2021 and World's 7 Most Interesting Coming Events You Shouldn't Miss

Here are the top 7 most interesting coming events that you shouldn't miss:

#1. NASA's next Mars rover will land in 2021

Perseverance's touchdown is just around the corner. Photo:

NASA's Perseverance rover will store rock and soil samples in sealed tubes on the Martian surface for future missions to retrieve and bring back to Earth, Space cites. NASA's newest Mars car will touch down on the Red Planet less than 100 days from now.

NASA's Perseverance Mars rover. Photo: Space

The life-hunting Mars 2020 Perseverance rover, which launched on July 30, is scheduled to land inside the 28-mile-wide (45 kilometres) Jezero Crater on the afternoon of Feb. 18, 2021 — just 84 days from today (Nov. 26). The home stretch will be busy for the car-size robot's handlers.

Perseverance — the centrepiece of NASA's $2.7 billion Mars 2020 mission — will employ the landing strategy pioneered by its predecessor, the Curiosity rover: A rocket-powered sky crane will lower Perseverance to Jezero's floor on cables, then fly off to crash-land a safe distance away.

#2. U.S DOE deploying first exascale computer in 2021

Aurora, the first exascale computer. Photo: Wonderful Engineering

According to Inside Quantum Technology, the U.S Department of Energy (DOE) is preparing for the first exascale computer, Aurora, to be deployed in 2021. Two more will follow soon after. When they launch, they’ll already be five times faster than the fastest computer—Summit - featuring a peak performance of 200 petaFLOPS (2018), at Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Leadership Computing Facility, a DOE Office of Science user facility. Right away, they’ll be able to tackle major challenges in modelling Earth systems, analyzing genes, tracking barriers to fusion, and more.

DOE is designing its exascale computers to be exceptionally good at running scientific simulations as well as machine learning and artificial intelligence programs. Quantum computers, on the other hand, will be perfect for modelling the interactions of electrons and nuclei that are the constituents of atoms. As these interactions are the foundation for chemistry and materials science, these computers could be incredibly useful.

#3. New James Webb Space Telescope is launched

Photo: European Space Agency

NASA now is targeting Oct. 31, 2021, for the launch of the agency’s James Webb Space Telescope from French Guiana, due to impacts from the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, as well as technical challenges, as NASA announced in July 2020.

This decision is based on a recently completed schedule risk assessment of the remaining integration and test activities prior to launch. Previously, Webb was targeted to launch in March 2021.

“Webb is the world’s most complex space observatory and our top science priority, and we’ve worked hard to keep progress moving during the pandemic. The team continues to be focused on reaching milestones and arriving at the technical solutions that will see us through to this new launch date next year”, said Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate at the agency’s headquarters in Washington.

Testing of the observatory continues to go well at Northrop Grumman, the mission’s main industry partner, in Redondo Beach, California, despite the challenges of the coronavirus pandemic. Prior to the pandemic’s associated delays, the team made significant progress in achieving important milestones to prepare for launch in 2021.

#4. 1st flight of New Glenn, the big reusable rocket

New Glenn, big reusable rocket by Blue Origin. Photo: Blue Origin

Blue Origin, the father of New Glenn, is moving forward with New Glenn with the goal to debut the vehicle in 2021 and pursue commercial work, as cited by Space News.

Named after pioneering astronaut John Glenn, New Glenn is a single configuration heavy-lift launch vehicle capable of carrying people and payloads routinely to Earth orbit and beyond. Featuring a reusable first stage built for 25 missions, New Glenn will build a road to space.

New Glenn's fully reusable first stage is designed for a minimum of 25 flights, making it competitive for a variety of launch markets. Civil, commercial and national security customers can all find solutions in New Glenn's high-performance configuration, Bule Origin cites.

New Glenn, the orbital launch vehicle, is designed for operational reusability from the beginning. BE-4, the world’s most powerful liquid oxygen / liquefied natural gas engine, will enable New Glenn to launch payloads over 13 metric tons to geostationary transfer orbit and 45 metric tons to low Earth orbit beginning in 2021. The big rocket will lift off from Launch Complex 36 at Cape Canaveral. Following stage separation, the first stage flies back to Earth and lands nearly 1,000 km downrange on a moving ship, allowing the booster to land in heavy sea-states. The second stage engines ignite and the 7-meter fairing separates.

#5. Japan ‘determined’ to host the 2021 Olympics

Japan is “determined” to host the Olympic Games in 2021 despite the novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic that caused it to be put off this year, new Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga told the UN General Assembly on Friday, as cited by The Brussels Time.

“In the summer of next year (i.e. 2021), Japan is determined to host the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games as proof that humanity has defeated the pandemic,” the Japanese P.M. said in his first international speech since he took office last week.

Japan remain adamant to host Olympic Games in 2021. Photo: TRT World

Japan’s Olympics organisers and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) have expressed increasing confidence in recent weeks that the Games can be held next year, irrespective of whether a vaccine is available by then. However, there are still serious doubts that this is feasible given the current state of the pandemic worldwide.

#6. Male birth control in pill form is entering markets

The successful compound is known as JQ1, developed by US researchers in 2012. This worked by targeting a testis-specific protein called BRDT that is essential for fertility. When mice were given the BRDT-inhibiting molecule, they began producing fewer sperm and those they did produce were unable to swim properly. Mating studies confirmed that JQ1 indeed worked as effective male contraception.

Photo: News Medical

Even better, the effects were completely reversible, without adverse consequences for the animals' testosterone levels or behaviour. The molecule also left no apparent side effects on the males' future offspring, according to Connecting Experience.

Following an eight-year period, it is available in pill form by 2021. This becomes the first new reversible contraceptive for men since the development of the condom, centuries ago.

#7. Launch of the Terrafugia TF-X flying car

As Lexus continues to tease its prototype hoverboard, American company Terrafugia has revealed details of its updated TF-X flying car ahead of a proposed 2021 sales launch, as cited by Car Advice.

Headlining the update is a stylish new makeover, blessing the streamlined TF-X with all-new looks. The 2013 concept’s catfish face has been replaced with a pointy new snout with long headlights above and a broad grille design along the lower edge. There’s a more futuristic and premium look through the profile and, while the concept’s large take-off and landing rotor arms are again featured, there’s a cleaner look to the new design.

Photo: Mashable

Power in the updated TF-X is provided by a petrol-electric plug-in hybrid system that claims 225kW of power, although much of the flying car’s forward flying thrust is provided by a 75kW engine provided by aviation company Rotax.

Terrafugia claims a 320km/h maximum speed, but, at 160km/h, the four-seat TF-X is expected to offer a flying range beyond 650 kilometres. Overall range, including its duties as a road-going car, is claimed to be around 805 kilometres. And, as a plug-in hybrid, the TF-X can use both a regular power supply and the onboard petrol engine to recharge its battery pack.

Terrafugia claims the TF-X’s flying operations will be guided entirely by computer - much as modern aircraft offer autopilot and future roadgoing cars will fully boast autonomous drive systems.

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