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KAMIKAZE NASA SPACECRAFT, RANGER 8, LAUNCHED TO MARE TRANQUILITY 68 YEARS AGO![]()
The eighth in a series of nine NASA “Ranger” missions blasted off C ape Canaveral Launch Complex 12 on Feb. 17, 1965, and hit its target three days later, the camera system showing terrain where Apollo 11 would land four and a half years later. ![]()
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Ranger 8’s mission began with launch from LC-12 at Cape Canaveral, Florida on Wednesday, February 17, 1965. The Atlas-Agena B launch vehicle placed Ranger 8 along a direct hyperbolic trajectory that would allow the spacecraft to intercept the Moon nearly 65 hours later. ![]()
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The mission aim point was a potential Apollo landing site in the Mare Tranquilitatis region of the lunar surface. All of the action would take place in the final 23 minutes of flight as a complement of six (6) vidicon cameras snapped photos all the way to impact. A pair of the cameras featured a full scan capability; one wide-angle, one narrow-angle. The remaining four (4) cameras were partial scan systems; two wide-angle, two narrow-angle. ![]()
Ranger 8 arrived at the Moon on Saturday, February 20, 1965. The first of 7,137 high-resolution photos was taken at an altitude of 1,388 nm above the lunar surface. ![]()
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The last photo, featuring a resolution of about 5 feet, was imaged when the Ranger 8 spacecraft was only 525 feet above the surface; a mere 0.09 seconds before a 6,000-mph impact with the Moon. Impact occurred only 10 nm from the mission aim point. This was exceptional accuracy considering the trip from Earth was over 205,000 nm. ![]()
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While Ranger 8’s mission was brief and its end violent, the photographic bounty transmitted back to Earth helped make possible America’s first manned lunar landing on Sunday, 20 July 1969. The landing site? None other than Mare Tranquilitatis.
NASA WALLOPS ISLAND FLIGHT FACILITY NASA's Wallops Flight FacilityLAUNCHED ITS FIRST ORBITAL SATELLITE 64 YEARS AGO TODAY ![]()
A four-stage, all solid rocket boosters called Scout was launched on Feb. 16, 1961 with a 12-foot diameter sphere, Explorer IX, that was the first satellite to detect the solar warming of Earth's atmosphere.![]()
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Though suborbital rockets had been launched since its founding in 1945, this Scout launch was the first orbital mission. And the first solid rocket to put a payload in orbit. ![]()
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Today, soundiing rockest, payloads to the International Space Station and lots of classified things for our military keep Wallops active. ![]()
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Wallops is a multi-user/multi-tenant facility in a geographic location ideal for supporting satellite tracking and commanding, military operations and training, scientific investigations, technology development and testing, as well as commercial aerospace. ![]()
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The facility’s diverse mission sets and on-site partners, including the U.S. Navy, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Federal Aviation Administration, Virginia Space and the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport, is a model for leveraging and optimizing multi-organizational capabilities and support services.![]()
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Careful and continuous photographic observation of the Explorer IX satellite allowed scientists to conduct an unprecedented survey of the Earth's exosphere. ![]()
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The satellite first confirmed the daily bulge in the upper atmosphere caused by the Sun's heating the air during the day and verified the model of exospheric temperature developed according to other satellite data.
ASM’S SPACE MEMORABILIA SHOW & FREE APPRAISALS![]()
SATURDAY FEB. 22 AT BEACH SIDE HOTEL, COCOA BEACH![]()
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ASM will have a Saturday, Feb. 22nd Space Memorabilia Show from 9 am to 3 pm, featuring a free appraisal of your space items and free admission at Beach Side Hotel & Suites, Cocoa Beach, Florida.![]()
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You can have your Neil Armstrong and other astronaut autographs authenticated at no charge, or bring your collection to be appraised by the event sponsors, Space Coast Covers Service, Merritt Island, and Bid Again Auctions, Orlando. ![]()
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There will be a variety of local vendors selling everything from space flown items like coins and flags, lots of astronaut autographs, books, posters, original artwork and even rare, hard-to-find items from the Apollo moon program and the Space Shuttle Era. Computers Advancing Education, the Museums of Brevard and NASA Manned Space Facebook. ![]()
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The American Space Museum offers two space memorabilia shows a year in February and November, as well as at the annual ShuttleFest IV, this year April 11-13 at Hyatt Place Titusville. ![]()
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ASM is home of the popular YouTube video podcast “Stay Curious,” featuring conversations with space workers, astronauts and celebrating historical events. Space history and current events can also be found on its Facebook page and website. ![]()
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The events are part of their outreach to support their Brevard County non-profit, a Florida 501(c)(3) institution as the U.S. Space Walk of Fame Foundation. A grant from the Space Coast Office of Tourism supports museum events. ![]()
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The American Space Museum is located at 308 Pine St., Downtown Titusville, Florida, and it is open from 10 am to 5 pm Monday through Saturday Contact them at info@americanspacemuseum.org or phone 321-264-0434.
