TYB
NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day
June 28, 2024
Comet 13P/Olbers
Not a paradox, Comet 13P/Olbers is returning to the inner Solar System after 68 years. The periodic, Halley-type comet will reach its next perihelion or closest approach to the Sun on June 30 and has become a target for binocular viewing low in planet Earth's northern hemisphere night skies. But this sharp telescopic image of 13P is composed of stacked exposures made on the night of June 25. It easily reveals shifting details in the bright comet's torn and tattered ion tail buffeted by the wind from an active Sun, along with a broad, fanned-out dust tail and slightly greenish coma. The frame spans over two degrees across a background of faint stars toward the constellation Lynx.
https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/astropix.html?
NASA Shares Two New Moon to Mars Architecture White Papers
JUN 28, 2024
NASA has released two white papers associated with the agency’s Moon to Mars architecture efforts. The papers, one on lunar mobility drivers and needs, and one on lunar surface cargo, detail NASA’s latest thinking on specific areas of its lunar exploration strategy.
While NASA has established a yearly cadence of releasing new documents associated with its Moon to Mars architecture, the agency occasionally releases mid-cycle findings to share essential information in areas of interest for its stakeholders.
“Lunar Mobility Drivers and Needs” discusses the need to move cargo and assets on the lunar surface, from landing sites to points of use, and some of the factors that will significantly impact mobility systems.
“Lunar Surface Cargo” analyses some of the current projected needs — and identifies current capability gaps — for the transportation of cargo to the lunar surface.
The Moon to Mars architecture approach incorporates feedback from U.S. industry, academia, international partners, and the NASA workforce.
The agency typically releases a series of technical documents at the end of its annual analysis cycle, including an update of the Architecture Definition Document and white papers that elaborate on frequently raised topics.
Under NASA’s Artemis campaign, the agency will establish the foundation for long-term scientific exploration at the Moon, land the first woman, first person of color, and its first international partner astronaut on the lunar surface, and prepare for human expeditions to Mars for the benefit of all.
https://www.nasa.gov/humans-in-space/nasa-shares-two-new-moon-to-mars-architecture-white-papers/
https://www.nasa.gov/moontomarsarchitecture/
NASA, Boeing to Provide Commercial Crew, Space Station Update
JUN 27, 2024
Leadership from NASA’s International Space Station and Commercial Crew Programs, as well as Boeing, will participate in a media teleconference at 2 p.m. EDT Friday, June 28.
NASA and Boeing continue to evaluate Starliner’s propulsion system performance before returning from the International Space Station as part of the agency’s Crew Flight Test.
The agency also will discuss recent station operations. Audio of the call will stream live on the agency’s website:
https://www.nasa.gov/nasatv
Participants include:
Ken Bowersox, associate administrator, NASA’s Space Operations Mission Directorate
Steve Stich, manager, NASA’s Commercial Crew Program
Bill Spetch, operations integration manager, NASA’s International Space Station Program
Emily Nelson, chief flight director, NASA’s Johnson Space Center
Mark Nappi, vice president and program manager, Commercial Crew Program, Boeing
https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/nasa-boeing-to-provide-commercial-crew-space-station-update/
https://science.nasa.gov/science-research/heliophysics/alphabet-soup-nasas-gold-finds-surprising-c-x-shapes-in-atmosphere/
Alphabet Soup: NASA’s GOLD Finds Surprising C, X Shapes in Atmosphere
JUN 27, 2024
Who knew Earth’s upper atmosphere was like alphabet soup?
NASA’s Global-scale Observations of the Limb and Disk (GOLD) mission has revealed unexpected C- and X-shaped formations in an electrified layer of gas high above our heads called the ionosphere.
While these alphabetical shapes have been observed before, GOLD sees them more clearly than other instruments have and is now finding them where and when scientists didn’t expect.
Their surprise appearances prove that we have more to learn about the ionosphere and its effects on communication and navigation signals that pass through it.
Earth’s Dynamic Interface to Space
Extending some 50 to 400 miles overhead, the ionosphere becomes electrically charged during the daytime when sunlight strikes our planet and its energy knocks electrons off atoms and molecules.
This creates a soup of charged particles, known as plasma, that allows radio signals to travel over long distances.
Near Earth’s magnetic equator, charged particles are funneled upward and outward along magnetic field lines, creating two dense bands of particles north and south of the equator that scientists call crests.
