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Dots connected in enslavement triangle – The Philadelphia Tribune

Posted on February 10, 2017 by Danzig

Spirituality as seen through the classic enslavement triangle is one of the missions of Contra Mestre Chicago Murray. Through Capoeira de Angola Murray showed there is a link between the spiritual practices of those in the African country known as Angola, with the enslaved Africans who were brought to Brazil, and even to those who learn the spirituality, martial arts and dance that tie them with kin in the United States.

Murray shared at a gathering at Ausar Auset, 6008 Germantown Ave. on Feb. 4. The dozens gathered were there to view the film. This was the first in a series of movie nights where a multigenerational crowd of those of various faiths will gather to watch films that shows the spiritual power of Africans and their descendants.

In capoeira we use many words from Angola, Murray said. The words of the instruments are African. Actually whenever we teach it we also teach you how to make these instruments as well as to play it. You play litany it after you do libations.

Murray explained that he learned the spiritual and martial arts of capoeira from one of the oldest living masters in the United States, Jao Grande, in New York City. Murray, a native of Chicago, said he studied martial arts and related Asian spirituality while a teenager. When he found that the two disciplines were originally of African origin he sought out African masters. He found the oldest body of studies in the Americas was found in Brazil.

Like its Caribbean and southern cousins who practice Santeria, Voudon, or other indigenous faiths, Murray shared that most look at these as a way of life rather than a religion. So, many adherents continue to practice Catholic, Protestant, Islamic, or other faiths while still exploring capoeira. Some combine spiritual modalities while others treat it as purely a martial arts practice as when one takes a karate, judo, aikido or related class.

This is actually one of the art forms. It is not a religion, but it has some spirituality to it., Murray said.

Now for Chicago capoeira and Brazilian spirituality is a family affair. When he does presentations or performances he often has his wife and five children with him. This was the case at the Germantown spiritual center last Saturday. They were able to demonstrate the sacred music of Angola and even tie those in to the martial arts and dance movements.

I enjoy doing this, said 14-year old Nailah Murray. Also on hand was her two brothers, 11-year-old Geronimo and 7-year-old Freedom, as well as little sister 4-year old Naima.

I find learning about Brazilian culture and traditions fascinating, said Nutara Netchem Ab, who came for the movie series.

For those interested in learning about the African Brazilian culture they need look no further than the Anderson Cultural Center, 5301 Overbrook Ave. in West Philadelphia. Chicago kicked off his African Brazilian martial art and dance courses for children and adults on Jan. 9. For more information call (912) 596-2141 or visit iccapoeira@yahoo.com.

The Ausar Auset Society will continue its series of watching movies about how spirituality enabled various enslaved Africans to resist in times of crisis. The first film in the Celebrate Resistance series was Quilombo a classic film by Carlos Diegues. It is about the Palmeres in Brazil who used their spirituality and African martial arts form to resist slavery. For information on the upcoming films call (215) 843-0900.

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Dots connected in enslavement triangle - The Philadelphia Tribune

The Tao of Keanu Reeves, From ‘Whoa!’ to ‘John Wick’ – RollingStone.com

Posted on February 10, 2017 by Danzig

The appeal of Keanu Reeves philosopher, lover, martial artist, musician, motorcycle enthusiast, movie star is that he carries himself lightly, even in the movies that require him to turn from "cool breeze" (the Hawaiian translation of his first name, for those of you playing at home) to howling tempest. He's the type of guy who's had to deny being Buddhist, even though he's played the Buddha onscreen because it's just widely assumed that he would swing that way religiously. ("I haven't take refuge in the dharma," he has assured us.)

But there's always been a slight philosophical bent to his roles. He's "The One" in The Matrix because he's chosen, not because he has the ego to assert himself. His time-traveling stoner Theodore "Ted" Logan has learned the study of fundamental knowledge from some of the greats (literally). He's been photographed contemplating the meaning of the universe in a sandwich. And even in 2014's John Wick, playing a super-assassin haunted by his past, he's not big on material possessions. He would have lived alone in peace forever if Russian thugs had merely stolen his car instead of murdering his puppy for sport. You simply do not do that to even the most enlightened of men.

With John Wick: Chapter 2 bringing the reluctant warrior back into action this week (and letting him utter such platitudes as "The blade is in your aorta, pull it and you will die. Consider this a professional courtesy"), it's worth marveling at both the Taoist principles and more Westernized concepts that flow through his words of wisdom both in his interviews and some of his more mind-blowing bits of dialogue. The movies are Keanu. Keanu is the movies. Whoa.

On Women "It's always wonderful to get to know women, with the mystery and the joy and the depth. Men don't have that they just have really smelly underwear, or at least that's what I've found. Anyway, if you can make a woman laugh, you're probably seeing the most beautiful thing on God's Earth." via CBS News

"The correct term is Babes, sir." Point Break (1991)

"Oh you beautiful babes from England, for whom we have traveled through time: Will you go to prom with us in San Dimas? We will have a most triumphant time!" Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989)

"I believe in love at first sight. You want that connection, and then you want some problems." via Entertainment Weekly

"Now we can record our love." Parenthood (1989)

"November is all I know, and all I ever wanna know." Sweet November (2001)

On Living Modestly "Money doesn't mean anything to me. I've made a lot of money, but I want to enjoy life and not stress myself building a bank account. I give lots away and live simply, mostly out of a suitcase in hotels. We all know that good health is much more important." via Hollywood-dot-com

"It's when you start doing things for free that you start to grow wings." My Own Private Idaho (1991)

"Every moment is precious. I'm trying to travel. I want to go to Paris. It's probably just a pipe dream. I'd like to read some books. Take some voice lessons." Interview Magazine

"To learn is to change. The path to enlightenment is in the middle way. It is the lie between all opposite extremes." Little Buddha (1993)

"I'm a meathead. I can't help it, man. You've got smart people and you've got dumb people." via The Guardian

"How great is it for you that I'm not intimidated by your brilliance?" Something's Gotta Give (2003)

On Living the Creative Life: "I was overwhelmed at what I had to do it was like, Oh, no! Can I do this? I was afraid. But Gus [Van Sant] and River [Phoenix] made me fit in. Said, Let's do one bitchin' movie." Interview Magazine

"I know I want to have truthful acting. Maybe that can turn into a truthful life." - Post-Gazette.com

"I guess if you collect some of those strings and hold them in one hand, it can tend to look like a bouquet." The Guardian, on asked if there was some Zeb theme guiding his career

"You're sayin' the FBI's gonna pay me to learn to surf?!?" Point Break (1991)

On Spirituality: "Do I believe in God, faith, inner faith, the self, passion, and things? Yes, of course! I'm very spiritual ... Supremely spiritual ... Bountifully spiritual ... Supremely bountiful." via The Daily Beast

"I have been born to reach Enlightenment and free all creatures from suffering." Little Buddha (1993)

"In The Bible, you lose. We're destined to lose, dad!" The Devil's Advocate (1997)

"Energy can't be created or destroyed, and energy flows. It must be in a direction, with some kind of internal, emotive, spiritual direction. It must have some effect somewhere I do think there must be some kind of interaction between your living life and the life that goes on from here." via AP/Today.com

"God's a kid with an ant farm, lady. He's not planning anything." Constantine (2005)

"Vaya con dios." Point Break (1991)

"Catch you later, God!" Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey (1991)

On Being and Nothingness "I'm Mickey [Mouse]. They don't know who's inside the suit." via Vanity Fair

"I can carry nearly eighty gigs of data in my head." Johnny Mnemonic (1995)

"You ever have that feeling where you're not sure if you're awake or still dreaming?" The Matrix (1999)

"My body is." The Day the Earth Stood Still (2008), upon being asked if he is human

"Oftentimes, when we think of 3-D, we think of things coming out of the screen, but actually, you've got this zero, this negative space, what they call negative space, which is the scene, what's being filmed in the positive space of the audience. As you can have things come out, you can have all of this depth." via Collider

"I think your experiment just got a mind of its own." Chain Reaction (1996)

"I realized I didn't hate the cabinet door, I hated my life ... My house, my family, my backyard, my power mower. Nothing would ever change; nothing new could ever be expected. It had to end, and it did." A Scanner Darkly

"Pain heals. Chicks dig scars. Glory lasts forever." The Replacements (2000)

"It was just bottomless, man. You could go as far as you could go, you know?" - Interview Magazine

"Whoa." The Matrix (1999)

On Making a Good, Solid Kung Fu Movie "I want to make a good, solid kung fu movie. Good story, good plot but let's get some good kung fu going!" via MTV News

"You owe me a life." Man of Tai Chi (2013)

"I know kung fu!" The Matrix (1999)

On Being Back "People keep asking me if I'm back and I haven't really had an answer. But now, yeah, I'm thinkin' I'm back. [Pause] So you can either hand over your son or you can die screaming along with him." John Wick (2014)

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The Tao of Keanu Reeves, From 'Whoa!' to 'John Wick' - RollingStone.com

Grant distribution sets record high – Frederick News Post (subscription)

Posted on February 10, 2017 by Danzig

Delaplaine Foundation Inc. has announced its 2016 grant cycle concluded with the awarding of 120 grants to 114 nonprofit organizations for a record high of $1,435,000 in grants funded, marking the largest annual grant distribution in the foundations 15-year history, according to Marlene B. Young, foundation president and trustee.

