Oct. 4, 1957 - Sputnik, The Dawn Of The Space Age Via NASA Http://ift.tt/2hNf1Yq

Apollo 11 Launch

Solar System: Things To Know This Week

Weather permitting, you can observe the Moon most nights, unless it’s a new moon, when the lighted side of the Moon faces away from Earth. The Moon is by far the brightest object in the night sky and there’s plenty to see. But this week is special…

…October 28 is International Observe the Moon Night (also known as InOMN).

Here’s all you need to know to join in and celebrate:

1. One Planet. One Moon. One Night.

Everyone on Earth is invited to join the celebration by hosting or attending an InOMN event and uniting on one day each year to look at and learn about the Moon together.

2. What’s Up?

October’s night skies are full of sights, from the first quarter Moon on InOMN to Saturn making a cameo appearance above the Moon October 23 and 24. Watch our What’s Up video for details.

3. Be Social

Hundreds of events are planned around the globe. Click the top link on this page for a handy map. You can also register your own event.

4. Don’t Just Stand There

Here are some activities for enhanced Moon watching.

5. Impress Your Friends with Moon Knowledge

Download InOMN flyers and handouts, Moon maps and even some pre-made presentations. There’s even a certificate to mark your participation.

6. Guide to the Face of the Moon

Almost dead center on the Earth-facing side of the Moon is the Surveyor 6 robotic spacecraft impact side. Apollo 12 and 14 are a bit to the left. And Apollo 11 - the first steps on the moon - are to the right. This retro graphic tells the whole story.

7. Moon Shots

NASA photographers have done some exceptional work capturing views of the Moon from Earth. Here are a few galleries:

You can’t have a solar eclipse without the Moon.

The 2016 “Supermoon” was pretty spectacular.

The Moon gets eclipsed, too.

That IS a Moon - AND the International Space Station.

The Moon is always a great photo subject.

Some spooky shots of the 2014 “Supermoon.”

And 2013.

Tips from a NASA pro for photographing the Moon.

8. Walking on the Moon

Twelve human beings walked on the face of the Moon. Here are some of the best shots from the Apollo program.

9. Moon Watch

Our Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter is up there right now, mapping the moon and capturing some spectacular high-resolution shots.

10. Keep Exploring

Make our Moon portal your base for further lunar exploration.

Check out the full version of ‘Ten Things to Know This Week’ HERE.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com.

Io and Europa taken by the Voyager 1 spacecraft in 1979

Image credit: Justin Cowart

A slow-motion animation of the Crab Pulsar taken at 800 nm wavelength (near-infrared) using a Lucky Imaging camera from Cambridge University, showing the bright pulse and fainter interpulse.

Credit: Cambridge University Lucky Imaging Group

Jupiter’s Bands of Clouds

This enhanced-color image of Jupiter’s bands of light and dark clouds was created by citizen scientists Gerald Eichstädt and Seán Doran using data from the JunoCam imager on NASA’s Juno spacecraft.

Three of the white oval storms known as the “String of Pearls” are visible near the top of the image. Each of the alternating light and dark atmospheric bands in this image is wider than Earth, and each rages around Jupiter at hundreds of miles (kilometers) per hour. The lighter areas are regions where gas is rising, and the darker bands are regions where gas is sinking.

Credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS/Gerald Eichstädt /Seán Doran

5 Questions You Were Too Embarrassed To Ask About The Expanding Universe

“5.) Are there galaxies moving away faster than the speed of light, and isn’t that forbidden? From our point of view, the space in between us and any distant point is expanding. The farther away something is, the faster it appears to recede from us. Even if the expansion rate were tiny, an object far enough away would eventually cross that threshold of any finite speed, since an expansion rate (a speed-per-distance) multiplied by a great enough distance will give you a speed as fast as you want. But this is okay in General Relativity! The law that nothing can travel faster than the speed of light only applies to an object’s motion through space, not to the expansion of space itself. In reality, the galaxies themselves only move around at speeds that are hundreds or thousands of km/s, much lower than the 300,000 km/s speed limit set by the speed of light. It’s the expansion of the Universe that causes this recession and the redshift, not a true galactic motion.”

The idea that the spatial fabric of the Universe itself is expanding, and that’s what’s behind the observed relationship between redshift and distance has long been controversial, and also long-misunderstood. After all, if more distant objects appear to recede more quickly, couldn’t there be a different explanation, like an explosion that flung many things outward? As it turns out, this isn’t a mere difference in interpretation, there are observations we can make that tell us the answer! The Universe is not expanding ‘into’ anything, despite what your intuition might tell you. The Hubble ‘constant’ isn’t actually a constant, but is rather decreasing as time goes on. The Universe looks like it’s going to expand forever, but even that scientific conclusion is subject to revision depending on what data shows in the future. And although 97% of the galaxies in the Universe are already unreachable, it isn’t a violation of relativity or a faster-than-light phenomenon that’s to blame.

Come learn the answers to five questions about the expanding Universe that many are too embarrassed to ask!

The NASA Village

Today in the NASA Village… Making More with Less

Stacey Boland works at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) on missions that use remote sensing instruments for Earth observation.  From space, we can learn so much about our changing environment here on Earth.

Maximizing science research requires finding creative and cost effective ways to do it!  Her team developed the ISS-RapidScat instrument using left over equipment NASA had in storage from a program launched in the 1990’s.  ISS-RapidScat is an external payload mounted to the outside of the Columbus module, part of the International Space Station. ISS-RapidScat measures ocean wind speed and direction to help track tropical cyclones and hurricanes. Stacey’s team was able to get a functioning piece of hardware for about a tenth the cost of a traditional “small” Earth science mission.

Stacey said, “It wasn’t easy, but it was worth it!  Working in the space program doesn’t require perfection - but it does require passion and hard work!  We work as a team here at NASA and everyone’s role is important.  We rely on each other to do our best, regardless of what part of the mission is “ours.”  All the parts need to work together for it to be a success and that takes teamwork and good communication!”

Stacey’s story represents how being creative in the NASA Village can really make a difference!

Where did Stacey get her hunger for space?  “When I was growing up, my dad and I would learn about each shuttle mission and then watch launches on TV together. It was fun learning about science and exploration together. Now, as a parent, I’m continuing on that tradition with my son”

“I was able to watch the SpaceX-4 launch in person with my mom, dad, husband, and son”, Stacy said. “It was absolutely incredible to share that experience with them.  My son still talks about it and has been practicing drawing rockets ever since. He often asks when we can go back to Florida to see another one!”

Experiencing a rocket launch in person is amazing.  Feeling the sound waves from the engines push against your body is quite a rush.  And when it is hardware you helped create, on its way into space, it makes that experience even more special.

Next time on the NASA Village… A visit to the NASA Village inspires a lifelong career.

Do you want more stories?  Find our NASA Villagers here!

Shadow Veil by Abi Ashra (Tumblr)

Stormy Seas in Sagittarius

This new NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image shows the center of the Lagoon Nebula, an object with a deceptively tranquil name, in the constellation of Sagittarius. The region is filled with intense winds from hot stars, churning funnels of gas, and energetic star formation, all embedded within an intricate haze of gas and pitch-dark dust.

Image Credit: NASA/JPL/ESA/J. Trauger