TripAdvisor ranks the best beaches in the world – USA TODAY

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USA TODAY Published 8:18 a.m. ET Feb. 22, 2017 | Updated 19 hours ago

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Baia do Sancho in Fernando de Noronha, Brazil, is the No. 1 beach in the world, according to TripAdvisor's 2017 Travelers' Choice awards.(Photo: TripAdvisor)

TripAdvisor has named Brazils Baia do Sancho as the best beach in the world in itsTravelers Choice awards for 2017, while Florida's Siesta Beachtopped the list for beaches in the U.S. Click through the gallery above to see the top 25 beaches for the U.S. and the world.

Photo tour: Florida's best beaches

The winners were based on reviews andratings collected in a single year from TripAdvisor users worldwide. To see all 343 winners of the 2017 TripAdvisor Travelers Choice awards for beaches, visit tripadvisor.com/TravelersChoice-Beaches.

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TripAdvisor ranks the best beaches in the world - USA TODAY

411’s Comic Reviews: Super Sons #1, Wild Storm #1, More – 411mania.com

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Hello and welcome to 411manias weekly Comic Book Review Roundtable! Each week well be serving up a warm dish of reviews from Marvel, DC, and anything else that captures our interest. What did you pick up this week? Let us know in the comments.

Want to write a review? If you can write at least one review a week, consistently, email me at [emailprotected]!

Now on with the show!

The Wild Storm #1

Review by Steve Gustafson

I couldnt be more excited to see these characters that are so near and dear to me reintroduced under the guiding hand of Warren Ellis. WildStorm represents an incredibly fun and exciting period in my career, and I cant wait to see what Warren and Jon have in store for fans in February.Jim Lee, DC Comics Co-Publisher

When I was talking about this book with a couple of friends all I had to do was ask them, What do you think of Warren Ellis? Depending on how you answer will dictate if this book is for you or not. This book is a checklist for Ellis style of writing and its an enticing reintroduction to familiar characters with new iterations of Grifter, Voodoo, the Engineer, Jenny Sparks and others.

Ellis and artist Jon Davis-Hunt do what they do best in establishing a covert world filled with spies and dangers around every corner while giving a the world a shady view and a new purpose.

A troubled woman, barred by her employer from continuing her research, walks miserably through New York City. It takes her a moment to notice that everybody else is looking up. A man has been thrown from the upper floor of the Halo skyscraper.

And that womanAngela Spica, sick from the transhuman implants shes buried in her own bodyis the only person who can save him.

What she doesnt know is that the act of saving that one man will tip over a vast and secret house of cards that encloses the entire world, if not the inner solar system. This is how the Wild Storm begins, and it may destroy covert power structures, secret space programs and even all of human history.

The writing and concept are enough to make this a recommended book but if youre looking for action, this isnt going to be the one for you. While Davis-Hunt is beyond capable, hes not given a whole lot to work with outside static scenes of characters talking. Nothing wrong with that but those looking for a by-the-numbers superhero brawl should know what theyre getting into. This is definitely not your old Wildstorm.

Wild Storm #1 is a tremendous new take from Ellis and Davis-Hunt that lays the lines for a new Wildstorm that wont be content with following the rules of the old Wildstorm.

Rating: 9.0 out of 10

Super Sons #1

Review by RobF

The long and complicated relationship between Superman and Batman takes on a new dynamic in Super Sons 1. Peter Tomasi and Jorge Jimenez bring us the story of frenemies Robin and Superboy as DC presents the latest edition of Worlds Finest.

On one hand we have Damien Wayne, the son of Batman. Raised by Bruce Wayne and Alfred, his life is dominated by control and order. Largely arrogant and defiant, the latest Robin is quite a handful. Jonathan Kent, the son of Superman and Lois Lane, is the latest to don the Superboy mantle. His parents have raised him with humility and valor. Its this type of contrast in child-rearing that makes Robin and Superboys relationship so interesting. Their rivalry is what makes an issue light on action a worthy read.

Jorge Jimenez does an admirable job with the artwork. His cartoonish style is appropriate for this type of story. He actually makes the boys look like boys, even super powered ones.

Tomasi clearly shows he understands these characters well. This is one of the more interesting interpretations of the Batman/Superman relationship. The chemistry between Damien and Jonathan is strong and I can see them growing up together in the DC Universe.

Rating 8 out of 10

Justice League of America: The Ray Rebirth #1

Review by Stephen M. Lyon

The Ray is one of four characters being introduced into the Justice League of America through a series of one-shot comics. While Killer Frost provides an introduction into the league without an origin story, and Vixen and The Atom provide a hybrid of origin story and current conflict, The Ray sticks to a simple origin story. This is a wise move,as The Ray is the character probably least known by the new JLA readers. This title provides a story which gives a basic foundation for the hero, but it does not give everything away, allowing for there to be some mystery to be explored as the JLA series progresses. It begins with his childhood and his development into adulthood when he finally reveals himself to the world. This is a necessary title to pick up for anyone who wants a fundamental understanding of the JLAs new members.

The book begins with a young boy, Ray Terrill, sitting in a dark room. Hes watching television and his mother comes in with a birthday cake, without candles; she gets exasperated when he asks for some, reminding him that hes allergic to light (even artificial light, meaning tv use must be sporadic). It shows a flashback to him playing with a friend, and the friend uses a camera which emits a flash, and results in the friend being injured (though were not told how). We then flash forward to Ray when hes 16, and he decides hes sick of being a recluse, and decides living isnt worth it if hes trapped inside, so he ventures into the night. While out, his powers are triggered and he begins to realize that he has the ability to feed on light, but that he has to work to control it or the results can be devastating; it can be weaponized, he can use fly, and he can make himself invisible. It ends with him reuniting with his old friend from childhood, saving his life, and his deciding to become a superhero.

Much like the previous one-shots, this is a very simple story. However, it introduces the reader into the world of The Ray in preparation for the new JLA series, which I am continually becoming more excited about.

Rating: 7.0 out of 10

Steve here! Thats all the time we have. Tell us what youre reading below and see you back here next week! You can now find our reviews on ComicBookRoundUp.com!

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IBM super-computer will overhaul NYC 311 – New York’s PIX11 / WPIX-TV

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IBM super-computer will overhaul NYC 311
New York's PIX11 / WPIX-TV
NYC 311 handled nearly 36 million reports in 2016. The first overhaul of the system is now in the works and it should create a smarter system. Over the next 18 months, IBM will install networks and systems. It includes "Watson," which is the company's ...

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IBM super-computer will overhaul NYC 311 - New York's PIX11 / WPIX-TV

Wyoming Starts its Largest Climate Change Supercomputer, Cheyenne – The Green Optimistic (blog)

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In Cheyenne, Wyoming, a supercomputer started extensive climate-change research notwithstanding the ones doubting the global warming. Now, there is a concern among scientists that the research might be cut from funding with Trumps administration.

