Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Three lofty NASA goals....

I was perusing the NASA budget and saw these three outstanding indicators of the space industry


NASA Goals:


  • Completing the Space Station

  • retiring the Space Shuttle in 2010
  • transition from the Space Shuttle to the Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle and Ares launch vehicles


It's not until page 5 that you get to the actual numbers. Here you can see that Astrophysics and Heliophysics are both getting pay cuts on this year's budget according to the 2008 report (if the date is to be believed). Science overall takes a budget cut on that version of the document while exploration and operations goes up. With satellites colliding in orbit and falling like so many meteors to earth, this seems like a mistake... I am still looking for a 2009 dated file. The only thing that looks like it gets continuously an increase in funding, to me at any rate, is the agency's legal team and maintenance programs.

Monday, February 09, 2009

Nasa Cooking Expedition....

Can you cook without gravity


This is a slightly amusing thought.... if you cook in space, does boiling water return to the pot?

The answer is: No... it just expand because of the low gravity -- it's measured on a scale so small you can almost call it zero. Apparently cooking requires: duct tape, foil, and plastic bags. If you read the article, you'll get a lot of laughs about the technical challenges of cooking in almost no gravity. Please, don't take for granted the fact that your spinning earth provides enough gravity and force to hold your food down the next time you through the trash out or boil the water.