NASA Decommissions Its Galaxy Hunter Spacecraft

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NASA has turned off its Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX) after a decade of operations in which the venerable space telescope used its ultraviolet vision to study hundreds of millions of galaxies across 10 billion years of cosmic time.

"GALEX is a remarkable accomplishment," said Jeff Hayes, NASA's GALEX program executive in Washington. "This small Explorer mission has mapped and studied galaxies in the ultraviolet, light we cannot see with our own eyes, across most of the sky."

Operators at Orbital Sciences Corporation in Dulles, Va., sent the signal to decommission GALEX at 3:09 p.m. EDT Friday, June 28. The spacecraft will remain in orbit for at least 65 years, then fall to Earth and burn up re-entering the atmosphere. GALEX met its prime objectives and its mission was extended three times before NASA decided to end it.

Highlights from the mission's decade of sky scans include: -- The discovery of a gargantuan comet-like tail behind a speeding star called Mira. -- Catching a black hole "red-handed" as it munched on a star. -- Finding giant rings of new stars around old, dead galaxies. -- Independently confirming the nature of dark energy. -- The discovery of a missing link in galaxy evolution -- the teenage galaxies transitioning from young to old.

The mission also captured a dazzling collection of snapshots, showing everything from ghostly nebulas to a spiral galaxy with huge, spidery arms.

In a first-of-a-kind move for NASA, the agency in May 2012 loaned GALEX to Caltech, which used private funds to continue operating the satellite while NASA retained ownership. Since then, investigators from around the world have used GALEX to study everything from stars in our own Milky Way galaxy to hundreds of thousands of galaxies 5 billion light-years away.

In the space telescope's last year, it scanned across large patches of sky, including the bustling, bright center of our Milky Way. The telescope spent time staring at some areas of the sky exploded stars, called supernovae, and monitoring how objects, such as the centers of active galaxies, change over time. GALEX also scanned the sky for massive, feeding black holes and shock waves from early supernova explosions.

Data from the last year of the mission will be made public in the coming year.

"GALEX, the mission, may be over, but its science discoveries will keep on going," said Kerry Erickson, the mission's project manager at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, Calif.

A slideshow showing some of the popular GALEX images can be seen here: http://go.nasa.gov/17xAVDd

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NASA Decommissions Its Galaxy Hunter Spacecraft

NASA Launches Sun-Watching Satellite

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From its perch in low-Earth orbit, NASA's newest satellite will soon get a close-up look at a little-explored region of the sun that's thought to drive space weather that can affect Earth.

The Iris satellite was boosted into orbit about 400 miles above Earth by a Pegasus rocket Thursday evening after a sunset launch. Engineers will test the satellite first before turning on its telescope to stare at the sun.

"We're thrilled," NASA launch director Tim Dunn said in a NASA TV interview after orbit was achieved.

Unlike a typical launch, an airplane carrying the rocket and satellite flew from Vandenberg Air Force Base to a drop point over the Pacific some 100 miles off California's central coast. At an altitude of 39,000 feet, the plane released the rocket, which ignited its engine and streaked skyward.

Mission controllers anxiously waited as the rocket made the 13-minute climb into space and cheered after learning that Iris had separated from the rocket as planned.

There were some issues. At one point, communications signals were lost and ground controllers had to track Iris using other satellites orbiting Earth. When it came time for Iris to unfurl its solar panels after entering orbit, there was a lag before NASA confirmed the satellite was generating power.

Previous sun-observing spacecraft have yielded a wealth of information about our nearest star and beamed back brilliant pictures of solar flares.

The 7-foot-long Iris, weighing 400 pounds, carries an ultraviolet telescope that can take high-resolution images every few seconds.

Unlike NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory, which observes the entire sun, Iris will focus on a little-explored region that lies between the surface and the corona, the glowing white ring that's visible during eclipses.

The goal is to learn more about how this mysterious region drives solar wind a stream of charged particles spewing from the sun and to better predict space weather that can disrupt communications signals on Earth.

