When we heard that the Alan Parsons Project song “Eye in the Sky” was beamed to humanity’s constant eye in the sky — the International Space Station — we just about exploded with space geekiness. It’s even more awesome that the video accompanying the song has tons of space scenes to enjoy.
Turns out the band’s song is Expedition 36 astronaut Luca Parmitano’s favorite, which is why Parsons dedicated that to him during a July 23 Alan Parsons Live Project concert at the Foro Italico in Rome.
Opportunity rover’s view from very near the foothills of Solander Point looking along the rim and vast expanse of Endeavour Crater. Solander Point is the 1st Martian Mountain NASA’s Opportunity will climb and the rovers next destination. Solander Point may harbor clay minerals indicative of a past Martian habitable environment. This navcam mosaic was assembled from raw images taken on Sol 3374 (July 21, 2013). Credit: NASA/JPL/Cornell/Marco Di Lorenzo/Ken Kremer (kenkremer.com) See complete panoramic mosaic below
Opportunity rover’s view from very near the foothills of Solander Point looking along the rim and vast expanse of Endeavour Crater. This area exhibits gypsum signatures and numerous blocks of intriguing rock. Solander Point is the 1st Martian Mountain NASA’s Opportunity will climb and the rovers next destination. Solander Point may harbor clay minerals indicative of a past Martian habitable environment. This navcam mosaic was assembled from raw images taken on Sol 3374 (July 21, 2013). Credit: NASA/JPL/Cornell/Marco Di Lorenzo/Ken Kremer (kenkremer.com).
See complete panoramic mosaic below. Story updated with further details[/caption]
Exactly a decade after blasting off for the Red Planet and discovering a wide swath of water altered rocks and minerals in the ensuing years by exploring countless craters large and small, NASA’s intrepid Opportunity rover is just days away from arriving at her next big quest – a Martian mountain named Solander Point that may possess the key chemical ingredients necessary to sustain Martian life forms.
“We are parked 200 meters away from the bench at Solander Point,” Ray Arvidson told Universe Today exclusively. Arvidson is the mission’s deputy principal scientific investigator from Washington University in St. Louis, Mo. Furthermore, this area exhibits signatures related to water flow.
Solander Point also represents ‘something completely different’ – the first mountain the intrepid robot will ever climb.
“This will be Opportunity’s first mountain and the view from the ridge crest should be spectacular,” wrote Larry Crumpler, a science team member from the New Mexico Museum of Natural History & Science, in his latest field report about the 10 years ongoing Mars Exploration Rover (MER) mission.
Indeed the rover is now just a few short drives southward from making landfall on the northern tip of the point in her current trek across the relatively flat plains around the rim of Endeavour crater.
“We are now only about 180 meters from the new mountain, Solander Point.”
Opportunity rover location in the latest MRO/HiRISE color image. The green line shows more or less the route we hope to take to the base of Solander point. Since it is only a couple of hundred meters away, the rover could be there is a couple of drives. Maybe by the end of next week. The label say “3374” but this is also roughly the location through 3379. NASA/JPL/Larry Crumpler
But before moving onward, Arvidson explained that the rover will briefly pause here “at dark terrain” for some exciting science due to water related spectral observations from the CRISM instrument captured by NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) circling overhead.
“CRISM data [from Mars orbit] shows a relatively deep 1.9 micrometer absorption feature due to H2O-bearing minerals,” said Arvidson.
This past spring, Opportunity made the historic discovery of clay minerals and a habitable environment on a low hill called Cape York at the rover’s prior stop along the rim of Endeavour crater.
Solander was selected as the robot’s next destination because it simultaneously offers a goldmine of science as well as north facing slopes – where Opportunity’s solar wings can more effectively soak up the sun’s rays to generate life giving electrical power during the next Martian winter.
But since Opportunity is currently generating plenty of power from her solar arrays and arriving with a bonus cushion of time before the looming onset of her 6th Martian winter, the team decided to take a small detour to the southeast and spend several sols (or Martian days) exploring an area of intriguing geology of outcrops, gypsum signatures and more on the bench surrounding the base of the mountain.
“We slowed down this week so that we could check out the rocks here where there is a strange hydration signature from orbital remote sensing,” says Crumpler.
“This is also an area that appears to have more large blocks in the HiRISE images [from Mars orbit], so we are checking out one of the blocks, “Black Shoulder”.
“We are hoping that the rocks on the ridge crest will be spectacular too,” notes Crumpler.
