Thursday, May 2

Tag: space

Why are scientists trying to manufacture organs in space?
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TECHNOLOGY

Why are scientists trying to manufacture organs in space?

Gravity can be a real downer when you are trying to grow organs. That’s why experiments in space are so valuable. They have revealed a new perspective into biological sciences, including insights into making human tissues. Gravity influences cellular behavior by impacting how protein and genes interact inside the cells, creating tissue that is polarized, a fundamental step for natural organ development. Unfortunately, gravity is against us when we try to reproduce complex three dimensional tissues in the lab for medical transplantation. This is difficult because of the intrinsic limitations of bio-reactors used on Earth. I am a stem cell biologist and interested on brain health and evolution. My lab studies how the human brain is formed inside the womb and how alterations in this proces...
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What is the ‘zero gravity’ that people experience in the vomit comet or space flight?
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SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY

What is the ‘zero gravity’ that people experience in the vomit comet or space flight?

In the zero-gravity airplanes or vomit comet, why does stuff behave like there is no gravity when it is just falling? – Austin B., 11, Scranton, Pennsylvania People in a special airplane flight get to float like there is no gravity – just like astronauts. Steven Collicott I have flown many times in zero-gravity airplane flights. Each time I still enjoy the feeling of floating free, the ability to fly across the cabin from just one gentle push on the wall, just like astronauts in the International Space Station, and the novelty of rotating your body in whatever direction you choose. The feeling is like the brief sensation on some roller coasters or off of a diving board, but for close to half a minute and without the air rushing past you – it’s fun! People feeling weightlessness without b...
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First space tourists will face big risks, as private companies gear up for paid suborbital flights
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SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY

First space tourists will face big risks, as private companies gear up for paid suborbital flights

On May 30, 2020, millions of Americans watched the inaugural SpaceX Crew Dragon launch NASA astronauts to the International Space Station. This mission marked two significant events: First, the return of launch to orbit capability for human spaceflight from the United States. Secondly, it successfully demonstrated private sector capability to build and operate a launch vehicle for human spaceflight. While SpaceX may be the first private space company to accomplish this, it is not alone. Boeing’s Starliner and Lockheed’s Orion capsule are also being developed for NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, and training has begun for safety operations on the spacecraft. As an aerospace lawyer working and teaching on human spaceflight law and policy for over a decade, I have a professional and personal...
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How the Hubble Space Telescope opened our eyes to the first galaxies of the universe
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TECHNOLOGY

How the Hubble Space Telescope opened our eyes to the first galaxies of the universe

How the Hubble Space Telescope opened our eyes to the first galaxies of the universe The launch of Hubble Space Telescope on April 24, 1990. This photo captures the first time that there were shuttles on both pad 39a and 39b. NASA   The Hubble Space Telescope launched on the 24th of April, 30 years ago. It’s an impressive milestone especially as its expected lifespan was just 10 years. One of the primary reasons for the Hubble telescope’s longevity is that it can be serviced and improved with new observational instruments through Space Shuttle visits. When Hubble, or HST, first launched, its instruments could observe ultraviolet light with wavelengths shorter than the eye can see, as well as optical light with wavelengths visible to humans. A maintenance mission in 1997 added an in...
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TECHNOLOGY

Amazon wants to send more than 3,000 satellites into space

In an effort to offer broadband, the company has requested the US government allow its Kuiper satellites into space. Amazon.com Inc. asked for U.S. permission to launch 3,236 communications satellites, joining a new space race to offer internet service from low orbits and challenge the fleet planned by Elon Musk's SpaceX. Amazon in a July 4 filing told the Federal Communications Commission its Kuiper satellites will deliver broadband to tens of millions of consumers and businesses that now lack adequate access to the internet. The agency coordinates trajectories and radio-frequency use. The FCC already has approved nearly 13,000 low-Earth orbit satellites. Those include 11,943 for Musk's Space Exploration Technologies Corp., which launched an...
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