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Astronaut Don Pettit's "Water Science" Experiments | International Space Station
Space science is fun! NASA astronaut and Expedition 72 Flight Engineer Don Pettit can be seen with spheres of water containing food coloring and creating a "planet Jupiter-like" effect in the microgravity environment of the International Space Station. Don also plays with antacid pills and water!
Roscosmos (Russia): Alexey Ovchinin, Ivan Vagner, Aleksandr Gorbunov
NASA: Butch Wilmore, Don Pettit, Nick Hague
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.
On Tuesday, September 10, 2024, SpaceX’s Falcon 9 launched the Polaris Dawn mission to orbit from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Polaris Dawn became the first crew to perform the first-ever spacewalk from Dragon, to travel the farthest (1,408 km) within Earth’s orbit since the completion of the Apollo program in 1972, and to test Starlink laser-based communications aboard Dragon.
Additionally, the crew conducted approximately 36 experiments designed to better life on Earth and on future long-duration spaceflights. Polaris Dawn also "inspired the world with a global music moment before safely returning to Earth" on Sunday, September 15, 2024.
This was the first human spaceflight for Mission Pilot Kidd Poteet, Mission Specialist Sarah Gillis, and Mission Specialist and Medical Officer Anna Menon. Mission Commander Jared Isaacman previously flew to space as commander of Inspiration4. This has also been the first time two SpaceX employees have been part of a human spaceflight crew, providing valuable insight to future missions on the road to making life multiplanetary.
The Rise of India's Private Space Firms | Bloomberg
Journalist Haslinda Amin "reveals the burgeoning role of India's private space firms and their recent advances. Through interviews with leaders and innovators, learn how they are pushing the boundaries of space."
Bloomberg's “Momentum” takes you on "a journey to the frontiers of innovation, uncovering the groundbreaking ideas and inspiring people shaping our future. Join Haslinda Amin as she explores the leading-edge and the invaluable lessons it offers our rapidly evolving world."
Launch Preparations for Shenzhou-19 Crewed Mission | China Space Station
With just a few days to go before the liftoff of the Shenzhou-19 crewed spacecraft, the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China on Saturday conducted a comprehensive drill, involving all launch systems and units, to test their readiness for the upcoming mission.
Before that, the combination of the Shenzhou-19 spacecraft and its carrier rocket had been transferred to the launch area on Tuesday, October 22, 2024.
Covering all the ground operation units, the drill simulated the entire launch process, ranging from functional checks of the launch tower, the carrier rocket and the spaceship, to flight preparations, rocket blastoff and rocket-spacecraft separation.
The three Shenzhou-19 crew members, whose names are yet to be revealed, also participated in the drill. They completed equipment checks and finished the key flight procedures in cooperation with ground personnel.
The drill also included medical examinations of the Shenzhou-19 crew, as well as a simulation of the send-off ceremony, the in-cabin status setting and post-entry procedures.
"During the whole drill, the Shenzhou-19 crew were in a very good state, and they gave very accurate commands and made skillful operations. The collaboration between the ground control personnel and the crew, as well as collaboration among the crew members was quite good. After the drill, the three astronauts will make final preparations for the launch. They will receive close medical monitoring and continue to conduct skill-based training," said Xing Lei, a staff member of the Beijing-based China Astronaut Research and Training Center.
The ground personnel recently also conducted final checks and tests of the spacesuits, food, and other equipment and materials to be used by the astronauts. In addition, they tested the in-cabin atmospheric and microbial environment, and carried out other tasks, such as cell culture for space experiments, and functional tests of the equipment that has been installed on the Shenzhou-19 spacecraft.
Currently, the Chinese space station and its equipment are all in good condition, along with the Shenzhou-18 crew, made up of astronauts Ye Guangfu, Li Cong and Li Guangsu.
A search and retrieval drill was conducted recently at the preset landing site to prepare for the Shenzhou-18 crew's return after their six-month space travel.
The three-member Shenzhou-18 crew was sent into space on April 25, 2024.
Shenzhou-18 Crew: Ye Guangfu (叶光富, commander) Li Cong (李聪, mission specialist) Li Guangsu (李广苏, mission specialist)
NASA SpaceX Crew-8 Dragon Re-entry & Splashdown | International Space Station
Crew-8 Dragon Endeavour Re-entry
Crew-8 Dragon Endeavour Re-entry
Crew-8 Dragon Endeavour Re-entry
Dragon’s four main parachutes deployed
Crew-8 Dragon Endeavour splashdown
After 235 days in space, SpaceX Dragon Endeavour and Crew-8 NASA astronauts Matthew Dominick and Michael Barratt, Jeanette Epps, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin of Russia returned to Earth and splashed down off the coast of Florida at 3:29 a.m. ET on Friday, October 25.