The supercomputer is worth $30 million and is federally founded. The supercomputer just started to operate a few weeks ago, modeling air currents at wind farms or predicting the weather months in advance.

Cheyenne is the 20th fastest supercomputer in the world, replacing the supercomputer Yellowstone. Additionally, Cheyenne is 240,000 times faster than a brand new laptop, and it makes 5.34 quadrillion calculations per second.

Although it has been supported by the state, Cheyenne is a matter of concern for the global warming doubters; not only Cheyenne, but there are many other issues that create concern among doubters. In fact, in 2012, the fossil fuel industry has asked the University of Wyoming to remove an artwork that raises awareness about the climate change. The state, Wyoming, has also discussed whether K-12 students should be educated about the climate change.

A climate change skeptic, as he calls himself, Gov. Matt Mead supports the supercomputer in terms of Wyomings improvement in technology. Yet, the scientists still fear that Trump might cut funding for such projects. This is vital for the supercomputer too, as 70% of its funding comes from the National Science Foundation. As a result, 800 scientists from the U.S., including people from the University of Wyoming, signed a letter that urges Trump to take climate change seriously.

The supercomputers role is very important in predicting weather and analyzing the climate change. Regarding Cheyennes importance, Rich Loft, a National Center for Atmospheric Research supercomputing specialist said:

We believe that doing better predictions of those things have apolitical benefits saving lives and saving money, and improving outcomes for businesses and farmers.

Supplying approximately the 40% of the U.S.s coal , Wyoming feeds on its coal, oil, and natural gas sources. Consequently, Wyoming funded a power plant to study the carbon capture for $15 million.

Nevertheless, the supercomputer consumes 1.5 megawatts, which equals to having electricity in 75 homes. Yet, some of its electricity comes from a wind farm 7 miles away.

No matter what, the scientists in Wyoming aim to get great results from the supercomputer to analyze the climate change better.

[via AP]

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Wyoming Starts its Largest Climate Change Supercomputer, Cheyenne - The Green Optimistic (blog)

Stem Cell Therapy Could Reverse Hearing Loss – Seeker

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Humans have about 15,000 inner ear-hair cells, each one picking up sound vibrations, converting them to electric signals and sending them to the brain for processing.

Over time, loud noise, medications and old age combine to kill these cells and their microscopic hairs called stereocilia which leads to hearing loss. Unlike other animals, however, humans and mammals can't regrow them. But a group of scientists based in Boston say they've figured out a way to switch on the body's cellular factories and possibly reverse hearing loss.

"The biology is there, we just need to awaken it," said Jeffrey Karp, associate professor at Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School and an author on the new study appearing Tuesday in the journal Cell Reports. "For some reason there are brakes that we need to release for a short period of time to allow new hair cells to be produced."

RELATED: Can We Reverse Hearing Damage?

Karp and colleagues were able to regrow the hair cells by activating a stem cell in the cochlea called Lgr5 with a small molecule drug treatment. A similar stem cell is found in the human intestine and allows the body to regrow the exterior lining of the organ every five days.

The team also obtained a human cochlea from a patient who suffered from cancer and were able to regrow hair cells with their drug treatment.

"We don't want to provide false hope, but we are highly encouraged by this work. And our ability to produce bona fide functional hair cells is very compelling," Karp said.

The next step is taking the experimental data and starting a human clinical trial. Karp and Robert Langer of MIT are co-founders in a small startup firm, Frequency Therapeutics, that's working toward a phase I trial in the next 18 months, according to Karp.

A possible drug treatment for hearing loss could help the 360 million people worldwide who suffer from the condition.

RELATED: Why Does Loud Music Cause Hearing Loss?

"Their proposal is very novel and essentially by activating these supporting cells, a natural process will take over and a certain percentage would become hair cells capable of playing a role in the encoding of sound," said Nicolas Reed, an instructor in otolaryngology at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. "I don't see any obvious negative indications right now."

Hearing loss can lead to big problems as we age, including the onset of Alzheimer's disease, falls and social isolation, according to Larry Medwetsky, chairman of our Department of Hearing, Speech and Language Sciences at Gallaudet University.

"It is not a minor matter," Medwetsky said. "Hearing loss can affect you mentally and emotionally. If you can prevent or remediate it than you can also you can restore quality of life and avoid some of these issues."

WATCH: How Did Human Hearing Evolve?

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Health Beat: Stem cell therapy for osteoarthritis – WFMZ Allentown

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Health Beat: Stem cell therapy for...

CHICAGO - As a professional photographer, climbing up step ladders and walking down stairs are part of the daily grind for 65-year-old Linda Schwartz.

"There's constant activity; you're moving the whole time, really," Schwartz said

But the pain of osteoarthritis in both of her knees was making all that activity a little harder.

"I tried cortisone shots. I had something called Euflexxa," Schwartz detailed. "I was sent to physical therapy twice. I mean, I did try acupuncture in my knees, but it didn't really seem to make a difference."

"It's like the rubber on the tire, so as you start to lose the rubber in your tire and the rim hits the road, that's what happens when you have bone on bone arthritis and you've lost all the cartilage in your knee," explained Dr. Adam Yanke, an orthopedic surgeon at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago.

Yanke enrolled Schwartz in an experimental new therapy that involved injecting amniotic fluid that contained stem cells donated by healthy mothers into the knees of osteoarthritis patients.

"Between the two of those, they're a potent anti-inflammatory and they also have growth factors that help promote healing or healthy growth of tissue," Yanke said.

It was, by far, the most effective pain treatment that Schwartz has tried. Unlike cortisone shots, there are no side-effects. The pain relief has so far lasted up to a year.

Research summary - Stem cell therapy for osteoarthritis

"It was a very gradual feeling of it's a little bit better, it's a little bit better, and then realizing, wow, it's really pretty good," said Schwartz.

The one drawback is the therapy is not for patients whose arthritis is so bad it requires knee replacement surgery. Even though it's still in the experimental stage, Yanke offers the stem cell treatment to his patients, but at a cost of $2,200 a shot, it is not yet covered by insurance.

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Health Beat: Stem cell therapy for osteoarthritis - WFMZ Allentown

Stem Cell Treatments Could Be The Next Frontier In Fixing Broken Pitchers – Deadspin

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In an interesting dispatch from spring training, Yahoos Jeff Passan reports on Los Angeles Angels pitcher Garrett Richardss recovery from a May 2016 elbow injury that shut him down for the season.

Instead of electing to undergo standard Tommy John surgery, Richards decided to try to heal his injury by getting an injection of stem cells directly into his elbow. Passan, whose 2016 book The Arm showed hes not afraid to make his readers feel queasy, described the procedure as such: Richards was fortunate to only suffer a partial tear, which is naturally easier to repair than a full tear.

A doctor guided a needle into the iliac crest of his pelvic bone and began to extract bone marrow.

[...]

