The Inquisitr » space

Long-Term Space Travel Poses Serious Risk To Astronauts Due To Virus Virulence

AHN — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 10:14:52 +0000

Miami, FL (AHN) – New research suggests that prolific virulence and growth of bacteria, combined with reduced production of antibodies may pose a serious problem to the space program and space travel. Researchers say human missions to Mars, as well as all other long-term space flights might be compromised by microbial hitchhikers, such as bacteria.

According to a report in The Journal of Leukocyte Biology, long-term space travel appears to weaken astronaut’s immune systems; and it increases the virulence and growth of microbes. This combination of factors makes it vital for scientists to find tools that can help space travelers cope with these microscopic hitchhikers before they lead to disease, especially because astronauts won’t have the ability to return home to a hospital.

Based on research from the study immune systems of both people and animals in space flight conditions are significantly weaker than their grounded counterparts. They also reviewed studies that examined the effects of space flight conditions and altered gravity on virulence and growth of common pathogens such as Salmonella, E. coli and Staphylococcus. Studies on bacteria virulence and spaceflight show that common pathogens reproduce more rapidly.

When that happens, contamination is increased and serious infection risks are great for crew and colonization efforts. Human know how to reach great distances surpasses human know how to reach the destination disease free.

Interesting: Safire’s speech for Major Tom moon landing scenario

Kim LaCapria — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 22:04:01 +0000

Some people have said that the moon landing was the last great moment of American triumph, even if Buzz Aldrin still has to, at an advanced age, smack around doubting Thomases for challenging the event’s veracity.

But a successful round-trip wasn’t always a foregone conclusion. William Safire, former White House speechwriter who died earlier this week, had a plan b speech queued up in the event Aldrin and Neil Armstrong expired in the attempt. Gawker posted pictures of the luckily-never-orated speech:

Discovery Detours Florida, Touches Down In California

AHN — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 17:30:00 +0000

Stormy weather in Florida prompted the U.S. space shuttle Discovery to land at the Edwards Air Force Base in California instead of at the Kennedy Space Center on Friday.

Emerging from the space shuttle, Discovery Commander Rick “C.J.” Sturckow announced that he and six other astronauts were happy to be back after a 14-day mission to bring supplies and scientific equipment to the International Space Station.

The shuttle was supposed to land in Florida Thursday but postponed it to Friday due to unfavorable weather condition. But a rainy and cloudy Florida sky on Friday prompted Mission Control to advise landing in the backup touchdown site in California, which had pristine weather.

Meanwhile, the astronauts will fly to the Johnson Space Center in Houston Saturday while the Discovery will be flown to the Kennedy Space Center by a modified 747 after a week.

Stormy weather in Florida prompted the U.S. space shuttle Discovery to land at the Edwards Air Force Base in California instead of at the Kennedy Space Center on Friday.

Meanwhile, the astronauts will fly to the Johnson Space Center in Houston Saturday while the Discovery will be flown to the Kennedy Space Center by a modified 747 after a week.

[Image: NASA]

Weird new planet discovered, named Wasp-17

Kim LaCapria — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 21:37:55 +0000

A consortium of British universities, the Wide Area Search for Planets (WASP) has discovered its seventeeth planet, aptly named WASP-17.

Collaborating with the Geneva Observatory, the group located the giant planet that is twice the size of Jupiter but has only half its mass- the largest planet discovered to date. And it’s the only planet known to orbit backwards around its sun. Scientists who discovered WASP-17 said that it likely became that way due to a “giant interplanetary game of billiards.”

In a press release, they described the process:

Professor Coel Hellier, of Keele University, remarks: “Shakespeare said that two planets could no more occupy the same orbit than two kings could rule England; WASP-17 shows that he was right.”

David Anderson added “Newly formed solar systems can be violent places. Our own moon is thought to have been created when a Mars-sized planet collided with the recently formed Earth and threw up a cloud of debris that turned into the moon. A near collision during the early, violent stage of this planetary system could well have caused a gravitational slingshot, flinging WASP-17 into its backwards orbit.”

