Earth--Day and Night Regions

Earth--Day and Night Regions

Planetary Positions

Monday, February 13, 2012

NASA’s space exploration plans take a galactic hit – Patriot Update

NASA’s space exploration plans take a galactic hit – Patriot Update
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NASA's James Webb Space Telescope Survives Funding Battle

From Yahoo News and Time:


NASA's James Webb Space Telescope Survives Funding Battle

By MICHAEL D. LEMONICK | Time.com – 18 hrs ago
When last we heard about the James Webb Space Telescope, the souped-up, long-planned successor to the Hubble, the news was not good. Hard on the heels of a report blasting the Webb project for being badly behind schedule and over budget, a House committee voted to axe the partially completed telescope entirely.
Even a space nut could appreciate where they were coming from: originally envisioned in the 1990s as a monster scope 26 ft. (8 m) across, with more than 17 times the light-gathering power of the Hubble, the Webb was going to cost no more than $500 million and launch by 2007 -- cross NASA's heart and hope to die! No one really bought that, but no one really expected the budget to swell to $2.6 billion and then to $6.2 billion, or the launch date to slip to 2015 and then 2018 either. When all that did happen, D.C. bean counters concluded that nothing would become the Webb project quite as much as the end of it. (See photos of West Virginia's Green Bank Radio Telescope.)
Fortunately for science, though, the rumors of the project's death were greatly exaggerated. Congress ended up funding the Webb after all, and in a telephone call the other day, Scott Willoughby, the Webb program manager at Northrop Grumman (the contractor that's building the telescope for NASA), reported that the slow, meticulous process of building the most powerful stargazing instrument in history is moving steadily ahead. "In terms of the things we said we'd accomplish by now," he says, "we're on track, and in some areas, we're actually ahead of schedule."
The most significant of these milestones, says Willoughby: "We've completed -- and that's a big word -- all 18 segments of the primary mirror, which have been in production for seven or eight years now." Unlike the Hubble's big light-gathering mirror, the Webb's can't be made in one piece. That's because no rocket exists that can hold something so wide. Instead, the mirrors, made of beryllium metal with a microscopically thin coating of gold, will unfurl in space like flower petals to reach their full size. Back in December, the gold was applied, and the mirrors were being readied for testing in a cryogenic test chamber at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. That test is a critical one since engineers need to know the material can survive the frigid conditions in deep space. (See TIME's graphics "The World's Largest Radio Telescope.")
For the Webb, cold isn't just an obstacle: it's a necessity if the telescope is going to work. Astronomers have learned that many of the biggest unanswered questions of their field -- How and when did the very first stars appear? How were the galaxies assembled from those stars? How do planets form? Does the chemistry of distant planets' atmospheres suggest the existence of life? -- are best answered by looking in infrared, not visible light. To detect the faint glow of infrared, a telescope works best if it's as cold as possible, so that heat from the telescope itself doesn't contaminate the signal. In space, that's no problem.
It isn't, anyway, if the telescope can be shielded from the heat of the sun -- and even from the faint heat given off by the earth. To accomplish that, the Webb will sit atop a sunshield, about the size of a tennis court. The shield, which always stays between the Webb on one side and the sun, moon and earth on the other, is made of five layers, separated by a bit of empty space for extra cooling. (See "Giant Eye Will Peer at the Sky.")
Given that it's even bigger than the telescope itself, the sunshade will have to unfold in space as well. So the entire assembly -- telescope, mirrors, sunshade and scientific instruments -- will be unfolded on the ground for testing, and that will happen more than once. "We'll deploy each component several times as we assemble," says Willoughby, "and then the entire observatory will be stowed and deployed." It will also be shaken to simulate the rigors of launch, in a chamber originally built to test the Apollo spacecraft. "Deploy, shake, deploy," says Willoughby. "This is space. It has to work the first time."
That's all the more true because while the Hubble zips along just 300 miles (483 km) above the earth's surface, the Webb will sit closer to a million miles (1.6 million km) away, at a spot known as Lagrange Point 2, or L2. From that stable spot, where the gravity of the earth, moon and sun effectively cancel one another out, the three bodies also remain in the same direction relative to the telescope all the time, making the sunshield's cooling job easier. Simplicity and reliability are essential, because unlike the Hubble, the Webb will hardly be within reach of any astronaut repair crews.
Assuming the next six years go smoothly, the Webb telescope will undoubtedly revolutionize astronomy when it goes up in 2018. It is, however, a mixed blessing: the mission's voracious appetite for money has sucked funding from other space-science projects, and NASA is expected to announce more cuts as early as this week. Once those spectacular images start rolling in, though, it will be hard to argue that the James Webb Space Telescope was ever worth canceling.
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Sunday, February 12, 2012