Within a few minutes, the harvested marrow was hurried to a centrifuge, spun to separate the good stuff, mixed into a slurry of platelet-rich plasma and readied to inject into Richards damaged right elbow.

Gross, but it apparently worked. Passan reports Richards is feeling great and throwing 98 mph at spring training. Richards is clearly pleased with the tentatively positive outcome: Science, bro. Im a believer now, Richards told Passan.

Dr. Neal ElAttrache, sports premiere orthopedic surgeon, says he is looking forward to seeing where the research on the efficacy of orthobiologics goes, but he also has a theory that the simple resting of the muscle could be the impetus for muscle repair. Or, at least, that the two factors combined can be effective.

A stem cell procedure is less invasive than UCL surgery, of course, and right now it looks like the healing process could be much shorter than that of Tommy John surgery, at least for pitchers with partial UCL tears. Standard TJ recovery time is 14 monthsnearly long enough to inspire an oh yeah, that guy reaction when the player eventually returns. Richards underwent his stem cell procedure in May 2016 and Passan reports that he was throwing by August and was ready to go by October.

Richards will, of course, be kept on a short leash this season as he and the Angels look to avoid a setback or worse, but the potential for an expedited return from partial UCL tears is a major development for the science of pitching.

If stem cell treatments can get electric pitchers like Richards healed and back on the field quicker than surgery can, thats obviously a good thing for baseball. Still, its hard to read Passans story and not come away from it asking, Whats a PED again? Heres Richards talking about his stem cell treatment in the Los Angeles Timesback in 2016:

Stem cells are a remarkable thing. The body heals itself, so thats awesome. Were not out of the woods yet, but todays a good day.

HGH doesnt exactly work the same way this stem cell treatment appears to, but their essential benefits are the same. While the term performance enhancing drugs is still commonly associated with the mega-roids 1990s, HGH is of value to athletes largely for its ability to quicken injury recovery and extend careers. Doctors pushing orthobiologics experiments on their patients are free of the whiff of impropriety, but it seems that has less to do with their virtue than it does their good fortune at being on the right side of baseballs arbitrary PED laws.

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Stem Cell Treatments Could Be The Next Frontier In Fixing Broken Pitchers - Deadspin

3 Spiritual Elements That Make Your Company More Cohesive – Business 2 Community

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Spirituality is a tricky word to use in any discussion about business. Spirituality takes on a variety of meanings that range from religious experiences to healing crystals and is often tied to personal development and practices. But spirit can play a role in the overall development and maintenance of a company. Mitroff and Denton, in their study of spirituality in the workplace, found that senior executive, HR executives, and manager all felt that spirituality was an appropriate discussion for the workplace when defined as the interconnectedness of people and places, and differentiated from discussions about religion. They reported that people believe strongly that unless organizations learn how to harness the whole person and the immense spiritual energy that is at the core of everyone, they will not be able to produce world-class products and services.

Spirit originally derives from the Latin word spiritus meaning breath or inspire. You could say that, with each breath, an individual chooses whether to fracture or strengthen an organization. The choices you make define the overall foundation of the enterprise. When the spirit of the business is cohesive, then individuals integrate more seamlessly into the fabric of the company. For employees, spirit provides authenticity and self-awareness as part of the framework for how they work. As Ashmos and Dushon stated in their article, Spirituality at Work, people want to feel connected to work that is important, and they want to feel connected to each other.

These three actions, when incorporated into the environment of your organization, offer inclusion and acceptance that support the spirit of your business. These behaviors help to fortify the whole company by reducing fractures that weaken interconnected relationships between people and the world.

Webcast, February 23rd: 3X Your Outbound Revenue by Replying to Prospects at the Right Time

1. Words and Actions Match

The words you say and the actions you take are a foundational part of the spirit of your organization. When you have an awareness of how your actions and your words impact people and situations around you, then you are better able to see the big picture. You can more effectively recognize how you connect with other people and the world when you understand the impact your behaviors have on the surrounding environment. Matching your words and actions provides authenticity that tells people your true nature. When your words and actions do not match, then there is a fracture in behavior and people do not know which is your true nature, your words or your actions.

2. No judgment of good or bad, or wrong or right

It is very easy to play the blame game. There is a subtle difference between saying, He is wrong. versus, I do not care for that situation. When you take away blame, you reduce the chance of decreasing personal value and increase the chance of keeping individuals accountable for their work. People work more cohesively together when there is not a dividing line, real or imaginary, holding them apart.

3. Focus on the goals, not the problems

Fear of the unfamiliar, many times, puts people into a protective mode. Fear of not being accepted can also introduce a protective wall. The focus of work, when fear is present, shifts to people protecting their turf and looking for problems that separate them from other employees. Problems cause barricades. Goals encourage focus. No matter who you are or what you believe, putting energy into completing the goals keeps the focus on the end results and binds people together in a collective breath of success.

Individuals and organizations who embrace these three actions help to build trust and reduce fractures that can ultimately break down companies. The spirit of your enterprise becomes more cohesive when you connect people to each other in ways that inspire instead of fracture your business.

Writer, researcher, and advisor on human potential for personal and organizational development. Dr. Reed has mentored people from a variety of organizations to include businesses, not for profit organizations, schools, allied health agencies, Chambers of Commerce, governmental entities, and churches. She has taught courses on world religion and world cultures Viewfullprofile

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3 Spiritual Elements That Make Your Company More Cohesive - Business 2 Community

Franciscan Spirituality Center offers two iconography retreats – La Crosse Tribune

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Noted American iconographer Phil Zimmerman returns to the Franciscan Spirituality Center in La Crosse to teach the sacred art of iconography.

Two separate retreats are available: The Holy Face, May 21-27; and Jonah and the Whale, July 9-15.

All skill levels are welcome. Each retreat is limited to 25 participants, and all paints, brushes and other materials are provided.

Both a meaningful prayer practice and a technical art form, iconography has been a vital part of Eastern Christian worship since the beginning of Christianity. Icons are often referred to as windows into heaven. Zimmerman will guide participants step-by-step through the process of writing or painting an icon in the Byzantine style, following ancient guidelines and techniques while using modern artists materials.

Each day of the retreat will include prayer, reflection and historical information specific to the icon. All materials and supplies are included. By the end of the week, students will have a beautifully completed icon varnished and ready to display. Zimmerman has created hundreds of religious icons for churches and private collectors throughout the world. Based at his St. John of Damascus Icon Studio in Pennsylvania, he has taught more than 2,000 students.

Cost is $625 for the full retreat, which includes all meals and six nights stay or $505 for commuters, which includes retreat, lunch and supper. Register at http://www.FSCenter.org, 608-791-5295 or in person at 920 Market St.

