NASA Archives

December 17, 2014December 23, 2015 by Ken Kremer

SpaceX Falcon 9 Rocket to Attempt Daring Ocean Platform Landing with Next Launch

SpaceX Falcon 9 first stage rocket will attempt precison landing on this autonomous spaceport drone ship soon after launch set for Dec. 19, 2014 from Cape Canaveral, Florida. Credit: SpaceX/Elon Musk

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FL – In a key test of rocket reusability, SpaceX will attempt a daring landing of their Falcon 9 first stage rocket on an ocean platform known as the “autonomous spaceport drone ship” following the planned Friday, Dec. 19, blastoff on a high stakes mission to the International Space Station (ISS).

The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the Dragon cargo freighter is slated to liftoff on its next unmanned cargo run, dubbed CRS-5, to the ISS under NASA’s Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) contract. In a late development, there is a possibility the launch could be postponed to January 2015.

The instantaneous launch window for the Falcon 9/Dragon is slated for 1:20 p.m from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

As the Dragon proceeds to orbit, SpaceX engineers will attempt to recover the Falcon 9 first stage via a precision landing for the first time “on a custom-built ocean platform known as the autonomous spaceport drone ship,” according to a SpaceX statement.

Testing operation of Falcon 9 hypersonic grid fins (x-wing config) launching on next Falcon 9 flight, CRS-5. Credit: SpaceX/Elon Musk

“While SpaceX has already demonstrated two successful soft water landings, executing a precision landing on an unanchored ocean platform is significantly more challenging.”

SpaceX rates the chances of success at “perhaps 50% at best.”

Of course since this has never been attempted before, tons of planning is involved and lots can go wrong.

But this is space exploration, and it’s not for the meek and mild.

It’s time to go boldly where no one has gone before and expand the envelope if we hope to achieve great things.

The 14 story Falcon 9 will be zooming upwards at 1300 m/s (nearly 1 mi/s). Engineers will then relight the Merlin 1D first stage engines to stabilize and lower the rocket.

Four hypersonic grid fins had been added to the first stage and placed in an X-wing configuration. They will be deployed only during the reentry attempt and will be used to roll, pitch, and yaw the rocket in concert with gimballing of the engines.

Here’s a description from SpaceX:

“To help stabilize the stage and to reduce its speed, SpaceX relights the engines for a series of three burns. The first burn—the boostback burn—adjusts the impact point of the vehicle and is followed by the supersonic retro propulsion burn that, along with the drag of the atmosphere, slows the vehicle’s speed from 1300 m/s to about 250 m/s. The final burn is the landing burn, during which the legs deploy and the vehicle’s speed is further.”

“To complicate matters further, the landing site is limited in size and not entirely stationary. The autonomous spaceport drone ship is 300 by 100 feet, with wings that extend its width to 170 feet. While that may sound huge at first, to a Falcon 9 first stage coming from space, it seems very small. The legspan of the Falcon 9 first stage is about 70 feet and while the ship is equipped with powerful thrusters to help it stay in place, it is not actually anchored, so finding the bullseye becomes particularly tricky. During previous attempts, we could only expect a landing accuracy of within 10km. For this attempt, we’re targeting a landing accuracy of within 10 meters.”

Watch for Ken’s ongoing SpaceX launch coverage from onsite at the Kennedy Space Center.

Stay tuned here for Ken’s continuing Earth and planetary science and human spaceflight news.

Ken Kremer

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Learn more about SpaceX, Orion, Antares, NASA missions and more at Ken’s upcoming outreach events:

Dec 18: “SpaceX CRS-5, Orion EFT-1, Antares Orb-3 launch, Curiosity Explores Mars,” Kennedy Space Center Quality Inn, Titusville, FL, evenings

December 17, 2014December 23, 2015 by Tim Reyes

NASA’s Curiosity Rover detects Methane, Organics on Mars

After a 20 month trek across Mars and careful analysis of data, NASA scientists have announced two separate detection of organics - in the surface and the air of Mars. (Photo Credit: NASA/JPL, Illustration - T. Reyes)

On Tuesday, December 16, 2014, NASA scientists attending the American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting in San Francisco announced the detection of organic compounds on Mars. The announcement represents the discovery of the missing “ingredient” that is necessary for the existence – past or present – of life on Mars.