As planets generally evolve out of “the same swirling gas cloud” that creates the stars they orbit, they usually orbit the star in the same direction. The discovery is being lauded as “one of the strangest planets” we know exists. WASP-17 is 1,000 light years away from Earth.

[Image: NASA]

Kepler Telescope Finds Distant Planet During Test Run

AHN — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 07:41:23 +0000

Washington, DC (AHN) – NASA launched the Kepler space telescope in March, and it has already discovered a distant planet.

The planet is outside the Earth’s solar system and orbits a star the space agency refers to as HAT P-7. It is 26 times closer to its sun than the Earth is to its own.

It is so close, that the temperature on the side facing the sun is probably 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit and 1,000 degrees on the other side, Sarah Seager, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor and Kepler team member, told CNN.

The planet is about the size of Jupiter and orbits its sun in 2.2 days.

The planet’s discovery was encouraging because it was found during the telescope’s test run, NASA officials said

Mars in 39 days

Steven Hodson — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 17:30:59 +0000

One of the biggest things holding back serious space exploration is time. After all the idea of sticking a bunch of astronauts in a tin can and then sending them on a six month journey to Mars isn’t overly appealing. The main problem with this is that we are relying on a chemical propulsion system that is for the most part inefficient, not to mention that 90% of any space mission initial launch is the fuel needed to escape our gravity.

While there have been many different ideas floated around for many years to find a better method of launching and/or fueling the actual travel between planets nothing has really gained any traction. This is something that former astronaut Franklin Chang-Diaz is aiming to change with his proposed Variable Specific Impulse Magnetoplasma Rocket (VASIMR). Using the VASIMR ion propulsion system Chang-Diaz believes that Mars could be reached in 39 days and using a fraction of the fuel.

The Variable Specific Impulse Magnetoplasma Rocket (VASIMR, for short) consists of three linked magnetic cells. The first stage works a bit like a kettle, heating the atoms of a neutral gas like argon with a radio frequency (RF) generator until electrons “boil” off, creating plasma.

The plasma is now very hot – about 50,000 degrees Celsius – but not hot enough to produce efficient thrust. The second stage of VASIMR acts as an amplifier, further energizing the plasma using electromagnetic waves. By now, the plasma reaches about a million degrees, comparable to the center of the sun.

The third and final stage is a “magnetic nozzle” that converts the energy of this superheated plasma into directed motion and, ultimately, high velocity thrust. And, in case you’re wondering how anything so hot could be possibly contained, that’s one of the reasons the cells are all magnetic. A magnetic field not only helps heat plasma but also contains it, so it won’t ever actually touch anything.

Source: GizMag :: New ion engine could reach Mars in 39 days

Don’t start packing your bags just yet though as there are two primary things that would have to be worked out before any possibility of the VASIMR system being used. Principally the VASIMR base ship would need to still be launched into space using traditional methods because it couldn’t produce enough thrust to break through our gravity.

The second problem that would have to be surmounted – especially for deep-space missions is the power needed by VASIMR. This need could only be met by some sort of on-board nuclear reactor but this isn’t slowing anyone down at this point as the VASIMR team along with NASA is getting ready for testing in 2012.

Get your science geek on: Time could disappear

Steven Hodson — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 20:40:22 +0000

I have the greatest admiration for people who can think about things so far out there and yet make them seem totally plausible. Scientists are excellent at this and prove it once more with the notion that – according to a new theory – time may literally be running; and could one day vanish altogether.

The concept is based on string theory ideas which allow dimensions of space and time to swap places. The overall theory belongs to Professor Jose Senovilla, at the University of the Basque Country in Bilbao, Spain. It is a theory that goes counter to the prevailing “dark energy” theory which physicists purpose as being the force that is driving galaxies apart.

Professor Senovilla on the other hand suggests

…. there is no such thing as dark energy. Instead, he says we have been fooled into thinking the expansion of the universe is accelerating because time itself is slowing down.
At our local everyday level, the change would be imperceptible.

But it would be obvious from cosmic scale measurements tracking the course of the universe over billions of years.

Astronomers work out the speed of the universe’s expansion from the frequency of light emitted by certain types of supernovae, or exploding stars.