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Franciscan Spirituality Center offers two iconography retreats - La Crosse Tribune

SpaceX Cargo Craft Fails To Dock With Space Station, Will Try Again – NPR

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This is what failed to happen on Wednesday morning. In this image from April 17, 2015, a robotic arm on the International Space Station grasps a SpaceX Dragon cargo ship during docking. NASA/AP hide caption

This is what failed to happen on Wednesday morning. In this image from April 17, 2015, a robotic arm on the International Space Station grasps a SpaceX Dragon cargo ship during docking.

Early Wednesday morning, a space capsule carrying 5,500 pounds of cargo approached the International Space Station.

The SpaceX Dragon cargo ship was scheduled to arrive at the station around 6 a.m. ET. If all went as planned, astronauts Thomas Pesquet of the European Space Agency and Shane Kimbrough of NASA would use a robotic arm on the station to reach out and grasp the ship, pulling it in and locking hatches with it.

But that cosmic embrace was not to be.

Around 3:25 a.m. ET, according to NASA TV, the navigation system on the unmanned Dragon cargo ship detected an error. A number was wrong in its GPS software. The ship automatically aborted its mission. It was about three-quarters of a mile away from the space station.

The docking has been rescheduled for Thursday morning.

"It did exactly what it was designed to do, breaking out of a rendezvous approach when it saw an incorrect value," said NASA TV commentator Rob Navias.

"This is an easily correctable issue," he explained during a live NASA TV stream of the docking attempt. "Dragon itself is in excellent shape."

The new schedule means Dragon will arrive at the International Space Station the day before a Russian resupply rocket, which launched early Wednesday and is set to arrive at the ISS early Friday morning.

As The Two-Way reported, today's is not the first delay for the SpaceX Dragon. The cargo ship was supposed to launch Saturday, but that was scrubbed just 13 seconds before liftoff because of an anomaly discovered in the rocket's steering system.

"On Sunday, however, the launch went smoothly," NPR's Colin Dwyer reported. "Not only did SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket lift off without a hitch, its first stage also returned to land right back on a platform on Earth. Shortly afterward, the Dragon spacecraft it was carrying detached as planned from the rocket."

As The Wall Street Journal has reported, mistakes and setbacks in its rocket business have become an increasing concern for the commercial spaceflight company, in part because its founder Elon Musk has publicly announced that the company will build a system to colonize Mars.

As the newspaper reported, failed launches (the rockets exploded) in June 2015 and September 2016 contributed to a loss in revenue:

"Internal financial documents reviewed by The Wall Street Journal and interviews with former SpaceX employees depict robust growth in new rocket-launch contracts and a thin bottom line that is vulnerable when things go awry. They also show the company putting steep revenue expectations on a nascent satellite-internet business it hopes will eventually dwarf the rocket division and help finance its goal of manned missions to Mars."

In addition to stuff humans use to live in space, the cargo craft is carrying science experiments. "One experiment will use the microgravity environment to grow stem cells that are of sufficient quality and quantity to use in the treatment of patients who have suffered a stroke," a NASA press release read. The mission will also aid in recording "key climate observations and data records."

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Successful Russian launch re-paves the way to space station – New Scientist

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By Leah Crane

The only ride to the International Space Station is back in business. Early Wednesday morning, Roscosmos launched the uncrewed Progress MS-05 spacecraft to the ISS aboard a Soyuz rocket the first Soyuz launch since Decembers unsuccessful Progress MS-04, which burned up in Earths atmosphere.

The loss of that rocket left future astronauts in a tenuous position. The Soyuz rocket is currently the only available ride to the space station, so until it was proven safe, no more astronauts could make the journey. That crafts failure resulted in the loss of 2,450 kilograms of food, water, fuel, and equipment but a failure with humans aboard could be a true disaster.

The Russian commission investigating MS-04s launch failure found that it may have been due to defective workmanship in the third stage of the three-stage rocket. Six minutes after a successful-looking launch, the third stage and the Progress capsule appeared to separate prematurely. Most of the resulting debris burned up in Earths atmosphere, and a few fragments fell in the Tuva region of Russia.

When it reaches the ISS on Friday, Progress MS-05 will replace the lost supplies although theyre not running low yet. Consumables aboard the station are at good levels, Mark Garcia posted on NASAs Space Station blog after the MS-04 incident.

More options for sending astronauts to the station are in the works: SpaceXs Crew Dragon is expected to start shuttling astronauts on top of a Falcon 9 rocket at the end of 2017. Boeings CST-100 is also scheduled to start its uncrewed testing around the same time, aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket.

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International Space Station lifts off with local student work on board – WBFO

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Some students from the Buffalo Public and Niagara Falls City School Districts havereturned from a trip to the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. WBFO's Senior Reporter Eileen Buckley says the students won contests for their STEM projects.

WBFO's senior reporter Eileen Buckley says some students returned from a trip to the Kennedy Space Center as part of their STEM work.

Its just been a really great experience, said Elise Glahe, a sixth-grader at the Abate Elementary School in the Niagara Falls City School District.

Glahe designed a winning Mission Patch as part of the Student Spaceflights Experiments Program last year.

Glahe's mission patch was lifted into orbit this weekend onboard the International Space Station.

You made something that, just by chance, has flown into outer space and thats just such a crazy thing to think about, Glahe declared.

Glahe and three other Buffalo Public school Students were welcomed back home by Western New York Congressman Brian Higgins Monday at the Buffaloand Erie County Public Library following their weekend trip.

Three Buffalo students, known as the Spud Launchers, said their winning project, to try to grow potatoes in space is now in orbit.

Hamlin Park eighth-grader Gabriella Melendez noted how exciting it was to know that our hard work is actually going into outer space.

Melendez was the lead investigator of the project.

It should be up there for I think six to eight weeks and then we get our results back, then thats when you know everything is going to come together and we all find out the results that weve been waiting for," Melendez said.

The space launch was initially scrubbed over the weekend, but later, while they were driving through Florida, the rocket was launched and they caught it on the radio.

Its exactly 9:38 and that was our launch time and he pulled over, he turned up the radio and it goes 5, 4 and you just hear it and its like ready to take off and it just went and you heard the wind and you heard everybodys excitement, responded Melendez.

Buffalo school students Shaniylah Welch and Toriana Cornwell were co-investigators of the experiment.

It was pretty cool. We watched a video on all the astronauts and the fallen ones also, said Cornwell.

Im looking forward to being an [astronomer]. Im not too much of being in space Im more like research in space you know, learn about the cosmos and Milky Way and all the galaxies, Welch explained.

The school districts have been teaming with WNY STEM HUB to promote STEM learning. Buffalo Schools Superintendent Kriner Cash called the young women an inspiration in promoting interest in STEM fields.

We also need boys and girls of color to continue to pursue STEM fields as well, remarked Cash.

Their teacher and advisor, Andrew Franz, was elated for his students.

It took every inch of my being to not cry, Franz said.