STUDENT ARTWORK & PROSE SHOWCASED IN ISS CUPOLA![]()
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www.collectspace.com/news/news-020725a-space-art-poetry-contest-station.html![]()
A worldwide contest has again redefined the concept of "high art" by briefly converting the International Space Station (ISS) into a gallery for the winners' works.![]()
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The space station's Cupola, which is usually lit by the colors of Earth shining through the module's large, panoramic windows, recently took on a different palette as print outs of paintings, ink drawings and poetry blanketed its panes. The art, which was created by students and educators from the United States, Taiwan, Chile and the Philippines, depicted what it is like to live and work in space.![]()
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"For the second year in a row, the International Space Art and Poetry Contest has reignited my love for space beyond my wildest imagination. Bright minds from 35 countries around the world showcased wide-eyed curiosity, bright color and aspirational words," said John Shoffner, a private astronaut who first stablished the competition as part of his Axiom-2 (Ax-2) mission to the space station in 2023.![]()
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In 2024, Stoffner's Perseid Foundation received more than 2,700 entries from which he and a panel of judges — including record-setting astronaut and Ax-2 commander Peggy Whitson — selected four works of art and four poems. NASA then uploaded digital copies of the pieces to the orbiting laboratory, where the station's crew printed them out, hung them in the Cupola and photographed each.![]()
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Among the winners was 8-year-old Lillian Eom of Chandler, Arizona, whose ink drawing was of a girl and a puppy, both in spacesuits, floating with an alien amongst a space scape framed by rainbows and filled with multi-color stars and planets. Thad Mccauley, an art instructor from Aurora, Colorado, also won for his digital depiction of an astronaut on a rocket-powered board.![]()
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Among the winning poets was Gabriel Lanehart, an 8-year-old student from Spring, Texas, whose piece "In Space" began "Living in space would be like a race, but our science would have to keep up the pace...". Therese Fait Bayaton, an 18-year-old from the Philippines, titled her winning verse, "Celestial Revue."![]()
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"To float, unfettered by gravity's pull, Adrift in that ethereal, boundless lull, To witness the universe from a vantage so rare, A perspective both alien and beyond compare," Bayaton wrote.![]()
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Other winners included 11-year-old Pedro Martin from Chile, 12-year-old Chiu Le Lee from Taiwan, 18-year-old Nadia Farmer from the U.S. and educator Kathleen Jakobsen. All eight will receive their station-printed work — which returned to Earth on a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft in December — and a certificate stating their art was flown in space.![]()
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Every student who entered the contest received a digital participation certificate, their artwork posted to the contest's website and a note from Shoffner.![]()
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"Thank you, once again, for showing me the sky is not the limit," he wrote.![]()
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Sponsored by the ISS National Laboratory, the International Space Art and Poetry Contest is made possible with the help of Axiom Space and the Limitless Space Institute. The competition is one way the ISS National Lab is used to engage youth across the planet to spark their interest in space and StEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics)-focused careers.
Students' contest-winning pen, paint and poetry works shown aboard space station
www.collectspace.com
A worldwide contest has again redefined the concept of "high art" by briefly converting the International Space Station (ISS) into a gallery for the winners' works. The space station's Cupola recently...
