SpaceX’s Heat Shield Temperatures Show Reusability Progress
We need heat shields to protect us, since we use the air to slow us down as we return to Earth. From orbital speed, it gets to 1650°C / 3000°F. From the Moon: 2750°C / 5000°F. For yesterday's Starship suborbital test flight, peak was 1450°C / 2600°F. Great to see the spacex progress over the last 3 flights. Making them truly reusable is complex and necessary for permanent, cheap space access. image compilation: @niccruzpatane
Perfect Spacewalk Glove Fit Requires Custom Modeling, Trimmed Nails
Testing the fit of spacewalking gloves. My hands are in a low-pressure chamber, to see if the gloves will bulge too much during a spacewalk. I was lucky - when @nasa was making the new gloves, my hands were used...
Spacesuit: A One‑Person Spaceship Inside a Fridge
Climbing into a spacewalking suit for a training session. I'm wearing padded long underwear full of cooling tubes. To get into the Orlan, you open the back like a fridge, perch in the door, hook up all connections, and slither...
Pressure Suits Keep Astronauts Alive During Emergency Reentry
If the spaceship leaks air, our pressure suits protect us. It is intensely uncomfortable, and could last 2 hours until we safely reenter Earth's atmosphere. Imagine having to run all systems and manually fly the ship wearing this taut balloon. The...
Astronauts Train for Ocean Landings in Emergency De‑Orbit
A spaceship emergency can mean urgent de-orbit. Likely we'd land in an ocean, so we do water survival. Imagine Andre, Max and me inside our tiny capsule, squeezing out of our white pressure suits into those bulky orange exposure suits while...
Deep-Sea Golden Orb Revealed as Anemone, Not Alien
If you found this golden orb 2 miles deep, what would you do? The scientists noaa retrieved it using the Deep Discoverer submersible in the Gulf of Alaska. Back in the lab, whole-genome sequencing proved it's not an alien, but a...
Sunset Mirage: Atmospheric Refraction Distorts the Sun
So cool how the Sun can distort while it's setting. Timelapse showing refracting light as it crosses atmospheric layers with sharply different temperatures and densities. Like a mirage. photo: @lorenzo.busilacchi Canon R5 Mark II / RF 200-800 f6.3 / 200mm Sole...
Spacewalk Glove Survives Debris, Backup Tank Ready
Damaged spacewalking glove. The Space Station gets bombarded by space rocks and debris, and is covered with small, sharp impact scars. It's easy to snag your glove on one. We pause every 45 minutes (at sunrise or sunset) to inspect...
Blue Earth Against Cosmic Void: Spacewalk’s Unforgettable Gift
Seeing our gorgeous blue Earth against the eternal blackness of the universe is the best, most memorable gift of spacewalking. (25 years ago today, building Canadarm2)
From Gagarin to Artemis: Humanity’s Space Journey Begins
How it started - how it's going. Yuri Gagarin was the first, 65 years ago today. Artemis 2 crew, safely back from the Moon this week. I salute the bravery, and marvel at what we can do. We've only just...
Artemis 2 Crew Set to Become Fastest Humans Ever
Imagine having this view as you’re commuting home. The Artemis 2 crew is now falling to Earth, picking up speed every second as gravity relentlessly pulls them. When they plow into the upper atmosphere they’ll be the fastest humans in history...
From Giants' Shoulders to Moon's New Foundations
Your whole life you hear about the shoulders of giants. Then one day you wake up and find you're the shoulders. Four broad new sets of shoulders just orbited the Moon. Imagine how many more will stand upon them. nasa canadianspaceagency #Artemis
First Humans Since 1972 Capture Moon’s Dark Craters
4 people are flying around that Moon today. The first since 1972, and the first-ever with digital cameras, to see better into the dark craters and textures. The crew will have perfect quiet when the Moon blocks out Earth -...
Zooming Earth’s Details Reveals Our Home’s Beauty
Beautiful new whole-Earth photos. I love to zoom in and see the changing fine details, like the green glow of the aurora near the poles. A beauty of extreme exploration is that we better discover and understand our home. nasa canadianspaceagency
Three Giant Rockets Launch Soon, Expanding Moon Access
If schedule holds, these 3 giant rockets will launch in the next 3 weeks. From left to right: New Glenn - satellite launch now, planned for the Moon Starship - test flight 12 now, planned for the Moon Artemis - to the Moon...