The hills in Mars’ Australe Scopuli region, located near the planet’s south pole, are covered in carbon dioxide ice. The darker areas are layers of dust. (Image credit: ESA/DLR/FU Berlin) Topics: Astrophysics, Environment, ESA, Mars, NASA, Planetary Science, Space Exploration Snow dots the Martian landscape in these images from ESA’s Mars Express orbiter and NASA’s MarsContinue reading “Mars’ Summer Solstice…”
Category Archives: NASA
Nano Over Nukes…
Heat trap The proposed nanoparticle warming method. (Courtesy: Aaron M. Geller, Northwestern Center for Interdisciplinary Exploration and Research in Astrophysics) Topics: Aerogels, Exoplanets, Mars, Materials Science, Nanomaterials, NASA, Planetary Science. Thermodynamics Suffice it to say, Mr. Musk’s nuking the Martian planet idea is impractical, and a nonstarter, but to show that he’s mature about it,Continue reading “Nano Over Nukes…”
Canceling V.I.P.E.R…
The completed VIPER rover awaits one of two fates: be sent to the Moon by an organization other than NASA or be cannibalized for its parts and instruments. Credit: NASA Topics: Astrobiology, Astronautics, Astrophysics, Chemistry, COVID-19, NASA, Space Exploration, Spectrographic Analysis “Boldly going” has budget constraints, but all is not lost. “Plan B” is atContinue reading “Canceling V.I.P.E.R…”
The Checkbook of Space Travel…
An illustration of NASA’s Orion spacecraft in orbit around the moon. (Image credit: Lockheed Martin) Topics: Astronautics, History, NASA, Space Exploration, Spaceflight Between 1969 and 1972, the Apollo missions sent a total of a dozen astronauts to the surface of the moon — and that was before the explosion of modern technology. So why does it seem likeContinue reading “The Checkbook of Space Travel…”
A Hole in the Sky…
This map shows the size and shape of the ozone hole over the South Pole on September 21, 2023, the day of its maximum extent, as calculated by the NASA Ozone Watch team. Moderate ozone losses (orange) are visible amid widespread areas of more potent ozone losses (red). NASA Earth Observatory Topics: Antarctica, Atmospheric Science, NASA, OzoneContinue reading “A Hole in the Sky…”
OSIRIS-REx…
The sample return capsule from NASA’s OSIRIS-REx mission is seen shortly after touching down in the desert at the Department of Defense’s Utah Test and Training Range. Keegan Barber/NASA Topics: Asteroids, Astrobiology, Astrophysics, NASA, Space Exploration Scientists are exulting over the safe arrival of a canister containing about a cup’s worth of asteroid rocks, collectedContinue reading “OSIRIS-REx…”
“Boldly Going” Pretty Close…
Artist’s conception of the dwarf planet Sedna in the outer edges of the known solar system. (Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/R. Hurt (SSC)) Topics: Astronomy, Astrophysics, Exoplanets, NASA, Space Exploration Astronomers are racing to explain peculiar orbits of faraway objects at the edge of our solar system. Among the many mysteries that make the furthest reaches of ourContinue reading ““Boldly Going” Pretty Close…”
Until the Next July…
This map shows global temperature anomalies for July 2023 according to the GISTEMP analysis by scientists at NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies. Temperature anomalies reflect how July 2023 compared to the average July temperature from 1951-1980. Credit: NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies Topics: Civilization, Climate Change, Existentialism, Global Warming, NASA Editor’s Note: ThisContinue reading “Until the Next July…”
Valentina Tereshkova…
Valentina Tereshkova. Credit: ESA Topics: Astronautics, ESA, History, NASA, Space Exploration, Spaceflight, Women in Science The first female cosmonaut flew years before NASA put a man on the Moon and decades before any other country would send a woman into orbit. On a drab Sunday in Moscow in November 1963, a dark-suited man stood besideContinue reading “Valentina Tereshkova…”
Fly Them to the Moon…
The Artemis 2 crew, from left to right: Jeremy Hansen, Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch. (NASA TV) Topics: Astronautics, Astrophysics, International Space Station, NASA, Space Exploration NASA has selected the four astronauts that will travel to the Moon during the upcoming Artemis 2 mission, which will be humanity’s first crewed return to theContinue reading “Fly Them to the Moon…”
Physics and Nano 