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Source: Utah News
In the beginning … there was a thud. It was an unwanted sound, and one that resonated around the world.
Think back over 20 years ago to Sept. 8, 2004. That’s when NASA’s Genesis sample return capsule slammed into an isolated part of the U.S. Army’s Dugway Proving Ground in Utah. It was an unintended, full-stop, smashing occasion. Held tight within that canister were delicate wafers that were prized samples of atoms and ions, gathered up from wisps of solar wind accumulated over hundreds of days by the Genesis spacecraft as it loitered at Lagrange Point 1, a select spot in space between Earth and the sun. The capsule met the Utah desert at an estimated speed of 193 miles per hour (311 kilometers per hour). On impact, those wafers were shattered to bits.
The Lockheed Martin-built Genesis spacecraft failed to deploy a set of parachutes that were designed to slow it down, a glitch later attributed to improper installation of gravity-switch sensor hardware. A planned and well-rehearsed mid-air retrieval via helicopter of the returning capsule was for not. But now, over two decades later, call it “late breaking” news as scientists studying Genesis samples recovered from the crash continue to make new discoveries.
This March, a special Genesis sample return 20th anniversary event is being held at the Lunar and Planetary Science Conference in Texas, a look at what scientists have uncovered from the Genesis samples, while casting an eye toward the future.
As for the capsule crash, “as you might guess, everybody was shocked and alarmed,” recalled Caltech’s Don Burnett, the mission’s principal investigator and lead scientist. “When 2,700 feet was called out, and no parachute, I knew we were in trouble,” he told Space.com.
Burnett said that there was a contingency plan for a hard landing. It was activated in as-soon-as-possible fashion. That plan had all been previously reported to Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) that managed the Genesis mission for NASA management, “but they didn’t remember,” he said.
On crash day, NASA management wanted to call an urgent meeting about what to do, with Burnett advising that upper management should be told “go to hell.”
“We needed to go out to pick up the pieces,” Burnett said. The Genesis science team at the crash site swung into action. “The important point was that the crash would not destroy solar wind atoms … all we had to do was find them,” he said.
The banged up Genesis sample capsule was transported to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. Once in curatorial hands, the painstaking work to reclaim science from collector fragments earnestly began.
The solar wind atoms were there, Burnett said, “but all but one of our 200-plus beautiful 4-inch hexagons were broken into small pieces.”
As luck would have it, Burnett added, the one complete hexagon was the least important scientifically. The pieces, down to one-quarter inch, were picked from the mangled capsule one by one with tweezers. There were nine different materials in the hexagons, he said, and with the help of supervision team members the researchers learned to recognize the different types.
As clearly indicated by the Apollo lunar samples, pointed out Burnett, “sample returns are forever,” with science gained as new ideas and analytical techniques become available.
“With a bit of luck here and there, we were able to deliver our required science results for official mission success, but it took until 2010,” Burnett said.
“Genesis analyses were always going to be hard,” Burnett said, “but they were much harder because of the loss of material in the crash and contamination from sample return capsule materials and Utah dirt.”
Amy Jurewicz, project scientist for Genesis, is now an assistant research professor at Arizona State University’s Center for Meteorite Studies in Tempe, Arizona.
When the Genesis capsule was finally wheeled into the high bay for inspection at the Utah Test and Training Range, “the sight was a shock,” said Jurewicz. “But, we could see that pieces of collectors were still there so we knew that we could rescue at least some of the science.”
As both project scientist and the only materials engineer on the science team, Jurewicz knew her expertise would be greatly needed. The work on Genesis demanded a pace to enable the retrieval of the science she knew was there. “And, I have stayed focused on Genesis to this day.”
Genesis data is now producing high impact science in cosmochemistry, solar physics, coronal mass ejections, and space weathering, said Jurewicz, sharing recent work in Japan that uses Genesis data to identify the magnitude of massive solar storms.
“There are opportunities for more Genesis sample science in all these areas and more, and techniques developed will support other research in planetary materials,” Jurewicz reports.
Kevin McKeegan of the University of California Los Angeles is a Genesis mission science team member.
Like other Genesis researchers, McKeegan underscores that, unfortunately, what many people remember about Genesis is the crash.
