NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day

Dec 18, 2023

The Same Color Illusion

Are squares A and B the same color? They are! To verify this, either run your cursor over the image or click here to see them connected. The featured illusion, an example of the same color illusion, illustrates that purely human perceptions in science may be ambiguous or inaccurate, even such a seemingly direct perception as relative color. Similar illusions exist on the sky, such as the size of the Moon near the horizon, or the apparent shapes of astronomical objects. The advent of automated, reproducible measuring devices such as CCDs have made science in general and astronomy in particular less prone to, but not free of, human-biased illusions.

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/astropix.html?

New Shepard’s 24th Mission Will Carry 33 Science Payloads to Space

DEC 18, 2023

New Shepard will fly its 24th mission on Monday, December 18. The manifest includes 33 payloads and 38,000 Club for the Future postcards from students around the world.

The NS-24 launch window opens at 8:30 AM CST / 14:30 UTC from Launch Site One in West Texas. The webcast starts at T-20 minutes on BlueOrigin.com.

This mission will bring the number of payloads flown to space on New Shepard to more than 150. More than half of the payloads on this flight are developed and flown with support from NASA. Others come from K-12 schools, universities, and STEAM-focused organizations.

This is New Shepard’s 24th flight and 13th payload mission. The program has also completed six astronaut missions and flown 31 humans above the Kármán line. From an environmental standpoint, nearly 99% of New Shepard’s dry mass is reused, including the booster, capsule, engine, landing gear, and parachutes. New Shepard’s engine is fueled by highly efficient liquid oxygen and hydrogen. During flight, the only byproduct is water vapor with no carbon emissions.

https://www.blueorigin.com/news/new-shepard-ns-24-mission-announcement

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-rT1_bCsTw