United States Space Force-12 Mission Atlas V Launch | United Launch Alliance

United States Space Force-12 Mission Atlas V Launch | United Launch Alliance

A missile-warning satellite and another spacecraft were delivered to orbit to help the U.S. military improve its ability to track fast-moving threats. A United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V rocket carrying the United States Space Force (USSF)-12 mission for the U.S. Space Force’s Space Systems Command lifted off on July 1, 2022, at 7:15 p.m. EDT from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. The Atlas V rocket uses Russian RD-180 engines. 

First launched in 2002, the expendable Atlas V launcher was the centerpiece vehicle that helped cement ULA’s work on national security satellite missions and some of NASA’s biggest space exploration initiatives, including all of the agency’s robotic missions to Mars. To date ULA has launched 151 times with 100 percent mission success.

Image & Caption Credit: United Launch Alliance

Image Capture Date: July 1, 2022

#NASA #Earth #Space #Satellites #USSF #USSF12 #SpaceForce #Military #ULA #AtlasV #Rocket #CapeCanaveral #Spaceport #Florida #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

Exploring Star and Planet Formation

Exploring Star and Planet Formation

This animation explores the stages in the formation of stars and planets. Within a large, dense cloud, thousands of protostars collapse due to gravity. The infalling material forms a disk around the protostar, with jets emitted perpendicular to the disk. Planets condense and build up within the disk, establishing a new solar system. The Webb Space Telescope’s infrared observations will peer into these dark clouds and dusty disks to examine this formation process with unprecedented clarity.

Credits: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, D.Player (STScI), F. Summers (STScI), J. DePasquale (STScI)

Duration: 1 minute, 40 seconds

Release Date: July 1, 2022

#NASA #Astronomy #Hubble #JWST #Space #Science #Earth #Stars #Nebulae #Protstars #Planets #Exoplanets #Galaxy #MilkyWay #SolarSystem #Astrophysics #STScI #UnitedStates #ESA #Europe #CSA #Canada #STEM #Education #Animation #HD #Video

Galactic Lily

Galactic Lily

The Fading Milky Way

Light pollution is a growing environmental problem that threatens to erase the night sky before its time. A recent study revealed that perhaps two-thirds of the world's population can no longer look upwards at night and see the Milky Way—a hazy swath of stars that on warm summer nights spans the sky from horizon to horizon.

The Milky Way is dimming, not because the end of the Universe is near, but rather as a result of light pollution: the inadvertent illumination of the atmosphere from street lights, outdoor advertising, homes, schools, airports and other sources. Every night billions of bulbs send their energy skyward where microscopic bits of matter—air molecules, airborne dust, and water vapor droplets—reflect much of the wasted light back to Earth. 

(Source: NASA)

Learn more:

International Dark-Sky Association

https://www.darksky.org/light-pollution

Globe at Night

https://www.globeatnight.org

Night Sky Network (NASA JPL)

https://nightsky.jpl.nasa.gov/index.cfm

Technical details:

Sky: 3x8x40s ISO 3200

Foreground: single shot 10s ISO 2500

Nikon D800 full spectrum mod. Nikkor Ai 28mm @f/2,8

iPhone LED light

Credit: O'Fins

Image Date: June 15, 2022

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #MilkyWay #Stars #LightPollution #CitizenScience #Astrophotographer #Astrophotography #Skywatching #Cosmos #Universe #SolarSystem #Earth #Lily #Flower #STEM #Education

Sequoia Sky

Sequoia Sky

"Camping for the night at 9,000 feet in Sequoia National Forest . . ." 

Sequoia National Forest is located in the southern Sierra Nevada mountains of California. The U.S. National Forest is named for the majestic Giant Sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum) trees which populate 38 distinct groves within the boundaries of the forest. 

Sequoia National Forest

https://www.fs.usda.gov/main/sequoia/home

The Fading Milky Way

Light pollution is a growing environmental problem that threatens to erase the night sky before its time. A recent study revealed that perhaps two-thirds of the world's population can no longer look upwards at night and see the Milky Way—a hazy swath of stars that on warm summer nights spans the sky from horizon to horizon.

The Milky Way is dimming, not because the end of the Universe is near, but rather as a result of light pollution: the inadvertent illumination of the atmosphere from street lights, outdoor advertising, homes, schools, airports and other sources. Every night billions of bulbs send their energy skyward where microscopic bits of matter—air molecules, airborne dust, and water vapor droplets—reflect much of the wasted light back to Earth. 

