Image of Comet Lovejoy taken Saturday, January 10, by Dr. Bill Cooke. Image is a 3 minute exposure using the iTelescope T3 refractor. At the time of this image, the comet was some 45 million miles from Earth. Discovered in August of 2014, Comet Lovejoy is currently sweeping north through the constellation Taurus, bright enough …
SpaceX-5 Dragon Status: On Saturday January 10th, SpaceX-5 successfully launched from Cape Canaveral at 3:47am CST. After a nominal rendezvous with ISS, the ISS Crew successfully captured the spacecraft today at 4:54am CST utilizing the Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS). Robotics Ground Controllers then used the SSRMS to support the inspection of the Dragon …
Last week, an Earth Observatory Image of the Day featured a sediment plume from the Fraser River where it enters the Strait of Georgia. That photograph was taken by an astronaut on the International Space Station on September 6, 2014. After we posted the image on Facebook, researcher Ed Wiebe responded by sharing some close-up views of […]
The SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft was berthed to the Harmony module of the International Space Station at 8:54 a.m. EST. The hatch between the newly arrived spacecraft and the Harmony module of the space station is scheduled to be opened Tuesday, but could occur earlier. The capsule is scheduled to spend four weeks attached to …
While the International Space Station was traveling over the Mediterranean Sea, Expedition 42 Commander Barry “Butch” Wilmore of NASA, with the assistance of Flight Engineer Samantha Cristoforetti of the European Space Agency, successfully captured the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft with the station’s robotic arm at 5:54 a.m. EST. NASA TV coverage of operations to berth Dragon …
The International Space Station and Dragon flight control teams are proceeding toward rendezvous and grapple at 6:12 a.m. EST on Monday, Jan. 12. SpaceX reported all spacecraft systems are ready for the final stages of rendezvous, and space station flight controllers reported the orbiting outpost is ready for the commercial spacecraft’s arrival. NASA Television coverage …
Capillary Flow Experiments-2 (CFE-2): Virts reviewed CFE Vane Gap test operations and crew procedures. He then completed the setup, which includes retrieving CFE hardware, preparing the Maintenance Work Area (MWA) work surface only, securing the CFE hardware on the MWA, and positioning the HD Camcorder. He prepared a CFE-2 Vane Gap vessel for testing by …
What is the hottest volcano of them all? It depends on how you define “hottest,” but a fascinating new analysis crunches the numbers in a few different ways, using satellite observations of 95 of Earth’s most active volcanoes since 2000. In terms of total energy radiated, the prize goes to Hawaii’s Kilauea (shown above), which has been […]
The Expedition 42 crew is getting ready for a delivery aboard the Dragon commercial cargo craft as well as next month’s departure of Europe’s fifth and final Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV-5). The weather looks favorable for Saturday’s planned launch of Dragon aboard a Falcon 9 rocket at 4:47 a.m. EST. Dragon will arrive at the …
SpaceX-5 Status: Yesterday, SpaceX announced they needed additional time to work the actuator problem and officially moved the next launch attempt to Saturday, January 10th at 3:47am CST with berthing taking place on Monday, January 12th. As a result of the slip, SpaceX unberth will move to February 10th. A delta Launch Readiness Review is …
