5 Space Software Codes We Can Use On Earth

So Close, So Far: See Juno’s first orbit of Jupiter in this amateur-created JunoCam “marble movie.” 

Credit: NASA/JPL/SwRI/MSSS/Gerald Eichstädt

An Addition to our Space Rock Collection

On October 20th, our OSIRIS-REx mission will make its first attempt to collect and retrieve a sample of asteroid Bennu, a near-Earth asteroid. On sample collection day, Bennu will be over 200 million miles away from Earth.  

Asteroids are the building blocks of our solar system. A sample of this ancient material can tell us about the history of our planet and the origins of life. Science results published from the mission on October 8th confirm that Bennu contains carbon in a form often found in biology or in compounds associated with biology.

To collect a sample, OSIRIS-REx will attempt a method NASA has never used before – called Touch-And-Go (TAG).  First, the spacecraft extends its robotic sampling arm, the Touch-And-Go Sample Acquisition Mechanism (TAGSAM) – from its folded storage position. The spacecraft’s two solar panels then move into a “Y-wing” configuration over the spacecraft’s body, which positions them safely up and away from the asteroid’s surface during touch down. This configuration also places the spacecraft’s center of gravity directly over the TAGSAM collector head, which is the only part of the spacecraft that will contact Bennu’s surface.

Finding a safe sample collection site on Bennu’s rocky landscape was a challenge. During the sampling event, the spacecraft, which is the size of a large van, will attempt to touch down in an area that is only the size of a few parking spaces, and just a few steps away from enormous boulders.

The spacecraft will only make contact with Bennu for a matter of seconds - just long enough to blow nitrogen gas onto the surface to roil up dust and small pebbles, which will then be captured for a return to Earth.

We need to conduct a few tests before we can confirm we collected a large enough sample (about 2 oz). First, OSIRIS-REx will take images of the collector head to see if it contains rocks and dust. Second, the spacecraft will spin with the TAGSAM extended to determine the mass of collected material. If these measures show a successful collection, we will stow the sample for return to Earth. If sufficient sample has not been collected, the spacecraft has onboard nitrogen charges for two more attempts. The next TAG attempt would be made no earlier than January 2021.

Despite the many challenges, the OSIRIS-REx team is ready. They’ve practiced and prepared for this moment.

Join in with #ToBennuAndBack and tune in on October 20th.

Learn more about the OSIRIS-REx countdown to TAG HERE.

Learn more about the OSIRIS-REx mission HERE, or follow the mission on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

And that’s a wrap! Thank you for all the great questions. We hope you learned a little bit about what it takes to work in mission control as a flight director.

If you’re hungry for more, you can read the latest installment of our First Woman graphic novel series, where fictional character Commander Callie Rodriguez embarks on the next phase of her trailblazing journey and leaves the Moon to take the helm at Mission Control.

Keep up with the flight directors, the Space Station, and the Artemis missions at the links below.

Flight directors: X

Artemis: Facebook: Facebook, Instagram, X

Space Station: Facebook, Instagram, X (@Space_Station), X( @ISS_Research)

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space!

Thanksgiving...in Space

Since 2000, humans have continuously lived and worked on the International Space Station. That means plenty of crew members have celebrated holidays off the Earth.

Although they’re observing the same holidays, they do so in a slightly different way because of the unique environment 250 miles above the Earth.

Consider the differences of living on Earth and in space…

Food scientists must develop foods that will be easier to handle and consume in an environment without gravity. The food must not require refrigeration and also provide the nutrition humans need to remain healthy.

Freeze drying food allows it to remain stable at room temperature, while also significantly reducing its weight.

Did you know that all the food sent to the space station is precooked? Sending precooked food means that it requires no refrigeration and is either ready to eat or can be prepared by simply adding water or by heating. 

The only exception are the fruit and vegetables stowed in the fresh food locker. The food comes in either freeze-dried containers or thermostabilized pouches. If freeze-dried in a vacuum sealed package, the astronauts have a rehydration system in-flight, which they use restore moisture in their food.  If thermostabilized, the packaging is designed to preserve the food similar to canned products, but instead in a flexible, multi-layered pouch.

So what will the space station crew eat this year (2016) for Thanksgiving?

Turkey

Cherry/Blueberry Cobbler

Candied Yams

Rehydratable Cornbread Dressing

Rehydratable Green Beans and Mushrooms

Rehydratable Mashed Potatoes

What are you bringing to Thanksgiving on Earth this year? Treat your family and friends astronaut-style with this cornbread dressing recipe straight out of our Space Food Systems Laboratory…no freeze drying required!

For spaceflight preparation:

Baked dressing is transferred to metal tray and freeze-dried accordingly. One serving of cornbread dressing shall weigh approximately 145 g prior to freeze-drying and 50 g after freeze-drying.

Learn more about our Food Systems Laboratory in this Facebook Live video: https://www.facebook.com/ISS/videos/1359709837395277/

Happy Thanksgiving!

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

Asteroid Bennu, the Storyteller

Asteroids are the storytellers of our solar system’s youth. They are the closest we can get to the original material that makes up the sun, planets, and moons.

This week, our OSIRIS-REx spacecraft made history when it touched a pristine, ancient asteroid named Bennu to collect a sample from the surface. The intrepid spacecraft will now bring the asteroid sample – and its stories – back home to Earth.

