2015年9月30日 星期三

Seasonal Streaks Point to Recent Flowing Water on Mars


What creates these changing streaks on Mars? Called Recurring Slope Linea (RSL), these dark features start on the slopes of hills and craters but don't usually extend to the bottom. What's even more unusual is that these streaks appear to change with the season, appearing fresh and growing during warm weather and disappearing during the winter. After much study, including a recent chemical analyses, a leading hypothesis has emerged that these streaks are likely created by new occurrences of liquid salty water that evaporates as it flows. The source for the briny water is still unclear, with two possibilities being condensation from the Martian atmosphere and underground reservoirs. An exciting inference is that if these briny flows are not too salty, they may be able to support microbial life on Mars even today. The featured image of a hill inside Horowitz Crater was investigated by instruments aboard the robotic Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter that has been returning data from Mars since 2006. via NASA http://ift.tt/1KK6r1d

The Martian: How NASA Soars - and Stumbles - Simultaneously

Can Hollywood save NASA?, Washington Post "NASA is having something of a moment. "The Martian" debuts this week to huge expectations: starring Matt Damon and directed by Ridley Scott, the $100-million-plus film highlights not only the ingenuity and pluck of...

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NASA Cancels B612 Sentinel Agreement and Then Picks JPL NEOcam

NASA Selects Investigations for Future Key Planetary Mission "NASA has selected five science investigations for refinement during the next year as a first step in choosing one or two missions for flight opportunities as early as 2020. The submitted proposals...

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NASA announces five Discovery proposals selected for further study

NASA announced the first-round selections for its next Discovery mission today. A total of five planetary mission concepts -- three targeted at asteroids, two at Venus -- will move to the next stage of the competition.

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ISS Daily Summary Report – 09/30/15

Synchronized Position Hold, Engage, Reorient, Experimental Satellites – Universal Docking Port (SPHERES-UDP):  Kelly reviewed the SPHERES-UDP procedure and test plan and then participated in a conference with the Payload Developer to discuss science operations. He then performed a SPHERES-UDP test run and downloaded data to a Station Support Computer (SSC).  The addition of docking ports to SPHERES provides a testbed for the investigation of solutions to the challenges of combining autonomous spacecraft.  Mated spacecraft can be used to assemble complex systems in orbit or combine sensors and actuators for satellite servicing and repurposing missions. SPHERES-UDP enables testing of complex tasks through optimal and adaptive control, autonomous decision-making processes, and real-time image processing.   Node 1 Nadir Berthing Port Preparation:   As part of USOS Reconfiguration, Lindgren and Yui routed two power cables from the forward end cone to bay 3 in the Lab Overhead Starboard Standoff.  These cables connected to the set of cables installed yesterday. Today’s cable routing required every other overhead rack (LAB1O1, LAB1O3, and LAB1O5) to be rotated in the Lab. One crew member retrieved the cable ends behind the un-rotated racks as the other crew member fed the cables through.  Additional cabling routing activities within Node 1 and Node 2 are scheduled for next week. These cables will eventually provide power from Node 2 to the Node 1 Nadir Berthing Port and the Node 1 Galley Rack.   Ultrasonic Background Noise Test (UBNT) Battery Change:  While the 3 US Lab racks were rotated for the cable routing, Yui and Lindgren replaced the battery packs in the UBNT units which are located behind the racks.  These battery change outs will allow the UBNT units to provide acoustic measurements for the area where they are located.   Mobile Servicing System (MSS) Operations:  Yesterday afternoon, Robotics Ground Controllers successfully translated the Mobile Transporter from Worksite 5 to Worksite 2. This evening, they will maneuver the Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS) to retrieve the Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator (SPDM) then perform an Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS) imagery survey.  Following the survey, they will position the MSS to support upcoming Robotics Refueling Mission (RRM) Operations starting Friday, October 2nd.   Today’s Planned Activities All activities are on schedule unless otherwise noted. MORZE. Measuring Bioimpedance Using SPRUT-2 Ultrasound 2 – Hardware Activation MORZE. NEIROIMMUNITET. CORRECTSIA. Blood Sample 1 CORRECTSIA. MORZE. Processing venous blood sample using Plasma-03 centrifuge NEIROIMMUNITET. Venous blood sample processing NEIROIMMUNITET. Processing venous blood sample using Plasma-03 centrifuge MORZE. NEIROIMMUNITET. CORRECTSIA. Handover to USOS for MELFI Insertion Reminder – ARED Photo/TV Ultrasound2 – Scan Prep RUEXP – Blood Sample Insertion into MELFI CORRECTSIA. Closeout Ops Ultrasound 2 – Scan JEM Terminal Computer Reboot SPHERES – Data Export CARDIOVECTOR. Experiment Ops LAB1O31 Cable Routing SPHERES – Review Ultrasound 2 Data Export LAB1O1 Cable Routing Ultrasound 2 – Scan MORZE. Psycho-physiological Evaluation: Tsentrovka, SENSOR Tests SM PCE antenna feeder test using FSH3 spectrum analyzer Ultrasound 2 – Hardware deactivation MORZE. Psycho-physiological Evaluation:  SUPOS Test ARIS Removal – Assistance MORZE. Psycho-physiological Evaluation: Strelau Test LAB Power Cable Routing PILOT-T. Preparation for the experiment LAB1O5 Cable Routing MAGVEC – USB Transfer Checking Photo/TV Camcorder Setup SPHERES Crew Conference PILOT-T. Experiment Ops Stop LAB1O3 Rack Rotation Post-Exercise Hygiene Procedure LAB Power Cable Routing SPHERES – Cameras Setup Stop LAB Rack Rotation RELAKSATSIYA. Initiate camcorder battery charge Stop LAB Rack Rotation LAB Cables Closeout Ops UBNT – Battery Replacement WRS – Recycle Tank Fill JRNL – Journal Entry (not statused) СОЖ maintenance LAB1O3 Cable Routing SPHERES – Running Tests Verification of ИП-1 Flow Sensor Position NEIROIMMUNITET. Hair Sample RELAKSATSIYA. Mounting hardware on CQ window No.1 LAB Racks Replacement PILOT-T. Experiment Ops Preparation of Reports for Roscosmos TV Studio Checking Photo/TV Camcorder Setup SPHERES – Data Export PILOT-T. Closeout Ops. Tagup with specialists IMS Delta File Prep FMK Deployment Ops (Deferred) RELAKSATSIYA. Parameter Settings. Tagup with specialists Grab Sample Container (GSC) Sampling Operations (Deferred) CONTENT. Experiment Ops RELAKSATSIYA NEIROIMMUNITET. Stress Test NEIROIMMUNITET. Saliva Test   Completed Task List Items PMM Rackfront Cleaning Safety Video Followup (In Work)   Ground Activities All activities are on schedule unless otherwise noted. MSS Operations o    SPDM Unstow o    AMS Survey o    Config for RRM Ops   Three-Day Look Ahead: Thursday, 10/01: 61P Launch and Dock, Cubesat Deployer install on MPEP, SPRINT VO2, NPV O-Ring Install, Col PWS R&R Friday, 10/02: JEMAL Depress, MELFI 2 Troubleshooting, MF Bed, IX Bed, EFA & MCA R&Rs, Cap. Beverage, WRS Waste Water Filter replace, RRM Phase 2 Saturday, 10/03: Weekly Cleaning,  Crew Off Duty   QUICK ISS Status – Environmental Control Group:                               Component Status Elektron On Vozdukh Manual [СКВ] 1 – SM Air Conditioner System (“SKV1”) On [СКВ] 2 – SM Air Conditioner System (“SKV2”) Off Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) Lab Standby Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) Node 3 Operate Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Lab Shutdown Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Node 3 Operate Oxygen Generation Assembly (OGA) Standby Urine Processing Assembly (UPA) Norm Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Lab Off Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Node 3 Full Up  

October 01, 2015 at 12:35AM
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NASA Awards Contract for Software Engineering Support at Goddard

NASA has awarded a contract to Arctic Slope Technical Services, Inc. (ASTS) of Beltsville, Maryland for information technology support for programs and projects at the agency’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.

September 30, 2015
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NASA Selects Investigations for Future Key Planetary Mission

NASA has selected five science investigations for refinement during the next year as a first step in choosing one or two missions for flight opportunities as early as 2020. The submitted proposals would study Venus, near-Earth objects and a variety of asteroids.

September 30, 2015
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NASA Awards Contract for Engineering Software, Hardware

NASA has awarded a contract to National Instruments Corporation of Austin, Texas, to provide system design software and measurement and control systems hardware while consolidating the procurement of agency end-user software licenses.

September 30, 2015
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The Inevitable Commercial Crew Train Wreck?

The coming train wreck for Commercial Human Spaceflight "NASA at its highest leadership level has committed to try to allow commercial space flight providers a great deal of flexibility and cost control. There are ways to do this which will...

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The solar system at 1 kilometer per pixel: Can you identify these worlds? The answers

Last Friday I posted an image containing 18 samples of terrain, all shown at the same scale. Were you able to figure out which square was which? Here are the answers.

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A Fresh Perspective on an Extraordinary Cluster of Galaxies


Galaxy clusters are often described by superlatives. After all, they are huge conglomerations of galaxies, hot gas, and dark matter and represent the largest structures in the Universe held together by gravity. via NASA http://ift.tt/1O1Z0os

Bloom With a View. Two of Them, in Fact.

Oh, I do so love a coincidence. And when it’s about imaging Earth from space, that’s even better.

I subscribe to NASA’s Earth Observatory Image of the Day (and you should, too!), which, oddly enough, posts an image of Earth every day. They’re almost always satellite shots, featuring various amazing portraits of our planet. As a satellite photo nerd I love it, and I learn a lot about Earth every time I see a new one. The cloud images alone are worth it.

One of the most spectacular and lovely kinds of photos they post are of phytoplankton blooms—huge bursts of growth (usually of cyanobacteria) in the ocean. Warmer waters can create conditions where nutrients and sunlight become abundant to the little planets, and they go forth and multiply. Blooms can be huge, hundreds of kilometers across.