Indeed, the extraordinary claim required extraordinary evidence – the famous assertion of Dr. Carl Sagan. The scientists, members of the Mars Science Lab – Curiosity Rover – mission, worked over a period of 20 months to sample and analyze Martian atmospheric and surface samples to arrive at their conclusions. The announcement stems from two separate detections of organics: 1) ten-fold spikes in atmospheric Methane levels, and 2) drill samples from a rock called Cumberland which included complex organic compounds.

The Tunable Laser Spectrometer, one of the tools within the Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) laboratory on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover. By measuring absorption of light at specific wavelengths, it measures concentrations of methane, carbon dioxide and water vapor in Mars' atmosphere. (Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech) — The Tunable Laser Spectrometer, one of the tools within the Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) laboratory on NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover. By measuring absorption of light at specific wavelengths, it measures concentrations of methane, carbon dioxide and water vapor in Mars’ atmosphere. (Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech)

Methane, of the simplest organic compounds, was detected using the Sample Analysis at Mars instrument (SAM). This is one of two compact laboratory instruments embedded inside the compact car-sized rover, Curiosity. Very soon after landing on Mars, the scientists began to use SAM to periodically measure the chemical content of the Martian atmosphere. Over many samples, the level of Methane was very low, ~0.9 parts per billion. However, that suddenly changed and, as scientists stated in the press conference, it was a “wow” moment that took them aback. Brief daily spikes in Methane levels averaging 7 parts per billion were detected.

The detection of methane at Mars has been claimed for decades, but more recently, in 2003 and 2004, independent research teams using sensitive spectrometers on Earth detected methane in the atmosphere of Mars. One group led by Vladimir Krasnopolsky of Catholic University, and another led by Dr. Michael Mumma from NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, detected broad regional and temporal levels of Methane as high as 30 parts per billion. Those announcements met with considerable skepticism from the scientific community. And the first atmospheric measurements by Curiosity were negative. However, neither group backed down from their claims.

Regions where methane appears notably localized in Northern Summer (A, B1, B2), andtheir relationship to mineralogical and geo-morphological domains. (A.) Observations of methane near the Syrtis Major volcanic district. (B.) Geologic map of Greeley and Guest (41) superimposed on the topographic shaded-relief from MOLA (42). The most ancient terrain (Npld, Nple) is Noachian in age (~3.6 - 4.5 billion years old, when Mars was wet), and is overlain by volcanic deposits from Syrtis Major of Hesperian (Hs) age (~3.1 - 3.6 billion yrs old). (Credit: Mumma, et al., 2009, Figure 3) — Regions where methane appears notably localized in Northern Summer (A, B1, B2), and their relationship to mineralogical and geo-morphological domains. (A.) Observations of methane near the Syrtis Major volcanic district. (B.) Geologic map of Greeley and Guest (41) superimposed on the topographic shaded-relief from MOLA (42). The most ancient terrain (Npld, Nple) is Noachian in age (~3.6 – 4.5 billion years old, when Mars was wet), and is overlain by volcanic deposits from Syrtis Major of Hesperian (Hs) age (~3.1 – 3.6 billion yrs old). (Credit: Mumma, et al., 2009, Figure 3)

The sudden detection of ten-fold spikes in methane levels in Gale crater is not inconsistent with the earlier remote measurements from Earth. The high seasonal concentrations were in regions that do not include Gale Crater, and it remains possible that the Curiosity measurements are of a similar nature but due to some less active process than exists at the regions identified by Dr. Mumma’s team.

This graphic shows tenfold spiking in the abundance of methane in the Martian atmosphere surrounding NASA's Curiosity Mars rover, as detected by a series of measurements made with the Tunable Laser Spectrometer instrument in the rover's Sample Analysis at Mars laboratory suite. (Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech) — This graphic shows tenfold spiking in the abundance of methane in the Martian atmosphere surrounding NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover, as detected by a series of measurements made with the Tunable Laser Spectrometer instrument in the rover’s Sample Analysis at Mars laboratory suite. (Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech)

The NASA scientists at AGU led by MSL project scientist Dr. John Grotzinger emphasized that they do not yet know how the methane is being generated. The process could be biological or not. There are abiotic chemical processes that could produce methane. However, the MSL SAM detections were daily spikes and represent an active real on-going process on the red planet. This alone is a very exciting aspect of the detection.

