simple photography: NASA

Showing posts with label NASA. Show all posts

Thursday, July 21, 2011

The Space Shuttle Program has come to an End

Today the Space Shuttle Atlantis landed and with that comes the end of the shuttle program. Next stop, I imagine, for the shuttles will be a museum for public viewing.

Monday, July 18, 2011

Shuttle Atlantis Has Left The Building

The crew of the space shuttle has packed up and left the ISS for the last time. They are preparing to return to Earth this Thursday for the last and final landing of the shuttle and marks the end of the space shuttle program.

Space.com has a detailed account of the activities of the crew as they prepare to return home.

Friday, June 18, 2010

NASA Forecasts a Space Storm by 2013

NASA has warned that a space storm could arrive in 2013 and could cause a super storm that would disrupt electronic devices. From the article:

National power grids could overheat and air travel severely disrupted while electronic items, navigation devices and major satellites could stop working after the Sun reaches its maximum power in a few years.

Senior space agency scientists believe the Earth will be hit with unprecedented levels of magnetic energy from solar flares after the Sun wakes “from a deep slumber” sometime around 2013, The Daily Telegraph can disclose.

“It will disrupt communication devices such as satellites and car navigations, air travel, the banking system, our computers, everything that is electronic. It will cause major problems for the world.

“Large areas will be without electricity power and to repair that damage will be hard as that takes time.”

That would be horrible to be without electricity for any length of time because of the food in the fridge and freezer. I think I could do without a cellular phone or I-pad and even the computer, but electricity in general, that is very necessary. Getting yourself as self- sufficient as possible is a good idea in these economic times despite an oncoming storm because governments have less money to repair important infrastructure anyway. The electricity could go out for any number of reasons and food could be unavailable because markets could also be without power.

The link to the article in full is below.

Monday, June 7, 2010

Scientists Study Saturn´s Moon Named Titan

Scientists from NASA have been studying the moon Titan that circles Saturn and they are coming to the conclusion that life could exist in its atmosphere, from the article:

Researchers at the space agency believe they have discovered vital clues that appeared to indicate that primitive aliens could be living on the moon.

Data from Nasa's Cassini probe has analysed the complex chemistry on the surface of Titan, which experts say is the only moon around the planet to have a dense atmosphere.

They suggest that life forms may have been breathing in the planet’s atmosphere and also feeding on its surface’s fuel.

Chris McKay, an astrobiologist at Nasa Ames Research Centre, at Moffett Field, California who led the research, said: “We suggested hydrogen consumption because it's the obvious gas for life to consume on Titan, similar to the way we consume oxygen on Earth.

"If these signs do turn out to be a sign of life, it would be doubly exciting because it would represent a second form of life independent from water-based life on Earth.”

This reminds me of the different aliens portrayed in many different science fiction shows and movies all capable of living in different types of atmospheres, or sentient being living in the oceans of a world, or even living on rogue planets and survivng from thermal vents within the planet.

This study is interesting and the artist interpretation of what the surface would look like is fascinating as well.

I have always though that sentient life would be found outside our solar system, but who knows.

Monday, May 17, 2010

Artificial Gravity on the International Space Station

NASA is working on artificial gravity for the International Space Station and possibly for space craft as well. Now this feels like it is right out of science fiction! I have been watching some episodes from Star Trek:Deep Space Nine and I always have in the back of my mind that the station is in space while everyone walks around as if they had the gravity of a planet holding them down because everytime I see pictures from the ISS, they are floating around as the astronauts try to complete their daily tasks. The astronauts also need to exercise regularly and take medication to curb bone loss, from the article:

New plans for artificial gravity tests in space using centrifuges may hold the key to helping future astronauts ward off the debilitating loss of muscle and bone due to weightlessness on long missions to asteroids or the moon under NASA's revised space exploration plan.
Space station residents currently rely upon different exercises to keep themselves fit for the eventual return to Earth. But a spinning centrifuge device could create artificial gravity, which simulates the gravitational tug a planet, like Earth, has. The giant spinning device will give astronauts a healthy break from the weightlessness of space.
"You can try to treat each of the effects of weightlessness system by system, with certain pills for bone loss and certain exercise regimens for the muscles," said Laurence Young, an aeronautics and astronautics engineer at MIT in Cambridge, Mass. "Or you can treat the root cause of weightlessness by restoring gravity."