As night falls and the Sun’s energy fades, low-density pockets in the plasma, called bubbles, can form in the ionosphere. Because of their varying density, the crests and bubbles can interfere with radio and GPS signals.
While previous observations provided brief glimpses of crests and bubbles in the ionosphere, GOLD monitors these features over extended periods of time.
That’s thanks to its geostationary orbit, which circles our planet at the same rate Earth rotates, allowing GOLD to hover over the Western Hemisphere.
Unexpected X-Shaped Crests from Quiet Conditions
The ionosphere is sensitive to disturbances from both space and terrestrial weather. GOLD has previously revealed that after a solar storm or huge volcanic eruption, the crests in the ionosphere can merge to form an X shape.
But now, GOLD has seen an X shape form on multiple occasions when there were no such disturbances — what scientists refer to as “quiet time.”
“Earlier reports of merging were only during geomagnetically disturbed conditions — it is an unexpected feature during geomagnetic quiet conditions,” said Fazlul Laskar, of the University of Colorado’s Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP), who is the lead author of a paper about this discovery published in April 2024 by the Journal of Geophysical Research: Space Physics.
1/2
These unexpected appearances tell scientists that something else must be involved in forming these X shapes. Computer models suggest that the X could develop when changes in the lower atmosphere pull plasma downward.
“The X is odd because it implies that there are far more localized driving factors,” said Jeffrey Klenzing, a scientist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, who studies the ionosphere.
“This is expected during the extreme events, but seeing it during ‘quiet time’ suggests that the lower atmosphere activity is significantly driving the ionospheric structure.”
C-Shaped Bubbles Point to Strong Turbulence
GOLD has also found surprising C-shaped plasma bubbles that point to other puzzling dynamics influencing the ionosphere.
Most plasma bubbles appear long and straight, forming along magnetic field lines. But some bubbles are curved into C shapes and reverse-C shapes, which scientists think are shaped by terrestrial winds.
Computer models suggest a C-shape forms if winds increase with altitude at the magnetic equator and a reverse-C forms if the winds decrease with altitude.
“It’s a little like a tree growing in a windy area,” explains Klenzing. “If the winds are typically to the east, the tree starts to tilt and grow in that direction.”
In a paper published in November 2023 in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Space Physics, LASP scientist Deepak Karan and colleagues report that GOLD has observed C-shaped and reverse-C-shaped plasma bubbles appearing surprisingly close together — as close as about 400 miles apart (roughly the distance between Baltimore and Boston).
“Within that close proximity, these two opposite-shaped plasma bubbles had never been thought of, never been imaged,” said Karan. To have wind patterns change course in such a small area, Karan thinks some sort of strong turbulence — like a vortex, wind shear, or tornado-like activity — is likely at play in the atmosphere.
“The fact that we have very different shapes of bubbles this close together tells us that the dynamics of the atmosphere is more complex than we expected,” Klenzing said.
These close pairings appear to be rare, with only two instances recorded by GOLD so far. Yet because these features can disrupt critical communication and navigation technology, “It’s really important to find out why this is happening,” Karan said.
“If a vortex or a very strong shear in the plasma has happened, this will completely distort the plasma over that region. Signals will be lost completely with a strong disturbance like this.”
Scientists hope GOLD’s continued observations, combined with those from other heliophysics missions, can help unlock these mysteries of the ionosphere and their effects on our lives.
2/2
NASA Prepares for Air Taxi Passenger Comfort Studies
JUN 27, 2024
A new custom virtual reality flight simulator built by NASA researchers will allow them to explore how passengers experience air taxi rides and collect data that will help designers create new aircraft with passenger comfort in mind.
Wayne Ringelberg, a test pilot at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, recently completed a series of test rides in the new simulator to help the team make adjustments before other users are involved for the first research study later this year.
“This project is leveraging our research and test pilot aircrew with vertical lift experience to validate the safety and accuracy of the lab in preparation for test subject evaluations,” said Ringelberg.
“The experiments in the ride quality lab will inform the advanced air mobility community about the acceptability of the motions these aircraft could make, so the general public is more likely to adopt the new technology.”
Ringelberg was secured into the seat on top of the simulator’s platform, wearing a virtual reality headset and headphones.