The team presented slides to describe how methane could be generated. With the known low background levels of methane at ~ 1 part per billion, an external cosmic source, for example micro-meteoroids entering the atmosphere and releasing organics which is then reduced by sunlight to methane, could be ruled out. The methane source must be of local origin.

This image illustrates possible ways methane might be added to Mars' atmosphere (sources) and removed from the atmosphere (sinks). NASA's Curiosity Mars rover has detected fluctuations in methane concentration in the atmosphere, implying both types of activity occur on modern Mars. A longer caption discusses which are sources and which are sinks. (Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/SAM-GSFC/Univ. of Michigan) — This image illustrates possible ways methane might be added to Mars’ atmosphere (sources) and removed from the atmosphere (sinks). NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover has detected fluctuations in methane concentration in the atmosphere, implying both types of activity occur on modern Mars. A longer caption discusses which are sources and which are sinks. (Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/SAM-GSFC/Univ. of Michigan)

The scientists illustrated two means of production. In both instances, there is some daily – or at least periodic – activity that is releasing methane from the subsurface of Mars. The source could be biological which is accumulated in subsurface rocks then suddenly released. Or an abiotic chemistry, such as a reaction between the mineral olivine and water, could be the generator.

The subsurface storage mechanism of methane proposed and illustrated is called clathrate storage. Clathrate storage involves lattice compounds that can trap molecules such as methane which can subsequently be released by physical changes in the clathrate, such as solar heating or mechanical stresses. Through press Q&A, the NASA scientists stated that such clathrates could be preserved for millions and billions of years underground.

The second discovery of organics involved more complex compounds in surface materials. Also since arriving at Mars, Curiosity has utilized a drilling tool to probe the interiors of rocks. Grotzinger emphasized how material immediately at the surface of Mars has experienced the effects of radiation and the ubiquitous soil compound perchlorate reducing and destroying organics both now and over millions of years. The detection of no organics in loose and exposed surface material had not diminished NASA scientists’ hopes of detecting organics in the rocks of Mars.

Comparisons between the amount of an organic chemical named chlorobenzene detected in the "Cumberland" rock sample and amounts of it in samples from three other Martian surface targets analyzed by NASA's Curiosity Mars rover. (Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech) — Comparisons between the amount of an organic chemical named chlorobenzene detected in the “Cumberland” rock sample and amounts of it in samples from three other Martian surface targets analyzed by NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover. (Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech)

Drilling was performed on several selected rocks and it was finally a mud rock called Cumberland that revealed the presence of organic compounds more complex than simple methane. The scientists did emphasize that what exactly these organic compounds are remains a mystery because of the confounding presence of the active chemical perchlorate which can quickly breakdown organics to simpler forms.

Examples from the Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) laboratory's detection of Martian organics in a sample of powder that the drill on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover collected from a rock target called "Cumberland." (Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech) — Examples from the Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) laboratory’s detection of Martian organics in a sample of powder that the drill on NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover collected from a rock target called “Cumberland.”
(Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech)

The detection of organics in the mud rock Cumberland required the drilling tool and also the scoop on the multifaceted robotic arm to deliver the sample into the SAM laboratory for analysis. To detect methane, SAM has an intake valve to receive atmospheric samples.

Dr. Grotzinger described how Cumberland was chosen as a sample source. The rock is called a mud stone which has undergone a process called digenesis – the metamorphosis of sediment to rock. Grotzinger emphasized that fluids will move through such rock during digenesis and perchlorate can destroy organics in the process. Such might be the case for many metamorphic rocks on the Martian surface. The panel of scientists showed a comparison between rock samples measured by SAM. Two in particular – from the rock “John Klein” and the Cumberland rock — were compared. The former showed no organics as well as other rocks that were sampled; but Cumberland’s drill sample from its interior did reveal organics.

