Cosmonaut due to command space station resigns for 'better job'

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Russian cosmonaut

Robert Z. Pearlman Space.com

9 hours ago

NASA

Cosmonaut Yuri Lonchakov, seen here on board the International Space Station in 2008, resigned from the Russian federal space agency, despite being assigned to a 2015 mission.

A veteran Russian cosmonaut who was assigned to command the International Space Station in 2015 has unexpectedly resigned.

Cosmonaut Yuri Lonchakov tendered his resignation to the Russian federal space agency, Roscosmos, on Thursday. Russian news agencies, quoting the head of the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center, reported Lonchakov will be "formally discharged" on Sept. 14.

"He came and told me that he had found a better job than working in space," Sergei Krikalev, the training center's chief and the current record holder for most time in space by any human, told the Interfax news service. "Frankly, we were counting on him because he was not just in the unit, (but) he was assigned to a crew." [Quiz: Do You Know the International Space Station?]

Lonchakov was scheduled to fly as the commander of the Russian spacecraft Soyuz TMA-16M, launching in March 2015 with Roscosmos cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko and NASA astronaut Scott Kelly, the space station's first two yearlong crew members.

Once on board the orbiting laboratory, Lonchakov was set to join the Expedition 43 crew as a flight engineer before taking over command of the space station as the leader of Expedition 44 in May 2015. He was then to return to Earth in October 2015.

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Cosmonaut due to command space station resigns for 'better job'

Astronaut Reveals 'Lucky Charm' Floating on Space Station

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An astronaut working onboard the International Space Station (ISS) has revealed his "lucky charm" a miniature toy astronaut figurine in a video recently sent down to Earth.

"I was going through personal things [that] I have flown for people and came across my own personal item I'd like to share with everybody," NASA astronaut and Expedition 36 flight engineer Chris Cassidy said in the video, which was released online Wednesday (Sept. 4). "This little astronaut guy has seen better days but he has special meaning."

In the video, Cassidy holds up and lets float the 3-inch-tall (7.6 centimeters) toy, which was sculpted to appear to be wearing the same type of spacesuit that Cassidy has worn on spacewalks outside the space station.

"Before I was selected as an astronaut, I knew I wanted to become one and I somehow came across this guy in a toy set for my kids, or something like that," Cassidy recalled.

Flying to the space station is just the latest adventure for the plastic figure, Cassidy said.

As a Navy SEAL, Cassidy was deployed on four 6-month missions, including being sent to Afghanistan two weeks after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

"I took him with me to Afghanistan every time and he was always in my pocket on every mission that I did," Cassidy said from aboard the space station.

Cassidy was chosen to join NASA's ranks in 2004 with the agency's 19th group of astronaut candidates.

"When I was selected to become an astronaut, I felt like [the figurine] was a good luck charm, so he has been with me every step of the way," Cassidy said. "He often flies in T-38 [training jets] with me and various other places. I just leave him in the pocket of my flight suit and I often kind of forget that he is there."

"It [also] flew on the space shuttle," Cassidy, who made his first visit to the space station on space shuttle Endeavour's STS-127 mission in 2009, added.

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Astronaut Reveals 'Lucky Charm' Floating on Space Station

Russian Quits Space Station

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A veteran Russian cosmonaut who was assigned to command the International Space Station in 2015 has unexpectedly resigned.

Cosmonaut Yuri Lonchakov tendered his resignation to the Russian federal space agency, Roscosmos, on Thursday. Russian news agencies, quoting the head of the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center, reported Lonchakov will be "formally discharged" on Sept. 14.

"He came and told me that he had found a better job than working in space," Sergei Krikalev, the training center's chief and the current record holder for most time in space by any human, told the Interfax news service. "Frankly, we were counting on him because he was not just in the unit, [but] he was assigned to a crew."

