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Science and Information / Astronauts’ internet speeds boosted as ISS receives new antenna

« on: February 25, 2020, 02:08:59 PM »

A UK-built device capable of home broadband speeds, which will enable astronauts to communicate with loved ones and experts on Earth, has reached its destination the International Space Station (ISS).

The Columbus Ka-band Terminal (COLKa), a communications antenna, arrived on a Cygnus supply ship shortly after 9am on February 18. It is the UK’s first contribution to the ISS, which has housed international astronauts since 2000.

According to the UK Space Agency, the upgrade will ensure faster communications that are independent from the Nasa system already installed onboard the space station.

The contract for designing and building the fridge-sized device was awarded to MDA Space and Robotics Limited, a global communications and information company based in Harwell, Oxfordshire.

“The COLKa programme has firmly established MDA in the UK as a leading provider of high-quality space equipment, positioning us for continued business growth and new jobs in both communications and space sensor markets,” said David Kenyon, managing director at MDA UK.

Source: https://eandt.theiet.org/content/articles/2020/02/astronauts-internet-speeds-boosted-as-iss-receives-new-uk-built-antenna/

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Science and Information / Seismic activity on Mars confirmed by Insight lander

« on: February 25, 2020, 02:07:14 PM »

Nasa has been able to confirm that Mars is seismically active after its Insight spacecraft was able to detect two quakes large enough to be tracked back to their source.

First landing in November 2018 in the Elysium Planitia region, Insight (pictured above) detected over 100 “Marsquakes” in its first year on the planet. However, there was some debate amongst scientists as to whether the vibrations detected were legitimate seismic activity or just Martian wind rattling its instruments.

Dr Bruce Barnerdt, InSight principal investigator and lead author on one of the studies, said: “We finally have, for the first time, established that Mars is a seismically active planet.”

The first so-called “Marsquake” was recorded by InSight’s onboard sensors in April 2019. Since then, it has detected more than 450 quivers, much smaller than anything that would be felt on Earth.

Two of the quakes were found to emanate from a geologically active area known as Cerberus Fossae, around 1,000 miles east of Elysium Planitia.

The finding is significant as the quakes are thought to be created by the cooling and subsequent shrinking of the planet, alongside general tectonic plate shifting like we have on Earth.

The Martian seismic activity recorded by the lander’s seismometer - a ground-motion detection sensor - was found to be greater than that of the Moon, but less than that of Earth.


“As the planet cools, it contracts and then the brittle outer layers have to fracture in order to sort of maintain themselves on the surface. That’s kind of the long-term source of stresses,” said planetary geophysicist and mission principal investigator Bruce Banerdt.

The team believes that understanding more about the seismic activity of planets other than Earth could reveal clues about how the Solar System formed.

Dr Domenico Giardini, of ETH Zurich in Switzerland and lead author on one of the studies, added: “Marsquakes have characteristics already observed on the Moon during the Apollo era, with a long signal duration (10 to 20 minutes) due to the scattering properties of the Martian crust.”

The researchers devised a magnitude scale tailored to Mars, but similar to the one used for earthquakes. The strongest of the quakes were a little less than magnitude 4, meaning they would be felt on the surface perhaps dozens of miles from the epicenter but probably would not do much damage.

Evidence of dust devils, which are whirls of Martian soil whipped up by the wind that spin like a tornado at nearly 60mph, were observed a month after InSight touched down on Mars.

The £633 million Nasa mission is expected to continue for another year.

In June, Nasa’s Curiosity rover discovered the largest amount of methane measured during its near seven-year mission, a potential sign of life after recent doubts about how much methane the planet really produces.

Source: https://eandt.theiet.org/content/articles/2020/02/seismic-activity-on-mars-confirmed-by-insight-lander/

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Science and Information / Elon Musk's SpaceX clears first hurdle to Australian broadband market

« on: February 24, 2020, 12:18:40 PM »

Elon Musk’s SpaceX satellite broadband service has taken its first step into the Australian market. The communications regulator has added the company to a list of satellite operators allowed over Australian airspace.

But Foxtel has raised concerns the service might conflict with its subscription TV service.

The SpaceX Starlink currently has 242 satellites deployed above earth, which it plans to expand to a “constellation” of 7,518 low-earth orbit satellites.