After safely splashing down, a NASA astronaut experienced a medical issue. NASA astronauts Matthew Dominick, Michael Barratt, and Jeanette Epps, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin were flown together to Ascension Sacred Heart Pensacola in Florida.
After medical evaluation at the hospital, three of the crew members departed Pensacola and arrived at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.
The one astronaut who remains at Ascension is in stable condition under observation as a precautionary measure. To protect the crew member’s medical privacy, specific details on the individual’s condition or identity will not be shared.
During its return to Earth, the SpaceX Dragon executed a normal entry and splashdown. Recovery of the crew and the spacecraft was without incident. During routine medical assessments on the recovery ship, the additional evaluation of the crew members was requested out of an abundance of caution.
Roscosmos (Russia): Alexey Ovchinin, Ivan Vagner, Aleksandr Gorbunov
NASA: Butch Wilmore, Don Pettit, Nick Hague
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 Station:
Astrophotographer Michael Karrer: "Last scene of this beautiful comet."
Astrophotographer Michael Karrer: "The tail becomes clearer as dusk fades. Photographically 12 degrees long, with the naked eye approx. 5 degrees. A magnificent sight! The anti-tail is faintly visible."
Astrophotographer Michael Karrer: "The comet in early twilight. Cirrus clouds gave a nice touch, even if we had to worry about them hiding the comet at some time."
Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. Austria is bordered by Germany to the northwest, the Czech Republic to the north, Slovakia to the northeast, Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the west.
C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan–ATLAS) is a comet from the solar system's Oort cloud discovered by the Purple Mountain Observatory east of Nanjing, China, on January 9, 2023, and independently found by the automated Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS) in South Africa on February 22, 2023. ATLAS is funded by NASA's planetary defense office, and developed and operated by the University of Hawaii's Institute for Astronomy. C/2023 A3 passed perihelion (closest approach to the Sun) at a distance of 0.39 AU (58 million km; 36 million miles) on September 27, 2024.
The Oort cloud is theorized to be a vast cloud of icy planetesimals surrounding the Sun at distances ranging from 2,000 to 200,000 AU (0.03 to 3.2 light-years). The concept of such a cloud was proposed in 1950 by the Dutch astronomer Jan Oort, in whose honor the idea was named. Oort proposed that the bodies in this cloud replenish and keep constant the number of long-period comets entering the inner Solar System—where they are eventually consumed and destroyed during close approaches to the Sun.
Expanding Space with Inflatable Habitats | Lockheed Martin
"We’re developing advanced inflatable softgoods technologies to support astronauts living and working in space. These durable, spacious and safe modules are designed for a variety of mission needs."
"Built entirely by our expert team, our inflatable habitats offer adaptability, repeatability and cost-effective manufacturing—paving the way for the future of space habitation."
"To learn more about how we are expanding space with inflatable habitats, visit:" https://lmt.co/3YBOgIA
"We are testing our inflatable softgoods technology to the limit, learn more:" https://lmt.co/4fkZ6Zb
Planet Mars: Dust Storm Detected | European Space Agency Mars Express
With its High Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC), the European Space Agency's Mars Express orbiter captured a Martian dust storm.
Mars Express is celebrating over 21 years at Mars!
The Mars Express mission was launched on June 2, 2003, from Baikonur, Kazakhstan, on board a Russian Soyuz rocket with a Fregat upper stage. In addition to being Europe’s first mission to Mars, Mars Express is the first fully European mission to any planet.
Orbit: 21940
Date: May 12, 2021
Time: 12:44:09.876Z
Video Credits:
Raw Data: ESA/German Aerospace Center (DLR)/Freie Universität Berlin (FUBerlin)
Image Processing: Andrea Luck, L'informatico mondo di Pipplo [active interpolation using an artificial intelligence (AI) model between frames and an upscaling to 4K]
NASA’s SpaceX Crew 8 Earth Return: Flight Highlights | International Space Station
NASA astronauts Matt Dominick, Mike Barratt, and Jeanette Epps, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin of Russia returned to Earth for a parachute-assisted splashdown off the coast of Florida at 3:29 a.m. EDT on Friday, October 25, completing their seven-month mission living and working aboard the microgravity laboratory to advance scientific knowledge and demonstrate new technologies for future human and robotic exploration flights as part of NASA’s exploration approach, including lunar missions through NASA’s Artemis program.