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International Space Station lifts off with local student work on board - WBFO

First Black crew member to join International Space Station | New … – Amsterdam News

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The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has selected astronaut Jeanette Epps to join the crew of the International Space Station in 2018. Epps will become the first Black crewmember to represent the U.S. on the station.

The journey will mark the first time Epps has traveled to orbit, allowing her to follow in the footsteps of the women who, she said, inspired her to become an astronaut.

While other Black astronauts have flown to the Space Station for brief stays during the outposts construction, Epps will be the first Black crewmember to live and work on the station for an extended period of time. Her journey aboard the Soyuz spacecraft and stay at the station places her as the only American and female among a crew made up of mostly Russians and men.

Im a person just like they are. I do the same work as they do, Epps told a group of STEM students at her Syracuse alma mater, Danforth Middle School. If something breaks, anyone of us will have to be able to go out the door. We have to be jacks of all trades. Its not a job thats like any other.

While working on her doctorate, Epps was a NASA graduate student Researchers Project fellow, authoring several journal and conference articles about her research. After completing her graduate studies, Epps worked in a research lab for more than two years, co-authoring multiple patents, before being recruited by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). She was a CIA technical intelligence officer for about seven years before being selected as a member of the 2009 astronaut class.

Anything you dont know is going to be hard at first, Epps said in a video statement about the launch. But if you stay the course, put the time and effort in, it will become seamless eventually.

Epps, in the NASA video interview, shared when she was first introduced to the idea that she could be an astronaut. It was about 1980, I was nine years old. My brother came home and he looked at my grades and my twin sisters grades and he said, You know, you guys can probably become aerospace engineers or even astronauts, Epps said. And this was at the time that Sally Ride [the first American woman to fly in space] and a group of women were selected to become astronauts the first time in history. So, he made that comment and I said, Wow, that would be so cool.

Epps will join veteran NASA astronaut Andrew Feustel at the Space Station. On Feustels first long-duration mission, he served as a flight engineer on Expedition 55, and later as commander of Expedition 56.

Each space station crew brings something different to the table, and Drew and Jeanette both have a lot to offer, said Chris Cassidy, chief of the Astronaut Office at NASAs Johnson Space Center in Houston, in a statement. The space station will benefit from having them on board.

The AFRO is a member publication of the National Newspaper Publishers Association. Learn more about becoming a member at http://www.nnpa.org.

PHOTO CAPTION: will be the first Black crewmember to live and work on the International Space Station for an extended period of time. (NASA)

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CRS-10 Dragon making second rendezvous and berthing attempt with Station – NASASpaceflight.com

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February 23, 2017 by Chris Gebhardt

After lifting off from historic LC-39A at the Kennedy Space Center, FL, on Sunday morning, SpaceXs Dragon capsule for the SpX-10/CRS-10 mission is making a second approach to the International Space Station during rendezvous and berthing operations following an abort on Wednesday. The mission is delivering thousands of pounds of supplies, hardware, food, and experiments to the ISS.

Launch and quick-look pad 39A condition:

Since launch on Sunday morning from the Kennedy Space Center, Dragon had enjoyed an issue-free ride to the International Space Station (ISS) ahead of an abort just hours prior to capture, blamed on a relative GPS hardware issue, on Wednesday. The issue was fixed to allow for a second arrival attempt on Thursday.

Cruising to orbit on her Falcon 9 first and second stages, the SpX-10 Dragon spacecraft had slipped into her preliminary orbit without issue.

Meanwhile, the Falcon 9 first stage successfully flew itself backto the Cape Canaveral Air Force Stations Landing Zone 1 (LZ-1) for the third landing of a SpaceX rocket on land.

In the immediate hours after liftoff, teams performed a quick assessment of Launch Complex 39A, starting the process of documentation of all elements of the pad damaged during Sundays launch.

Damage to the launch pad is always expected following the liftoff of a rocket generating over a million pounds of thrust.

However, the Falcon 9s ~1.71 million pounds of thrust is relatively nothing compared to the ~7 million pounds of thrust LC-39A endured during its days with the Space Shuttle program, and SpaceX officials in the post-launch news conference were confident that only cosmetic damage would be present at LC-39A.

Accordingly, the quick look condition of the pad on Sunday afternoon noted that the launch complex appeared to be in excellent condition.

With the U.S. federal holiday on Monday, teams began a more thorough and extensive inspection on Tuesday of the launch pads systems and support services an inspection that will reveal just how much work and time it will take to refurbish the historic pad ahead of the currently planned albeit unlikely for the 28 February launch of the Echostar XXIII mission.

Rendezvous and berthing:

Following orbit insertion, Dragon performed a series of trajectory adjustment burns over the capsules three-day chase with the orbital outpost to properly align itself 6 km from the Station on Wednesday morning for final approach operations.

Following approval from NASA, SpaceX controllers commanded Dragon to begin its final approach sequence with the HA4 Approach Initiation burn at 03:16:00 EST at which time the ISS crew began actively monitoring the spacecraft.

Notably, this was deemed to have occurred 15 minutes ahead of schedule.

This was a potential sign of a problem, as Dragon then opted to abort her approach as a bad value in an ISS State Vector and a relative GPS error was noted by her flight computer.

The ability for Dragon to maintain proper alignment with the ISS is provided by the Relative Navigation System which was developed by SpaceX and debuted on CRS-3 on 20 April 2014.

The spacecraft was 1.2 km from the Station when the abort was called.

Dragons abort corridor saw her move into a racetrack around the Station, allowing for a second attempt to take place in 24 hours.

With the Thursday attempt going to plan, a series of maneuvers started with the 7-second HA4 burn that changed Dragons relative velocity to the ISS by 0.3 m/s.

This was followed by the HA4-MC1 and the HA4-MC2 burns designed to keep Dragon properly aligned with her targeted 350 m hold point.

Once Dragon arrived at the 350 m hold point she fired her thrusters to hold relative position with the Station at which time controllers at SpaceXs Mission Control Center (MCC-X) in Hawthorne, CA, commanded Dragon to perform a 180 degree Yaw maneuver to place the craft into the proper orientation for grapple at the end of the approach sequence.

After the yaw maneuver, MCC-X and MCC Houston (MCC-H) controllers confirmed the health of Dragons systems, after which the spacecraft departed the 350 m hold point.

The next hold point for Dragon was at 250 m below the ISS, where controllers once again confirmed the health of Dragons systems as well as the crafts orientation before giving a go to press ahead toward capture.

At any point during this phase of the approach sequence at a hold point or otherwise ground controllers, as well as the Station crew, also had the ability to manually abort Dragons approach through the Commercial Orbital Transportation Services Ultra High-Frequency Communication Unit (CUCU) if an off-nominal condition presents itself.

For the rendezvous, once a go to proceed is given, Dragon left the 250 m hold point and arrived at the 30 m hold point.

Once here, teams will perform final assessments of Dragons readiness to close to the capture point 10 m below the ISS.