Why is it that asteroid Bennu holds the history of our origins? Let’s go back to the beginning...

About 4.5 billion years ago, our solar system began as a spinning, swirling cloud made up of tiny bits of gaseous and rocky material. Most of that material – more than 99% of it – gathered in the center and went on to become the Sun.

The leftovers began to spin around the Sun, colliding into one another and forming larger and larger objects, eventually becoming planets, dwarf planets, and moons.

But asteroids didn't become part of planets or moons. So, while the material in planets and moons were superheated and altered during the formation of the solar system and weathered by geologic processes over time, asteroids remained pristine.

Each asteroid holds knowledge from that special time in our solar system’s history. Each one contains information about the chemicals, minerals, and molecules that were present when the solar system was just starting to form.

With missions like OSIRIS-REx, we are going on a journey to these ancient worlds, seeking to learn what they remember, seeking to expand our knowledge, and deepen our understanding of our origins.

Learn more about the OSIRIS-REx mission HERE, or follow the mission on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

All Eyes on the Sky for the August 21 Total Solar Eclipse

Just two months from now, the moon will completely block the sun’s face, treating part of the US to a total solar eclipse.

Everyone in North America will have the chance to see an eclipse of some kind if skies are clear. Anyone within a 70-mile-wide swath of land — called the path of totality — that stretches from Oregon to South Carolina will have the chance to see a total eclipse.

Throughout the rest of the continent, including all 50 United States — and even in parts of South America, Africa, Europe, and Asia — the moon will partially obscure the sun, creating a partial eclipse.

Photo credit: NASA/Cruikshank

An eclipse is one of nature’s most awesome sights, but safety comes first! When any part of the sun’s surface is exposed, use proper eclipse glasses (not sunglasses) or an indirect viewing method, like a pinhole projector. In the path of totality, it’s safe to look directly at the eclipse ONLY during the brief moments of totality.

During a solar eclipse, the moon passes between the sun and Earth, casting a shadow down on Earth’s surface. We’ve been studying the moon with NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, and its precise mapping helped NASA build the most accurate eclipse map to date.

During a total solar eclipse, the moon blocks out the sun’s bright face, revealing the otherwise hidden solar atmosphere, called the corona. The corona is one of the sun’s most interesting regions — key to understanding the root of space weather events that shape Earth’s space environment, and mysteries such as why the sun’s atmosphere is so much hotter than its surface far below.

This is the first time in nearly 100 years that a solar eclipse has crossed the United States from coast to coast. We’re taking advantage of this long eclipse path by collecting data that’s not usually accessible — including studying the solar corona, testing new corona-observing instruments, and tracking how our planet’s atmosphere, plants, and animals respond to the sudden loss of light and heat from the sun.

We’ll be studying the eclipse from the ground, from airplanes, with research balloons, and of course, from space.

Three of our sun-watchers — the Solar Dynamics Observatory, IRIS, and Hinode, a joint mission led by JAXA — will see a partial eclipse from space. Several of our Earth-observing satellites will use the eclipse to study Earth under uncommon conditions. For example, both Terra and DSCOVR, a joint mission led by NOAA, will capture images of the moon’s shadow from space. Our Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter will also turn its instruments to face Earth and attempt to track the moon’s shadow as it moves across the planet.

There’s just two months to go until August 21, so make your plans now for the big day! No matter where you are, you can follow the eclipse as it crosses the country with live footage from NASA TV.

Learn more about the upcoming total solar eclipse — including where, when, and how to safely experience it — at eclipse2017.nasa.gov and follow along on Twitter @NASASun.  

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

International Space Station

The International Space Station is an important and special place that is built on international cooperation and partnership. The station is a convergence of science, technology and human innovation that benefits and advances our global community here on Earth.

While the space station is an important aspect of our low-Earth orbit exploration, it is also the key to our next giant leap to deep space and our Journey to Mars. For example, our recent VEGGIE experiment aboard the space station is a critical aspect of long-duration exploration missions farther into the solar system. Food grown in space will be a resource for crew members that can provide them will essential vitamins and nutrients that will help enable deep space pioneering.

Another important experiment underway is the Twins Study that involves twin astronauts Scott and Mark Kelly. These investigations will provide insight into the subtle effects and changes that may occur in spaceflight as compared to Earth by studying two individuals who have the same genetics, but are in different environments for one year. You can follow Scott Kelly as he spends a year in space.

The space station is the second brightest object in the sky (after the moon, of course), and you don’t even need a telescope to see it! We can even tell you exactly when and where to look up to Spot the Station in your area!

So, as you look to spot the station in the sky, remember that even though it may look small from Earth, the crew onboard (and at home) are making contributions to international partnerships and global research.

Anonymous asked:

What is the best about being mission control?

Zoom to the Moon! Astronauts will blast off to the Moon in the Orion spacecraft with NASA’s Space Launch System, the world’s most powerful rocket ever built. Help #AstronautSnoopy launch into deep space, farther than any human or bird has ever gone before. https://www.nasa.gov/feature/peanuts-toys-and-books-commemorate-50th-anniversary-of-apollo/

Do you feel fulfilled with your job and what you're doing in the world?