We received applications with requests well in excess of $2 million during our most recent grant cycle. The board is pleased to note that with the nearly 200 applications that were received, we approved funding that resulted in 74 percent of dollars awarded going to qualified Frederick County nonprofits whose missions closely align with that of our Foundation. The foundation focuses on programs and projects that promote, the arts, health and human services, higher education, historic preservation and spiritual enlightenment. We are always looking for new, innovative programs that mesh with our mission in addition to supporting others that reinforce our long-term focus, Young said.

She noted that the foundation has awarded $12.3 million dollars in grant funding since its founding in 2001.

As a private philanthropic organization, we believe that we and other funders are uniquely positioned to make a profound difference by advancing community enrichment through promoting collaboration in identifying and meeting needs, first in our local community and then beyond, said George B. Delaplaine Jr., foundation chairman. We are committed to being a force for lasting impact through strategically focused grant funding.

Delaplaine Foundation has advanced the annual deadline for grant application submission to Oct. 1 for 2017.

For additional information, to submit a grant application, or to see a full list of organizations who have received funding from Delaplaine Foundation Inc., visit http://www.delaplainefoundation.org.

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Grant distribution sets record high - Frederick News Post (subscription)

A response to ‘Rukunegara as preamble’ – Malaysiakini – Malaysiakini (subscription)

Posted on February 10, 2017 by Danzig

I refer to the letter today Rukunegara as preamble - rectifying misconceptions by Chandra Muzaffar.

Dr Chandra Muzaffar is indefatigable in seeking the anchoring of the Rukunegara (RN) in the supreme law, by making it the preamble to the constitution.

Absolutely pointless, Doc!

Why?

First, Chandra Muzaffar refers to widespread fears that the Special Position of the Malays and East Malaysian Natives will be affected. He shows why those fears are ill-founded.

Surely a more fundamental issue is - why is it, 60 years after independence, there still is a need for any kind of discrimination for a particular ethnic group?

The five eminent judges in 1957 who were led by Lord Reid, felt a need for special assistance for the Malays then because they were obviously lagging behind the rest.

But today?

Next, why the perceived need to add the Rukunegara to the Federal Constitution to make the constitution a document that unites the people? No need to prattle on about sincerity, moan the cleavages in society, preach about a just society where wealth isnt equitably shared, as basic reasons why the Rukunegara should be grafted onto the constitution.

No need to fight to champion inclusion of the Rukunegara and to claim its going to transform Malaysia.

It wont! Only Dr Chandra Muzaffar would then be able to luxuriate in fantasies that hes achieved something late in his life.

No, no, you can be fairly certain that instead, making just one simple change to the constitution will immediately win the support of millions of Malaysians of all races. And help unify the nation as never before.

Here it is: add three little words: based on need before the relevant clauses of Article 153.

This would appropriately correct the Federal Constitution lovingly crafted 60 years ago by those five foreigners and then extensively amended by our Parliament over the years. Prof Shad Faruqi, Emeritus Prof of Universiti Islam Antarabangsa (UIA) Malaysia, once estimated no less than 600 amendments had been made since independence.

This proposed change would have the effect of excluding already affluent bumiputra from any affirmative action.

Is that so terrible?

And think of the soul. Isnt it spiritually enriching to abstain from demanding rights that your country provides because they say the people need it when you already know you personally dont?

I believe that many voluntarily do not demand special privileges because they are already wealthy. Such are indeed well on the way to spiritual enlightenment.

According to statements made, the vast majority of bumiputras still need affirmative action of this kind.

Very well, continue it but only for those who need it!

Logical conundrum

You see, there is a logical conundrum here.

Those people who say the Malays need it seem to point to some mythic, congenital, DNA-type neediness. They cannot get away from using the word need but shrink desperately from any refinement or definition of said need.

It is always couched in terms of a blanket need, as if all Malays, every bumiputra on the face of the globe, is afflicted by this undeterminate virus of need. Doesnt that mean neediness is in their DNA? Not true!

Why this timidity over naming the thing? Any economist worth his salt will be readily able to define economic need, perhaps in terms of household income or personal income, or personal immovable assets like a home.

Of course, if such a change ever gets off the ground, the appropriate definition of economic need will have to be framed by a committee of experts.

We have no shortage of noted economists such as Prof Kamal Salih (who co-authored the UN-commissioned 2013 Malaysia Development Study) Dr Terrence Gomez, Dr Jomo Kwame Sundaram, Prof Danny Quah (Prof of Economics at the LSE till 2016) Dr Munir Majid, and well-known sociologist Dr Loo Cheng Ghee, among others. We have got the brains but we unfortunately put them to use, if at all, to support kleptocrats.

What does this mean in terms of numbers? Assume 90 percent of bumiputras are in the needy category, based on this new definition. The definition might be a simple one such as currently used for allocation of PR1MA housing or Bantuan Rakyat 1 Malaysia (BR1M) handouts. Let's just say it's framed as Household income of RM 20,000 per annum or less.

The Inland Revenue Board (IRB) has data on all those who pay taxes and so they can be a good source of statistics of bumiputra income.

Excluding foreigners, the Statistics Dept 2013 population projections estimates that there are about 28.5 million citizens, of which approximately 67 percent are bumiputra. If 90 percent qualify, under this new definition, that means (0.90 X 0.67 X 28,500,000) or 17,185,000 bumiputras will qualify for continued so-called affirmative action under Article 153.

But, more importantly, a smaller number of (0.10X 0.67X 28,500,000) or 1,909,500 bumiputra whose income exceeds that minimum threshold, will no longer qualify. Those non-qualifying bumiputra will have to join the 10 million other citizens, mainly all the Indians and Chinese, who have never received such consideration anyway.

Virtuous cycle

What this would mean is that a virtuous cycle would be set up:

1. The available amount of state aid would now be distributable over a smaller group of truly needy bumis, therefore the benefits would be targeted better and each could receive more.

2. The resentment felt by non-bumiputra would be greatly diminished because their taxes were now being distributed in a more equitable and transparent manner. Social engineering will continue based on need, and not only on race, which has been a divisive factor for years.

3. Ninety percent of all bumiputra would experience no changes whatsoever in relation to their entitlement to special privileges; they truly need it and would continue to receive it. Thus, no social disruption would occur as a result of having a transparent, widely disseminated index of need

4. Affluent bumiputra, used to getting benefits based only on race, will need to work a little harder to maintain their standard of living. In effect, they will have to work as hard as the non-bumiputra have been doing all along, which should also help improve Malaysias productivity.

5. The 1.9 million bumiputra who have already reached a higher standard of living will have to modify many aspects of their usual ways of doing business. Many will already be competitive, driven individuals, because by now, there are hundreds of thousands of well-qualified bumiputra engineers, neurosurgeons, architects, economists, bank officers, actuaries, doctors, graduate teachers and so on.

But there are also thousands of bumiputra politicians, mostly in the ruling parties, for whom agitating for continuing privileges as they are, politicising anything that changes the most minute aspect of a discriminative system based on racial exceptionalism, is all they know how to do. They cannot think out of the box! But the world is changing faster and faster and will not wait for anyone.

Its a travesty to base a system of social re-engineering solely on race and then, to fight fiercely for its maintenance and brand those who propose a review as having seditious tendencies.

We must bite the bullet.

We owe this, firstly, to the truly poor and disadvantaged bumiputra because they are being ill-served by a system that has inevitably been corrupted while pretending to defend them.

In this tentative analysis, I used a figure of 1,909,500 bumiputra whose household income might theoretically exceed a nominal figure of RM 20,000 per annum. The actual cutoff point must be determined by collective, sincere efforts by a team of experts and then by a preferably bipartisan council of politicians and others. But the principle remains, whatever particular numbers are finally adopted - to have a rational basis for helping bumiputra based on economic need.

If it can be implemented, then it also addresses the often unfair assertion about bumiputra - that they got where they are because of special privileges.

This approach, to me, seems to make more sense than merely incorporating the Rukunegara into the constitution and believing that everything will work out well.

We have to face our devils, confront them and pool our collective intelligence and energies to fight them.

And yes, we can!