The company launched 60 satellites into space last month, and plans to launch around 60 per fortnight in 2020.

It is aiming to have services operating in northern parts of the US and in Canada in 2020, and then “near-global coverage of the populated world” by 2021.


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Late last month, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (Acma) added SpaceX and two other companies to the Radiocommunications (Foreign Space Objects) Determination that governs what satellite companies can operate in Australia.

Much remains a mystery about what Starlink’s internet services will be like in reality. In a November 2016 filing with the US federal communications commission (FCC), SpaceX said it would be able to offer speeds of up to 1 gigabit per second for users, at “low cost”.

SpaceX being added to the list of satellite operators in Australia is the first stage in the regulatory process. The company still needs to obtain more regulatory approvals, and eventually a licence to use spectrum for the satellites to communicate.

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That licence is likely to be a matter of contention. Australia’s subscription television company has indicated it could potentially be in conflict with its own satellite TV service.

In a submission to the Acma’s proposal, News Corp-owned TV service Foxtel said it had “very high levels of concern” about potential interference of its service to satellite customers if SpaceX and another company, Kepler, are allowed to use the same Ku frequency band that Foxtel operates in.

“Given the potential catastrophic business impact of interference, the need to protect existing [geostationary orbit] systems from these new [non-geostationary orbit] constellations must be a priority for the Acma going forward.”

In its submission to the FCC, SpaceX said it would have “flexibility to share that spectrum with other licensed satellite and terrestrial users”.

The difficulty facing SpaceX is that customers will need to buy antennas to connect to the satellites, and some have questioned whether that would be affordable for most, or whether it would be commercially viable, given the project would not only compete with other satellite operators but 5G networks and fixed-line internet providers.

Musk has said they will be about the size of a pizza box, easy to install, and simple to use, and between US$100 ($149) and US$300 ($447). But one analyst, Tim Farrar, has suggested it could cost US$1,000 ($1,488) alone.

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/feb/04/elon-musks-spacex-clears-first-hurdle-to-australian-broadband-market

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Common Forum/Request/Suggestions / IOT!!!!Where it's going next?

« on: March 29, 2019, 03:00:00 AM »

  The Internet of Things, or IoT, refers to the billions of physical devices around the world that are connected to the internet, collecting and sharing data. Thanks to cheap processors and wireless networks, it's possible to turn anything, from a light to an aeroplane to a self-driving car into part of the IoT. This adds a level of digital intelligence to devices that would be otherwise dumb, enabling them to communicate real-time data without a human being involved, effectively merging the digital and physical worlds.
Pretty much any physical object can be transformed into an IoT device if it can be connected to the internet and controlled that way.

A lightbulb that can be switched on using a smartphone app is an IoT device, as is a motion sensor or a smart thermostat in your office or a connected streetlight. An IoT device could be as fluffy as a child's toy or as serious as a driverless truck.

How IoT works

An IoT ecosystem consists of web-enabled smart devices that use embedded processors, sensors and communication hardware to collect, send and act on data they acquire from their environments. IoT devices share the sensor data they collect by connecting to an IoT gateway or other edge device where data is either sent to the cloud to be analyzed or analyzed locally. Sometimes, these devices communicate with other related devices and act on the information they get from one another. The devices do most of the work without human intervention, although people can interact with the devices -- for instance, to set them up, give them instructions or access the data.

The connectivity, networking and communication protocols used with these web-enabled devices largely depend on the specific IoT applications deployed .

What are the benefits of the Internet of Things for consumers?

The IoT promises to make our environment ,our homes and offices and vehicles ,smarter, more measurable, and chattier. Smart speakers like Amazon's Echo and Google Home make it easier to play music, set timers, or get information. Home security systems make it easier to monitor what's going on inside and outside, or to see and talk to visitors. Meanwhile, smart thermostats can help us heat our homes before we arrive back, and smart lightbulbs can make it look like we're home even when we're out.

Looking beyond the home, sensors can help us to understand how noisy or polluted our environment might be. Autonomous vehicles and smart cities could change how we build and manage our public spaces.
However, many of these innovations could have major drawbacks in terms of our personal privacy.