Science News Roundup: Chinese startup to ramp up space missions; Fossils of strange primordial predator unearthed in Canada

Following is a summary of current science news briefs.

Sunbeam-sailing spacecraft deemed 'mission success' in Earth orbit

A small crowd-funded satellite promoted by TV host and science educator Bill Nye has been propelled into a higher orbit using only the force of sunlight blowing against its sail in space, novel propulsion developers say could "democratize" spaceflight. The Lightsail 2 spacecraft, roughly the size of a loaf of bread, was launched into orbit in June and unfurled a tin foil-like solar sail designed to steer and push the spacecraft, using the momentum of tiny particles of light called photons emanating from the sun, into a higher orbit.

After historic rocket launch, Chinese startup to ramp up missions

Beijing-based startup iSpace is planning up to eight commercial rocket launches next year, after last week becoming China's first privately funded firm to put a satellite into orbit, its executives told Reuters. iSpace's success has turned up the heat on the country's other 15-plus startups to develop vehicles capable of delivering satellites into orbit. Since late last year, two other firms have attempted but failed.

Hundreds of fossils of strange primordial predator unearthed in Canada

Hundreds of fossils of a primordial sea creature with rake-like claws and a head resembling a famous fictional spaceship have been unearthed in Canada, providing a wealth of information about an important predator from a key time in the evolution of life on Earth. Scientists on Tuesday said the creature, called Cambroraster falcatus, was a distant relative of today's arthropods - the diverse group of animals including insects, spiders and crabs - and lived during the Cambrian Period 506 million years ago, when all animal life lived in the oceans.