What's Something You Didn't Know About Being An Astronaut Before You Actually Became One? Do You Have

See Why Our Researchers Explore Earth's Extreme and Remote Environments

When we talk about exploration in far-flung places, you might think of space telescopes taking images of planets outside our solar system, or astronauts floating on the International Space Station. 

But did you know our researchers travel to some of Earth's most inaccessible and dangerous places, too? 

Two scientists working with the ICESat-2 mission just finished a trek from the South Pole to latitude 88 south, a journey of about 450 miles. They had to travel during the Antarctic summer - the region's warmest time, with near-constant sunshine - but the trek was still over solid ice and snow. 

The trip lasted 14 days, and was an important part of a process known as calibration and validation. ICESat-2 will launch this fall, and the team was taking extremely precise elevation measurements that will be used to validate those taken by the satellite. 

Sometimes our research in Earth's remote regions helps us understand even farther-flung locations…like other planets. 

Geologic features on Mars look very similar to islands and landforms created by volcanoes here on our home planet. 

As hot jets of magma make their way to Earth's surface, they create new rocks and land - a process that may have taken place on Mars and the Moon.

In 2015, our researchers walked on newly cooled lava on the Holuhraun volcano in Iceland to take measurements of the landscape, in order to understand similar processes on other rocky bodies in our solar system.

There may not be flowing lava in the mangrove forests in Gabon, but our researchers have to brave mosquitoes and tree roots that reach up to 15-foot high as they study carbon storage in the vegetation there.

The scientists take some measurements from airplanes, but they also have to gather data from the ground in one our of planet's most pristine rainforests, climbing over and around roots that can grow taller than people. They use these measurements to create a 3-D map of the ecosystem, which helps them understand how much carbon in stored in the plants. 

You can follow our treks to Earth’s most extreme locales on our Earth Expeditions blog.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

Nichole Ayers

Nichole Ayers was born in San Diego but considers Colorado her home. A major in the U.S. Air Force, Ayers led the first-ever all-woman F-22 formation in combat in 2019. https://go.nasa.gov/3IqAyzw

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space!

5 Times Astronaut Jack Fischer Said Something in Space Was “Awesome”

Meet astronaut Jack Fischer…

He was selected as a NASA astronaut in July 2009, and is currently living and working in space for his first time. As you can imagine, going to space for the first time is both nerve-wracking and exciting. You may or may not know just how excited he actually is to be 250 miles above the Earth...To communicate his elation, he has frequently used some version of the word “awesome”.

FYI, that’s a picture of Fischer about to eat a coffee ball on station. For more on his opinion of coffee balls, check THIS out.

Let’s take a look at a few times astronaut Jack Fischer said something in space was “awesome”…

1. Burrito Smothered in Awesomesauce 

Immediately following the hatch opening to the International Space Station and Jack Fischer arriving at his new orbital home, they had the chance to speak to their families. During this time, he explained to his wife what it was like to be in space...obviously using the word awesome in the process: “It’s a burrito of awesomeness, smothered in awesomesauce baby, it’s so beautiful!”

2. Awesome Views from Space

Astronauts commonly say that one of the best parts of being on space station is the view. Earth from 250 miles above can look stunning...or as Fischer puts it...awesome!

3. Tornado of Awesomeness 

Fischer shared this video on his Twitter account on May 6 saying, “Sometimes, on a weekend, you have to spin about wildly…we can call it a tornado of awesomeness—because weightlessness is awesome!”

4. Awesome #SpaceSelfie

This selfie, taken during Fischer’s first-ever spacewalk is AWESOME and shows his cheesing smile from behind his spacesuit helmet. Check out a recap of Fischer’s first spacewalk, conducted on May 12, HERE. 

5. Fondue Pot Bubbling Over with Awesome Sauce

In this video, also taken during Fischer’s first spacewalk on May 12, you can hear his real-time reaction to seeing the Earth from outside the space station. Describing it like a “Ginormous fondue pot, bubbling over with piping hot awesomesauce.”

Why the Burrito References?

You might be wondering where all this burrito talk comes from. In a pre-flight interview, Fischer explained that he doesn’t particularly like sweets...so for his birthday, his wife will commonly make him bean burritos smothered in green chili and cheese! Watch the full video for 5 facts you may not know about Fischer HERE.

