NASA King Air B200 and AirSWOT instrument – Video

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NASA King Air B200 and AirSWOT instrument
Project Manager Walter Klein and AirSWOT Principal Investigator Delwyn Moller talk about the NASA King Air B200 and AirSWOT instrument. 33 NASA social media followers were invited to NASA #39;s Dryden Flight Research Center on January 25th 2012 to learn about the various aircraft NASA uses in the NASA Airborne Earth Science Program.

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NASA King Air B200 and AirSWOT instrument - Video

NASA | Active Region Release Two CMEs – Video

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NASA | Active Region Release Two CMEs
Active Region Release Two CMEs Solar material can be seen blowing off the sun in this video captured by NASA #39;s Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) on the night of Feb. 5, 2013. This active region on the sun sent out two coronal mass ejections (CMEs) that night. Credit: NASA/SDO

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NASA | Active Region Release Two CMEs - Video

NASA's Frequent-Flyer Astronaut Jerry Ross: 7 Spaceflights Were 'A Good Start'

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There are few people more qualified than Jerry Ross to describe what it is like to launch into space.

Retired after three decades as a NASA astronaut, Ross flew into space a record seven times. Over the course of his nearly 1,400 hours orbiting Earth including almost 60 hours performing spacewalks Ross helped save and deploy one of NASA's four "great observatories," worked at two space stations, and served the U.S. Department of Defense on a classified shuttle mission that he still cannot talk to this day.

Ross recounts his experiences in his new autobiography, "Spacewalker: My Journey in Space and Faith as NASA's Record-Setting Frequent Flyer" (Purdue University Press, 2013), co-authored with John Norberg.

collectSPACE.com, a SPACE.com partner site, recently spoke with Ross about writing "Spacewalker," his hopes for the book and his thoughts on the next generation of astronauts who will follow him into space, including perhaps his daughter.

collectSPACE (cS):What motivated you to write a book?

Jerry Ross: When I was down at the Cape, quite a few times while waiting for launches both as the leader of the 'Cape Crusaders' and then when I went back as the head of the VITT [Vehicle Integration Test Team], we'd have some periods of time waiting for something to happen and guys would kind of congregate around my office and we'd all tell stories. For years, the guys would tell me, 'Oh, that is a great story! You ought to write a book.' [Jerry Ross on NASA's Columbia Tragedy (Video)]

I always kind of somehow wanted to document what I had done in the space program, partly for my granddaughters who are too young to have experienced much about my flights at all. In 1998, I started getting into genealogy and that gave me a very good appreciation for people of earlier generations documenting things for following descendants.

So I ultimately decided before I retired that I would at least test the waters and see what it was like, if I could find somebody who would publish the book for me and things like that. Ultimately, it led to Purdue University. They were interested in publishing the book and helped provide John Norberg to be co-author with me and off and running we were.

I guess there's one other piece of the puzzle to it, too. My entire career as an astronaut, they sent me out on public affairs types of appearances all the time. And I tried to concentrate on going to schools as opposed to Rotary and things like that. I wanted to try to excite young people about figuring out what their god-given talents were, then make plans for themselves based on those talents, and how best to then hone those skills, not only for their own welfare but the betterment of mankind.

So that theme runs throughout the length of the book. It is something I hope parents will read and either talk to their kids about what I say or encourage the young people to read the book for themselves. [See a calendar of Jerry Ross book signing appearances.]

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NASA's Frequent-Flyer Astronaut Jerry Ross: 7 Spaceflights Were 'A Good Start'

NASA Rocket Launch Studies Northern Lights (Photos)

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Wind-Weighting Balloon Launch

On the night of Feb. 4, 2013, NASA Goddard scientists watched a lighted wind-weighting balloon launch to measure the winds and see if conditions were acceptable for a sounding rocket launch in Poker Flats, Alaska.

ISIONS Project Scientist Doug Rowland stands next to the payload during the final days of testing Poker Flats, Alaska before launch on Jan. 30, 2013.

A beautiful view with clear skies greeted the science team for NASA's VISIONS sounding rocket mission (VISualizing Ion Outflow via Neutral atom imaging during a Substorm) on Feb. 1, 2013.

This image shows a beautiful auroral display over Bear Lake, Alaska on Jan. 19, 2005.

The VISIONS instruments are shown here on the table as the team gets them ready for flight. This image was taken Feb. 5, 2013.

NASA's VISIONS (VISualizing Ion Outflow via Neutral atom imaging during a Substorm) sounding rocket will launch in early February, 2013, from the Poker Flat Research Range the entrance of which is shown here.