NASA Eyes Plan for Deep-Space Outpost Near the Moon

From Yahoo News:


NASA Eyes Plan for Deep-Space Outpost Near the Moon

By Leonard David, SPACE.com’s Space Insider Columnist
Space.com | SPACE.com – Sat, Feb 11, 2012
NASA is pressing forward on assessing the value of a "human-tended waypoint" near the far side of the moon — one that would embrace international partnerships as well as commercial and academic participation, SPACE.com has learned.
According to a Feb. 3 memo from William Gerstenmaier, NASA's associate administrator for human exploration and operations, a team is being formed to develop a cohesive plan for exploring a spot in space known as the Earth-moon libration point 2 (EML-2).
Libration points, also known as Lagrangian points, are places in space where the combined gravitational pull of two large masses roughly balance each other out, allowing spacecraft to essentially "park" there.
A pre-memo NASA appraisal of EML-2, which is near the lunar far side, has spotlighted this destination as the "leading option" for a near-term exploration capability. [Gallery: Visions of Deep-Space Station Missions]
EML-2 could serve as a gateway for capability-driven exploration of multiple destinations, such as near-lunar space, asteroids, the moon, the moons of Mars and, ultimately, Mars itself, according to NASA officials.
A capabilities-driven NASA architecture is one that should use the agency's  planned heavy-lift rocket, known as the Space Launch System, and the Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle "as the foundational elements."
Cadence of compelling missions
The memo spells out six strategic principles to help enable exploration beyond low-Earth orbit:
  • Incorporating significant international participation that leverages current International Space Station partnerships.
  • U.S. commercial business opportunities to further enhance the space station logistics market with a goal of reducing costs and allowing for private sector innovation.
  • Multiuse or reusable in-space infrastructure that allows a capability to be developed and reused over time for a variety of exploration destinations.
  • The application of technologies for near-term applications while focusing research and development of new technologies to reduce costs, improve safety, and increase mission capture over the longer term.
  • Demonstrated affordability across the project life cycle.
  • Near-term mission opportunities with a well-defined cadence of compelling missions providing for an incremental buildup of capabilities to perform more complex missions over time.
Quiet zone
According to strategic space planners, an EML-2 waypoint could enable significant telerobotic science on the far side of the moon and could serve as a platform for solar and Earth scientific observation, radio astronomy and other science in the quiet zone behind the moon.
Furthermore, the waypoint could enable assembly and servicing of satellites and large telescopes, among a host of other uses.
If NASA succeeds in establishing an astronaut-tended EML-2 waypoint, it would represent the farthest humans have traveled from Earth to date, the memo points out.
Extended stays at EML-2 would provide advancements in life sciences and radiation-shielding for long-duration missions outside of the Van Allen radiation belts that protect Earth, scientists say.
Next step
Gerstenmaier noted that moving forward on international, commercial and academic partnerships will "require significant detailed development and integration."
Moreover, Gerstenmaier added, EML-2 "is a complex region of cis-lunar space that has certain advantages as an initial staging point for exploration, but may also have some disadvantages that must be well understood."
A NASA study team is assigned the task of developing near-term missions to EML-2 "as we continue to refine our understanding and implications of using this waypoint as part of the broader exploration capability development," the memo explains.
The study is targeted for completion by March 30, 2012.
A working group of International Space Station members — a meeting bringing together space agencies from around the world — is being held in Paris this week with NASA’s EML-2 strategy likely to be discussed with international partners.
Proving ground
Bullish on the promise of telerobotics exploration of the moon from EML-2 is Jack Burns, director of the Lunar University Network for Astrophysics Research (LUNAR) Center at the University of Colorado, Boulder. LUNAR is funded by the NASA Lunar Science Institute.
Burns and his team have been collaborating with Lockheed Martin (builder of the Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle) for more than a year to plan an early Orion mission that would go into a halo orbit of EML-2 above the lunar far side. 
"This is extremely exciting from both the exploration and science sides," Burns told SPACE.com. "This mission concept seems to be really taking off now because it is unique and offers the prospects of doing something significant outside of low-Earth orbit within this decade."
In collaboration with Lockheed-Martin, the LUNAR Center is investigating human missions to EML-2 that could be a proving ground for future missions to deep space while also overseeing scientifically important investigations.
Roadways on the moon?
In a LUNAR Center white paper provided to SPACE.com, researchers note that an EML-2 mission would have astronauts traveling 15 percent farther from Earth than did the Apollo astronauts, and spending almost three times longer in deep space. [Lunar Legacy: Apollo Moon Mission Photos]
Such missions would validate the Orion spacecraft's life-support systems for shorter durations, could demonstrate the high-speed re-entry capability needed for return to Earth from deep space, and could help scientists gauge astronauts’ radiation dose from cosmic rays and solar flares. Doing so would help verify that Orion provides sufficient radiation protection, as it is designed to do, researchers said.
On such missions, the white paper explains, Orion astronauts could teleoperate gear on the lunar far side. For instance, the moon-based robotic hardware could obtain samples from the geologically appealing far side — perhaps from the South Pole-Aitken basin, which is one of the largest, deepest and oldest craters in the solar system.
Also on a proposed lunar robotic agenda is deployment of a low-frequency array of radio antennas to observe the first stars in the early universe.
Among a number of research jobs, the LUNAR team has been investigating how modest equipment could be used to fuse lunar regolith into a concrete-like material, which could then be used for construction of large structures, without the expense of having to carry most of the material to the lunar surface.
The ability to fabricate hardened structures from lunar regolith could also foster on-the-spot creation of solar arrays, habitats, and radiation shielding and maybe, even roadways on the surface of the moon.
Leonard David has been reporting on the space industry for more than five decades. He is a winner of last year's National Space Club Press Award and a past editor-in-chief of the National Space Society's Ad Astra and Space World magazines. He has written for SPACE.com since 1999.
Follow SPACE.com for the latest in space science and exploration news on Twitter @Spacedotcomand on Facebook.
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Saturday, February 11, 2012