However, these measurements depend on our current perception of time, says Prof Senovilla.
If time has been slowing down, and clocks are now running more slowly than they did long ago, it would appear from our perspective as if things have been speeding up. Looking back over billions of years, galaxies would seem to be travelling away from each other faster and faster at various intervals since the Big Bang.

“Our calculations show that we would think that the expansion of the universe is accelerating,” said Senovilla.

Source: BreakingNews.ie :: Bizarre theory suggests time may be running out

As Professor Gary Gibbons, a cosmologist as Cambridge University who finds the while idea interesting, says

“We believe that time emerged during the Big Bang, and if time can emerge, it can also disappear – that’s just the reverse effect,” he said.

Mind you this isn’t something that we’ll need to pencil into our date books anytime soon given that this happening probably wouldn’t occur for a few billion years.

Spaceport America breaking ground

Steven Hodson — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 05:33:51 +0000

Yes folks space travel is coming to New Mexico U.S.A. at $200,000 a pop for at best five minutes of free fall in the middle of a two hour flight. As hard as it is to believe there are already 250 people signed up for a trip that is hoped to take place as soon as next year.

That is if construction goes ahead as planned after Gov. Bill Richardson breaks ground on what will become Spaceport America. The construction will include the terminal, hangar facility and a 10,000 foot runway from which the spacecraft will take flight attached to an airplane. Then once airborne it will break away from the aircraft and rocket 62 miles into space before returning to the shiny new terminal.

"It’s real," said Steve Landeene, the spaceport’s executive director. "You’re not talking about things drawn on paper anymore. The boondoggle factor has started to disappear."

The spaceport will operate like an airport, offering a location where aerospace companies can lease building and hangar space. Virgin Galactic, a company owned by British billionaire Sir Richard Branson, will be the spaceport’s anchor tenant.

Competitors such as XCOR Aerospace and Armadillo Aerospace are developing spacecraft for $95,000 flights. And as flights become more routine, costs should drop.

Similar spaceport ventures are proposed in Texas, Florida, Oklahoma and elsewhere. Besides New Mexico, Virgin Galactic also hopes to ferry tourists to space from northern Sweden.

Source: MNN

$200,000 for five minutes of freefall – wow – who said we were in the middle of a recession.

How to find penguins – look for the brown stain

Steven Hodson — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 20:16:23 +0000

One wouldn’t think that in the Antarctica it would be too hard to find emperor penguins given that is their home turf and really how the hell to hide is all the great white expanse?

Well apparently it is harder than you think since Antarctica is about 1.5 times larger that the United States there is actually lots of places to hide. This has made it harder for scientists trying to locate all the penguin colonies on the continent.

Then totally by accident the scientists at the British Antarctic Survey were looking over satellite images of their bases discovered how to find them. Look for the penguin shit. Seriously, I’m not kidding. It seems that because the penguins stay on the same ice for months their excrement leaves a large reddish-brown stain on the ice.

Look for the stain – find the penguins.

Just something for you to file away for that trip you might take to the Antarctica.

picture via DiscoveryNews

Microsoft goes for the universe with help from NASA

Steven Hodson — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 19:03:26 +0000

It seems like many moons ago now that we heard how something that Microsoft had done made Robert Scoble cry. While it only turned out to be some pretty incredible software we got to know as WorldWide Telescope I wonder if Robert would shed any further tears of joy about today’s news that Microsoft’s virtual universe is getting a huge boost from NASA.

The details from Brier Dudley on his blog say the deal involves more than 100 terabytes of data NASA will host at its Aimes Research Center that Microsoft will add to the telescope’s explorable online map of the skies later this year.

Also being added to the telescope is data from NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, which launched in 2005. It’s been gathering high-resolution images and other data from Mars since 2006.

Under the arrangement, the telescope will also incorporate new moon images from NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter that’s launching in May.

"Making NASA’s scientific and astronomical data more accessible to the public is a high priority for NASA, especially given the new administration’s recent emphasis on open government and transparency," Ed Weller, associate administrator for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate in Washington, said in the release.

