Practicing Orion Spacecraft Recovery After Splashdown

Practicing Orion Spacecraft Recovery After Splashdown A group of U.S. Navy divers, Air Force pararescuemen and Coast Guard rescue swimmers practice Orion underway recovery techniques in the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory at NASA’s Johnson Space Center to prepare for the first test flight of an uncrewed Orion spacecraft with the agency’s Space Launch System rocket during Exploration Mission (EM-1). via NASA http://ift.tt/2cZqSuR

One Billion Base Pairs Sequenced on the Space Station

One Billion Base Pairs Sequenced on the Space Station NASA astronaut Kate Rubins checks a sample for air bubbles prior to loading it in the biomolecule sequencer. When Rubins’ expedition began, zero base pairs of DNA had been sequenced in space. Within just a few weeks, she and the Biomolecule Sequencer team had sequenced their one billionth base of DNA aboard the orbiting laboratory. via NASA http://ift.tt/2cRwlW4

Space Station Flight Over the Southern Tip of Italy

Space Station Flight Over the Southern Tip of Italy The southern tip of Italy is visible in this image taken by the Expedition 49 crew aboard the International Space Station on Sept. 17, 2016. The brightly lit city of Naples can be seen in the bottom section of the image. A Russian Soyuz spacecraft can be seen in the foreground. via NASA http://ift.tt/2cAAbBy

NASA’s IceBridge Observes Effects of Summer Melt on Greenland Ice Sheet

NASA’s IceBridge Observes Effects of Summer Melt on Greenland Ice Sheet NASA’s IceBridge, an airborne survey of polar ice, flew over the Helheim/Kangerdlugssuaq region of Greenland on Sept. 11, 2016. This photograph from the flight captures Greenland’s Steenstrup Glacier, with the midmorning sun glinting off of the Denmark Strait in the background. via NASA http://ift.tt/2cOTwkk

Infrared Echoes of a Black Hole Eating a Star

Infrared Echoes of a Black Hole Eating a Star This illustration shows a glowing stream of material from a star, disrupted as it was being devoured by a supermassive black hole. The feeding black hole is surrounded by a ring of dust. This dust was previously illuminated by flares of high-energy radiation from the feeding black hole, and is now shown re-radiating some of that energy. via NASA http://ift.tt/2cIf9V1

Sept. 14, 1966 – View From Gemini XI, 850 Miles Above the Earth

Sept. 14, 1966 – View From Gemini XI, 850 Miles Above the Earth The western half of Australia, looking west, as seen from the Gemini XI spacecraft, 850 miles above the Earth on Sept. 14, 1966. Reaching this record-shattering altitude was a highlight of a demanding, three-day mission for Gemini XI command pilot Charles „Pete“ Conrad and pilot Dick Gordon. via NASA http://ift.tt/2cttuTc

A Streamlined Form in Lethe Vallis, Mars

A Streamlined Form in Lethe Vallis, Mars This image shows a portion of Lethe Vallis, an outflow channel that also transported lava. This is one of only a few places on Mars where these pristine-appearing landforms have been identified. The channel formed by catastrophic floods, during which it produced the prominent crater-cored, teardrop-shaped island in the middle. via NASA http://ift.tt/2c6qZ6U

At Hangar, Raptors Find Shelter from the Storm

At Hangar, Raptors Find Shelter from the Storm As Tropical Storm Hermine charged up the East Coast Sept. 2, the hangar at NASA Langley was able to carefully sandwich in more than a dozen Air Force fighters and offer them protection from the wind. The hangar provides 85,200 square feet (7,915 square meters) of open space and large door dimensions that allow for entry of big aircraft. via NASA http://ift.tt/2cQVL62