Astronomy is important because it tells us how big is the universe and how it spreads even more and when we understand that infinite distances we will learn to love and appreciate what is closest to us
My astronomy teacher, Slobodan Spremo (via amsterdam-obsessed)
Floating around in zero gravity may sound like a blast, but it can actually present a lot of challenges to things we do everyday here on Earth with little to no thought. Here are a few ways that astronauts on the International Space Station complete normal tasks in orbit:
1) Washing Hair
You can’t just have a shower on the space station because the water would come out of the faucet and float all over the place. In this video, NASA Astronaut Karen Nyberg demonstrates how she uses a bag of water, no rinse shampoo, a towel and her comb to wash her hair.
2) Drinking Coffee
Believe it or not, there are special cups used on the space station to drink coffee from the new ISSpresso machine. I mean, you wouldn’t want hot coffee floating around in the air…would you? Previously, astronauts drank coffee from plastic bags, but let’s face it, that sounds pretty unenjoyable. Now, there are zero Gravity coffee cups, and an Italian espresso machine aboard the International Space Station! These cups were created with the help of capillary flow experiments conducted in space.
3) Sleeping
There’s nothing like crawling into bed after a long day, but astronauts can’t exactly do that while they’re in microgravity. Instead of beds, crew members use sleeping bags attached to the walls of their small crew cabins. They are able to zipper themselves in so that they don’t float around while they’re asleep. This may sound uncomfortable, but some astronauts, like Scott Kelly, say that they sleep better in space than they do on Earth!
4) Exercising
Exercising in general is an important part of a daily routine. In space, it even helps prevent the effects of bone and muscle loss associated with microgravity. Typically, astronauts exercise two hours per day, but the equipment they use is different than here on Earth. For example, if an astronaut wants to run on the treadmill, they have to wear a harness and bungee cords so that they don’t float away.
For thousands of years, sea level has remained relatively stable. But now, Earth’s seas are rising. Since the beginning of the 20th century, they have risen about eight inches, and more than two inches in the last 20 years alone!
As water warms, it expands and takes up more space. That means that when oceans warm, the sea level rises. This summer, we’ve been researching exactly how global warming has impacted Greenland’s ice sheet. Our ICESat-2 mission will use a laser to measure the height of the planet’s surface. Over time, we will be able to provide a record of elevation change, and estimate how much water has melted into the ocean from land ice change.
So how much ice are we actually losing? Great question, but the answer might shock you. In Greenland alone, 303 gigatons of ice was lost in 2014!
Since we know that ice is melting, we’re working to gain a better understanding of how much and how fast. We’re using everything from planes, probes and boats, to satellites and lasers to determine the impact of global warming on the Earth’s ice.
Follow along for updates and information: http://climate.nasa.gov/
The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge but imagination.
Albert Einstein (via alberteinsteinquotes)
EXCLUSIVE ACCESS TO LEGEND OF THE GUARDIANS : THE OWLS OF GA'HOOLE MOVIE LEGALLY AND IN THEATER QUALITY! Watch Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole Full Movie in DVD Quality Synopsis Soren, a young barn owl, is kidnapped by owls of St. Aggie’s, ostensibly an orphanage, where owlets are brainwashed into becoming soldiers. He and his new friends escape to the island of Ga'Hoole, to assist its noble, wise owls who fight the army being created by the wicked rulers of St. Aggie’s. The film is based on the first three books in the series. Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole Movie is one of recent hit movies and you definitely want to own it. Did you know that you can actually able to download it in high quality? You can also enjoy high quality downloads of the latest 2010 movies easily. You only need to join here and get instant access to premium membership to download movies. Search the movie in movies database and download it. Its as simple as that. You can download as many movies you want and no restrictions apply on bandwidth and content. In short, you control how you want it. There is no need to pay extras to burn your downloads on CD or DVD. With the guide you receive, you would be able to do that and in a moment begin to watch your movie on your own home theater or PC. At the members area, you would get all the tools you need to get started. What Says ! Got yourself prepared or still confronting with doubts well, I think you shouldn’t skip it in both conditions. If you wanna download Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole , then click below. Watch Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole Movie – Click here Take an initiative which you won’t regret This is the only legitimate way to enjoy your favorite movie.
You’ve probably heard of our Hubble Space Telescope, but have you had the chance to actually take a look at the amazing images it has captured for us over the years? Since Hubble launched in April 1990, it has made more than 1.2 million observations, some to locations more than 13.4 billion light years from Earth!
Hubble can see astronomical objects with an angular size of 0.05 arc seconds, which is like seeing a pair of fireflies in Tokyo from your home in Maryland…yea, that’s pretty far! This accuracy allows us to see images like this one of Little Gem Nebula, roughly 6,000 light-years away from us.
Images from Hubble are regularly released to the public, and are some of the most breathtaking views in the Universe. Images like this one of Lagoon Nebula, in the constellation of Sagittarius, not only make for amazing desktop screen-savers, but provide us with valuable scientific information about distant stars and galaxies, as well as the planets in our solar system.
We recently celebrated Hubble’s 25th Anniversary, and look forward to many more years of discovery and captivating images.
Hubble Peers into the Heart of a Galactic Maelstrom
This NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image shows Messier 96, a spiral galaxy just over 35 million light-years away in the constellation of Leo (The Lion). It is the nearest group containing both bright spirals and a bright elliptical galaxy (Messier 105).
September 04, 2015
New video! Spiral galaxies in a nutshell!
A photo of Saturn. Took by Cassini with COISS on January 07, 2012 at 23:20:38. Detail page on OPUS database.
Ever wonder about what lies between the stars? Learn all about the interstellar medium in this short video! Follow Evant Horizon for more astronomy posts!
The interstellar medium is the gas and dust between stars. Of its mass, this gas is composed of mainly hydrogen and helium with a touch of heavier elements. Highly dense regions of the ISM known as molecular clouds are directly responsible for the formation of stars.
I love space. I've been to space camp in Huntsville Alabama and I am planning on going every summer. I look forward to be an astronaut for nasa on the sls that is planned to be launched 2018. And the manned mission 2030. So yeah I won't let anything get in my way.
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