On the night of Feb. 2, 2013, a team of NASA scientists waited in Poker Flats, Alaska to see if conditions were right to launch the VISIONS sounding rocket mission (VISualizing Ion Outflow via Neutral atom imaging during a Substorm). The mission studies what makes the aurora, and how it affects Earths atmosphere.

A wind weighting balloon is launched to measure the winds on Feb. 4, 2013, at Poker Flats, Alaska in anticipation of the VISIONS (VISualizing Ion Outflow via Neutral atom imaging during a Substorm) sounding rocket launch.

Inside this geodesic dome is the 11-meter Universal Space Network (USN) Poker Flat Satellite Station antenna in Poker Flats, Alaska. This image was taken Feb. 5, 2013.

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NASA Rocket Launch Studies Northern Lights (Photos)

NASA Administrator, Interior Secretary Attend Landsat Launch

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WASHINGTON -- NASA Administrator Charles Bolden and Interior Secretary Ken Salazar will attend the launch of the Landsat Data Continuity Mission (LDCM) from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California on Monday, Feb. 11. The launch is scheduled for 10:02 a.m. PST.

LDCM is a collaboration between NASA and the Department of the Interior's U.S. Geological Survey. The mission will continue the Landsat program's 40-year continuous data record by Earth's landscapes by satellite from space. LDCM will expand and improve on that record with observations that advance a wide range of Earth sciences and contribute to the management of agriculture, water and forest resources.

Administrator Bolden and Interior's Assistant Secretary for Water and Science Anne Castle will meet with news media Sunday, Feb. 10, at Vandenberg's Atlas V/LDCM launch pad for interviews and a photo opportunity. The Atlas V rocket carrying the satellite will be visible within the gantry. A media escort will depart Vandenberg's South Base gate on Highway 246 and Arguello Boulevard for Space Launch Complex-3 at 2:45 p.m. on Sunday.

After launch Monday, Bolden and Salazar will meet with reporters at 11:30 a.m. at the NASA complex on the southern area of Vandenberg. Journalists interested in participating in this post-launch event and the televised news conference to follow will be escorted to NASA Building 840. The news conference will begin at noon.

Following the post-launch news conference, Bolden will visit the SpaceX launch pad at 1:30 p.m. The launch pad, which is being built at Space Launch Complex-4, will support the SpaceX Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy rockets. In 2015, a Falcon 9 rocket will launch the Jason-3 sea surface monitoring mission from Vandenberg.

Media interested in attending these events must contact Lt. Kaylee Ausbun at 805-606-6159 or Kaylee.Ausbun@us.af.mil by noon Friday, Feb. 8.

NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center manages the LDCM Project. Orbital Sciences Corp. built, integrated, and tested the spacecraft. NASA's Launch Services Program at the agency's Kennedy Space Center in Florida is managing the launch. United Launch Alliance supplied the Atlas V rocket. After launch and the initial checkout phase, the U.S. Geological Survey will take operational control of the satellite, and LDCM will be renamed Landsat 8.

Extensive prelaunch and launch day coverage of the LDCM launch will be available at: http://www.nasa.gov/landsat

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NASA Administrator, Interior Secretary Attend Landsat Launch

NASA Hosts Its First Google+ Hangout Connecting with Space Station

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NASA will host its first Google+ Hangout live with the International Space Station from 11 a.m. to noon EST, Friday, Feb. 22. This event will connect NASA's social media followers with astronauts on the ground and living and working aboard the laboratory orbiting 240 miles above Earth.

Google+ Hangouts allow as many as 10 people to chat face-to-face, while thousands more can tune in to watch the conversation live on Google+ or YouTube.

NASA's social media followers may submit video questions prior to the Hangout. During the event, several video questions will be selected and answered by the station crew and astronauts on the ground. Unique and original questions are more likely to be selected. Additionally, NASA also will take real-time questions submitted by fans on Google+, Twitter and Facebook.

The deadline to submit video questions is Feb. 12. To be considered, video clips must be no longer than 30 seconds and must be uploaded to YouTube and tagged with #askAstro. Submitters should introduce themselves and mention their location before asking their question.

Also use #askAstro to ask real-time questions on Google+, YouTube or Twitter during the event. On the morning of the event, NASA will open a thread on its Facebook page where questions may be posted.