The image above shows (a small part of) a bloom in the Baltic Sea, just north of Poland. It was taken by Landsat 8 on Aug. 11, and it’s not “true color,” that is, what your eye would see. The detectors used are sensitive to colors across a range of the spectrum, so the colors displayed are close to red, green, and blue, but there’s quite a bit of overlap (for example, the detector that sees in the green is also sensitive to yellow, and the blue one sees green as well). Still, the bloom is eerily beautiful. You can see airplane contrails and the wakes of ships in the original full-res image, too.

The spiral pattern is lovely, caused by eddies in the sea currents. Cyanobacteria are plants (more or less) so they flow along with the water.

The coincidence? The European Space Agency released a similar picture taken just a few days before, on Aug. 7, using the Sentinel-2 Earth-observing satellite:

Whoa. I’m not positive that’s the same swirl, but it’s from the same general area of the Baltic Sea (the Sentinel image is also part of a much larger image). Interestingly, both images from Landsat and Sentinel-2 show ships crossing their respective swirl; in each you can see the ship as a dot followed by a black trail.

Cyanobacterial blooms are important to study. They can rob water of oxygen and nutrients, and some phytoplanktons produce toxins that can be dangerous. And here we have two space agencies studying the same bloom at two different times with two different satellites! It’s really gratifying to see nations taking this sort of work seriously … especially when one faction of my own nation doesn’t.

We need to understand our planet as best we can. Not just because doing so produces such wonderful natural art, but because we are part of Nature ourselves, and we influence it just as it influences us. Understanding it is critical.

After all, Nature can live without us, but we can’t live without Nature.



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ISS Daily Summary Report – 09/29/15

Combustion Integration Rack (CIR) / FLame Extinguishment Experiment (FLEX)-2J Fiber Arm Replacement:  Kelly replaced the FLEX-2J Fiber Arm today as part of routine maintenance operations for the CIR.  He removed the Multi-user Droplet Combustion Apparatus (MDCA) Chamber Insert Assembly (CIA) from the CIR Combustion Chamber, and restrained it on the Maintenance Work Area (MWA) work surface. After replacing the Fiber Arm, he reinstalled the MDCA CIA back into the CIR Combustion Chamber.  FLEX-2J studies the interactions of flames on the motion and ignition of millimeter-sized droplets. Results can provide fundamental insight into the physics of fuel burning, which improves computer models designed to reduce emissions and improve fuel consumption efficiency in space and on Earth.   Journals:  Kelly completed a Journal activity today. The Journals investigation obtains information on behavioral and human issues that are relevant to the design of equipment and procedures used during astronauts during extended-duration missions. Study results provide information used in preparation for future missions to low-Earth orbit and beyond.   Ras Labs-CASIS-ISS Project for Synthetic Muscle: Resistance to Radiation (Synthetic Muscle):   Lindgren obtained a set of historical photos of the synthetic muscle samples.  He then transfered the photos to a Station Support Computer (SSC) for downlink. The purpose of this investigation is to measure the effects of radiation on proprietary synthetic muscle materials in space and earth environments. Robots made of these materials could provide assistance to humans in space, enhance survivability of robots during deep space travel, and provide support in extreme radiation environments on Earth.   MAGVECTOR Experiment Run Completion:  The fifth run of European Space Agency’s (ESA’s) MAGVECTOR investigation was completed and Lindgren transfered data from the run to a SSC for downlink. MAGVECTOR qualitatively investigates the interaction between a moving magnetic field and an electrical conductor. The expected changes in the magnetic field structure on the Ram and Wake side of the electrical conductor are of interest for technical applications as well as for astrophysical research.   Node 1 Nadir Berthing Port Preparation:   As part of USOS Reconfiguration, Lindgren and Yui routed two power cables from the Lab Aft Starboard Endcone into the Overhead Starboard Standoff.  Today’s activity required the crew to rotate the LAB1O6 rack.  Although the power cables were not connected today, these cables will eventually provide power from Node 2 to the Node 1 Nadir Berthing Port and the Node 1 Galley Rack.  Additional Lab cable routing is scheduled to occur tomorrow, September 30th.   Mobile Servicing System (MSS) Ops:   Overnight, Robotics Flight Controllers activated the MSS and performed a Space Station Remote Manipulator (SSRMS) walk off from Node 2 to Mobile Base System (MBS) Power Data Grapple Fixture (PDGF)-1.  Once the walk off was complete, they maneuvered the SSRMS in preparation for a Latching End Effector (LEE) A survey by the crew.  Kelly then performed a regularly scheduled snare cable inspection and an inspection of the latches as a follow up from the LEE-A lubrication performed during an Extravehicular Activity (EVA) in February 2015.  Once the inspections were complete, Robotic Flight Controllers maneuvered the SSRMS in preparation for a Mobile Transporter (MT) translation from Worksite 5 to Worksite 2.  The translation is currently in work.   Today’s Planned Activities All activities were completed unless otherwise noted.   IMMUNO. Saliva Sample (Session 1) Laptop RS1(2) Reboot IMMUNO. First stress test, questionnaire data entry Calf Volume Measurement IMMUNO. Test-Tube Blood Collection (finger) IMMUNO. Blood Sample Processing IMMUNO. Equipment Stowage ВКС Laptops Antivirus Scan Check and Status Report EVA – Inspection of EVA Equipment Tethers CORRECTSIA. Logging Liquid and Food (Medicine) Intake Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) Setup VCA1 Camera Adjustment COSMOCARD. Closeout Ops WRS Water Sample Analysis Life On The Station Photo and Video Study of veins in lower extremities Lab Forward and Power Cables Routing – Big Picture Words PTV-LEE – Camera Setup for Inspection PTV – SSRMS LEE Inspection Part One OCT Eye Examination LAB Power Cable Gathering SPHERES – Battery Replacement PILOT-T. Experiment Ops PGS2 – Sample Retrieval LAB Power Cable Routing PGS2 – Setup Ops Replacement of ГА СО filter unit, CO sensors, fan in ГЛ 2106 ГА СО PGS2 – Sample Insertion OCT Hardware Stowage LAB Power Cable Routing – Assistance DAN. Experiment Ops PTV – SSRMS LEE Inspection Part Two PGS2 – Hardware Ops SPHERES – Battery Replacement Switching ГЛ 2106 to Operation mode RELAKSATSIYA.  Charging battery for Relaksatstiya experiment JRNL – Journal Entry ГЛ 2106 Operation Monitoring via Laptop HAM radio session from Columbus Post-Exercise Hygiene Procedure SPHERES – Battery Replacement CIR – Rack Doors Open CIR – Combustion Chamber Front Rack Door Open АСН-К Tests Closeout Ops CORRECTSIA. Logging Liquid and Food (Medicine) Intake MORZE. NEIROIMMUNITET. CORRECTSIA. Experiment setup Search for SM PCE Feeder Test Equipment PTV – SSRMS LEE Inspection Part Three TOCA Data Recording TOCA Waste Water Bag (WWB) Changeout СОЖ maintenance Clearing Stowage from LAB Racks MDCA – Hardware Replacement Plant Gravity Sensing (PGS2)  Operations UBNT – Equipment Setup IMS Delta File Prep Performing SCU and EMU DCM Inspection SYN_MUSCL – Photography WRS – Recycle Tank Fill On-orbit hearing assessment using EARQ MAGVEC – USB Transfer RELAKSATSIYA. Mounting hardware on CQ window No.1 CIR – Combustion Integrated Rack Chamber Closure Fundoscope – Dilation Drops CIR – Rack Doors Closure Fundoscope – Dilation Drops PTV – SSRMS LEE Inspection Part Four Fundoscope – OCT Eye Examination RELAKSATSIYA. Parameter Settings Post-Exercise Hygiene Procedure RELAKSATSIYA. Observation Fundoscope Removal and Stowage IMMUNO. Saliva Sample (Session 2) PGS2 – Hardware Ops IMMUNO. Second stress test, questionnaire data entry IMMUNO. Final Equipment Stowage SPHERES – Battery Stowage CIR – Viewing Introduction Video RELAKSATSIYA. Closeout Ops NEIROIMMUNITET. Saliva Sample CORRECTSIA. Logging Liquid and Food (Medication) Intake Preparation of reports for Roscosmos site ECON-M. Observations and Photography   Completed Task List Items Inc. 44 Safety Video Follow-Up [In Work] PMM Rack Front Cleanup [In Work]   Ground Activities All activities were completed unless otherwise noted. Robotic ops for SSRMS LEE Survey MT Translation from Worksite 5 to Worksite 2 [In Work]   Three-Day Look Ahead: Wednesday, […]

September 30, 2015 at 12:44AM
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2015年9月29日 星期二

Supermoon Total Lunar Eclipse and Lightning Storm


What's more rare than a supermoon total lunar eclipse? How about a supermoon total lunar eclipse over a lightning storm. Such an electrifying sequence was captured yesterday from Ibiza, an island in southeastern Spain. After planning the location for beauty, and the timing to capture the entire eclipse sequence, the only thing that had to cooperate for this astrophotographer to capture a memorable eclipse sequence was the weather. What looked to be a bother on the horizon, though, turned out to be a blessing. The composite picture features over 200 digitally combined images from the same location over the course of a night. The full moon is seen setting as it faded to red in Earth's shadow and then returned to normal. The fortuitous lightning is seen reflected in the Mediterranean to the right of the 400-meter tall rocky island of Es Vedra. Although the next total eclipse of a large and bright supermoon will occur in 2033, the next total eclipse of any full moon will occur in January 2018 and be best visible from eastern Asia and Australia. via NASA http://ift.tt/1ODsDxR

NASA Cancels Space Act Agreement With B612 Foundation

NASA cuts ties with organization aimed at protecting Earth from asteroids, The Verge "NASA had a Space Act Agreement with the foundation to help develop the vehicle without giving out any money. But now NASA has terminated the agreement as...

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NASA Selects Contractor for Environmental, Medical Contract

NASA has selected Integrated Mission Support Services, LLC of Merritt Island, Florida to fulfill the Kennedy Environmental and Medical Contract (KEMCON) at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

September 29, 2015
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In Space No One Can Hear Space Advocates Scream

Stay the Course To Mars, OpEd, Chris Carberry and Joe Cassady, SpaceNews "What should be made clear, however, is that the next president will not need to reinvent our national space policy. The overall policy direction is fine, but despite...

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Planetary Society's Mars Mission Takes Longer To Do Less

Keith's note:The result of the closed door Humans Orbiting Mars report has been released. According to this report missions to Mars only orbit the planet by 2033. Crews would control robots on the surface. If there's enough money then...

