OSGC Educational Resources Blog

LIGO Hanford Observatory in Richland, WA will offer another in a series of technical seminars at 4:00 PM on Thursday, May 8 in the LIGO auditorium. Vanessa Lauberg of the Department of Astronomy at the University of Maryland will speak on “Induced Mergers of Stellar-Mass Black Hole Binaries in Galactic Nuclei.” Stellar-mass black hole binaries represent a promising source of gravitational waves for the LIGO detectors. This talk will focus on the physics of black hole systems in galactic centers. LIGO Seminars are open to all scientists, engineers, educators and students who may wish to attend.

Abstract: http://www.ligo-wa.caltech.edu/seminars.html
Driving directions to LIGO: http://www.ligo-wa.caltech.edu/traveler.html
May 10 Astronomy Day event: http://www.ligo-wa.caltech.edu/astro_day_08.html

NASA astronauts Dan Tani of Illinois and Suni Williams of Massachusetts, both past residents of the International Space Station, will be available to discuss what it takes to become an astronaut during satellite interviews on Wednesday, May 7.

Tani will be available from 5 to 8 a.m. CDT and Williams will be available from 4 to 6 p.m. NASA now is accepting applications for its 2009 astronaut class. The agency is looking for a diverse group of candidates who want to be part of the next generation of explorers. The deadline for applications is July 1.

Tani, who considers Lombard, Ill., his hometown, was selected as an astronaut in April 1996. He first flew on space shuttle mission STS-108 in 2001. He more recently served as the Expedition 16 flight engineer aboard the space station from October 2007 to February 2008. Tani has logged more than 131 days flying in space, including 32 hours and 38 minutes spacewalking.

Williams, who considers Needham, Mass., her hometown, was selected as an astronaut in June 1998. She served as a flight engineer aboard the space station for 195 days, launching on space shuttle mission STS-116 in December 2006, and returning to Earth aboard STS-117 in June 2007. She has accumulated 29 hours and 17 minutes walking in space.

For more information on astronaut recruitment, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/astronauts/recruit.html

For complete biographical information for Tani and Williams, visit:
http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios

For NASA TV streaming video, downlink and scheduling information, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/ntv

(NASA Press Release)

NASA invites people of all ages to join the lunar exploration journey with an opportunity to send their names to the moon aboard the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, or LRO, spacecraft.

The Send Your Name to the Moon Web site enables everyone to participate in the lunar adventure and place their names in orbit around the moon for years to come. Participants can submit their information at http://www.nasa.gov/lro , print a certificate and have their name entered into a database. The database will be placed on a microchip that will be integrated onto the spacecraft. The deadline for submitting names is June 27, 2008.

“Everyone who sends their name to the moon, like I’m doing, becomes part of the next wave of lunar explorers,” said Cathy Peddie, deputy project manager for LRO at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. “The LRO mission is the first step in NASA’s plans to return humans to the moon by 2020, and your name can reach there first. How cool is that?”

The orbiter, comprised of six instruments and one technology demonstration, will provide the most comprehensive data set ever returned from the moon. The mission will focus on the selection of safe landing sites and identification of lunar resources. It also will study how the lunar radiation environment could affect humans.

LRO will also create a comprehensive atlas of the moon’s features and resources that will be needed as NASA designs and builds a planned lunar outpost. The mission will support future human exploration while providing a foundation for upcoming science missions. LRO is scheduled for launch in late 2008.

The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter is being built at Goddard. The mission also will be managed at the center for NASA’s Explorations Systems Mission Directorate in Washington.

Send Your Name to the Moon is a collaborative effort among NASA, the Planetary Society in Pasadena, Calif., and the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Md.

To send your name to the moon, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/lro

As part of NASA’s 50th anniversary celebration, the Digital Learning Network will inspire students across the country with a five-part series highlighting the contributions of each NASA center to a specific topic in NASA history. The DLN will take students on a journey into NASA’s past while linking them to the vision for space exploration. A look at past, present and future goals of the space program will offer a unique connection to student participants as they are invited to be a part of the future of space exploration.

Each live webcast will link participants to two of NASA’s centers with programs focusing on NASA’s past, present and future efforts of space exploration. All series segments will include discussions of the past, present and future of each center’s topic.

Go Flight!
May 13, 2008, 1 p.m. — 2 p.m. EDT
The year was 1958 and nothing would ever be the same. For the first time, the United States sent a man-made device into space. This new frontier of exploration required ingenuity and creativity. Much of the effort made to make space exploration a success was expended at NASA’s Johnson Space Center and Kennedy Space Center. Join this webcast to re-live the incredible past events at these two centers, realize that the future milestones of NASA will be accomplished by the students inside today’s classroom!

Astronomy: Bringing the Past to Light
May 14, 2008, 1 p.m. — 2 p.m. EDT
May 14, 2008, 3 p.m. — 4 p.m. EDT
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory are combining forces to bring the rich history and science of telescopes to light. This interactive learning event will peer back through time to “first light” for Galileo’s refractor, highlight the evolution of the telescope into today’s large mountaintop reflectors, and focus in on the present and future promise of NASA’s space-based Great Observatories. Witness the inspiring trek of innovation and discovery as NASA continues to explore.

Advancements in Aeronautics
May 20, 2008, 11 a.m. – 12 p.m. EDT
Fly away with NASA’s Langley and Dryden Flight Research Centers to learn about their roles in the development of aeronautics during NASA’s 50 years. Combined, the two centers have been studying aviation for more than 90 years. Participants will learn more about this fascinating area of science and how NASA’s advancements have benefited mankind.

Propulsion: Past, Present and Future
May 20, 2008, 1:10 p.m. — 2:10 p.m. EDT
NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center and Stennis Space Center were built to examine Newton’s three fundamental laws of motion through testing large-scale engines used for propulsion, engines that would eventually take man to the moon. In recent years, both centers were key to the development of the Space Shuttle Program, from the conceptual stages to the last flight in the coming years. Today, as the shuttle is about to be retired, MSFC and SSC look to a new era of space exploration taking man back to the moon and beyond to new frontiers.

Wind Tunnels and Their Use in Aerospace
May 21, 2008, 1 p.m. – 2 p.m. EDT
May 20, 2008, 2:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. EDT
A design for a new aircraft or rocket may look great on paper, but if the craft is built, will it fly? Learn how scientists and engineers at NASA have answered this question over the past 50 years without leaving the ground. Take a journey with the DLN and see how NASA uses wind tunnel facilities for aviation and aerospace research.

For more information about this series of webcast events and to submit questions to be answered during the events, visit http://dln.nasa.gov/dln/content/catalog/details/?cid=622