Four Cool Facts About Our New Rocket’s Booster Test Firing

Science in space

This week on NASA Explorers, we’re aboard the International Space Station!

Now that our scientists’ experiment has made it to space, it’s time to see how their samples behave in microgravity.

See how astronauts conduct science in space, while a team back here on Earth conducts their own piece of the project. Watch the episode here:

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NASA’s 60th Anniversary: Home, Sweet Home

Earth is a complex, dynamic system. For 60 years, we have studied our changing planet, and our understanding continues to expand with the use of new technologies. With data from satellites, instruments on the International Space Station, airborne missions, balloons, and observations from ships and on land, we track changes to land, water, ice, and the atmosphere. Application of our Earth observations help improve life now and for future generations. Since we opened for business on Oct. 1, 1958, our history tells a story of exploration, innovation and discoveries. The next 60 years, that story continues. Learn more: https://www.nasa.gov/60

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Is Earth your favorite planet? Why or why not?

Kill the lights – We’re Simulating a Moonwalk!

At the bottom of a very dark swimming pool, divers are getting ready for missions to the Moon. Take a look at this a recent test in the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory at NASA’s Johnson Space Center. NASA astronauts are no strangers to extreme environments. We best prepare our astronauts by exposing them to training environments here on Earth that simulate the 1/6th gravity, suit mobility, lighting and lunar terrain they'll expect to see on a mission to the Moon. Practice makes perfect.

The Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory at NASA's Johnson Space Center is where astronauts train for spacewalks, and soon, moonwalks.

When astronauts go to the Moon’s South Pole through NASA’s Artemis program, the Sun will only be a few degrees over the horizon, creating long, dark shadows. To recreate this environment, divers at the lab turned off the lights, put up black curtains on the pool walls to minimize reflection, and used powerful underwater lamps to simulate the environment astronauts might experience on lunar missions.

These conditions replicate the dark, long shadows astronauts could see and lets them evaluate the different lighting configurations. The sand at the bottom is common pool filter sand with some other specialized combinations in the mix.

This was a test with divers in SCUBA gear to get the lighting conditions right, but soon, NASA plans to conduct tests in this low-light environment using spacesuits.

Neutral buoyancy is the equal tendency of an object to sink or float. Through a combination of weights and flotation devices, an item is made to be neutrally buoyant and it will seem to "hover" under water. In such a state, even a heavy object can be easily manipulated, much as it is in the zero gravity of space, but will still be affected by factors such as water drag.

The Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory is 202 ft in length, 102 ft in width and 40 ft in depth (20 ft above ground level and 20 ft below) and holds 6.2 million gallons of water.

What's the most beautiful natural scene uou've ever seen personally, as in Aurora Borealis, volcanic eruption, or something that made you seem like the Earth should be treasured?

5 Reasons our Space Launch System is the Backbone for Deep Space Exploration

Our Space Launch System (SLS) will be the world’s most powerful rocket, engineered to carry astronauts and cargo farther and faster than any rocket ever built. Here are five reasons it is the backbone of bold, deep space exploration missions.

5. We’re Building This Rocket to Take Humans to the Moon and Beyond

The SLS rocket is a national asset for leading new missions to deep space. More than 1,000 large and small companies in 44 states are building the rocket that will take humans to the Moon. Work on SLS has an economic impact of $5.7 billion and generates 32,000 jobs. Small businesses across the U.S. supply 40 percent of the raw materials for the rocket. An investment in SLS is an investment in human spaceflight and in American industry and will lead to applications beyond NASA.

4. This Rocket is Built for Humans

Modern deep space systems are designed and built to keep humans safe from launch to landing.  SLS provides the power to safely send the Orion spacecraft and astronauts to the Moon. Orion, powered by the European Service Module, keeps the crew safe during the mission. Exploration Ground Systems at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, safely launches the SLS with Orion on top and recovers the astronauts and Orion after splashdown.

