Dreamy and beautiful! Spacecraft travels in space, touching your heart instantly

Recently, a picture of a satellite unfolding its antenna in space was praised by netizens as "dreamy beauty". In fact, spacecraft are not "cold", and often give people a sense of shock and beauty in an inadvertent moment. So what unforgettable spacecraft photos can we appreciate? What stories are behind them?

The "dreamy beauty" of satellite antennas (photo from American media)

Satellite "umbrella" has been replaced

Recently, a synthetic aperture radar satellite deployed its antenna in low-Earth orbit. Under the sunlight, the antenna was almost transparent, and it looked like a dream against the background of the earth, attracting the attention of netizens.

In many people's impressions, satellite antennas should be long metal "whips" or covers. However, traditional metal satellite antennas are heavy and hard, which not only adds burden to rockets, but also makes it difficult for the antenna to be flexibly and efficiently retracted and deployed. Therefore, the new generation of satellite antennas often use special alloy wires that are thinner than a hair, which have the characteristics of high strength, low expansion, strong and tough, and high reflectivity.

Satellite antennas are no longer made by rigidly plugging metal bars together, but by a new upgrade of textile technology in space. Similar to knitting, it is delicately "intelligently made" and is expected to reduce the weight of antennas by more than 90% compared to traditional methods. The "combination of rigidity and flexibility" helps to efficiently receive and process signals.

Liquid oxygen and methane rockets are uniquely beautiful

On March 23, Beijing time, the first Terran-1 rocket of the American Relativity Space Company failed to launch on its maiden flight. This is the second time that a liquid oxygen-methane rocket has flown across the Karman line, following the setback in the maiden flight of my country's Suzaku-2 rocket at the end of last year, but it has had to taste the bitter fruit again.

Terran 1 rocket's first flight (Photo courtesy of Relativity Space)

Liquid oxygen-methane propellant resources are abundant, combustion is environmentally friendly, cooling characteristics are good, and specific impulse performance is good. Therefore, this type of rocket engine has obvious advantages in terms of operating cost and maintenance.

Especially in the field of reusable rockets, compared with liquid oxygen-kerosene propellants, liquid oxygen-methane propellants have less carbon deposits and coking, are easier to maintain, and have lower overall production costs, making them very suitable for future large-scale repeated launch missions. In the field of interstellar exploration, considering that many alien planets are rich in methane, liquid oxygen-methane engines are convenient for trying to utilize alien resources in situ and reduce the burden on the earth.

Looking into the future, liquid oxygen and methane rockets will eventually become popular in the aerospace industry. The pure flame of methane burning under the night sky symbolizes the unremitting pursuit of aerospace workers and also brings us a different kind of beauty.

Farewell, Meritorious Space Station

On March 22, 1996, the U.S. space shuttle Atlantis passed over New Zealand and took a photo of the Russian Mir space station against the blue-green ocean background. Today, both have been retired, but they have left behind a good story of international space cooperation.

According to statistics, since its commissioning in 1986, the Mir space station has completed 24 international scientific research programs in the past 15 years, conducted more than 1,700 scientific experiments, helped scientists from 15 countries complete space research, and developed about 600 new technologies with industrial application value. It has made countless contributions and can be called "the brightest pearl in the crown of Russian space". However, due to early design risks and the long-term lack of funding for Russian space, the Mir space station has experienced many accidents and accumulated many lessons.

Mir Space Station (Photo courtesy of NASA)

As time goes by, the International Space Station, the successor to the Mir Space Station, has "entered its twilight years", the Chinese Space Station has been successfully built, the Russian Space Station, the Western lunar space station and the commercial space station are "eager to try", and mankind's development of space resources is entering a new era.

Spacecraft photography is fascinating

This photo of the Earth is called "Blue Marble". It was taken during the Apollo 17 mission of the United States in 1972 from 29,000 kilometers away from the Earth. On the one hand, the astronauts lamented the fragility of the blue planet, "just like a marble played by a child", so they took the photo to remind people to cherish the Earth and protect the environment. On the other hand, the Apollo 17 mission was the last time humans landed on the moon. With the new round of lunar exploration, it is believed that in the near future, astronauts from more countries will set foot on the moon and conduct more in-depth research on this familiar yet unfamiliar satellite.

This photo was taken by an astronaut on the International Space Station, showing what the aurora looks like from space. In fact, the aurora is the result of the interaction between the Earth's magnetic field and the solar wind. The colorful lights are stimulated by the "intimate contact" of electrons and ions. The beautiful scenery captured by the astronauts is not a simple scientific principle.

When it comes to solar wind, spacecraft have long explored its source - the sun. On January 5 this year, a strong solar flare flashed on the left edge of the sun and reached its peak. NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory took the first picture. Solar flares are caused by magnetic field activity on the surface of the sun, which releases a large amount of energy and matter, affecting the earth's electromagnetic environment and communication systems, and even endangering spacecraft and astronauts. It is necessary for earthlings to be more careful and conduct in-depth research.

Whether aiming at the Earth or turning to deep space, spacecraft have contributed countless spectacular and stunning beautiful photos to mankind. For example, the famous "Pillars of Creation" was photographed by the Hubble Space Telescope and the Webb Space Telescope. There are about 7,000 light-years away from the Earth, and stars are being nurtured in the nebula. Countless gas and dust form columnar materials, some of which are several light-years high.

We often say that the universe is vast. This gorgeous photo alone can give us a deeper understanding of this: even though spacecraft have set their sights so far, there are still countless wonders in the universe waiting for humans to explore, such as the gorgeous Butterfly Nebula, the wonderful Sombrero Galaxy...

The beauty of spacecraft flying in space, the magnificence of rockets soaring into the sky, and the countless stunning space pictures all show the determination of mankind to explore space and unveil a corner of the beautiful and mysterious "veil" of space. Space exploration is endless, and people who work hard to explore space can have a deeper understanding of the universe and the earth, and cherish our home more. (Author: Li Bin)