New Results From Our Juno Mission Suggest The Planet Is Home To “shallow Lightning.” An Unexpected

Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the launch of Apollo 6.

OSIRIS-REx Captures Laser 3D View of Bennu

NASA - OSIRIS-REx Mission patch. April 8, 2019

This three-dimensional view of asteroid Bennu was created by the OSIRIS-REx Laser Altimeter (OLA), contributed by the Canadian Space Agency, on NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft. From Feb. 12 through 17, OLA made more than 11 million measurements of the distance between OSIRIS-REx and Bennu’s surface as the spacecraft flew less than 1.2 miles (2 km) above the surface – the closest orbit ever achieved by spacecraft. OLA obtained these measurements by firing laser pulses at Bennu and measuring the amount of time it takes for the light to bounce off the asteroid’s surface and return to the instrument. That time measurement is then translated into altitude data. Using this data, the OLA team created the 3-D model of Bennu’s surface.

OSIRIS-REx orbiting Bennu

The colors represent the distance from the center of Bennu: dark blue areas lie approximately 197 feet (60 meters) lower than peaks indicated in red. Some parts of the asteroid have not yet been measured, which creates gaps in the image. OLA will take nearly a billion more measurements throughout 2019 to complete the first-ever high-resolution 3D lidar map of a near-Earth asteroid. OSIRIS-REx (Origins Spectral Interpretation Resource Identification Security Regolith Explorer): http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/osiris-rex/index.html Animation, Image, Text, Credits: NASA/Karl Hille/University of Arizona/CSA/York/MDA. Greetings, Orbiter.ch Full article

Kinda cool when the person running a great big ol’ agency’s FB account decides your picture is worthy of said agency’s ❤️. Thanks @nasa ! #space #launchamerica #crewdragon @spacex #iss @iss @issnationallab https://www.instagram.com/p/CHStHVhDNDR/?igshid=1hpnysb816a4v

South Polar Region of Jupiter - Enhanced by John Brackett - Nov. 2017

In honor of the anniversary of the Apollo 12 Moon landing, here is one of my images I reprocessed. (Celestron 127slt mak, iPhone 8) #space #apollo #apollo12 #apollo50th #moon #astronomy #nasa https://www.instagram.com/p/B5CEVqrHS6L/?igshid=byug01nzfwhx

Tomorrow, the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft will perform a “touch and go” maneuver with the asteroid Bennu, with the intent to collect a sample and return it to Earth. As the spacecraft orbited Bennu, a team of 3,600 people, including myself, analyzed 4,500 images to mark every crater, rock, and boulder in order to find the ideal spot for the “TAG”. We made 14 million notations! https://www.facebook.com/OSIRISREx/videos/2826486524306208/?vh=e&extid=0&d=n #bennu #osirisrex #space #tobennuandback @nasa @nasasolarsystem #nasaeducation https://www.instagram.com/p/CGjSy_yDuM-/?igshid=10jw6a0fmwa2h

Working with the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, I captured and processed the “Pillars of Creation” in the Eagle Nebula. It doesn’t quiet compare to the Hubble Space Telescope’s capture, but I’m proud of it. https://www.instagram.com/p/CDvPyrWDz-m/?igshid=1uyp3ajel3e1i

Fun night outside! Took advantage of some tips I’ve read and watched, and captured some decent Moon images. Still have some focusing issues, but these turned out pretty good for what I was using. #celestron127slt #iphone11 #moon #astronomy #backyardastronomy https://www.instagram.com/p/CO9SFAMjd3A/?igshid=163w76p92jsl7

My cool shirt arrived today! @earthspaceexplorationasu @asuinterplanetary #asu #arizonastateuniversity #astronomy #planets #solarsystemambassador #humanspaceflight #moon #mars https://www.instagram.com/p/CPRpFf8DF6y/?utm_medium=tumblr

Daddy’s “Digital Learning” as well. About two years ago, I was talking to a buddy of mine about the U.S. space program picking up speed. I told him I was going to be in the heart of it to the extent of my abilities. As things developed, I found my niche in education and outreach. Thanks to my wife’s support, I’ve seen so many cool things, attended live and virtual briefings, and taken class after class. I so dearly want to be in Texas, Alabama, and Florida. However, I will continue to do my part here at home... For now. https://www.instagram.com/p/CD0OtziDeOr/?igshid=1hp56kr86pvm9