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A response to 'Rukunegara as preamble' - Malaysiakini - Malaysiakini (subscription)

NASA approves first commercial airlock for space station science and SmallSat deployment – Phys.Org

Posted on February 10, 2017 by Danzig

February 10, 2017 by Ken Kremer, Universe Today Artists concept of first commercially funded airlock on the space station being developed by NanoRacks that will launch on a commercial resupply mission in 2019. It will be installed on the stations Tranquility module. Credit: NanoRacks

In a significant move towards further expansion of the International Space Station's (ISS) burgeoning research and commercial space economy capabilities, NASA has approved the development of the first privately developed airlock and is targeting blastoff to the orbiting lab complex in two years.

Plans call for the commercial airlock to be launched on a commercial cargo vessel and installed on the U.S. segment of the ISS in 2019.

It enhances the US capability to place equipment and payloads outside and should triple the number of small satellites like CubeSats able to be deployed.

The privately funded commercial airlock is being developed by Nanoracks in partnership with Boeing, which is the prime contractor for the space station.

The airlock will be installed on an open port on the Tranquility module that already is home to the seven windowed domed Cupola observation deck and the commercial BEAM expandable module built by Bigelow Aerospace.

"We want to utilize the space station to expose the commercial sector to new and novel uses of space, ultimately creating a new economy in low-Earth orbit for scientific research, technology development and human and cargo transportation," said Sam Scimemi, director, ISS Division at NASA Headquarters in Washington, in a statement.

"We hope this new airlock will allow a diverse community to experiment and develop opportunities in space for the commercial sector."

The airlock will launch aboard one of NASA's commercial cargo suppliers in 2019. But the agency has not specified which contractor. The candidates include the SpaceX cargo Dragon, an enhanced ATK Cygnus or potentially the yet to fly SNC Dream Chaser.

Boeing will supply the airlock's Passive Common Berthing Mechanism (CBM) hardware to connect it to the Tranquility module.

The airlock will beef up the capability of transferring equipment, payloads and deployable satellites from inside the ISS to outside, significantly increasing the utilization of ISS, says Boeing.

"The International Space Station allows NASA to conduct cutting-edge research and technology demonstrations for the next giant leap in human exploration and supports an emerging space economy in low-Earth orbit. Deployment of CubeSats and other small satellite payloads from the orbiting laboratory by commercial customers and NASA has increased in recent years. To support demand, NASA has accepted a proposal from NanoRacks to develop the first commercially funded airlock on the space station," says NASA.

"The installation of NanoRacks' commercial airlock will help us keep up with demand," said Boeing International Space Station program manager Mark Mulqueen. "This is a big step in facilitating commercial business on the ISS."

Right now the US uses the airlock on the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) to place payloads on the stations exterior as well as for small satellite deployments. But the demand is outstripping the JEM's availability.

The Nanoracks airlock will be larger and more robust to take up the slack.

NASA has stipulated that the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS), NASA's manager of the U.S. National Laboratory on the space station, will be responsible for coordinating all payload deployments from the commercial airlock NASA and non NASA.

"We are entering a new chapter in the space station program where the private sector is taking on more responsibilities. We see this as only the beginning and are delighted to team with our friends at Boeing," said Jeffrey Manber, CEO of NanoRacks.

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NASA approves first commercial airlock for space station science and SmallSat deployment - Phys.Org

Castaic iLEAD Students Join International Space Station Project – KHTS Radio

Posted on February 10, 2017 by Danzig

A group including local iLEAD charter school students from Castaic celebrated an out-of-this-world lesson plan Friday with Californias Secretary of State. Dont miss a thing. Get breakingKHTS Santa Clarita News Alertsdelivered right to your inbox.

A team of four middle school students from iLEAD Pacoima are sending an experiment to the International Space Station as part of the national Student Spaceflight Experiments Program (SSEP) Mission 11 project, the school announced today.

The group included students from Santa Clarita Valley International School (SCVi), iLEAD Lancaster, iLEAD Pacoima, iLEAD Encino and iLEAD Innovation Studios.

Secretary of State Alex Padilla, who grew up Pacoima, spoke at the assembly. Padilla was joined by Assemblyman Dante Acosta, as well as a representative from Senator Scott Wilks office.

It was nice to have so much support from our elected officials for these public charter schools, and iLEAD in particular, Dawn Evenson, executive director of education for iLEAD schools.

Learners ranging in age from 11 to 17 were tasked with developing experiments that compare how something behaves in microgravity which is what astronauts experience on board the International Space Station with how that same object responds in gravity.

The Pacoima team was selected by SSEPs National Step 2 Review Board from a slate of three experiments submitted by iLEAD charter schools across Los Angeles County.

The project helps students understand the effects of microgravity to support space exploration.

In addition, all learners and facilitators from any iLEAD campus whose project passed Step One review were recognized honored, as will learners who participated in the schools mission patch contest.

The Student Spaceflight Experiments Program (or SSEP) is a program of the National Center for Earth and Space Science Education (NCESSE) in the United States, and the Arthur C. Clarke Institute for Space Education internationally.

The program is enabled through a strategic partnership with DreamUp PBC and NanoRacks LLC, which are working with NASA under a Space Act Agreement as part of the utilization of the International Space Station as a National Laboratory.

SSEP is the first pre-college STEM education program that is both a U.S. national initiative and implemented as an on-orbit commercial space venture.

The winning team is examining the effects of microgravity on yeast an idea spawned by one students family pizza business.

Their experiment calls for the astronauts onboard the International Space Station to activate yeast within a tube-like Fluid Mixing Enclosure (FME). After two days, the astronauts will introduce a fixative to stop the experiment. Simultaneously, the iLEAD Learners will be doing the same thing on Earth. When the FME returns from the space station, the students will compare how the yeast behaved in both environments by examining its spore count.

The targeted launch date for Mission 11 is spring/summer 2017.

Amber Raskin, executive director of business development and operations and co-founder of the iLEAD schools alongside Evenson, noted this was the type of educational opportunity they had in mind when the schools were created.

This project, Raskin said, represents exactly the kind of unique, hands-on learning experiences offered throughout the iLEAD programs and public charter schools throughout the state.

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Castaic iLEAD Students Join International Space Station Project - KHTS Radio

Insider Exclusive: JSC’s Astronaut Office innovating a path forward … – SpaceFlight Insider

Posted on February 10, 2017 by Danzig

Jason Rhian

February 10th, 2017

Orion spacecraft at NASAs Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. Photo Credit: Jason Rhian / SpaceFlight Insider

HOUSTON, Texas A model of NASAs Orion spacecraft is prominently placed within theSpace Vehicle Mockup Facility at NASAs Johnson Space Center. We sat down with Rick Mastracchio, a four-time spaceflight veteran with more than 227 days on orbit about how the Astronaut Office at JSC is working to make the agencys new Orion spacecraft more self-sufficient than those that preceded it.

NASAs Orion Assistant Manager for Integration, Annette Hasbrook, also spoke with SpaceFlight Insider about how NASA is developing not just technology, but protocols that are considered critical to send crews farther into space than has ever been attempted before. Photo Credit: Marisa Rhian / SpaceFlight Insider

At present, NASA is working to have Orion conduct its second flight in late 2018 (the spacecrafts first mission, Exploration Flight Test 1, launched on Dec. 5, 2014). The upcoming flight, Exploration Mission 1, will be the first for NASAs new super-heavy-lift rocket, the Space Launch System.

NASA and its family of contractors arent content with reinventing the wheel, they are looking to develop new, more self-sufficient systems which should be able to handle problems that crews have not had to face in more than four decades.

We havent left low-Earth orbit since 1972, the last Apollo mission, so thats a big change, Mastracchio told SpaceFlight Insider. Some of the changes that I foresee is that were going to have probably a much smarter vehicle than what we had on Space Shuttle or Soyuz, or on the Space Station in terms of it will be more autonomous.

Autonomous was one word that was repeatedly used to describe how Mission Control, also located at JSC, and the crew will need to be as missions travel farther and farther away from our home world.

Mastracchio noted that, as these missions get underway, the Mission Controls role will decrease as crews venture to possible destinations such as Earths moon, an asteroid, and Mars.

Mastracchio and Hasbrook spoke with SpaceFlight Insider for the better part of an hour. They informed SFI regarding contingency scenarios that were under development as well as about how astronauts are being trained to broaden their already diverse array of talents to support deep space missions and more.

Upcoming SLS/Orion flights include the first integrated flight of the launch vehicle and spacecraft, EM-1, as well as the first crewed flight (Exploration Mission 2) and the Asteroid Redirect Mission, which, according to Jeff Foust at Space News, if funded, could fly in late 2021.

Some of their comments are contained in the video presentation below.

Video courtesy of SpaceFlight Insider

Tagged: Annette Hasbrook Astronaut Office Johnson Space Center Lead Stories NASA Orion

Jason Rhian spent several years honing his skills with internships at NASA, the National Space Society and other organizations. He has provided content for outlets such as: Aviation Week & Space Technology, Space.com, The Mars Society and Universe Today.