Opportunity rover’s view very near the foothills of Solander Point along the rim and vast expanse of Endeavour Crater. This area exhibits gypsum signatures and numerous blocks of intriguing rock. Solander Point is the 1st Martian Mountain NASA’s Opportunity will climb and the rovers next destination. Solander Point may harbor clay minerals indicative of a past Martian habitable environment. This navcam panoramic mosaic was assembled from raw images taken on Sol 3374 (July 21, 2013). Credit: NASA/JPL/Cornell/Marco Di Lorenzo/Ken Kremer (kenkremer.com)
Opportunity is using the science instruments on her 3 foot ( 1 meter) long robotic arm to conduct brief in-situ investigations of “Black Shoulder” with the Microscopic Imager (MI) and the Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer (APXS).
And …. it’s ‘Mountains Galore’ from here on out for the remainder of Opportunity’s Magnificent Mission to Mars.
Why? Because Opportunity is nearing the foothills of a long chain of eroded segments of the crater wall of Endeavour crater which spans a humongous 14 miles (22 kilometers) wide.
Solander Point may harbor deposits of phyllosilicate clay minerals – which form in neutral pH water – in a thick layer of rock stacks indicative of a past Martian habitable zone.
The rover team is discussing the best way to approach and drive up Solander.
“One idea is to drive part way up Solander from the west side of the rim, turn left and then drive down the steeper north facing slopes with the stratographic sections,” Ray Arvidson explained to Universe Today.
“That way we don’t have to drive up the relatively steeper slopes.”
“The rover can drive up rocky surfaces inclined about 12 to 15 degrees.”
“We want to go through the stratographic sections on the north facing sections,” Arvidson told me.
Opportunity rover moves closer to the foothills of Solander Point along the rim and vast expanse of Endeavour Crater. The rover investigated one of the large rocks near here with her microscopic imager and X-Ray spectrometer. Soon she will start climbing up Solander – her 1st Martian Mountain ascent. This navcam panoramic mosaic was assembled from raw images taken on Sol 3376 (July 23, 2013).
Credit: NASA/JPL/Cornell/Marco Di Lorenzo/Ken Kremer (kenkremer.com)
Today (July 28) is Sol 3380 for a mission that was only warrantied to last 90 Sols!
Opportunity’s total driving distance exceeds 23.6 miles (37.9 kilometers). She has snapped over 182,000 images.
The “work volume”. This view from the front hazcams shows the rock target that is being checked out before the final slog to the south. With luck, by the end of next week we will be plinking around the base of yonder mountain. “Plinking” is a geological term for wandering around with your hammer trying to get a handle on the local outcrops before plunging ahead with mapping and asking the rocks serious questions. Credit: NASA/JPL/Larry Crumpler
Meanwhile on the opposite side of Mars at Gale Crater, Opportunity’s younger sister rover Curiosity also discovered a habitable environment originating from a time when the Red Planet was far warmer and wetter billions of years ago.
And like Opportunity, Curiosity is also trekking towards a mountain rich in sedimentary layers hoping to unveil the mysteries of Mars past. But Curiosity likely won’t arrive at 3.4 mile (5.5 km) high Mount Sharp for another year.
Traverse Map for NASA’s Opportunity rover from 2004 to 2013
This map shows the entire path the rover has driven during more than 9 years and over 3374 Sols, or Martian days, since landing inside Eagle Crater on Jan 24, 2004 to current location near foothills of Solander Point at the western rim of Endeavour Crater. Opportunity discovered clay minerals at Esperance – indicative of a habitable zone. Credit: NASA/JPL/Cornell/ASU/Marco Di Lorenzo/Ken Kremer
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Learn more about Mars, Curiosity, Opportunity, LADEE, MAVEN, Antares and more at Ken’s upcoming lecture presentations
Aug 12: “RockSat-X Suborbital Launch, LADEE Lunar & Antares Rocket Launches from Virginia”; Rodeway Inn, Chincoteague, VA, 8 PM
Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen after rescuing a rover out of the mud in the Arctic's Haughton Crater. Hansen was participating in a geology expedition in July 2013. Credit: Jeremy Hansen/Twitter
It takes gumption to go knee-deep in mud to save a stranded rover. Or to climb up precarious slopes in search of the perfect rock. Oh, and did we mention the location is best accessible by air, with no towns nearby?
Take these challenging conditions, which Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen faced in the Arctic this month, and then imagine doing this on the moon. Or an asteroid. Or Mars. Scary, isn’t it? But that’s what he’s thinking of and training for as he does geology work a few times a year.