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched Dragon and Crew-8 to the orbiting laboratory on Sunday, March 3, 2024 from Launch Complex 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Roscosmos (Russia): Alexey Ovchinin, Ivan Vagner, Aleksandr Gorbunov
NASA: Butch Wilmore, Don Pettit, Nick Hague
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.
Video Credit: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
NASA SpaceX Crew-8 Splashdown off Florida Coast | International Space Station
Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin of Russia, left, NASA astronauts Michael Barratt, second from left, Matthew Dominick, second from right, and Jeanette Epps, right are seen inside the SpaceX Dragon Endeavour spacecraft onboard the SpaceX recovery ship MEGAN shortly after having landed in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Pensacola, Florida, Friday, Oct. 25, 2024.
NASA astronaut Matthew Dominick is helped out of the SpaceX Dragon Endeavour spacecraft onboard the SpaceX recovery ship MEGAN
NASA astronaut Michael Barratt helped out of the SpaceX Dragon Endeavour spacecraft onboard the SpaceX recovery ship MEGAN
NASA astronaut Jeanette Epps is helped out of the SpaceX Dragon Endeavour spacecraft onboard the SpaceX recovery ship MEGAN
Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin is helped out of the SpaceX Dragon Endeavour spacecraft onboard the SpaceX recovery ship MEGAN
Support teams work around the SpaceX Dragon Endeavour spacecraft shortly after it landed with NASA astronauts Matthew Dominick, Michael Barratt, and Jeanette Epps, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin of Russia aboard in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Pensacola, Florida, Friday, Oct. 25,2024.
After 235 days in space, SpaceX Dragon Endeavour and Crew-8 NASA astronauts Matthew Dominick and Michael Barratt, Jeanette Epps, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin of Russia returned to Earth and splashed down off the coast of Florida at 3:29 a.m. ET on Friday, October 25. A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched Dragon and Crew-8 to the orbiting laboratory on Sunday, March 3, 2024, at 10:53 p.m. ET from Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Roscosmos (Russia): Alexey Ovchinin, Ivan Vagner, Aleksandr Gorbunov
NASA: Butch Wilmore, Don Pettit, Nick Hague
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 Station:
NASA's Space to Ground: The Return of Crew-8 | Week of Oct. 25, 2024
NASA's Space to Ground is your weekly update on what is happening aboard the International Space Station. After 235 days in space, SpaceX Dragon Endeavour and Crew-8 NASA astronauts Matthew Dominick and Michael Barratt, Jeanette Epps, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin of Russia returned to Earth and splashed down off the coast of Florida at 3:29 a.m. ET on Friday, October 25. A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched Dragon and Crew-8 to the orbiting laboratory on Sunday, March 3, 2024, at 10:53 p.m. ET from Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Roscosmos (Russia): Alexey Ovchinin, Ivan Vagner, Aleksandr Gorbunov
NASA: Butch Wilmore, Don Pettit, Nick Hague
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 Station:
Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan–ATLAS) over Observatories in Arizona & Chile
Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan–ATLAS) graced the skies over U.S. National Science Foundation astronomical observatories in Chile and Arizona during September 2024 [no audio].
C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan–ATLAS) is a comet from the solar system's Oort cloud discovered by the Purple Mountain Observatory east of Nanjing, China, on January 9, 2023, and independently found by the automated Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS) in South Africa on February 22, 2023. ATLAS is funded by NASA's planetary defense office, and developed and operated by the University of Hawaii's Institute for Astronomy. C/2023 A3 passed perihelion (closest approach to the Sun) at a distance of 0.39 AU (58 million km; 36 million miles) on September 27, 2024.
The Oort cloud is theorized to be a vast cloud of icy planetesimals surrounding the Sun at distances ranging from 2,000 to 200,000 AU (0.03 to 3.2 light-years). The concept of such a cloud was proposed in 1950 by the Dutch astronomer Jan Oort, in whose honor the idea was named. Oort proposed that the bodies in this cloud replenish and keep constant the number of long-period comets entering the inner Solar System—where they are eventually consumed and destroyed during close approaches to the Sun.