(Source: NASA)

Learn more:

International Dark-Sky Association

https://www.darksky.org/light-pollution

Globe at Night

https://www.globeatnight.org

Night Sky Network (NASA JPL)

https://nightsky.jpl.nasa.gov/index.cfm

Technical details:

"(Panos and focus staked images are this year's new skills!) This turned out not too bad for a first go."

"This is a horizontal pano of three exposures in portrait orientation, processed in Lightroom and Photoshop."

Credit: Preston Dyches

Image Date: June 25, 2022

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #MilkyWay #Stars #LightPollution #CitizenScience #Astrophotographer #PrestonDyches #Astrophotography #Skywatching #Cosmos #Universe #SolarSystem #Earth #SequoiaNationalForest #Sequoia #Trees #SierraNevada #Mountains #California #STEM #Education

Launching a New Mission Around the Moon | This Week @NASA

Launching a New Mission Around the Moon | This Week @NASA

Week of July 1, 2022: Launching a new mission around the Moon, preparing the Space Launch System for its first flight, and undocking a resupply spacecraft from the space station . . . a few of the stories to tell you about—This Week at NASA! 

Learn more: https://www.nasa.gov/capstone

Credit: NASA

Producer: Lacey Young

Editor: Shane Apple

Narration: Kevin Cabral

Music: Universal Production Music

Duration: 3 minutes

Release Date: July 1, 2022

#NASA #Space #Satellite #Artemis #Moon #CAPSTONE #CubeSat #RocketLab #PeterBeck #Rocket #Electron #Cislunar #Orbit #Technology #Engineering #Cygnus #Spacecraft #LunarGateway #Gateway #DeepSpace #Spaceflight #SolarSystem #Exploration #STEM #Education

NASA's CAPSTONE Moon Mission Launch | Rocket Lab

NASA's CAPSTONE Moon Mission Launch | Rocket Lab

Rocket Lab successfully launched NASA's CAPSTONE (Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System Technology Operations and Navigation Experiment) satellite to the Moon aboard their Electron rocket. Liftoff occurred at 5:55 AM EDT (09:55 UTC) on Tuesday, June 28, 2022, from Launch Complex 1B at Rocket Lab’s launch facility on Māhia Peninsula, New Zealand. This mission made Electron the smallest rocket to launch a payload toward the Moon and the first lunar flight to lift off from New Zealand. The second stage of the Electron placed the payload in an initial low Earth orbit. To propel the 25 kg (55 lbs) CubeSat to the moon, Rocket Lab’s Lunar Photon—optimized especially for Lunar missions—will give the payload the extra thrust needed to get it to the Moon. Powered by green-hypergolic propellants, its onboard Hypercurie engine will place the CAPSTONE satellite on a ballistic lunar transfer orbit. Once in the vicinity of the Moon, the CAPSTONE satellite will use its onboard propulsion systems to place itself in a Near Rectilinear Halo Orbit around it.

This is the first mission to launch that directly supports NASA’s Artemis program.

Like Gateway, CAPSTONE continues the tradition of NASA's commercial partnerships, including American small businesses. The spacecraft was built and tested by Tyvak Nano-Satellite Systems, Inc., a Terran Orbital Corporation in Irvine, California, operated by Advanced Space, and was launched by Rocket Lab of Long Beach, California.

Learn more: https://www.nasa.gov/capstone

Image Credit: Rocket Lab

Caption Credit: NASASpaceflight.com

Capture Date: June 28, 2022

#NASA #Space #Satellite #Artemis #Moon #CAPSTONE #CubeSat #RocketLab #PeterBeck #Rocket #Electron #Cislunar #Orbit #Technology #Engineering #Navigation #Experiment #LunarGateway #Gateway #DeepSpace #Spaceflight #SolarSystem #Exploration #STEM #Education

The Pathfinders of Mars Exploration | NASA's JPL

The Pathfinders of Mars Exploration | NASA's JPL

It started with JPL agreeing to land something on Mars—cheaply—and do it in a radically different way. This is how the era NASA called “Faster, Better, Cheaper” began. The documentary film “The Pathfinders” tells the story of a small group of engineers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory who did not heed warnings that the audacious challenge of landing on Mars with airbags would likely not be a career-enhancing move.

From relying on a parachute that could not be tested in a way to match the Martian atmosphere to receiving the late addition of an unwanted rover that wouldn’t have looked out of place in a toy store, the Mars Pathfinder mission was a doubter’s dream, taken on by a mostly young group of engineers and scientists guided by a grizzled manager known for his maverick ways. 

