Category Archives: NASA

Antares and tiny satellites

Posted on 23 April 2013 by Joseph

This weekend was full of excitement for commercial space fans. Orbital Sciences Corporation launched the Antares rocket, making them only the second private company to put a vehicle into orbit. Like the SpaceX Falcon 9, Antares is intended to carry … Continue reading →

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Marswhelmed

Posted on 15 March 2013 by Joseph

So, the Mars Science Laboratory “Curiosity” has discovered evidence that, about three billion years ago, the environment on the planet Mars could have supported Earth-like microbial life. Some news outlets (including the MSL Twitter feed) are billing this discovery as … Continue reading →

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Money matters

Posted on 9 February 2013 by Joseph

The whole public debate about sequestration, cutting the deficit, and stimulating the economy is looking in the wrong directions. The broad solutions are simple: (1) the federal government should not spend as much as it does in relation to its … Continue reading →

Posted in NASA, Politics | 1 Comment

That’s no moon…

Posted on 10 December 2012 by Joseph

While somewhat facetious, this petition on whitehouse.gov makes an excellent point. With investment in space-related technology, science, and development, the government can spur job creation in the fields of construction, engineering, space exploration, and more. Ever dollar the federal government … Continue reading →

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What’s the deal with Lagrange Points?

Posted on 23 November 2012 by Joseph

You may have read about rumors that NASA is considering building a space station at a place called the “Earth-Moon L2 Point.” The “L” is short for “Lagrange,” and this is one of the places in space known as a … Continue reading →

Posted in NASA, Science, Space | 2 Comments

They’ve Still Got It

Posted on 27 August 2012 by Joseph

I pulled my car into my lot today, and as I walked over to the mailbox, I passed three young kids from the apartment complex. One of them asks me, “do you work for NASA?!” (There’s a NASA meatball sticker on … Continue reading →

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Stoking our Curiosity for Other Worlds

Posted on 11 August 2012 by Joseph

In the wee hours of last Monday (Eastern US time), a jubilant Mission Control erupted at the successful landing of the Mars Science Laboratory “Curiosity.” Curiosity has demonstrated some amazing technological feats. Now, that portion of its mission is nearly … Continue reading →

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Dear everyone who doubted the MSL Skycrane would work:

Posted on 6 August 2012 by Joseph

TOLD YOU SO.

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Good luck to the Mars Science Laboratory team tonight!

Posted on 5 August 2012 by Joseph

Just a quick shout-out to wish the Curiosity rover team well! I plan to crash Phil Plait’s Google+ hangout and monitor Ryan’s blog closely!

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The kind of technology that NASA needs to embrace wholeheartedly

Posted on 23 July 2012 by Joseph

I’m always happy to learn that NASA is conducting new technology demonstrations – and the recent success of an inflatable heat shield is no exception! Congress has determined that NASA should follow the 1960s vision of space travel: you launch … Continue reading →

Posted in NASA, Space | 1 Comment