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Dark, Recurring Streaks on Walls of Garni Crater on Mars


Dark narrow streaks, called "recurring slope lineae," emanate from the walls of Garni Crater on Mars, in this view constructed from observations by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. via NASA http://ift.tt/1jrr9db

Astrobiology Hearing Today

Hearing charter "This hearing will review the scientific methods employed to search for life, examine recent scientific discoveries in the field of astrobiology (the study of the origin, evolution, distribution, and future of life in the universe), and assess the...

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Global Epic Eclipse

Well, despite some baseless fears, we’re still here after Sunday night’s lovely lunar eclipse.

It was quite nice here in Colorado; the Moon was still very low to the horizon when it started to pass into the darkest part of the Earth’s shadow. I was just finished setting up my Celestron Regal M2 80ED spotting ‘scope to watch when I saw an airplane approaching the rising Moon… and as I shot the video, to my surprise I got two planes transiting!

That was fun. The Moon was still yellowish as it rose due to atmospheric effects. It was just about the enter the darker part of the Earth’s shadow (called the umbra) but even then you can see the left side is darker and redder than the right.

I also did a live Periscope as the Moon darkened, winding up with over 8,000 people watching at different points. I love seeing so many folks interested in what’s going on in the sky!

I think my video is pretty cool, but master astrophotographer Thierry Legault did me one better. Well, more than one: He caught the International Space Station transiting the Moon during the eclipse!

That is so cool. He told me that, to the best of his knowledge, this is the first time anyone has caught the ISS transiting the Moon during a lunar eclipse on video.

I want to share a couple of photos, too. As the sky darkened, the eclipsed Moon rose through several thin cloud banks, and I liked the feel of this one:

You can see the eclipsed part of the Moon on the left. It helps sometimes to have something else in the field of view when you’re taking pictures like this. A cloud is nice, but sometimes something more recognizable can turn a nice shot into a fantastic one.

Like, say, this:

Wow. Yeah, sometimes it’s all about the framing.

If you want to learn more about these events, I talk all about them in my Crash Course Astronomy episode on eclipses. The next lunar eclipse visible to the US won’t be until 2018, but August 2017 will bring the Great American Solar Eclipse. Stay tuned for more on that.



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ISS Daily Summary Report – 09/28/15

H-II Transfer Vehicle (HTV)-5 Departure:  This morning Yui and Lindgren finished closing out the Node 2 vestibule by demating all umbilicals to HTV-5.  Meanwhile, Kelly depressurized the vestibule between HTV-5 and Node 2 in preparation for the unberth. Commands were then sent to release Common Berthing Mechanism (CBM) bolts prior to unberth.  Robotic Flight Controllers then maneuvered HTV-5 to the release position utilizing the Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS).  The first attempt to release HTV-5 at 10:20am CDT was aborted due to SSRMS Latching End Effector (LEE) B safing just as de-rigidization of the snare cables began.  Ground teams quickly recovered from the fault which allowed for Yui and Lindgren to release HTV-5 one revolution later at 11:53 am CDT.  HTV-5 is scheduled for destructive re-entry on Tuesday, September 29.   Fine Motor Skills Experiment:  Kelly completed a session of the Fine Motor Skills experiment.  During the experiment he performed a series of interactive tasks on a touchscreen tablet. This investigation is the first fine motor skills study to measure long-term microgravity exposure, different phases of microgravity adaptation, and sensorimotor recovery after returning to Earth gravity. The goal of Fine Motor Skills investigation is to identify trends or variations in fine motor performance in microgravity over the duration of a year-long space mission; how fine motor performance on orbit compares with that of a closely matched participant on Earth; and how performance changes before and after gravitational transitions, such as during early flight adaptation and after return to Earth.   Cell Biology Experiment Facility (CBEF) Mouse Habitat Unit (MHU) Removal:  Yui replaced the MHU with JAXA’s Plant Gravity Sensing 2 (PGS2) in the CBEF inside the Microgravity Science Glovebox (MSG).  The PGS2 investigation supports the study of cellular formation of the gravity sensors and the molecular mechanism for gravity sensing in plants grown in microgravity conditions.   Multi-Purpose End-to-End Robotic Operations Network (METERON) SUPVIS-E Surveyor Rover Operations:  Using the ELIOS application running on the METERON-2 laptop in the ISS, Yui commanded the European Space Agency’s (ESA’s) Surveyor Rover located in Germany. He utilized video streams from the Lander, Surveyor Rover, and the Eurobot to perform a 360 degree inspection of the Eurobot. He also filled out and downlinked a questionnaire about the Surveyor Rover free driving. METERON examines the benefits of an astronaut controlling surface robots in real time from an orbiting spacecraft, and investigate how’s best to explore a planet through a human-robotic partnership.   Systems Operation Data File (SODF) Procedures Deploy:  Lindgren, updated Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Systems procedures within the US Airlock and In Flight Maintenance (IFM) Hatch Mechanism procedures within Russian Segment FGB module.  The new hardcopy procedures arrived onboard HTV-5.   External Wireless Instrumentation System (EWIS) Network Communication Unit (NCU) Troubleshooting and Remove and Replace (R&R):  The EWIS NCU, which allows for commanding and data retrieval from the EWIS sensors, had an anomaly on August 18th.  Today, Kelly configured an Station Support Computer (SSC) client to directly connect to a suspect EWIS NCU via serial interface prior to troubleshooting the EWIS NCU then deconfigured following execution of troubleshooting. Following this troubleshooting session to gather data, the NCU was replaced.  The new NCU is communicating on the network nominally.   Pre-Determined Debris Avoidance Maneuver (PDAM):  In order to avoid a conjunction with Object 40241, ISS performed a successful 0.3 m/s PDAM on Sunday using Progress 60P docked to Docking Compartment (DC)-1.   The PDAM did not impact HTV5 release today, and will not impact the 61P 4-orbit rendezvous scheduled for this Thursday, October 1st.   Today’s Planned Activities All activities were completed unless otherwise noted. Calf Volume Measurement Morning Inspection RWS – Cupola Crew Restraint (CCR) Installation Closing USOS Window Shutters LAB Camcorder Setup at LAB RWS Mon 3 Observation HTV – Demating of the Power Jumper Line of Pressurized Logistic Carrier (PLC) KORREKTSIYA. Logging liquids and food (medicine) intake data FINEMOTR – Experiment Session [ВКС] Laptops Antivirus Software Update Fine Motor Skills Experiment COSMOCARD. Preparation. 24 Hr ECG Recording SPHERES – Batteries Changeout HTV and Node 2 Vestibule Depressurization HTV – Hardware Control Panel (HCP) Setup CARDIOVECTOR. Experiment Session TORU Drill. Tagup with the instructor HTV – Hardware Control Panel (HCP) Selftest HMS – Profile of Mood States (POMS) Questionnaire Lower Extremities Veins Examination Cell Biology Experiment Facility (CBEF) – Hardware Removal Node 2 Nadir CBM Demate SPHERES – Batteries Changeout Connecting EWIS to SSC for Troubleshooting Forward Ventilation Shutdown and Release of Hardware for Voltage Shedding Stowing SODF Books Delivered by HTV5 METERON – Review METERON – Experiment Ops ESPANDER Exercise Potable Bus Sampling KORREKTSIYA. Logging liquids and food (medicine) intake data MSS – HTV5 Release Setup IMS Delta File Prep HTV – Departure Preparation SPHERES – Batteries Changeout HTV – Monitoring of Release by SSRMS and Departure Video Footage of Station Life RWS CUP Monitoring Camcorder Deactivation and Restow NANO – Hardware Stow Searching for Unit II of the Soyuz Ventilation System ARED Bolts Tightening External Wireless Information System Network (EWIS) Control Unit R&R Monitoring of [ACH-K] Data Exchange Status and Data Recording on the Laptop VZAIMODEISTVIYE-2. Experiment Ops HTV – Hardware Command Panel (HCP) Deactivation Post-Exercise Hygiene Ops Hardware Command Panel (HCP) Restow IMMUNO. Preparation of Saliva-IMMUNO Kit for the Experiment СОЖ Maintenance Evening Work Prep HTV – JPM PROX Switch Off Condensate Tank Offload to CWC Initiate EVA LEE Review VZAIMODEISTVIYE-2. Experiment Ops Evening Work Prep HMS – Vision Test / See OPTIMIS Viewer for Procedure Condensate Tank Offload to CWC Terminate CIR – Hardware Gather RWS Teardown MDCA – Work Surface Area Prep HMS – Vision Questionnaire ARED Exercise Video Setup and Stow [Deferred] [ВКС] Laptops Antivirus Scanning Prep KORREKTSIYA. Logging liquids and food (medicine) intake data Preparation of reports for Roscosmos website ECON-M. Observation and Photography   Completed Task List Items JAXA Report 8   Ground Activities All activities were completed unless otherwise noted. System Commanding in support of HTV-5 Departure   Three-Day Look Ahead: Tuesday, 09/29: MCDA H/W Replace, Fundoscope, Node 1 Berthing Port / Galley Rack power cable […]

September 29, 2015 at 12:38AM
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Mars Week Continues: We've Released Our 'Humans Orbiting Mars' Workshop Report

Learn all about a sustainable, affordable path to get humans to the Red Planet—a path that goes through Mars orbit and Phobos.

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2015年9月28日 星期一

NASA Ignores The Same Next Generation It Hypes

NASA Is the Unlikeliest 'Design Firm' in Human History, Observer "Earlier this month, a young maker named Ahmed Mohamed was arrested while wearing a NASA t-shirt after bringing a homemade clock to his high school. Photographs of Ahmed in handcuffs...

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Golden Spike: Another Space Commerce Casualty?

Keith's note: Golden Spike Company (http://ift.tt/SBiumx) was going to do all sorts of commercial stuff on the Moon with lots of illustrious names attached. Their website went dark a week and a half ago and no one seems to...

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Reaching The Other 99.99% About The Mars Thing

The leader of the Planetary Society @exploreplanets What about reaching the other 99.999% of citizens? Just sayin' http://ift.tt/1LinafB NASA Watch (@NASAWatch) September 29, 2015 50 Websites to Waste Your Time On: http://t.co/UwVZB5p3nn http://pic.twitter.com/OuJ2WsK2xP— Mashable (@mashable) September 29, 2015 Evidence...