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Insider Exclusive: JSC's Astronaut Office innovating a path forward ... - SpaceFlight Insider

SpaceX readies rocket for tests at historic pad 39A – Spaceflight Now

Posted on February 10, 2017 by Danzig

An aerial view of launch pad 39A from late 2015. Credit: NASA

SpaceX engineers are preparing to mount a Falcon 9 rocket at Kennedy Space Centers historic launch pad 39A for the first time this week as the company declares the modified facility ready to support a new era of commercial space missions.

The two-stage rocket, without its payload, could roll out of SpaceXs hangar at the southern perimeter of pad 39A and up the ramp to the launch mount as soon as Thursday.

SpaceX aims to fill the rocket with super-chilled kerosene and liquid oxygen propellants Friday if everything goes according to plan for a hotfire test of the Falcon 9s first stage engines. The nine Merlin 1D powerplants will fire and power up to 1.7 million pounds of thrust for several seconds, sending a plume of exhaust out of pad 39As redesigned flame trench.

Sensors in each engine will measure many performance parameters during the brief ignition at the launch pad. Hold-down restraints will keep the rocket on the ground.

SpaceX is prepping the rocket for a launch targeted for around 10:01 a.m. EST (1501 GMT) on Feb. 18 with a Dragon cargo craft flying to the International Space Station. The commercial supply ship is slated to carry 5,266 pounds (2,389 kilograms) of equipment and experiments to the orbiting laboratory.

The crucial static fire test will double as a check of the rockets readiness for flight and the function of the launch pads fueling, telemetry and water deluge systems, all of which were overhauled by SpaceX in recent months.

Once the test is complete, ground crews will lower the rocket and attach the Dragon cargo freighter for launch next weekend.

Hans Koenigsmann, SpaceXs vice president of flight reliability, said Wednesday that testing of the new ground systems at 39A was nearly complete, allowing managers to move ahead with rollout of the rocket.

This is a huge pad, Koenigsmann said. The runs from the LOX (liquid oxygen) farm and the fuel farm down to the launch head are huge. The transporter-erector is huge. Its like one-and-a-half million pounds of steel, and (it has) so much technology because this thing controls all the interfaces (with the rocket).

The transporter-erector will carry rockets from the hangar up the incline to the pad, then lift the vehicles vertical. The rocket carrier was observed vertical at pad 39A in the last few weeks, and on Wednesday it was seen moving back toward the hangar, where the Falcon 9 rocket sits awaiting the static fire.

There was nothingin particular that gave us a hard time, Koenigsmann told reporters Wednesday during the Federal Aviation Administrations 20thAnnualCommercial SpaceTransportationConference in Washington. Its more like this whole thing was a huge effort, and at the end of it you want to test and test things again to make sure that theyre ready to go.

The last time a rocket stood at pad 39A was in July 2011, when the space shuttle Atlantis lifted off on the final flight of NASAs iconic winged spaceships. SpaceX signed a 20-year lease for the launch complex from NASA in 2014, and preparations at pad 39A took on a feverish pace last year after the companys other launch facility at Cape Canaveral sustained major damage when a rocket exploded.

SpaceX resumed launches Jan. 14 with a successful Falcon 9 mission from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, but the companys return-to-flight in Florida has been paced by the construction at pad 39A.

NASA launched 12 Saturn 5 rockets from pad 39A during the Apollo moon program including Apollo 11 and 82 shuttle flights departed from the seaside launch complex.

But NASA decided it no longer needed pad 39A after the shuttles retirement. Nearby launch pad 39B, previously built for Apollo and shuttle flights, will be home to NASAs Space Launch System, a government-owned heavy-lift rocket that will launch astronaut crews on deep space expeditions.

The concrete foundation of pad 39A dates back to the Apollo era of the 1960s, while the 347-foot-tall (106-meter) fixed service structure and lightning tower were emplaced before the first shuttle launch.

It gives me a little bit of chills when I walk out there and see stuff thats left over from Apollo, Koenigsmann said.

Since SpaceX took over, changes to pad 39A have included the construction of the new rocket hangar outside the south gate to the facility, where space shuttles and Saturn 5 moon rockets arrived on top of tracked crawler-transporters after rollout from the nearby Vehicle Assembly Building.

The hangar can accommodate five Falcon 9 rocket cores at a time, according to SpaceX.

Other additions include the installation of RP-1 kerosene fuel tanks and the construction of the massive transporter-erector, which is sized to accommodate SpaceXs powerful triple-body Falcon Heavy rocket when it debuts later this year.

The transporter-erector is big enough to do Falcon Heavy. We can launch Falcon 9 with it in the center, of course, but the Falcon Heavy drives the size of it, Koenigsmann said. You can see Its bigger than the one we used to have.

The facilitys water system has also been refurbished to provide acoustic and heat protection to the pad deck during liftoffs, and the water tower at the northeast perimeter of the pad has been repainted, now emblazoned with the SpaceX logo.

Later this year, SpaceX plans to add an access arm to pad 39As fixed service structure for astronaut crews to board a human-rated version of the Dragon spacecraft beginning in 2018. SpaceX and Boeing have contracts with NASA to develop commercial spaceships to rotate crews between Earth and the space station.

SpaceX officials intend to base crewed launches and Falcon Heavy missions from pad 39A, and flights for the U.S. military and some commercial missions will be launched from pad 40 a few miles to the south.

Pad 40, which lies on U.S. Air Force property, should be ready for launches again in a few months after ground teams finish clean-up and repairs following the catastrophic explosion of a Falcon 9 booster there in September.

The rocket was destroyed during the final countdown before a static fire test Sept. 1, along with an Israeli-owned communications satellite.

SpaceX said the construction crew working at pad 39A will move over to pad 40 in the coming weeks. A firm timetable for pad 40s availability for launches will be better known once repairs begin, but the facility could be ready by the middle of the year, officials said.

SpaceX aims to launch once every two weeks after pad 39A is inaugurated later this month, continuing with the deployment of an EchoStar communications satellite in early March, then the launch of an SES telecom payload aboard a previously-flown first stage booster later in March.

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Follow Stephen Clark on Twitter: @StephenClark1.

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SpaceX readies rocket for tests at historic pad 39A - Spaceflight Now

Why A Tornado-Damaged Facility In New Orleans Is Critical To NASA – Forbes

Posted on February 10, 2017 by Danzig

Forbes

Why A Tornado-Damaged Facility In New Orleans Is Critical To NASA
Forbes
An EF-3 tornado tore through east New Orleans, Louisiana on Tuesday February 7th. Widespread damage was found throughout the affected areas. There were also several injuries but thankfully there were no fatalities. I find that to be quite amazing based ...
Tornado damages NASA facility in New OrleansThe Verge
NASA facility in NO East vows to reopen after tornadoWWLTV.com
NASA facility with deep-space rocket takes direct hit from a tornadoWashington Post
NOLA.com -Space.com -NASA
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The big changes that may (not) be coming to NASA – SpaceNews

Posted on February 10, 2017 by Danzig

An email suggested an internal NASA competition between "Old Space" vehicles like Orion (left) and "New Space" alternatives like Dragon (right), but others involved in the transition say no such competition is under consideration. Credit: SpaceNews illustration/ESA/SpaceX

The email promised that big changes were coming soon to NASA.

The Jan. 23 message from Charles Miller, a member of the Trump administrations landing team at NASA, to former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and Robert Walker, the former congressman who advised the Trump campaign on space, claimed that the White House was preparing to approve a series of memos that would be signed by the acting NASA administrator, outlining a new strategy for NASA.

The memos would establish three task forces within the agency to study various space commercialization issues, offering strategic options for the White House to consider. This is an opportunity for some positive messaging for Trump, Miller wrote, saying the studies could demonstrate he is a smart futurist that knows how to leverage the entrepreneurial genius of American industry.

One would examine how to carry out a seamless low-risk transition from the International Space Station to commercial space stations. That is something NASA was already exploring with studies that could lead to the addition of a commercial module to the ISS.

Another would study a space industrialization initiative that could, Miller wrote, prioritize economic growth and the organic creation of new industries and private sector jobs, over exploration and other more esoteric activities. It would be modeled on the work of NASAs predecessor, the National Advisory Council for Aeronautics, in the early aviation era.

The other task force would examine a rapid and affordable return to the moon that might not require NASAs Space Launch System and Orion vehicles. Instead, the message stated, NASA will hold an internal competition between Old Space and New Space about getting people to at least lunar orbit by 2020.

That idea competing NASAs program of record against commercial challengers attracted the most attention, particularly among critics of the current programs. NASAs current plans dont expect the first crewed SLS/Orion mission to take place before 2021, and possibly not until 2023. Such a competition might be as the first step in canceling those programs.

