NASA

NASA Taps Alabama A&M University to Host Break the Ice Lunar Challenge

February 1 by NASA

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4 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) Alabama A&M University Agribition Center will host the final Break the Ice Lunar Challenge featuring a large dirt-based indoor arena on 40 acres of land, offering plenty of green space to build Break the Ice’s complex testing infrastructure.Photo Courtesy: Alabama A&M University Extension By Savannah Bullard NASA has selected Alabama A&M University’s Agribition Center in Huntsville, Alabama, to host the final level of the agency’s Break the Ice Lunar Challenge, using indoor and outdoor space to ground test the finalists’ solutions. The challenge opened in 2020 to find no…

Last reply by NASA, February 1

Statement from NASA’s Jennifer Kunz at SpaceCom, 50th Space Congress

February 1 by NASA

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Jennifer Kunz, associate director, technical, at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, participates in a virtual Town Hall meeting on Jan. 13, 2022, for Kennedy employees. NASA/Kim Shiflett Jennifer Kunz, associate director technical of NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, released the following statement after speaking Thursday at the SpaceCom / 50th Space Congress in Orlando, Florida. “NASA’s Moon to Mars strategy rests on three pillars: pursuing science to better understand the universe and our origins; inspiring the next generation to achieve the seemingly impossible; and building on American preeminence in science, technology and exploration while strength…

Last reply by NASA, February 1

Lagniappe for February 2024

February 1 by NASA

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5 Min Read Lagniappe for February 2024 Explore the February 2024 issue, highlighted by NASA reaching the halfway point for the Artemis Moon Rocket Engine Certification Series, NASA’s Day of Remembrance, and what fuels a NASA Stennis Test Operations Leader. Explore the February 2024 edition featuring: RS-25 Test on Jan. 27 Day of Remembrance NASA Spinoff Gator Speaks Gator SpeaksNASA Stennis There are two reasons why the last Thursday in January and the month of February are important at NASA moving ahead as the Artemis Generation.…

Last reply by NASA, February 1

NASA to Study Effects of Radio Noise on Lunar Science

February 1 by NASA

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5 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) In February 2024, Intuitive Machines’ IM-1 mission will launch to the Moon’s South Polar region, as part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services, or CLPS, initiative. This mission is part of CLPS’ ongoing effort to bring down the cost for science investigations and technology demonstrations going to the Moon and to make them more routine in the lead-up to the Artemis landings later this decade. Among the NASA-provided research flying aboard IM-1 will be an instrument designed to observe the Moon’s surface environment in radio frequencies, to determine how natural and human-generated acti…

Last reply by NASA, February 1

Station Science 101: Studying DNA in Space

February 1 by NASA

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Long-term space exploration exposes humans to radiation that can damage deoxyribonucleic acid or DNA, which carries the genetic information for our development and functioning. Conditions in space also affect the way the body repairs such damage, potentially compounding the risk. Research on the International Space Station studies DNA damage and repair using tools and techniques to sequence, analyze, and even edit DNA. Those tools and techniques have been developed especially for use in space, which has unique safety considerations and where there are limits on the size and weight of equipment. This specialization has made this type of research possible and resulted i…

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NASA Spinoffs Feature NASA Stennis Developed Technologies

February 1 by NASA

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5 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) NASA’s 2024 Spinoff publication features more than 40 medical and other commercialized technologies using the agency’s research and development expertise. It also features new technology developed at various agency centers, including NASA’s Stennis Space Center.NASA As NASA innovates for the benefit of all, what the agency develops for exploration has the potential to evolve into other technologies with broader use here on Earth. Many of those examples are highlighted in NASA’s annual Spinoff book including dozens of NASA-enabled medical innovations, as well other advancements in 3D printin…

Last reply by NASA, February 1

NASA Employee Supports Mission While Inspiring Artemis Generation

February 1 by NASA

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Tony Goretski stands at NASA’s Stennis Space Center, where he has worked more than 24 years supporting NASA’s mission of space exploration.NASA/Danny Nowlin NASA inspires as it explores secrets of the universe for the benefit of all – just ask Tony Goretski, the senior employee in the Office of Procurement at NASA’s Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. Goretski felt the inspiration long ago on a school trip to the Gulf Coast site, vowing to one day become employed with NASA. Now, he is doing his part to support the NASA mission and inspire the next generation of great explorers – the Artemis Generation. “NASA has a phenomenal way of including ev…

Last reply by NASA, February 1

Honoring Black Astronauts During Black History Month 2024

February 1 by NASA

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In honor of Black History Month, we recognize the contributions of Black astronauts to our nation’s space programs. Coming to NASA from a variety of backgrounds as military pilots, engineers, scientists, and physicians, these astronauts have made history-making contributions participating in space shuttle missions to perform critical tasks such as deploying and retrieving satellites, performing spacewalks, conducting science and technology research, and piloting and commanding space shuttle missions. More recently, Black astronauts have played key roles in the assembly of the International Space Station, performing numerous spacewalks and robotic operations, and conductin…

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Team Mindset Fuels NASA Stennis Test Operations Leader

February 1 by NASA

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Maury Vander stands at NASA’s Stennis Space Center, where he has worked more than 30 years supporting NASA’s mission of space exploration. NASA/Danny Nowlin One thing has remained constant throughout Maury Vander’s career with NASA – the satisfaction of being part of a team working to innovate and benefit the agency and the aerospace industry at large. As chief of the Test Operations Division at NASA’s Stennis Space Center, Vander provides guidance and help with technical challenges to a group of electrical and mechanical engineers performing test operations for NASA and commercial companies. “With the test team at NASA Stennis, the work doesn’t happen because o…

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Hubble Captures a Suspected Galaxy Encounter

February 1 by NASA

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2 min read Hubble Captures a Suspected Galaxy Encounter This new NASA Hubble Space Telescope image is of the spiral galaxy UGC 3912. NASA, ESA, and C. Kilpatrick (Northwestern University); Processing: Gladys Kober (NASA/Catholic University of America) UGC 3912 is classified as a spiral galaxy … but you wouldn’t know it from this detailed NASA Hubble Space Telescope image. UGC 3912’s distorted shape is typically indicative of a gravitational encounter with another galaxy. When galaxies interact – either brush up against each other’s gravitational fields or even collide – their stars, dust, and gas can be pulled into new paths. UGC 3912 might have once been an…

Last reply by NASA, February 1

February’s Night Sky Notes: Constant Companions: Circumpolar Constellations, Part I

February 1 by NASA

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2 min read February’s Night Sky Notes: Constant Companions: Circumpolar Constellations, Part I by Kat Troche of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific Winter in the northern hemisphere offers crisp, clear (and cold!) nights to stargazers, along with better views of several circumpolar constellations. What does circumpolar mean when referring to constellations? This word refers to constellations that surround the north and south celestial poles without ever falling below the horizon. Depending on your latitude, you will be able to see up to nine circumpolar constellations in the northern hemisphere. Today, we’ll focus on three that have gems within: Auriga, Cassiope…

Last reply by NASA, February 1

The Marshall Star for January 31, 2024

January 31 by NASA

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26 Min Read The Marshall Star for January 31, 2024 Marshall Commemorates NASA’s Day of Remembrance By Celine Smith Team members across NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center congregated Jan. 25 in the lobby of Building 4221 to observe NASA’s Day of Remembrance. Each January, the agency pauses to honor members of the NASA family who lost their lives while furthering the cause of exploration and discovery, including the crews of Apollo 1 and space shuttles Challenger and Columbia. Bill Hill, left, director of Marshall’s Safety and Mission Assurance Directorate, observes Larry L…