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Total Lunar Eclipse over Waterton Lake


Recorded in 2014 April, this total lunar eclipse sequence looks south down icy Waterton Lake from the Waterton Lakes National Park in Alberta, Canada, planet Earth. The most distant horizon includes peaks in Glacier National Park, USA. An exposure every 10 minutes captured the Moon's position and eclipse phase, as it arced, left to right, above the rugged skyline and Waterton town lights. In fact, the sequence effectively measures the roughly 80 minute duration of the total phase of the eclipse. Around 270 BC, the Greek astronomer Aristarchus also measured the duration of lunar eclipses - though probably without the benefit of digital clocks and cameras. Still, using geometry, he devised a simple and impressively accurate way to calculate the Moon's distance, in terms of the radius of planet Earth, from the eclipse duration. This modern eclipse sequence also tracks the successive positions of Mars, above and right of the Moon, bright star Spica next to the reddened lunar disk, and Saturn to the left and below. via NASA http://ift.tt/1NWb8qX

Sometimes Fun Things Just Happen By Coincidence

Did NASA time its Mars announcement to coincide with 'The Martian'?, Yahoo "Talk about some otherworldly timing ... or was it? Did NASA time its Mars announcement to coincide with the film's release? "No, the timing was dictated by the...

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Planetary Society Does Not Want Humans on Mars

NASA's Mars Announcement: Present-day transient flows of briny water on steep slopes, Planetary Society "This is one of many reasons I'm glad that The Planetary Society is advocating an orbit-first approach to human exploration. If we keep our filthy meatbag...

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NASA TV to Air Space Station Cargo Ship Launch, Docking

NASA Television will provide live coverage of the next launch and docking of an unpiloted Russian cargo spacecraft, Progress 61, to resupply the International Space Station Thursday, Oct. 1. NASA TV coverage will begin at 12:30 p.m. EDT.

September 28, 2015
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NASA Announces Appointment of New Agency Chief Information Officer

Renee Wynn took the helm Monday in leading the agency's information technology efforts and capabilities as NASA’s new chief information officer (CIO).

September 28, 2015
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One Presidential Candidate Mentions Mars

.@NASA has found water on Mars. There is no limit to what we can discover when we explore, ask questions, and listen to science.— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) September 28, 2015...

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Not Everyone Wants To Be The Martian

One reason why NASA's discovery of liquid water on #Mars is so exciting: we know anywhere there's water on Earth, there's some form of life.— Mark Kelly (@ShuttleCDRKelly) September 28, 2015 @elakdawalla (sigh) yet another example of how @exploreplanets...

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NASA's Mars Announcement: Present-day transient flows of briny water on steep slopes

NASA held a press briefing today to publicize a cool incremental result in the story of present-day liquid water on Mars. How big a deal is this story? Was all the pre-announcement hype justified? Is this just NASA discovering water on Mars for the zillionth time? What does this mean for things many space fans care about: life on Mars or future human exploration?

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NASA Confirms Evidence That Liquid Water Flows on Today’s Mars

New findings from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) provide the strongest evidence yet that liquid water flows intermittently on present-day Mars.

September 28, 2015
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The Big Mars News: Flowing Water on Mars, at Least Briefly

Scientists have found what they think is evidence of extant, if brief, flowing water on Mars.

In a NASA press conference on Monday, scientists claimed that images and spectra taken by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter’s HiRISE camera show what are called Recurrent Slope Lineae, or RSLs, straight dark streaks that run down the sides of craters and canyons on Mars. These features, which are a few meters across and hundreds of meters long, change with the seasons, becoming darker and more obvious in the spring and summer on the sides of crater walls facing the Sun. That strongly implies that warmth triggers the formation of the RSLs. The important finding: Scientists found evidence of salt deposits in these features, which in turn implies that briny, salty water is the force behind them. They think the darkening seen every spring is from water seepage!

If you want details, I wrote all about this Sunday in an article based on papers written by the scientists in question to be presented at a planetary science conference in Europe. I had not read the (embargoed) science papers, so what I wrote was based solely on those public papers, but it looks like I was right on the money.

Mind you, the detection of water here is indirect, through the dark streaks and the presence of salt. Still, the evidence they presented is very compelling, and their conclusions, in my opinion, likely to be correct. But there’s a problem, and it’s a big one: Where does the water come from?

We know there’s ice under the Martian surface. We see lots of evidence for it—it was seen directly by the Phoenix lander in 2008, and small asteroid impacts leave craters behind that excavate ice that can be seen. But Phoenix landed at high latitude, near the north pole where you’d expect ice, and the craters with ice only reach as far as midlatitude. But these RSLs are seen closer to the equator of Mars. Over time, the water ice there, to at least mild depths, should have disappeared, melting away.

Because of this, the authors of the work speculate that perhaps water is absorbed into the ground from the atmosphere, where it collects until there’s enough for it to flow—a process with the lovely name of deliquescence. The soil of Mars is loaded with a chemical called perchlorate, which is capable of absorbing water in this way, and perchlorates were found at the RSL sites.

So this idea ... holds water.

Still, the air on Mars is exceedingly thin, less than 1 percent of Earth’s. And there’s not much water in it, either, so it’s difficult to understand how enough water could collect to form these seepages. Although deliquescence is the preferred scenario by the scientists involved, they also admit the actual source of the water is still something of a mystery.

Opinion time: This is a wonderful discovery, and an important one. The origin of these features has been a mystery for a long time, and it does look like we’re finally starting to get a grip on it.

But it’s far from solved. Where does the water come from? How much is there? Is it just water, or are there other substances involved?

And what does this mean for the possibility for life on Mars? Well, in my opinion, it doesn’t change much. Not yet. We know Mars has lots of water ice, and it once had vast amounts of standing and flowing liquid water on its surface in the past. This doesn’t change that. Mars may once have had life, but we still don’t know, and don’t know if there’s life there now.

What it does change is the idea that there could be liquid water beneath the surface of Mars. This makes it less unlikely, I’d say, which I know sounds weak. But what we’ve seen here is temporary flowing water, not persistent liquid water. The bottom line is that we still don’t know if liquid water exists under the Martian surface or not.

But we’re learning. This is just one of many steps we’re taking in observing Mars. Remember, Mars is a planet, an entire world, with a rich history, diverse geography, and a lot of real estate. We’ve only just scratched the surface—in this case, almost literally—and there are great depths left to explore.



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Water Flows On The Surface of Mars

NASA Confirms Evidence That Liquid Water Flows on Today's Mars, NASA "New findings from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) provide the strongest evidence yet that liquid water flows intermittently on present-day Mars. Using an imaging spectrometer on MRO, researchers detected...

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Supermoon Eclipse in Washington


A perigee full moon, or supermoon, is seen behind the Washington Monument during a total lunar eclipse on Sunday, September 27, 2015, in Washington, DC. The combination of a supermoon and total lunar eclipse last occurred in 1982 and will not happen again until 2033. via NASA http://ift.tt/1KK3rig

Dawn Journal: 8 Years in Space

On the 8th anniversary of the launch of the Dawn spacecraft, Chief Engineer and Mission Director Marc Rayman gives his annual summary of Dawn’s progress on its interplanetary travels.

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Supermoon Eclipse in New York City


A perigee full moon, or supermoon, is seen next to the Empire State Building at the beginning of a total lunar eclipse, Sunday, Sept. 27, 2015 in New York City. The combination of a supermoon and total lunar eclipse last occurred in 1982 and will not happen again until 2033. via NASA http://ift.tt/1O4Jeup

2015年9月27日 星期日

Mars News: "Major Science Finding" To Be Announced Monday

By now, many of you have heard about some big announcement NASA is about to make about Mars. The news is embargoed until the press conference Monday (which you can watch live at 11:30 EDT), but of course speculation is rampant, especially since the press release says it’s a “major science finding”.

In the email NASA sent out, the names of some panelists were given: Alfred McEwen, Lujendra Ojha, and Mary Beth Wilhelm. McEwen is the Principal Investigator for the wonderful HiRISE camera on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. Ojha studies recurrent features on Mars that look very much like they were carved from water, like gullies down the sides of craters. Wilhelm studies many things, including the habitability of ancient Martian terrain.

As many people have pointed out on social media, at a European planetary science conference on Monday, McEwen and Ojha are presenting results of a study showing that seepage in crater walls appears to be seasonal, and most likely due to water. Not only that, but Ojha and Wilhelm are presenting results that show the presence of salts in crater wall gullies, too, implying strongly they are due to water leakage.

I’m posting this now to hopefully extinguish rampant speculation (what I write here is based on evidence, so call it mild speculation). I assume these new results will be a major part of the news conference, but there might be more as well.

I also wanted to give a little bit of background on these gullies, since they’re pretty cool. As far back as 2007, NASA announced they might be from water, though a year later a study was released indicating many might be better explained as dry grains flowing downhill. In 2010 more gullies popped up that looked like they could be from liquid flowing, but the evidence was still a bit circumstantial. We know water once flowed on Mars, a long time ago, and there’s plenty of evidence for ancient standing lakes and even oceans. Also, even now there’s lots of water ice just below the surface across a wide range of latitudes, too.

Salty water melts at lower temperatures than fresh water, so if that’s what lurks behind crater walls, then in the spring sunlight can warm the ground and cause seepage. The results being presented at the European conference question the idea of water ice under the surface being the cause, and suggest it may be from deliquescence; absorption from the atmosphere in the ground until the water can break through. That seems unlikely, but we’ll get more info during the press conference.

Mind you, as of right now we have never seen any evidence for the presence of extant liquid water on Mars. Even the temporary existence of water in a liquid state is scientifically interesting, even exciting. However, it’s also been found that a type of chemical called perchlorates is widespread in Martian soil, which makes the hunt for life a bit more of a problem. I expect that will come up in the press conference as well.

I’ll be listening in and will write up the news as soon as I can. Stay Tuned.

In the meantime, because why not, here’s my Crash Course Astronomy episode on Mars. Enjoy!



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Hey, I Can See My House From Here

I love posting pictures of the Earth from space. It’s fun to see things from a height, and get an overview of our planet. Volcanoes, lakes, deserts, cyanobacterial blooms … sometimes you need to take a step back (well, up) to see things for how they are.

