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Starting #IBF2019 at #ITER with challenging yet entertaining #pechakucha presentations by ITER's Monaco postdoctoral fellows about their research. More on the fellowship scheme: https://t.co/HTbSjRHYDK @GovMonaco #fusionenergy #WeAreITER https://t.co/bY8jLMnXja

hi everyone! it has been a while since i last posted, and i apologise for that! today was my last day of uni (i still have exams, but classes ended today), so i decided to go out and spend the afternoon reading at @commacafe_ 🧡 it was nice to sit outdoors, because the weather was so lovely today! . i’m still currently reading the starless sea, and i’m looooving every page of it!🥰 i hope to read more over the break! have a great weekend everyone✨ (at Comma Cafe) https://www.instagram.com/p/B4C-9oSHghW/?igshid=yki1hnb07p91

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A Tiny Satellite Studies Stormy Layers

The gif above shows data taken by an experimental weather satellite of Hurricane Dorian on September 3, 2019. TEMPEST-D, a NASA CubeSat, reveals rain bands in four layers of the storm by taking the data in four different radio frequencies. The multiple vertical layers show where the most warm, wet air within the hurricane is rising high into the atmosphere. Pink, red and yellow show the areas of heaviest rainfall, while the least intense areas of rainfall are in green and blue.

How does an Earth satellite the size of a cereal box help NASA monitor storms? 

The goal of the TEMPEST-D (Temporal Experiment for Storms and Tropical Systems Demonstration) mission is to demonstrate the performance of a CubeSat designed to study precipitation events on a global scale.

If TEMPEST-D can successfully track storms like Dorian, the technology demonstration could lead to a train of small satellites that work together to track storms around the world. By measuring the evolution of clouds from the moment of the start of precipitation, a TEMPEST constellation mission, collecting multiple data points over short periods of time, would improve our understanding of cloud processes and help to clear up one of the largest sources of uncertainty in climate models. Knowledge of clouds, cloud processes and precipitation is essential to our understanding of climate change.

What is a CubeSat, anyway? And what’s the U for?

CubeSats are small, modular, customizable vessels for satellites. They come in single units a little larger than a rubix cube - 10cmx10cmx10cm - that can be stacked in multiple different configurations. One CubeSat is 1U. A CubeSat like TEMPEST-D, which is a 6U, has, you guessed it, six CubeSat units in it.

Pictured above is a full-size mockup of MarCO, a 6U CubeSat that recently went to Mars with the Insight mission. They really are about the size of a cereal box!

We are using CubeSats to test new technologies and push the boundaries of Earth Science in ways never before imagined. CubeSats are much less expensive to produce than traditional satellites; in multiples they could improve our global storm coverage and forecasting data.

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

The Pale Blue Dot and the Golden Record

Almost thirty years ago, on Feb. 14, 1990, our Voyager 1 spacecraft turned back toward its home for one last look. 40 astronomical units (almost 4 billion miles) from the Sun, Voyager snapped the first-ever “family portrait” of our solar system.

One image in particular highlights our own planet’s fragility in the vast cosmic arena that we call home. This image of Earth, a tiny point of light, is contained in a camera artifact that resembles a beam of sunlight.

The late Carl Sagan referred to this image of Earth in the title of his 1994 book, Pale Blue Dot. Sagan wrote: “That’s here. That’s home. That’s us. On it everyone you love, everyone you know, everyone you ever heard of, every human being who ever was, lived out their lives. … There is perhaps no better demonstration of the folly of human conceits than this distant image of our tiny world. To me, it underscores our responsibility to deal more kindly with one another, and to preserve and cherish the pale blue dot, the only home we’ve ever known.”

We placed a message aboard Voyager 1 and 2 — a kind of time capsule intended to communicate a story of our world to extraterrestrials. The Voyager message is carried by a phonograph record: a 12-inch gold-plated copper disk containing sounds and images selected to portray the diversity of life and culture on Earth.

The Golden Record includes 115 images and a variety of natural sounds, such as those made by surf, wind and thunder, birds, whales and other animals. Musical selections from different cultures and eras were also added, as well as spoken greetings from Earth-people in fifty-five languages and printed messages from President Carter.

