Great news for the residents of south-central Phoenix! As of November, 2024, Valley Metro has officially begun testing trains on the highly anticipated South Central Extension of the light rail. This new 5.5-mile route is set to enhance access to public transportation, connecting downtown Phoenix all the way to Baseline Road—bringing convenience and mobility to more neighborhoods than ever before!

Connecting Communities

The South Central Extension is more than just a transportation project; it’s a lifeline for connecting communities within Phoenix. By bridging the gap between downtown and southern areas of the city, Valley Metro aims to provide a seamless travel experience for commuters, students, and visitors alike. With access points along Washington and Jefferson streets, as well as 1st, 3rd, and Central avenues, this expansion is set to make daily commuting smoother and more efficient.

Safety First!

As trains start to roll out during this initial testing phase, safety remains a top priority. Valley Metro has issued important safety tips for both pedestrians and motorists to ensure everyone stays safe throughout the process:

1. Follow Traffic Signals: Always obey traffic signals and make use of designated crosswalks when crossing streets near the light rail.
2. Stay Alert: Listen for warning signals and train sounds. Light rail trains can approach quickly and quietly, so being attentive is crucial.
3. Keep Off the Tracks: Remember, light rail trains are designed to be silent, making it easy to overlook them. Avoid standing on or near the tracks—stay safe and keep a respectful distance.
4. Platform Access: Please refrain from entering the new station platforms during this testing phase as they are currently closed. Your safety and the safety of our testing crews is paramount.

Get Ready for 2025!

As testing ramps up towards the projected opening in mid-2025, excitement is building across the city. Whether you commute for work, school, or leisure, the South Central Extension promises to provide more accessible and efficient public transportation options. It’s a step forward in creating a more connected and vibrant Phoenix!

Stay tuned for updates from Valley Metro regarding the progress of the South Central Extension, and let’s celebrate the strides we’re taking towards a more connected, sustainable future. Phoenix, your public transport experience is about to get a whole lot better! 🚆✨

Related articles:

https://www.valleymetro.org/project/south-central-extension-downtown-hub

https://www.12news.com/article/news/local/valley/valley-metro-testing-trains-new-expansion-into-south-phoenix/75-e832f4b8-bb44-4942-9cd9-b4604a7bd403

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Zhenbo Wang, University of Tennessee

In 2024, space exploration dazzled the world.

NASA’s Europa Clipper began its journey to study Jupiter’s moon Europa. SpaceX’s Starship achieved its first successful landing, a critical milestone for future deep space missions. China made headlines with the Chang’e 6 mission, which successfully returned samples from the far side of the Moon. Meanwhile, the International Space Station continued to host international crews, including private missions like Axiom Mission 3.

As an aerospace engineer, I’m excited for 2025, when space agencies worldwide are gearing up for even more ambitious goals. Here’s a look at the most exciting missions planned for the coming year, which will expand humanity’s horizons even further, from the Moon and Mars to asteroids and beyond:

Scouting the lunar surface with CLPS

NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services, or CLPS, initiative aims to deliver science and technology payloads to the Moon using commercial landers. CLPS is what brought Intuitive Machines’ Odysseus lander to the Moon in February 2024, marking the first U.S. Moon landing since Apollo.

In 2025, NASA has several CLPS missions planned, including deliveries by companies Astrobotic, Intuitive Machines and Firefly Aerospace.

These missions will carry a variety of scientific instruments and technology demonstrations to different lunar locations. The payloads will include experiments to study lunar geology, test new technologies for future human missions and gather data on the Moon’s environment.

Surveying the sky with SPHEREx

In February 2025, NASA plans to launch the Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization and Ices Explorer, or SPHEREx, observatory. This mission will survey the sky in near-infrared light, which is a type of light that is invisible to the naked eye but that special instruments can detect. Near-infrared light is useful for observing objects that are too cool or too distant to be seen in visible light.

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SPHEREx will create a comprehensive map of the universe by surveying and collecting data on more than 450 million galaxies along with over 100 million stars in the Milky Way. Astronomers will use this data to answer big questions about the origins of galaxies and the distribution of water and organic molecules in stellar nurseries – where stars are born from gas and dust.

