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Wednesday’s CSExtra presents the latest reporting and commentary on space related activities from around the globe. NASA keeps an eye on Tropical Storm Emily, as it prepares to launch the Jupiter bound Juno probe on Friday. NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center establishes a new propulsion institute. The Texas drought exposes debris from shuttle Columbia. The sun unleashes a coronal mass ejection toward the Earth on Tuesday. Seattle celebrates the landmark Space Needle with a contest for a free suborbital spaceflight. Why study the universe? A dark matter cache. An explanation for the rise of alien cinema.
1. From Florida Today: Forecasters expect favorable weather for the scheduled launching of NASA’s $1.1 billion Jupiter bound Juno probe on Friday at 11:34 a.m., EDT. However, experts are keeping an eye on Tropical Storm Emily, in the Caribbean and on a northeasterly track. The outlook gets worse for the weekend.
http://www.floridatoday.com/article/20110802/BREAKINGNEWS/308030001/NASA-keeps-eye-Tropical-Storm-Emily-Juno-launch-nears
2. From Space.com: Cosmonauts Sergei Volkov and Alexander Samokutyaev plan a six hour spacewalk outside the International Space Station on Wednesday. During the excursion, they will deploy a student satellite and move a cargo crane. http://www.exploredeepspace.com/12526-russian-cosmonauts-space-station-spacewalk-ham-radio-satellite.html
3. From the Huntsville Times: NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center announces creation of the National Institute for Rocket Propulsion Systems. The institute, which could be up and running by 2014, will focus on the preservation of current U. S. propulsion capabilities, while identifying technical needs to keep the U. S. at the forefront of the field., according to the Huntsville Times. http://blog.al.com/spacenews/2011/08/new_propulsion_center_would_pu.html
4. From Collectspace.com and space.com: In Texas, the serious drought exposes debris from shuttle Columbia in Lake Nacogdoches. Columbia disintegrated over East Texas and Louisiana as it descended to Earth on Feb. 1, 2003, following a 16-day orbital research flight. The newly found debris is a 40-inch spherical tank from the shuttle’s electrical system. Eventually, it will join other Columbia debris in the Vehicle Assembly Building at the Kennedy Space Center. Columbia’s breakup claimed seven lives.
http://www.collectspace.com/news/news-080211a.html
5. From spaceweather.com: The sun erupted on Tuesday, producing a major solar flare that hurled a Coronal Mass Ejection directly toward the Earth. Geomagnetic storms are possible as the CME collides with the Earth’s magnetic field on Friday. NASA’s SOHO, STEREO-A and STEREO-B spacecraft are monitoring. For updates, see: http://www.spaceweather.com
6. From America on Line.com: In Seattle, organizers plan to mark the 50th anniversary of the Space Needle with a contest. The winner will receive a suborbital space flight through Space Adventures, Ltd.
http://news.travel.aol.com/2011/08/01/space-needle-gets-into-commercial-space-race-with-contest/
7. From CNN.com: In an op-ed, Yale University astrophysicist Meg Urry tackles a seminal theme among space enthusiasts: why pursue an understanding of the universe? Fundamental knowledge can pay huge economic dividends down the line, Urry explains.
http://edition.cnn.com/2011/OPINION/08/02/urry.astro.physics/
8. From Space.com: Astronomers find a record cache of dark matter associated with the galaxy, Segue 1. The small collection of dim stars resides just outside the Milky Way galaxy.
http://www.exploredeepspace.com/12506-dark-matter-packed-galaxy-segue1.html
9. From Space.com: Notice a recent rise in science fiction films that feature alien encounters? The trend may be linked to the work of NASA’s Kepler planet hunter and other efforts by scientists to identify exo-planets with conditions where life as we know it might arise, say experts.
http://www.exploredeepspace.com/12498-alien-movies-extraterrestrial-life-real-science.html
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