Illustration of some of the reasons why finding organic chemicals on Mars is challenging. Whatever organic chemicals may be produced on Mars or delivered to Mars face several possible modes of being transformed or destroyed. (Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech)

The analysis of the work was painstaking – harking back to the Sagan statement. The importance of discovering organics on Mars could not be understated by the panel of scientists and Grotzinger called these two discoveries as the lasting legacy of the Mars Curiosity Rover. Furthermore, he stated that the discovery and analysis methods will go far to guide the choice of instruments and their use during the Mars 2020 rover mission.

The discovery of organics completes the necessary set of “ingredients” for past or present life on Mars: 1) an energy source, 2) water, and 3) organics. These are the basic requirements for the existence of life as we know it. The search for life on Mars is still just beginning and the new discoveries of organics is still not a clear sign that life existed or is present today. Nevertheless, Dr. Jim Green, introducing the panel of scientists, and Dr. Grotzinger both emphasized the magnitude of these discoveries and how they are tied into the objectives of the NASA Mars program — particularly now with the emphasis on sending humans to Mars. For the Mars Curiosity rover, the journey up the slopes of Mount Sharp continues and now with greater earnestness and a continued search for rocks similar to Cumberland.

References:

Curiosity detects methane spike on Mars

NASA Rover Finds Active, Ancient Organic Chemistry on Mars

Research Papers, AGU Press Conerence via Ustream

Strong Release of Methane on Mars in Northern Summer 2003

Non-Detection of Methane in the Mars Atmosphere by the Curiosity Rover

Detection of methane in the martian atmosphere: evidence for life?

December 16, 2014December 23, 2015 by Elizabeth Howell

Name That Crater On Mercury! MESSENGER Team Opens Public Contest

The crater Scarlatti (at center) shines clearly in this image of Mercury taken by the MESSENGER spacecraft. Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington

Here’s your rare chance to leave a lasting mark on a piece of the Solar System. The team behind the MESSENGER spacecraft — that machine orbiting Mercury since 2011 — is asking the public to help them name craters on the planet, in an open contest.

Fifteen finalists will be forwarded to the official arbitrator of astronomical names on Earth, the International Astronomical Union, which will pick five names in time for the end of the MESSENGER mission this spring.

“This brave little craft, not much bigger than a Volkswagen Beetle, has travelled more than 8 billion miles [12.8 billion kilometers] since 2004—getting to the planet and then in orbit,” stated Julie Edmonds of the Carnegie Institution for Science, who leads the MESSENGER education and public outreach team.

A crater on Mercury at the edge of the larger Oskison crater located in the plains north of Caloris basin. Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington

“We would like to draw international attention to the achievements of the mission and the guiding engineers and scientists on Earth who have made the MESSENGER mission so outstandingly successful.”

Here are some guidelines to increase your chances of success:
– Make sure the name does not have significance politically, religiously or for the military;
– Focus on names of writers, artists and composers and research them thoroughly, as you will be expected to provide a justification;
– Don’t pick a name that has been used elsewhere in the Solar System.

Mercury's southern polar region as seen from MESSENGER. (Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins UniversityApplied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington). — Mercury’s southern polar region as seen from MESSENGER. (Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins UniversityApplied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington).

Some additional hints come from the official contest website, which adds that the competition is open to everyone except MESSENGER’s education and public outreach team and that entries close Jan. 15.

Impact craters are named in honor of people who have made outstanding or fundamental contributions to the Arts and Humanities (visual artists, writers, poets, dancers, architects, musicians, composers and so on). The person must have been recognized as an art-historically significant figure for more than 50 years and must have been dead for at least three years. We are particularly interested in submissions that honor people from nations and cultural groups that are under-represented amongst the currently-named craters.

This isn’t the first planet with recent open invitations for the public to name craters. Earlier this year, astronomy education group Uwingu began asking for suggestions to name craters on Mars for maps that will be used by the Mars One team as it plans to land a private crewed mission on the planet in the coming years. Those names, however, will likely not be recognized by the IAU (the official statement is here.)

December 15, 2014December 23, 2015 by Ken Kremer

NASA and SpaceX targeting Dec. 19 for next Space Station Launch

NASA and SpaceX are now targeting Dec. 19 as the launch date for the next unmanned cargo run to the International Space Station (ISS) under NASA’s Commercial Resupply Services contract.