The hangout can be viewed live on NASA's Google+ page or on the NASA Television YouTube channel. To join the hangout, and for updates and opportunities to participate in upcoming hangouts, visit the NASA's Google+ page at:http://www.google.com/+NASA

Astronauts Kevin Ford and Tom Marshburn of NASA and Chris Hadfield of the Canadian Space Agency will answer questions and provide insights about life aboard the station. Crews conduct a variety of science experiments and perform station maintenance during their six-month stay on the outpost. Their life aboard the station in near-weightlessness requires different approaches to everyday activities such as eating, sleeping and exercising.

For information about the space station, research in low-Earth orbit, NASA's commercial space programs and the future of American spaceflight, visit:http://www.nasa.gov/exploration

To follow Marshburn and Hadfield on Twitter, visit:http://www.twitter.com/AstroMarshburn and http://www.twitter.com/Cmdr_Hadfield

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NASA Hosts Its First Google+ Hangout Connecting with Space Station

NASA telescopes discover strobe-like flashes in young stars

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Feb. 7, 2013 Two of NASA's great observatories, the Spitzer and Hubble space telescopes, have teamed up to uncover a mysterious infant star that behaves like a strobe light.

Every 25.34 days, the object, designated LRLL 54361, unleashes a burst of light. Although a similar phenomenon has been observed in two other young stellar objects, this is the most powerful such beacon seen to date.

The heart of the fireworks is hidden behind a dense disk and an envelope of dust. Astronomers propose the light flashes are caused by periodic interactions between two newly formed stars that are binary, or gravitationally bound to each other. LRLL 54361 offers insights into the early stages of star formation when lots of gas and dust is being rapidly accreted, or pulled together, to form a new binary star.

Astronomers theorize the flashes are caused by material suddenly being dumped onto the growing stars, known as protostars. A blast of radiation is unleashed each time the stars get close to each other in their orbits. This phenomenon, called pulsed accretion, has been seen in later stages of star birth, but never in such a young system or with such intensity and regularity.

"This protostar has such large brightness variations with a precise period that it is very difficult to explain," said James Muzerolle of the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, Md. His paper recently was published in the science journal Nature.

Discovered by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope, LRLL 54361 is a variable object inside the star-forming region IC 348, located 950 light-years from Earth. Data from Spitzer revealed the presence of protostars. Based on statistical analysis, the two stars are estimated to be no more than a few hundred thousand years old.

The Spitzer infrared data, collected repeatedly during a period of seven years, showed unusual outbursts in the brightness of the suspected binary protostar. Surprisingly, the outbursts recurred every 25.34 days, which is a very rare phenomenon.

Astronomers used NASA's Hubble Space Telescope to confirm the Spitzer observations and reveal the detailed stellar structure around LRLL 54361. Hubble observed two cavities above and below a dusty disk. The cavities are visible by tracing light scattered off their edges. They likely were blown out of the surrounding natal envelope of dust and gas by an outflow launched near the central stars. The disk and the envelope prevent the suspected binary star pair from being observed directly. By capturing multiple images over the course of one pulse event, the Hubble observations uncovered a spectacular movement of light away from the center of the system, an optical illusion known as a light echo.

Muzerolle and his team hypothesized the pair of stars in the center of the dust cloud move around one another in a very eccentric orbit. As the stars approach each other, dust and gas are dragged from the inner edge of a surrounding disk. The material ultimately crashes onto one or both stars, which triggers a flash of light that illuminates the circumstellar dust. The system is rare because close binaries account for only a few percent of our galaxy's stellar population. This is likely a brief, transitory phase in the birth of a star system.

Muzerolle's team next plans to continue monitoring LRLL 54361 using other facilities, including the European Space Agency's Herschel Space Telescope. The team hopes to eventually obtain more direct measurements of the binary star and its orbit.

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NASA telescopes discover strobe-like flashes in young stars

Asteroid Flyby Next Week One for the Record Books, NASA says

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An asteroid half the size of a football field will make a close approach to Earth, but poses no threat of smacking into the planet, NASA officials said today (Feb. 7).

The asteroid 2012 DA14will approach within 17,200 miles (27,680 kilometers) of Earth when it zips by during its close encounter next Friday, Feb. 15. That is the closest shave ever for an asteroid the size of 2012 DA14, which is about 150 feet (45 meters) wide, that astronomers have known about in advance, NASA scientists said.

The asteroid will not only pass between Earth and the moon's orbit, but also fly lower than the ring of geosynchronous communications, weather and navigation satellites that fly high above the planet. Asteroid 2012 DA14 will be 5,000 miles (8,046 km) closer to Earth than those satellites during the flyby.