“It’s important; it provides an opportunity in a somewhat uncomfortable, risky situation when we’re doing real science,” Hansen told Universe Today of his time in Haughton Crater in Canada’s north. In fact, it’s so important to Hansen that he’s gone on similar geology trips with this Western University group three times.
There would be vast differences between Earth exploration and heading to another location, however. Some examples:
While the Haughton Crater expedition is an analog for moon or Mars exploration, certain things will be different from the Earth experience. Here, Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen gathers water — a feat that would be way more difficult off-planet. Credit: Jeremy Hansen/Twitter
Water and supplies. The team Hansen joined had nine people and 29 checked bags for an expedition that lasted just over a week. They could also get water on site at a spot not too far from their camp, reducing the load of that heavy but important substance. NASA’s long-range planning, meanwhile, envisions scenarios such as a month on the moon, Hansen said. Supplies would be an interesting and heavy challenge in that situation. “The next time we’ll go back, what we’ll really be looking to do is travel much greater distances over a longer period of time,” he said. “We’ll be living in a rover for a month, covering 100 kilometers [62 miles] or more, looking for these important outcrops that tell us the story.”
Geology. The Earth is an erosive force on geology: wind, rain, glaciation, water, volcanic activity and more alters the landscape. “Sometimes the rocks look very similar” even when they are different, Hansen pointed out. Other places may have different erosion processes (think micrometeroids), making the rocks look strange to Earth-trained eyes.
Location. The landscape itself could be challenging for collecting samples. The moon, for example, has “stuff strewn everywhere and pounded into sand”, Hansen said, meaning that astronauts might have to travel much further to see something besides regolith or moon soil. Where Hansen was in the Arctic, by contrast, the group could get to more than a dozen different outcrops in a day of walking.
Gravity. The moon has a sixth of the Earth’s gravity. Mars is at about 38% Earth gravity. This means that the machines would need to be designed to work in that environment. For astronauts, it’s riskier to go up slopes or do heavy work in those conditions because their center of gravity is unfamiliar. As this Apollo 17 clip shows, astronauts sometimes fell over on the moon when doing something as simple as picking up as sample bag.
This stain in the rock showed evidence of hot water flowing for million of years after the impact that created the Arctic’s Haughton Crater, said Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen. “Could support life? Could crater on Mars? Research may answer,” he tweeted. Credit: Jeremy Hansen/Twitter
Hansen’s work in Haughton Crater did turn up some similarities to work at off-Earth locations, though. His crew had to work in a compressed time situation, learning how to find representative rocks from a 14-mile (23-kilometer) wide crater. That’s the same challenge you’d find during a moon or asteroid or Mars expedition.
“We explored not the entire crater — it’s a lot of ground to cover — but we explored some key areas,” Hansen said. “What’s important for someone like me, at my stage of geologist eyes, is to see the key aspects of the crater, those being what types of rocks that are formed and where do they end up in the crater.”
When a big rock slams into the Earth, it excavates material that is normally inaccessible to a surface visitor. Hansen was encouraged to seek the oldest or genesis rocks when on his expedition because, as in other locations, they provide clues about how the solar system was formed. The hard evidence firms up our theories on what happened.
“Explored rocks, learned origins of Earth. Want to do this on Mars someday like @MarsCuriosity but with a return ticket,” tweeted Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen, making a joking reference to the Mars One expedition. Credit: Jeremy Hansen/Twitter
It’s not only work in the field that is important, but work in the lab. In past years with Gordon Osinski‘s group at Western, Hansen has gone back to the university to talk with those looking at the rock samples. He asks if the samples were representative, easy to analyze. His goal is to do better with each expedition.
“It’s kind of like learning a fourth lagnguage,” said Hansen, who as a Canadian Space Agency astronaut is expected to speak English, French and Russian at a minimum.
“It’s one of those things — you can cram it all in, but you don’t retain a lot unless you use it repeatedly and continue to practice it. My elegant solution is I spend one, maybe two weeks total a year, working on this. It’s a good use of my time. I keep bringing it back, keep reviewing it and keep going a little further.”
Hansen has a busy summer ahead of him. He’s taking off soon for CF-18 training with the Royal Canadian Air Force, where he got his career start. (Funny enough, in his past career he used to survey the Arctic from the air during Canadian sovereignty operations.)
In September, Hansen is spending about a week underground in Sardinia, Italy as part of the European Space Agency’s ongoing CAVES expedition series. Besides geology, this also provides training in unfamiliar and dangerous environments.
Hansen has not been assigned to a flight yet, but continues to work in the International Space Station operations branch in Houston and to represent the Astronaut Office in operational meetings. Also in training is his colleague David Saint-Jacques. Both astronauts were selected in 2009.