Under the ideal plan, Dragon will depart the 30 m hold point and arrive atthe 10 m Capture Point (CP).

Once Dragon arrives at the CP, ISS Commander Shame Kimbrough and Flight Engineer Thomas Pesquet working in the Robotic Work Station in the Cupola lab will extend the Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS) arm toward Dragons grapple fixture.

After receiving a Go for Capture from Houston, Kimbrough and Pesquet will use the SSRMSs camera on the Latching End Effector (as overviewed in a detailed presentation available in L2) to precisely move the SSRMS to grapple posture.

At this point, Kimbrough and Pesquet will inhibit the Stations thrusters and Dragon will be commanded to free drift mode.

Kimbrough and Pesquet will then move the SSRMS over the Dragons grapple fixture pin and trigger the capture sequence.

Assuming a nominal, prime timeline, capture is expected at 06:00EST (11:00 UTC).

The backup capture window, should something preclude capture in the prime window, opens at 07:03:22 EST and closes at 08:20:08 EST.

After capture, a series of initial post-grapple checkouts will occur before Kimbrough and Pesquet carefully translates Dragon to its pre-install position 3.5 m away from Node-2 Harmonys nadir port.

Once at the pre-install position, Station crewmembers will take camcorder and photographic footage of Dragon for post-launch and rendezvous engineering evaluation.

Kimbrough and Pesquet will then move Dragon to 1.5 m from Node-2, at which point the ISS crew will wait for the final go for berthing call to move Dragon the rest of the way into the Common Berthing Module interface to begin securing the spacecraft to the Station.

Under the current plan, the CRS-10 Dragon will remain berthed to the ISS until late March, at which point it will reenter Earths atmosphere and splashdown for recovery in the Pacific Ocean.

The next cargo resupply mission set to dock to the ISS is the Progress MS-05 spacecraft which launched just hours ago from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan and is scheduled to dock on Friday morning at 08:34 UTC (03:34 EST).

The next U.S.-launching resupply mission to the Station is Orbital ATKs OA-7 Cygnus mission on 20 March.

(Images: SpaceX; NASA)

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Soyuz-U completes swan song with launch of Progress MS-05 – SpaceFlight Insider

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Derek Richardson

February 22nd, 2017

Soyuz-U launch vehicle together with the cargo transport spacecraft Progress MS-05. Photo Credit: Roscosmos

Lifting off under clear, blue skies at Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, the Soyuz-U rocket completed its final launch by sending the Russian Progress MS-05 cargo spacecraft toward the International Space Station (ISS).

Liftoff took place at 12:58 a.m. EST (05:58 GMT) Feb. 22, 2017, from launch site 1/5, also known as Gagarins Startthe same launch pad that sent the first human, Yuri Gagarin, into space.

Progress MS-05 is moved to the horizontal position before being encapsulated inside the Soyuz-U fairing. Photo Credit: Roscosmos

After a flawless nine-minute flight into space, Progress MS-05, also called Progress 66P, separated successfully from the second stage of the storied Soyuz-U. Itwill spend two days, about 34 orbits, catching up with the ISS. Docking with the Pirs module is expected at around 3:34 a.m. EST (08:34 GMT).

The cargo ship is carrying about 5,400 pounds (2,450 kilograms) of supplies, consumables, and propellant. It will stay attached to the outpost until June before departing and performing a de-orbit burn to re-enter Earths atmosphere.

This was the first successful Progress launch since the ill-fated Progress MS-04 rocket. On that flight, due to a malfunction in that Soyuz-U rockets second stage, the spacecraft failed to reach orbit.

An investigation laterdeterminedthat a failure in the RD-0110 engines oxidizer pump had caused the whole assembly to disintegrate 22 seconds before achieving orbital velocity. While an exact root cause was not determined, investigators believe the pump was destroyed from either a foreign object or an improper assembly.

The Soyuz-U, the worlds longest-serving rocket, has been flying since May 1973. Since then, it has launched 786 times, including this final flight. While its record isnt perfect, it has completed 765 of its missions successfully. Additionally, in 1979, 47 Soyuz-U rockets launched, a record for the highest launch rate for any orbital-class rocket.

It is based on the iconic R-7 rocket design. The 167.7-foot (51.1-meter) tall Soyuz-U has a core stage with four strap-on liquid-fueled boosters, and a second stage. Each booster sports a single RD-117 engine that produces 188,502 pounds (838.5 kilonewtons) of thrust.

The core has an RD-118 that produces 182,770 pounds (813 kilonewtons) of thrust. The second stage has a single RD-0110 that produces 67,000 pounds (298 kilonewtons) of thrust. All of the engine types burn liquid oxygen and kerosene.

Soyuz-U launch vehicle together with the cargo transport spacecraft Progress MS-05. Photo Credit: Roscosmos

Seconds before liftoff, the core stage engine and also the four strap-on boosters ignited and throttled up to full power. Once the countdown reached zero, the launch mount released the rocket and it soared skyward, leaving behind the snow-covered Kazakh steppe where Baikonur is located.

About 20 seconds after leaving the pad, the rocket began pitching over toward its designated orbit. The boosters fell away after burning for about 118 seconds while the core stage continued to burn for nearly another three minutes.

At around 2 minutes, 39 seconds, the payload fairing jettisoned, revealing the Progress MS-05 spacecraft.

Two seconds after the first stage completed its burn, the second stages RD-0110 engine began to fire in what is known as hot staging. This means the engine ignites while the previous stage is still attached. Once ignition was confirmed, pyrotechnics between the two stages officially detached the core stage.

Using the lone RD-0110 engine, the second stage burned for another four minutes to place Progress MS-05 into a preliminary orbit. Eight minutes, 49 seconds after leaving Kazakhstan, the rocket completed its ascent. Seconds later, the spacecraft separated from therocket and deployed its solar arrays and antennas.

This completed the final chapter in the history of the Soyuz-U. It has since been replaced by the similar-looking Soyuz-2 and crew-rated Soyuz-FG rockets.

This was the 157th Progress mission since the cargo freighter design began flying in 1978. Back then, it was servicing the Salyut 6 space station. Progress MS-05 was the 68th of various models to be sent to the ISS.

Video courtesy of (Roscosmos)

Tagged: Expedition 50 International Space Station Lead Stories Progress MS-05 Roscosmos Russia Soyuz-U

Derek Richardson is a student studying mass media with an emphasis in contemporary journalism at Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas. He is currently the managing editor of the student run newspaper, the Washburn Review. He also writes a blog, called Orbital Velocity, about the space station. His passion for space ignited when he watched space shuttle Discovery leap to space on Oct. 29, 1998. He saw his first in-person launch on July 8, 2011 when the space shuttle launched for the final time. Today, this fervor has accelerated toward orbit and shows no signs of slowing down. After dabbling in math and engineering courses in college, he soon realized that his true calling was communicating to others about space exploration and spreading that passion.

