Guy Bluford, First African American in Space: 40 Years of Inspiration
In 1983, NASA’s Guy Bluford broke barriers and made history as the first African American astronaut in space. Hear from Bluford himself, see footage from his Space Shuttle missions, and celebrate the milestones that forever changed the landscape of space exploration.
Bluford’s first mission was STS-8, which launched from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, on Aug. 30, 1983. This was the third flight for the Challenger orbiter, and the first mission with a night launch and night landing. During the mission, the STS-8 crew deployed the Indian National Satellite (INSAT-1B), operated the Canadian-built RMS with the Payload Flight Test Article (PFTA), operated the Continuous Flow Electrophoresis System (CFES) with live cell samples, conducted medical measurements to understand biophysiological effects of spaceflight, and activated four “Getaway Special” canisters. STS-8 completed 98 orbits of the Earth in 145 hours before landing at Edwards Air Force Base, California, on Sept. 5, 1983.
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The Science of NASA's SpaceX Crew-6 Mission
After launching to the International Space Station on March 2, 2023, NASA's SpaceX Crew-6 mission is wrapping up its time in orbit, with a return to Earth in early September 2023.
NASA astronauts Stephen Bowen and Woody Hoburg, UAE (United Arab Emirates) astronaut Sultan Alneyadi, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev spent their months on the orbiting lab conducting scientific investigations and technology demonstrations, including running a student robotic challenge, studying plant genetic adaptations to space, and monitoring human health in microgravity to prepare for exploration beyond low Earth orbit and to benefit life on Earth.
The astronauts also released Saskatchewan's first satellite, which tests a new radiation detection and protection system derived from melanin.
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A New Crew Heads to the Space Station on This Week @NASA – September 1, 2023
A new crew heads to the space station, a major storm spotted from space, and a robotic spacecraft enabling human missions to the Moon … a few of the stories to tell you about – This Week at NASA!
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NASA's SpaceX Crew-7 Mission to the Space Station (Official Trailer)
An international crew is preparing to launch to the International Space Station aboard NASA’s SpaceX Crew-7 mission.
NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Andreas Mogensen, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, and cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov of Roscosmos will perform research technology demonstrations, science experiments, and maintenance activities aboard the microgravity laboratory.
Crew-7 is targeted to launch no earlier than 3:27 a.m. EDT Saturday, Aug. 26 from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy. As part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program, Crew-7 marks the eighth human spaceflight mission supported by a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft and the seventh crew rotation mission to the space station since 2020 for NASA.
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Where Are the Moon Rocks? We Asked a NASA Expert
Where are the Moon rocks from the Apollo missions kept? When they’re not being studied by institutions or enjoyed by museumgoers, NASA has a specialized Lunar Sample Curation Laboratory at NASA’s Johnson Space Center to store and keep these otherworldly samples safe. Studying these samples helps us learn more about the origin of not only our moon, but our planet. Deputy Apollo Sample Curator (Sept 2019 – Dec 2022) Dr. Juliane Gross explains more about lunar sample curation.
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Find out why July 2023 was a record-breaking month on This Week @NASA – August 18, 2023
Find out why July 2023 was a record-breaking month, a high-flying NASA aircraft is helping to study lighting, and making landings safe for flights of the future … a few of the stories to tell you about – This Week at NASA!
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How We Are Going to the Moon - 4K
While Apollo placed the first steps on the Moon, Artemis opens the door for humanity to sustainably work and live on another world for the first time. Using the lunar surface as a proving ground for living on Mars, this next chapter in exploration will forever establish our presence in the stars. ✨
We are returning to the Moon – to stay – and this is how we are going!
Actress Kelly Marie Tran of “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” lent her voice to this project.
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A Decade of Sun
As of June 2020, NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory — SDO — has now been watching the Sun non-stop for over a full decade. From its orbit in space around the Earth, SDO has gathered 425 million high-resolution images of the Sun, amassing 20 million gigabytes of data over the past 10 years. This information has enabled countless new discoveries about the workings of our closest star and how it influences the solar system.
With a triad of instruments, SDO captures an image of the Sun every 0.75 seconds. The Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) instrument alone captures images every 12 seconds at 10 different wavelengths of light. This 10-year time lapse showcases photos taken at a wavelength of 17.1 nanometers, which is an extreme ultraviolet wavelength that shows the Sun’s outermost atmospheric layer — the corona. Compiling one photo every hour, the movie condenses a decade of the Sun into 61 minutes. The video shows the rise and fall in activity that occurs as part of the Sun’s 11-year solar cycle and notable events, like transiting planets and eruptions. The custom music, titled “Solar Observer,” was composed by musician Lars Leonhard (https://www.lars-leonhard.de/).
While SDO has kept an unblinking eye pointed towards the Sun, there have been a few moments it missed. The dark frames in the video are caused by Earth or the Moon eclipsing SDO as they pass between the spacecraft and the Sun. A longer blackout in 2016 was caused by a temporary issue with the AIA instrument that was successfully resolved after a week. The images where the Sun is off-center were observed when SDO was calibrating its instruments.
SDO and other NASA missions will continue to watch our Sun in the years to come, providing further insights about our place in space and information to keep our astronauts and assets safe.
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133 Days on the Sun
On the left side of the frame is the full circle of the Sun. It appears in a golden yellow color, but splotchy and with thin yellow wisps extending from the surface. Some areas are very bright and others almost black. The whole Sun rotates steadily, with one full rotation taking 12 minutes in this time lapse. There are usually only a few bright regions visible at a time and they shift and flash like small fires. From these regions there are wispy loops reaching up above the surface that rapidly change shape and size.
On the right side of the frame are two white-outlined squares with enlargements of interesting regions of the Sun.
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NASA Explores Earth’s Connections
For Earth Day 2021, we explore the connections of Earth systems and NASA's ability to observe them in a changing world, highlighting the links between dust transport, vegetation, water quality, conservation and human health, the cryosphere, and disasters.
Music: "Ellipsis" and "Terrafirma" by Ben Niblett and Jon Cotton [PRS] via Universal Production Music
Video credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center
Jefferson Beck (USRA): Lead Producer
Ellen T. Gray (ADNET): Writer
Sofie Bates (KBR): Writer
Roberto Molar Candanosa (KBR): Writer
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Earth from Space in 4K – Expedition 65 Edition
The people who get to see the Earth from space marvel at its beauty, the colors, the fragility they feel about the planet 250 miles below them. Now it’s your turn: this ultra-high definition video, captured during the International Space Station’s Expedition 65, allows you an extended, appreciative gawk at the home planet in all its glory. Hit play, and go into orbit mode.
This footage was shot from the International Space Station between April 17, 2021 – Oct. 17, 2021.
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