Inspiring the Next Generation with Student Challenges and Learning Opportunities

NeRD

8 min read Inspiring the Next Generation with Student Challenges and Learning Opportunities Creativity and curiosity are strongly tied to NASA’s missions and vision. Many of the agency’s public opportunities foster these traits by engaging students and educators. Participants of all ages and levels, from kindergarten to college, used their imaginations and enthusiasm to solve open innovation challenges related to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education in fiscal years 2021-2022. Advancing and Encouraging Aerospace Careers Multiple NASA programs partnered with Starburst Accelerator in Los Angeles to launch the 2022…

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Euclid Spots a Spiral Galaxy

NeRD

The spiral galaxy IC 342, located about 11 million light-years from Earth, lies behind the crowded plane of the Milky Way: Dust, gas, and stars obscure it from our view. Euclid used its near-infrared instrument to peer through the dust and study it.

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NASA, International Astronauts to Speak with Tennessee Students

NeRD

(Oct. 3, 2023) — Expedition 70 Commander Andreas Mogensen from ESA (European Space Agency) assists NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli as she dons her spacesuit and tests its components in the Quest airlock in preparation for an upcoming International Space Station spacewalk. Credits: NASA Students from Brighton Elementary School in Brighton, Tennessee, will have an opportunity this week to hear from NASA and ESA (European Space Agency) astronauts aboard the International Space Station. The space-to-Earth call will air live at 11:45 a.m. EST Wednesday, Nov. 8, on NASA Television, the NASA app,…

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NASA Invites Public to Share Excitement of SpaceX’s Launch to Station

NeRD

The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, carrying the Dragon capsule, lifts off from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on June 5, 2023, on the company’s 28th commercial resupply services mission for the agency to the International Space Station. NASA’s SpaceX’s 29th commercial resupply services mission is targeted for liftoff no earlier than 8:28 p.m. EST Thursday, Nov. 9. SpaceX NASA is inviting the public to take part in virtual activities ahead of the launch of SpaceX’s 29th commercial resupply services mission to the International Space Station.…

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Welcome to Nicky Notes: Release of NASA Science Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Accessibility Annual Report

NeRD

2 min read Welcome to Nicky Notes: Release of NASA Science Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Accessibility Annual Report November 2023 I am pleased to welcome you to this new blog series – what my team affectionally calls, “Nicky Notes.” Through this platform, I hope to regularly share updates about all of the exciting work we do in the Science Mission Directorate, while offering some more candid reflections. My first post is dedicated to a topic near and dear to me – our efforts in the Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility…

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Worm Designer Receives NASA’s Exceptional Public Achievement Medal

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4 min read Worm Designer Receives NASA’s Exceptional Public Achievement Medal NASA Associate Administrator Bob Cabana, right, shakes hands with Richard Danne after awarding him the Exceptional Public Achievement Medal for his outstanding achievement in creating the NASA worm logotype, Monday, Nov. 6, 2023, at the Mary W. Jackson NASA Headquarters building in Washington. NASA/Keegan Barber NASA Associate Administrator Bob Cabana presented an award to Richard Danne Monday for his outstanding achievement in creating the NASA worm logotype and inspiring the world through the medium of design for the benefit…

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China launches mystery satellite on Long March 7A rocket (photo)

NeRD

China launched what it describes as an experimental communications technology satellite late last week. A Long March 7A rocket lifted off from the coastal Wenchang Satellite Launch Center at 10:54 a.m. EDT (1454 GMT, or 10:54 p.m. Beijing Time) on Friday (Nov. 3). The payload was revealed to be Tongxin Jishu Shiyan Weixing-10 (TJS-10) by the state-owned China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) when the organization announced launch success within an hour of liftoff. Chinese state media outlet Xinhua described the satellite as being “mainly used for multi-band and…

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NASA’s Worm Logo

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NASA / Joel Kowsky The NASA Worm Logo sign at the NASA Headquarters building in Washington is unveiled in this image from June 21, 2023. The unveiling occurred just before NASA’s Earth Information Center, an immersive experience combining live data sets with cutting-edge data visualization and storytelling, opened to the public. On Nov. 6, 2023, NASA held a discussion on the design and cultural significance of the worm logotype with its creator Richard Danne. The logotype, a simple, red unique type style of the word NASA, replaced the agency’s official…

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What is STEVE, and how is it different from the aurora?

NeRD

The aurora might be the most famous atmospheric phenomenon in our night sky, but it certainly isn’t the only one. If you’ve not yet been introduced, we’d love you to meet STEVE.  STEVE — Strong Thermal Emission Velocity Enhancement —  is an aurora-like glow that often accompanies the northern lights, yet is a distinct phenomenon, according to the American Geophysical Union (AGU). STEVE was discovered between 2015 and 2016, not by professional astronomers or physicists, but by citizen scientists in Canada chasing the aurora, according to the first study published…

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Star-birthing galaxies can hide supermassive black holes behind walls of dust

NeRD

Greedy supermassive black holes blasting out powerful light may be hidden at the heart of star-birthing galaxies. The discovery could help researchers better understand how galaxies grow.  Supermassive quasars powered by black holes are responsible for some of the most powerful and bright emissions of light in the universe, often outshining the combined light of every star in the galaxy around them. These emissions are created when black holes heat and rip apart surrounding matter, consuming some and channeling some into near-light-speed jets launched from their poles. Yet despite this…

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