NASA Statement on Success of Russian Progress Launch

Soyuz Flight
The following is a statement from Bill Gerstenmaier, associate administrator for Human Exploration and Operations at NASA Headquarters in Washington, on Sunday’s launch of the Progress 45 spacecraft to the International Space Station. The rocket lifted off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 6:11 a.m. EDT (4:11 p.m. Baikonur local time).

"We congratulate our Russian colleagues on Sunday's successful launch of ISS Progress 45, and the spacecraft is on its way to the International Space Station. Pending the outcome of a series of flight readiness meetings in the coming weeks, this successful flight sets the stage for the next Soyuz launch, planned for mid-November. The December Soyuz mission will restore the space station crew size to six and continue normal crew rotations."

NASA, NOAA Data Show Significant Antarctic Ozone Hole Remains

ozone
The Antarctic ozone hole, which yawns wide every Southern Hemisphere spring, reached its annual peak on Sept. 12. It stretched to 10.05 million square miles, the ninth largest ozone hole on record. Above the South Pole, the ozone hole reached its deepest point of the season on Oct. 9, tying this year for the 10th lowest in this 26-year record. NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) use balloon-borne instruments, ground-based instruments and satellites to monitor the annual Antarctic ozone hole, global levels of ozone in the stratosphere and the manmade chemicals that contribute to ozone depletion.

"The colder than average temperatures in the stratosphere this year caused a larger than average ozone hole," said Paul Newman, chief scientist for atmospheres at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. "Even though it was relatively large, the area of this year's ozone hole was within the range we'd expect given the levels of manmade ozone-depleting chemicals that continue to persist in the atmosphere." The ozone layer helps protect the planet's surface from harmful ultraviolet radiation. Ozone depletion results in more incoming radiation that can hit the surface, elevating the risk of skin cancer and other harmful effects.

"The manmade chemicals known to destroy ozone are slowly declining because of international action, but there are still large amounts of these chemicals doing damage," said James Butler, director of NOAA's Global Monitoring Division in Boulder, Colo. In the Antarctic spring (August and September) the sun begins rising again after several months of darkness and polar-circling winds keep cold air trapped above the continent. Sunlight-sparked reactions involving ice clouds and manmade chemicals begin eating away at the ozone. Most years, the conditions for ozone depletion ease before early December when the seasonal hole closes.

NASA, Japan Release Improved Topographic Map Of Earth

Topographic Map Of Earth
NASA and Japan released a significantly improved version of the most complete digital topographic map of Earth on Monday, produced with detailed measurements from NASA's Terra spacecraft. The map, known as a global digital elevation model, was created from images collected by the Japanese Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer, or ASTER, instrument aboard Terra. So-called stereo-pair images are produced by merging two slightly offset two-dimensional images to create the three-dimensional effect of depth. The first version of the map was released by NASA and Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) in June 2009.

"The ASTER global digital elevation model was already the most complete, consistent global topographic map in the world," said Woody Turner, ASTER program scientist at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "With these enhancements, its resolution is in many respects comparable to the U.S. data from NASA's Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM), while covering more of the globe." The improved version of the map adds 260,000 additional stereo-pair images to improve coverage. It features improved spatial resolution, increased horizontal and vertical accuracy, more realistic coverage over water bodies and the ability to identify lakes as small as 0.6 miles (1 kilometer) in diameter. The map is available online to users everywhere at no cost.

Japan Release Improved Topographic Map Of Earth
"This updated version of the ASTER global digital elevation model provides civilian users with the highest-resolution global topography data available," said Mike Abrams, ASTER science team leader at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. "These data can be used for a broad range of applications, from planning highways and protecting lands with cultural or environmental significance, to searching for natural resources." The ASTER data cover 99 percent of Earth's landmass and span from 83 degrees north latitude to 83 degrees south. Each elevation measurement point in the data is 98 feet (30 meters) apart.

NASA Readies New Type of Earth-Observing Satellite for Launch

Earth-Observing Satellite

The National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System Preparatory Project (NPP) is the first mission designed to collect critical data to improve weather forecasts in the short-term and increase our understanding of long-term climate change. NPP continues observations of Earth from space that NASA has pioneered for more than 40 years.

NPP's five science instruments, including four new state-of-the-art sensors, will provide scientists with data to extend more than 30 key long-term datasets. These records, which range from the ozone layer and land cover to atmospheric temperatures and ice cover, are critical for global change science.

"NPP's observations of a wide range of interconnected Earth properties and processes will give us the big picture of how our planet changes," said Jim Gleason, NPP project scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. "That will help us improve our computer models that predict future environmental conditions. Better predictions will let us make better decisions, whether it is as simple as taking an umbrella to work today or as complex as responding to a changing climate."

NASA Transfers Endeavour Title To California Science Center

http://nasa-spacestation-info.blogspot.com/
NASA transferred title and ownership of space shuttle Endeavour to the California Science Center (CSC) during a ceremony Tuesday at the center in Los Angeles. The transfer is the first step toward CSC receiving Endeavour in the latter half of 2012. "NASA is pleased to share this wonderful orbiter with the California Science Center to help inspire a new generation of explorers," NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said. "The next chapter in space exploration begins now, and we're standing on the shoulders of the men and women of the shuttle program to reach farther into the solar system."

Bolden announced April 12 that CSC was one of four institutions nationwide to receive a shuttle. After display preparation and post-mission work are complete, NASA will deliver Endeavour on the 747 shuttle carrier aircraft to Los Angeles International Airport. From there, the shuttle will be driven through the streets of Los Angeles to its destination at the Science Center in Exposition Park. "Endeavour now will begin its new mission to stimulate an interest in science and engineering in future generations at the science center," California Science Center President Jeffrey Rudolph said.

Falling Skies: One more Satellite Crashes to the Earth

http://nasa-spacestation-info.blogspot.com/

Brace yourselves for crash. German scientists are warning of one more out-of-control satellite that is heading to Earth and is expected to make landfall by the end of the month. Scientists from the German Aerospace Centre (DLR) say the 2.4 ton satellite, named ROSAT has drifted away from its orbit and will re-enter the atmosphere in the next little weeks. DLR has not been capable to communicate with the ROSAT since its last mission back in 1999. It has no force system to control it re-entry, so scientists will be unable to guide where it will land. The ROSAT was a built from a combined effort from the UK and the U.S. and had a mission of observe the stars. It launched out of Cape Canaveral in the U.S in June 1990.

http://nasa-spacestation-info.blogspot.com/
The satellite made lots of invaluable discoveries in its 8 years of operation before finally shutting down for its last mission in February, 12, 1999. DLR now warns that although the satellite will break up into pieces when it re-enters the atmosphere these pieces which weighs a totality 1.6 tons could still cause damage if it hits an inhabited part of Earth. ROSAT's heat resistant mirror may live the fiery re-entry and falling debris may include the mirror's jagged shards. Experts are estimating the chance of a person being hit by the falling debris as one in 2000. This is slightly superior to previous estimates of one in 3200 chance of getting hit when NASA's higher Atmosphere Research Satellite crashed last month.