Science News Roundup: Astronomers find that Milky Way is a warped and twisted galaxy; Chinese state agency to launch rocket for commercial use in August


Reuters | Updated: 02-08-2019 18:30 IST | Created: 02-08-2019 18:27 IST
Science News Roundup: Astronomers find that Milky Way is a warped and twisted galaxy; Chinese state agency to launch rocket for commercial use in August
Image Credit: Pixabay

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.

Chinese state agency to launch rocket for commercial use in August

A Chinese government space agency is expected to launch its first rocket meant for commercial use in August, putting pressure on other domestic rocket firms to develop their own launch vehicles ahead of an expected commercial satellite boom. A unit of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp (CASC), the nation's main space contractor, is working on the final assembly of its Smart Dragon-1 rocket, with a maiden flight expected in August, the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) said on Thursday.

Astronomers find that Milky Way is a warped and twisted galaxy

Astronomers have created the most precise map to date of the Milky Way by tracking thousands of big pulsating stars spread throughout the galaxy, demonstrating that its disk of myriad stars is not flat but dramatically warped and twisted in shape. The researchers on Thursday unveiled a three-dimensional map of the Milky Way - home to more than 100 billion stars including our sun - providing a comprehensive chart of its structure: a stellar disk comprised of four major spiral arms and a bar-shaped core region.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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