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Nanotechnology Exhibit – Università Statale MILANO – 26th June 2013 [by Sergio Conegliano] – Video

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Nanotechnology Exhibit - Universit Statale MILANO - 26th June 2013 [by Sergio Conegliano]
Nanotechnology Exhibit - Universit Statale MILANO - 26th June 2013 [by Sergio Conegliano] Created with BloggieSony MAGIX Video deluxe 17 Plus.

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Oakton gets nanotechnology grant

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Article updated: 6/28/2013 9:52 PM

By Submitted by Oakton Community College

Oakton Community College has received a $250,000 grant from the Searle Funds at The Chicago Community Trus to educate industrial employees about the college's nanotechnology program.

With grant funds, Oakton will host an introductory seminar three times in its nanotech lab at Skokie's Illinois Science + Technology Park during the 2013-2014 academic year.

"This is a great opportunity to showcase how nanotechnology can benefit local companies," explained Bob Sompolski, dean of mathematics and technologies. "There's no question that nanotechnology will touch almost every industry in the near future. Our goal is to be ready to fill the need for skilled workers in this emerging field."

Nanotechnology is the science of manipulating matter on an atomic and molecular scale. Increasingly common in the computer, energy, biotech, and transportation fields, nanotechnology can improve just about any process, tool, or piece of equipment by reducing size and increasing efficiency and by vastly increasing the amount of information stored on computer chips and other storage devices. Oakton began offering nanotechnology classes in January 2013.

This past spring, the National Science Foundation (NSF) awarded Oakton with a $374,279 grant to introduce community college and high school students throughout the state to nanotechnology and potential careers in this rising field.

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Dr. Adam’s Dog Health Workshop: Traditional Chinese Medicine to treat skin and intestinal issues – Video

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Dr. Adam #39;s Dog Health Workshop: Traditional Chinese Medicine to treat skin and intestinal issues
June 27 : Dr. Adam #39;s Dog Health Workshop at Muttville Senior Dog Rescue #39;Fixing the Middle Burner #39;: Treating Your Dog #39;s Liver and Spleen Disharmony w/ Tradit...

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Medicine Hat Tigers Issue Arena Flood Update

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June 28, 2013 - Western Hockey League (WHL) Medicine Hat Tigers Medicine Hat, AB - The Medicine Hat Arena has now moved into the recovery stage after the South Saskatchewan River deposited four feet of water into the rink earlier this week.

The main goal is to now restore electricity to the 43-year-old building. This will take place over the next couple of weeks. Once electricity is restored, a full building assessment can be done to determine the extent of damage to the ice making equipment.

The Tiger's offices will remained closed while The Arena is without electricity. Staff will continue to work out of their homes for the time being.

The Arena staff, led by Darren Lodon, has done an excellent job in clearing out the mud and sludge that was left behind when the river receded. There was mud in the foot well of the first row of seats and everywhere below on the event level.

A restoration crew will now take over and do the detailed cleaning and disinfecting of the entire ice level area of The Arena. The crews are expected to arrive and begin the massive clean-up tomorrow.

Everything below the waterline that came into contact with contaminated river water must be removed and replaced. This includes the Tiger's and visiting team's dressing rooms, Tiger's coaching offices, the media room, all storage spaces along with the Tiger's Den Lounge. The Arena lunch, tool, medical rooms, and building operation/concession offices are also included in the long list of areas that need to be addressed.

"We find ourselves in the exact same position regarding the rebuild of the event level as we did after the 1995 flood," stated Tigers' senior director, marketing and public relations. "In my preliminary meeting with the head of Parks and Recreation, we have identified the key date of September 21st as our target to be operational in The Arena. The City of Medicine Hat will endeavour to make this happen. We will remain in close communications with The City to further understand situations in the building as they develop."

The Tigers are schedule to have their home opener vs. Lethbridge Hurricanes on Saturday, September 21 at The Arena.