The Golden Record represents the whole of humanity, mounted to a feat of human engineering on a long voyage through interstellar space. 

You can listen to the sounds of Earth on the golden record here and take a moment to appreciate our pale blue dot. 

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

.@ScottAdamsSays

#GreenNuclearDeal

"Scientists achieved high pressure plasma perhaps laying the groundwork to achieve fusion power at an old fusion reactor in San Diego by reversing the orientation of the vessel that houses the plasma."

https://t.co/gXsKDDEHY3

Robotic “Bees” Are About to Join Astronauts in Space

There are some things only humans can do in space. The rest can be left to robots. To free up valuable time for astronauts living and working aboard the International Space Station, we’re sending three robotic helpers to the orbiting outpost. Developed and built at our Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley, the cube-shaped Astrobee robots will each stay as busy as a bee flying around the space station and assisting crew with routine tasks like maintenance and tracking inventory. The robots will also help researchers on the ground carry out experiments, test new technologies and study human-robot interaction in space. Learning how robots can best work with humans in close proximity will be key for exploring the Moon and other destinations. Get to know more about our new robots headed to space: 

The Astrobee robots were tested inside a special lab at our Ames Research Center where researchers created a mockup of the space station’s interior. 

The flying robots are propelled by fans. They can move in any direction and turn on any axis in space. 

Each robot is equipped with cameras and sensors for navigating inside the space station and avoiding obstacles.

Claw power! Astrobees have a robotic arm that can be attached for handling cargo or running experiments.

Astrobee is battery powered. When its battery runs low, the robot will autonomously navigate and dock to a power station to recharge.

The robots can operate in either fully automated mode or under remote control by astronauts or researchers on Earth.

Astrobee builds on the success of SPHERES, our first-generation robotic assistant that arrived at the space station in 2006.  

Two of the three Astrobee robots are scheduled to launch to space this month from our Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia! Tune in to the launch at www.nasa.gov/live.

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

#IBF2019 participants on tour at #ITER. Here in the Assembly Hall where the two giant tools stand ready to assemble the vacuum vessel sectors. #fusionenergy #WeAreITER https://t.co/MLh2Z7gbr3

Chart-Topping Space Images From 2019 You Won’t Want to Miss

From the first-ever image of a black hole, to astronaut Christina Koch breaking the record for the longest single spaceflight by a woman – 2019 was full of awe-inspiring events! 

As we look forward to a new decade, we’ve taken ten of our top Instagram posts and put them here for your viewing pleasure. With eight out of ten being carousels, be sure to click on each title to navigate to the full post. 

1. First-Ever Black Hole Image Makes History 

In a historic feat by the Event horizon Telescope and National Science Foundation, an image of a black hole and its shadow was captured for the first time. At a whopping 3.4 million likes, this image takes home the gold as our most loved photo of 2019. Several of our missions were part of a large effort to observe this black hole using different wavelengths of light and collect data to understand its environment. Here’s a look at our Chandra X-Ray Observatory’s close-up of the core of the M87 galaxy with the imaged black hole at its center.  

2. Hubble Celebrates 29 Years of Dazzling Discoveries

When you wish upon a star… Hubble captures it from afar ✨On April 18, 2019 our Hubble Space Telescope celebrated 29 years of dazzling discoveries, serving as a window to the wonders of worlds light-years away. ⁣

Hubble continues to observe the universe in near-ultraviolet, visible, and near-infrared light. Over the past 29 years, it has captured the farthest views ever taken of the evolving universe, found planet-forming disks around nearby stars and identified the first supermassive black hole in the heart of a neighboring galaxy. ⁣Want more? Enjoy the full 10 photo Instagram carousel here. 

3. Stars and Stripes in Space for Flag Day 

Patriotism was in the air June 14 for Flag Day, and coming in at number three in our most liked Instagram line up is a carousel of our stars and stripes in space! One of the most iconic images from the Apollo 11 missions is of Buzz Aldrin saluting the American flag on the surface of the Moon. But did you know that over the years, five more flags joined the one left by Apollo 11 – and that many other flags have flown onboard our spacecraft? Scroll through the full carousel for flag day here. 