The next Canadian spaceflight is expected to happen around 2018, but could be earlier depending on ongoing negotiations by the Canadian Space Agency.
NASA astronaut Randy Bresnik prepares to enter the CST-100 spacecraft, which was built inside The Boeing Company's Houston Product Support Center. Credit: NASA/Robert Markowitz
A pair of NASA astronauts donned their spacesuits for key fit check evaluations inside a test version of the Boeing Company’s CST-100 commercial ‘space taxi’ which was unveiled this week for the world’s first glimpse of the cabin’s interior.
Boeing is among a trio of American aerospace firms, including SpaceX and Sierra Nevada Corp, seeking to restore America’s capability to fly humans to Earth orbit and the space station using seed money from NASA’s Commercial Crew Program (CCP).
Astronauts Serena Aunon and Randy Bresnik conducted a day long series of technical evaluations inside a fully outfitted, full scale mock up of the CST-100, while wearing NASA’s iconic orange launch-and-entry flight suits from the space shuttle era.
During the tests, Boeing technicians monitored the astronauts ergonomic ability to work in the seats and move around during hands on use of the capsules equipment, display consoles and storage compartments.
The purpose of the testing at Boeing’s Houston Product Support Center is to see what works well and what needs modifications before fixing the final capsule design for construction.
“It’s an upgrade,” said astronaut Serena Aunon at the evaluation. “It is an American vehicle, of course it is an upgrade.”
This is an interior view of The Boeing Company’s CST-100 spacecraft, which features LED lighting and tablet technology. Image Credit: NASA/Robert Markowitz
Former NASA Astronaut Chris Ferguson, the commander of the final shuttle flight (STS-135) by Atlantis, is leading Boeing’s test effort as the director of Boeing’s Crew and Mission Operations.
“These are our customers. They’re the ones who will take our spacecraft into flight, and if we’re not building it the way they want it we’re doing something wrong,” said Ferguson.
“We’ll probably make one more go-around and make sure that everything is just the way they like it.”
The CST-100 is designed to carry a crew of up to 7 astronauts, or a mix of cargo and crew, on missions to low-Earth orbit (LEO) and the International Space Station (ISS) around the middle of this decade.
Although it resembles Boeing’s Apollo-era capsules from the outside, the interior employs state of the art modern technology including sky blue LED lighting and tablet technology.
Check out this video showing the astronauts and engineers during the CST-100 testing
Nevertheless Boeing’s design goal is to keep the flight technology as simple as possible.
“What you’re not going to find is 1,100 or 1,600 switches,” said Ferguson. “When these guys go up in this, they’re primary mission is not to fly this spacecraft, they’re primary mission is to go to the space station for six months. So we don’t want to burden them with an inordinate amount of training to fly this vehicle. We want it to be intuitive.”
The CST-100 crew transporter will fly to orbit atop the venerable Atlas V rocket built by United Launch Alliance (ULA) from Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.
The CST-100 crew capsule awaits liftoff aboard an Atlas V launch vehicle at Cape Canaveral in this artist’s concept. Credit: Boeing
Boeing is aiming for an initial three day manned orbital test flight of the CST-100 during 2016, says John Mulholland, Boeing vice president and program manger for Commercial Programs.
The 1st docking mission to the ISS would follow in 2017 – depending on the very uncertain funding that Congress approves for NASA.
The Atlas V was also chosen to launch one of Boeing’s commercial crew competitors, namely the Dream Chaser mini shuttle built by Sierra Nevada Corp.
Boeing CST-100 capsule early mock-up, interior view. Credit: Ken Kremer – kenkremer.com
NASA’s CCP program is fostering the development of the CST-100 as well as the SpaceX Dragon and Sierra Nevada Dream Chaser to replace America’s capability to launch humans to space that was lost following the retirement of NASA’s space shuttle orbiters two years ago in July 2011.
Since 2011, every American astronaut has been 100% dependent on the Russians and their Soyuz capsule to hitch a ride to the ISS.
“We pay one of our [ISS] partners, the Russians, $71 million a seat to fly,” says Ed Mango, CCP’s program manager. “What we want to do is give that to an American company to fly our crews into space.”
Simultaneously NASA and its industry partners are designing and building the Orion crew capsule and SLS heavy lift booster to send humans to the Moon and deep space destinations including Near Earth Asteroids and Mars.
