Showing posts with label Jim Green. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jim Green. Show all posts

Wednesday, August 19, 2015

Why wouldn"t you want to send your name to #Mars on the #InSight Mars Lander? - http://clapway.com/2015/08/19/you-can-send-your-name-to-mars-342/

A new project by NASA excites all of the Mars enthusiasts and space nerds since the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) agency is inviting everyone to send their names to the Red Planet.


NASA: SEND YOUR NAME ON INSIGHT


All of the space fans are able to participate in NASA’s “journey to Mars” mission, adding their names to the InSight Mars lander. The data are going to be stored in a silicon microchip and the InSight is set to launch next year.


Jim Green, the director of planetary science at Washington’s NASA Headquarters, says that the next step in this journey is a fantastic mission. By sending our names to Mars, we indicate our dedication to the future of space exploration:


“Our next step in the journey to Mars is another fantastic mission to the surface. By participating in this opportunity to send your name aboard InSight to the Red Planet, you’re showing that you’re part of that journey and the future of space exploration.”


WHERE DO I SIGN?


The opportunity to have your name flown aboard InSight, comes with some ‘frequent flier’ points given by NASA to reward a person’s participation in the Journey to Mars, which will take several missions and some more decades.


This is not the first call for name submissions. Last December, 1.38 million names flew on a chip along with NASA’s Orion spacecraft, which has been designed to carry astronauts to further space destinations, such as Mars.


NASA’s Exploration Mission-1, the first planned test flight to bring the Space Launch rocket and the Orion capsule together, will be the next chance for everyone interested in sending their names on space. The purpose of that mission is to get prepared for human travels to Mars and beyond.


THE INSIGHT MISSION


InSight will launch from California’s Vandenberg Air Force Base in March 2016 and it is scheduled to land on Mars on September 28 of the same year.


The reason why this mission is considered to be one of the most important space travels in our history is because it is the first research devoted to the Red Planet’s deep interior. NASA scientists have already designed the first seismometer, that will be placed directly on Mars’ surface area, and a heat probe that will baste deeper than any previous device put into the planet’s ground.


This, will not only help us understand more about the most famous planet of our solar system, but it will also help us broaden our knowledge on the creation and the evolution of all rocky planets, such as Earth.


If you are one of the space enthusiasts you can send your name clicking here. You can also read more about space here!



 


Data of important sorts can also be stored with Nanoform:




You Can Send Your Name to Mars

Monday, July 6, 2015

Good news for #NewHorizons who"ve got work to do tomorrow! - http://clapway.com/2015/07/06/nasas-new-horizons-probe-to-resume-normal-operations-123/

After suffering a brief setback, NASA’s Pluto-bound New Horizons spacecraft is scheduled to return to normal operations.


A COMPUTER GLITCH


New Horizons suffered a computer malfunction on Saturday, July 4 resulting in a temporary loss of communication between the spacecraft and the mission control team at Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Maryland.


After detecting the anomaly, the probe autonomously placed itself in safe mode, activating the craft’s backup computer and restoring communication.


RESUMING NORMAL SCIENCE OPERATIONS


Sending commands to, and receiving data from, New Horizons takes awhile due to the vast distance between the craft and Earth. Radio communication takes approximately four-and-a-half hours each way to traverse the roughly three billion miles.


Despite this communication delay, mission control and the New Horizons Anomaly Review Board were able to determine that there are no issues with hardware or software, and that the spacecraft is in good health. Investigators determined the cause of the computer glitch was a timing flaw in a command sequence. Fortunately, there are no plans to send that same command sequence again for the duration of the probe’s journey to Pluto. So hopefully the glitch won’t be replicated.


“I’m pleased that our mission team quickly identified the problem and assured the health of the spacecraft,” NASA’s Director of Planetary Science Jim Green reports. He continues, “Now – with Pluto in our sights – we’re on the verge of returning to normal operations and going for the gold.”


NASA hopes to resume normal science operations on Tuesday, July 7.


STILL ON TRACK FOR PLUTO RENDEZVOUS


The probe has been unable to gather scientific data while in safe mode. NASA says that, although some scientific observation opportunities have been lost, they do not affect the primary objectives of the probe’s mission.


Fortunately, the glitch and the craft’s time spent in safe mode do not appear to have affected New Horizon’s trajectory. NASA says the probe is still on course and is still on track for its Pluto flyby on July 14.



 


Itching for a summer adventure. Here’s your answer:




NASA’s New Horizons Probe to Resume Normal Operations