4. Spitzer Celebrates its Super Sweet 16! 

Since 2003, our Spitzer Space Telescope has been lifting the veil on the wonders of the cosmos, from our own solar system to faraway galaxies, using infrared light! Thanks to Spitzer, we’ve confirm the presence of seven rocky, Earth-size planets, received weather maps of hot, gaseous exoplanets and discovered a hidden ring around Saturn. In honor of Spitzer’s Sweet 16 in space, enjoy 16 jaw-dropping images from its mission here. 

5. Earth as Seen Through Our Astronauts’ Eyes Show  Perspective Changing Views

“That’s here. That’s home. That’s us.” – Carl Sagan

Seeing Earth from space can alter an astronauts’ cosmic perspective, a mental shift known as the “Overview Effect.” First coined by space writer Frank White in 1987, the Overview Effect is described as a feeling of awe for our home planet and a sense of responsibility for taking care of it. See Earth from the vantage point of our astronauts in a carousel of perspective-changing views here.

6. Astronaut Christina Koch Breaks Records With 300 Days in Space 

Astronaut Christina Koch (@Astro_Christina) set a record Dec. 28, 2019 for the longest single spaceflight by a woman, eclipsing the former record of 288 days set by Peggy Whitson. Her long-duration mission is helping us learn how to keep astronauts healthy for deep space exploration to the Moon and Mars. Congrats to Christina on reaching new heights! Join in the celebration and view few photos she captured from her vantage point aboard the Space Station here. 

7. Our Beautiful Planet – The Only Place We Know to Harbor Life – From Space

Earth is special. It’s the only place in the universe that we know contains life. 

On July 7, 2019, two million people joined us in celebrating its beauty with a jaw dropping carousel of our home planet, as captured by crew members aboard the International Space Station. Bright blue oceans, glowing city lights and ice-capped mountain peaks come to life in a collection of breathtaking images, found here. 

8. A Moon Even Sinatra Couldn’t Help But Sing About

Every 29 days our Moon turns over a new leaf, and on May, 18 we saw a very special one of its faces. Appearing opposite the Sun at 5:11 p.m. EDT, the world looked up to find a Blue Moon! Though the Moon didn’t actually look blue, the site of one is kind of rare. They occur on average about every two-and-a-half years when a season ends up having four full moons instead of three. Click through a carousel of high-definition lunar phases here. 

9. The Majesty of Hubble Imagery … From Your Backyard

On December 23, a new gallery of Hubble Space Telescope images highlighting celestial objects visible to amateur and professional astronomers alike was released. All of the objects are from a collection known as the Caldwell catalog, which includes 109 interesting objects visible in amateur-sized telescopes in both the northern and southern skies. Flip through the jaw-dropping carousel here, and learn more about how you can study the night sky with Hubble here. 

10. The Moon Gets Sassy

Nobody:

The Moon: “Y'all on the way yet?” 👀

We’re working on it, Moon. Under the Artemis program, we’re sending the first woman and the next man to walk on your surface by 2024. Find out how we’re doing it here. 

For more pictures like these, follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nasa/

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

TRANQUILITY

chapter three

The waves crashed against her body, as she tried to find a wave to ride out, both her she JB being completely beat by the waves. She saw into the distant, him looking toward a boat, both kids looking at each other then back at the death wish of a boat.

xxx

She decided to wait out the storm at John b's house, and walking in to see jj, she assumed he had the same idea.

"Why are you here." He didn't look toward Alex, but knew it was her.

"She's staying here, and sharing a bed with your ass so better cheer up." John b responded before alex could

"No no no no, i'm not sharing a bed with her, i'll sleep on the floor." He complained.

She simply sat down on the bed, as John b went into his room.

She soon realized she had no clothes to change into, which meant she either slept in her underwear or wet clothes.

"Why are you thinking so hard?" JJ questioned.

She snapped out of her thoughts and looked toward the boy who was snuggled up in the bed he just said he wasn't sleeping in.

"I have nothing to change into." She mumbled, not breaking eye contact.

"Well doesn't that suck." He replied, turning away from the girl.