“The Pathfinders” retraces the journey of this daring mission to Mars that captured the imagination of people around the world with its dramatic landing and its tiny rover—the first wheels ever to roll on Mars.

Video Credit: NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)

Duration: 1 hour

Release Date: June 30, 2022

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Mars #RedPlanet #Planet #Pathfinder #Rover #Robotics #Technology #Engineering #JPL #Pasadena #California #UnitedStates #JourneyToMars #SolarSystem #Exploration #DanGoldin #History #Documentary #STEM #Education

NASA's Space to Ground: Halftime Report | Week of July 1, 2022

NASA's Space to Ground: Halftime Report | Week of July 1, 2022

NASA's Space to Ground is your weekly update on what's happening aboard the International Space Station (ISS). 

Learn more about the important research being operated on ISS:

https://www.nasa.gov/iss-science 

For more information about STEM on ISS:

https://www.nasa.gov/stemonstation

Science, Technology, Engineering, Math (STEM) Education

Expedition 67 Crew

Commander Oleg Artemyev (Russia)

Roscosmos Flight Engineers: Denis Matveev and Sergey Korsakov (Russia)

NASA Flight Engineers: Kjell Lindgren, Bob Hines, Jessica Watkins (USA)

European Space Agency (ESA) Flight Engineer: Samantha Cristoforetti (Italy)

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.

Credit: NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC)

Duration: 3 minutes, 53 seconds

Release Date: July 1, 2022

#NASA #Space #ISS #Axiom1 #Starliner #CommercialResupply #Astronauts #Cosmonauts #FlightEngineers #HumanSpaceflight #EVA #Spacewalks #Science #Technology #Engineering #Research #Experiments #UnitedStates #Canada #Europe #Italy #Italia #Japan #日本 #Russia #Россия #International #STEM #Education #HD #Video

NASA's Mars Perseverance & Curiosity Rovers—New June 2022 Images | JPL

NASA's Mars Perseverance & Curiosity Rovers—New June 2022 Images | JPL

Mars2020 - Sol 483 - Mastcam-Z

Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU/Kevin M. Gill

MSL - Sol 3514 - Mastcam

Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS/Kevin M. Gill

Mars2020 - Sol 476 - Watson

Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Kevin M. Gill

MSL - Sol 3517 - Mastcam

Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS/Kevin M. Gill

Mars2020 - Sol 477 - Mastcam-Z

Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU/Kevin M. Gill

Mars2020 - Sol 477 - Mastcam-Z

Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU/Kevin M. Gill

Mars2020 - Sol 477 - Mastcam-Z

Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU/Kevin M. Gill

Curiosity Rover June 27, 2022 Update:

Scientists using data from NASA’s Curiosity rover measured the total organic carbon—a key component in the molecules of life—in Martian rocks for the first time.

“Total organic carbon is one of several measurements [or indices] that help us understand how much material is available as feedstock for prebiotic chemistry and potentially biology,” said Jennifer Stern of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. “We found at least 200 to 273 parts per million of organic carbon. This is comparable to or even more than the amount found in rocks in very low-life places on Earth, such as parts of the Atacama Desert in South America, and more than has been detected in Mars meteorites.”

Source: NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)

Perseverance Rover June 23, 2022 Update:

"Perseverance’s exploration of the Hawksbill Gap area of the Jezero Delta continues!  The rover has abraded at two different locations over the last few weeks.  First, the rover abraded in the Devil’s Tanyard area.  Unfortunately, the crumbly rocks at Devils Tanyard were broken and moved by the force of the abrasion. Nevertheless, the team was able to use the SuperCam and Mastcam-Z instruments to gather valuable scientific data of the abrasion patch and surrounding area."

"The rover then made its way up the delta to abrade at Hogwallow Flats, an area nicknamed “the Bacon Strip” by the team due to its light-colored striped rocks, which look like a strip of bacon in images taken by the Hi-Rise orbiter.  The rocks at Hogwallow Flats appear to be very fine-grained, which is exciting to scientists on the mission as fine-grained rocks may have the best chance at preserving evidence of life."

Source: Lydia Kivrak, Student Collaborator at University of Florida

Mission Name: Mars Science Laboratory (MSL)

Rover Name: Curiosity

Main Job: To determine if Mars was ever habitable to microbial life. 