- Sergei Krikalev, chief of Russia's Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center

Lonchakov was scheduled to fly as the commander of the Russian spacecraft Soyuz TMA-16M, launching in March 2015 with Roscosmos cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko and NASA astronaut Scott Kelly, the space station's first two yearlong crew members. [Quiz: Do You Know the International Space Station?]

Once on board the orbiting laboratory, Lonchakov was set to join the Expedition 43 crew as a flight engineer before taking over command of the space station as the leader of Expedition 44 in May 2015. He was then to return to Earth in October 2015.

Lonchakov's replacement on the crew was not announced. Backing him up on the Soyuz TMA-16M crew was Alexei Ovchinin, a fellow Roscosmos cosmonaut.

Lonchakov, 48, joined the cosmonaut corps in 1997 and flew three spaceflights to the International Space Station. He first launched on NASA's space shuttle Endeavour as a member of the STS-100 crew in 2001, helping to deliver the Canadarm2 robotic arm during the 12-day mission.

The next year, he flew on board the first Soyuz TMA-class spacecraft, Soyuz TMA-1, for a 10-day flight to the space station.

Lonchakov's third and now final spaceflight began in October 2008 with the launch of Soyuz TMA-13, the 100th crewed Soyuz spacecraftto fly. Serving as an Expedition 18 flight engineer, Lonchakov spent 178 days in space, bringing his career total to 200 days (and 19 hours) off the planet.

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Russian Quits Space Station

Comet ISON to Make a Close Pass of Mars This Month | September 2013 | NASA JPL Space Science HD – Video

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Comet ISON to Make a Close Pass of Mars This Month | September 2013 | NASA JPL Space Science HD
Visit my website at http://www.junglejoel.com - the LADEE (Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer) mission is scheduled for a night launch on Sept 6,...

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Comet ISON to Make a Close Pass of Mars This Month | September 2013 | NASA JPL Space Science HD - Video

NASA to return to moon's surface

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NASA scientists are set to launch a rocket that will study patterns of dust on the moon's surface.

NASA hopes to unravel more of the moon's mysteries by launching an unmanned mission to study its atmosphere, the US space agency's third such probe in five years.

The Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) is to launch at 1.27pm on Saturday (AEST) aboard a Minotaur V rocket a converted peacekeeping missile from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia.

Since US astronauts last walked on the moon four decades ago, rocket scientists have learned that there is more to the moon than just a dusty, desolate terrain.

Recent NASA robotic missions such as the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter have returned troves of images detailing the moon's cratered surface, while NASA's Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory (GRAIL) revealed how being pummelled by asteroids resulted in the moon's uneven patches of gravity.

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A previous NASA satellite, the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) discovered water ice when it impacted in 2009, the space agency said.

"When we left the moon we thought of it as an atmosphere-less ancient surface," said John Grunsfeld, associate administrator for NASA's science mission directorate.

"We have discovered that the moon scientifically is very much alive, it is still evolving and in fact has a kind of atmosphere."

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NASA to return to moon's surface

NASA launching robotic explorer to moon from Va.

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This image provided by NASA shows the Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer aboard a Minotaur V rocket after a rollout at NASA's Wallops Island test flight facility in Wallops Island, Va., Thursday Sept. 5, 2013. The LADEE spacecraft is set to launch from Wallops Island Friday evening. NASCAR fans in Virginia will have an opportunity to learn about an upcoming NASA mission to the moon during races at Richmond International Raceway. NASA's Langley Research Center says education... (Patrick Black/AP)

NASA is poised to return to the moon.

An unmanned rocket is scheduled to blast off late Friday night (11:27 p.m. EDT) from Virginia's Eastern Shore with a robotic explorer that will study the lunar atmosphere and dust. Called LADEE (LA'-dee), the moon-orbiting craft will measure the thin lunar atmosphere.

Scientists want to learn the composition of the moon's ever-so-delicate atmosphere and how it might change over time. Another puzzle: whether dust actually levitates from the lunar surface.

