Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Monday sees the launch window open through June 22 for RocketLab’s Electron rocket, which will send a small spacecraft on a crucial NASA mission to orbit the Moon. Called the Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System Technology Operations and Navigation Experiment ( CAPSTONE ), the tiny cubesat—about the size of a microwave oven—will launch no earlier than June 25, 2022 after a several delays. By entering into an all-new, never tried before elliptical orbital path around the Moon CAPSTONE will serve as a pathfinder for two of NASA’s most important human spaceflight missions—the Lunar Gateway space station and the Artemis program of crewed slights to the Moon’s surface. Where CAPSTONE will launch from RocketLab will launch CAPSTONE on its Electron rocket and Photon spacecraft from its LC-1 B launch site on the Mahia Peninsula, New Zealand. You can follow updates (and maybe more delays) on launch times on … [Read more...] about See NASA Launch Its Unique New ‘Lunar Colonization’ Mission To The Moon This Weekend
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NASA is starting a project to study UFOs
NASA's study will be independent of the Pentagon's Airborne Object Identification and Management Synchronization Group. (Representational image) NASA is officially joining the hunt for UFOs. The space agency on Thursday announced a new study that will recruit leading scientists to examine unidentified aerial phenomena -- a subject that has long fascinated the public and recently gained high-level attention from Congress. The project will begin early this fall and last around nine months, focusing on identifying available data, how to gather more data in future, and how NASA can analyze the findings to try to move the needle on scientific understanding. "Over the decades, NASA has answered the call to tackle some of the most perplexing mysteries we know of, and this is no different," Daniel Evans, the NASA scientist responsible for coordinating the study, told reporters on a call. While NASA probes and rovers scour the solar system for the fossils of ancient microbes, and … [Read more...] about NASA is starting a project to study UFOs
NASA watchdog says the outlook isn’t good for its mega-moon rocket launcher
The NASA Office of Inspector General (OIG) published its report on the agency’s management of a second mobile launch tower for the space launch system (SLS) mega-moon rocket—and the forecast isn’t looking good. Right now, the OIG anticipates that the project will cost more than twice what was originally budgeted and will be completed roughly 2.5 years behind schedule. advertisement advertisement Some Quick background In order to launch SLS, the giant moon rocket NASA has been developing since 2011, the agency needs the ground infrastructure to support it. The mobile launcher consists of a ground platform that can withstand the blast from the rocket’s engines as it takes off. The launch tower and its many arms provide the rocket with all manner of necessary launch components, including power, fuel, remote monitoring, and communication with mission control. The ML-2 contract The first mobile launch tower for SLS, which is currently on … [Read more...] about NASA watchdog says the outlook isn’t good for its mega-moon rocket launcher
‘Pass the pepperoni’: Glimpses from a pizza party in space
Who says you cannot enjoy earthly delights in space? (Image credit: @NASA/Instagram) A group of astronauts posted at the International Space Station recently took part in a beloved earthly tradition -- pizza night. Over 400 kms above the Earth, they took on the challenge of assembling pizza toppings in microgravity. "Pass the pepperoni! The crew enjoys a family-style spread of pizza toppings," NASA wrote on Instagram while sharing photos of its astronauts Kjell Lindgren and Jessica Watkins with Russians Denis Matveev, Oleg Artemyev, Sergey Korsakov and Samantha Cristoforetti from the European Space Agency. View this post on Instagram A post shared by NASA (@nasa) Close Watkins impressed NASA with her topping-assembling skills. "Add chef to her resume," the space agency said. Crew members aboard the International Space Station have the option to choose from about 200 different items for their standard menu. The … [Read more...] about ‘Pass the pepperoni’: Glimpses from a pizza party in space
The Ikea Meatball Reimagined 8 Different Ways
In April, Ikea introduced vegan-friendly Veggie Balls alongside its beloved Swedish meatballs, a first step toward offering a wider selection of healthy, sustainable food. But if 2015 is the year of the Veggie Ball, what does the Ikea meatball of 2025, 2035, or even 2045 look like? advertisement advertisement According to Space10, Ikea’s independently-run innovation lab in downtown Copenhagen , it could be meatballs made of bugs, trash, artificial flesh, or something else entirely. Those are just some of the delectables on display in Tomorrow’s Meatball , a visual exploration of the future of food that uses Ikea’s iconic meatball as its mascot. Teaming up with chef Simon Perez in a project led by creative-in-residence [Bas van de Poel]( http://www.basvandepoel.com/ ), Space10 has a smorgasbord of eight different types of meatballs, each of which explores a different source of sustainable food. There’s the Artificial Meatball, a meatball grown … [Read more...] about The Ikea Meatball Reimagined 8 Different Ways
We’re calling this ‘the worst return to office strategy.’ Why this hybrid approach won’t work
In the annals of the return-to-office debate, many companies are taking the middle ground. Apple wants employees back in the offices three days a week, once COVID-19 rates stabilize. Citigroup, Google, and American Express are on the same track. A “three days in, two days out” or “two days in, three days out” hybrid model is emerging as a popular workplace plan, as a compromise between managers who want closer tabs on their people, and employees who feel happier and more productive working from home. But like most compromises, the 3-2 model leaves almost everyone feeling dissatisfied, prompting us to call it the “worst return-to-office strategy.” advertisement advertisement On the surface, the 3-2 model feels right: It provides a measure of autonomy that employees likely didn’t have pre-pandemic, and it increases the sense of status, certainty, and autonomy for leaders who feel the need to closely oversee their employees. In addition, … [Read more...] about We’re calling this ‘the worst return to office strategy.’ Why this hybrid approach won’t work
PCG to deploy personnel, vessels to augment AFP, PNP forces on Marcos inauguration
FILE PHOTO: Members of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) aboard BRP Teresa Magbanua (MRRV-9701). Image from PCG / Facebook MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Coast Guard will intensify its maritime patrol during the inauguration of President-elect Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., on June 30, with a plan to deploy three vessels and 10 floating assets in high-security areas. PCG Commandant Admiral Artemio Abu said in a statement Thursday that the Coast Guard will deploy three multi-response vessels and 10 floating assets to conduct an “intensified” maritime patrol at the Manila Bay and parts of the Pasig River that are within the vicinity of Malacañang restricted area. Meanwhile, around 500 PCG personnel will be deployed on the day of the event, 300 of whom will be dispatched to support the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police to ensure “maximum security,” Abu added. The rest will be on standby for possible “force augmentation,” according to Abu. … [Read more...] about PCG to deploy personnel, vessels to augment AFP, PNP forces on Marcos inauguration
How AstroAccess plans to make space more accessible
AstroAccess, a nonprofit that promotes disability inclusion in space, has partnered with the Aurelia Institute to advance astronaut diversity by doing research on zero-gravity missions. advertisement advertisement “In one sense, space is the ultimate equalizer: everyone who leaves Earth is subject to the radical experience of leaving gravity behind,” the Aurelia Institute said in a blog post this month . But in another sense, real barriers to entry still exist for astronauts—be it cost, physical access, or lack of outreach. In an effort to change this, Aurelia led the Horizon 2022 zero-gravity flight, which took place on May 22, with 25 crew participants from various organizations, including “ambassadors” for AstroAccess. The 90-minute mission simulated space flight with 20 parabolas of lunar, Martian, and zero gravity that lasted about 20 seconds each. Mission basics Each crew member on the Horizon flight had a research goal, art project, or … [Read more...] about How AstroAccess plans to make space more accessible