PLEASANT PRAIRIE, Wis.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jul 24, 2023--

A mysterious object crashed into the Moon last year, and scientists think they’ve finally figured out what it was. On March 4, 2022, a piece of space junk hurtled towards the surface of our celestial companion, leaving behind not one but two craters – prompting speculation as to what exactly the manmade object was. And now, in a paper published in the Planetary Science Journal, a team of researchers at the University of Arizona (UArizona) have offered “definitive proof” that it was a booster from a Chinese space rocket that had spent several years hurtling through space. But the most interesting part of all this? The defunct piece of spacecraft was apparently carrying a secret cargo. Initially, based on its path through the sky, the UArizona team thought it was an errant SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket booster from a 2015 launch. However, after analysing how precise light signals bounced off its surface, they later concluded that it was more likely to be a booster from a Chang'e 5-T1 – a rocket launched back in 2014 as part of China’s lunar exploration programme. And yet, the Chinese space agency denied ownership, insisting that their rocket booster burned up in the Earth's atmosphere upon re-entry. But the US Space Command refuted this claim by revealing that the rocket’s third stage never re-entered the planet’s atmosphere. Furthermore, two key pieces of evidence gathered by the UArizona researchers suggested that there was more to the object than just a simple abandoned rocket booster. Firstly, the way it reflected light. The paper’s lead author, Tanner Campbell, explained in a statement: "Something that's been in space as long as this is subjected to forces from the Earth's and the moon's gravity and the light from the sun, so you would expect it to wobble a little bit, particularly when you consider that the rocket body is a big empty shell with a heavy engine on one side. “But this was just tumbling end-over-end, in a very stable way." In other words, the rocket booster must have had some kind of counterweight to its two engines, each of which would have weighed around 545kg (1,200lbs) without fuel. The stability with which the object rotated led Campbell and his colleagues to deduce that “there must have been something more mounted to [its] front”. Secondly, the team were struck by the impact the booster left when it slammed into the Moon. It created two craters, around 100ft (30.5 metres) apart, instead of one, which, according to Campbell was very unusual. He pointed out that the craters left behind by Apollo rockets are either round, if the object came straight down, or oblong if it crashed down at a shallow angle. "This is the first time we see a double crater," he said. "We know that in the case of Chang'e 5 T1, its impact was almost straight down, and to get those two craters of about the same size, you need two roughly equal masses that are apart from each other." And yet, despite the rigour of their investigation, the UArizona team have been unable to identify what exactly this additional object was. "We have no idea what it might have been – perhaps some extra support structure, or additional instrumentation, or something else," Campbell admitted. "We probably won't ever know." Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings

The star contingent was high as Ukrainian First Lady Olena Zelenska held a "summit of first ladies and gentlemen" Wednesday, focusing on the stigmatised issue of...

PARIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sep 4, 2023--

SYDNEY Australia's central bank on Friday warned there were risks of further upside surprises to inflation following its

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Chaotic scenes unfolded as climate protesters interrupted Coco Gauff’s US Open semifinal against Karolina Muchova with at least one person glueing their feet to the floor in the Arthur Ashe Stadium stands. Gauff was ahead 6-4, 1-0 when play was halted for around 49 minutes as security tried to remove the protesters. The group was wearing shirts that read, “End Fossil Fuels” and at least one person glued their feet making their removal difficult, a spokesperson for the US Tennis Association told The Associated Press. At least two people were taken away by police officers, who were cheered by the New York crowd who had chanted “Kick them out” as the disruption went on. Gauff sat in her seat on the sideline and ate fruit before hitting some practice serves, while Muchova was seen by a trainer. Eventually, both players headed back towards the locker room with Gauff chatting to members of her team until the disruption was handled. The US Open becomes the latest sports event to be impacted by climate protesters railing against the use of fossil fuels. At Wimbledon in July, two matches were interrupted when activists got onto Court 18 and threw orange confetti on the grass. The All-England club announced that the protester, along with another wearing shirts reading “Just Stop Oil,” were arrested “on suspicion of aggravated trespass and criminal damage.” The Just Stop Oil group has also protested at cricket, football and rugby matches, as well as at the World Snooker Championship. Just Stop Oil describes itself as a “nonviolent civil resistance group demanding the UK Government stop licensing all new oil, gas and coal projects.” Gauff, a 19-year-old American, and Muchova, a 27-year-old from the Czech Republic, were both playing in the semifinals at Flushing Meadows for the first time. The other women’s semifinal, between Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus and Madison Keys of the United States, was set to begin after Gauff vs. Muchova finished. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Read More Chris Packham climate change protest: TV presenter leads scientists in Westminister demonstration Climate activists hailed by Fearnley-Whittingstall for ‘putting liberty at risk’ Climate activists target jets, yachts and golf in a string of global protests against luxury Sierra Nevada lakes change more in past 100 years than three millennia How the climate crisis played a role in fueling Hurricane Ida Against the odds: The fight to save sea turtles in Ras Baridi

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Rumors say Pirates are receiving interest in a trade for veteran Andrew McCutchen. But, with the Pirates unlikely to move Cutch, who could be moved instead?Recently, there have been rumors of the Texas Rangers being very interested in acquiring Andrew McCutchen from the Pittsburgh Pirates. McCut...

Tesla engineers were so upset with the design of the company’s Cybertruck pickup truck that they secretly crafted alternative designs, according to the firm’s chief designer. Speaking to Walter Isaacson, whose biography on Tesla boss Elon Musk came out this week, Franz von Holzhausen said the unconventional shape of the stainless steel truck caused dissent among workers. The as-yet-unreleased Cybertruck takes inspiration from the pointy design of the 1960s Lotus Esprit, as well as video games and sci-fi movies. “A majority of people in this studio hated it,” said chief designer Franz von Holzhausen. “They were like, ‘You can’t be serious.’ They didn’t want to have anything to do with it. It was just too weird.” After seeing a full-size mock-up of the futuristic pick-up truck, some designers began secretly designing an alternative version. A spokesperson for Tesla did not respond to a request for comment. Mr Musk was reportedly adamant from the outset that the design of the electric pickup truck would “look like the future” and refused to concede to more conventional design ideas. “We’re not doing a traditional boring truck,” Mr Musk said during one meeting in October 2018. “We can always do that later. I want to build something that’s cool. Like, don’t resist me.” The biography, which saw Mr Isaacson shadow Mr Musk for two years, also revealed other instances of Tesla employees keeping projects alive, even after it had been officially scrapped. After the Tesla boss became disinterested in developing a $25,000 mass-market car, repeatedly vetoing the idea in meetings, Mr von Holzhausen reportedly kept the concept alive as a “shadow project”. His biographer describes Mr Musk as “fiercely stubborn” with a “reality-distorting wilfulness and a readiness to run roughshod over naysayers”. The Tesla Cybertruck was first unveiled to the public at an event in November 2019, offering people the chance to reserve one with a $100 deposit. More than 200,000 orders were received within the first three days, according to Mr Musk, however it has taken until this year for production to actually begin. The first deliveries to customers are expected to take place later this year. Read More Elon Musk makes prediction for imminent Starship launch Elon Musk warns of ‘civilisational risk’ posed by AI at historic gathering Volcano discovery could power electric cars for decades, scientists say Elon Musk ‘borrowed $1bn from SpaceX’ at same time as Twitter acquisition

A person with knowledge of the deal says the New York Jets are trading seldom-used wide receiver Mecole Hardman back to the Kansas City Chiefs