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How do NASA Astronauts Communicate Nonverbally in Space? | NASA STEM
How can astronauts in space communicate with each other if their communications channels were to go down or become busy? NASA astronauts Kayla Barron and Raja Chari explain a few nonverbal ways to communicate to one another that they learned as they were training to live and work on the International Space Station. Can you guess what they're trying to say?
We’re launching STEM Engagement to new heights with learning resources that connect teachers, students, parents and caregivers to the inspiring work at NASA. Join us as we apply science, technology, engineering and mathematics to explore space, improve aeronautics, examine Earth and strive to land the first woman and first person of color on the Moon with the Artemis program.
Rocket Lab—'There And Back Again' Satellite Launch in New Zealand
[Launch is at 36-minute mark, Helicopter Booster Catch at 52-minute mark]
On May 2, 2022, the “There And Back Again” mission Rocket Lab successfully launched its 26th Electron rocket mission, deploying 34 satellites to orbit from New Zealand's Mahia Peninsula. Rocket Lab has now deployed a total of 146 satellites to orbit with the Electron launch vehicle.
The “There And Back Again” mission also saw Rocket Lab complete a mid-air capture of the Electron booster with a helicopter for the first time. After launching to space, Electron’s first stage returned to Earth under a parachute. At 6,500 ft, Rocket Lab’s Sikorsky S-92 helicopter rendezvoused with the returning stage and used a hook on a long line to capture the parachute line. The mid-air capture is a major milestone in Rocket Lab’s pursuit to make Electron a reusable rocket to increase launch frequency and reduce launch costs for small satellites. After the catch, the helicopter pilot detected different load characteristics than previously experienced in testing and offloaded the stage for a successful splashdown. The stage is being loaded onto Rocket Lab’s recovery vessel for transport back to the Company’s production complex for analysis and assessment for re-flight as planned.
The mid-air capture comes after successful recovery operations from Rocket Lab’s 16th, 20th, and 22nd missions, which saw Electron’s first stage execute a controlled ocean splashdown before being returned to Rocket Lab’s production complex. Like those missions, a reaction control system re-oriented the first stage to an ideal angle for re-entry during the “There And Back Again” mission, enabling the stage to survive the incredible heat and pressure during its descent back to Earth. A drogue parachute was deployed to increase drag and to stabilize the first stage as it descended, before a large main parachute was deployed in the final kilometers of descent. “There And Back Again” is the first time a helicopter catch attempt was introduced to recovery operations and today’s mission will inform future helicopter captures.
“Bringing a rocket back from space and catching it with a helicopter is something of a supersonic ballet,” said Rocket Lab founder and CEO, Peter Beck. “A tremendous number of factors have to align and many systems have to work together flawlessly, so I am incredibly proud of the stellar efforts of our Recovery Team and all of our engineers who made this mission and our first catch a success. From here we’ll assess the stage and determine what changes we might want to make to the system and procedures for the next helicopter catch and eventual re-flight.”
The “There And Back Again” mission launched from Pad A at Rocket Lab’s Launch Complex 1 on New Zealand’s Mahia Peninsula at 10:49 am NZST, May 3,2022, deploying satellites for Alba Orbital, Astrix Astronautics, Aurora Propulsion Technologies, E-Space, Spaceflight, and Unseenlabs. The mission brings the total number of satellites launched by Rocket Lab to 146. Among the payloads deployed were satellites designed to monitor light pollution, demonstrate space junk removal technologies, improve power restraints in small satellites, validate technology for sustainable satellite systems that can avoid collisions with untrackable space objects, enable internet from space, and build upon a maritime surveillance constellation.
Rocket Lab’s next mission is scheduled in May 2022 with more details to be released in the coming days.
"Founded in 2006, Rocket Lab is an end-to-end space company with an established track record of mission success. We deliver reliable launch services, satellite manufacture, spacecraft components, and on-orbit management solutions that make it faster, easier and more affordable to access space. Headquartered in Long Beach, California, Rocket Lab designs and manufactures the Electron small orbital launch vehicle and the Photon satellite platform and is developing the Neutron 8-ton payload class launch vehicle. Since its first orbital launch in January 2018, Rocket Lab’s Electron launch vehicle has become the second most frequently launched U.S. rocket annually and has delivered 146 satellites to orbit for private and public sector organizations, enabling operations in national security, scientific research, space debris mitigation, Earth observation, climate monitoring, and communications. Rocket Lab’s Photon spacecraft platform has been selected to support NASA missions to the Moon and Mars, as well as the first private commercial mission to Venus. Rocket Lab has three launch pads at two launch sites, including two launch pads at a private orbital launch site located in New Zealand and a second launch site in Virginia, USA which is expected to become operational in 2022."
NASA Simulation Suggests Volcanoes Might Warm Climate, Destroy Ozone Layer
A new NASA climate simulation suggests that extremely large volcanic eruptions called “flood basalt eruptions” might significantly warm Earth’s climate and devastate the ozone layer that shields life from the Sun’s ultraviolet radiation.