The fifth SpaceX cargo mission was postponed from Dec. 16 to Dec. 19 to “allow SpaceX to take extra time to ensure they do everything possible on the ground to prepare for a successful launch,” according to a statement from NASA.

The Dragon spacecraft will launch atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

Both the Falcon 9 rocket and its Dragon spacecraft are in good health, according to NASA.

The mission dubbed SpaceX CRS-5 is slated for liftoff at 1:20 p.m.

An on time liftoff will result in a rendezvous with the ISS on Sunday. The crew would grapple the Dragon with the stations 57 foot long robotic arm at about 6 a.m.

The SpaceX Dragon capsule is snared by the International Space Station's Canadarm 2. Credit: NASA — The SpaceX Dragon capsule is snared by the International Space Station’s Canadarm 2. Credit: NASA

US astronaut and station commander Barry Wilmore will operate the Canadarm2 to capture the SpaceX Dragon when it arrives Sunday morning. ESA astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti will assist Wilmore working at a robotics workstation inside the domed Cupola module during the commercial craft’s approach and rendezvous.

The unmanned cargo freighter is loaded with more than 3,700 pounds of scientific experiments, technology demonstrations, crew supplies, spare parts, food, water, clothing and assorted research gear.

The Dragon research experiments will support over 256 science and research investigations for the six person space station crews on Expeditions 42 and 43.

Among the payloads is the Cloud-Aerosol Transport System (CATS), a remote-sensing laser instrument to measure clouds and the location and distribution of pollution, dust, smoke, and other particulates and aerosols in the atmosphere.

A secondary objective of SpaceX is to attempt to recover the Falcon 9 first stage on an off shore barge.

The SpaceX CRS-4 mission to the ISS concluded with a successful splashdown on Oct 25 after a month long stay.

The SpaceX CRS-5 launch is the first cargo launch to the ISS since the doomed Orbital Sciences Antares/Cygnus launch ended in catastrophe on Oct. 28.

With Antares launches on indefinite hold, the US supply train to the ISS is now wholly dependent on SpaceX.

Orbital Sciences has now contracted United Launch Alliance (ULA) to launch the firms Cygnus cargo freighter to the ISS by late 2015 on an Atlas V rocket.

December 15, 2014December 30, 2015 by Susie Murph

All About That Space

The Pathways Interns of NASA’s Johnson Space Center have been working very hard lately with the successful Orion launches. They decided it was time to celebrate, and to remind everyone what they’re really excited about. So they’ve taken the hit song “All About that Bass,” by Meghan Trainor, and rewritten the lyrics to be a little more appropriate for their purpose. They wanted to raise excitement over the successful Orion tests, and promote the amazing work going on at NASA and Johnson Space Center. They’re bringing rockets back!

December 15, 2014December 23, 2015 by Elizabeth Howell

Martian Teardrop: Here’s How The Sun Moves Over A Red Planet Year

The Opportunity rover captured this analemma showing the Sun's movements over one Martian year. Images taken every third sol (Martian day) between July, 16, 2006 and June 2, 2008. Credit: NASA/JPL/Cornell/ASU/TAMU

Stand in the same spot every day. Take a picture of the Sun. What happens? Slowly, you see our closest star shifting positions in the sky. That motion over an entire year is called an analemma. The Opportunity rover on Mars even captured one on the Red Planet, which you can see above, and it’s a different shape than what you’ll find on Earth.

An April Astronomy Picture of the Day post (highlighted this weekend on Reddit) explains that Earth’s analemma of the Sun is figure-8-shaped, while that on Mars looks somewhat like a pear (or a teardrop, we think.) The Earth and Mars each have about the same tilt in their orbit — that same tilt that produces the seasons — but the orbit of Mars is more elliptical (oval) than that of Earth.

An analemma of the Sun, taken from Budapest, Hungary over a one year span. (Courtesy of György Soponyai, used with permission).

“When Mars is farther from the Sun, the Sun progresses slowly in the martian sky creating the pointy top of the curve,” the APOD post stated. “When close to the Sun and moving quickly, the apparent solar motion is stretched into the rounded bottom. For several sols some of the frames are missing due to rover operations and dust storms.”