Artificial gravity sets the stage for long term visits to the ISS but if implemented into a craft that could travel long distances in space, could imply longer trips into the solar system as long as fresh air, food supply, and water, can be available for that same amount of time.

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Space Shuttle Atlantis Visible this Weekend

The Space Shuttle Atlantis will be visible in the early evening sky over the weekend. Remember, this is the last year of the manned space shuttle program by NASA, so try to take advantage of any opportunity to see the shuttle in action:

Skywatchers across the continental United States will get a fine opportunity this weekend to watch as the space shuttle Atlantis — on its final scheduled mission into space — chases and ultimately docks with the International Space Station (ISS).

Both the shuttle and space station will be visible as separate entities, each appearing as bright "stars" sailing across the evening twilight sky on Friday and Saturday. By Sunday evening, Atlantis will be docked to the ISS, and both will appear as a single bright moving "star."

During Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings, both Atlantis and the ISS will make a number of favorable passes across the contiguous U.S. Their respective ground tracks will take them on northwest-to-southeast paths. With a very few exceptions, between one and four crossings of both the shuttle and the ISS will be visible.

Wednesday, May 5, 2010

Space Weapon Being Tested

As reported on Space.com, the U.S. Air Force is testing a space glider and I imagine the little money left for NASA was diverted to this kind of project. It is one thing in a science fiction show to have space craft and weapons to DEFEND yourself from other sentient aliens who have similar technology and there are no provocations, and it is another thing to build space craft to attack right here on planet Earth to provoke hostility one county against another. WOW!

A U.S. Air Force space plane and a failed hypersonic glider tested by the Pentagon represent the latest space missions to raise concerns about weapons in space. But while their exact purpose remains murky, they join a host of new space technology tests that could eventually bring the battlefield into space.
Some space technology demonstrations are more obviously space weapons, such as the anti-satellite missile capabilities tested by the U.S. and China in recent years. India has also begun developing its own anti-satellite program which would combine lasers and an exo-atmospheric kill vehicle, as announced at the beginning of 2010.
The U.S. military could even be using the cloak of mystery to deliberately bamboozle and confuse rival militaries, according to John Pike, a military and security analyst who runs GlobalSecurity.org. He suggested that the X-37B and HTV-2 projects could represent the tip of a space weapons program hidden within the Pentagon's secret "black budget," or they might be nothing more than smoke and mirrors.

You can read the entire article here.
I wish people in their personal lives, cities, states, and countries could live in peace and find peaceful solutions to problems, but I guess that is too much to ask. I have always enjoyed Star Trek: The Next Generation because solutions were sought through talk, treaties, meetings, peace, and fighting was usually the last resort. The entire concept of the Federation of Planets was to invite other worlds who desired a peaceful union working together. Of course there were conquering races such as the Klingons and Romulans, but there will always be a force to face that has interests opposed to your own, thus the ability to negotiate peacefully is vital.

Monday, May 3, 2010

Oil Spill in the U.S. Gulf Coast Affects NASA

The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico caused by the explosion of an oil rig is harming fragile animal, plant, and sea life in what was a beautiful area of water. I have personally visited the southern part of the Gulf of Mexico and I have swum and snorkeled around coral and beautiful fish and it breaks my heart to think of all the destruction this continued leak of oil is causing.
I did not realize it also affects NASA:

The expanding oil slick has cut into the deep water route typically used by NASA barges and their tugs to haul the 15-storey space shuttle fuel tanks from their manufacturing site – the Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans – to the Kennedy Space Center in Florida to be attached to an orbiter for launch.

Space shuttle fuel tanks are built by Lockheed Martin and are too large to be delivered by train or truck. When fully fueled at the launch pad, they weigh about 1.7 million pounds (771,000 kg), counting the 535,000 gallons of cryogenic liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen propellant.

I am sure other commerce has been disrupted and I cannot understand how this tragedy occured but I hope they end the gush of oil that is filling the water every moment.

Friday, April 9, 2010

Worf on the ISS!!

I love it, Worf will be on the Space Station:

Amongst the items delivered by the Discovery space shuttle to the International Space Station earlier today, was a patch with a Star Trek connection.The acronym for the NASA patch for the Window Observational Research Facility, a science equipment rack that will enable astronaut-tended and remote-controlled Earth-observation experiments, is the same as the name of Lt. Commander Worf, the Klingon seen on Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

Friday, April 2, 2010

Pac-Man in the Moon!