But then you get a picture of some place you recognize, and suddenly it becomes personal.

To wit: On April 29 an astronaut on the International Space Station took a picture of me.

Can you see me? I’m in there. This photo shows a healthy chunk of west-central Colorado, where the midwestern plains meet the Rocky Mountains (north is more or less to the right). The big city on the left is Denver, and to the right, sitting right on the border between flat and steep, is Boulder. There’s a road extending almost straight down from Boulder (or in real directions, to the northeast) called 119, or Diagonal Highway. The city at the bottom is Longmont, and in between the two is the small town of Niwot. The Earth Observatory Picture of the Day, where I got this photo, also has an annotated map.

I’ve ridden my bike all through that part of this picture, and it’s a bit surreal to see it this way. The reservoir, smaller lakes, farmland … I’ve seen a lot of it from eye height, but not 400 kilometer high!

People think Denver is in the mountains, but it’s really quite a bit into the plains. Boulder sits right where the mountains pop up, which is one of many reasons it’s such an amazing place to live. The view is spectacular.

This picture lays it out so well! And I checked my calendar: On April 29 I was at home, which means I’m in this picture. So are roughly 3 million other people; most of the population of Colorado is in this picture.

Maybe you are too. Well, the odds are low unless you live near me. But a lot of the planet has been photographed this way, and those pictures are online. Go take a look! Maybe you can find a shot of your hometown.

And next time the space station is overhead, maybe they’re taking another one. Don’t forget to wave!



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2015年9月26日 星期六

M31 versus M33


Separated by about 14 degrees (28 Full Moons) in planet Earth's sky, spiral galaxies M31 at left, and M33 are both large members of the Local Group, along with our own Milky Way galaxy. This narrow- and wide-angle, multi-camera composite finds details of spiral structure in both, while the massive neighboring galaxies seem to be balanced in starry fields either side of bright Mirach, beta star in the constellation Andromeda. Mirach is just 200 light-years from the Sun. But M31, the Andromeda Galaxy, is really 2.5 million light-years distant and M33, the Triangulum Galaxy, is also about 3 million light years away. Although they look far apart, M31 and M33 are engaged in a gravitational struggle. In fact, radio astronomers have found indications of a bridge of neutral hydrogen gas that could connect the two, evidence of a closer encounter in the past. Based on measurements, gravitational simulations currently predict that the Milky Way, M31, and M33 will all undergo mutual close encounters and potentially mergers, billions of years in the future. via NASA http://ift.tt/1KEHRM9

Noel Hinners is Now a True Martian

Hinners Point Above Floor of Marathon Valley on Mars "The summit takes its informal name as a tribute to Noel Hinners (1935-2014). For NASA's Apollo program, Hinners played important roles in selection of landing sites on the moon and scientific...

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Crash Course Astronomy: Black Holes

OK, so here’s the thing about black holes: They’re weird.

Well, that’s not the only thing about black holes. And that’s the problem. There’s a lot to know about black holes, and it goes from simple to brain-melty pretty quickly. I had big plans for the Crash Course Astronomy episode about black holes, covering so many of the cool things about them.

After writing more than 3,000 words on them—the equivalent of about 25 minutes of footage—I realized I had a problem. A lot of stuff had to go. So I went through and cut this, excised that. What was left is, I hope, a pretty good primer on black holes, with the info you need to understand the basics.

The good news? Most of the stuff I cut will show up in later episodes. I’m pretty good about recycling electrons. If you’re impatient and want to know more about them now, then try these articles:

Oh, one more thing: In the video, at about the 8:30 mark, I talk about the perception of time near an object with gravity, and how it slows down. I say that someone near a black hole perceives time as moving more slowly than someone far away does. I should have phrased that differently; both people observe time to flow normally. To them. But they see each other's time flow rate change. Someone far away from the black hole sees the time flowing more slowly for the person near the black hole while the person close to the black hole sees the person's time far away flow more quickly. Time is relative; grammar isn't. I should've been more clear.



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2015年9月25日 星期五

Pluto's Snakeskin Terrain


A mountainous region informally known as Tartarus Dorsa sprawls some 530 kilometers (330 miles) across this Plutonian landscape. Recently downloaded from New Horizons, it combines blue, red, and infrared image data in an extended color view captured near the spacecraft's close approach to Pluto on July 14. Shadows near the terminator, the line between Pluto's dim day and night, emphasize a rough, scaly texture. The stunning image resolves details on the distant world about 1.3 kilometers (0.8 miles) across. Refering to a part of Hades in ancient Greek mythology, Tartarus Dorsa borders Tombaugh Regio to the east. via NASA http://ift.tt/1KFBkBI

NASA Prepares For Possible Government Shutdown

NASA Initial Government Shutdown Planning "The Administration continues to strongly believe that a lapse in funding should not occur. There is enough time for Congress to prevent a lapse in appropriations, and the Administration is willing to work with Congress...

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NASA Selects Science Education Partners for STEM Agreements

NASA has selected 27 organizations from across the United States to begin negotiations for cooperative agreement awards totaling $42 million to implement a new strategic approach to more effectively engage learners of all ages on NASA science education programs and activities.

September 25, 2015
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The solar system at 1 kilometer per pixel: Can you identify these worlds?

A look at the surfaces of 18 worlds in our solar system, all at the same scale.

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Mars Needs Money

NASA Administrator Bolden's latest plea for the budget needed for the real #JourneyToMars #TheMartian #NASA http://pic.twitter.com/3CsUE4DUUu— NASA Watch (@NASAWatch) September 25, 2015 @DavidWeaver @WhiteHouse Your chart is inaccurate. See revised pic. Nowhere near the $$ needed #emptypromise #NASA http://pic.twitter.com/BeYIZ1gtgw—...

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Buying/Selling ULA: The Four Amigos Continue To Squabble

Aerojet weighs higher offer for Lockheed-Boeing venture - sources, Reuters "Aerojet Rocketdyne Holdings Inc is considering raising its $2 billion offer for United Launch Alliance, a rocket launch venture of Boeing Co and Lockheed Martin Corp, but faces big hurdles...

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The Nile at Night


NASA astronaut Scott Kelly, recently past the halfway mark of his one-year mission to the International Space Station, photographed the Nile River during a nighttime flyover on Sept. 22, 2015. Kelly (@StationCDRKelly) wrote, "Day 179. The #Nile at night is a beautiful sight for these sore eyes. Good night from @space_station! #YearInSpace." via NASA http://ift.tt/1FlJwu7

Pluto. Oh My, Pluto.

I was going to write a big flowery introduction to preface this new image of Pluto from the New Horizons spacecraft, but screw that. 

Just look at it. Seriously. Look.

That ridiculously gorgeous picture is actually a combination of three images shot by New Horizons, one each using a blue, red, and near-infrared filter. So this isn’t what you’d see with your own eyes if you flew past Pluto (and weren’t dead from hypothermic anoxia), but it’s still simply amazing. By the way, this is a very, very ensmallened version of the picture; click it to get a 2000 x 2000 pixel version.

Or, you could grab the 8000 x 8000 pixel shot. Y'know. If you want.

As usual, Emily Lakdawalla does a great job explaining all this. In a nutshell, it was taken by the Multi-spectral Visible Imaging Camera. It has several detectors on it, three of which are dedicated to seeing blue, red, and infrared. They use what’s called the “pushbroom” technique to take images, basically sweeping across an object like a scanner does when you scan a document. It’s a commonly used technique for spacecraft, so you don’t have to build a huge detector.

What can you say about this shot, though? Pluto is gorgeous! You can see the heart-shaped Sputnik Planum feature in the middle, and some terrain on the left that’s highly reflective in infrared (colored red in the photo). Those highlands are pocked with craters, in contrast to Sputnik, which is smooth — that’s an indicator of relative age; smooth terrain has probably been resurfaced, and so it’s younger.

I’m pretty interested in the higher surface features you can see that define the left side of the heart. What could cause such tall mountains so close to lower terrain? 

And check out this close up of a region near the leftmost part of the heart:

Whoa. Mountains pop up higher than the nitrogen ice plain below… which isn’t as smooth as I first thought. It appears almost corrugated, like it’s stippled with dunes. There’s no word yet on what’s actually causing that; the ice might be sublimating (turning directly into a gas) which could cause a rippling effect. 

Again, Emily has more close-ups and discussion, care of Alex Parker, the astronomer who created this jaw-dropping image. NASA has a few more detailed shots as well, including the highest-resolution map ever made of the surface of Pluto.

Remember, too, that new raw images are released every week on the New Horizons website. You should check there to see what’s hot off the interplanetary presses; it’ll take the better part of a year to get all the data back from the spacecraft. These marvels are just the beginning. It’s a whole new world out there on the edge of the main solar system. A lot more wonder awaits.



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SpaceX Static Fire of Upgraded Falcon 9

SpaceX Upgraded Falcon 9 First-Stage Static Fire, SpaceRef Business "SpaceX has released the following video of the first static fire test of the upgraded Falcon 9's first stage with densified propellant which occurred on September 21."...