Sun points a loaded gun at us

Sun points a loaded gun at us
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Friday, February 10, 2012

NASA R&D should focus on 16 high-prority technologies, says study

From Fierce Government:


By Molly Bernhart Walker Comment |  Forward | Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn

A Feb. 1 NASA-commissioned report from the National Research Council identifies 16 high-priority technologies NASA should focus on in the coming years--many of which are already underway. The report also recommends NASA pull out 10 percent of funding dedicated to current programs and appropriate it to efforts advancing early, emerging technologies.
"Success in executing future NASA space missions will depend on advanced developments that should already be underway," said the report committee chairman Raymond Colladay, president of RC Space Enterprises, in a Feb. 1 National Academy of Science statement.
The most important technologies for research and development, according to the report, include environmental control and life support systems; entry, descent and landing thermal protection systems; and extreme terrain mobility.  
A total of 83--of the 295 possible technologies mentioned in NASA Space Technology Roadmap--were highlighted as "high-priority technologies" by expert panels and public comments curated by NRC. However, the steering committee behind the report constrained the number of highest-priority technologies to 16 "in the belief that in the face of probable scarce resources, focusing initially on a small number of the highest-priority technologies offers the best chance to make the greatest impact," according to the report.
All 16 of the technologies align with the technology objectives NASA has said it hopes to focus on going forward:
  • "Extend and sustain human activity beyond low Earth orbit;"
  • "Explore the evolution of the solar system and the potential for life elsewhere;" and
  • "Expand our understanding of the Earth and the universe in which we live."
NRC report authors recommend NASA's office of the chief technologist prioritize funding among the most promising of the 16 technologies listed by NRC.
NASA's OCT should also set milestones for the advancement of this technology and make related scientific and technical data more readily available to industry, in order to promote collaboration and shared priorities, says the report.
Colladay said that if NASA focuses on the 16 recommended technology priorities and sticks with its Space Technology Roadmap, it will have "the means to achieve its long-term goals."
For more:
- see the press release
- read the report
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Friday, February 3, 2012

The Night Sky This Month (February 2012)

From NightSkyInfo:

The Night Sky This Month (February 2012)

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Key Stars

The Winter Triangle formed by the stars Sirius (Alpha Canis Majoris),
Procyon (Alpha Canis Minoris) and Betelgeuse (Alpha Orionis) remains
prominent in the evening sky, throughout February. Other stars well
placed for observing are Rigel (Beta Orionis) and Aldebaran (Alpha
Tauri), both in the southwest. Castor (Alpha Geminorum) and Pollux
(Beta Geminorum), the twin stars of Gemini, are high in the south,
and at the same time orange Arcturus (Alpha Bootis) is rising on the
eastern horizon.

The Planets

Mercury

During the month's final days, Mercury, the innermost and smallest
planet of the solar system, hugs the western horizon right after
sunset. A good night to look is February 22, when a waxing crescent
Moon lies 5 degrees to Mercury's right.