We have to be seen giving Old Space a fair and balanced shot at proving they are better and cheaper than commercial, Miller said, not specifically identifying the companies considered to be Old Space, or even SLS and Orion. But, he added, If this initiative can be approved quickly by the White House, and appropriately funded, we will see private American astronauts, on private space ships, circling the moon by 2020. (Emphasis in original.)

Yet, while the email promised that the memos might be signed as soon as Jan. 27, theres no evidence of action by either the White House or NASA. No memos have been released, and theres been no sign of other changes in direction at NASA directed by the new administration. (Miller, no longer at NASA, declined to comment Feb. 7 on the proposals in his earlier message.)

Many folks are asking about new initiatives and guidance, NASA Acting Administrator Robert Lightfoot wrote in a Feb. 3 memo to agency employees. At this point, there has been no new guidance on any of our current work, despite what you might have heard being speculated.

Others took issue with the accuracy of the email. It does not reflect the discussions that took place or the agency action plan that was sent to the White House, said a source familiar with the transition effort, but not authorized to speak on the record, in an interview. Its just plain wrong.

The transition team, the source said, was not seeking to pit established programs versus commercial upstarts but instead looking at how they could work together. There was broad agreement, the source added, that NASA needed its own heavy-lift launch vehicle and spacecraft.

What the transition team ultimately provided to the new administration was a more balanced view of the need for both government and private efforts that could re-energize the space program, according to the source. That was well-received.

Pledging allegiance to SLS If the intent of the plan, or at least the leaked email, was to shake up the status quo at NASA, including cornerstone exploration programs like SLS and Orion, the opposite seems to have happened. People have since lined up to profess their support for SLS and Orion as essential programs, whether NASA continues its Journey to Mars or takes a near-term detour to the moon.

They include Rep. Jim Bridenstine (R-Okla.), widely considered a leading candidate to be the next NASA administrator. Miller, in his email, supported Bridenstine for the job while also identifying potential candidates for deputy administrator who share the same general/overall vision of transforming NASA by leveraging commercial space partnerships.

Bridenstine, though, asked about SLS and Orion after a luncheon speech Feb. 8 at the 20th Annual Commercial Space Transportation Conference in Washington, emphasized his support for them. SLS and Orion are absolutely critical to the future of Americas preeminence in space, without question, he said. I fully support SLS and Orion.

Bridenstines comments came a day after the Commercial Spaceflight Federation (CSF), one of the conferences cosponsors, came out in support of SLS.

The exploration of space for all purposes, including commercial spaceflight, is our interest. And to that end, the CSF is announcing that we see many potential benefits in the development of NASAs Space Launch System, said Alan Stern, chairman of the board of the CSF. The SLS can be a resource that benefits commercial spaceflight.

The CSFs endorsement of SLS is particularly surprising since some of its member companies, such as Blue Origin and SpaceX, are developing their own heavy-lift vehicles that might ultimately be competition for SLS. Those vehicles, while having a smaller payload capacity than SLS, may be far less expensive than the estimated price of $1 billion per SLS launch, a figure NASAs Bill Gerstenmaier provided at the conference.

CSF has evolved over the years. Theres a strong net benefit in SLS, Stern said in an interview at the conference, describing why the organization, whose members include launch providers as well as spaceports, suppliers and other companies, would back SLS. As for commercial competition, he said, The market will sort that out.

Even critics of the new administration support SLS and Orion. In a Feb. 9 white paper, the Center for American Progress, a Washington think tank that has opposed many of President Trumps political nominees and policies, called on the White House to provide stability to NASA by continuing key exploration programs.

Instead of commissioning yet another time consuming, high-level study of Americas human spaceflight program that forces NASA to change direction, the Trump administration should build on the bipartisan consensus achieved by Congress and the Obama administration in 2010, the center said in its white paper. In particular, NASA should receive additional funding for the Orion and SLS programs, which are critical parts of any deep space exploration mission.

This confluence of endorsements may simply be a coincidence: people expressing their support for SLS and Orion for their own reasons, rather than a coordinated campaign. And even without their support, any effort to eliminate or bypass SLS with commercial alternatives would likely face strong opposition in Congress, where many key members remain strong advocates of the rocket.

We obviously have to also make certain that the SLS rocket is fully funded, that it stays on time and on track, said Rep. John Culberson (R-Texas), chairman of the appropriations subcommittee that funds NASA, in a Feb. 7 speech at a Space Transportation Association luncheon. He went so far as to suggest that the Trump administration include SLS in any broader infrastructure bill it plans to introduce in the near future.

Big changes may yet come to NASA, although it appears the administration is in no hurry to enact them hardly a surprise given the historic low priority of space policy. But if and when those changes come, its more likely they will revolve around, rather than involve, SLS and Orion.

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The big changes that may (not) be coming to NASA - SpaceNews

NASA’s ‘Europa report’ details how it could land a spacecraft on Jupiter’s moon – The Verge

Posted on February 10, 2017 by Danzig

At the end of 2015, Congress gave NASA a big directive: develop a spacecraft that can land on Jupiters moon Europa an icy world that is thought to harbor a saltwater ocean underneath its surface. Because of the likelihood of liquid water on Europa, the moon has become an enticing place of study for researchers and is considered a top candidate in the search for alien life in our Solar System. And now, thanks to the will of Congress, NASA has come up with a mission concept for landing on Europa, as well as the top scientific goals of such a project. The main priority? Figuring out if were alone out here.

The main priority? Figuring out if were alone out here

Before the Congressional directive, NASA had already been developing a mission that would send a spacecraft to explore Europa. Called the Europa Clipper mission, it envisioned putting a vehicle in orbit around Jupiter. The spacecraft would then periodically fly close to Europa, gather data about the moon, and then fly back out again. However, the mission does not call for the vehicle to actually land on Europas surface.

It seemed that such a concept was not ambitious enough for Congress, particularly for one representative John Culberson (R-TX), who has been a driving force behind a mission to the moon, according to Ars Technica. So included in a massive omnibus bill that funded the government for fiscal year 2016, Congress told NASA to develop a Europa orbiter and lander, both of which are meant to launch on the space agencys future rocket, the Space Launch System, sometime in the 2020s.

After that bill was passed, NASA put together a Science Definition Team, which convened in June to discuss a feasible lander mission and what the top science goals of such a program would be. That teams report has now been delivered to NASA, and it defines three key goals of a Europa lander, the first of which is seemingly obvious: look for evidence of life. Since liquid water is essential for supporting life on our planet, scientists think that Europas subsurface ocean may help support life on the moon as well. Plus, theres speculation that Europas ocean may be twice the size of all the oceans on Earth. This water is also thought to come in contact with a heated rocky seafloor, and the interactions between the liquid and the rock may provide the right amount of energy needed to support microbial life.

The second goal defined in the report is to assess Europas habitability. Even if signs of life arent found, the lander could determine if its even possible for organisms to live on the moons surface or subsurface. Finally, the third goal is to figure out if Europa could support future, more ambitious missions. For instance, NASA would like to know if its possible for a spacecraft to go deeper inside the icy shell the covers the ocean, or perhaps a vehicle could dip into the water.

The report clarifies that this lander is meant to be separate from the Europa Clipper mission, so it would travel on its own to the moon. The team also lays out the complex way in which the lander will get to Jupiter and then touch down on Europas surface. Seeing as how the moon doesnt have an atmosphere, the lander wont need a heat shield for protection. The lander also wont use a parachute to slow itself down, but will instead use a combination of its engine and a sky crane similar to the one used by NASAs Curiosity rover to lower down to Europas surface. And the entire process will have to be automated too, given how far Europa is from Earth.

The lander will have a suite of instruments designed to look for life and assess Europas habitability

Once on the surface, the lander will have a suite of instruments designed to look for life and assess Europas habitability. Its the first time NASA has developed a life-detection system of this kind since the Viking spacecraft, which the space agency sent to Mars in the 1970s. The Europa lander will include instruments like an Organic Compositional Analyzer, tasked with looking for organic compounds like amino acids, lipids, and more. The vehicle will also be equipped with a microscope, which can look for microbial cells less than 0.2 microns in diameter.

The full details of the instruments and goals of the lander are in NASAs Europa report. NASA will also be discussing the new lander concept at two upcoming town hall meetings in March and April.

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NASA's 'Europa report' details how it could land a spacecraft on Jupiter's moon - The Verge

NASA took on an unprecedented study of Greenland’s melting. Now, the data are coming in – Washington Post

Posted on February 10, 2017 by Danzig

In 2015, in a moment of science communication genius, NASA created a mission called OMG. The acronym basically ensured that a newscientific mission measuring how quickly the Oceans are Melting Greenland would get maximum press attention.

The subject is actually extremely serious. OMG amounts to a comprehensive attempt, using ships, planes, and other research tools, to understand whats happening as warm seas creep into largenumbers of fjords that serve as avenues into the vast ice sheet many of which contain large and partly submerged glaciers that are already melting and contributing to sea-level rise.