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ISS Daily Summary Report – 09/24/15

Twins Study Influenza Vaccine and Sample Collection:  Kelly self-administered an influenza vaccine and collected Flight Day 180 blood and urine samples today in support of the Twins Study.  This investigation is an integrated compilation of ten different studies led by multiple investigators.  The studies take advantage of a unique opportunity to look at the effects of space travel on identical twins, with one of them experiencing space travel for a year while the other remains earth-bound for that same year.  The study looks at changes in the human body in the fields of genetics, psychology, physiology, microbiology, and immunology.   Cognition:  Yui and Lindgren performed their Flight Day 65 sessions of the Cognition experiment today. Individualized Real-Time Neurocognitive Assessment Toolkit for Space Flight Fatigue (Cognition) is a battery of tests that measure how spaceflight-related physical changes, such as microgravity and lack of sleep, can affect cognitive performance. Cognition includes ten brief computerized tests that cover a wide range of cognitive functions, and provides immediate feedback on current and past test results. The software allows for real-time measurement of cognitive performance while in space.   Journals:  Kelly completed a Journal activity today. Journals obtains information on behavioral and human issues that are relevant to the design of equipment and procedures and sustained human performance during extended-duration missions. Study results provide information to help prepare for future missions to low-Earth orbit and beyond.   Cardio Ox:  Kelly and Lindgren, with assistance from Yui, collected blood pressure and ultrasound measurements of their carotid and brachial arteries.  The objective of Cardio Ox is to determine whether biological markers of oxidative and inflammatory stress are elevated during and after space flight and whether this results in an increased, long-term risk of atherosclerosis in astronauts. Twelve crewmembers will provide blood and urine samples to assess biomarkers before launch, 15 and 60 days after launch, 15 days before returning to Earth, and within days after landing. Ultrasound scans are obtained at the same time points and through 5 years after landing.   Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) Airlock (JEMAL) Pressurization and Leak Check:  In preparation for Lindgren’s removal of the JEM Small Satellite Orbital Deployer (JSSOD) from the JEMAL Slide Table tomorrow, today Yui pressurized the JEMAL and performed a leak check.   Sound Level Measurements in the Mouse Habitat Unit (MHU):  Yui installed the MHU Interface Unit in the Cell Biology Experiment Facility (CBEF) and then took sound level measurements inside the Interface Unit with a sound level meter.  These measurements will provide an indication of the sound levels that mice in the MHU will be exposed to during JAXA’s Mouse Epigenetics experiment, which will be performed after the mice arrive on a visiting vehicle in the future. Galley Rack Secure:  Today, Lindgren installed a Knee Brace Assembly at the NOD1P4 location in order to permanently secure the Galley Rack.  Due to structural interference, the Galley Rack was temporarily secured last week on September 15th.  Hardware needed for Galley Rack activation is scheduled to arrive on a later flight. Once in operation, the Galley Rack will provide ISS Crews with a consolidated location for a potable water dispenser, two freezers, two food warmers, and a 16 port Ethernet switch.   United States On-orbit Segment (USOS) Hatch Seal Inspections:  Kelly cleaned and inspected USOS Hatch Seals, Hatch Plate Sealing Surfaces, and Hatch Handle Mechanisms.  Hatches targeted for today’s inspection included the Airlock, Node 3 (Nadir, Forward, Starboard) JLP, JPM (Starboard, Zenith), and PMM.   Robot Micro Conical Tool (RMCT) Troubleshooting:  Last night, the Robotics Ground Controllers powered up the Mobile Servicing System (MSS) and Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator (SPDM) to perform RMCT checkouts.  These operations, which will continue later this evening, are being performed to help determine if the RMCT1 torque anomaly seen earlier this year is in any way related to it being stowed on SPDM Tool Holder Assembly (THA)-1.   Today’s Planned Activities All activities were completed unless otherwise noted. HRF – Urine Samples Collection TWIN – Urine Samples Collection Biochemical Urine Test HRF – Insertion of Samples in MELFI URISIS Hardware Restow HRF – Blood Samples Collection HRF – Assistance during Blood Samples Collection HRF – Refrigerated Centrifuge Config Soyuz 718 Samsung Tablet Charge Kazbek Fit Check (Soyuz 717) JEMAL – Pressurization HRF – Closeout Ops after Blood Samples Collection Water Recovery System (WRS): WPA Waste Water Tank Offload into CWC (start) HRF – Insertion of Samples in MELFI Soyuz 717 Samsung Tablet Charge ISS Crew and SSIPC Conference On Mcc Go Brine Transfer from a USOS EDV into Rodnik БВ1 Water Tank of Progress 428 JEMAL – Leak Check after Pressurization UDOD. Experiment Session with DYKHANIE-1 and SPRUT-2 Kits. USND2 – Hardware Activation Water Recovery System (WRS): WPA Waste Water Tank Offload into CWC Crew Medical Officer (CMO) Computer Based Training (CBT) In Flight Maintenance (IFM) Galley Rack Securing CARDOX – Prep Ops and Hardware Setup CARDOX – Ultrasound Scanning UDOD. Photography during Experiment Session СОЖ Maitnenance CARDOX – Ultrasound Scanning (Assistance) HMS – Food  Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ) CARDOX – Measurements Regenerative Environmental Control and Life Support System (RGN) WSTA Fill CARDOX – Post-Measurement Operations XF305 Camcorder Setup HRF – Urine Samples Collection Cell Biology Experiment Facility (CBEF). Mouse Habitat Unit (MHU) Installation Crew Prep for PAO HRF – Insertion of Samples in MELFI CBEF – Sound Level Measurement Б-Ц TV. One-year Crew PAO CARDOX – Prep Ops and Hardware Setup CARDOX – Ultrasound Scanning CBEF – Micro-G Door Close СКПФ1 and СКПФ2 Dust Filters Changeout (ФГБ1ПГО_4_419_1, bag 428-25 (00067328R). Update IMS) and MRM1 Gas Liquid Heat Exchanger (ГЖТ) Cleaning [РТ]-50-1М No. 6 and 8 (А206, А208) R&R Prep – Search for Hardware, Radiogram Review. CARDOX – Measurements CBEF – Micro-G Door Open AC Inverter Deploy to Lab UOP5 CBEF – Sound Level Measurement CBEF – Micro-G Door Close Laptop Prep and [ACH-K] and Progress 428 (DC1) Tests Setup ИП-1 Sensors Installation Monitoring VELIKOE NACHALO (GREAT START). Experiment Prep VELIKOE NACHALO (GREAT START). Video Footage of the Experiment Ops JRNL – Journal Entry […]

September 25, 2015 at 12:49AM
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LightSail Gets Backup Burn Wire for 2016 Mission

LightSail's burn wire, the mission-critical component responsible for releasing the spacecraft's solar panels, will get a backup ahead of next year's solar sailing mission.

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2015年9月24日 星期四

LDN 988 and Friends


Stars are forming in dark, dusty molecular cloud LDN 988. Seen near picture center some 2,000 light-years distant, LDN 988 and other nearby dark nebulae were cataloged by Beverly T. Lynds in 1962 using Palomar Observatory Sky Survey plates. Narrowband and near-infrared explorations of the dark nebula reveal energetic shocks and outflows light-years across associated with dozens of newborn stars. But in this sharp optical telescopic view, the irregular outlines of LDN 988 and friends look like dancing stick figures eclipsing the rich starfields of the constellation Cygnus. From dark sky sites the region can be identified by eye alone. It's part of the Great Rift of dark nebulae along the plane of the Milky Way galaxy known as the Northern Coalsack. via NASA http://ift.tt/1L7qNVt

More Vaporware From The Space Advocate Community

Keith's note: In April 2015 the Planetary Society held an invitation-only "Humans Orbiting Mars" workshop wherein they unveiled their idea for a mission to Mars. At a quick press conference after the event (no media were allowed to attend...

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NASA Will Reveal a "Major Science Finding" About Mars on Monday

NASA to Announce Mars Mystery Solved "**Nature Geoscience has Embargoed Details until 8 a.m. PDT/11 a.m. EDT Sept. 28)** NASA will detail a major science finding from the agency's ongoing exploration of Mars during a news briefing at 8:30 a.m....

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Lose yourself in this high-resolution portrait of Pluto

Enlarge this image to its full 8000-pixel-square glory and lose yourself in it.

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NASA to Announce Mars Mystery Solved

NASA will detail a major science finding from the agency’s ongoing exploration of Mars during a news briefing at 11:30 a.m. EDT on Monday, Sept. 28 at the James Webb Auditorium at NASA Headquarters in Washington. The event will be broadcast live on NASA Television and the agency's website.

September 24, 2015
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JSC PAO Once Decided You Could Not See This Photo

@StationCDRKelly @ISS_Research My how times change. My pic taking own blood banned frm public release by NASA 2007. http://pic.twitter.com/CFWJ7IWWfJ— Clayton C. Anderson (@Astro_Clay) September 24, 2015 @Astro_Clay Oddly NASA posted this pic of @AstroDocScott taking blood from John Glenn...

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Can Congress Authorize Mining On Asteroids?

Is Space Mining Legal?, Popular Science "In May, the House of Representatives passed a bill that would give asteroid mining companies property rights to the minerals they extract from space. Called the Space Act of 2015, the bill now awaits...

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A New Way To Do Mission Outreach

Kickstarter Success for Xtronaut Game Supports Space-Science Outreach Programs "Dante Lauretta, Leader of the NASA OSIRIS-REx asteroid sample return mission and University of Arizona Professor, combined his expertise in space mission planning and technology with his passion for strategy gaming...

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Veil Nebula Supernova Remnant


NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has unveiled in stunning detail a small section of the Veil Nebula - expanding remains of a massive star that exploded about 8,000 years ago. via NASA http://ift.tt/1JrGW0t

Mega Hemorrhaging Total Lunar Eclipse Sept 27-28, 2015

There will be a spectacular total lunar eclipse on the night of Sept. 27-28, 2015, a newly dubbed Mega Hemorrhaging Eclipse. Here is info on what lunar eclipses are and how to observe the eclipse.

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Ben Carson: Evolution Is Satanic and the Big Bang Is a Fairy Tale

At one point in time, GOP presidential candidate Ben Carson may have been best known as an excellent, even groundbreaking, neurosurgeon. In recent years, though, he’s done everything he can to throw that reputation away.

It won’t surprise regular readers to know I disagree with him on, well, almost everything. But recently he’s starting to get more heat about his religious views. He’s an outspoken creationist.

This actually goes way back. In 2006 he clearly stated his anti-evolutionary views and has repeated these claims many times since. In 2012 there was controversy over this when he was asked to give the commencement address at Emory University. In 2004 he said that people who accept evolution “dismiss ethics,” a comment he later backed down on a very tiny little bit (later saying they “might have more difficulty deriving where their ethics come from”).

I’d heard about all this before, but an article at BuzzFeed has something I hadn’t heard: In 2012, in a speech at an event called “Celebration of Creation,” he said that Darwin came up with evolutionary theory because the devil made him do it.

I mean that literally. He said, “I personally believe that this theory that Darwin came up with was something that was encouraged by the adversary.” The Adversary is a nickname for the devil; it’s the actual translation of the word “Satan.” So there’s that.

He also dismissed the Big Bang, calling it a “fairy tale.” The irony of this is palpable. When recently called on this claim, he dug in, saying (about people who think the Big Bang is true), “Here’s the key, I then say to them look, ‘I’m not gonna criticize you, you have a lot more faith then I have.’ I couldn’t, I don’t have enough faith to believe that.”