Venus

Shining brilliantly in the southwestern sky soon after sunset, Venus
will immediately grab your attention. On February 1, the planet glows
at magnitude -4.1 and does not set until around 8:30 P.M. local time.
By month's end, Venus remains visible until 9:30 P.M. local time and
also shines brighter, at magnitude 4.2.

Mars

Mars pokes above the eastern horizon around 8 P.M. local time and is
well up in the south soon after midnight. The planet is on its way to
opposition next month, when it will be at its closest approach to
Earth and will reach a width of 14". Right now, the disk is less than
13"-wide, making it harder to see fine surface detail even with large
apertures.

Jupiter

The solar system's largest planet glares in the southwest during
evening, among the background stars of Aries, an inconspicuous
constellation of the zodiac located between Pisces to the west and
Taurus to the east. You will not need any help spotting Jupiter; at
magnitude -2.3 it is the second-brightest point of light in the sky
and stands out on any clear evening.

Saturn

This month, Saturn rises shortly before midnight and is 40 degrees
high in the south as dawn begins. The ringed planet resides among the
background stars of Virgo the Maiden and remains within about 5
degrees of the blue-white star Spica all month. Through a telescope,
Saturn sports an angular size of 18", while the rings span 41" and
tilt 15 degrees to our line of sight.

Uranus

Uranus lies in the same binocular field of view as Lambda Piscium,
the star that forms the southeast corner of the "Circlet" in Pisces,
and is itself an easy binocular target. The planet glows at magnitude
+5.9 and looks just like a star of that brightness. A telescope easily
reveals its 3.3"-diameter disk, which has a distinct blue-green color.

Neptune

Neptune is too deep in the solar glare and cannot be observed until
early April, when it will reappear in the morning sky.

Pluto

Pluto lies in northwestern Sagittarius and stands 30 degrees high in
the southeast shortly before dawn. The dwarf planet glows dimly at
magnitude +14, which means you will need an 8-inch telescope to have
a decent chance of spotting this glimmer of light.

Bright Asteroids

433 Eros

Asteroid 433 Eros comes to opposition (the point in its orbit that is
roughly closest to the Earth) every two to three years. Normally, it
rarely brightens above 10th magnitude, but occasionally the asteroid
comes close enough to Earth to show up through small telescopes. The
last time this happened was in 1975 and it happens again this winter,
when Eros reaches about magnitude +8.5. Eros begins the month in the
small constellation Sextans and heads south into much larger Hydra.
Wait to observe until late evening, when this region has climbed
fairly high in the south.

Bright Comets

C/2009 P1 Garradd

In early February, comet Garradd can be found in the constellation
Hercules, but by mid-month it passes the border into neighboring
Draco. According to recent reports, it should glow at 7th magnitude.
The key to finding C/2009 P1 Garradd is to start about two hours
before sunrise from a site that has an unobstructed view of the
northeastern horizon. Do not let the magnitude fool you into thinking
this will be an easy target from the city. Urban sky glow will easily
make the comet disappear.

Meteor Showers

The Virginids

The Virginids are a vast complex of a dozen or so radiants that
become active in late January and persist until mid-April, without
reaching a definite peak. Meteors from this stream appear at a slow
speed (about 20 miles per second) from a large radiant that measures
15 degrees by 10 degrees in size. Throughout February, the radiant is
located midway between the constellations Leo and Virgo and rises
around 7 P.M. local time.

Sky Events

February 1 - The Moon is 3.3 degrees south of the Pleiades at 12:42
P.M. EST.

February 7 - Mercury is in superior conjunction with the Sun. Full
Moon at 4:54 P.M. EST.

February 11 - The Moon is at perigee, the point in its orbit when it
is nearest to Earth.

February 12 - The Moon is 1.8 degrees south of Spica (Alpha Virginis)
at 7:47 A.M. EST.

February 14 - Last Quarter Moon at 12:04 P.M. EST.

February 19 - Neptune is in conjunction with the Sun.

February 21 - New Moon at 5:35 P.M. EST.

February 25 - The Moon is 3.6 degrees north of Venus at 4:44 P.M.
EST.

February 27 - The Moon is 4.3 degrees north of Jupiter at 1:16 A.M.
EST. The Moon is at apogee, the point in its orbit when it is
farthest from Earth.

February 28 - The Moon is 3.6 degrees south of the Pleiades at 8:46
P.M. EST.

February 29 - First Quarter Moon at 8:22 P.M. EST.
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