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Spitzer discovers star system with seven orbiting Earth-sized planets – SpaceFlight Insider

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Laurel Kornfeld

February 23rd, 2017

This artists concept shows what the TRAPPIST-1 planetary system may look like, based on available data about the planets diameters, masses, and distances from the host star. Image & Caption Credit: NASA-JPL/Caltech

A star system, approximately 40 light-years from Earth, with seven Earth-sized planets, including three in the habitable zone, has been discovered by NASAs Spitzer Space Telescope.

Named TRAPPIST-1 because it was discovered by the Transiting Planets and Planetesimals Small Telescope (TRAPPIST) in Chile, the star is an ultra-cool M-type dwarf star with eight percent the mass of our Sun and half its temperature, located in the direction of the constellation Aquarius.

NASA announced the discovery at a news conference on Wednesday, February 22, at 1 p.m. EST. Researchers who took part in the news conference, which was followed by a question and answer period, include the following:

The TRAPPIST-1 system consists of seven Earth-sized planets orbiting a red dwarf star. Image Credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / R. Hurt (IPAC)

All seven planets orbit closer to the star than Mercury orbits the Sun. Their densities indicate they could all be rocky worlds while their cool temperatures indicate that under the right atmospheric conditions, all could host liquid water on their surfaces.

Being rocky and capable of harboring liquid water are two of the primary conditions necessary for life as we know it to exist.

Scientists are especially interested in the three planets located in the stars habitable zone, as they are the ones most likely to have liquid water.

Three of the planets were discovered in May 2016 by scientists in Chile using TRAPPIST. Following the discovery, several other ground-based telescopes, including the European Southern Observatorys (ESO) Very Large Telescope, as well as NASAs Spitzer Space Telescope were trained on the system.

Spitzer not only confirmed the presence of the first two planetsbut also discovered five more orbiting the same star. The data provided by Spitzer enabled the scientists to accurately determine the planets sizes and estimate the masses of all but one.

With knowledge of their masses and sizes, the scientists were able to make decent estimates of their densities. By knowing or closely estimating a planets density, the scientists were able to gain an insight as to whether the planet is gaseous or rocky.

This discovery could be a significant piece in the puzzle of finding habitable environments, places that are conducive to life, Zurbuchen stated during the news conference. Answering the question are we alone is a top science priority and finding so many planets like these for the first time in the habitable zone is a remarkable step forward toward that goal.

Four of the systems planets were observed with the Hubble Space Telescope, which found no evidence for their having the puffy, hydrogen-heavy atmospheres typical of gaseous planets.

The TRAPPIST-1 system provides one of the best opportunities in the next decade to study the atmospheres around Earth-size planets, noted Nikole Lewis, who co-led the Hubble study of the system.

Imagine standing on the surface of the exoplanet TRAPPIST-1f. This artists concept is one interpretation of what it could look like. Image & Caption Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

TRAPPIST-1s seven planets orbit so close to each other that a person standing on one of them would be able to see the disks of the others in the sky. The close orbits also mean the planets perturb one another. Their layout is more akin to that of Jupiters moons than to that of the Solar System.

Mercury orbits the Sun at a distance of 0.39 AU (astronomical units, with one AU equal to the average Earth-Sun distance: 93 million miles or 150 million kilometers). In contrast, the closest TRAPPIST-1 planet orbits its star at 0.01 AU and the furthest at 0.06 AU.

While the planets densities suggest they are rocky, the question of whether they have water will require additional observations. Some scientists think that the systems outermost planet is icy, though its mass has not yet been determined.

The TRAPPIST-1 habitable zone in comparison to the Solar System. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

As an infrared telescope, Spitzer is ideal for studying this system because the star glows in infrared wavelengths. During the last quarter of 2016, Spitzer observed the system for 500 hours, monitoring transits of the planets in front of the star.

Because the planets are in such close orbits around TRAPPIST-1, some or all of them may be tidally locked, which means that they always present the same side to the star and the opposite side away from the star.

That configuration may cause extreme temperature variations that could limit the planets habitability. It could also result in extreme weather events, with strong winds blowing from one side of a planet to the other side.

Additionally, red dwarf stars, especially young ones, can experience superflares that emit high levels of radiation, which can strip away a planets atmosphere and prevent life from getting started.

However, unlike Proxima Centauri, TRAPPIST-1 is a quiet, middle-aged star.

This chart shows, on the top row, artist concepts of the seven planets of TRAPPIST-1 with their orbital periods, distances from their star, radii, and masses as compared to those of Earth. Image Credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / R. Hurt, T. Pyle (IPAC)

NASAs K2 extended Kepler exoplanet search mission is now studying the TRAPPIST-1 system while Spitzer and Hubble will conduct follow-up observations in preparation for study by the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), set to launch in 2018.

The highly sensitive JWST will be capable of probing the planets atmospheres in a search for bio-signatures, as well as detecting evidence of water, methane, oxygen, ozone, carbon dioxide, and various other gases; plus, it will analyze their surface pressures and temperatures.

Another research team is constructing Speculoos, a more powerful version of TRAPPIST, which will search for planetary systems around other red dwarf stars.

Findings of the TRAPPIST-1 study have been published in the journal Nature.

Various visual simulations, including Exoplanet Surface in 360 VR, as well as additional photos and videos, and the TRAPPIST-1 system in the free, downloadable desktop app, Eyes on Exoplanets, or onmobile, TRAPPIST-1 system in 3D,can all be accessed at this website.

Video Courtesy of NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory

This 360-degree panorama depicts the surface of a newly detected planet, TRAPPIST 1-d, part of a seven-planet system some 40 light-years away. Explore this artists rendering of an alien world by moving the view using your mouse or your mobile device.

Video & Caption Courtesy of NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Tagged: Exoplanets Lead Stories NASA Spitzer Space Telescope TRAPPIST TRAPPIST-1

Laurel Kornfeld is an amateur astronomer and freelance writer from Highland Park, NJ, who enjoys writing about astronomy and planetary science. She studied journalism at Douglass College, Rutgers University, and earned a Graduate Certificate of Science from Swinburne Universitys Astronomy Online program. Her writings have been published online in The Atlantic, Astronomy magazines guest blog section, the UK Space Conference, the 2009 IAU General Assembly newspaper, The Space Reporter, and newsletters of various astronomy clubs. She is a member of the Cranford, NJ-based Amateur Astronomers, Inc. Especially interested in the outer solar system, Laurel gave a brief presentation at the 2008 Great Planet Debate held at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab in Laurel, MD.

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Spitzer discovers star system with seven orbiting Earth-sized planets - SpaceFlight Insider

Europe’s next Sentinel land imaging satellite mated to rocket booster – Spaceflight Now

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Ground crews have mounted the fully-fueled Sentinel 2B spacecraft, the next mission in Europes multibillion-dollar Copernicus Earth observation satellite fleet, on top of a Vega rocket inside a protective gantry on its launch pad in French Guiana for blastoff next month.