The exact location of the Tiger's training camp, which is to begin August 24th with rookie camp, and the exhibition game slated for Saturday, September 9th Vs. Swift Current Broncos are yet to be determined.

"We will work with The City once they have more information over the next few weeks on which rinks they will be opening later this summer and determine which is the best fit for them and ourselves," said Andjelic. "We fully understand what a difficult time The City of Medicine Hat will have in dealing with all the flooded areas, not just our situation."

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Morehouse School of Medicine Announces Leadership Transition

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ATLANTA, June 28, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --Today Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM) President John E. Maupin Jr., D.D.S. announced his planned retirement, closing a celebrated tenure and an over 30-year accomplished career in academic medicine, healthcare administration and public health. Effective July 1, 2014, after the end of the upcoming academic year, Dr. Maupin will be succeeded by Valerie Montgomery Rice, M.D., a Harvard-educated obstetrician and gynecologist, who was named as executive vice president and dean in 2011. Dr. Montgomery Rice will retain the position of dean when she becomes president next year. With this announcement, Dr. Montgomery Rice becomes the nation's first African-American woman to lead a free-standing medical school as chief executive officer. As dean, she will continue amongst the ranks of the 16 percent of women serving as dean leading academic medical institutions.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130628/CL40156)

In 2010, the MSM board of trustees approved a new leadership structure that would merge the roles of dean and president upon Dr. Maupin's retirement. This new structure is consistent with a recent trend among the nation's medical schools-- elevating the role of dean to chief executive officer while retaining chief academic officer responsibilities.

"We are appreciative for the service and superior leadership Dr. Maupin displayed during his seven-year tenure as president," said Anthony Welters, chairman of MSM's board of trustees, executive vice president of United Health Group and member of the office of the CEO. "Under Dr. Maupin's guidance, the school has made significant advances, expanding academic programs and clinical affiliations, creating innovative partnerships, modernizing facilities, and strengthening the infrastructure to better support research, patient care and teaching."

Mr. Welters went on to explain, "The board of trustees is confident that the carefully orchestrated succession plan helps to maintain business continuity, provide a seamless transition, and help to facilitate Dr. Montgomery Rice's success as the next leader."

"During her tenure as dean, Dr. Montgomery Rice demonstrated her commitment to the mission and vision of the medical school," said Art R. Collins, chairman of the board of trustees' committee on transition and founding partner of the Collins Johnson Group. "In our selection of Dr. Montgomery Rice as dean, the trustees looked at a long-term strategy. We believed the dean could ascend to leading the medical school and her current role would provide the necessary consistency to continue advancing the mission."

A native of Macon, Ga., Dr. Montgomery Rice, served in numerous leadership positions at some of the nation's most prestigious academic and health institutions. Dr. Montgomery Rice received an undergraduate degree in chemistry from Georgia Institute of Technology, a medical degree from Harvard Medical School, and completed her training in obstetrics and gynecology at Emory University Medical School and reproductive endocrinology and infertility at Hutzel Hospital in Detroit. A renowned infertility expert and nationally recognized clinical scientist, Dr. Montgomery Rice also served on numerous professional and scientific advisory panels, national industry boards and authored more than 50 medical research articles.

"I consider it an honor that our board is entrusting me with the responsibility of continuing to build on the legacy of this pre-eminent institution," said Dr. Montgomery Rice. "The vision is crystal clear. My role is to continue to further the mission while also positioning the school to remain relevant and at the forefront of an ever-changing medical education environment."

During the next year, the two leaders will continue to enhance key partnerships, advance development and philanthropic outreach, and maintain a focus on faculty and staff engagement.

Upon retirement, Dr. Maupin plans to continue to serve on corporate and civic boards. "Being a part of the growth and development of Morehouse School of Medicine has been a remarkable experience," said Dr. Maupin. "Much about MSM is highly distinctive, but what makes it so special is the extraordinarily dedicated faculty and staff, community-focused students, and committed trustees and alumni."

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Morehouse School of Medicine Announces Leadership Transition