Studying low Earth orbit with Space Rider

The European Space Agency, or ESA, plans to conduct an orbital test flight of its Space Rider uncrewed spaceplane in the third quarter of 2025. Space Rider is a reusable spacecraft designed to carry out various scientific experiments in low Earth orbit.

These scientific experiments will include research in microgravity, which is the near-weightless environment of space. Scientists will study how plants grow, how materials behave and how biological processes occur without the influence of gravity.

Space Rider will also demonstrate new technologies for future missions. For example, it will test advanced telecommunication systems, which are crucial for maintaining communication with spacecraft over long distances. It will also test new robotic exploration tools for use on future missions to the Moon or Mars.

Exploring the Moon with M2/Resilience

Japan’s M2/Resilience mission, scheduled for January 2025, will launch a lander and micro-rover to the lunar surface.

This mission will study the lunar soil to understand its composition and properties. Researchers will also conduct a water-splitting test to produce oxygen and hydrogen by extracting water from the lunar surface, heating the water and splitting the captured steam. The generated water, oxygen and hydrogen can be used for enabling long-term lunar exploration.

This mission will also demonstrate new technologies, such as advanced navigation systems for precise landings and systems to operate the rover autonomously. These technologies are essential for future lunar exploration and could be used in missions to Mars and beyond.

The M2/Resilience mission is part of Japan’s broader efforts to contribute to international lunar exploration. It builds on the success of Japan’s Smart Lander for Investigating Moon, or SLIM, mission, which landed on the Moon using a precise landing technique in March 2024.

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Investigating an asteroid with Tianwen-2

China’s Tianwen-2 mission is an ambitious asteroid sample return and comet probe mission. Scheduled for launch in May 2025, Tianwen-2 aims to collect samples from a near-Earth asteroid and study a comet. This mission will advance scientists’ understanding of the solar system’s formation and evolution, building on the success of China’s previous lunar and Mars missions.

The mission’s first target is the near-Earth asteroid 469219 Kamoʻoalewa. This asteroid is a quasi-satellite of Earth, meaning it orbits the Sun but stays close to Earth. Kamoʻoalewa is roughly 131-328 feet (40-100 meters) in diameter and may be a fragment of the Moon, ejected into space by a past impact event.

By studying this asteroid, scientists hope to learn about the early solar system and the processes that shaped it. The spacecraft will use both touch-and-go and anchor-and-attach techniques to collect samples from the asteroid’s surface.

After collecting samples from Kamoʻoalewa, Tianwen-2 will return them to Earth and then set course for its second target, the main-belt comet 311P/PANSTARRS. This comet is located in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.

By analyzing the comet’s materials, researchers hope to learn more about the conditions that existed in the early solar system and possibly the origins of water and organic molecules on Earth.

Solar system flybys

Besides the above planned launch missions, several space agencies plan to perform exciting deep-space flyby missions in 2025.

A flyby, or gravity assist, is when a spacecraft passes close enough to a planet or moon to use its gravity for a speed boost. As the spacecraft approaches, it gets pulled in by the planet’s gravity, which helps it accelerate.

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After swinging around the planet, the spacecraft is flung back out into space, allowing it to change direction and continue on its intended path using less fuel. https://www.youtube.com/embed/0iAGrdITIiE?wmode=transparent&start=0 Spacecraft can fly by a planet to get a boost using gravity.

BepiColombo, a joint mission by ESA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, JAXA, will make its sixth flyby of Mercury in January 2025. This maneuver will help the spacecraft enter orbit around Mercury by November 2026. BepiColombo aims to study Mercury’s composition, atmosphere and surface geology.

NASA’s Europa Clipper mission, which launched in October 2024, will make significant progress on its journey to Jupiter’s moon Europa. In March 2025, the spacecraft will perform a flyby maneuver at Mars.

This maneuver will help the spacecraft gain the necessary speed and trajectory for its long voyage. Later in December 2026, Europa Clipper will perform a flyby of Earth, using Earth’s gravity to further increase its momentum so it can arrive at Europa in April 2030.

