From a spectacular “ring of fire” solar eclipse to a landmark launch via new views of galaxies and some incredible Jupiter images, it’s been a week to remember in the sky.
First-mover was NASA, whose Psyche spacecraft finally launched on October 13 to begin its long journey to reveal a metal-rich asteroid between Mars and Jupiter that’s said to be (but is The spacecraft also carries the agency's Deep Space Optical Communications technology demonstration, which will test laser communications beyond the moon.Next came an annular solar eclipse, which was seen as a partial affair across the Americas. However, from within a narrow 125 miles wide path across nine U.S. states as well as through Central and South America,was glimpsed for up to five minutes.
Four days later, the Indian Space Research Organisation conducted an uncrewed test of the emergency-escape system of its new crew capsule. Fresh from its successful landing on the moon of its Chandrayaan-3 mission, it brings closer the space agency’s Gaganyaan orbital flight next year, which will precede a crewed flight of India’s first astronauts.
There will be other key weeks in space exploration and discovery, but it’s hard to think of one so varied.