The scene taken on Sol 340 was taken shortly after Curiosity finished her longest yet. The 329.1-foot (100.3-meter) drive was twice as long as any previous sol's drive by Curiosity. The view is toward the south, including a portion of Mount Sharp and a band of dark dunes in front of the mountain. The Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) camera on NASA's Curiosity rover is carried at an angle when the rover's arm is stowed for driving. Still, the camera is able to record views of the terrain Curiosity is crossing in Gale Crater, and rotating the image 150 degrees provides this right-side-up scene. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
This scene was taken on Sol 340 shortly after Curiosity finished her longest drive yet
The 329.1-foot (100.3-meter) drive was twice as long as any previous sol’s drive by Curiosity. The view is toward the south, including a portion of Mount Sharp and a band of dark dunes in front of the mountain. The Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) camera on NASA’s Curiosity rover is carried at an angle when the rover’s arm is stowed for driving. Still, the camera is able to record views of the terrain Curiosity is crossing in Gale Crater, and rotating the image 150 degrees provides this right-side-up scene. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
See updated Traverse Map below[/caption]
NASA’s car-sized Curiosity rover is now blazing across the Red Planet’s surface and moving at a record setting pace towards a towering Martian mountain loaded with mineral caches that could potentially support a habitable environment.
On Sunday, July 21 (or Sol 340), Curiosity drove the length of a football field – 109.7 yards (100.3 meters) – a span that’s twice as far as she had ever driven before since the dramatic touch down on Mars nearly a year ago.
The previous record for a one-day drive was about half a football field – 54 yards (49 meters) – and achieved on Sol 50 (Sept. 26, 2012), roughly seven weeks after the pulse pounding landing inside Gale Crater on Aug. 6, 2012.
The 6 wheeled robot was able to move so far because on the prior drive she wound up atop a rise offering an uncommonly good view of the surrounding landscape and the road ahead across the crater floor towards Mount Sharp – the ultimate driving goal.
Curiosity On the Road to Mount Sharp and treacherous Sand Dunes – Sol 338 – July 19
Curiosity captured this panoramic view of the path ahead to the base of Mount Sharp and potentially dangerous sand dunes after a recent drive on July 19, 2013. She must safely cross over the dark dune field to climb and reach the lower sedimentary layers of Mount Sharp.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Ken Kremer-(kenkremer.com)/Marco Di Lorenzo
“What enabled us to drive so far on Sol 340 was starting at a high point and also having Mastcam images giving us the size of rocks so we could be sure they were not hazards,” said rover planner Paolo Bellutta of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif, in a NASA statement.
“We could see for quite a distance, but there was an area straight ahead that was not clearly visible, so we had to find a path around that area.”
Following another lengthy drive of 68.2 yards (62.4 meters) on Wednesday, July 23 (Sol 342), the mission’s total driving distance so far stands at 0.81 mile (1.23 kilometers).
Mount Sharp lies about 5 miles (8 kilometers) distant – as the Martian crow flies.
On July 4, Curiosity embarked on the epic trek to Mount Sharp after completing more than seven months of science investigations and historic interplanetary drilling and sample analysis at an area known as Glenelg and Yellowknife Bay. There she discovered a habitable environment with the chemical ingredients that could sustain Martian microbes- thereby already accomplishing the primary goal of NASA’s flagship mission to Mars.
A combination of increased experience by the engineers directing the mega rover as well as intermediate software upgrades also play key roles in speeding Curiosity towards 3.4 mile (5.5 km) high Mount Sharp.
A huge leap in roving across Mars is in the works soon using new driving software called autonomous navigation, or autonav, that will hasten the overland journey.
“We have put some new software – called autonav, or autonomous navigation – on the vehicle right after the conjunction period back in March 2013,” said Jim Erickson, Curiosity Project Manager, in exclusive interview with Universe Today. Erickson is from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, Calif.
“This will increase our ability to drive.”
Curiosity’s Traverse Map Through Sol 342
This map shows the route driven by NASA’s Mars rover Curiosity through the 342 Martian day, or sol, of the rover’s mission on Mars (July 21, 2013). Numbering of the dots along the line indicate the sol number of each drive. North is up. The scale bar is 200 meters (656 feet). From Sol 340 to Sol 342, Curiosity had driven a straight line distance of about 191.9 feet (58.49 meters). The base image from the map is from the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment Camera (HiRISE) in NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. of Arizona
Implementing the new driving software will make Curiosity smarter as well as more capable, productive and independent than ever before.
“With autonav the rover will have the ability to understand how far it’s driving, whether its slipping or not, and it improves safety,” Erickson told me.
The rover’s route is on a southwestward heading towards the ancient sedimentary layers at the foothills of the mountain in the middle of Gale Crater.