Launch: November 6, 2011

Landing Date: Aug. 5, 2012, Gale Crater, Mars

Mission Name: Mars 2020

Rover Name: Perseverance

Main Job: Seek signs of ancient life and collect samples of rock and regolith (broken rock and soil) for possible return to Earth.

Launch: July 30, 2020    

Landing: Feb. 18, 2021, Jezero Crater, Mars

For more information on NASA's Mars missions, visit mars.nasa.gov

Image Release Dates: June 23-30, 2022

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Mars #RedPlanet #Planet #Astrobiology #Geology #Jezero #Crater #MountSharp #GaleCrater #Perseverance #Curiosity #Rovers #Robotics #Technology #Engineering #JPL #Pasadena #California #UnitedStates #JourneyToMars #CitizenScience #STEM #Education

What's Up for July 2022 | Skywatching Tips from NASA

What's Up for July 2022 | Skywatching Tips from NASA

What are some skywatching highlights in July 2022? 

The naked-eye planets of dawn—Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn—dominate the sky, appearing more spread out each morning. Next, if you're feeling the July heat, note the origin of "the dog days" of summer has to do with the bright star Sirius. Finally, if you can find a certain teapot-shaped pattern of stars in the evening, you'll be looking toward the center of the Milky Way.

Credit: NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)

Duration: 3 minutes, 35 seconds

Release Date: June 30, 2022

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Skywatching #Earth #Moon #Planets #Saturn #Jupiter #Mars #Venus #SolarSystem #Stars #Star #Sirius #Constellations #MilkyWay #Galaxy #JPL #Pasadena #California #Skywatching #UnitedStates #Canada #Mexico #NorthernHemisphere #STEM #Education #HD #Video

NASA's Artemis I Moon Rocket: We Are Capable

NASA's Artemis I Moon Rocket: We Are Capable

Twin solid rocket boosters that will produce a combined 7.2 million pounds of thrust at liftoff, a towering core stage, and the only human-rated spacecraft in the world capable of deep-space travel—together, NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft stand ready to usher in a new chapter of exploration. Now fully assembled at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, SLS and Orion will soon launch on the uncrewed Artemis I mission around the Moon, paving the way for astronauts. Artemis I represents a new generation of spaceflight capabilities and partnerships that will take humans back to the Moon—this time, to stay.

Learn more: https://www.nasa.gov/specials/artemis-i/

https://www.nasa.gov/artemis-1

Read the Artemis Plan (74-page PDF Free Download): 

https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/artemis_plan-20200921.pdf

NASA's Space Launch System (SLS)

https://www.nasa.gov/exploration/systems/sls/index.html

NASA's Orion Spacecraft

https://www.nasa.gov/exploration/systems/orion/about/index.html

Credit: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Producer: Lisa Allen, Alysia Lee

Writer & Director: Paul Wizikowski

Duration: 5 minutes

Release Date: June 30, 2022

#NASA #ESA #Space #Moon #Artemis #ArtemisI #SLS #Boeing #Rocket #DeepSpace #LockheedMartin #Orion #Spacecraft #Astronauts #Mars #JourneyToMars #Science #Engineering #Technology #Exploration #SolarSystem #KSC #Florida #UnitedStates #Europe #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Tonight's Sky: July 2022

Tonight's Sky: July 2022 

In July, find the Scorpius constellation to identify the reddish supergiant Antares, which will lead you to discover a trio of globular star clusters. Keep watching for space-based views of these densely packed, spherical collections of ancient stars, as well as three nebulas: the Swan Nebula, the Lagoon Nebula, and the Trifid Nebula.

“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. 

Credit: Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI)

Duration: 4 minutes, 42 seconds

Release Date: June 29, 2022

#NASA #Astronomy #Hubble #Space #Science #Earth #Stars #Antares #StarClusters #Nebulas #SwanNebula #LagooNebula #TrifidNebula #Scorpius #Constellation #Galaxy #MilkyWay #Planets #SolarSystem #Skywatching #STScI #UnitedStates #Canada #Mexico #NorthernHemisphere #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Mars: Spring Fans and Polygons | NASA MRO

Mars: Spring Fans and Polygons | NASA MRO

Both water and dry ice have a major role in sculpting Mars' surface at high latitudes. Water ice frozen in the soil splits the ground into polygons. Erosion of the channels forming the boundaries of the polygons by dry ice sublimating in the spring adds plenty of twists and turns to them.

Black and white images are 5 km across; enhanced color images are 1 km.

NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) is the second longest-lived spacecraft to orbit Mars, after 2001 Mars Odyssey. It has been studying the Red Planet since March 2006. The spacecraft collects and relays daily science and weather data. It also scouts for landing locations for Mars landers and serves as a critical relay station for science beamed back from the Red Planet.

NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, California, manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, Washington. The University of Arizona, Tucson, operates the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on MRO, which was built by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., Boulder, Colorado.

Video Credit: NASA/Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)/University of Arizona

Narration: Tre Gibbs

Tre's website: www.tregibbs.com

Duration: 1 minute

Release Date: June 29, 2022

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Mars #RedPlanet #Planet #WaterIce #DryIce #Polygons #Terrain #MRO #Reconnaissance #Orbiter #Technology #Engineering #JPL #Pasadena #California #UnitedStates #JourneyToMars #CitizenScience #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Dawn of The James Webb Space Telescope: First Images This Summer

Dawn of The James Webb Space Telescope: First Images This Summer

"Want to discover new worlds from our world? The James Webb Space Telescope has been brought to reality by NASA and Northrop Grumman. First images out this summer."

Credit: Northrop Grumman

Duration: 1 minute

Release Date: June 29, 2022

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Telescope #JWST #JamesWebb #NorthropGrumman #Cosmos #Universe #Science #Engineering #Technology #ESA #CSA #Goddard #GSFC #JSC #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #HD #Video

NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter: Celebrating 13 Years at the Moon!

NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter: Celebrating 13 Years at the Moon!

This year, NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) celebrates its 13th anniversary orbiting the Moon. This mission has given scientists the largest volume of data ever collected by a planetary science mission at NASA. Considering that success and the continuing functionality of the spacecraft and its instruments, NASA has awarded the mission an extended mission phase to continue operations. This is LRO's 5th extended science mission (ESM5), and during this time there will be 4 major areas of focus. This video dives into those details and shows how LRO continues to be one of NASA's most valuable tools for advancing lunar science.

Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) 

Produced and Edited by: David Ladd (AIMM)

Data Visualizations by: Ernie Wright (USRA)

Spacecraft Animations by: Adriana Manrique Gutierrez (KBRwyle)

Music provided by Universal Production Music: "We're Getting Started" - Frederick Kron; "Whoop It Up" - Paul Joseph Smith.

Duration: 3 minutes, 47 seconds

Release Date: June 29, 2022

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Apollo #Artemis #Moon #Science #Geology #Lunar #LRO #Orbiter #Technology #Engineering #NASAGoddard #GSFC #Greenbelt #Maryland #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #Animations #Visualizations #HD #Video

Cygnus Departure | International Space Station

Cygnus Departure | International Space Station

European Space Agency astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti of Italy and her Expedition 67 crewmates said goodbye to the Northrop Grumman Cygnus cargo spacecraft as it departed the International Space Station (ISS). Samantha shared this image with the following caption:

"Last night on ISS for Cygnus! Vehicle is fully loaded, hatch is closed, robotic arm has grappled it for unberthing early tomorrow morning. Thanks for bringing us supplies, for the orbit reboost and….last but not least….for taking our trash! Mission Minerva."

The Expedition 67 crew on the International Space Station said farewell to a U.S. cargo craft on Tuesday morning, June 28, 2022, and is planning for the arrival of another resupply ship in mid-July. 

Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus space freighter completed its four-month cargo mission attached to the Unity module after the Canadarm2 robotic arm released it into Earth orbit at 7:07 a.m. EDT on Tuesday morning. The trash-filled commercial cargo craft will descend into Earth’s atmosphere and burn up safely above the Pacific Ocean on Wednesday. Cygnus delivered over 8,300 pounds of science and supplies when it arrived for capture and installation to Unity on Feb. 21, 2022.

Expedition 67 Crew

Commander Oleg Artemyev (Russia)

Roscosmos Flight Engineers: Denis Matveev and Sergey Korsakov (Russia)

NASA Flight Engineers: Kjell Lindgren, Bob Hines, Jessica Watkins (USA)

European Space Agency (ESA) Flight Engineer: Samantha Cristoforetti (Italy)

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.

Image Credit: ESA/NASA-S.Cristoforetti

Capture Date: June 27, 2022

#NASA #ISS #Sun #Star #Earth #Planet #Astronauts #Expedition67 #Science #Technology #Engineering #NorthropGrumman #Cygnus #Spacecraft #Cargo #CommercialResupply #Photography #JSC #OverviewEffect #OrbitalPerspective #STEM #Education