When I read the article about the Pac- Man image appearing on the moon that orbits Saturn it made me laugh so hard, but it is true, the image of the tiny moon taken by the Cassini spacecraft does look like the 1980 Pac-Man figure I used to play when you actually had to go to an arcade to play video games on those monstrous machines. I played Pac-Man but my favorite game was Space Invaders, I could play that game for hours as well as air hockey on those huge tables. Sometimes it is nice to go down memory lane....
From the article:

The Cassini spacecraft in orbit around Saturn has caught an interesting new view of the tiny moon Mimas.

The probe measured temperature differences across the object's surface and produced a map that looks just like the 1980s Pac-Man video games icon.Scientists are unsure why Mimas should display such variations but say it is probably related to the diversity of textures in the surface materials.Some textures may retain heat better than others, they explain.Mimas is about 400km (250 miles) across. It has a distinctive scar called Herschel Crater which has led many to draw comparisons with the "Death Star" from the Star Wars movies.

Monday, March 22, 2010

Spring Cleaning at NASA

Since this year is the last year of the space shuttle program, they seem to be going into all the nooks and crannies and cleaning out stuff and deciding who will get what. From the article:

You may get a chance to see the container that holds their, well, you know, astro poop.With the shuttle fleet scheduled to retire later this year, NASA is cleaning out warehouses and storage rooms and offering space artifacts to certain organizations such as schools and universities, museums and libraries.

I doubt I want to see the potty the astronauts used, thank you very much! I find what the astronauts do interesting but not in such detail!

The Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex was tentatively allocated 119 items, although officials don't know exactly what all of the items are. The artifacts won't be delivered until the shuttle program ends or as the items are phased out of production.

You can read the rest of the Article HERE and I am sure more news will pop up this entire year since the space program is sadly ending.

Thursday, March 4, 2010

Chile Earthquake and Earthquake Movies

As I sit here safely behind my computer typing this post, I feel for the Chileans who had to endure the 8.8 magnitude earthquake and the subsequent aftershocks they are feeling each moment of the day. Growing up in Los Angeles, I have felt my fair share of earthquakes, I lived close to the epicenter of the 5.8 magnitude Whittier Narrows quake in 1987 and being just miles from the epicenter is a horrible sensation and the noise is incredible as well as the aftershocks, they seem to go on and on endlessly, so I cannot imagine 8.8 on the Richter Scale.
Space.com has some very interesting information about the Chile quake as well.

The massive 8.8 earthquake that struck Chile may have changed the entire Earth's rotation and shortened the length of days on our planet, a NASA scientist said Monday.

The quake, the seventh strongest earthquake in recorded history, hit Chile Saturday and should have shortened the length of an Earth day by 1.26 microseconds, according to research scientist Richard Gross at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. One microsecond is one-millionth of a second long.

Yikes, that is a powerful force of nature, and one thing for sure is that Hollywood loves to make movies about destructive forces of nature. I found a list of earthquake movies made over the years, some I have seen and others I have not. The movies I have seen are almost comical they are so badly made but I still have watched them for whatever reason. So, if you are in the mood for an earthquake film fest, I know that sounds kind of dark but I do have a dark humor side to me, then here is a list of movies you might want to check out.

10.5 (2004)
10.5: Apocalypse (2006)
2012 (2009)
Aftershock: Earthquake in New York (1999)
Aftershocks (1998)
The Big One: The Great Los Angeles Earthquake (1990)
Crack in the World (1965)
The Day the Earth Moved (1974)
Deathquake (Japan 1980)
Deep Core (2000)
Descent (2005)
Deluge (1933)
Earthquake (1974)
Epicenter (2000)
Epoch (2001)
Epoch: Evolution (2003)
Megafault (2009)
Nature Unleashed: Earthquake (2004)
The Night the World Exploded (1957)
The Rains of Ranchipur (1955)
San Francisco (1936)
Short Walk to Daylight (1972)

Saturday, February 27, 2010

Space Shuttle Retires and 23,000 Jobs will Disappear

Sadly, NASA is going to have the budget cut for manned space flight and this coincides with the retirement of the current space shuttle program which will end this year 2010. This in and of itself is a shame because NASA has led the way in technology for sending people into space, but it looks as if the private sector may begin to work on space craft capable of sending people into space as well as the European Space Agency. Another consequence to this budget cut will be the loss of 23,000 jobs, yes, 23,000 jobs!
From the article:

Revised projections now show that about 23,000 workers at and around Kennedy Space Center will lose their jobs because of the shuttles' retirement and the new proposal to cancel the development of new rockets and spacecraft.