Want more awesomeness from Jack Fischer? Follow him on social media for regular, awesome updates!

Twitter | Facebook | Instagram

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

Athletes Go for the Gold with NASA Spinoffs

NASA technology tends to find its way into the sporting world more often than you’d expect. Fitness is important to the space program because astronauts must undergo the extreme g-forces of getting into space and endure the long-term effects of weightlessness on the human body. The agency’s engineering expertise also means that items like shoes and swimsuits can be improved with NASA know-how.

As the 2024 Olympics are in full swing in Paris, here are some of the many NASA-derived technologies that have helped competitive athletes train for the games and made sure they’re properly equipped to win.

The LZR Racer reduces skin friction drag by covering more skin than traditional swimsuits. Multiple pieces of the water-resistant and extremely lightweight LZR Pulse fabric connect at ultrasonically welded seams and incorporate extremely low-profile zippers to keep viscous drag to a minimum.

Swimsuits That Don’t Drag

When the swimsuit manufacturer Speedo wanted its LZR Racer suit to have as little drag as possible, the company turned to the experts at Langley Research Center to test its materials and design. The end result was that the new suit reduced drag by 24 percent compared to the prior generation of Speedo racing suit and broke 13 world records in 2008. While the original LZR Racer is no longer used in competition due to the advantage it gave wearers, its legacy lives on in derivatives still produced to this day.

Trilion Quality Systems worked with NASA’s Glenn Research Center to adapt existing stereo photogrammetry software to work with high-speed cameras. Now the company sells the package widely, and it is used to analyze stress and strain in everything from knee implants to running shoes and more.

High-Speed Cameras for High-Speed Shoes

After space shuttle Columbia, investigators needed to see how materials reacted during recreation tests with high-speed cameras, which involved working with industry to create a system that could analyze footage filmed at 30,000 frames per second. Engineers at Adidas used this system to analyze the behavior of Olympic marathoners' feet as they hit the ground and adjusted the design of the company’s high-performance footwear based on these observations.

Martial artist Barry French holds an Impax Body Shield while former European middle-weight kickboxing champion Daryl Tyler delivers an explosive jump side kick; the force of the impact is registered precisely and shown on the display panel of the electronic box French is wearing on his belt.

One-Thousandth-of-an-Inch Punch

In the 1980s, Olympic martial artists needed a way to measure the impact of their strikes to improve training for competition. Impulse Technology reached out to Glenn Research Center to create the Impax sensor, an ultra-thin film sensor which creates a small amount of voltage when struck. The more force applied, the more voltage it generates, enabling a computerized display to show how powerful a punch or kick was.

Astronaut Sunita Williams poses while using the Interim Resistive Exercise Device on the ISS. The cylinders at the base of each side house the SpiraFlex FlexPacks that inventor Paul Francis honed under NASA contracts. They would go on to power the Bowflex Revolution and other commercial exercise equipment.

Weight Training Without the Weight

Astronauts spending long periods of time in space needed a way to maintain muscle mass without the effect of gravity, but lifting free weights doesn’t work when you’re practically weightless. An exercise machine that uses elastic resistance to provide the same benefits as weightlifting went to the space station in the year 2000. That resistance technology was commercialized into the Bowflex Revolution home exercise equipment shortly afterwards.

Want to learn more about technologies made for space and used on Earth? Check out NASA Spinoff to find products and services that wouldn’t exist without space exploration.   

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space!

Celebrate Today’s Solar Eclipse With NASA

Today, Aug. 21, the Moon’s shadow is sweeping across North America. People across the continent have the chance to see a partial solar eclipse if skies are clear.

For those within the narrow path of totality, stretching from Oregon to South Carolina, that partial eclipse will become total for a few brief moments. 

Make sure you’re using proper solar filters (not sunglasses) or an indirect viewing method if you plan to watch the eclipse in person.

Wherever you are, you can also watch today’s eclipse online with us at nasa.gov/eclipselive. Starting at noon ET, our show will feature views from our research aircraft, high-altitude balloons, satellites and specially-modified telescopes, as well as live reports from cities across the country and the International Space Station.

Learn all about today’s eclipse at eclipse2017.nasa.gov.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

What was your favorite part of being a Flight Director?

