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By NASA
3 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
NASA’s Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, is helping the Artemis Generation learn how to power space dreams with an interactive exhibit at INFINITY Science Center.
The engine test simulator exhibit at the official visitor center of NASA Stennis provides the chance to experience the thrill of being a NASA test engineer by guiding an RS-25 engine through a simulated hot fire test.
“It is an exhilarating opportunity to feel what it is like to be a NASA engineer, responsible for making sure the engine is safely tested for launch,” said Chris Barnett-Woods, a NASA engineer that helped develop the software for the exhibit.
Sitting at a console mirroring the actual NASA Stennis Test Control Center, users are immersed in the complex process of engine testing. The exhibit uses cutting-edge software and visual displays to teach participants how to manage liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen propellants, and other essential elements during a hot fire.
A pair of young visitors to INFINITY Science Center carry out the steps of a simulated RS-25 engine hot fire on Dec. 19. The updated engine test simulator exhibit provided by NASA’s Stennis Space Center takes users through the hot fire process just as real engineers do at NASA Stennis.NASA/Danny Nowlin INFINITY Science Center, the official visitor center for NASA’s Stennis Space Center, has unveiled a new interactive simulator exhibit that allows visitors to become the test conductor for an RS-25 engine hot fire. NASA/Danny Nowlin Users follow step-by-step instructions that include pressing buttons, managing propellant tanks, and even closing the flare stack, just as real engineers do at NASA Stennis. Once the test is complete, they are congratulated for successfully conducting their own rocket engine hot fire.
The interactive exhibit is not just about pushing buttons. It is packed with interesting facts about the RS-25 engine, which helps power NASA’s Artemis missions as the agency explores secrets of the universe for the benefit of all. Visitors also can view real hot fires conducted at NASA Stennis from multiple angles, deepening their understanding of rocket propulsion testing and NASA’s journey back to the Moon and beyond.
NASA is currently preparing for the Artemis II mission, the first crewed flight test of the agency’s powerful SLS (Space Launch System) rocket and the Orion spacecraft around the Moon.
The first four Artemis missions are using modified space shuttle main engines tested at NASA Stennis. The center also achieved a testing milestone last April for engines to power future Artemis missions. For each Artemis mission, four RS-25 engines, along with a pair of solid rocket boosters, power NASA’s SLS rocket, producing more than 8.8 million pounds of total combined thrust at liftoff.
The revitalized exhibit, previously used when the visitor center was located onsite, represents a collaborative effort. It started as an intern project in the summer of 2023 before evolving into a full-scale experience. Engineers built on the initial concept, integrating carpentry, audio, and video to create the seamless experience to educate and inspire.
The best part might be that visitors to INFINITY Science Center can repeat the simulation as many times as they like, gaining confidence and learning more with each attempt.
“This exhibit was a favorite in the past, and with its new upgrades, the engine test simulator is poised to capture the imaginations of the Artemis Generation at INFINITY Science Center,” said NASA Public Affairs Specialist Samone Wilson. “This is one exhibit you will not want to miss.” INFINITY Science Center is located at 1 Discovery Circle, Pearlington, Mississippi. For hours of operation and admission information, please visit www.visitinfinity.com.
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Last Updated Dec 20, 2024 EditorNASA Stennis CommunicationsContactC. Lacy Thompsoncalvin.l.thompson@nasa.gov / (228) 688-3333LocationStennis Space Center Related Terms
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By European Space Agency
Global warming is driving the rapid melting of the Greenland Ice Sheet, contributing to global sea level rise and disrupting weather patterns worldwide. Because of this, precise measurements of its changing shape are of critical importance for adapting to climate change.
Now, scientists have delivered the first measurements of the Greenland Ice Sheet’s changing shape using data from ESA's CryoSat and NASA's ICESat-2 ice missions.
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By European Space Agency
Video: 00:10:27 In 1975, 10 European countries came together with a vision to collaborate on key space activities: science and astronomy, launch capabilities and space applications: the European Space Agency, ESA, was born.
In 2025, we mark half a century of joint European achievement – filled with firsts and breakthroughs in science, exploration and technology, and the space infrastructure and economy that power Europe today.
During the past five decades ESA has grown, developing ever bolder and bigger projects and adding more Member States, with Slovenia joining as the latest full Member State in January.
We’ll also celebrate the 50th anniversary of ESA’s Estrack network, 30 years of satellite navigation in Europe and 20 years since ESA launched the first demonstration satellite Giove-A which laid the foundation for the EU’s own satnav constellation Galileo. Other notable celebrations are the 20th anniversary of ESA’s Business Incubation Centres, or BICs, and the 30th year in space for SOHO, the joint ESA and NASA Solar and Heliospheric Observatory.
Sadly though, 2025 will mean end of science operations for Integral and Gaia. Integral, ESA's gamma-ray observatory has exotic objects in space since 2002 and Gaia concludes a decade of mapping the stars. But as some space telescopes retire, another one provides its first full data release. Launched in 2023, we expect Euclid’s data release early in the new year.
