Spaceasaurus

"Maybe we’re on Mars because of the magnificent science that can be done there — the gates of the..."

Wed, 15 Aug 2012 16:00:51 -0400

“Maybe we’re on Mars because of the magnificent science that can be done there — the gates of the wonder world are opening in our time. Maybe we’re on Mars because we have to be, because there’s a deep nomadic impulse built into us by the evolutionary process — we come, after all, from hunter-gatherers, and for 99.9% of our tenure on Earth we’ve been wanderers. And the next place to wander to is Mars. But whatever the reason you’re on Mars is, I’m glad you’re there. And I wish I was with you.”

- Carl Sagan

literaryjukebox: The size and age of the Cosmos are beyond...

Tue, 14 Aug 2012 15:59:22 -0400

literaryjukebox:

The size and age of the Cosmos are beyond ordinary human understanding. Lost somewhere between immensity and eternity is our tiny planetary home. In a cosmic perspective, most human concerns seem insignificant, even petty. And yet our species is young and curious and brave and shows much promise. In the last few millennia we have made the most astonishing and unexpected discoveries about the Cosmos and our place within it, explorations that are exhilarating to consider. They remind us that humans have evolved to wonder, that understanding is a joy, that knowledge is prerequisite to survival. I believe our future depends on how well we know this Cosmos in which we float like a mote of dust in the morning sky.

Carl Sagan in Cosmos

Song: “Find Me the Pulse of the Universe” by Laetitia Sadier

iTunes :: Amazon

Love this new project from Brain Pickings!

Prior to his untimely 1996 passing, Carl Sagan recorded a...

Fri, 10 Aug 2012 16:00:05 -0400

Prior to his untimely 1996 passing, Carl Sagan recorded a message for the brave men and women embarking on the first non-robotic mission to Mars. Here is an excerpt from that message (image source is unknown).

Photo

Mon, 06 Aug 2012 15:59:51 -0400

discoverynews: It looks a lot more complicated than Lunar...

Sun, 05 Aug 2012 15:53:18 -0400

discoverynews:

It looks a lot more complicated than Lunar Lander on my Commodore 64…

popmech:

We posted this back in spring, but in case you missed it then: How Curiosity will land on Mars, in 11 easy steps.

Plus: The Anatomy of Curiosity.

I found lunar lander online!!

read more about Mars…

simonwang: The Sun and Inner Planets Moving Through Space

Sat, 04 Aug 2012 15:56:08 -0400

simonwang:

The Sun and Inner Planets Moving Through Space

Seeing Beyond the Human Eye | Off Book | PBS

Fri, 03 Aug 2012 15:57:25 -0400

Seeing Beyond the Human Eye | Off Book | PBS

howstuffworks: If you live in the Northern Hemisphere, the...

Sat, 28 Jul 2012 15:51:01 -0400

howstuffworks:

If you live in the Northern Hemisphere, the North Star, or Polaris, guides you true north. You can find Polaris by first locating the Big Dipper and Little Dipper constellations. Polaris is also the middle star in the ‘M’-shaped neighboring constellation, Cassiopeia.

Read on for more on constellations…

tastefullyoffensive: [@theuniverse/via]

Fri, 27 Jul 2012 15:52:03 -0400

tastefullyoffensive:

[@theuniverse/via]

jtotheizzoe: project-argus: NPR: Hubble Captures Time-Lapse...

Thu, 26 Jul 2012 15:53:06 -0400

jtotheizzoe:

project-argus:

NPR: Hubble Captures Time-Lapse Videos Of Stars Being Born

(Movies of jets from young stars at HubbleSite: here)

If you’re like me and maybe a little confused as to what you’re looking at, here’s some more detail (Yes, even Joe has to look stuff up sometimes):

As a star is formed from collapsing dust, ever increasing its density and energy, it begins to form a disk of dust and gas pulled in and rotated by its growing gravity. Perpendicular to this disk, like the tip of a spinning top, some gas is ejected away from the growing star in a high-energy jet. As this collides with interstellar gas, it gives off radiation, which we can observe with telescopes like Hubble.

To see the jets, we have to shift into the infrared and other spectra, as the radiation is outside normal human vision. These movies represent the first time we’ve seen the dynamics of the jets as opposed to still images. More info on protostellar jets here, you star-freaks.

negative space by gemma correll on Flickr.

Wed, 25 Jul 2012 16:02:34 -0400

negative space by gemma correll on Flickr.

Sally Ride, First American Woman In Space, Is Dead

Tue, 24 Jul 2012 15:59:55 -0400

Sally Ride, First American Woman In Space, Is Dead :

RIP Sally Ride

Your problems don’t seem so big now, do they?

Fri, 20 Jul 2012 16:00:04 -0400

Your problems don’t seem so big now, do they?

brain-food: NASA Hubble Space Telescope Images (via Hubble...

Thu, 19 Jul 2012 15:56:18 -0400

brain-food:

NASA Hubble Space Telescope Images (via Hubble Heritage)

itsfullofstars: The Backbone of Night: Carl Sagan on cosmology...

Wed, 18 Jul 2012 15:54:49 -0400

itsfullofstars:

The Backbone of Night: Carl Sagan on cosmology throughout history

Best Comment: 65 million years ago; never forget:...

Tue, 17 Jul 2012 16:01:05 -0400

Best Comment: 65 million years ago; never forget: http://i.imgur.com/uSEJg.png

Awwww

Mon, 16 Jul 2012 15:57:35 -0400

Awwww

One Epic Video: Every Space Shuttle Launch (135) Synched...

Sun, 15 Jul 2012 15:59:46 -0400

One Epic Video: Every Space Shuttle Launch (135) Synched Together

A High Definition video work by McLean Fahnestock.
Finally complete following the last launch of the space shuttle in July!

Photo

Sat, 14 Jul 2012 16:00:05 -0400

Seven Minutes of Terror by NASA Team members at NASA’s...

Fri, 13 Jul 2012 16:01:01 -0400

Seven Minutes of Terror by NASA

Team members at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory share the challenges of the Curiosity Mars rover’s final minutes to landing on the surface of Mars.

For more information, check out: Simulated Space ‘Terror’ Offers NASA an Online Following by The New York Times