Illustration of an Artemis astronaut on the Moon. Credit: NASA
Update work continues outside the spaceport station …
An upgraded technique for landing Artemis astronauts on the Moon …
And unsealing pieces of the past … a few of the stories to tell you about– This Week at NASA!
Upgrade Work Continues Outside the Space Station
On March 23, the crew onboard the International Space Station performed the second spacewalk this month to continue upgrades to the orbiting lab. Throughout the trip, NASA astronaut Raja Chari and European Space Agency astronaut Matthias Maurer worked to set up brand-new thermal system and electronic devices elements on the stations U.S. section. They likewise worked to install a power and information cable on the Columbus modules Bartolomeo science platform, replace an external cam on the stations truss, and conduct other upgrades to station hardware.
Updated Strategy for Landing Artemis Astronauts on the Moon
Also on March 23, we announced plans to develop additional opportunities for business to establish an astronaut Moon lander that can transport humans between our lunar orbiting spaceport station referred to as Gateway and the lunar surface, for missions beyond Artemis III, which will be the very first objective to land astronauts on the Moon in more than 50 years. The statement is part of a technique by the agency to pursue 2 parallel courses for continuing lunar lander development and demonstration, one that requires extra work under an existing contract with business partner, SpaceX, and another open up to all other U.S. companies. This effort is meant to take full advantage of NASAs assistance for competition and provides redundancy in services to assist make sure NASAs capability to carry astronauts to the lunar surface.
50-Year-Old Lunar Sample Unsealed for Study
Among the last unopened Apollo-era lunar samples gathered 50 years back throughout Apollo 17 has actually been opened at our Johnson Space Center in Houston. Sample 73001 had been kept vacuum sealed and in beautiful condition in anticipation of the day that scientists equipped with innovative innovation might examine it. The Apollo Next Generation Sample Analysis Program is studying the sample and others like it, as we prepare to send out astronauts back to the Moon for more samples on upcoming Artemis missions.
NASA Confirms 5,000 Exoplanets and Counting
On March 21, the variety of verified exoplanets, or worlds outside of our planetary system, ticked past the 5,000 mark. The milestone was reached when the current batch of 65 exoplanets was contributed to the NASA Exoplanet Archive. This stream of exoplanet discoveries that started 30 years back, includes contributions from NASAs TESS, Kepler, and Spitzer area telescopes, with more discoveries possible in the future from our James Webb and Nancy Grace Roman space telescopes.
New Reference Satellite for Global Sea Level Measurements
On March 22, the newest U.S.-European sea level satellite, called Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich, became the main reference satellite for international water level measurements. This means that sea surface height data gathered by other satellites will be compared to the information produced by Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich to make sure precision. The satellite, which is named after NASAs previous Earth Science Division Director, the late Dr. Michael Freilich, was introduced in November 2020.
Thats whats up today @NASA …
Throughout the getaway, NASA astronaut Raja Chari and European Space Agency astronaut Matthias Maurer worked to set up brand-new thermal system and electronics components on the stations U.S. section. This effort is implied to maximize NASAs support for competitors and supplies redundancy in services to assist guarantee NASAs capability to transport astronauts to the lunar surface.
The turning point was reached when the latest batch of 65 exoplanets was added to the NASA Exoplanet Archive. The satellite, which is called after NASAs former Earth Science Division Director, the late Dr. Michael Freilich, was launched in November 2020.