HAPPY 61st BIRTHDAY TO Leland Melvin, ONLY ASTRONAUT DRAFTED BY NFL![]()
Happy 61st birthday to NASA astronaut Leland Devon “Lee” Melvin, born on Feb. 15, 1964 in Lynchburg, Virginia. ![]()
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A veteran of two Atlantis spaceflights, Melvin was uniquely drafted by the Detroit Lions of the National Football league in the 11th round of the 1986 draft. Though he participated in training camps, he had a bad knee and never played. ![]()
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And, he loves his dogs! Rhodesian Ridgebacks hold a special place in his heart. A veteran of two space flights, STS-122, Atlantis, in 2008, and STS-129, also Atlantis, in 2009, Leland Melvin has logged more than 23 days in space.![]()
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Melvin was named the NASA Associate Administrator for Education in October 2010. He wrote a book in 2017, "Chasing Space," and adapted it to a children's book. ![]()
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Melvin received a Bachelor of Science Degree in chemistry from the University of Richmond, Richmond, Virginia in 1986; and a Master of Science Degree in Materials Science Engineering from the University of Virginia in 1991.![]()
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A high school standout, Melvin was team captain for University of Richmond 1982-85, and caught a pass in every game he played. He was inducted in the University of Richmond Athletic Hall of Fame Inductee Class of 1996–97 and selected for the All-UR Stadium Team in 2009, which commemorates the greatest Spiders to have played at the stadium in its 81-year history.![]()
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Melvin was chosen by the Detroit Lions in the 11th round of the 1986 NFL Draft as a wide receiver. During training camp, he pulled a hamstring and never fully recovered to play at a high level. ![]()
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Melvin’s NASA bio:![]()
www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/melvin_leland.pdf
FOUR-TIME ASTRONAUT DON THOMAS STOPS BY ASM ![]()
And Director MarQ and collections analyst Chuck Jeffrey we're ready to hear more stories about woodpeckers and the STS 70 and Don's book, "Orbit of Discovery: The All-Ohio Space Shuttle Mission."![]()
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Thomas is one of four astronauts scheduled for ShuttleFest IV April 11-13.
Astronaut Don Thomas makes a surprise Valentine's Day visit for a great conversation about his four Space Shuttle missions in the 1990s.
www.youtube.com
Love is in the air, and there are plenty of hearts scattered around the Solar System, and host MarQ shares them to bridge the space between us.
LOVE IS IN THE AIR ON STAY CURIOUS...INCLUDING A "MAYBE" SURPRISE GUEST YOU'LL SURE TO LOVE! anytime on YouTube www.youtube.com/@AmericanSpaceMuseum/streams![]()
THAT special guest may need to go "live" before 4 pm, so stay tuned!
NASA VALENTINES FROM THE SUN...HOT VENUS...AND SATURN MOON TITAN (WITH DYNAMIC CHEMISTRY, LIKE EARTH!
Where are Artemis, SLS & Gateway?![]()
No one is talking about the Lunar Gateway in the grand scheme of things for the Artemis moon landing program--except host MarQ on Stay Curious!
Where are Artemis, SLS & Gateway?
www.youtube.com
No one is talking about the Lunar Gateway in the grand scheme of things for the Artemis moon landing program--except host MarQ on Stay Curious!
REMEMBER LUNAR GATEWAY? HOST MARQ HAS A SHOCKING UPDATE TODAY, 4 PM EST or anytime on YouTube![]()
www.youtube.com/@AmericanSpaceMuseum/streams
The "Moon Illusion" in our night sky![]()
The Full Moon draws eyes upward this week, and find out why it looks so huge when rising above a building than when the Moon is overhead.
The "Moon Illusion" in our night sky
www.youtube.com
The Full Moon draws eyes upward this week, and find out why it looks so huge when rising above a building than when the Moon is overhead.