His simulated air taxi ride started with a takeoff from a conceptual vertiport on top of a parking garage in downtown San Francisco, California, constructed by NASA engineers in the virtual world.
As the programed ride took him through downtown San Francisco and landed at another vertiport on top of a skyscraper, Ringelberg evaluated the realism and consistency of the simulation’s visual, motion, and audio cues.
He then provided feedback to the research team.
With pilot checkouts complete, NASA researchers will conduct a series of human subject research studies over the next four years.
The goal is to gather information that will help the industry better understand what makes flying in an air taxi comfortable and enjoyable for customers.
This simulator is the centerpiece of NASA Armstrong’s virtual reality passenger ride quality laboratory. The laboratory combines virtual reality visuals, physical motion cues, and spatialized rotor sounds to create an immersive air taxi passenger experience.
The work is managed by the Revolutionary Vertical Lift Technology project under NASA’s Advanced Air Vehicles Program in support of NASA’s Advanced Air Mobility mission, which seeks to deliver data to guide the industry’s development of electric air taxis and drones.
https://www.nasa.gov/centers-and-facilities/armstrong/nasa-prepares-for-air-taxi-passenger-comfort-studies/
Tour the famous 'Pillars of Creation' with gorgeous new 3D views from Hubble and JWST
June 27, 2024
In 1995, the Hubble Space Telescope released images of the Pillars of Creation — stunning effervescent clouds of interstellar dust and gas, the place where stars are born.
Now, combining data from Hubble and the James Webb Space Telescope, NASA has released a gorgeous 3D visualization of the cosmic structures in both visible and infrared light.
"By flying past and amongst the pillars, viewers experience their three-dimensional structure and see how they look different in the Hubble visible-light view versus the Webb infrared-light view," principal visualization scientist Frank Summers said in a statement.
"The contrast helps them understand why we have more than one space telescope to observe different aspects of the same object," he continued.
The Pillars of Creation, which lie about 5,700 light-years from Earth, are composed of cool molecular hydrogen and dust. Due to strong winds and radiation from young nearby hot stars, the pillars are starting to get stripped of their contents.
Long, finger-like structures can be seen emerging from the top of the pillars, which are larger than our own solar system.
Inside these structures, hydrogen and dust is gravitationally collapsing into new, infant stars. These new stars will add to the continued dispersion of materials within the pillars.
The tallest of the pillars spans 3 light-years from top to bottom — three-quarters of the distance between the sun and our closest star.
The newly released video is based on observational data gathered for a study authored by Anna McLeod from the University of Durham in England, who also worked as a scientific advisor for the visualization project.
"When we combine observations from NASA's space telescopes across different wavelengths of light, we broaden our understanding of the universe," said Mark Clampin, Astrophysics Division director at NASA Headquarters in Washington.
"The Pillars of Creation region continues to offer us new insights that hone our understanding of how stars form. Now, with this new visualization, everyone can experience this rich, captivating landscape in a new way," Clampin added.
Throughout the visualization, viewers can catch glimpses of stars at different stages of formation. For example, at the top of the central pillar, viewers can see an embedded infant protostar, which is bright red when seen in infrared light.
Close to the top of the left pillar is a diagonal jet of material being ejected from a newborn star, though viewers can't see the star itself. And at the end of the left pillars' "fingers," viewers can see a blazing newly formed star.
https://www.space.com/pillars-of-creation-3d-tour-hubble-jwst-video
https://science.nasa.gov/missions/webb/first-of-its-kind-detection-made-in-striking-new-webb-image/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=82Ickbpnkj8
SpaceX NROL-186 Mission Launch
SpaceX is targeting Friday, June 28 for a Falcon 9 launch of the NROL-186 mission from Space Launch Complex 4 East (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.
The two-hour launch window opens at 8:14 p.m. PT. If needed, a backup opportunity is available on Saturday, June 29 starting at 8:00 p.m. PT.
A live webcast of this mission will begin about 10 minutes prior to liftoff, which you can watch here and on X @SpaceX.
This is the eighth flight for the first stage booster supporting this mission, having previously launched Crew-7, CRS-29, PACE, Transporter-10, EarthCARE, and two Starlink missions.
Following stage separation, the first stage will land on the Of Course I Still Love You droneship, which will be stationed in the Pacific Ocean.
https://www.spacex.com/launches/mission/?missionId=nrol-186