The picture you see at the top of the post was taken every third sol (or Martian day, which is 24 hours and 37 minutes) between July 2006 and June 2008. The landscape surrounding the analemma is from Victoria Crater, where Opportunity was roaming at that time. (The rover is now on the rim of Endeavour Crater, still trucking after nearly 11 full years on the surface.)

In 2006, APOD also published a simulated analemma from Sagan Memorial Station, the landing site of the Sojourner spacecraft and tiny Pathfinder rover. In this case, the simulation showed the Sun’s movements every 30 sols. A Martian year is 668 sols.

You can read more details about analemmae in this past Universe Today post by David Dickinson, which relates the phenomenon to the passage of time.

December 15, 2014December 23, 2015 by Elizabeth Howell

Could Mercury Get A Meteor Shower From Comet Encke?

Artist's concept of the planet Mercury orbiting through a debris trail from Comet Encke that may cause a meteor shower. Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center

We’re sure going to miss the MESSENGER spacecraft at Mercury when it concludes its mission in 2015, because it keeps bringing us really unexpected news about the Sun’s closest planet. Here’s the latest: Mercury may get a periodic meteor shower when it passes through the debris trail of Comet Encke.

Why do scientists suspect this? It’s not from patiently watching for shooting stars. Instead, they believe the signature of calcium in Mercury’s tenuous atmosphere may be pointing to a pattern.

MESSENGER (which stands for MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry, and Ranging) has been orbiting the planet for three Earth years and sees regular “surges” in calcium abundance on a predictable schedule. The researchers suspect it’s because of bits of dust colliding with Mercury and ricocheting bits of calcium up from the surface.

Mercury also picks up bits of dust from interplanetary debris, but the scientists say it’s not enough to account for the amounts of calcium they see. Extrapolating, the researchers suspect it must occur as the planet passes through debris left behind from a comet or asteroid. There are a small number of such small bodies that do this, and the scientists narrowed it down to Encke.

Illustration of MESSENGER in orbit around Mercury (NASA/JPL/APL)

Computer simulations of the comet’s debris showed a slight difference from what researchers predicted, but they believe it’s because of variations in Mercury’s orbit as it gets tugged by larger planets, particularly Jupiter. Encke itself takes about 3.3 years to do one lap around the Sun, and has been photographed by MESSENGER in the past.

“The possible discovery of a meteor shower at Mercury is really exciting and especially important because the plasma and dust environment around Mercury is relatively unexplored,” stated lead author Rosemary Killen, a planetary scientist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland.

MESSENGER, meanwhile, is burning off the last of its fuel to stay in orbit; the final engine maneuver is expected for Jan. 21. Once that’s finished, the spacecraft will slowly spiral down towards the planet for an expected impact in March, ending the mission.

Source: NASA

December 15, 2014December 23, 2015 by Elizabeth Howell

How NASA Filmed Humans Last Leaving The Moon, 42 Years Ago

Still of the Apollo 17 spacecraft leaving the moon on Dec. 14, 1972. Credit: NASA/YouTube (screenshot)

When Apollo 17 lifted off from the moon, a camera captured the movements of the spacecraft — even though nobody was left behind to, say, establish a lunar base. How was that possible? With a camera on the lunar rover that could be controlled — or even programmed — from Earth.

Pretty impressive technology for the takeoff 42 years ago yesterday (Dec. 14) in 1972, although it took three tries to get the technique right.

As the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum explains in a 2011 blog post, the camera was available on Apollos 15, 16 and 17. The television camera communicated from Earth using a high-gain antenna on the rover, but there was a slight time delay for the radio waves to travel (a couple of seconds) between the Earth and the Moon.

So the engineers suggested moving the rover a certain distance from the lunar module and setting the camera to automatically tilt to show the lunar liftoff when commanded from Earth.

That was the plan, at least. On Apollo 15, the tilt mechanism malfunctioned and the camera never moved upwards, allowing the lunar module to slip out of sight. And while the attempt on Apollo 16 gave a longer view of the lunar module rising up, the astronauts actually parked the rover too close to it, which threw off the calculations and timing of the tilt upwards so it left view just a few moments into the flight.