WHY DOES THE MOON APPEAR LARGER CLOSE TO THE HORIZON THAN OVERHEAD--OR IS IT? Stargazer MarQ has the answer on the next episode of of Stay Curious, today, 4 pm on YouTube anytime! www.youtube.com/c/AmericanSpaceMuseum
APOLLO 16 MOONWALKER DUKE GIFTS KANSAS MOON FLAGS TO Cosmosphere![]()
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A collection of 15 well-traveled Kansas flags now have a home in the state they represent after living up to the Latin motto printed on their fabric: "Ad Astra per Aspera," or in English, "To the Stars Through Difficulties."![]()
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The small azure banners, which are adorned with the state seal and a sunflower, were flown to the moon and back by NASA astronaut Charlie Duke on NASA's Apollo 16 mission in April 1972. Almost 53 years later, Duke has donated them to the Cosmosphere, a world-class space museum and international science center located in Hutchinson, Kansas.![]()
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"We are grateful to General Duke for this generous contribution," said Jim Remar, chief executive officer of the Cosmosphere, in a statement. "Tangible artifacts that have been to the moon strengthen the connection between present and past, solidifying historic events in our collective memory."![]()
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Carried on Apollo 16, the fourth mission to land astronauts on the moon, the 6-by-4-inch (15-by-10-centimeter) nylon flags were among the mementos that Duke took with him on the journey. They were stowed in Duke's personal preference kit (PPK) that he brought onto the lunar module "Orion" for his and John Young's descent to and time at the Descartes Highlands, according to the Cosmosphere.![]()
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Additional flags, including more representing Kansas, were aboard the Apollo 16 command module "Casper," including at least two others that were part of a pair of NASA "flag kits" that each included "25 flags of the United States, 50 individual state flags, flags of United States territories, flags of other national states which are generally accepted as independent in the world community and flags of the United Nations and other international organizations," per NASA's press kit for the Apollo 16 mission.![]()
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The other Apollo missions carried similar flag kits, as did other Apollo astronauts carry state flags in their PPKs.![]()
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The donation announced on Tuesday (Feb. 11) was at least the second time that Duke gifted the Cosmosphere with moon-flown Kansas flags. He earlier presented the museum with 10 such flags, as reflected in a 2003 museum inventory.![]()
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Born in North Carolina, Duke has not lived in Kansas, nor was he stationed there while serving in the U.S. Air Force. He has been a long-time supporter of the Cosmosphere, though, which was founded in 1962 and is the only Smithsonian affiliate museum in the state.![]()
Apollo astronaut gifts moon-flown flags to space museum in Kansas
www.collectspace.com
A collection of 15 flown-to-the-moon Kansas flags now have a home in the state they represent after living up to the motto printed on their fabric: "Ad Astra per Aspera." Apollo 16 astronaut Charlie D...
WOW. A REAL PHOTO.Yes, it's a real photo! This was captured off the side of the hwy along a remote stretch of AZ desert. Perfectly timed to capture the station in conjunction with the lunar terminator. ![]()
📸 Andrew McCarthy
ORLANDO ASTRONOMY ON TAP FEB. 18TH AT OVIEDA BREWING CO. ![]()
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Come on out to Oviedo Brewing Company on February 18th for a very LOVEly edition of Astronomy on Tap – Orlando! 💖 Dr. Kerri Donaldson Hanna, Associate Professor of Physics and Planetary Sciences at UCF, will be talking about the upcoming Lunar Trailblazer 🌕💧 mission, and UCF Planetary Sciences graduate student Lorraine Rosello Del Valle will be letting us know that ‘weather’ isn’t just for us Earthlings! ☀️💥![]()
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We will finish off the night with a round of our space trivia, where you will have the chance to win some fun astronomy-themed prizes! Weather permitting, we will also have some telescopes set up out front of the brewery at the end of the night for some stargazing!![]()
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Be sure to like, follow, and subscribe to us on all social media to keep up-to-date with our events!![]()
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Twitter & Instagram: @aotorlando![]()
YouTube & Facebook: Astronomy on Tap Orlando![]()
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Have any questions? Don’t hesitate to reach out to us at aotorlando@gmail.com.![]()
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Hope to see you all there!! 💖✨🍻
Three Beautiful Shuttles of February![]()
The Shuttle Era is always highlighted on Stay Curious, and today three Shuttles of February, STS-82, 98 & 99 are featured
Three Beautiful Shuttles of February
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The Shuttle Era is always highlighted on Stay Curious, and today three Shuttles of February, STS-82, 98 & 99 are featured
STAY CURIOUS LOVES THE SHUTTLES OF THE MONTH, and MarQ highlights three beautiful mission of the 30-year Shuttle Legacy to bridge the space between us in YouTube www.youtube.com/c/AmericanSpaceMuseum