Wow. Where to start?

OK, how about this: The Big Bang is not something you believe in. It’s a scientific model, supported by a truly vast amount of evidence. It doesn’t take faith, it takes science (and, despite Carson’s claims, science is not faith-based).

Creationists who dismiss the Big Bang usually do so because they think the Earth is young, 6,000–10,000 years old. This belief is, to put it simply, wrong. We know the Earth is more than 4.5 billion years old, give or take a few million years. The evidence for this is overwhelming.

We also know the Universe itself is old; a huge number of independent lines of evidence make this clear. It doesn’t take faith to think the Big Bang is true, it takes a profound dismissal of all of science to think it isn’t.

Which brings us to evolution. Young Earth Creationists dismiss this as well due to the age issues, as well as others (for example, the Bible stating that God created Adam fully formed and in his image).

But evolution is a fact. Like the Big Bang, the evidence for it is overwhelming (it’s even been observed).

It bothers me greatly when a presidential candidate is so cavalier in dismissing facts. That’s a route we’ve been down before, and it leads to Very Bad Things.

As for Carson’s statement on ethics, well, humans were ethical long before monotheism came around. His claim that people who accept evolution is true might have difficulty with ethics is profoundly insulting to scientists.

The almost unutterable irony here is how Carson dismisses this all, talking about “high-faluting” scientists. But he was a neurosurgeon. His entire career owes its existence to science, yet he tosses out the men and women over the past few centuries whose expertise allowed him to benefit so greatly from his practice.

I know a lot of the Republican base is very religious, and they have every right to be. But fundamentalism is dangerous; it promotes clearly erroneous claims while simultaneously encouraging people to legislate those beliefs. We’ve seen what happens there; fittingly enough due to the antics of Bobby Jindal, another GOP presidential candidate. It shortchanges our children out of an education they’ll need to survive in our science- and technology-based society.

I also know that the vast majority of creationists have very basic misunderstandings about evolution, the Big Bang, and science in general; I addressed this in depth when I wrote my article “Answers for Creationists.” I tried very hard to be polite in that post, given I was dealing on a personal level with people’s personal beliefs.

I take a different stance when it’s a politician who espouses these views, especially when he’s running for the highest office in America. If someone wants to run this country, then he better show that he has a solid grasp on reality. Dismissing and actively denigrating strongly understood science—whether it’s astronomy, biology, or climatology—is at the very least cause to dump him.



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Towards a Jupiter Weather Forecast

Trying to keep track of the ever-changing face of Jupiter is a pretty big challenge—its a dynamic world that can fascinate and surprise every time we turn our telescopes towards it.

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ISS Daily Summary Report – 09/23/15

Ocular Health Ocular and Cardiac Ultrasounds:  Yui and Lindgren performed ocular and cardiac ultrasounds today as part of their Flight Day 60 Ocular Health testing.   The ultrasound images will be used to identify changes in globe morphology and document optic nerve sheath diameter, optic nerve sheath tortuosity, globe axial measurements, and choroidal engorgement. The Ocular Health protocol calls for a systematic gathering of physiological data to characterize the risk of microgravity-induced visual impairment/intracranial pressure in ISS crewmembers. Researchers believe that the measurement of visual, vascular and central nervous system changes over the course of this experiment and during the subsequent post-flight recovery will assist in the development of countermeasures, clinical monitoring strategies, and clinical practice guidelines.   Sprint Ultrasound:  Kelly performed his Flight Day 180 thigh and calf ultrasound scans today with assistance from Yui and guidance from the Sprint ground team.  Ultrasound scans are used to evaluate spaceflight-induced changes in the muscle volume. The Sprint investigation evaluates the use of high intensity, low volume exercise training to minimize loss of muscle, bone, and cardiovascular function in ISS crewmembers during long-duration missions. Upon completion of this study, investigators expect to provide an integrated resistance and aerobic exercise training protocol capable of maintaining muscle, bone and cardiovascular health while reducing total exercise time over the course of a long-duration space flight. This will provide valuable information in support of the long term goal of protecting human fitness for even longer space exploration missions.   Journals:  Kelly performed his third of three weekly Journal activities today. Journals obtains information on behavioral and human issues that are relevant to the design of equipment and procedures and sustained human performance during extended-duration missions. Study results provide information to help prepare for future missions to low-Earth orbit and beyond.   H-II Transfer Vehicle (HTV) Cargo Transfer Status:  The crew continued working on HTV5 cargo transfer operations today, and are nearly complete with loading the vehicle.  HTV hatch closure is scheduled for Sunday, with unberth on Monday.   Extra Vehicular Activity (EVA) Preparations:  In support of the ISS Upgrades EVA scheduled for late October, Yui prepared a new Simplified Aid For EVA Rescue (SAFER) for use and an old unit for return.  The new SAFER will be checked out in the coming weeks.  He also inspected Load Alleviating Strap on Safety Tethers, Waist Tethers and soft strap on D-Ring Extenders.  In addition, Lindgren lubricated EVA Mobility Unit (EMU) suits 3010 and 3003 O2 actuator slider bars and evaluated O2 actuator forces.  During the course of this activity, he noted a gouge to a Service and Cooling Umbilical (SCU) O-ring.  He provided imagery of the gouge which is being evaluated by engineering teams.   Robotics Micro-Conical Tool (RMCT) Swap:  Tonight robotics ground controllers will begin two days of activities to troubleshoot the torque anomaly previously seen with RMCT1, and to rule out the SPDM’s Tool Holster Assembly (THA) Micro-Conical Fitting (MCF) as the potential root cause.  This involves using the Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator (SPDM) to pick up RMCT1 with Arm2 and RMCT2 with Arm1.   Each RMCT will then be used to grasp the other THA MCF before being stowed in its original location.   Conjunction with Object # 81934 Status:  After evaluating tracking data overnight, ground teams determined that the conjunction with Object #81934 was of low concern and discontinued planning for a Pre-Determined Debris Avoidance Maneuver (PDAM).     Today’s Planned Activities All activities are on schedule unless otherwise noted. TWIN – Urine Samples Collection HRF – Insertion of Samples in MELFI Video Camera Assembly 1 (VCA1) Setup OTKLIK. Hardware Monitoring Life on the Station Photo/Video Ops MAGVEC – MagVector Configuration VIRU. Battery Charge USND2 – Hardware Activation Ocular Health (ОН) – Ultrasound Scan Prep СОЖ Maintenance Ocular Health (ОН) – Ultrasound Scan Ocular Health (ОН) – Data Export BAR. Experiment Session Waste and Hygiene Compartment (WHC) Full Fill OASIS – Trash Transfer to HTV-5 Ocular Health (ОН) – Ultrasound Post Exam Configuration and Setup of Two New XF305 Camcorders HTV Cargo Transfer Operations SPRINT – Ultrasound Scan SPRINT – Assistance during the Experiment HTV – Cargo Transfer Conference EVA – O2 Actuator Lube EVA – Inspection of Safety and Waist Tethers and D-ring Extenders for Structural Integrity Post-Exercise Hygiene Ops TWIN – Urine Samples Collection OH – Cardiac Scan and Blood Pressure Measurement HRF – Insertion of Samples in MELFI VELIKOE NACHALO (GREAT START). Video Scenario Review Post-Exercise Hygiene Ops OH – Assistance during the Experiment HMS – Food Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ) TWIN – Urine Samples Collection URAGAN. Earth Imagery VIZIR. Experiment Session Using СКП-И Hardware HRF – Insertion of Samples in MELFI ARED – Cylinder Flywheel Evacuation OH – Cardiac Scan and Blood Pressure Measurement OH – Assistance during the Experiment Water Transfer from Progress 428 (DC1) БВ1 Water Tank into EDV and БВ1 Water Tank Shell Compression EVA – SAFER Installation and Checkout URISIS Hardware Setup Search for Lost Adjustable Length Tethers Post-Exercise Hygiene Ops SSC2 Shell Swap VIRU. Software Update. Tagup with specialists VIRU. Hardware Setup for Relaksatsiya Experiment VZAIMODEISTVIYE-2. Experiment Session Life on the Station Photo/Video Ops TWIN – Urine Samples Collection VIRU. Hardware Settings Adjustment for Relaksatsiya Experiment HRF – Insertion of Samples in MELFI VIRU. Observation of the Indian Ocean as part of Relaksatsiya Experiment TWIN – Blood Samples Collection Prep JRNL – Journal Entry VIRU. Closeout Ops and Hardware Teardown after the Relaksatsiya Experiment TV signal Transmission Test from the SM to Orion Ground Site 21 (with quality evaluation) and VHF1 Test from SM Ground Site 21 (with quality evaluation) To = 18.36 USND2 – Hardware Deactivation CONTENT. Experiment Session VIRU. Filling in VIRU Registration Sheet and Downlink Progress 428 (DC1) БВ1 Water Tank Shell Compression – Closeout Ops Preparation of reports for Roscosmos website ECON-M. Observation and Photography Video Footage of Greetings   Completed Task List Items 44S USOS unpack   Ground Activities All activities are on schedule unless otherwise noted. Battery Capacity Test for Battery Set 3A2 RMCT Swap   Three-Day Look Ahead: Thursday, 09/24:  Cardio […]

September 24, 2015 at 12:48AM
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2015年9月23日 星期三

Antarctic Analemma


Does the Sun return to the same spot on the sky every day? No. A better and more visual answer to that question is an analemma, a composite image taken from the same spot at the same time over the course of a year. The featured weekly analemma was taken despite cold temperatures and high winds near the Concordia Station in Antarctica. The position of the Sun at 4 pm was captured on multiple days in the digital composite image, believed to be the first analemma constructed from Antarctica. The reason the image only shows the Sun from September to March is because the Sun was below the horizon for much of the rest of the year. In fact, today being an equinox, the Sun rises today at the South Pole after a six month absence and won't set again until the next equinox in March, baring large atmospheric refraction effects. Conversely, today the Sun sets at the North Pole after half a year of continuous daylight. For all of the Earth in between, though, the equinox means that today will have a nighttime and daytime that are both 12 hours long. via NASA http://ift.tt/1iLrXtz

Supersonic Shock Waves of a T-38C Aircraft


This schlieren image of a T-38C aircraft was captured using the patent-pending BOSCO technique and then processed with NASA-developed code to reveal shock wave structures. Researchers at Armstrong and NASA’s Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, California, have developed new schlieren techniques based on modern image processing methods. via NASA http://ift.tt/1KPgwer

Watch the Lunar Eclipse on Sept. 27–28!