IN-DEPTH SPECIAL REPORT: Shuttle ShutdownThat sum includes 9,000 "direct" space jobs and -- conservatively speaking -- 14,000 "indirect" jobs at hotels, restaurants, retail stores and others that depend on activity at the space center, said Lisa Rice, Brevard Workforce president.
"Our unemployment rate

is going to skyrocket," she warned Thursday during a five-hour Brevard County Commission space workshop. Much conversation centered on the future of human space launches from KSC, and attendees heaped criticism on Obama's strategy.

I do not see the economy turning around to the positive side for many years or maybe ever, so I do not know what will happen to space travel. Since I am a science fiction lover and I dream of space travel, meeting alien life, and traveling the Universe, this seems like a big setback, for a while anyways.
Here is the article about the 23,000 jobs to be lost.

Saturday, February 20, 2010

Space Shuttle Endeavour May Land in California

Californians may get the chance to hear the famous double sonic boom if the space shuttle needs to land in California tonight. From the article:

NASA says it might be forced to land the space shuttle Endeavour at Edwards Air Force Base in the Mojave Desert on Sunday night due to sketchy weather at Kennedy Space Center, Florida. If that happens, it is possible that people in Orange County will hear the double sonic boom the shuttle makes minutes before it lands. Whether we hear the boom depends on the shuttle’s final flight path. If it reaches the California coast in the Santa Barbara area, we probably wouldn’t hear it. But if it tacks farther south, there’s a good chance we would.

NASA would prefer to land Endeavour in Florida. If the weather clears, the shuttle, which is carrying a crew of six, will touch down in Florida at 10:16 .m. or 11:51 p.m., eastern time, Sunday. If the shuttle comes here, says NASA, it would land at Edwards at either 10:20 p.m. or 11:55 p.m., Pacific time, Sunday. Check back for updates.

12 chances to see International Space Station fly over Southern California

Here is a link to the story and I love hearing that special sonic boom!

Thursday, February 18, 2010

Classic Star Trek Crew Photo

I found a great story about the Star Trek crew taking a photo with Gene Roddenberry and the Space Shuttle Enterprise. From the article:

Thirty-three years ago today, the U.S.S. Enterprise made its maiden voyage after receiving its blessing from the original Star Trek crew.No, not that Enterprise. We're talking about the first space shuttle orbiter, which was named after the most famous ship in Starfleet and which made its first flight test on Feb. 18, 1977, mounted to a Boeing 747, according to a report in the Orlando Sentinel.Here's part of the Sentinel's story:

NASA's first step into the Space Shuttle program was an orbiter named Enterprise, which served as a model for future orbiters Columbia, Challenger, Discovery, Atlantis and Endeavour. (Though they are often referred to as "space shuttles," an orbiter must be mated to a bright orange external tank and two skinny solid rocket boosters to merit the name.)
I love memories like these, to me, it seems like yesterday the shuttle took off. I guess we will have a lot more memories and old photos to look at throughout this year due to the fact that the space shuttle program ends this year, thus ending the manned space program for NASA..
You can read the entire story HERE:

Sunday, February 7, 2010

Plant Study in Space

When the space shuttle makes its launch to the Space Station on Monday, hopefully because the launch was scrubbed for Sunday, it will take an interesting experiment about how seeds will grow in space. From the article:

NASA scientists hope to better understand exactly how and why plants grow differently in space in an experiment named, Tropi. Future astronauts may be able to grow plants as part of life support systems on long-duration space missions to the moon or Mars.The European Space Agency developed the European Modular Cultivation System (EMCS), a facility focused on plant biology research located on the station. Once in orbit, NASA astronauts Jeff Williams and T.J. Creamer will place the experiment containers in the EMCS incubator to conduct the experiment in a temperature, humidity and atmosphere-controlled environment.

Once the experiment begins, the seeds will be spun continuously in centrifuges to achieve varying levels of gravity and provided fresh water. The first three days are considered the "growth phase" of the experiment, when the ECs will be exposed to gravity forces similar to Earth's. After the first 32 hours of the experiment, when the seeds will remain mostly in darkness, they will be illuminated with white LED lights. The last three days of the experiment are called the "stimulation phase," when they will be "photostimulated" - or constantly exposed to red, blue or a combination of red and blue LED lights. During the final phase of the experiment, cameras in the centrifuge facility will take three images per minute to collect the majority of the science data.