"This asteroid seems to be passing in the sweet spot between the GPS satellites and weather and communications satellites," Don Yeomans, the head of NASA's asteroid-tracking program, told reporters in a teleconference today (Feb. 7). "It's extremely unlikely that any of these will be impacted." [See Asteroid 2012 DA14's Close Flyby in Action (Video)]

Geosynchronous satellites typically orbit about 22,000 miles (35,800 km) above the Earth's equator.

Record-setting space rock flyby

Asteroid 2012 DA14's close encounter is also a record-breaking celestial event, Yeomans said. An object this large only passes this close to the Earth about once every 40 years, and likely only hits the planet once every 1,200 years, he added.

Amateur astronomers have already captured some photos of asteroid 2012 DA14, and NASA plans to make detailed radar observations of the space rock to learn about its composition, spin and surface features, the scientists said.

The asteroid is similar in size to the object that exploded over Siberia, Russia, in 1908 in the Tunguska event. That explosion leveled hundreds of square miles of land, scientists said. While asteroid 2012 DA14 could potential create such destruction if it struck the Earth, there is absolutely no chance of an impact for the foreseeable future, NASA officials said.

"This asteroid's orbit is so well known that we can say with confidence that even considering its orbital uncertainties, it can pass no closer than 17,100 miles from the Earth's surface," Yeomans said. "No Earth impact is possible."

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Asteroid Flyby Next Week One for the Record Books, NASA says

Nanotechnology Park Sri Lanka – Video

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Nanotechnology Park Sri Lanka
Located on 50 Acres of lush land, tranquil and verdant, creating an ideal space for #39;thinking #39;, SLINTEC aims to develop a world-class Nanotechnology Park in Sri Lanka by attracting investments and establishing collaborations with local as well as global companies. Perfectly connected via highways, surrounded by a knowledge hub of universities and only 45 minutes from the commercial center that is Colombo, the Park offers a perfect synergy of serenity and convenience. The Park creates opportunities for all businesses to develop new products through a collaborative innovation process, taking them from research through development toward commercialization. The foundation for this framework is the Nanotechnology Centre of Excellence (NCE), which marks the first phase of the development of the Park.

By: Slintec Sri Lanka

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Laid-Back Mystic Hip Hop Instrumental – "Bad Medicine" (Mystic Beat) – Video

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Laid-Back Mystic Hip Hop Instrumental - "Bad Medicine" (Mystic Beat)
Download Over 100 Beats For Free Incl. License: http://www.diractbeats.com Produced by: The Goat (www.thegoatbeats.com) Laid-back mystical rap beat called "Bad Medicine" produced by The Goat of Diract Beats. Use this laid-back mystic hip hop instrumental and all our other hip hop instrumentals for your personal, non-commercial projects. Buy a lease for $19.90 to receive the beat tag-free in hi-quality. Go to our website http://www.diractbeats.com for instant, automated beat delivery and many more beats like this one! Picture by Todd Huffman

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Laid-Back Mystic Hip Hop Instrumental - "Bad Medicine" (Mystic Beat) - Video

'India lacks sports medicine experts'

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The number of sports medicine experts required to improve the standard of sports is desperately lacking in the country, lamented Indian Federation of Sports Medicine president Dr P S M Chandran.

The Sport Authority of India [ Images ] (SAI) has only three sports doctors, two physios, two sports psychologists and one nutritionist for the entire country, Chandran said.

"India needs at least 50 to 60 sports doctors for various national camps only," he said while addressing a seminar on sports medicines.

"Currently, we are having vast shortage of man-power in the form of sports doctors and sports psychologists," the former Chief Medical Officer of Hockey India said.

Stating that sports bodies are also responsible for the scenario, Chandran claimed even the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), the richest sports body of the country, does not have a qualified sports doctor.

"We do not have an institute to impart courses on sports medicine and science," he said adding former Union Sports Minister Ajay Maken [ Images ] had proposed to set up a National Institute of Sports Science and Medicine, which was placed before the Union Cabinet in September 2011 but no final decision was taken.

He said some universities are offering diploma course in Sports Medicine, besides the National Institute of Sports (NIS), Patiala.

The seminar was organised by the sports department of Tata Steel [ Get Quote ].

Copyright 2013 PTI. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of PTI content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent.

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'India lacks sports medicine experts'

Perelman School of Medicine Researcher Honored by the National Science Foundation

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PHILADELPHPIA John B. Jemmott, PhD, professor of Communication in Psychiatry at the Perelman School of Medicine and Kenneth B. Clark Professor of Communication at the Annenberg School for Communication, has been selected as one of 60 scholars profiled by the National Science Foundations (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP).

