May 14, 2009 – A Close-up View Of Astronaut John Grunsfeld Performing Spacewalk To Do Some Maintenance

Infared Saturn This (false color) infrared image was taken with Hubble’s Near Infrared Camera and Multi-Object Spectrometer (NICMOS).

Credit: NASA/Hubble

Hot & Steamy RS-25 Engine Test

Today, we tested the RS-25 engine at Stennis Space Center in Mississippi, and boy was it hot! Besides the fact that it was a hot day, the 6,000 degree operating temperature of the hot fire test didn’t help things. This engine is one of four that will power the core stage of our Space Launch System (SLS) into deep space and to Mars. Today’s test reached 109% power and burned 150,000 gallons of liquid oxygen and 60,000 gallons of liquid hydrogen. When SLS launches with all 4 of its engines, it will be the most powerful rocket in the world!

This engine was previously used to to fly dozens of successful missions on the space shuttle, so you might be asking, “Why are we spending time testing it again if we already know it’s awesome?” Well, it’s actually really important that we test them specifically for use with SLS for a number of reasons, including the fact that we will be operating at 109% power, vs. the 104% power previously used.

If you missed the 535-second, ground rumbling test today – you’re in luck. We’ve compiled all the cool stuff (fire, steam & loud noises) into a recap video. Check it out here:

Albert Einstein in a vintage polo.

Interstellar bow

The first two images are tesseracts and the second two are 4D spheres. 1 Dimension: in a universe with one dimension, particles can only move in a line so from left to right not up and down. _____________________________

2 Dimensions: this is made up of an infinite amount of 1D universe and particles would be able to to move in two dimensions, up down left and right. Now if there was an organism living in a 2 dimensional it would see things in 1 dimension just like we see things in 2 dimensions and our brain is what is able to interpret depth by using two eyes and our brain. When we hold our finger in front of our face and move it, we can see that it appears to have moved relative to the background. Our brains see this difference and this allows us to estimate how far away they are. In a 2D universe there would be no background as such to see the “finger” moving against so it would be seen in 1D although it’s impossible to visualise anything in 1 dimension.

3 Dimensions: we live in 3 spatial dimensions in our universe which is made up of an infinite amount of 2D universes. We see things in 2 dimensions. A common misconception is that time is the 4th dimension but it doesn’t really make sense because it is present in every spatial dimension.

4 Dimensions: this is almost impossible to try and visualise. There are some people who claim they can think in 4 and even more dimensions. Now, a 4th dimensional organism would see things in 3 dimensions. If they came to our universe then they would be seeing absolutely every line of every shape but it wouldn’t be possible for a 4D being to like in 3D, it would be like us living in 2D. Above I have some 4D shapes to give you an idea of how we can represent them. It’s better to watch the inks though.

http://youtu.be/-x4P65EKjt0 http://youtu.be/5BF-ygCbmD8

The International Space Station above the spinning Earth.

Photo credit: NASA

Introducing Ethiopia’s just born Space research programme

High above the crowded streets of Addis Ababa, among fields where farmers lead oxen dragging wooden ploughs, sits Ethiopia’s space programme.              

Perched at the top of the 3200m-high Mount Entoto, two metal domes house telescopes, each a metre in diameter. In operation for only a few months, they have propelled Ethiopia into an elite club of African countries to have embarked on a space programme.

Its programme is aimed at giving the country a technological boost that will aid its already rapid development.

“Science is part of any development cycle,” says Abinet Ezra, spokesman for the Ethiopian Space Science Society. “Without science and technology nothing can be achieved.

“Our main priority is to inspire the young generation to be involved in science and technology.”

The society, funded by Ethiopian-Saudi business tycoon Mohammed Alamoudi, was set up in 2004 to promote astronomy. But its supporters have had a tough ride setting up the space programme.

For the past decade, a handful of enthusiasts - including Solomon Belay, director of the observatory and a professor of astrophysics - battled with the authorities to convince them that, in a country that is still one of the poorest in the world, where malnutrition is still a threat, the exploration of space is not a luxury. Ethiopian strongman Meles Zenawi, who died in 2012, considered them dreamers.

“People said we were crazy,” says Belay.

The R39-million space observatory is, above all, a symbol. The site at Entoto, often hidden by clouds during the rainy season and close to the lights of Addis Ababa, struggles to compete with the world’s major observatories, including the far larger Southern African Large Telescope in South Africa.

But Ethiopia has plans, including to build a far more powerful observatory in the northern mountains around Lalibela, far from city lights.

The government hopes to launch a national space agency - and to put an Ethiopian satellite in orbit within five years, for the monitoring of farmland and to boost communications.

“We are using space applications in everyday activities, for mobile phones, weather - space applications are fundamental,” says Kelali Adhana, the International Astronomical Union chief for East Africa, based in Ethiopia. “We cannot postpone it, otherwise we allow ourselves to live in poverty.”

At Ethiopia’s Institute of Technology, in the northern town of Mekelle, scientists plan to test the first Ethiopian rocket to go more than 30km, although that is still far from the 100km frontier beyond which the Earth’s atmosphere gives way to space proper.

A photo of Saturn. Took by Cassini with COISS on May 22, 2008 at 13:31:01. Detail page on OPUS database.

A photo of Saturn. Took by Cassini with COISS on September 01, 2004 at 08:15:35. Detail page on OPUS database.