Space observatories

13 Jul
2022
July 13, 2022

Webb’s First Glimpse of Jupiter, Its Moons & Rings

A long time ago when I was a budding amateur astronomer, one of the first targets I would observe each evening with my new telescope was […]
Astronomy, Solar System, Unmanned Spaceflight
2 Comments
7 Jan
2016
January 7, 2016

Astron: Venera Turned Space Telescope

When thinking about the old Soviet space program, people usually remember its long history of crewed space missions or its somewhat checkered lunar and planetary programs […]
Astronomical Instruments, Astronomy, Spaceflight, Unmanned Spaceflight
3 Comments
21 Aug
2014
August 21, 2014

The Original Lunar Observatories

The landing of Chang’e 3 on the Moon on December 14, 2013 rightfully received a lot of attention not only because it was China’s first landing […]
Astronomical Instruments, Astronomy, Lunar & Planetary Missions, Manned Spaceflight, Spaceflight
2 Comments
13 Jun
2014
June 13, 2014

Vintage Micro: The Original Gamma Ray Observatory

Whenever I think “gamma ray observatory”, impressive orbiting platforms come to mind like NASA’s massive 17 metric ton Compton Gamma Ray Observatory launched in 1991 or […]
Astronomical Instruments, Astronomy, Spaceflight, Unmanned Spaceflight
1 Comment
16 Apr
2014
April 16, 2014

Vintage Micro: The Amateur Space Telescope

There seems to have been increasing interest in the last decade or more in microsatellites (small satellites with masses in the 10 to 100 kg range), […]
Astronomical Instruments, Astronomy, Drew's Basement, Spaceflight, Unmanned Spaceflight
4 Comments