The result contradicts previous studies indicating these volcanoes cool the climate. It also suggests that while extensive flood-basalt eruptions on Mars and Venus may have helped warm their climates, they could have doomed the long-term habitability of these worlds by contributing to water loss.
Video Credit: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
James Tralie (ADNET):
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Music is "Good Omens" by Count Zero and Rohan Stevenson and "Blue Moons" by Gresby Race Nash of Universal Production Music
NASA's SpaceX Crew-4 Launch Week "Outtakes": More by Popular Demand!
Crew-4 mission astronauts Kjell Lindgren, Bob Hines, Jessica Watkins, and Samantha Cristoforetti of Italy, at Kennedy Space Center’s Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building on April 26 and 27, 2022. A team of SpaceX suit technicians assisted the crew as they put on their custom-fitted spacesuits and checked the suits for leaks. The four astronauts launched aboard SpaceX’s Crew Dragon, powered by the company’s Falcon 9 rocket, to the International Space Station as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program on Wednesday, April 27, 2022, from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy.
Gemini North, one half of the international Gemini Observatory, a Program of NSF’s NOIRLab, uses a laser beam traveling through Earth’s atmosphere to adjust its adaptive optics. Like many large research telescopes today, Gemini North uses adaptive optics—bending its mirrors to compensate for atmospheric turbulence or “seeing”, which can blur the images of distant objects like stars and galaxies.
The laser beam, seen here as a pink-orange stripe on the sky, travels into the upper atmosphere where it creates a bright spot of light that provides a reference point for the telescope to follow, and correct for, the atmospheric turbulence. This long-exposure photograph shows the laser tracking its target near the zenith, appearing to paint the sky with light. The stars appear as trails as they revolve around the north celestial pole during the long exposure.
Credit: International Gemini Observatory/National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory (NOIRLab)/National Science Foundation (NSF)/Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA)/J. Chu
Strong Solar Flare Erupts from Sun | NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory
The Sun emitted a strong solar flare on April 30, 2022, peaking at 9:47 a.m. EDT. NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), which watches the Sun constantly, captured an image of the event. This image shows a subset of extreme ultraviolet light that highlights the extremely hot material in flares and which is colorized in red.
A red Sun, with a golden flare bursting from the top right.
Solar flares are powerful bursts of energy. Flares and solar eruptions can impact radio communications, electric power grids, navigation signals, and pose risks to spacecraft and astronauts.
This flare is classified as an X-class flare. X-class denotes the most intense flares, while the number provides more information about its strength. More info on how flares are classified can be found here.
To see how such space weather may affect Earth, please visit NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center https://spaceweather.gov, the U.S. government’s official source for space weather forecasts, watches, warnings, and alerts.
NASA works as a research arm of the nation’s space weather effort. NASA observes the Sun and our space environment constantly with a fleet of spacecraft that study everything from the Sun’s activity to the solar atmosphere, and to the particles and magnetic fields in the space surrounding Earth.
Two days ago, parts of South America were treated to a partial solar eclipse—where the Moon blocked out part of the Sun. This is an image of the partially eclipsed Sun through clouds as it was setting over Patagonia, Argentina. In this tilted view, Earth is toward the right. During the eclipse, the Moon moved partly between Earth and the Sun. Although a visually impressive sight, the slight dimming of surroundings during this partial eclipse was less noticeable than dimming created by a thick cloud. In about two weeks, all of South America and part of North America will experience a total lunar eclipse—where the Earth moves completely between the Moon and the Sun. In about two years, a total solar eclipse will cross North America.
The magnificent spiral galaxy M99 fills the frame in this image from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope. M99—which lies roughly 42 million light-years from Earth in the constellation Coma Berenices—is a “grand design” spiral galaxy, so-called because of the well-defined, prominent spiral arms visible in this image. M99 was captured by Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3 on two separate occasions, helping astronomers study two entirely different astronomical phenomena.
The first set of observations aimed to explore a gap between two different varieties of cosmic explosions; novae and supernovae. Novae, which are caused by the interactions between white dwarfs and larger stars in binary systems, are far less bright than the supernovae which mark the catastrophically violent deaths of massive stars. However, current astronomical theories predict that sudden, fleeting events could occur that shine with brightnesses between those of novae and supernovae. Despite being described by astronomers as being shrouded in mystery and controversy, just such an event was observed in M99. Astronomers turned to Hubble’s keen vision to take a closer look and precisely locate the fading source.
The second set of observations were part of a large Hubble project which aims to chart the connections between young stars and the clouds of cold gas from which they form. Hubble inspected 38 nearby galaxies, identifying clusters of hot, young stars. These galaxies were also observed by the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), a colossal radio telescope consisting of 66 individual dishes perched high in the Chilean Andes. The combination of Hubble’s observations of young stars and ALMA’s insight into clouds of cold gas will allow astronomers to delve into the details of star formation, and paves the way for future science with the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope.
Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, M. Kasliwal, J. Lee and the PHANGS-HST Team
Purple Haze in the NGC 3627 Galaxy | European Southern Observatory
This Picture of the Week showcases the impressive NGC 3627 galaxy, also known as Messier 66, located approximately 31 million light-years from Earth in the constellation Leo. The image was taken with the Multi-Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE) on ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) in Chile. But why does it have these unusual colors?
