Mission Monday – Creepy, Crawly science on station
Fruit flies, flatworms, and roundworms, oh my! It’s almost Halloween, so we are highlighting three creepy, crawly science experiments that have taken place onboard the International Space Station (ISS). Try not to squirm in your seat while we introduce you to some eerie model organisms being studied in space! Fruit
Mission Monday: Two historic firsts for NASA, one decade apart
On Oct. 11, 1958, NASA launched its first spacecraft, just ten days after the fledgling space agency opened its doors. Exactly one decade later, NASA achieved another first, launching the first crewed Apollo mission. Just ten years separated NASA’s first launch, Pioneer 1, from its first crewed Apollo launch, Apollo
Mission Monday: Peggy Whitson becomes the first female ISS commander with Expedition 16
On just her second spaceflight, Expedition 16, NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson became the first woman to command the International Space Station. This year marks a milestone in spaceflight history, 20 years of continuous human presence aboard the International Space Station (ISS). As we celebrate this monumental anniversary and honor the
Mission Monday – New robot crew members aboard space station
The ISS recently added a few new crew members. Named Astrobee, the three free-flying, cube-shaped robots are designed to help scientists and engineers develop and test technologies for use in microgravity. These robots are going to assist astronauts with routine chores and give ground controllers additional eyes and ears on
Mission Monday – Growing radishes in space
Radishes…it’s what’s for dinner. Well, not quite yet in space anyway. On the International Space Station, NASA is working on a science experiment to grow radishes in a new habitat, the Assessment of Nutritional Value and Growth Parameters of Space-grown plants (Plant Habitat-02). This experiment is trying to cultivate radishes
Mission Monday – International Space Station celebrates 20 years of continuous human presence
If you’re 20 years old or younger, your whole life astronauts have lived continuously aboard the International Space Station (ISS). Orbiting the Earth every 90 minutes at about 17,500 mph (28,000 km/h), you can view the ISS with the naked eye. Now in its 20th year of continuous human presence,
Mission Monday – Voyager 1 returns first spacecraft photo of Earth and Moon
On Sept. 5, 1977, Voyager 1 launched on a decades-long mission to study the outer solar system. Less than two weeks later, Voyager 1 achieved its first milestone – capturing the first image taken by a spacecraft to include both the Earth and Moon in the same frame. It’s been
Mission Monday: NASA develops oxygen helmet for COVID-19 patients
In this week’s Mission Monday, we are exploring a recent NASA innovation helping the response to coronavirus (COVID-19). Engineers at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in California have joined a specialized task force in designing and testing a new oxygen hood to treat COVID-19 patients. When thinking of the organizations
Mission Monday: First free-flight test of space shuttle Enterprise
Forty-three years ago, on Aug. 12, 1977, Enterprise took the next giant leap in NASA’s space shuttle Approach and Landing Test (ALT) program: free-flight. Earlier that year, Enterprise, NASA’s first space shuttle orbiter, arrived at Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base in California. Following eight captive-carry flights,
Mission Monday: 5 fast facts about NASA’s Curiosity rover
For eight years, Curiosity has roamed the surface of the red planet. The car-sized rover journeyed to Mars to answer one very important scientific question: Was the Martian environment ever habitable? Curiosity didn’t have to wait long to find the answer. The roaming rover soon discovered mineral and chemical evidence
