“Great art pushes our thinking in new directions. Robert J. Goddard became fascinated with space flight after reading War of the Worlds. Martin Cooper’s ideas for the cell phone were inspired by…
Thinking of "Interstellar": And the Children Shall Reach Out
Keith Cowing – First posted Friday, May 20, 2005: Every now and again even the most cynical of us stumble across something so simple – and yet profound – as to take…
What Happens When Politics Controls Textbook Content
From “Interstellar”: This is what happens when politics drives textbook content and robs children of a future of exploration.
Students to Control Satellites from New Mobile Lab
Santa Clara University’s School of Engineering added a new tool to its program that monitors and controls satellites. The Mobile Mission Control Lab (MMCL) is a 28-foot trailer loaded with equipment that…
MOOC: Alien Worlds: The Science of Exoplanet Discovery and Characterization
“Wanted: Amateur star-gazers and Star Trek fans interested in exploring planets outside this solar system. Must be open to the possibility of life beyond Earth. Knowledge of Klingon not necessary. Sense of…
Skybox for Good Program Announced
“Skybox Imaging, one of the more recent acquisitions of Google, announced at the company’s yearly Geo for Good User Summit that it is launching the Skybox for Good program. Under the program,…
Citizen Science Network Produces Accurate Maps of Atmospheric Dust
Measurements by thousands of citizen scientists in the Netherlands using their smartphones and the iSPEX add-on are delivering accurate data on dust particles in the atmosphere that add valuable information to professional…
Radio Amateurs Report Hearing 4M Moon Orbiter JT65B Signal
“A Chinese Long March 3C/G2 rocket carried the Manfred Memorial Moon Mission (4M) lunar flyby experiment into space at 1759 UTC on October 23, on its way to a lunar transfer orbit…
Belgian Students Are Closer To Their Ticket to Orbit
A team of Belgian students have taken steps towards gaining their ‘Ticket to Orbit!’, not for themselves, but for the CubeSat they are developing. OUFTI-1 is designed and developed, and now being…
SETI Institute Hosts Asteroid Hackathon
“The SETI Institute has partnered withEchoUser, SpaceGAMBIT, Maui Makers, the Minor Planet Center, NASA, and Further by Design to host an Asteroid Hackathon on Saturday, Oct. 25. Using the world’s best sources for asteroid data, hackers from all…
MOOC on Planetary Boundaries and Human Opportunities
“Planetary Boundaries and Human Opportunities: The Quest for Safe and Just Development on a Resilient Planet helps students to explore and apply a range of emerging concepts within sustainability science. These concepts include:…
Your Smartphone Can Become A Cosmic Ray Detector
Soon, the growing capability of your smartphone could be harnessed to detect cosmic rays in much the same way as high-end, multimillion-dollar observatories. With a simple app addition, Android phones, and likely…