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Friday’s CSExtra offers a roundup of headline making activities from across the globe. At NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, new troubleshooting into small cracks in the shuttle Discovery’s external tank gets under way early Friday. China may not be that interested in working with the United States in space. NASA works on safety criteria for new commercial crew transportation spacecraft. Airborne NASA radar spots new California earthquake potential. Astronomers enlist citizen scientists to search for alien planets. Might Pluto harbor an ice covered ocean?
1. From Spaceflightnow.com: Fuel will flow into the external fuel tank of the shuttle Discovery early Friday, as part of the troubleshooting under way at the Kennedy Space Center to determine the cause of four small cracks in the ship’s external fuel tank. Nearly 100 strain and temperature sensors will map the stresses on the tank as low temperature liquid oxygen and hydrogen flows. Discovery’s launch was scrubbed on Nov. 5 by an unrelated hydrogen fuel leak. Later, technicians found the cracks which have pushed the shuttle’s launching to no earlier than Feb. 3. Spaceflightnow.com will be updating the progress of the day long test.
http://www.spaceflightnow.com/shuttle/sts133/status.html
A. From Florida Today: The results from Friday’s test will take several days to compile. The results could clear the way for Discovery’s final mission, previously scheduled for Nov. 5, to take place as early as Feb. 3.
http://www.floridatoday.com/article/20101217/NEWS02/12170331/NASA+tests+today+for+cause+of+cracks+in+structural+braces
2. From Spacepolitics.com: After overtures from President Obama and NASA Administrator Charles Bolden inviting cooperation in space, China is apparently not interested. Working with NASA could be problematic, and China is just as content to go its own way on its own schedule, explains one China expert.
http://www.spacepolitics.com/2010/12/16/why-cant-the-us-and-china-cooperate-in-space/
3. From Spaceflightnow.com: NASA quietly releases safety criteria for commercial companies carrying passengers to the International Space Station.
http://www.spaceflightnow.com/news/n1012/16humanrating/
4. From the Los Angeles Times: A NASA funded radar instrument, the Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Apertur Radar reveals that the Easter Sunday Mexicali Earthquake has shifted surface tensions toward Southern California, raising the risk of future destructive activity. The radar has studied the landforms of the region for tell tale changes since 2009.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-earthquake-risk-20101217,0,1518879.story
5. From Spacecoalition.com: Astronomers enlist citizen scientists to assist in the search for Earth-like planets using the findings of NASA’s Kepler mission.
http://www.exploredeepspace.com/blog/citizen-call-join-the-planet-hunters
A. From Space.com: The sun’s gravity could be the key to communicating with extraterrestrial civilizations.
http://www.exploredeepspace.com/businesstechnology/sun-gravity-possible-giant-radio-telescope-101216.html
6. From NationalGeographic.com: Though far from the sun and quite cold, minor planet Pluto may harbor an ocean coated with ice, new research reveals. If true, the presence of water could improve the prospects for life on Pluto. http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2010/12/101216-pluto-ocean-solar-system-science-space/
7. From Space.com: NASA New Horizon’s probe is nearing Uranus on its fast-track to Pluto. New Horizons should reach Pluto in July 2015.
http://www.exploredeepspace.com/missionlaunches/new-horizons-pluto-fastest-spacecraft-101216.html
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