#01

Boeing's bid to send astronauts into space hit a snag when investigators "found widespread and 'fundamental' problems with the company’s software that could have led to a disastrous outcome more grievous than previously known." You might recall Starliner's test flight back in December which was generally considered a successful mission despite failure to dock with the space station as planned. The additional scrutiny has brought to light other issues and the safety of the vehicle is now in question.

Do you think you have the right stuff? If so, NASA just announced that they will be accepting applications for the next astronaut class through March. Meanwhile, the president's budget request includes a 12% increase for NASA, largely to fund the next generation of astronauts to return to the moon by 2024. (Keep in mind this is just his request and it's congress's job to actually pass a budget).

If you're like me and stuck with mostly normal stuff, you might like to know that SpaceX inked a deal with a company called Space Adventures to fly private citizens into space. It'll probably be affordable to someone, but at $50 million for a seat I'm unfortunately out of the running. 

If you do end up in space for awhile, rest assured that your dog will not forget you! Check out this adorable video of Christina Koch's welcome home after nearly a year on the space station.

#02

NASA's 2020 Mars rover has landed!... In Florida. Most of the rover components have now been shipped from JPL to Kennedy Space Center to go through final integration and test before launch in July. Across the pond, Europe's Rosalind Franklin lander completed another round of testing, and the Unites Arab Emirates' Mars Orbiter dubbed Hope is coming together in a cleanroom at the University of Colorado - Boulder. 

The European led Solar Orbiter was launched into space successfully on February 9th. So far, all indications are that the spacecraft is healthy and has started to send back measurements (and generated some cool launch videos!). 

And for those of you keeping tabs on future missions, NASA selected 4 possible missions to explore the solar system (including two from JPL!).

#03

Last time we featured a story on Colin O'Brady, an arctic adventurer who skied solo across hundreds of miles of Antarctica and somehow didn't die. O'Brady called his trip The Impossible First, but it turns out to not be that simple. "O’Brady claimed to be the first person ever to cross Antarctica alone, unsupported, and unassisted—a collection of qualifiers that, in Teasdale’s careful language, 'do not withstand scrutiny.'... The veteran polar explorers National Geographic consulted for this story used different descriptors for his trip, labeling it ‘achievable,’ ‘contrived,’ ‘disappointing,’ and ‘disingenuous.’ " Learn more about O'Brady's disputed claims and "how heroes are made in this day of media saturation."

#04

Since all the good firsts have apparently been taken, Ed Pratt recently completed a 3 year 21,000 trip around the world traveling on a unicycle. Are you interested in repeating the journey? Check out all his gear.

#05

The Woods Hole Reserch Institute's vessel Atlantis spent some time in January and February studying studying hydrothermal vents on the Cayman Rise in the Caribbean. The boats remotely operated submarine captured a fascinating view of what an earthquak looks like underwater, allowing scientists to "study how seismic activity affects hydrothermal vents and the life around them." 

The Bookshelf

Neurologist, author, and all around polymath Oliver Sacks died a few years ago, but even that notable handicap has somehow not kept him from publishing new books. Everything In Its Place: First Loves and Last Tales is a collection of essays written over the years including compassionate case studies from Sack's years as a practicing neurologist, ponderings on his fascination with the physical sciences, and thoughts on science and the future. Sacks has become one of my favorite writers for his storytelling ability and the passion that comes through in his words. I'll leave you with a brief quote that stuck with me referring to the search for the "magic island," the name given to a group of potentially stable super-heavy elements:

"Such questions are, in a sense, besides the point. We search for the island of stability because, like Mt. Everest, it is there. But, as with Everest, there is profound emotion, too, infusing the scientific search to test for a hypothesis. The quest for the magic island shows us that science is far from being coldness and calculation, as many people imagine, but is shot through with passion, longing, and romance."

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This newsletter was produced as a private venture and not in the author's capacity as an employee of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory/California Institute of Technology or of Griffith Observatory. Any views and opinions expressed herein or on exploreandobserve.com are his own and not those of his employers.

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