Blogs
Blog Archive
LightSail is happening, and I'll be your new guide
Posted by Jason Davis on 2014/06/02 12:19 CDT
Today, I'm joining The Planetary Society full-time as a media producer. My first task is to become an embedded reporter for LightSail, the Society's solar sailing spacecraft.
Curiosity update, sols 631-644: On the road again
Posted by Emily Lakdawalla on 2014/05/30 06:51 CDT | 6 comments
The last couple of weeks have seen Curiosity return to the business of making steady headway toward Murray Buttes and, beyond them, Mount Sharp. Eight of the last 14 sols have seen drives ranging in length from 30 to 104 meters, racking up a total of more than half a kilometer. They are now occasionally working a shortened planning timeline that allows them to squeeze more drive sols into Curiosity's schedule.
Live in California or Maryland?
Posted by Casey Dreier on 2014/05/30 01:15 CDT | 1 comments
The Senate is about to release its draft NASA budget, and we need to ensure their support for planetary exploration.
The House Passes a $435 Million Increase to NASA's Budget
Vote of 321-87 provides an extra $435 million above the President's 2015 request
Posted by Casey Dreier on 2014/05/30 01:02 CDT | 3 comments
After a multi-day floor debate, the House of Representatives passed its Commerce-Justice-Science funding bill, which included a NASA budget $435 million above the President's 2015 request and an increase to planetary science.
Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter's Ongoing Adventure
Posted by Samuel Lawrence on 2014/05/29 06:16 CDT | 5 comments
A few people think that when it comes to the Moon, because we’ve “been there, and done that,” there is nothing new left to discover. But that viewpoint could not be farther from the truth!
Daily Mail plagiarizes Planetary Society Blog guest post by Katherine Mack
Posted by Emily Lakdawalla on 2014/05/29 06:06 CDT | 5 comments
Planetary Society guest blogger Katherine Mack is just the latest of a great many writers whose work has been copied, uncredited, on the website of the British tabloid.
Planetary Society Canada Update
Posted by Kate Howells on 2014/05/28 06:33 CDT
Canadian National Coordinator Kate Howells provides an update on the state of the Society's Canadian initiative.
Posted by Philip Evans on 2014/05/28 11:21 CDT
The Twittersphere has been alive with speculation about a Gamma Ray Burst in the nearby galaxy M31. The problem is, there was never a claim of such an event, and it turns out that the tentative result that triggered this story was overstated.
Posted by Emily Lakdawalla on 2014/05/27 07:13 CDT
Today I received an email notification of new public releases of some image data sets. I always love seeing new public space image data, but this notification was bittersweet: it included the first public release of the very last image data returned to Earth by Deep Impact, of a distant comet ISON.
The Planetary Society Supports NASA's Asteroid Initiative
But we need to know the cost
Posted by Casey Dreier on 2014/05/27 01:02 CDT | 22 comments
The Planetary Society strongly supports NASA's asteroid initiative, including the goal of redirecting an asteroid to the vicinity of the Moon. But an independent cost estimate is needed, and needed soon.
Will we find signs of tectonics on Pluto? And what would that mean?
Posted by Joseph O'Rourke on 2014/05/26 09:45 CDT | 1 comments
Joseph O’Rourke summarizes a recently submitted paper on tectonic activity on Pluto after the Charon-forming impact.
New orbital images of Curiosity landing site from Mars Express and HiRISE
Posted by Emily Lakdawalla on 2014/05/23 06:30 CDT | 4 comments
Mars Express and Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter are keeping their eyes in the sky on Curiosity. There's a nice newly public color image of all of Gale Crater from HiRISE, and two new HiRISE images within the Curiosity landing site.
The value of a Guest Investigator program for Dawn
Posted by Anne Verbiscer on 2014/05/23 09:20 CDT | 1 comments
NASA selected 21 Participating Scientists to join the Dawn team in 2010, prior to Dawn's arrival at Vesta in 2011. Since that time, Dawn Participating Scientists have made enormous contributions to the mission, as they do for most other NASA missions. But the status of a Participating Scientist program for Dawn at Ceres has been in doubt.
One Night Only, a New Meteor Shower that May Be Spectacular?
Posted by Bruce Betts on 2014/05/22 04:36 CDT | 3 comments
A new meteor shower, the Camelopardalids, will be peaking Friday night/Saturday morning (May 23/24). Especially if you are in North America, you are well positioned to see what may (or may not) be a spectacular show. In either case, scientists will learn about a comet’s history, and you can have a fun night looking at the sky.
No, Russia Did Not Just Kick the U.S. Out of the Space Station
A top Russian official announced several unexpected policy changes in a response to U.S. sanctions.
Posted by Casey Dreier on 2014/05/20 06:43 CDT | 8 comments
A top Russian official announced a ban on Russian engines in U.S. military launches and questioned Russia's long-term commitment to the International Space Station. We cut through the hype and try to understand what was actually said and the immediate consequences facing NASA.
Lovely, live, continuous, high-definition video of Earth
Posted by Emily Lakdawalla on 2014/05/20 05:19 CDT | 3 comments
Have you ever wished you could enjoy the astronauts' view of Earth from the Space Station? Now, you can. Just go to the live feed from the High Definition Earth Viewing (HDEV) experiment, crank it up to its highest resolution, let it take over your monitor, and watch Earth spin by.
Behind the scenes: Our spring Board of Directors meeting
Posted by Jennifer Vaughn on 2014/05/20 11:01 CDT | 2 comments
Twice a year, the Board of Directors of The Planetary Society gathers for a face-to-face meeting. Jennifer Vaughn reports on the meeting.
Dust on, dust off: Before-and-after comparisons of rover decks on Mars
Posted by Emily Lakdawalla on 2014/05/19 04:16 CDT | 6 comments
Curiosity and Opportunity self-portraits show one rover accumulating dust, the other losing it. Check out these cool before-and-after comparisons.
Complete 2014 Astronomy Course Online
Posted by Bruce Betts on 2014/05/19 11:05 CDT | 6 comments
Bruce Betts has completed the lectures for his online 2014 Introduction to Planetary Science and Astronomy Course at CSUDH: all are online and you can earn a Certificate of Achievement for watching them.
Venus Express science mission ends; aerobraking experiment beginning
Posted by Emily Lakdawalla on 2014/05/16 03:33 CDT | 4 comments
Venus Express, currently the only spacecraft orbiting our nearest planetary neighbor, will soon meet a fiery end in Venus' atmosphere. But its work isn't over yet. ESA will maneuver Venus Express to dip into the uppermost Venus atmosphere and study how the spacecraft responds to atmospheric pressure, giving ESA valuable experience in aerobraking.
JOIN THE
PLANETARY SOCIETY
Our Curiosity Knows No Bounds!
Become a member of The Planetary Society and together we will create the future of space exploration.
Connect With Us
Facebook! Twitter! Google+ and more…
Continue the conversation with our online community!