In addition to setting new driving records, the 1 ton rover is also driving more frequently and on repeated days too.
When everything synchs up, Curiosity can drive two or more days in row.
“We can drive two days in a row now if the timing is right. If we get the results of the day’s drive (n) in time before we have to plan the next day’s drive (n+1) – almost as if you’re on Mars time. Then that would work fine,” Erickson explained.
“Also, when we get the autonav capability we can plan two days in row. One day of directed driving and the second day can be ‘OK here’s your target from wherever you end up, try and go to this spot’.”
“This will increase the productivity!”
Erickson says the team is testing autonav now and should it be up and running within weeks, or sooner.
Read Part 1 & Part 2 of my interview with Jim Erickson for further details.
This photomosic shows NASA’s Curiosity departing at last for Mount Sharp- her main science destination. Note the wheel tracks on the Red Planet’s surface. The navcam camera images were taken on July 4, 2013 (Sol 324). Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Ken Kremer (kenkremer.com)/Marco Di Lorenzo
Meanwhile Curiosity’s older sister rover Opportunity is making fast tracks towards her own mountain goal and should arrive at the base of Solander Point rather soon in August.
Solander Point is a segment of the eroded rim of huge Endeavour crater and may also possess key ingredients essential to support an environment favorable for possible Martian microbes.
And it’s worth noting that older sis Opportunity stills holds the 1 day Martian distance driving world record of 219.89 meters – established more than 8 years ago on Sol 410 (March 20, 2005)!!
Stay tuned for more on NASA’s sojourning pair of Martian robots.
ESA astronaut Alexander Gerst practicing his medical skills on a mannequin. Credit: European Space Agency
Should an astronaut get sick on the International Space Station, that could be a bad scene given the nearest hospital requires a spaceship ride. That’s why every crew has at least two medical officers on board that can deal with some routine procedures, getting to items as complex as filling teeth, for example.
How to get that training done?
Here’s an example: above is Alexander Gerst, an astronaut with the European Space Agency, recently working with a mannequin at the Uniklinik Köln, a hospital in Cologne, Germany. The mannequin is at least as realistic as some baby dolls you can buy in stores: “it blinks, breathes and responds to injections”, ESA stated.
That’s in addition to three days Gerst spent in operating theatres, emergency and the intensive care unit at the hospital. He has about another year to do medical training before going to station for Expedition 40/41 in May 2014.
Chris Cassidy, an Expedition 36 flight engineer, tests his eyesight aboard the International Space Station. Credit: NASA
Mind you, help is also a phone call away to a ground control station, who has doctors on site. Also, there are a lot of medical doctors or similarly trained personnel that fly in space.
On board the International Space Station right now is a trained Navy SEAL, for example: Chris Cassidy. He would have been trained to treat injuries during combat. In May, he told Universe Today that he expects “muscle memory” would kick in during an emergency, whether medical or station-related:
“I think just the training that I got in the field, training in the early part of my Navy career, and during my time being an astronaut will all combine together,” he said.
“What I know from combat in the Navy, there’s a sort of calmness that comes over people who are well-trained and know what to do. Muscle memory kicks in, and it’s not until after the thing is over that you realize what you went through.”
While those who fly in space train for medical emergencies, they also serve as medical guinea pigs for ongoing experiments. Turns out microgravity simulates aging processes on Earth, so the research could have benefits on the ground in future decades. Here’s a couple of experiments happening right now on station:
Space Headaches: “Current, pre, in-flight and post-flight data via questionnaires to evaluate the prevalence and characteristics of crewmembers’ headaches in microgravity.”
Reaction Self Test: “A portable 5-minute reaction time task that will allow the crewmembers to monitor the daily effects of fatigue on performance while on board the International Space Station.”
Looking at the medical aspect alone, it’s abundantly clear why astronauts spend years in training before flying to the station. Remember, though, this is on top of other science experiments they do there, not to mention repairs, maintenance and the occasional spacewalk or catching a supply spacecraft.
Why do we explore? Is it the desire to break through boundaries, or to probe the perimeters of possibilities? With his lightning-fast mind, self-professed wonder junkie Jason Silva can quickly list all the great quotes about space exploration and why it is important for the human species to explore; and he does it in this new video from his “Shots of Awe” series on You Tube.
Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano during a spacesuit fit check before his mission. Credit: NASA
In the wake of a spacesuit water leak that sent two astronauts back to the airlock early during a spacewalk last week, NASA has convened a board to look at “lessons learned” from the mishap.
