NASA, SpaceX Crew-9 Returns on Crew Dragon Freedom After 171 Days in Space
NASA and SpaceX prepare for the return of Crew-9 astronauts aboard the Crew Dragon Freedom spacecraft. The scheduled splashdown took place on March 18, at approximately 5:57 p.m. EDT in the Gulf of Mexico, off the coast of Florida. The return mission includes four crew members, two of whom originally arrived at the International Space Station (ISS) aboard Boeing’s Starliner. The return was initially planned for March 19 but was rescheduled due to weather concerns. The live coverage of the event will begin at 4:45 p.m. EDT (2045 GMT).
Crew-9’s Journey and Returning Astronauts
As per reports, according to NASA, the Crew Dragon Freedom undocked from the ISS’s Harmony module at around 1:05 a.m. EDT. The descent towards Earth is planned to be initiated by a deorbit burn scheduled for 5:11 p.m. EDT. The Crew-9 mission, which launched on September 28, 2024, included NASA astronauts Nick Hague and Aleksandr Gorbunov. They will be joined on the return flight by Sunita Williams and Barry Wilmore, who reached the ISS aboard Boeing’s Starliner on June 5, 2024. Due to technical difficulties encountered during Starliner’s journey, the decision was made to return the astronauts aboard SpaceX’s Crew Dragon instead.
Duration of the Mission and Final Landing Site
Crew Dragon Freedom will have spent 171 days in space by the time it lands. Hague and Gorbunov will have traveled approximately 72.5 million statute miles, completing 2,736 orbits around Earth. Williams and Wilmore will have spent 286 days in orbit, covering over 121 million statute miles. SpaceX and NASA have designated the Gulf of Mexico as the landing site. Future crew landings under NASA’s commercial crew program are expected to take place in the Pacific Ocean.
For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you want to know everything about top influencers, follow our in-house Who’sThat360 on Instagram and YouTube.
Related Stories
Marine mammals rely on oxygen to survive, yet some species stay underwater for long periods without breathing. Scientists at the University of St Andrews wanted to understand how gray seals manage their time underwater without relying on carbon dioxide buildup as a signal. Six adult gray seals were placed in a controlled environment to observe their diving patterns. The seals were only allowed to surface at a designated chamber, where researchers adjusted oxygen and carbon dioxide levels to test their responses.
Research Confirms Oxygen as the Primary Trigger
According to the study published in Science, different air compositions were tested to measure their effect on dive times. The air in the breathing chamber was adjusted across four conditions: normal air, increased oxygen, reduced oxygen, and heightened carbon dioxide levels. When oxygen levels were increased, seals stayed underwater for longer. When oxygen was reduced, they surfaced sooner. Carbon dioxide changes did not alter their behavior, suggesting that oxygen, not carbon dioxide, determines when they come up for air.
Unique Adaptation in Marine Mammals
Researchers says that grey seals have an internal system to track oxygen levels. This allows them to surface before reaching dangerous limits. This ability prevents drowning and may be common among other marine species. Since deep-diving mammals must manage oxygen carefully, similar mechanisms could be present in whales, dolphins and other seals.
Experts Weigh in on the Discovery
Lucy Hawkes from the University of Exeter and Jessica Kendall-Bar from the University of California, San Diego, discussed the study’s impact. They noted that understanding this adaptation sheds light on how marine mammals survive in extreme underwater conditions. Further research could explore how this system works in different species and environments.
For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you want to know everything about top influencers, follow our in-house Who’sThat360 on Instagram and YouTube.
A team of scientists in Japan has developed a new type of “universal memory” technology that could significantly reduce energy consumption while increasing processing speeds in future computing devices. The breakthrough, which centres on an improved form of Magnetoresistive Random Access Memory (MRAM), addresses a critical challenge in current memory technologies by combining the speed of RAM with the ability to retain information without constant power supply.
Overcoming Previous MRAM Limitations
According to the study published in the journal Advanced Science on December 25, 2024, the newly developed MRAM technology overcomes the high energy requirements that have traditionally limited MRAM implementation. While conventional MRAM devices consume minimal power in standby mode, they require substantial electric current to switch magnetisation directions that represent binary values, making them impractical for widespread use.
Innovative Component Design
The research team created what has been described as a “multiferroic heterostructure” that consists of ferromagnetic and piezoelectric materials separated by an ultrathin layer of vanadium. This configuration allows magnetisation to be controlled by an electric field rather than current, significantly reducing power consumption.
Vanadium Layer Provides Stability
Previous MRAM prototypes struggled with structural fluctuations in the ferromagnetic layer. This made it difficult to maintain stable magnetisation directions. The addition of the vanadium layer acts as a buffer between the materials. This in turn helps in enabling the device to maintain its shape and form while preserving the magnetic state even after the electric charge is removed.
Future Impact and Considerations
As per the researchers, their prototype demonstrated the ability to switch magnetisation direction using minimal electric current. However, the study did not address potential degradation in switching efficiency over time. This is a common issue in electrical devices.
This technology could potentially enable more powerful commercial computing with longer device lifespans, as it requires significantly less power than previous solutions and offers greater resilience than current RAM technologies without requiring moving parts.
For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you want to know everything about top influencers, follow our in-house Who’sThat360 on Instagram and YouTube.
Related Stories
-
Sports2 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports12 months agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports1 year agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike
-
Business2 years agoBank of England’s extraordinary response to government policy is almost unthinkable | Ed Conway