proto-planetary disks,

where you can actually see polar jets of gas

shooting out from the young stars.

You can also see brightly lit nebulae.

And there's this cool effect where the dark band around each star

is actually a shadow cast onto the nebula by the disk itself.

That's wild.

So we're seeing the shadow of the planet forming disk?

Exactly.

And each of these systems has unique characteristics.

One called HH390 isn't quite a John.

So you only see one side of its nebulosity.

Another Tao 042021 is seen as John

and is in a later stage of evolution,

where the dust grains have already clumped together

into larger grains, which is part of the planet formation process.

What about that third one, HH48?

Oh, that's particularly interesting.

HH48 is actually a binary proto-star system.

And you can see how the gravitational power from the larger star

is shaping the disk around its less massive companion.

It's a great example of how stellar environments affect planet formation.

And the infrared images show something different.

Right.

The infrared images taken with Hubble's Wide Field Camera 3

show the bright proto-stars, despite being surrounded by dust.

Dust absorbs starlight and then re-emits it in infrared,

which allows Hubble to see the stars.

The jets aren't visible in these infrared images,

but you get a much better view of the stars themselves

and their dusty disks.

Where are these proto-planetary disks located?

Both of them are in well-known star-forming regions.

Several are in the Orion Molecular Cloud Complex.

That's one of the most active star-forming regions visible from Earth,

located about 1,500 light years away.

Others are in the Perseus Molecular Cloud.

Now, we also have the James Webb Space Telescope

observing these kinds of objects.

How do Hubble's observations compare?

That's a great question.

JWST has been doing incredible work on proto-stars

and proto-planetary disks, too.

In fact, there was research published in 2024

based on JWST observations showing that some young proto-stars

have layered structures of winds and jets.

Interjets surrounded by outer cone-shaped jets.

So the two telescopes are complementary?

Exactly.

Hubble excels in visible and some infrared wavelengths,

while JWST is optimized for infrared.

Together, they give us a much more complete picture.

For instance, Hubble can show us those beautiful jets

and nebulae invisible light, while JWST can peer through dust

to see the nested structure of winds and jets

using different chemical tracers.

How much longer can we expect Hubble to keep operating?

That's the big question.

Hubble was launched in 1990 with an expected 15-year lifetime,

but it's now lasted more than 35 years

thanks to five servicing missions.

However, it is showing its age.

The telescope has been losing gyroscopes,

which means it takes more time to point at targets.

Observations are down by about 12%,

with a corresponding reduction in science output.

But it's still functioning, right?

Oh, yes.

NASA expects Hubble to keep operating into the 2030s,

and there's been talk, though it's not confirmed,

of a possible servicing mission

that could extend its life even further.

Who would conduct that servicing mission?

That's the interesting part.

NASA doesn't have the space shuttle anymore,

which was used for all previous servicing missions.

Any future servicing mission

would likely involve a commercial spacecraft,

possibly something from SpaceX

or another company developing servicing capabilities.

It would be amazing if Hubble could keep going

for another decade.

It really would.

And if it does, it'll continue contributing

to our understanding of star formation,

planet formation, and so many other areas of astronomy.

These proto-planetary disk images are a perfect example

of how Hubble is still answering fundamental questions

about how planetary systems like ours come to be.

When you think about it,

Hubble has literally changed our view of the universe

from the Hubble deep field to these proto-planetary disks

from measuring the expansion rate of the universe

to studying exoplanet atmospheres.

It's been an incredible horsework.

Absolutely.

And the fact that it's still delivering cutting edge science

more than 30 decades after launch

is a testament to the foresight of designing it

to be serviceable and upgradable.

It's a model for how we should think

about building space-based observatories.

Well, that wraps up today's episode of Astronomy Daily.

We covered a lot of ground from the uncertain fate

of NASA's Maven Orbiter to the historic ISS medical

evacuation from Europe's expanding launch capabilities

to groundbreaking asteroid defense research.

And we learned about lunar timekeeping software

that will enable the next generation of moon missions.

Amp saw how Hubble continues to reveal the birthplaces

of planets after 35 years in orbit.

It's been quite a week in space news,

and we've only just scratched the surface.

Before we go, a quick reminder that you can find

more space and astronomy news at our website,

astronomydaily.io.

And don't forget to subscribe so you never miss an episode.

You can also follow us on social media

for bonus content and updates throughout the week.

Thanks for joining us today, everyone.

Clear skies, and we'll see you on Monday.

The Astronomy Daily.

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