3. This Rocket is Engineered for a Variety of Exploration Missions

SLS is engineered for decades of human space exploration to come. SLS is not just one rocket but a transportation system that evolves to meet the needs of a variety of missions. The rocket can send more than 26 metric tons (57,000 pounds) to the Moon and can evolve to send up to 45 metric tons (99,000 pounds) to the Moon. NASA has the expertise to meet the challenges of designing and building a new, complex rocket that evolves over time while developing our nation’s capability to extend human existence into deep space.

2. This Rocket can Carry Crews and Cargos Farther, Faster

SLS’s versatile design enables it to carry astronauts their supplies as well as cargo for resupply and send science missions far in the solar system. With its power and unprecedented ability to transport heavy and large volume science payloads in a single mission, SLS can send cargos to Mars or probes even farther out in the solar system, such as to Jupiter’s moon Europa, faster than any other rocket flying today. The rocket’s large cargo volume makes it possible to design planetary probes, telescopes and other scientific instruments with fewer complex mechanical parts.

1. This Rocket Complements International and Commercial Partners

The Space Launch System is the right rocket to enable exploration on and around the Moon and even longer missions away from home. SLS makes it possible for astronauts to bring along supplies and equipment needed to explore, such as pieces of the Gateway, which will be the cornerstone of sustainable lunar exploration. SLS’s ability to launch both people and payloads to deep space in a single mission makes space travel safer and more efficient. With no buildings, hardware or grocery stores on the Moon or Mars, there are plenty of opportunities for support by other rockets. SLS and contributions by international and commercial partners will make it possible to return to the Moon and create a springboard for exploration of other areas in the solar system where we can discover and expand knowledge for the benefit of humanity.

Learn more about the Space Launch System.

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Commander Callie Continues Moon Mission in NASA’s Second Graphic Novel

You followed fictional astronaut, Callie Rodriguez, on her journey to the Moon in our First Woman graphic novel, “Issue No. 1: From Dream to Reality.”

In the brand new “Issue No. 2: Expanding our Universe,” find out how Callie and her robotic sidekick RT escape the lunar lava tunnel and what challenges await them on the lunar surface.

See Callie and her new crewmates work together as a team and navigate the unexpected as they take on a challenging mission to deploy a next-generation telescope on the far side of the Moon. Now available digitally in English at nasa.gov/CallieFirst and in Spanish at nasa.gov/PrimeraMujer!

Along with the new chapter, the First Woman app – available in the Apple and Google Play stores – has been updated with new immersive, extended reality content. Explore the lunar surface and learn about the real technologies we’re building to make living and working on the Moon – and eventually, Mars – possible.

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Which do you think you'll miss more after your first trip? Space when you're back on Earth or Earth when you're up in Space?

I think that I will miss space when I’m back on Earth. One astronaut when she returned said that gravity sucks, so I’m looking forward to finding out what that’s like.

Even star systems have identity crises. 🤷⁣ ⁣ According to data from observatories like our @nasachandraxray, a double star system has been rapidly flipping between two alter egos: a low-mass X-ray binary and a millisecond pulsar. Astronomers found this volatile double system in a dense collection of stars known as Terzan 5.⁣ ⁣ The first image from @NASAHubble shows Terzan 5 in optical light. Swipe to see the new image where low, medium and high-energy X-rays detected by Chandra are colored red, green and blue respectively. Click the link in bio for more. ⁣ ⁣

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On June 19, engineers on the ground remotely operated the International Space Station’s robotic arm to remove the Roll-Out Solar Array (ROSA) from the trunk of SpaceX’s Dragon cargo vehicle. Here, you see the experimental solar array unfurl as the station orbits Earth.

Solar panels are an efficient way to power satellites, but they are delicate and large, and must be unfolded when a satellite arrives in orbit. The Roll-Out Solar Array (ROSA) is a new type of solar panel that rolls open in space like a party favor and is more compact than current rigid panel designs.

ROSA is 20% lighter and 4x smaller in volume than rigid panel arrays!

This experiment remained attached to the robotic arm over seven days to test the effectiveness of the advanced, flexible solar array that rolls out like a tape measure. During that time, they also measured power produced by the array and monitored how the technology handled retraction.

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