“We’re Incredibly Lucky To Be Able To Be Working Where We Are, Up Above The Earth, And Being Able

“Typical stages in development of a solar system.” The source and mode of solar energy throughout the universe. 1895. Frontispiece.

Internet Archive

Orbiter Columbia OV-102 had a unique external feature the “SILTS” pod (Shuttle Infrared Leeside Temperature Sensing), it was located on the top of her vertical stabilizer. It was installed after STS-9 (1984) to acquire infrared and other thermal data on the vehicle’s environment. The instruments were removed after several missions but the pod remained.

Commission for @czesui on twitter

Artist’s impression and illustrations of ancient observations of Planets, comets, eclipse, moon, constellations, etc. (Images taken from the book: Astronomy for the use of schools and academies, Astronomy for amateurs, Elements of astronomy, A short course in astronomy and the use of the globes)

Credit: Internet Archive Book Images

Gemini and Agena.

There are only 2 genders

Please people thee are only two genders…. I can’t believe that Tumblr is allowed to exist and make up all these ridiculous identities and not have all its users in mental health facilities. 

Atlas V I think :>

Doug McLeod ‘Outbound’ (1988). From the book Visions of Space by David Hardy (1989)

The Moon is unconventionally beautiful

The Moon is round, blotchy, spotty, rough-skinned, 'imperfect'. Try and tell me The Moon isn't beautiful.

Take a picture of The Moon with your phone. Looks bad, right? Cameras have a habit of taking something beautiful and making it look bad.

[Image description: a dark, blurry iPhone picture of the Moon and some distant artificial lights. The only detail that can be made out is the crescent shape. End ID]

Some more facts about The Moon

The surface is darker than asphalt.

It isn't symmetrical. The farside has more craters and less maria than the nearside.

Some people see a face on it. This is known as 'The Man on The Moon'

It takes moonlight 1.2 seconds to reach Earth at the speed of light

Allow us to reintroduce someone … the name’s Perseverance. 

With this new name, our Mars 2020 rover has now come to life! Chosen by middle school student Alex Mather, Perseverance helps to remind ourselves that no matter what obstacles we face, whether it’s on the way to reaching our goals or on the way to Mars, we will push through. In Alex’s own words, ⁣⁣

“We are a species of explorers, and we will meet many setbacks on the way to Mars. However, we can persevere. We, not as a nation but as humans, will not give up. The human race will always persevere into the future.” ⁣

Welcome to the family.⁣ ❤️

⁣Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com.