Greenland is, in fact, the largest globalcontributor to rising seas adding about a millimeterper year to the global ocean, NASA says and it has 7.36 potential meters (over 24 feet) to give.The question is how fast it could lose that ice, and over five years, OMG plans to pull in enough data to give the best answer yet.

Weve never observed Greenland disappearing before, and thats what OMG is about, says Josh Willis, a researcher at NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory who is the principal investigator on the mission. We want to watch how it shrinks over the next fiveyears, and see how we can use that information to better predict the future.

And now the first data are coming in, in the form of notonebuttwonew studies published in the journal Oceanography by NASA scientists and affiliated university researchers, seeking to measure the swirl of oceans around Greenland and in particular how a warm, deep layer of Atlantic-originating water is moving and interacting with its glaciers.

Basically, it works like this: Waters swirl in a broadly clockwise rotation around the enormous island (see below), often darting inward toward the outlying glaciers along the way. And in fjords that are the deepest, the Atlantic layer, which tends to be over 200 meters (more than 650 feet) deep, has the greatest chance of causing sustained melting.

Where its deep, theres warm water, says Willis. Above the Atlantic layer, meanwhile, is a layer of colder polar water that has far less of an effect on glaciers meaning that the big and thick glaciersoften get hit hard at their bases, even as the small and thin ones dont necessarily get hit much at all.

Heres a figure that the scientists have produced, showing the overall flow of waters around the ice island:

The newly published research does not present any answer yet to the big question animating all of this: How fast will Greenland melt and raise seas in a way that threatens, say, Florida?

In order to answer this key question, the researchers need comprehensive data on the depths and shapes of the fjords, the thickness of the glaciers, and the behavior of the oceans around a Greenland coastline that, NASA notes, is 27,000 miles in length. Then, they will need to feed all of that information into a computer simulation that projects climate change forward to 2100 and calculates the consequences, at a high resolution, for Greenlands icy coasts.

Its too early to run the model, said Mathieu Morlighem, a researcher at the University of California and the lead author ofone of the paperspresenting the accumulating data. I think you need to wait another year or two, maybe more. It was not possible at all before OMG.

Still, the recently published findings mark a start. Morlighemsstudy, for instance,looked at the depth and shape of the seafloor near the fronts of and beneath numerous Greenland glaciers. The research shows that numerous glaciers extend deeper beneath the surface of the ocean than previously thought.

For instance, Store Glacier in northwestern Greenland (at around 70 degrees North latitude in the image above) starts at 400 meters (around 1,300 feet) deep where its front touches the ocean, and then plunges to depths as high as 1,000 meters deep (3,280 feet) farther inland making it quite vulnerable to the ocean. Prior research, however, had suggested the glacier was much shallower.

The same was true of numerous other glaciers, which also appear more vulnerable than previously thought.

OMG is transforming our knowledge of which glaciers are vulnerable to more warming or not, Morlighem said. So I wouldnt say we have been surprised; its more, we had no idea, for many of these fjords, what they were looking like.

Overall, the data are also showing that Greenlands west coast is far more vulnerable, in general, than its east, Morlighem said.

The second study, meanwhile,examines ocean circulation around the Greenland coast and finds, strikingly, that between 68 degrees North latitude along the coast and 77 degrees North (see above), the deepest warm layer of Atlantic water cools from 3.5 degrees Celsius down to 2.5 degrees Celsius. Moreover, it does so in part because the water busily melts away at a large and deep glacier called Upernavik at 73 degrees North, which touches the ocean in 675 meter (over 2,000 foot) deep waters. The cold meltwater from the glacier spills into the ocean and, through mixing, cools the warm Atlantic water somewhat.

The glaciers there are actively losing enough ice, and enough fresh water, that its important for the oceanography, and how the water changes as it goes up the west coast of Greenland, says Willis. That in itself is proof that Greenland is melting quite a lot.

The big picture is that NASAs new data suggest thats right new vulnerabilities.

Overall, together I think these papers suggest that the glaciers as a whole are more vulnerable than we thought they were, Willis said. He says that, of course, with the aforementioned caveat that NASA is not ready yet to feed the data into a model that actually shows how this could play out over the decades of our future.

For now, were still stuck with official estimates from bodies such as the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The panelsaid in 2013that Greenlands melting might at most contribute 21 centimeters to sea-level rise by 2100, with some possible addition from rapid ice collapse (this is the high-end number for what scientists call the likely range in a worst-case global warming scenario, to be precise). But missions like OMG, in the meantime, are giving us plenty to worry about.

These kinds of results suggest that we could be in for more sea level rise than we thought, Willis said. And were not alone; the fact is that almost every time some new results come out of Greenland or Antarctica, we find these glaciers are more vulnerable than we thought.

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NASA took on an unprecedented study of Greenland's melting. Now, the data are coming in - Washington Post

Were Current NASA Employees Aware Of The Women Portrayed In ‘Hidden Figures’? – Forbes

Posted on February 10, 2017 by Danzig

Forbes

Were Current NASA Employees Aware Of The Women Portrayed In 'Hidden Figures'?
Forbes
We have initiatives like Women@NASA and Modern Figures that make it really easy to learn about the roles people of various backgrounds have played in NASA's accomplishments so that people of similar backgrounds will be encouraged to pursue their ...
Authors discuss 'Hidden Figures' subjects black women at NASATwinCities.com-Pioneer Press
Honoring NASA scientists this Black History MonthCleveland 19 News

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Jezero crater most popular scientific target on Mars for NASA’s 2020 rover – Science Magazine

Posted on February 10, 2017 by Danzig

A deltalike fan in Jezero crater shows where water would have flowed into the lake-filled crater, transporting clay minerals and, possibly, organic molecules.

NASA/JPL/JHUAPL/MSSS/Brown University

By Paul VoosenFeb. 10, 2017 , 4:45 PM

Mars scientists have spoken, nominating Jezero crater and three other sites as their favorite targets for a NASA rover to be launched in 2020. Once home to an ancient river delta, Jezero crater may have collected and preserved ancient organic molecules that flowed in from beyond the craters rim.

The tally, taken today at the end of a 3-day meeting of 172 scientists in Monrovia, California, exposed a debate about the merits of sampling ancient deltas similar to the promising terrain in Gale crater currently being explored by the Curiosity rover, versus those who would prefer to visit rocks that formed in hot springs and may have harbored underground life.

The clear top candidate was Jezero crater. It was followed by Northeast Syrtis, a nearby carbonate-rich site home to ancient, water-associated clays that could be tied to potential hydrothermal springs. Both spots sit close to old volcanic rocks, another important goal for a mission that will collect samples that may ultimately be returned to Earth. Eberswalde crater, home to another clay-rich delta, came in third, followed by Mawrth Vallis, another potential hot spring site.

A voyage to Jezero crater, with clear evidence of an ancient delta visible from orbit, would ultimately show whether or not an early, wet surface could support life, Munir Humayun, a planetary scientist at Florida State University in Tallahassee who serves on the missions return sample science board, said at the meeting. They would be building off experience with Curiosity, armed with some sense of what clays to target. If we dont find a biomarker at Jezero, he said, then well really be showing that a surface biosphere did not exist at Mars.

Credits: (Graphic) Val Altounian/Science; (Data) NASA/JPL/University of Arizona

But other scientists favor a destination containing rocks that were formed in underground, hot spring environments. Subsurface life is a model that needs to be considered for Mars, says Bethany Ehlmann, a planetary scientist at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, who supports the Northeast Syrtis site. Life is found throughout Earths deep and extreme underground environments, and the Mars research community is now seriously considering how such biosignatures could be detected by the 2020 rover, she says.

The vote is purely advisory. NASA project scientists and engineers will decide on a final recommendation of three or four targets, also considering safety factors such as the difficulty of landing in a rocky site. Prior to the vote, the NASA team gave a quick insight into their thinking, naming three sites as clear candidates for further study: Jezero, Mawrth, and Northeast Syrtis, with Jezero the only unanimous decision. Mars scientists will hold more workshops focused on the three or four finalists, with a final site selection not expected for a year or more.

The $2 billion Mars 2020 rover has the ultimate goal of drilling some 30 pencilwide rock cores that would then be cached on the planets surface and, ultimately, returned to Earth for analysis. The means of return are not yet determined, but would require subsequent missions.

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Should we leave Earth to colonize Mars? A NASA astronaut says nope – Quartz

Posted on February 10, 2017 by Danzig

Todays businesspeople are very excited about launching into the stratosphere. Whether its Elon Musks SpaceX, Richard Bransons Virgin Galactic, the Mars One mission, or a slew of other aerospace enterprises, a host of companies are trying to help humans leave the rocky planet weve called home for the past six million years. But some critics argue that instead of finding a nook elsewhere in the solar system, we really ought to be focusing on solving the issues with our own planet.