The cause of the leak, which filled Luca Parmitano’s helmet with water, is still being investigated. Some media reports say it may have been a fault within the spacesuit’s cooling system. NASA stated it plans to “develop a set of lessons learned from the incident and suggest ways to prevent a similar problem in the future.”
Chairing the board will be Chris Hansen, the International Space Station’s chief engineer at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. The other four members, who are all from NASA, include:
Mike Foreman, NASA astronaut, Johnson Space Center;
Richard Fullerton, International Space Station safety and mission assurance lead, Office of Safety and Mission Assurance, NASA headquarters;
Sudhakar Rajula, human factors specialist, Johnson Space Center;
Joe Pellicciotti, chief engineer, NASA Engineering and Safety Center, Goddard Space Flight Center.
The July 16 spacewalk stopped early at 1 hour, 32 minutes, far shorter than the crew’s planned 6.5-hour outing. All of the tasks can be easily pushed off to another time, NASA has said. The astronauts were preparing data cables and power for a Russian laboratory module that should reach the station by early 2014, among other tasks.
ISS Astronauts had to scramble to get Luca Parmitano out of his spacesuit after water leaked inside the suit, covering his face. Via NASA TV.
During and immediately after the spacewalk, NASA said the crew was in no immediate danger. A few days afterwards, Parmitano reassured officials at the European Space Agency. “Guys, I am doing fine and thanks for all the support. I am really okay and ready to move on,” he said, as reported in an ESA blog post.
Still, there was so much water inside the helmet that after a time, Parmitano had trouble hearing and communicating with his crewmates. “Squeeze my hand if you’re fine,” fellow EVA member Chris Cassidy said to Parmitano during the spacewalk.
NASA also noted there is an engineering analysis happening that is “focused on resolving equipment trouble in an effort to enable U.S. spacewalks to resume.” The board, by contrast, will be looking at aspects such as quality assurance, flight control, operations and maintenance with an eye to improving NASA human spaceflight activities in general.
NASA did not immediately release a date by which it expects the investigation to finish. Meanwhile, at least one news outlet reported that the agency is rushing some spacesuit repair tools on to a Russian Progress supply ship that will leave Kazakhstan for the International Space Station on Saturday.
The Day the Earth Smiled: Sneak Preview. In this rare image taken on July 19, 2013, the wide-angle camera on NASA's Cassini spacecraft has captured Saturn's rings and our planet Earth and its moon in the same frame. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute
The Day the Earth Smiled: Sneak Preview
In this rare image taken on July 19, 2013, the wide-angle camera on NASA’s Cassini spacecraft has captured Saturn’s rings and our planet Earth and its moon in the same frame. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute
See below our wider context mosaic of the Earth, Saturn and its majestic rings[/caption]
Breathtaking raw images of the Earth and Saturn system snapped by NASA’s Cassini spacecraft on July 19 during the worldwide ‘Wave at Saturn’ campaign are streaming back across 1 billion miles of interplanetary space.
Science team members are now busily processing the images to create individual color composites and a panoramic view of the ‘pale blue dot’ and the entire Saturnian system.
NASA just released the first individual color composite focusing on Earth – see above. And its spectacular!
See below our preliminary mosaic showing the Earth in context with nearly half of Saturn and floating in between its incomparably majestic rings.
Partial context mosaic of the Earth and Saturn taken by NASA’s Cassini orbiter on July 19, 2013. This mosaic was assembled from five wide angle camera raw images and offers a sneak peek of the complete panorama. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Ken Kremer/Marco Di Lorenzo
To capture all of Saturn and its wide swath of rings, Cassini’s wide angle camera snapped a mosaic of 33 footprints.
“At each footprint, images were taken in different spectral filters for a total of 323 images,” says Carolyn Porco, Cassini Imaging Team leader of the Space Science Institute in Boulder, Colo.
Cassini took the pictures of Earth between 2:27 and 2:42 p.m. PDT on Friday, July 19 from a distance of about 898 million miles (1.44 billion kilometers) away from the home to every human being that has ever lived.
The images show the Earth and the Moon as dots barely about a pixel wide but do reveal the ‘pale blue dot’ that is home to all of humanity and our whitish colored neighbor.
Distant views of the Earth from our robotic explorers, especially from the outer reaches of our Solar System, are few and far between, and are therefore events for space and astronomy enthusiasts and everyone else to savor.
“One of the most exciting Cassini events in 2013 will be the unusual opportunity on July 19 to image the whole Saturn system as it is backlit by the sun,” explained Linda Spilker, Cassini project scientist of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
“With Saturn covering the harsh light of the sun, we will be gathering unique ring science and also catching a glimpse of our very own home planet.”