“What they should know, however, is that the Genesis mission was very successful, achieving all of its major scientific objectives,” McKeegan told Space.com. “This is an excellent demonstration of the resilience of sample-return, and is due to the diligence and creative efforts of a large team of curators and scientists led by our indefatigable principal investigator, Don Burnett,” he said.
In terms of isotopic compositions of the most important volatile elements, oxygen and nitrogen isotopes in chondrite meteorites and inner solar system planetary materials, “we now know that the standard model is grossly wrong,” McKeegan reported late last year at the annual gathering of the American Geophysical Union.
Genesis showed that the Earth and all (rocky) planetary materials are not made out of the average matter of the solar nebula, especially with respect to the abundant volatile elements, McKeegan said. An output from Genesis-provided data, he said, is yielding constraints on fundamental chemical and isotopic fractionation processes occurring in the early solar system.
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Caltech’s Burnett concludes that while success seemed remote, he salutes the 20 years of steady and creative processing and cleaning along with analytical improvements that have led to clutching scientific success from the jaws of defeat.
“The cosmochemistry community has risen to the challenge with a continuous stream of important papers,” he said, with Genesis results raising new questions and sparking new ideas for further scrutiny.
“There is still much important science feasible from Genesis sample analysis,” Burnett concluded.
Source: Utah News
Source: Utah News
It was another heartbreaker for Kevin Young’s Cougars.
In the program’s first conference clash against Utah since 2011, BYU suffered a 73-72 overtime loss to the Runnin’ Utes Saturday night in Salt Lake City.
Once again, BYU fell short both on the road and late in the second half. The Cougars have yet to win in a true road setting this season, and if they can’t do it 45 miles away from the Marriott Center and with a few thousand of their own fans in the building, it’s hard to imagine when they’ll finally find success as a visitor in the Big 12.
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BYU has now led at halftime in each of the past four contests, yet the Cougars are just 1-3 over the same stretch.
Even after the Utes missed 15 free throws on the night, and with their best player, Gabe Madsen, managing just eight points on 2-12 shooting, they still won.
BYU struggled to execute in overtime, and a number of self-inflicted wounds — namely, a Trevin Knell missed free throw with six seconds remaining that would have tied the score — ultimately buried the Cougars.
Hunter Erickson played hero. Losing to your rival is hard enough. For BYU, letting a former Cougar come alive late and make a big difference in the game has to sting much more.
Erickson played two years at BYU before eventually winding up in Salt Lake City, where he’ll now forever be remembered for his efforts in vanquishing his former teammates.
He outscored his season average of 4.4 points solely in overtime, posting six points from a clutch game-tying 3-pointer and three made free throws — all the more valuable in a game where Utah missed 15 shots from the charity stripe — which ended up being the winning difference.
Additionally, Ezra Ausar exploded for a season-high 26 points, while Lawson Lovering added 13 points, seven boards and four assists.
On the flip side, BYU didn’t get much aside from a combined 32 points from Richie Saunders and Fousseyni Traore, shooting 38.5% from the field, 26.7% from deep and 40% from the free throw line.
It’s great to have this rivalry back in the same conference. Neither BYU nor Utah will compete for the Big 12 crown this year, but Saturday’s matchup had all the feel of a high-stakes March affair.
The contest was tight, tense and dramatic from start to finish. The Huntsman Center was electric. No matter what side you rooted for, what more could you want in a basketball game?
The Cougars and Runnin’ Utes are always juiced up when they meet on the hardwood, but competing in the same league — and matching up twice per season — adds even more to the rivalry.
What a treat to get a rematch between these two squads seven weeks from now in Provo.
Source: Utah News
Source: Utah News
Source: Utah News
For the first time as Big 12 conference rivals, BYU and Utah will clash on the basketball court Saturday night in the first of two regular-season showdowns.
BYU basketball hasn’t exactly hit the ground running in their inaugural Big 12 campaign. A lopsided road loss to Houston was understandable, but back-to-back defeats against Texas Tech at home and TCU on the road have left Cougar Nation restless and eager for a turnaround.
However, a much-needed victory at the Marriott Center against Oklahoma State snapped their losing streak and may serve as a turning point. Now, rookie head coach Kevin Young faces the challenge of keeping his team focused and ready for a heated rivalry matchup in Salt Lake City.
This promises to be an electrifying game, as both teams are looking to prove themselves after rocky starts. The Utes, led by head coach Craig Smith, who previously helmed the program at Utah State, hold a 10-6 overall record and are 2-3 in conference play.