Ron Garan, a former NASA astronaut, believes we should not be abandoning hope for continued life on planet Earth in favor of rubbing shoulders with Martians. He has spent time on the International Space Station (ISS), done four spacewalks, and has been awarded both the NASA Exceptional Service medal and the NASA Space Flight medial. Back on land, Garan spends his time focusing on bettering the home we already have. Being so far away from Earth makes you see how similar and interconnected everything is, he says, rather than us compartmentalizing home.

To be clear, Garan isnt opposed to exploring the notion of colonizing Mars: Its just that we should be using the innovative technologies were developing to live up there to make life better down here. Human curiosity is one of the biggest drivers for space exploration, and it keeps us hungry to continuing wanting to innovate and solve these problems, he says.

It may be a moonshoot, but perhaps if we aim for the moon, well land on the stars.

This conversation has been lightly condensed and edited for clarity.

Considering you are one of the few people who have left Earth, how have you come to form the opinion that we shouldnt colonize Mars?

I think we should explore other planets, but I dont think we should abandon this planet to go live on Mars. It just doesnt make any logical sense that we would leave this planet for an inhospitable one like Mars. First of all, if we cant even terraformwhich is to control our climate and environmentour own planet, what makes us think that we can go to another planet and control the environment there? If we developed the capability to terraform and create atmospheres and climates on other planets, then we should apply that capability to benefit our home planet.

From Elon Musk to Richard Branson, private entrepreneurs are sending a lot of money up into space. Would it be best to redirect that capital toward solving the problems that already exist on Earth?

I think funding should go to both. Space is our future; we need to devote resources and time and effort toward further exploration of our solar system, including human exploration. The primary reason for doing this is not so that we can have a plan B, via having another planet we can go live on, but instead so that we can use the technology thats developed through those efforts to help us here on Earth.

Carl Sagan basically said that for the foreseeable future, Earth is where we make our stand. So if there is nowhere else we can go right now, we need to take this really seriously.

Have you always felt this way, or was there a moment when you realized the importance of focusing on the Earth instead of the stars?

Ive always had the idea that everyone has a responsibility to leave this place a little bit better than how they found it. But going to space broadened, reinforced, and amplified that opinion.

The Earth is just incredibly beautiful when viewed from space, and all those buzzwords youve heard astronaut after astronaut say about how beautiful and tranquil and peaceful and fragile this planet looks from spacethose are all true. It really does look like this jewel in the blackness of space; a fragile oasis. I try to use this perspective of our planet to inspire people to make a difference, mind the ship, and take care of our fellow crewmates on Spaceship Earth.

Why are so many people obsessed with getting off planet Earth?

I wanted to be an astronaut ever since July 20, 1969. That was the day when I, along with millions and millions of people all around the world, watched those first footsteps on the moon on TV. I wouldnt have been able to put it in these words at the time, but even as a young boy, on some level I realized that we had just become a different species. We had become a species that was no longer confined to this planet, and that was really exciting to me.

I wanted to become a part of that group of explorers that got to step off the planet and look back upon ourselves. I think continuing that exploration out into the solar system and beyond is part of human nature. We are explorers by nature. We want to expand our knowledge and expand our understanding of our universe.

Is it common among astronauts that once you finally leave Earth and can look back upon it from space, you have an urge to go straight back to protect it?

I dont want to speak for other astronauts, cosmonauts, or taikonauts, but most of the people I know whove had this experience have come back with a deeper appreciation for the planet that we live on. And its not just an appreciation for the planetits appreciation for the living things on the planet, too.

One of the things I experienced in space is what I can only describe as a sobering contradiction: a contradiction between the beauty of our planet and the unfortunate realities of life for a significant number of its inhabitants. Its obvious from space that life on our planet is not always as beautiful as it looks from space.

The other thing Ive experienced was a profound sense of gratitude: gratitude for the opportunity to see the planet from that perspective, and gratitude for the planet that weve been given. Being physically detached from the Earth made me feel deeply interconnected with everyone on it in some way that I really cant fully explain. Its very obvious from that vantage point that we are all not only deeply connected, but also deeply interdependent as well.

What new discoveries have we uncovered in our exploration of the universe that have been particularly revolutionary back on Earth?

Theres the technology side, and theres then theres perspective. Perspective is very powerful. That first time that we looked back and saw this planet from spaceEarthrisewas incredibly revolutionary. That photograph of Earthrise is certainly the most influential environmental photograph ever taken. It was credited for inspiring the first Earth Day in 1970, and its helped launch the modern environmental movement. It really shows the truth, the reality of the world we live in; that were on this oasis, and its all we have.

So theres that aspect of it, but theres also all the technology that comes from the space program, whether its computing technology, energy production through things like solar energy, or all of the implications for medicine and medical diagnostics. We do a tremendous amount of Earth observation from space that gives us a profound increase in understanding of our planet and its life-support systems that we would not have insight into if we didnt have a space program.

Why do you think there are so many conversations about Martian colonization? Have we lost hope for Earth?

This idea that we are going to abandon Earth and go live on Mars is utter nonsense. Its illogical. It makes perfect sense to expand human presence to Mars, but were not going to abandon Earth. If we had the capability to colonize and terraform Mars to make it habitable for humans, then we certainly could control whats happening on our own planet, which has a head start of millions of years.

What conversation should we be having instead?

The first place we should establish a permanent human presence in our solar system is the moon, our closest neighbor. And then from there, establish transportation infrastructure to allow regular flights between the Earth and the moon. Then from there, we could use it as a jump-off point and have that be a transportation hub to the rest of the solar system. That makes perfect sense to me.

We need to basically take parallel paths: We need to be exploring the solar system because of all the benefits to humanity that that will incur, while also devoting as much effort to being able to control the life-support systems of Spaceship Earth.

If we expand milestones such as the accomplishment of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030 and having complete decarbonization by 2050 out to 2068which is the 100-year anniversary of EarthriseI believe we should have complete control of the life-support systems on our planet by then. If we had complete control of the chemical constituents of our atmosphere, soil, land, and oceans, wed be able to monitor it and adjust itand optimize it for life.

Why are we having more conversations about living on Mars than the potential of being able to control our own atmosphere on Earth? Learning how to counteract climate change and other environmental factors here instead of establishing colonies elsewhere seems far more beneficial.

Well, its a moon shot, right? Its something thats going to take a lot of effort and a lot of time to accomplish, but we started this conversation off with terraforming Mars. Its a lot easier to control our own atmosphere and our own oceans than it is to create an entirely new atmosphere.

What are you currently trying to achieve back on Earth?

Ive got a non-profit that I founded and am still involved in, and I have a lot of social enterprises that Im involved in. Most of the stuff I work with in that sector is around being able to provide clean water to folks, because I think its really important to do that in an environmentally, financially sustainable way.

Im also involved with an effort called Constellation, which is bringing together a coalition of international astronauts, visionaries, and futurists to put out a call to the world to crowdsource and co-imagine a vision of our future. Were not going to be able to get to the vision of our future we want if we dont learn how to work together on a planetary level, not just a local level.

My primary day job is working as the chief pilot for a company called World View, which is trying to launch all kinds of thingsincluding peopleto the edge of space in high-altitude balloons. This project has tremendous environmental capabilities as far as being able to hover these platforms over a specific area of interest to do things like monitor the oceans, coral reefs, or how much CO2 is in the atmosphere. From it, we might be able to develop better ways to do climate modeling, weather predictions, and agricultural optimization.

For those who would still want to go live on Mars, what kinds of over-romantic notions do people have about living in space?

You cant be claustrophobic, because if youre going to Mars, youre gonna be in a can for six to eight months. And once you get there, youre still gonna be living in a tin can. There are a lot of things that define the beauty of life on our planet, like the breeze in your face, mist on a lake, and the sound of the birds. If youre going to live on Mars, youre not gonna have that for the rest of your life. Thats not so romantic to me.

What is romantic is expanding the body of human knowledge and expanding human presence. Its not going to be all fun. Those pioneers who will eventually be exploring Mars are going have to deal with hardships. Im sure there will be a lot of people who get homesick, which is an interesting thought: When you get that far away from the planet, your definition of home changes radically. Home simply becomes Earth.

You can follow Ron on Twitter at @Astro_Ron and read more on his website. He is also the author of The Orbital Perspective. Learn how to write for Quartz Ideas. We welcome your comments at ideas@qz.com.

Should we leave Earth to colonize Mars? A NASA astronaut says nope - Quartz

NASA releases new alien-looking image of Jupiter’s south pole … – Chron.com

Posted on February 10, 2017 by Danzig

NASA's new telescope

NASA's Juno spacecraft recently snapped an amazingly detailed view of Jupiter's southern pole.

Click through to see the James Webb Telescope, NASA's most powerful and advanced telescope yet.