Unlike the quick three-day Apollo flights to the moon, the Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer, or LADEE, will take a full month to get there. An Air Force Minotaur rocket, built by Orbital Sciences Corp., is providing

This image provided by NASA shows the Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer aboard a Minotaur V rocket after a rollout at NASA's Wallops Island test flight facility in Wallops Island, Va., Thursday Sept. 5, 2013. The LADEE spacecraft is set to launch from Wallops Island Friday evening. NASCAR fans in Virginia will have an opportunity to learn about an upcoming NASA mission to the moon during races at Richmond International Raceway. NASA's Langley Research Center says education... (Patrick Black/AP)

It's the first moonshot from Virginia. All but one of NASA's approximately 40 moon missions, including the manned Apollo flights of the late 1960s and early 1970s, originated from Cape Canaveral, Fla. The most recent were the twin Grail spacecraft launched two years ago. The lone exception, Clementine, a military-NASA venture, rocketed away from Southern California in 1994.

The soaring Minotaur rocket should be visible along much of the East Coast as far south as South Carolina, as far north as Maine and as far west as Pittsburgh.

The $280 million mission will last six months and end with a suicide plunge into the moon for LADEE, which is about the size of a small car.

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NASA launching robotic explorer to moon from Va.

NASA rocket launch to the moon visible to East Coast tonight

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The launch of LADEE, NASA's new lunar exploration mission, will take place at 11:27 p.m. ET from the agency's new Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia.

NASA's Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer will orbit the Moon to gather information on its atmosphere and surface conditions. It launches from Wallops Island, Va., at 11:27 p.m. ET.

If the typical bevy of Friday night activities seems just too boring to bear, try out a rocket launch instead.

At roughly 11:27 p.m. ET, NASA will launch its Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) onboard an Orbital-made Minotaur V rocket. The launch is the first to take place at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility on Wallops Island, Va., and will be visible to a wide array of East Coast onlookers lucky enough to catch a patch of clear sky.

For those not on the East Coast -- or anyone looking for a front row ticket to the rocket launch itself -- NASA TV will broadcast the event live starting at 9:30 p.m. ET.

The goal of the $280 million mission, pronounced "laddie," is to investigate unknowns surrounding the moon's atmosphere that were brought up by NASA's Surveyor 7 mission in 1968. Back then, unexplainable "streamers" of light were noticed on the horizon of the Earth's natural satellite before sunrise.

Scientists posit that the mysterious moondust is tied to the moon's atmosphere and its interactions with the surface environment, but they've been unable to study the phenomenon thoroughly in the nearly 50 years since the Surveyor 7 mission.

The moon's boundary surface exosphere, as it's called, has been left relatively undisturbed thanks to a low number of probe landings of late. That portion of atmosphere -- which the Earth has, but which is out of reach beyond the orbit of the International Space Station -- also happens to be the most common type of atmosphere in our solar system, explains Space.com's Miriam Kramer. It exists around Mercury, as well as other large moons and asteroids. That makes Earth's moon ripe for types of data collection that could open up new understandings into other planetary bodies and their atmospheres.

The LADEE launch marks Virginia-based Orbital's first rocket launch carrying a payload destined for a spot beyond a low-Earth orbit. The company has produced a series of guidelines for viewing, including the map below.

Also check out its annotated series of Google Earth screenshots outlining the path of the rocket and its potential visibility at different points on the East Coast in and around Virginia and Washington, DC.

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NASA rocket launch to the moon visible to East Coast tonight

NASA set to explore moon's mysterious glow with LADEE mission

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NASA is poised to return to the moon.

An unmanned rocket is scheduled to blast off late Friday night (11:27 p.m. EDT) from Virginia's Eastern Shore with a robotic explorer that will study the lunar atmosphere and dust. Called LADEE (LA'-dee), the moon-orbiting craft will measure the thin lunar atmosphere.

Scientists want to learn the composition of the moon's ever-so-delicate atmosphere and how it might change over time. Another puzzle: whether dust actually levitates from the lunar surface.