Both squads are eager to showcase their potential and claim the upper hand in what is shaping up to be a fierce battle on the hardwood.
The Sporting News has all the details on how to watch Utah vs. BYU.
Utah vs. BYU will not be available to broadcast live on TV in the US. Fans can watch via live stream on ESPN+.
ESPN+ will be live streaming the Big 12 game.
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Utah vs. BYU tips off on Saturday, Jan. 18 at 9 p.m. ET from the Jon M. Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Fans can listen to Utah vs. BYU live on SiriusXM channels 388 (Utah Utes broadcast) and 143 (BYU Cougars broadcast).
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Here are Utah’s next five games:
| Date | Game | Time (ET) |
| Jan. 18 | vs. BYU | 9 p.m. |
| Jan. 21 | at Houston | 8 p.m. |
| Jan. 25 | vs. Baylor | 3:30 p.m. |
| Jan. 28 | vs. Cincinnati | 10 p.m. |
| Feb. 1 | at Oklahoma State | 3 p.m. |
Here are BYU’s next five games:
| Date | Game | Time (ET) |
| Jan. 18 | at Utah | 9 p.m. |
| Jan. 21 | at Colorado | 11 p.m. |
| Jan. 25 | vs. Cincinnati | 10 p.m. |
| Jan. 28 | vs. Baylor | 9 p.m. |
| Feb. 1 | at UCF | 4 p.m. |
Source: Utah News
Nucor Corp.’s Towers & Structures business unit on Jan. 9 said it will build a $200 million utility structures production facility in Brigham City, Utah. The new facility will be located on Nucor’s existing Brigham City campus and create 200 full-time jobs.
Nucor is currently completing construction on two utility structures production facilities in Decatur, Alabama, and Crawfordsville, Indiana.
Source: Utah News
Source: Utah News
The Utah Utes women’s basketball team continues their inaugural Big 12 season with a road game against the No. 10 TCU Horned Frogs on January 17, tipping off at 5:30 p.m. MT. Currently ranked No. 23 in the AP Top 25 Poll, Utah (13-4, 4-2 Big 12) looks to bounce back after a 70-61 loss to Baylor on January 14.
Against Baylor, the Utes rallied in the third quarter to erase a nine-point deficit but faltered in the fourth. Gianna Kneepkens and Matyson Wilke led the team with 17 points each, while Reese Ross and Mayé Toure added seven rebounds apiece. Despite the loss, the team demonstrated resilience, a trait they’ll need to upset the red-hot Horned Frogs.
The Utes are anchored by former All-American Gianna Kneepkens, who has returned to form after an injury-shortened 2023-24 season. Kneepkens is averaging 16.9 points per game while shooting an impressive 48.6% from the field and 43.8% from three-point range. Her free-throw accuracy (93.9%) ranks ninth nationally. She has hit three or more three-pointers in eight games this season, all Utah victories. Additionally, she recently became the seventh player in program history to reach 200 career three-pointers.
Other key contributors include Matyson Wilke, Jenna Johnson, Kennady McQueen, and Ines Vieira. Vieira is a standout distributor, ranking sixth in the Big 12 with 5.5 assists per game. Newcomers Mayé Touré and Chyra Evans have also made significant impacts, with Touré recently recording her first double-double against Baylor.
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Under first-year head coach Gavin Petersen, the Utes have achieved several milestones. Petersen, in his 10th year with the program, earned a signature victory early, defeating then-No. 3 Notre Dame 78-67. This marked Utah’s highest-ranked road win in program history. Utah’s offense ranks among the top 30 nationally in seven major categories, including three-pointers made per game (9.8, No. 8) and field goal percentage (46.8%, No. 24).
The Horned Frogs are on a nine-game winning streak, led by Sedona Prince (18.7 PPG, 9.3 RPG) and Hailey Van Lith (18.3 PPG). TCU boasts a 39-13 record under second-year head coach Mark Campbell. Historically, Utah has a 10-9 edge in the series but has struggled in Fort Worth, holding a 2-6 record there.
Facing a top-10 opponent on the road is a daunting challenge, but Utah’s balanced attack, led by Kneepkens and its perimeter shooting prowess, could make the difference. A win over TCU would cement Utah as a serious contender in the Big 12.
Source: Utah News