Credit: CTIO / NOIRLab / NSF / AURA/ A. Quintana / C. Corco / H. Stockebrand / N. Bartmann (NSF NOIRLab) Duration: 50 seconds Release Date: Oct. 24, 2024
NASA's Robonaut 2 on Display | National Air & Space Museum
Robonaut 2 is seen at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum’s Steve F. Udvar-Hazy Center Thursday, Oct. 24, 2024, in Chantilly, Va. Robonaut 2, the first humanoid robot to fly to space, is displayed publicly for the first time near the space shuttle Discovery. In 2011, NASA sent Robonaut 2 to the International Space Station.
A Robonaut is a dexterous humanoid robot built and designed at NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. Researchers at NASA’s Johnson Space Center (JSC), in collaboration with General Motors and Oceaneering, designed a state-of-the-art, highly dexterous, humanoid robot: Robonaut 2 (R2). R2 is made up of multiple component technologies and systems, including vision systems, image recognition systems, sensor integrations, tendon hands, control algorithms. R2’s nearly 50 patented and patent-pending technologies can be applied to many industries, such as logistics and distribution, medical and industrial robotics.
NASA Espacio a Tierra | Visitante celestial : 18 de octubre de 2024
Espacio a Tierra, la versión en español de las cápsulas Space to Ground de la NASA, te informa semanalmente de lo que está sucediendo en la Estación Espacial Internacional.
Shenzhou-18 Crew Records Video Showcasing Work/Life | China Space Station
The Shenzhou-18 crew members aboard China's orbiting space station recently recorded a video introduction to their life and work in space—from zero-gravity exercise to carrying out experiments that could impact future lunar missions.
The crew members, Ye Guangfu, Li Cong, and Li Guangsu, were sent into space for a six-month mission in April this year and are expected to return to Earth later this month.
Ye, the crew commander, along with the other two astronauts, provided a detailed introduction to the space station, including areas for work, dining, sleeping, and conducting experiments.
According to Ye and Li Cong, the core model is the most frequently used area of the Tiangong space station where they work, eat, and sleep.
The three astronauts come from distinct regions of China, so the food they eat on the space station is customized to suit their individual tastes, said Li Cong.
The video also provided a glimpse of the Wentian and Mengtian lab modules.
In the 17.9-meter-long Wentian module that primarily focuses on life science and biotechnology research, the astronauts have grown a variety of plants and even raised zebrafish. The fish were placed in an experimental closed ecosystem.
There are an even greater number of scientific experiments being carried out in the cabinets of the 17.88-meter-long Mengtian module.
Astronaut Li Cong provided a special introduction to the cargo airlock. It serves as the main passage for extravehicular loads and equipment entering and exiting the module.
In Mengtian, there are facilities for astronauts to perform physical exercise aimed at enhancing muscle strength and combating muscle atrophy and bone density loss caused by microgravity, according to Li Guangsu.
Recently, the crew has been carrying out their tasks in an orderly manner, preparing for the handover with the Shenzhou-19 members at the space station and their return to Earth, said Ye.
The Dazzling Supernova 1987a in Nearby Large Magellanic Cloud Galaxy
This image, released on Feb. 24, 2017, shows Supernova 1987a (center) surrounded by dramatic red clouds of gas and dust within the Large Magellanic Cloud. This supernova, first discovered on Feb. 23, 1987, blazed with the power of 100 million Suns. Since that first sighting, SN 1987A has continued to fascinate astronomers with its spectacular light show. Located in the nearby Large Magellanic Cloud, it was the nearest supernova explosion observed in hundreds of years and the best opportunity yet for astronomers to study the phases before, during, and after the death of a star.
Distance: 168,000 light-years
Clouds of gas and dust in shades of red cover the top of the image and a little bit of the bottom. Right in the middle is Supernova 1987a, the remnant of an exploded star. The site of the supernova is surrounded by an illuminated pinkish ring. Two faint outer rings are also visible. Stars and galaxies shine throughout, giving off red and blue light.
A supernova is the biggest explosion that humans have ever seen. Each blast is the extremely bright, super-powerful explosion of a star.
SN 1987A represents a second type of supernova that can happen in systems where two stars orbit one another and at least one of those stars is an Earth-sized white dwarf. A white dwarf is what is left after a star the size of our sun has run out of fuel. If one white dwarf collides with another or pulls too much matter from its nearby star, the white dwarf can explode.
Image Credit: NASA, European Space Agency, R. Kirshner (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics and Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation), and M. Mutchler and R. Avila of the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI)