Unlike the quick three-day Apollo flights to the moon, the Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer, or LADEE, will take a full month to get there. An Air Force Minotaur rocket, built by Orbital Sciences Corp., is providing the ride from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility.

It's the first moonshot from Virginia. All but one of NASA's approximately 40 moon missions, including the manned Apollo flights of the late 1960s and early 1970s, originated from Cape Canaveral, Fla. The most recent were the twin Grail spacecraft launched two years ago. The lone exception, Clementine, a military-NASA venture, rocketed away from Southern California in 1994.

The soaring Minotaur rocket should be visible along much of the East Coast -- as far south as South Carolina, as far north as Maine and as far west as Pittsburgh.

The $280 million mission will last six months and end with a suicide plunge into the moon for LADEE, which is about the size of a small car.

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NASA set to explore moon's mysterious glow with LADEE mission

Record crowd of more than 1,500 explores nanotechnology at CNSE’s Community Day – Video

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Record crowd of more than 1,500 explores nanotechnology at CNSE #39;s Community Day
A record crowd of more than 1500 people participated in Community Day at the College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering (CNSE) on Saturday, November 3, re...

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Record crowd of more than 1,500 explores nanotechnology at CNSE's Community Day - Video

Canada's first endowed occupational medicine research chair established in NB

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Mr. Jim Irving, Co-CEO, J.D. Irving, Limited welcomes Dr. Anil Adisesh, the inaugural J.D. Irving, Limited, Research

SAINT JOHN, NB, Sept. 6, 2013 /CNW/ - J.D. Irving, Limited has contributed $2 million to Dalhousie Medicine New Brunswick's Medical Research Campaign to establish the first endowed occupational medicine research chair in Canada.

"As a company that is proud to call Saint John home for many of our manufacturing operations, we are very pleased to support this important first for Canada - a fully endowed Chair in Occupational Medicine. The health and safety of our employees is our top priority. This centre of excellence will support our commitment to continuous improvement, and advance best practices for occupational health and safety in Atlantic Canada and across the country" stated Jim Irving, co-CEO of J.D. Irving, Limited.

Occupational medicine focuses on promoting, creating, and maintaining healthy workplaces, free from preventable workplace illnesses and injuries. Good businesses know that companies that promote and protect workers' health are among the most successful and competitive.

"Today's gift exemplifies J.D. Irving, Limited's commitment to their employees and the health of New Brunswickers and Maritimers alike," stated Dr. Tom Marrie, dean, Dalhousie Medical School. "There has been a real void of occupational medicine expertise in the Maritimes. The new chair will be the impetus for very positive impact on workplace-related injury and illness."

Dr. Anil Adisesh will serve as the inaugural J.D. Irving, Limited Research Chair in Occupational Medicine. He comes to the position from the UK national Health and Safety Laboratory in Buxton, England and is an internationally recognized researcher and clinical physician.

In addition to research, Dr. Adisesh will develop curriculum to ensure graduates have a strong knowledge of recognising, managing and preventing workplace illness and injuries, collaborating with government, industry and labour to establish better workplace safety and well-being.

"The establishment of the J.D. Irving, Limited Research Chair in Occupational Medicine as the first medical faculty chair at Dalhousie Medicine New Brunswick is inspirational for me. There has been a tremendous collaborative effort undertaken through fundraising and organisational work by all the stakeholders from government, industry, labour, Horizon Health Network and Dalhousie University," Dr. Adisesh remarked. "The work of the chair in medical education, research and clinical service provision will be important in providing practical tools in the real world of work in the Maritimes and Canada's contribution to creating healthy workplaces."

Dr. Adisesh assumed the chair in June 2013 and will hold the position for five years.

This investment in world class occupational medicine research, clinical work and advancement of best practices is supportive of Industry Canada's Industrial Regional Benefits (IRB) program as part of Irving's obligation under the National Shipbuilding Procurement Strategy.

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Canada's first endowed occupational medicine research chair established in NB