Launch-wise, we’re looking forward to Copernicus Sentinel-4 and -5 (Sentinel-4 will fly on an MTG-sounder satellite and Sentinel-5 on the MetOp-SG-A1 satellite), Copernicus Sentinel-1D, Sentinel-6B and Biomass. We’ll also launch the SMILE mission, or Solar wind Magnetosphere Ionosphere Link Explorer, a joint mission with the Chinese academy of science.
The most powerful version of Europe’s new heavy-lift rocket, Ariane 6, is set to fly operationally for the first time in 2025. With several European commercial launcher companies planning to conduct their first orbital launches in 2025 too, ESA is kicking off the European Launcher Challenge to support the further development of European space transportation industry.
In human spaceflight, Polish ESA project astronaut Sławosz Uznański will fly to the ISS on the commercial Axiom-4 mission. Artemis II will be launched with the second European Service Module, on the first crewed mission around the Moon since 1972.
The year that ESA looks back on a half century of European achievement will also be one of key decisions on our future. At the Ministerial Council towards the end of 2025, our Member States will convene to ensure that Europe's crucial needs, ambitions and the dreams that unite us in space become reality.
So, in 2025, we’ll celebrate the legacy of those who came before but also help establish a foundation for the next 50 years. Join us as we look forward to a year that honours ESA’s legacy and promises new milestones in space.
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By NASA
4 min read
NASA Open Science Reveals Sounds of Space
A composite image of the Crab Nebula features X-rays from Chandra (blue and white), optical data from Hubble (purple), and infrared data from Spitzer (pink). This image is one of several that can be experienced as a sonification through Chandra’s Universe of Sound project. X-ray: NASA/CXC/SAO; Optical: NASA/STScI; Infrared: NASA-JPL-Caltech NASA has a long history of translating astronomy data into beautiful images that are beloved by the public. Through its Chandra X-ray Observatory and Universe of Learning programs, NASA brings that principle into the world of audio in a project known as “A Universe of Sound.” The team has converted openly available data from Chandra, supplemented by open data from other observatories, into dozens of “sonifications,” with more on the way.
Following the open science principle of accessibility, “A Universe of Sound” helps members of the public who are blind or low vision experience NASA data in a new sensory way. Sighted users also enjoy listening to the sonifications.
“Open science is this way to not just have data archives that are accessible and incredibly rich, but also to enhance the data outputs themselves,” said Dr. Kimberly Arcand, the visualization scientist and emerging technology lead at Chandra and member of NASA’s Universe of Learning who heads up the sonification team. “I want everybody to have the same type of access to this data that I do as a scientist. Sonification is just one of those steps.”
Data sonification of the Milky Way galactic center, made using data from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory, Hubble Space Telescope, and Spitzer Space Telescope. While the Chandra telescope provides data in X-ray wavelengths for most of the sonifications, the team also took open data from other observatories to create a fuller picture of the universe. Types of data used to create some of the sonifications include visual and ultraviolet light from the Hubble Space Telescope, infrared and visual light from the James Webb Space Telescope, and infrared light from the now-retired Spitzer Space Telescope.
The sonification team, which includes astrophysicist Matt Russo, musician Andrew Santaguida (both of the SYSTEM Sounds project), consultant Christine Malec, and Dr. Arcand, assigned each wavelength of observation to a different musical instrument or synthesized sound to create a symphony of data. Making the separate layers publicly available was important to the team to help listeners understand the data better.
“It’s not just about accessibility. It’s also about reproducibility,” Arcand said. “We’re being very specific with providing all of the layers of sound, and then describing what those layers are doing to make it more transparent and obvious which steps were taken and what process of translation has occurred.”
For example, in a sonification of the supernova remnant Cassiopeia A, modified piano sounds represent X-ray data from Chandra, strings and brass represent infrared data from Webb and Spitzer, and small cymbals represent stars located via visual light data from Hubble.
Data sonification of the Cassiopeia A supernova remnant, made using data from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory, James Webb Space Telescope, and Hubble Space Telescope. The team brought together people of various backgrounds to make the project a success – scientists to obtain and interpret the data, audio engineers to mix the sonifications, and members of the blind and low vision community to direct the product into something that brought a greater understanding of the data.
“Another benefit to open science is it tends to open those pathways of collaboration,” Arcand said. “We invite lots of different community members into the process to make sure we’re creating something that adds value, that adds to the greater good, and that makes the investment in the data worthwhile.”
A documentary about the sonifications called “Listen to the Universe” is hosted on NASA+. Visitors can listen to all the team’s sonifications, including the separate layers from each wavelength of observation, on the Universe of Sound website.
By Lauren Leese
Web Content Strategist for the Office of the Chief Science Data Officer
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Last Updated Dec 17, 2024 Related Terms
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By European Space Agency
Video: 00:00:00 Watch the replay of the media information session in which ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher and ESA Council Chair Renato Krpoun (CH) update journalists on the key decisions taken at the ESA Council meeting, held at ESA Headquarters in Paris on 17 and 18 December 2024.
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