Jan 7, 2013 | Ask the Expert, Blog, Education Station, Exploration, Kids Space, NASA, Our Solar System, Planet Earth, Space and Science
At least one in six stars has an Earth-sized planet – that’s the word from Francois Fressin of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA). Fressin and his colleagues have been sifting through data gleaned by NASA’s Kepler spacecraft. A new analysis of...
Jan 6, 2013 | Blog, Education Station, Exploration, Kids Space, Mars, NASA, Space and Science
A new milestone for NASA’s Mars rover Curiosity is at hand – well, within robotic arm’s reach. Possible first targets for use of Curiosity’s hammering drill are being eyed. The drill will collect powdered samples from the interior of rocks for analysis by instruments...
Jan 3, 2013 | Ask the Expert, Asteroid Exploration, Blog, Education Station, Kids Space, NASA, Our Solar System, Planet Earth, Space and Science
Data gleaned by NASA’s Dawn spacecraft during a year-long survey of asteroid Vesta have shown that impacting small asteroids delivered dark, carbonaceous material to the protoplanet. These huge impacts not only altered Vesta’s shape, but also its surface composition....
Jan 3, 2013 | Asteroid Exploration, Commercial Space, Exploration, International Space Station, Legislative Activity, Mars, NASA, Space and Science, The Moon
Thursday marked the first day of the U. S. 113th Congress, the members of the House and Senate elected in November to serve new two and six-year terms. However, before the 112th Congress adjourned, also on Thursday, the House and Senate produced a positive statement...
Jan 2, 2013 | Benefits of Space Exploration, Exploration, International Space Station, Legislative Activity, NASA, Planet Earth, Space and Science, Space Research
A rare New Year’s Day legislative session in Washington produced a response to the Fiscal Cliff — one that led to House passage late Tuesday of a Senate sponsored measure that delays for two months sharp cuts in defense and non-defense spending...
Dec 28, 2012 | Benefits of Space Exploration, Blog, Book Reviews, Education Station, Exploration, Kids Space, NASA, Space and Science, Space Research, The Moon, Why Space
Now available from the Lunar and Planetary Institute (LPI) e-book webpage is the seminal book – The Lunar Sourcebook: A User’s Guide to the Moon. This is a treasure-trove of a volume, including sections on: Return to the Moon; Current Understanding of the Moon: A Base...
Dec 27, 2012 | Ask the Expert, Ask the Experts — Answers, Benefits of Space Exploration, Blog, Book Reviews, Commercial Space, Constellation Program, Education Station, Exploration, International Cooperation, International Space Station, Kids Space, NASA, Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle, Space Shuttle, Why Space
NASA has issued an impressive volume, just right for reading as the space agency encounters a new year. NASA at 50: Interviews with NASA’s Senior Leadership is edited by Rebecca Wright, Sandra Johnson, and Steven J. Dick. The 50th anniversary of NASA on 1...
Dec 26, 2012 | Blog, Education Station, Exploration, Kids Space, NASA, Our Solar System, Space and Science, Space Research
NASA’s Dawn spacecraft that explored asteroid Vesta and is now en route to space rock Ceres is being propelled by ion thrust. Ion engines use electric fields instead of chemical reactions. Ion engines tend to be much less powerful, but they are so efficient, they can...
Dec 24, 2012 | Blog, Book Reviews, Education Station, European Space Agency, Exploration, Hubble Space Telescope, International Cooperation, Kids Space, Multimedia, NASA, Our Solar System, Space and Science, Space Research, Why Space
Here are two celestial stocking stuffers for the mind and for those still shopping – just in time for the holidays and new year! NASA has issued two new e-books, one on the Hubble Space Telescope, the other on the still-to-be-launched, next-generation space...
Dec 21, 2012 | International Cooperation, International Space Station, NASA, Roscosmos, Space Research
A Russian Soyuz capsule carrying U. S., Canadian and Russian astronauts successfully docked with the International Space Station early Wednesday, restoring the orbiting lab to six person crew operations for the first time since mid-November. Tom Marshburn, a...