For over 20 years, Dr. Jemmott has been funded by the National Institutes of Health to conduct research developing and testing the efficacy of theory-based culturally appropriate HIV/STD risk-reduction interventions for a variety of populations in the United States and sub-Saharan Africa.

The list of the top 60 GRFP fellows selected was compiled in honor of the NSFs GRFPs 60th Anniversary. Directorates from across NSF were polled to nominate from among former GRFP recipients over 46,000 in all named since 1952 those GRFP recipients who best reflect the diversity and rich history of the programs. Nominations ranged from junior high school teachers to Nobel laureates. The final candidates were selected based on a range of criteria, including gender, race/ethnicity, field of study, geographic location of graduate institutions, and current place of employment. Other honorees on the list include Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and University of Chicago President Matthew Zimmer.

For more information, see the Annenberg School for Communications news release.

###

Penn Medicine is one of the world's leading academic medical centers, dedicated to the related missions of medical education, biomedical research, and excellence in patient care. Penn Medicine consists of the Raymond and Ruth Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania (founded in 1765 as the nation's first medical school) and the University of Pennsylvania Health System, which together form a $4.3 billion enterprise.

The Perelman School of Medicine is currently ranked #2 in U.S. News & World Report's survey of research-oriented medical schools. The School is consistently among the nation's top recipients of funding from the National Institutes of Health, with $479.3 million awarded in the 2011 fiscal year.

The University of Pennsylvania Health System's patient care facilities include: The Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania -- recognized as one of the nation's top "Honor Roll" hospitals by U.S. News & World Report; Penn Presbyterian Medical Center; and Pennsylvania Hospital the nation's first hospital, founded in 1751. Penn Medicine also includes additional patient care facilities and services throughout the Philadelphia region.

Penn Medicine is committed to improving lives and health through a variety of community-based programs and activities. In fiscal year 2011, Penn Medicine provided $854 million to benefit our community.

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Perelman School of Medicine Researcher Honored by the National Science Foundation

Collaboration and innovation win CWRU School of Medicine grant to study gastric cancer

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Public release date: 7-Feb-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Christine A. Somosi christine.somosi@case.edu 216-368-6287 Case Western Reserve University

CLEVELAND February 7, 2013 - The Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine has received a $220,000 grant from the DeGregorio Family Foundation to study gastric cancers, which remain among the most deadly forms of disease.

The two-year grant from the foundation, which focuses on stomach and esophageal cancer research and education, will support studies aimed at identifying and developing more effective treatments for gastric and esophageal malignancies.

The grant focuses on interleukin-33 (IL-33), a novel mediator that causes inflammation. That inflammation in turn may be involved in the early events leading to development of gastrointestinal cancers, including gastric cancer. IL-33 is the newest member of the IL-1 family of cytokines, which are specific molecules involved in various disease processes, such as inflammation, autoimmunity, and cancer. Cytokines are produced by many different types of cells and deliver signals that allow cells to communicate with each other.

"We are grateful to the DeGregorio Family Foundation for having chosen to support our project this year and for bringing attention to upper GI malignancies," said Theresa Pizarro, PhD, associate professor of Pathology and Medicine, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, and the study's principal investigator. "Using a multi-disciplinary approach, we are hopeful that this research will allow us to study novel pathways that will uncover the potential sequence of events that occur from inflammation in the stomach to gastric cancer, and to generate more specific and targeted treatment modalities for this devastating disease, for which there is currently no cure. The DeGregorio funds will be critical for this mission and to further expand our research program in this important area of investigation."

Dr. Pizarro's expertise is in cytokine biology, focused on the characterization and function of IL-1 family members, and the role they play in inflammation and gastrointestinal diseases.

Li Li, MD, PhD, associate professor of Family Medicine, Epidemiology & Biostatistics and associate director for Prevention Research, Case Comprehensive Cancer Center, Case Western Reserve University, is the co-investigator. Wei Xin, MD, PhD, assistant professor of Pathology, is the collaborator.

Lynn DeGregorio, president of the DeGregorio Family Foundation, based in New York City, said, "The foundation has always sought to fund research that is innovative and will be a catalyst to collaboration. The application from the Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine will increase the depth and breadth of research into these malignancies, and so we were excited to be able to make this award possible."

Pizarro's funded proposal, entitled, "Role of the novel IL-1 family member, IL-33, in the gastritis-metaplasia-carcinoma sequence," was the only proposal of 24 international applicants selected for funding in the third annual DeGregorio Foundation Award for Cancers.

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Collaboration and innovation win CWRU School of Medicine grant to study gastric cancer