This image is a combination of observations conducted in different wavelengths of light. However, rather than seeing the stars in this galaxy, as in more classical images, what this image displays is gas ionized by newly-born stars, with hydrogen, oxygen, and sulphur shown in red, blue and orange respectively.
The image was taken as part of the Physics at High Angular resolution in Nearby GalaxieS (PHANGS) project, which is using telescopes operating across all wavelengths to make high-resolution observations of nearby galaxies. The goal of the project is to better understand what triggers, boosts or holds back the formation of new stars in different environments.
Credit: European Southern Observatory (ESO)/PHANGS
What's on the Menu? Food and Culture on the International Space Station | NASA
In honor of Asian American and Native Hawaiian Pacific Islander Heritage (AANHPI) Month, learn about the intersection of food and culture in space from NASA astronaut Sunita "Suni" Williams, whose father immigrated to the U.S. from India, and International Space Station (ISS) food scientist/system manager Xulei Wu, a first-generation Asian American born in China.
Hear their stories about cultural representation in space, the importance of food in Indian and Chinese cultures, and the inclusive standard menu aboard the ISS. What's one dish you would like to see aboard?
Credit: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
NASA Astronaut Victor Glover Inspires Washington, DC Area Students
NASA astronaut Victor Glover talks with young students at an educational event, Thursday, April 28, 2022, at the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington. Glover discussed his career as an astronaut, his 2021 mission to the International Space Station, and future NASA Artemis Missions to the Moon. Glover most recently served as pilot and second-in-command on the Crew-1 SpaceX Crew Dragon, named Resilience, which landed after a long duration mission aboard the International Space Station, May 2, 2021. Glover served as a flight engineer on the International Space Station for Expedition 64. He contributed to many things while aboard the station including scientific investigations, technology demonstrations, growing crops, and taking hundreds of pictures of Earth. He completed 168 days in orbit and participated in four spacewalks.
Through Artemis, NASA aims to land the first woman and first person of color on the Moon, heralding a new era for space exploration and utilization. The NASA-led Artemis program is a new generation of lunar exploration missions designed to send humans farther into space than ever before. The Artemis missions are increasingly complex endeavours that will lay the foundation for sustainable human and robotic exploration of Earth's only natural satellite, the Moon.
NASA's Mars Curiosity Rover: New April 30, 2022 Images | JPL
This week, NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover has been using its Mastcam to image “Blackcraig”, “Maringma” and “Deepdale” buttes as it continues its ascent up Mount Sharp in Gale Crater. Buttes can be described as isolated hills with steep sides and flat tops. Mount Sharp, officially Aeolis Mons, is a mountain on Mars. It forms the central peak within Gale Crater.
MSL - Sol 3456 - Mastcam
MSL - Sol 3456 - Mastcam
MSL - Sol 3459 - MAHLI
MSL - Sol 3458 - Mastcam
The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), which is managed for NASA by Caltech in Pasadena, California, built and manages operations of the Perseverance and Curiosity rovers.
Mission Name: Mars Science Laboratory (MSL)
Rover Name: Curiosity
Main Job: To determine if Mars was ever habitable to microbial life.
Orbital Sunset & Northrop Grumman Cygnus | International Space Station
The Cygnus space freighter (left) from Northrop Grumman, with its prominent cymbal-shaped UltraFlex solar arrays, is pictured as the International Space Station flies into an orbital sunset 261 miles above the Pacific Ocean. At upper right, is a portion of the Rassvet mini-research module's docking port.
An international partnership of space agencies provides and operates the elements of the International Space Station (ISS). The principals are the space agencies of the United States, Russia, Europe, Japan, and Canada. The ISS has been the most politically complex space exploration program ever undertaken.
Learn more about the important research being operated on the station:
NASA Artemis Space Exploration Suppliers | Northrop Grumman
"America’s return to the Moon and venture into deep space begins on factory floors across the nation. American supplier companies are working diligently to support NASA’s Space Launch System rocket, Orion spacecraft, Exploration Ground Systems, and Gateway as the Artemis program prepares to send the first woman and person of color to the lunar surface."
In May 2022, we are looking away from the crowded, dusty plane of our own galaxy toward a region where the sky is brimming with distant galaxies. Locate Virgo to find a concentration of roughly 2,000 galaxies and search for Coma Berenices to identify many more. Keep watching for space-based views of galaxies like the Sombrero Galaxy, M87, and M64.
About this Series
“Tonight’s Sky” is a monthly video of constellations you can observe in the night sky. The series is produced by the Space Telescope Science Institute, home of science operations for the Hubble Space Telescope, in partnership with NASA’s Universe of Learning.
What's Up for May 2022? | Skywatching Tips from NASA/JPL
What are some skywatching highlights in May 2022?
May provides some great planet spotting, including a close conjunction of Jupiter and Mars. At mid-month, a total eclipse of the Moon should delight skywatchers across the Americas, Europe, and Africa. And all month long, the Coma star cluster (aka, the Coma Berenices star cluster, or Melotte 111) is a great target for binoculars in the evening.
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