Ed Fendall was the person doing the controlling. In an oral history for NASA done in 2000, he recalled how complex the procedure was.

Now, the way that worked was this. Harley Weyer, who worked for me, sat down and figured what the trajectory would be and where the lunar rover would be each second as it moved out, and what your settings would go to. That picture you see was taken without looking at it [the liftoff] at all. There was no watching it and doing anything with that picture. As the crew counted down, that’s a [Apollo] 17 picture you see, as [Eugene] Cernan counted down and he knew he had to park in the right place because I was going to kill him, he didn’t — and Gene and I are good friends, he’ll tell you that — I actually sent the first command at liftoff minus three seconds. And each command was scripted, and all I was doing was looking at a clock, sending commands. I was not looking at the television. I really didn’t see it until it was over with and played back. Those were just pre-set commands that were just punched out via time. That’s the way it was followed.

December 13, 2014December 23, 2015 by Ken Kremer

Amazing Up Close Videos Capture Orion’s Final Descent, Splashdown and Ocean Recovery

The Orion crew module was recovered Dec. 5, 2014 after splashdown in the Pacific Ocean about 600 miles off the coast of San Diego, California. Credit: U.S. Navy

Video Caption: Last moments of Orion descent as viewed from the recovery ship USS Anchorage. Credit: NASA/US Navy

Relive the final moments of the first test flight of NASA’s Orion spacecraft on Dec. 5, 2014, through this amazing series of up close videos showing the spacecraft plummeting back to Earth through the rollicking ocean recovery by dive teams from the US Navy and the USS Anchorage amphibious ship.

The two orbit, 4.5 hour flight maiden test flight of Orion on the Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) mission was a complete success.

It was brought back to land to the US Naval Base San Diego, California.

Orion’s test flight began with a flawless launch on Dec. 5 as it roared to orbit atop the fiery fury of a 242 foot tall United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy rocket – the world’s most powerful booster – at 7:05 a.m. EST from Space Launch Complex 37 (SLC-37) at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

The unpiloted test flight of Orion on the EFT-1 mission ignited NASA’s roadmap to send Humans to Mars by the 2030s by carrying the capsule farther away from Earth than any spacecraft designed for astronauts has traveled in more than four decades.

Humans have not ventured beyond low Earth orbit since the launch of Apollo 17 on NASA’s final moon landing mission on Dec. 7, 1972.

Video Caption: NASA TV covers the final moments of Orion spacecraft descent and splashdown in the Pacific Ocean approximately 600 miles southwest of San Diego on Dec. 5, 2014, as viewed live from the Ikhana airborne drone. Credit: NASA TV

The spacecraft was loaded with over 1200 sensors to collect critical performance data from numerous systems throughout the mission for evaluation by engineers.

EFT-1 tested the rocket, second stage, and jettison mechanisms as well as avionics, attitude control, computers, environmental controls, and electronic systems inside the Orion spacecraft and ocean recovery operations.

It also tested the effects of intense radiation by traveling twice through the Van Allen radiation belt.

After successfully accomplishing all its orbital flight test objectives, the capsule fired its thrusters and began the rapid fire 10 minute plummet back to Earth.

During the high speed atmospheric reentry, it approached speeds of 20,000 mph (32,000 kph), approximating 85% of the reentry velocity for astronauts returning from voyages to the Red Planet.

The capsule endured scorching temperatures near 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit in a critical and successful test of the 16.5-foot-wide heat shield and thermal protection tiles.

The entire system of reentry hardware, commands, and 11 drogue and main parachutes performed flawlessly.

Finally, Orion descended on a trio of massive red and white main parachutes to achieve a statistical bulls-eye splashdown in the Pacific Ocean, 600 miles southwest of San Diego, at 11:29 a.m. EST.

It splashed down within one mile of the touchdown spot predicted by mission controllers after returning from an altitude of over 3600 miles above Earth.

The three main parachutes slowed Orion to about 17 mph (27 kph).

Here’s a magnificent up close and personal view direct from the US Navy teams that recovered Orion on Dec. 5, 2014.