NASA's Juno spacecraft recently snapped an amazingly detailed view of Jupiter's southern pole.

Click through to see the James Webb Telescope, NASA's most powerful and advanced telescope yet.

The largest and most powerful telescope to ever be launched into space, NASA's James Webb Telescope, is nearly ready to blast off.

NASA releases new alien-looking image of Jupiter's south pole

Over the years, NASA's Juno spacecraft has delivered hundreds of amazing images of Jupiter. With each new high-definition image, the idea of what we think Jupiter looks like is changed.

Most recently, NASA's photo of the gas giant's southern pole is one such example. To a casual observer, the enhanced-color image might not even look like Jupiter, but instead a strange alien planet straight out of Hollywood.

MORE IMAGES:NASA unveils 'unprecedented' detailed photos after ring-grazing Saturn orbit

Snapped63,400 miles above the gas giant in early February, the image is one of the first photographs taken in Juno's last year.

By February of next year, Juno is expected to "deorbit into Jupiter," or crash land into the storm-filled planet in order to end its 7-year mission.

Until then, we can except more amazing images.

SHOUT OUT:Pharrell Williams wears a NASA sweatshirt to the Oscars Nominees Luncheon

Click through above to see images NASA's newest telescope that will bring beam back the deepest images of the universe yet.

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NASA releases new alien-looking image of Jupiter's south pole ... - Chron.com

The First European Nanomedicine Mentoring Program Launches a New Edition – Apply to boost your project … – Cordis News

Posted on February 10, 2017 by Danzig

The Nanomedicine Translation Advisory Board (NanomedTAB) offers a free-of-charge mentoring program to promising nanomedicine teams and projects at any stage of development to assess, advise and accelerate their translation and get to commercial application faster and more reliably. To reach this objective, the TAB counts on 11 experts from the industry, specifically recruited for their diverse, extensive and complementary experience in the translation of innovative technologies for healthcare.

The fourth TABs round is now open to companies, public and private research entities, and other organisations leading nanomedicine innovative projects in Europe. Deadline for applications is 27th February 2017.

Selected projects in this round will be invited to attend the TAB-In Session, designed as 2-hour face-to-face meetings with the experts. These meetings will be organised on 4th April 2017 in London in the framework of the European Nanomedicine Meeting 2017 (http://www.britishsocietynanomedicine.org/enm-2017-conference1.html).

Applications to the TAB should be submitted through the following link: http://www.nanomedtab.eu/?apply.

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The First European Nanomedicine Mentoring Program Launches a New Edition - Apply to boost your project ... - Cordis News

Nano-level lubricant tuning improves material for electronic devices and surface coatings – Phys.Org

Posted on February 10, 2017 by Danzig

February 10, 2017 Scanning electron microscope image of atomically-thin MoS2 with hierarchical, dual-scale structures. Credit: SungWoo Nam, University of Illinois

Molybdenum disulfide (MoS2), which is ubiquitously used as a solid lubricant, has recently been shown to have a two-dimensional (2D) form that is similar to graphene. But, when thinned down to less than a nanometer thick, MoS2 demonstrates properties with great promise as a functional material for electronic devices and surface coatings.

Researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have developed a new approach to dynamically tune the micro- and nano-scale roughness of atomically thin MoS2, and consequently the appropriate degree of hydrophobicity for various potential MoS2-based applications.

"The knowledge of how new materials interact with water is a fundamental," explained SungWoo Nam, an assistant professor of mechanical science and engineering at Illinois. "Whereas the wettability of its more famous cousin, graphene, has been substantially investigated, that of atomically thin MoS2in particular atomically thin MoS2 with micro- and nano-scale roughnesshas remained relatively unexplored despite its strong potential for fundamental research and device applications. Notably, systematic study of how hierarchical microscale and nanoscale roughness of MoS2 influence its wettability has been lacking in the scientific community."

"This work will provide a new approach to dynamically tune the micro- and nano-scale roughness of atomically thin MoS2 and consequently the appropriate degree of hydrophobicity for various potential MoS2-based applications," stated Jonghyun Choi, a mechanical engineering graduate student and first author of the article, "Hierarchical, Dual-Scale Structures of Atomically Thin MoS2 for Tunable Wetting," appearing in the journal, Nano Letters. "These include waterproof electronic devices with superhydrophobicity with water contact angle greater than 150 degrees. It may also be useful for medical applications with reduced hydrophobicity (WCA less than 100 degrees) for effective contact with biological substances. "

According to the authors, this study, expands the toolkit to allow tunable wettability of 2D materials, many of which are just beginning to be discovered.

"When deformed and patterned to produce micro- and nano-scale structures, MoS2 shows promise as a functional material for hydrogen evolution catalysis systems, electrodes for alkali metal-ion batteries, and field-emission arrays," Nam added. "The results should also contribute to future MoS2-based applications, such as tunable wettability coatings for desalination and hydrogen evolution."

Explore further: Explaining how 2-D materials break at the atomic level

More information: Jonghyun Choi et al, Hierarchical, Dual-Scale Structures of Atomically Thin MoSfor Tunable Wetting, Nano Letters (2017). DOI: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.6b05066

We are familiar with cracks in big or small three-dimensional (3-D) objects, but how do thin, two-dimensional (2-D) materials crack? 2-D materials like molybdenum disulfide (MoS2), have emerged as an important asset for future ...

Researchers at North Carolina State University have shown that a one-atom thick film of molybdenum sulfide (MoS2) may work as an effective catalyst for creating hydrogen. The work opens a new door for the production of cheap ...

Researchers have found an unexpected way to control the thermal conductivity of two-dimensional (2-D) materials, which will allow electronics designers to dissipate heat in electronic devices that use these materials.

Mechanics know molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) as a useful lubricant in aircraft and motorcycle engines and in the CV and universal joints of trucks and automobiles. Rice University engineering researcher Isabell Thomann knows ...

Researchers from North Carolina State University, Duke University and Brookhaven National Laboratory have found that molybdenum sulfide (MoS2) holds more promise than previously thought as a catalyst for producing hydrogen ...

Two-dimensional (2D) materials such as molybdenum-disulfide (MoS2) are attracting much attention for future electronic and photonic applications ranging from high-performance computing to flexible and pervasive sensors and ...

Researchers have introduced a new type of "super-resolution" microscopy and used it to discover the precise walking mechanism behind tiny structures made of DNA that could find biomedical and industrial applications.

For the first time, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory scientists and collaborators have captured a movie of how large populations of carbon nanotubes grow and align themselves.

Cellphones and other devices could soon be controlled with touchless gestures and charge themselves using ambient light, thanks to new LED arrays that can both emit and detect light.

Positron emission tomography plays a pivotal role for monitoring the distribution and accumulation of radiolabeled nanomaterials in living subjects. The radioactive metals are usually connected to the nanomaterial through ...

Last summer, researchers at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) announced a new, flat lens that could focus light with high efficiency within the visible spectrum. The lens used an ...

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Nano-level lubricant tuning improves material for electronic devices and surface coatings - Phys.Org

Whats next? Going Beyond Moores Law SAT Press Releases – Satellite PR News (press release)

Posted on February 10, 2017 by Danzig

Submit the press release

Conditioning consumers to expect certain advances in speed, battery life, and capabilities, Moores Law has led the way for the computing industry for decades.

Because Moores law suggests exponential growth, it is unlikely to continue indefinitely. Software and hardware innovations will likely keep the dream of Moores Law alive for several years to come; however, there may come a time when Moores Law is no longer applicable due to temperature constraints. As such a revolutionary approach to computing is required. The IEEE Rebooting Computing Initiative is dedicated to studying next-generation alternatives for the computing industry. In Engadgets recent Public Access article, Beyond Moores Law, Tom Conte, IEEE Rebooting Computing Initiative Co-Chair and Professor in the Schools of Electrical & Computer Engineering and Computer Science at the Georgia Institute of Technology, provides an overview of next-generation alternatives that could meet the growing demand for advances in computing technology.

From cryogenic computing to quantum computing, there are a variety of alternatives to meet the expectations of consumers. Change is coming to the computing industry. Are you interested in learning more? Tom will provide insight on this topic at the annual SXSW Conference and Festival, 10-19 March, 2017. His session, Going Beyond Moores Law, is included in the IEEE Tech for Humanity Series at SXSW. For more information please see http://techforhumanity.ieee.org.

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Whats next? Going Beyond Moores Law SAT Press Releases - Satellite PR News (press release)

New method reduces adverse effects of rectal cancer treatment … – Science Daily

Posted on February 10, 2017 by Danzig

New method reduces adverse effects of rectal cancer treatment ...
Science Daily
Short-course preoperative radiotherapy combined with delayed surgery reduces the adverse side-effects of rectal cancer surgery without compromising its ...

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New method reduces adverse effects of rectal cancer treatment ... - Science Daily

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