Milky Blue Water Near Prince of Wales Island

Phytoplankton are more than just nature’s watercolors: They’re tiny ocean organisms that play a key role in Earth’s climate by removing heat-trapping carbon dioxide from the atmosphere through photosynthesis. These tiny organisms live in the oceans, absorbing carbon dioxide and releasing oxygen, like plants on land. Earth’s oceans absorb about half of the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, which feeds phytoplankton.

This year, phytoplankton blooms popped up in the panhandle region of Alaska and along the coast of British Columbia slightly later in the year than the main blooms that tend to occur in May.

This image was acquired on July 21, 2018, by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on our Terra satellite and shows milky blue waters near Prince of Wales Island. The discoloration is thought to be caused by a bloom of non-toxic phytoplankton known as coccolithophores, specifically Emiliania huxleyi, which like warm, stratified, and low nutrient conditions.

This week, our Export Processes in the Ocean from Remote Sensing (EXPORTS) team is shipping out into the open ocean to study these important organisms, sailing 200 miles west from Seattle into the northeastern Pacific Ocean.

Read more about the image and learn more about the EXPORTS campaign here: https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2018/expedition-probes-ocean-s-smallest-organisms-for-climate-answers

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com.

6 Things You Didn’t Know About Our ‘First’ Space Flight Center

When NASA began operations on Oct. 1, 1958, we consisted mainly of the four laboratories of our predecessor, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA). Hot on the heels of NASA’s first day of business, we opened the Goddard Space Flight Center. Chartered May 1, 1959, and located in Greenbelt, Maryland, Goddard is home to one of the largest groups of scientists and engineers in the world. These people are building, testing and experimenting their way toward answering some of the universe’s most intriguing questions.

To celebrate 60 years of exploring, here are six ways Goddard shoots for the stars.

For the last 60 years, we’ve kept a close eye on our home planet, watching its atmosphere, lands and ocean.

Goddard instruments were crucial in tracking the hole in the ozone layer over Antarctica as it grew and eventually began to show signs of healing. Satellites and field campaigns track the changing height and extent of ice around the globe. Precipitation missions give us a global, near-real-time look at rain and snow everywhere on Earth. Researchers keep a record of the planet’s temperature, and Goddard supercomputer models consider how Earth will change with rising temperatures. From satellites in Earth’s orbit to field campaigns in the air and on the ground, Goddard is helping us understand our planet.

We seek to answer the big questions about our universe: Are we alone? How does the universe work? How did we get here?

We’re piecing together the story of our cosmos, from now all the way back to its start 13.7 billion years ago. Goddard missions have contributed to our understanding of the big bang and have shown us nurseries where stars are born and what happens when galaxies collide. Our ongoing census of planets far beyond our own solar system (several thousand known and counting!) is helping us hone in on which ones might be potentially habitable.

We study our dynamic Sun.

Our Sun is an active star, with occasional storms and a constant outflow of particles, radiation and magnetic fields that fill the solar system out far past the orbit of Neptune. Goddard scientists study the Sun and its activity with a host of satellites to understand how our star affects Earth, planets throughout the solar system and the nature of the very space our astronauts travel through.

We explore the planets, moons and small objects in the solar system and beyond. 

Goddard instruments (well over 100 in total!) have visited every planet in the solar system and continue on to new frontiers. What we’ve learned about the history of our solar system helps us piece together the mysteries of life: How did life in our solar system form and evolve? Can we find life elsewhere?

Over 60 years, our communications networks have enabled hundreds of NASA spacecraft to “phone home.”

Today, Goddard communications networks bring down 98 percent of our spacecraft data – nearly 30 terabytes per day! This includes not only science data, but also key information related to spacecraft operations and astronaut health. Goddard is also leading the way in creating cutting-edge solutions like laser communications that will enable exploration – faster, better, safer – for generations to come. Pew pew!

Exploring the unknown often means we must create new ways of exploring, new ways of knowing what we’re “seeing.” 

Goddard’s technologists and engineers must often invent tools, mechanisms and sensors to return information about our universe that we may not have even known to look for when the center was first commissioned.

Behind every discovery is an amazing team of people, pushing the boundaries of humanity’s knowledge. Here’s to the ones who ask questions, find answers and ask questions some more!

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com.

What is the best and worst thing about being in a zero gravity environment?

How did the crews react to you being the first non-astronaut CapCom? I understand it was quite an important thing to people that the CapCom could empathise with their experiences.