Microsoft external research VP Tony Hey said the collaboration "will enable people around the world to explore new images of the Moon and Mars in a rich, interactive environment through the WorldWide Telescope."

Ames director S. Pete Worden said the project is "a compelling astronomical resource and will help inspire our next generation of astronomers."

Source: Brier Dudley – Seattle Times

Maybe someone should send Robert a box of Kleenex just in case.

Snow on Mars? More likely than you think

Duncan Riley — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 09:07:13 +0000

NASA scientists have reported that snow is falling in the atmosphere above Mars.

Snow was first spotted on the red planet last year, although the current observation is far more extensive,.

The Marsian snow does not reach the surface of the planet, and vaporizes in the atmosphere.

Until recently, Mars was believed to be waterless. The Guardian has more.

The universe that roared

Steven Hodson — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 23:11:46 +0000

I’m sure that most people consider that space is a pretty quiet place. Sound doesn’t travel very well and the only way we really hear anything that happens out there is by the radio waves that emanate from just about everything. There’s only one problem – a team of astronomers has found a strange cosmic noice that booms six times louder than they expected it should.

As reported on Space.com Alan Kogut of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center says that something new and interesting is going on in the universe

A team led by Kogut detected the signal with a balloon-borne instrument named ARCADE (Absolute Radiometer for Cosmology, Astrophysics, and Diffuse Emission).

In July 2006, the instrument was launched from NASA’s Columbia Scientific Balloon Facility in Palestine, Texas, and reached an altitude of about 120,000 feet (36,500 meters), where the atmosphere thins into the vacuum of space.

ARCADE’s mission was to search the sky for faint signs of heat from the first generation of stars, but instead they heard a roar from the distant reaches of the universe.

"The universe really threw us a curve," Kogut said. "Instead of the faint signal we hoped to find, here was this booming noise six times louder than anyone had predicted."

Detailed analysis of the signal ruled out primordial stars or any known radio sources, including gas in the outermost halo of our own galaxy.

Other radio galaxies also can’t account for the noise – there just aren’t enough of them.

"You’d have to pack them into the universe like sardines," said study team member Dale Fixsen of the University of Maryland. "There wouldn’t be any space left between one galaxy and the next."

The signal is measured to be six times brighter than the combined emission of all known radio sources in the universe.

Source: Space.com

For now though the origin of the signal remains a mystery.

Crowdsourcing space exploration

Steven Hodson — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 09:08:00 +0000

Space the next frontier; or the frontier that you and I can help explore today courtesy of a new site I found out about earlier today called Spacehack.org. As Ariel Waldman called it today in her announcement about it it is a directory of ways to participate in space exploration, interact plus connect with the space community as well as encourage citizen science.

When you hit the main page of the site you are presented with a listing of available projects that you can discuss with others or find ways to become involved in. Currently listed are:

As well you can also submit projects that you know of that aren’t already listed. So if you are feeling like you need to feed your inner astronomer this is definitely a site you should visit and subscribe to.

Von Braun’s Spaceship from 1952

Duncan Riley — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 07:31:35 +0000

If you know rocket history, you’ll know that Wernher von Braun was the driver behind the US space program, as well as the design and realization of the German V-2 rocket during World War Two.

The following footage was recorded by Disney in 1952, with von Braun discussing a “space rocket.” One for history and space/ rocket fans.

(via)

Porn in space fails to reach liftoff

Duncan Riley — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 03:55:20 +0000

Love it or hate it, the porn industry is a multi-billion dollar industry that likes to push more than just moral boundaries. Hollywood movies have long been a favorite target of Porn producers, with the 2005 porn flick Pirates, a take on Pirates of the Caribbean, having a budget of over $1 million going on to be the biggest selling porn title the following year. Nothing is sacred to the porn industry, and that includes space.

Virgin Galactic, the company planning to take tourists to the edge of space in 2009/2010 have turned down a $1 million offer to shoot a “a sex-in-space movie.”

According to reports, Will Whitehorn, president of Virgin Galactic disclosed the offer at the International Astronautical Congress Tuesday. Whitehorn said simply that “That was money we had to refuse, I’m afraid.”