The satellite was encapsulated inside the Vega rockets Swiss-made composite nose shroud Feb. 15, then transferred to the Vega launch pad Feb. 18, where the four-stage booster was already assembled and awaiting the arrival of the payload.

Sentinel 2B is scheduled to lift off at 0149 GMT March 7 (8:49 p.m. EST March 6) on top of the Vega rocket, which will fly on its ninth mission since debuting in February 2012.

Next months launch will be the third Arianespace mission of the year, and the first Vega launch of 2017.

The Sentinel 2B spacecraft carries a sharp-eyed camera sensitive to 13 different nuances of color designed to paint a broad swath 180 miles (290 kilometers) wide as the satellite circles Earth in polar orbit at an altitude around 488 miles (786 kilometers) above the planet.

Built by Airbus Defense and Space, Sentinel 2B follows the identical Sentinel 2A Earth observatory launched in June 2015.With two Sentinel 2 platforms in orbit, users will be able to glimpse the same location on Earth every five days.

The European Commissions Copernicus program has several lines of Sentinel satellites. While the Sentinel 2 series is devoted to land imaging roughly equivalent to the U.S. governments Landsat missions other Sentinel satellites carry radar and atmospheric sensors to monitor pollution, ice sheets, oil spills and other environmental concerns.

Sentinel 2B will be the fifth Copernicus satellite launched overall since the Sentinel deployments began in 2014.

ESA manages the satellites and launches for the Copernicus program on behalf of the European Commission, the EUs executive body.

The satellite was fueled with its supply of in-orbit maneuvering propellant before encapsulation inside the Vega rockets payload fairing, giving Sentinel 2B a launch mass around 2,500 pounds (about 1,140 kilograms).

Once hoisted into the Vega launch pads mobile gantry, the fairing and Sentinel 2B were lowered on top of the rockets fourth stage. Ground crews successfully completed functional checks of the satellite Feb. 19.

Sentinel 2B is designed for a mission of at least seven years.

The images below show fueling of Sentinel 2B, encapsulation of spacecraft inside the fairing, and its arrival at the Vega launch pad before attachment atop the 98-foot-tall (30-meter) rocket.

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Follow Stephen Clark on Twitter: @StephenClark1.

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Europe's next Sentinel land imaging satellite mated to rocket booster - Spaceflight Now

Explore 14 alien worlds (and Earth) with NASA’s whimsical travel posters – Los Angeles Times

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Feb. 22, 2017

Its never too early to plan your trip to space, at least according to the folks at NASA.

To travel toalien worlds, humans would need light-speed technology or have millions of years to spare to fly by jumbo jet. In the meantime, we can imagine our extraterrestrial dream vacation thanks to a team ofdesigners atNASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

With a set of 15 downloadable travel posters, we can follow in the footsteps of NASAs Voyager mission and experience the thrill of a gravity assist, explore alien oceans on Earthlike moons or travel far beyond the reaches of our solar system to intriguing and mysterious exoplanets. The latest additionpromises a planet-hopping adventure to the TRAPPIST-1 system, a newly described set of Earth-sized exoplanetsthat scientists say are promising candidates in the search for life.

Theres also a poster promoting Earth as a destination, reminding the weary space traveler that theres no place like our warm, watery, breathable home.

We can already explore Earth every day, but its nice to have a place we call home in the universe.

Follow in the footsteps of the 1977 Voyager mission for a grand tour of the solar system. The twin spacecrafts revealed new details about Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune as they used each planets gravity to propel them farther into space, called a gravity assist.

Though were not sure how pleasant Venus would be to visit, given its toxic atmosphere and lead-melting heat, it would offer a fine view of the Mercury transit, when the small planet appears as a black dot crossing the suns face.

By the time humans land on Mars, well already have a rich history of exploring the Red Planet. This poster takes a nostalgic look at some of NASAs previous missions to Mars, including rovers, space probes and satellites.

Jupiters auroras create the best light show in the solar system, with northern and southern lights that are hundreds of times more powerful than the ones seen on Earth.

Enceladus, Saturns tiny moon, helped create the planets E-ring with its icy jets. Cassini missions also found evidence of a global ocean and the first signs of hydrothermal activity on another world, putting the moon toward the top of the list of places that might support life beyond Earth.

Saturns largest moon is one of the most planet-like in the solar system. Come for the views of liquid ethane and methane lakes, and stay for the (possible) cryo-volcanoes of cold liquid water.

Dive underneath Europas icy surface and into its ocean of salty liquid water. Who knows what might be living down there? A NASA mission to the Jupiter moon could find out in the 2020s.

Ceres is the largest object in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. With an equatorial diameter of 600 miles, its the closest dwarf planet to the sun.

If youre looking for an extended getaway, consider 51 Pegasi b a journey of about 50 light-years. Just 4.2 Earth days constitutes a year on the exoplanet.

For thrill-seekers: Exoplanet HD 40307g has eight times the gravitational pull of Earth. Scientists arent sure whether to classify it as a super-Earth or mini-Neptune, as they arent sure whether it has a rocky surface or one buried beneath gas and ice.

Kepler-186f could be quite Earthlike: Its the right size and it orbits within the habitable zone of its star. But the star is much cooler and redder than our sun, meaning Kepler-186fs plant life would boast a color palette very different from the green on Earth.

You could be like Luke Skywalker on Kepler-16b and gaze off toward its two setting suns, just like the planet Tatooine in the Star Wars films. Travelers beware: The exoplanet also could be a gas giant like Saturn instead of having the rocky surface seen here.

The rogue planet PSO J318.5-22 wanders alone in the galaxy, free from the orbit of a parent star. So its always night and the party never ends.

The fourth planet from an dim red star, TRAPPIST-1e, could be covered in liquid water and is in perpetual twilight. With its nearby sister planets lighting up the sky, a new adventure is just a planet hop away.

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Explore 14 alien worlds (and Earth) with NASA's whimsical travel posters - Los Angeles Times

Syria, Marine Le Pen, NASA: Your Thursday Briefing – New York Times

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New York Times
Syria, Marine Le Pen, NASA: Your Thursday Briefing
New York Times
Newly released emails show that Mr. Trump's top environmental official, Scott Pruitt, worked closely with major oil and gas companies and political groups to roll back environmental regulations when he was Oklahoma's attorney general.

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Syria, Marine Le Pen, NASA: Your Thursday Briefing - New York Times

Big Data: Why NASA Can Now Visualize Its Lessons Learned – Forbes

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Forbes
Big Data: Why NASA Can Now Visualize Its Lessons Learned
Forbes
NASA's Lessons Learned database is a vast, constantly updated collection knowledge and experience from past missions, which it relies on for planning future projects and expeditions into space. With detailed information from every mission going back as ...

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Big Data: Why NASA Can Now Visualize Its Lessons Learned - Forbes