Cassini previously took an absolutely fabulous mosaic of Saturn and Earth back in 2006 that stands as one of the landmark images of the space age.
Besides being picturesque, such mosaics also serve science. For example, the 2006 image “revealed that the dusty E ring, which is fed by the water-ice plume of the moon Enceladus, had unexpectedly large variations in brightness and color around its orbit,” says Spilker.
“We’ll want to see how that looks seven Earth years and a Saturnian season later, giving us clues to the forces at work in the Saturn system. We’ll do this analysis by collecting data from our visual and infrared mapping spectrometer, composite infrared mapping spectrometer and ultraviolet imaging spectrograph in addition to the imaging cameras.”
This simulated view from NASA’s Cassini spacecraft shows the expected positions of Saturn and Earth on July 19, 2013, around the time Cassini will take Earth’s picture. Cassini will be about 898 million miles (1.44 billion kilometers) away from Earth at the time. That distance is nearly 10 times the distance from the sun to Earth. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
“July 19 marked the first time people on Earth had advance notice their planet’s portrait was being taken from interplanetary distances,” says NASA.
I waved fondly at Saturn and hope you had the chance to wave at Saturn from all across the globe. NASA reports that nearly 20,000 participated in organized events. Countless others waved too.
Cassini was launched in 1997 and achieved orbit at Saturn in 2004. The mission is scheduled to continue until 2017 when it will commit a suicide death dive into the gas giant.
“We can’t see individual continents or people in this portrait of Earth, but this pale blue dot is a succinct summary of who we were on July 19,” said Spilker in a NASA statement.
“Cassini’s picture reminds us how tiny our home planet is in the vastness of space, and also testifies to the ingenuity of the citizens of this tiny planet to send a robotic spacecraft so far away from home to study Saturn and take a look-back photo of Earth.”
JPL Waves at Saturn
As NASA’s Cassini spacecraft turned its imaging cameras to Earth, scientists, engineers and visitors at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., gathered to wave at our robotic photographer in the Saturn system on July 19, 2013. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
Russian cosmonaut Oleg Kotov (left), Expedition 37 flight engineer and Expedition 38 commander; along with NASA astronaut Michael Hopkins (center) and Russian cosmonaut Sergey Ryazanskiy, both Expedition 37/38 flight engineers. Credit: NASA
NASA wants to bring its astronauts outside of Earth. It recently recruited a new astronaut class for deep space voyages. It’s talking about picking up asteroids and possibly heading to the moon or Mars in the distant future. But there are a heck of a lot of steps to do before anyone can head into space for long periods of time.
How about the psychological side? The next space station crew to launch gave some hints about how their training prepares them to live cheek-by-jowl in a tiny space for six months.
The mission’s main goal:
The main goal is to put the station in a good condition, and also for the Russian segment, to [install] the new module, MLM (Multipurpose Laboratory Module.) We’re all targeted to this job. Me especially, being the commander of the station, I have the responsibility of the whole crew and their success and also for their psych [psychological] atmosphere. That’s really what I want to do. — Oleg Kotov, Expedition 37 flight engineer, Expedition 38 commander and preparing for his third spaceflight
Receiving advice from past crews:
Sometimes it’s the little things in terms of how to deal with, for example … the food and your clothes and supplies. Other times it’s trying to make sure you’re focusing on the critical items, and not necessarily getting caught up in all the little details [because] you’re going to be there for such a long amount of time. — Michael Hopkins, Expedition 37/38 flight engineer and rookie astronaut
Mars 500 was really aimed at science. Most of the station [work] is mostly of the safety of the crew and the safety of the station, and then the [next priority is] science. But it also was a great experience to see, psychologically, the space station can be isolating, and how great the influence of this psychology is on the crew. So that was really the experience. Being commander there helps me a lot in my training for real flight.” — Sergey Ryzansky, commander of a 105-day segment as part of phase two of the Mars 500 program, Expedition 37/38 flight engineer and rookie cosmonaut
Michael Hopkins, Expedition 37/38 flight engineer, during spacewalk training. Credit: NASA
Communications with Mission Control:
Sometimes you ask a question or an item from the ground, and just realizing that you’re not always going to get that answer right away. Sometimes it takes some time for them to determine what the right answer is. — Hopkins
The challenge for other planets:
[I study] how to develop countermeasure means for flights on another planets. After 200 days, for example, flying in space, then we need human beings to work in a spacesuit on the surface of other planets, in different gravity. — Ryzansky