You can read more Here.
This kind of story should be on the evening news, in a newspaper, or at least a mention somewhere like on the internet because this kind of study helps us move forward as humans. I wish all forms of science were as important to people as the Superbowl. I know certain sports are fun and a distraction from the day to day things in life, however I wish the amount of money spent on this particular event could be spent on scientific research, but then again that is just me.

Friday, February 5, 2010

Tweet to the International Space Station

You will be able to send a tweet to the ISS when the next shuttle Endeavour will dock with the Space Station, and the launch is scheduled for the 7th of February and the Tweets will be sent and answered up until the 11th of this same month. From the article:

The Twitterverse and universe will converge during space shuttle Endeavour's upcoming mission to the International Space Station. NASA is inviting the public to send questions for the astronauts via Twitter and have them answered live from space.Astronaut Mike Massimino will be accepting questions for the crew from the public via his Twitter account until Thursday, Feb. 11. Massimino will be a shuttle Capcom, or spacecraft communicator, at NASA's Mission Control in Houston during Endeavour's flight, scheduled for launch Feb. 7.

How cool is that! You can read more HERE.

Saturday, January 23, 2010

BASE Jumper to Leap from Space!

A BASE jumper is an extreme sports enthusiast who loves to jump from Buildings, Antennae, Spans (bridges), and Earth, and this sport for obvious reasons is considered to be extremely dangerous. Why bring this up in a sci fi blog? Well, Felix Baumgartner is going to as close to outer space as possible and will then freefall in an attempt to break the sound barrier of 1236kph. From the article:

His stratospheric mission, Red Bull Stratos, will see Baumgartner break four world records — and provide important data to NASA scientists.
He said: "I want to push the limits of what is possible."
Baumgartner will be dressed in a protective suit and flown to 120,000 feet in a pressurised capsule before making his jump.
He believes he will be able to break the speed of sound — 768mph — within 35 seconds.

His mission will help researchers document the effects of high-speed travel on the human body, and further explore mankind's ability to travel at the edge of space.

Wow! This guy has guts or he is just plain crazy!! You can read more here.

Saturday, January 16, 2010

Space Shuttle for Sale!

You can own a genuine space shuttle from NASA for the low price of 28.8 M USD which is considered a recession special because the price was lowered from 42 million apiece.

From the article:

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Here’s a recession bargain: the space shuttle. NASA has slashed the price of these 1970s era spaceships from $42 million to $28.8 million apiece.The shuttles are for sale once they quit flying, supposedly this fall.When NASA put out the call to museums, schools and others in December 2008, seeking buyers, about 20 expressed interest. NASA spokesman Mike Curie expects more interest, what with the discount.“We’re confident that we’ll get other takers,” Curie said Friday.

As for the space shuttle main engines, those are now free. NASA advertised them for $400,000 to $800,000 each in December 2008, but no one expressed interest. So now the engines are available, along with other shuttle artifacts, for the cost of transportation and handling.Assembly will be required, however.

Well, I cannot wait to see a new design for the next generation of space craft that will travel to the International Space Station. I hope the "recession/depression" and/or too many wars do not delay development of what I consider more important endeavors and that is the study of our Universe.

Here is a LINK to the article.

Thursday, January 7, 2010

Apophis is heading towards Earth!

Apophis is making its way towards Earth and may arrive by the year 2029, no, not Apophis from Stargate SG1, but a 270 meter asteroid that has a slight chance of impacting Earth. The Russian Space Agency is considering sending a spacecraft in an attenpt to knock the asteroid off of its course. This entire story reminded me of two movies, Armageddon (1998) and Deep Impact (1998) both about an asteroid that will hit Earth and destroy life. Armageddon put me to sleep and the acting was horrible in my opinion. I liked Deep Impact better from the psychological point of view, such as the government lying to the people for as long as possible so as not to "alarm" anyone, how martial law was implemented in the US, people began to commit suicide, rob, panic and try to get picked for this gigantic cave everyone would live in for a couple of years.
Anyway, I find it is interesting the name of the asteroid and Russia may send a spacecraft. From the article:

Russia is considering sending a spacecraft to a large asteroid to knock it off its path and prevent a possible collision with Earth, the head of the country's space agency said Wednesday.Anatoly Perminov said the space agency will hold a meeting soon to assess a mission to Apophis, telling Golos Rossii radio that it would invite NASA, the European Space Agency, the Chinese space agency and others to join the project once it is finalized.