SpaceX Flight Launch

NASA announced a target launch date of Space Exploration Technology’s (SpaceX) Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) for February 7, 2012.  This demonstration flight is dependent on the completion of final safety reviews.  SpaceX will send its Dragon spacecraft to conduct a fly-by of the International Space Station, to ensure Dragon’s sensors and flight systems are in correct operation for a rendezvous.    

Once all operations are confirmed, Dragon will dock with the ISS.  Dragon will then detach and prepare for its splashdown in the Pacific Ocean.  If deemed successful, this will be a step in the direction of government and private industry working together for space exploration. 

Interested in teaching your students more about space science? Check out SSR's Vol 41 DVD, episode Space Science – Everyday Astronauts.  If your school would like to receive this free resource, visit http://www.ssrvideo.com/nhcmsp.html.   

Interested in speaking to students about space science? E-mail Fallon@ssrvideo.com

Source:

http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2011/dec/HQ_11-413_SpaceX_ISS_Flight.html

Vacation Destination 600 Light Years Away

Space tourists now have an ultimate destination point: Kepler-22b.  Announced yesterday, as being the first confirmed planet in a “habitable zone,” Kepler-22b is an appropriate enough distance from its star that is conducive to water being present.  Kepler-22b’s discovery was made by NASA’s Kepler mission.  Keppler-22b is the first of 54 potential habitable planet candidates to be reported by the Kepler mission.  48 potential planets remain to be confirmed, as the others were found to not be habitable. 

Kepler-22b’s radius is 2.4 times the size of Earth’s, and it is located 600 light years away from Earth.  Kepler-22b’s year is 290 days long.  It is 15% closer to its star than we are to the Sun, but Kepler-22b’s star is dimmer, which results in a surface temperature that likely averages 72 Fahrenheit, assuming greenhouse conditions are similar as Earth’s. 

Interested in teaching your students more about space science? Check out SSR's Vol 41 DVD, episode Space Science – Everyday Astronauts.  If your school would like to receive this free resource, visit http://www.ssrvideo.com/nhcmsp.html.   

Interested in speaking to students about space science? E-mail Fallon@ssrvideo.com

Source:

http://www.cnn.com/2011/12/05/us/kepler-nasa-planet/index.html?iref=allsearch

The New River Gorge Bridge

The New River Gorge Bridge has been dubbed an engineering masterpiece.  With a 3,030ft long, fou8r lane road spanning the distance of it, the bridge opened to traffic October 22, 1977.  When it opened, its towering height of 876ft was recorded as being the highest vehicular bridge in the world, and it maintained that record for over 25 years. 

A drive to cross the gorge, through the Appalachian Mountains, used to take 45 minutes.  The bridge reduced that drive to 45 seconds, completing the US Route 19 highway corridor.  16,000 vehicles a day take advantage of the convenience the bridge now affords, creating a vibration that can be felt throughout the base of the overpass.  The bridge recently opened a pathway, year-round, to allow pedestrians to cross the 2ft wide maintenance catwalk, located 20ft underneath the center of the highway.

Interested in teaching your students more about engineering? Check out SSR's Vol 41 DVD, episode Engineering – Bridges by Design.  If your school would like to receive this free resource, visit http://www.ssrvideo.com/nhcmsp.html.   

Interested in speaking to students about engineering? E-mail Fallon@ssrvideo.com

Source:

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11331/1192391-37.stm

Space: The Frequented Frontier

2004 started a new era in which space travelers were not just traveling for science.  Space tourism is a growing industry throughout the world.  On October 4, 2004, SpaceShipOne became the first privately piloted spacecraft to soar over 328,000ft twice in 14 days.  This was prompted by Microsoft’s Ansari X-Prize with a $10 million reward.   Additionally, Virgin Galactic has been leading the pack in sales of space tourism flights to space.

In addition to suborbital flights, companies, such as Bigelow Aerospace, are exploring the idea of space hotels in orbit similar to the International Space Station.  Google’s Lunar X-Prize is offering a $30 million prize for the private team that can build a lunar rover and land it on the moon. 

Interested in teaching your students more about space science? Check out SSR's Vol 41 DVD, episode Space Science – Everyday Astronauts.  If your school would like to receive this free resource, visit http://www.ssrvideo.com/nhcmsp.html.   

Interested in speaking to students about space science? E-mail Fallon@ssrvideo.com

Source:

http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2011-11-27/news/30444743_1_spaceshiptwo-bigelow-aerospace-space-tourists

Bat Ears: Nature’s Hearing Aid

The results of echolocation help bats navigate the night skies.  It makes perfect sense that bats would need an extra ability to have the best hearing possible.  Since their ultrasonic pulses bounce off many different objects around them, bats need an ability to pick these sounds up from multiple areas. 

To do this, bats can change the outer structure of their ears within 1/10^th of a second; the blink of a human eye takes twice as long.  This was discovered by researchers at Virginia Tech with the ability of computer analysis.  The change improves the qualitative hearing of the bat, creating different “spotlights” which allow the bat to know much more about its surrounding area. 

Interested in teaching your students more about ecology? Check out SSR's Vol 41 DVD, episode Ecology – Bats: Creatures of the Night.  If your school would like to receive this free resource, visit http://www.ssrvideo.com/nhcmsp.html.   

Interested in speaking to students about ecology? E-mail Fallon@ssrvideo.com

Source:

http://io9.com/5859780/bats-can-instantly-change-the-shape-of-their-ears-just-to-hear-better