On Sept. 27 and 28, the Moon will enter Earth’s shadow, creating a total lunar eclipse. These only happen a couple of times a year, and are a great event to watch.

First, the quick stuff you need: The Moon begins to enter the dark part of Earth’s shadow starting at 01:07 UTC on Sunday night/Monday morning. To be clear, for folks in the U.S. that’s Sunday night, starting at 9:07 p.m. Eastern time; for most of the country the Moon will be low to the eastern horizon. At that time you’ll start to see a dark “bite” taken out of the Moon on the part of it nearest the horizon (the lower left, again for Americans).

It’ll take just over an hour for the Moon to pass fully into the shadow, and the last sliver of it will slip into darkness at 02:11 UTC (10:11 Eastern). It’ll stay dark for more than an hour, and then start to be illuminated once again at 03:23 UTC (11:23 Eastern). “Last contact,” when it is out of Earth’s shadow, occurs at 04:27 UTC (00:27 Eastern, after midnight).

People in the western U.S. (west of Colorado) will see the Moon already in eclipse when it rises. Here’s a map to show if you’ll be able to view the eclipse:

“U1” is when the Moon begins to enter the dark part of the shadow (the umbra), so everyone east of that spot in the U.S. will see the whole eclipse. Everyone west of the line marked “U4” (when the last part of the Moon leaves the shadow) will miss the event. Sorry. We live on an opaque spinning planet, so someone always misses out. Anyway, the diagram below shows the Moon's path through the Earth's shadow. 

You don’t need any special equipment to see this; just go outside and look at the Moon. (This is different than a solar eclipse, where you need eye protection from the bright Sun.) Having said that, I’ve always found binoculars to be best aid to viewing. The Moon can take on an odd three-dimensional appearance when you use binoculars during an eclipse, and it’s pretty cool to see. A telescope is great, too, if you have access to one. If there’s a local astronomy club or observatory near you, see if they’re running a star party for it.

I’ve written before about exactly how and why we get lunar eclipses; the dance of the Moon, Earth, and Sun has to play out just right for the Moon to move through Earth’s shadow in the sky. Go there to get details, but there’s one thing I want to emphasize.

When the Moon is fully eclipsed it usually turns red, though sometimes the effect is more subtle than other times. This is because from the Moon’s point of view the Earth is blocking the Sun, and sunlight gets filtered through the thin layer of Earth’s atmosphere, reddening it. If you were standing on the Moon, it’s like you’re seeing every sunrise and sunset on Earth all at once!

How about that?

You can read more about the eclipse at the Time and Date site, EarthSky (which separately lists the timing for the eclipse in different U.S. local time zones), and Wikipedia. Also, the Virtual Observatory will be running a live viewing of the event online, in case your weather isn’t cooperative. So will my friend Adam Block at the Mt. Lemmon SkyCenter.

Also, I just so happen to have done an entire episode of Crash Course Astronomy on eclipses. Watch!

I’ll note that this eclipse happens very close to when the Moon is at perigee, the part of its elliptical orbit when it’s closest to Earth. Its average distance from Earth (center to center) is about 384,000 kilometers, and during the eclipse it’ll be only 356,900 km distant, 7 percent closer than average. That means it’ll look 7 percent wider than average … but I doubt you’ll notice. If you took a picture when it’s at apogee (farthest from Earth) on Sept. 14—when it’s 406,500 km away—and then compared it with a picture taken on Sept. 28 you’d definitely see the difference! But just going out and looking during the eclipse you’re unlikely to be able to tell.

Of course, the Moon will be rising for many people in the U.S. at the start of the eclipse, so the Moon may look huge due to the well-known Moon Illusion. But don’t be fooled! A lot of websites will no doubt be hyping up the “Supermoon” (a full Moon at or near perigee), but don’t be taken in by them. The difference in size isn’t all that much.

Not to pooh-pooh any of this! Lunar eclipses are fun; they play out relatively slowly, so you can take a look, go inside for a few minutes, then go back outside to see more of the Moon gone. It’s a great opportunity to try your photography skills, and because you don’t need any equipment, it’s nice to get friends and family together outside to take a peek.

I strongly recommend marking your calendar. The next total lunar eclipse won’t happen until January 2018! So watch this one if you can. 



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Space Commerce Opportunities For All - Or Just Some?

Commercial Spaceflight Federation Welcomes New Members and Leadership "The Commercial Spaceflight Federation welcomed several new member companies at its Executive Board meeting this week, expanding its membership to more than 60 companies. ... Frank DiBello, President and CEO of Space...

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ISS Daily Summary Report – 09/22/15

Ocular Health:  Lindgren and Yui continued with their Flight Day 60 Ocular Health activities this morning by performing their Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT), each acting as the Crew Medical Officer (CMO) for the other.  Later in the day, the crew performed fundoscopy, again taking turns as the CMO.  OCT is used to measure retinal thickness, volume, and retinal nerve fiber layer, and the fundoscope is used to obtain images of the retinal surface.  The Ocular Health protocol calls for a systematic gathering of physiological data to characterize the risk of microgravity-induced visual impairment/intracranial pressure in ISS crewmembers. Researchers believe that the measurement of visual, vascular and central nervous system changes over the course of this experiment and during the subsequent post-flight recovery will assist in the development of countermeasures, clinical monitoring strategies, and clinical practice guidelines.   Cognition:  Kelly performed his Flight Day 180 session of the Cognition experiment. Individualized Real-Time Neurocognitive Assessment Toolkit for Space Flight Fatigue (Cognition) is a battery of tests that measure how spaceflight-related physical changes, such as microgravity and lack of sleep, can affect cognitive performance. Cognition includes ten brief computerized tests that cover a wide range of cognitive functions, and provides immediate feedback on current and past test results. The software allows for real-time measurement of cognitive performance while in space.   Twins Study:  Kelly collected Flight Day 180 physical samples today in support of the Twins Study.  This investigation is an integrated compilation of ten different studies led by multiple investigators.  The studies take advantage of a unique opportunity to look at the effects of space travel on identical twins, with one of them experiencing space travel for a year while the other remains earth-bound for that same year.  The study looks at changes in the human body in the fields of genetics, psychology, physiology, microbiology, and immunology.   HTV Cargo Transfer Status:  Yui and Lindgren continued working on HTV-5 Cargo transfer operations today. Cargo specialist estimate the crew will need approximately 1 hour to complete the HTV-5 cargo operations.   44 Soyuz (44S) Emergency Descent Drill:  Kelly, Volkov, and Kornienko participated in an emergency decent drill this morning. This training session focused on off-nominal procedures that would be used in the event the crew needed to egress the ISS and perform an emergency descent.   Sound Level Meter (SLM) Ops:  Lindgren obtained acoustic readings of Treadmill 2 (T2) at various speeds which will be compared to the readings Kelly took yesterday before the T2 Yearly Maintenance.   Possible Conjunction with Object #81934:  Ground teams are evaluating tracking data for a possible conjunction with object #81934. The time of closest approach is Wednesday, 23 September at 1:03pm CDT. Concern level on the item is currently high and teams are evaluating the potential for a Pre-Determined Debris Avoidance Maneuver (PDAM).     Today’s Planned Activities All activities were completed unless otherwise noted. Body Mass Measurement МО-8. Closeout Ops Ocular Health (ОН) – ОСТ Hardware Setup WRS – WPA Waste Water Tank Offload into CWC (start) OBT – ISS Emergency Soyuz Descent WRS – WPA Waste Water Tank Offload into CWC (end) Ocular Health (ОН) – ОСТ Examination BAR. Experiment Session ISS Crew Medical Officer (CMO) Computer Based Training (CBT) Ocular Health (ОН) – ОСТ Hardware Restow АСП Off-Nominal Operation Diagnostic Regenerative Environmental Control and Life Support System (RGN) – WSTA Refill Post-Exercise Hygiene Ops СОЖ Maintenance FS1 Laptop Maintenance – Handover БРИ Cleaning – Handover Life on the ISS Photo/Video FS1 Laptop Maintenance (Cleaning and Reboot) БРИ Cleaning Logistics and Maintenance Debrief HTV Cargo Transfer Ops HTV – Cargo Transfer Conference T2 – Quarterly Inspection TWIN – Urine Sampling Prep TORU Test with Docked Progress 428. Regenerative Environmental Control and Life Support System (RGN) – WSTA Fill IMS Delta File Prep Post-Exercise Hygiene Ops Ocular Health (ОН) – Fundoscope Examination Prep Time and Date Synch of Six RS Cameras with ISS CONTENT. Experiment Session Ocular Health (ОН) – Fundoscope Examination (СМО) Ocular Health (ОН) – Fundoscope Examination (Subject) Post-Exercise Hygiene Ops Ocular Health (ОН) – Hardware Restow after Fundoscope Examination COGN – Battery Test Handover Conference Preparation of reports for Roscosmos website EKON-M. Observation and Photography   Completed Task List Items MWA Tether Locate Airlock ATU Relabel ISSPresso Experiment Ops [Active]   Ground Activities All activities were completed unless otherwise noted. Battery Capacity Test for Battery Set 3A1   Three-Day Look Ahead: Wednesday, 09/23:  Sprint, Ocular Health, EVA Tether Inspect, EVA Safer Swap, RMCT Swap Thursday, 09/24:  Cardio Ox Ultrasound, Cell Biology Experiment, HTV Cargo Ops, Hatch Seal Inspect, RMCT Swap Friday, 09/25: HTV GLA/LED Light Removal, HTV Departure OBT, Cell Biology Experiment     QUICK ISS Status – Environmental Control Group:                               Component Status Elektron On Vozdukh Manual [СКВ] 1 – SM Air Conditioner System (“SKV1”) On [СКВ] 2 – SM Air Conditioner System (“SKV2”) Off Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) Lab Standby Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) Node 3 Operate Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Lab Shutdown Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Node 3 Operate Oxygen Generation Assembly (OGA) Process Urine Processing Assembly (UPA) Norm Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Lab Off Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Node 3 Full Up  

September 23, 2015 at 12:47AM
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