So she slipped out of the wet bathing suit and clothes, and put on her underwear and sports bra. The boy turned around, realizing she had just changed into the slightest amount of clothes.

His jaw clenched as she climbed in bed. He sat up and roughly pulled his crew neck of his body, throwing it toward the girl.

She didn't say anything, but simply smiled and put it on, before snuggling into the comforter.

The truth is, he couldn't stand knowing she was half naked right next to him, and definitely didn't want anyone else to see her like that.

xxx

Alex was woken up by john b opening the front door, and jj grunting, She sat up and stretched before following him out the door.

"Damn." She whistled

John b turned to face her before laughing.

"Nice shirt." He joked.

She quickly looked down, and was about to respond before jj spoke from behind her.

"agatha did some work huh?" He asked

"Yeah she did."

Alex walked back inside to change, and wanted to call kie, but there was no service.

"shit."

"come on fizzy, we're going fishing." jj yelled from the porch.

She sighed and packed her bag to go on the boat.

"Who first?" She asked walking down the dock.

"Pope, kie's probably shitting bricks cause you didn't go home." JB responsed

"then maybe you shouldn't of let her stay." jj mumbled.

"Well it seems you didn't mind that much because she woke up in your hoodie."

Alex's face went red, and jj's jaw clenched once again. He didn't know how to respond, so he just turned around.

The boys made comments to the other islanders, while alex stayed quiet in thought on the way to popes dock.

She didn't understand why he hated her, but was starting to get tired of it.

"well look who we have here." John said toward pope washing off the dock.

"We are declaring a pogue meeting, attendance mandatory" Alex yelled.

"I cant my pops got me on lockdown." He pouted

"oh come on pope." alex called

"Your dad's a pussy over" jj replied pretending to be talking into a radio.

"I heard that you little bastard." Hayward appeared behind his son.

Alex waves quickly to the man, she always loved hayward, and she was definitely his favorite out of popes friends.

"We need your son." john b spoke to pope's dad

"day after hurricane is a free day." jj chimed in.

"Ouuu yeah, we have security clearance." Alex added

"Get in the boat." John b mouthed toward pope

Pope frantically jumped in the boat apologizing to his dad and the boat drove away.

"Okay, she's gonna be pissed, so be prepared." Alex told the boys.

"Hey boys." Kiara called while walking down the dock. "Hey sister who doesn't know how to let me know if she's alive or not."

"Oh kie i love you, and i was with JB of course i was safe." Alex responsed.

"whatcha got, you got some juice boxes?" John b asked.

"you know, just some yogurt and carrot sticks." Kie laughed

"How about my kind of juice box?" jj smirked

She passed out the beers, alex shrugging her off, having brought her own drink.

"Alex what's in this?" Pope asked the girl, sniffing the water bottle

"Nothing." she mumbled trying to take it out of his grasp.

"Is this straight vodka?" Everyone paying attention now, popes face turned into a worried glare.

"It's just a boat day drink. it means nothing."

"Alex?" jj said, making her turn. He never called her that.

"Guys it's fine."

Kie and JB shared worried looks. She walked over to her sister and grabbed her arm.

"are you drinking again?" Kie whispered into Alex's ear

She swiftly walked past her "no." She turned "jj what the fuck!" She yelled watching the blonde poor the drink out into the water.

"oops." He laughed.

xxx

"hey you guys wanna see a party trick?" jj climbed to the front of the boat.

"Oh god i'm moving." John b quickly sat behind pope who was driving.

"go a little faster pope." jj commented

"Ou i wanna try." Alex walked toward jj

He looked at her with annoyance and sighed.

They both lifted the bottles to their mouths trying to catch the beer.

"Ew you're getting beer in my hair." Kie screamed, but was cut off, as the boat lunged forward, throwing JJ and alex off and into the water.

"what the hell pope?"

Alex hit the surface of the water with a cough.

"fizzy, you good?" jj asked beside her.

"Yeah i'm good."

Did he actually care? she thought.

"jj you okay?" pope called from the boat

"I'm think my heals touched the back of my head."

"Sand bar. the tide changed."

"Thank you captain obvious." alex swam toward the boat.

"Guys, i think there's a boat down there?"