Video Caption: Just released footage of the Orion Spacecraft landing and recovery! See all the sights and sounds, gurgling, and more from onboard the Zodiac boats with the dive teams on Dec. 5, 2014. See the initial recovery operations, including safing the crew module and towing it into the well deck of the USS Anchorage, a landing platform-dock ship. Credit: US Navy

Navy teams in Zodiac boats had attached a collar and winch line to Orion at sea and then safely towed it into the flooded well deck of the USS Anchorage and positioned it over rubber “speed bumps.”

Next they secured Orion inside its recovery cradle and transported it back to US Naval Base San Diego where it was off-loaded from the USS Anchorage.

The Orion EFT-1 spacecraft was recovered by a combined team from NASA, the U.S. Navy, and Orion prime contractor Lockheed Martin.

Orion has been offloaded from the USS Anchorage and moved about a mile to the “Mole Pier” where Lockheed Martin technicians have conducted the first test inspection of the crew module and collected test data.

It will soon be hauled on a flatbed truck across the US for a nearly two week trip back to Kennedy where it will arrive just in time for the Christmas holidays.

NASA Administrator Charles Bolden briefs the media about the ‘Big Deal’ goals of the first Orion deep space crew module during prelaunch meeting backdropped by Orion and Delta 4 Heavy Booster at Space Launch Complex 37 (SLC-37) at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida prior to launch on Dec. 5, 2014. Credit: Ken Kremer - kenkremer.com — NASA Administrator Charles Bolden briefs the media about the “Big Deal” goals of the first Orion deep space crew module during prelaunch meeting backdropped by Orion and Delta 4 Heavy Booster at Space Launch Complex 37 (SLC-37) at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida prior to launch on Dec. 5, 2014. Credit: Ken Kremer – kenkremer.com

Technicians at KSC will examine every nook and cranny of Orion and will dissemble it for up close inspection and lessons learned.

NASA’s first Orion spacecraft blasts off at 7:05 a.m. atop United Launch Alliance Delta 4 Heavy Booster at Space Launch Complex 37 (SLC-37) at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on Dec. 5, 2014. Launch pad remote camera view. Credit: Ken Kremer - kenkremer.com — NASA’s first Orion spacecraft blasts off at 7:05 a.m. atop United Launch Alliance Delta 4 Heavy Booster at Space Launch Complex 37 (SLC-37) at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on Dec. 5, 2014. Launch pad remote camera view. Credit: Ken Kremer – kenkremer.com

Stay tuned here for Ken’s continuing Earth and planetary science and human spaceflight news.

Ken Kremer

Prelaunch night view of NASA’s first Orion spacecraft bolted atop triple barreled United Launch Alliance Delta 4 Heavy Booster at Space Launch Complex 37 (SLC-37) at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. Credit: Ken Kremer - kenkremer.com — Prelaunch night view of NASA’s first Orion spacecraft bolted atop triple barreled United Launch Alliance Delta 4 Heavy Booster at Space Launch Complex 37 (SLC-37) at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. Credit: Ken Kremer – kenkremer.com

December 12, 2014December 23, 2015 by Elizabeth Howell

New Map Shows ‘Marsquakes’ Shook Wet Valles Marineris Sand, NASA Says

A color mosaic of Candor Chasma (part of Mars' Valles Marineris) based on data from Voyager 1 and Voyager 2. Credit: NASA

Mars today is a planet that appears to be mostly shaped by wind, but that wasn’t always the case. A new map adds information to the hypothesis that “marsquakes” affected at least a part of the planet’s vast canyon, Valles Marineris, while the area contained spring-filled lakes.

When the damp sand got shaken up, it deposited itself in hills. NASA says the new map, based on observations from the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (which you can see below), adds credence to the theory that it was water that made these deposits.

“The conditions under which sedimentary deposits in it formed have been an open issue for decades,” NASA wrote in a press release. “Possibilities proposed have included accumulation in lakebeds, volcanic eruptions under glaciers within the canyons, and accumulation of wind-blown sand and dust.”

The map you see below was created by the U.S. Geological Survey, which has more extensive information on the findings at this website. The observations also produced a suite of research in recent years, such as this 2009 paper led by Scott Murchie at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Research Laboratory.