The ESA’s Hera mission will also perform a flyby of Mars in March 2025. Hera is part of the Asteroid Impact and Deflection Assessment mission, which plans to study the Didymos binary asteroid system. The mission will provide valuable data on asteroid deflection techniques and contribute to planetary defense strategies.

NASA’s Lucy mission will continue its journey to explore the Jupiter Trojan asteroids, which share Jupiter’s orbit around the Sun, in 2025. One key event for Lucy is its flyby of the inner main-belt asteroid 52246 Donaldjohanson, scheduled for April 20, 2025.

This flyby will provide valuable data on this ancient asteroid’s composition and surface features, which can help researchers gain insights into the early solar system. The asteroid is named after the paleoanthropologist who discovered the famous “Lucy” fossil.

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ESA’s Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer, or JUICE, mission will perform a Venus flyby in August 2025. This maneuver will help JUICE gain the necessary speed and trajectory for its journey to Jupiter. Once it arrives, JUICE will study Jupiter’s icy moons to understand their potential for harboring life.

2025 promises to be a groundbreaking year for space exploration. With NASA’s ambitious missions and significant contributions from other countries, we are set to make remarkable strides in humanity’s understanding of the universe. These missions will not only advance scientific knowledge but also inspire future generations to look to the stars.

Zhenbo Wang, Associate Professor of Mechanical, Aerospace and Biomedical Engineering, University of Tennessee

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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WASHINGTON, Jan. 7, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — To maximize chances of successfully bringing the first Martian rock and sediment samples to Earth for the benefit of humanity, NASA announced Tuesday a new approach to its Mars Sample Return Program. The agency will simultaneously pursue two landing architectures, or strategic plans, during formulation, encouraging competition and innovation, as well as cost and schedule savings.

NASA plans to later select a single path forward for the program, which aims to better understand the mysteries of the universe, and to help determine whether the Red Planet ever hosted life. NASA is expected to confirm the program – and its design – in the second half of 2026.

“Pursuing two potential paths forward will ensure that NASA is able bring these samples back from Mars with significant cost and schedule saving compared to the previous plan,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson. “These samples have the potential to change the way we understand Mars, our universe, and – ultimately – ourselves. I’d like to thank the team at NASA and the strategic review team, led by Dr. Maria Zuber, for their work.”

In September 2024, the agency accepted 11 studies from the NASA community and industry on how best to return Martian samples to Earth. A Mars Sample Return Strategic Review team was charged with assessing the studies and then recommending a primary architecture for the campaign, including associated cost and schedule estimates.

“NASA’s rovers are enduring Mars’ harsh environment to collect ground-breaking science samples,” said Nicky Fox, who leads NASA’s Science Mission Directorate. “We want to bring those back as quickly as possible to study them in state-of-the-art facilities. Mars Sample Return will allow scientists to understand the planet’s geological history and the evolution of climate on this barren planet where life may have existed in the past and shed light on the early solar system before life began here on Earth. This will also prepare us to safely send the first human explorers to Mars.”

During formulation, NASA will proceed with exploring and evaluating two distinct means of landing the payload platform on Mars. The first option will leverage previously flown entry, descent, and landing system designs, namely the sky crane method, demonstrated with the Curiosity and Perseverance missions. The second option will capitalize on using new commercial capabilities to deliver the lander payload to the surface of Mars.

For both potential options, the mission’s landed platform will carry a smaller version of the Mars Ascent Vehicle. The platform’s solar panels will be replaced with a radioisotope power system that can provide power and heat through the dust storm season at Mars, allowing for reduced complexity.

The orbiting sample container will hold 30 of the sample tubes containing samples the Perseverance lander has been collecting from the surface of Mars. A redesign of the sample loading system on the lander, which will place the samples into the orbiting sample container, simplifies the backward planetary protection implementation by eliminating the accumulation of dust on the outside of the sample container.

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Both mission options rely on a capture, containment and return system aboard ESA’s (European Space Agency’s) Earth Return Orbiter to capture the orbiting sample container in Mars orbit. ESA is evaluating NASA’s plan.

For more information on NASA’s exploration of Mars, visit:

https://www.nasa.gov/mars

Source: NASA

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