[Spacetalk] HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY, USA

Mon Jul 4 22:34:20 CDT 2022

Hi all,

 I returned home from Brazil Saturday morning…it was amazing in every way…it is so much fun with the kids, the connection is awesome…they love NASA, astronomy, astrophysics, stars, space, and have such big dreams…they are enthusiastic, eager to learn, filled with so much energy and kindness…the teachers and parents as well…I was in 9 cities, speaking with thousands of kids and adults…each city was so unique, the activities planned full speed, one amazing adventure after the next…also keeping promises to return, seeing many kids from previous visits, and meeting new friends. I can’t begin to thank everyone involved…the scheduling is intense, transportation a factor, temperature swings from 5C (40F) to 36C (97F) and air conditioning always going full blast…I did stay reasonably healthy but got sick the last few days and now fighting an incredibly sore throat and cold…not Covid…which in some ways is amazing as very few wore masks and I never did…I was fortunate they lifted the required Covid test about a week before I returned so I did not have to deal with that..it is challenging to focus on anything except the day I am in so I have not been keeping up with events of the space program but did follow the Artemis mission as another major step was accomplished…the launch is now planned for the end of August…this will be an amazing experience as this is, by far, the most powerful rocket ever launched….more than the shuttle and SaturnV…I saw many shuttles, no SaturnV but with almost 9 million pounds of thrust it should literally shake the earth and everything within many kilometers (miles) of the launch site…

I started this a week ago…it is amazing how time goes so fast…it is July 4th evening, fireworks going off everywhere, had a fun day with the swim team…I managed to swim 3 days last week, trying to get back into exercise after a month of no gym or swimming…

We have to stay positive and always be thankful… remembering to do our best, enjoy everything we do, believe in ourselves, and let those we care about most know (I always say this, we all need to take it to heart) …hugs… STAY SAFE, TAKE CARE, Love ya, Gabe  

Artemis finished testing on the launch pad, was moved back to the VAB for further evaluation and preparation for the first test flight, tentatively, August 24th…

NASA’s Moon Rocket and Spacecraft Arrive at Vehicle Assembly Building

At approximately 2:30 p.m. ET, NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft for the Artemis I mission were firmly secured inside the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at Kennedy Space Center after a four-mile journey from launch pad 39B that began at 4:12 a.m. ET Saturday, July 2. Over the next several days, the team will extend work platforms to allow access to SLS and Orion. In the coming weeks, teams will replace a seal on the quick disconnect <https://blogs.nasa.gov/artemis/2022/06/20/artemis-i-wdr-update-test-ends-at-737-p-m-edt-at-t-29-seconds/> of the tail service mast umbilical and perform additional checkouts and activities before returning to the pad for launch.

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3gt0mGwke8 <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3gt0mGwke8>

NASA's Perseverance Mars Rover

Sojourner

Twenty-five years ago today, a true pioneer touched down. Sojourner proved we could drive on Mars; each rover since has done true overland exploration. Perseverance is the fifth in this line, collecting samples that could one day return to Earth and rewrite history. Onward.

Another supermoon rises this month with July's 'Buck Moon'
By Elizabeth Howell  <https://www.space.com/author/elizabeth-howell>published 4 days ago
That's three in a row so far, for those keeping track.

(opens in new tab)
 <https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https://www.space.com/full-moon-rises-supermoon-july-2022> (opens in new tab
 <https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=Another%20supermoon%20rises%20this%20month%20with%20July%27s%20%27Buck%20Moon%27&url=https://www.space.com/full-moon-rises-supermoon-july-2022>

The strawberry supermoon rises behind the Artemis 1 moon rocket on June 14, 2022. (Image credit: NASA/Ben Smegelsky)
July's full moon will once again be a supermoon, reaching its perigee or closest point to our planet on July 13.

The moon <https://www.space.com/55-earths-moon-formation-composition-and-orbit.html> will be relatively close to Earth in its slightly elliptical orbit, making it appear just slightly bigger and brighter than usual. The "Buck Moon" or "Thunder Moon," will officially reach its peak on July 13, at 2:37 p.m. EDT(opens in new tab) <https://www.timeanddate.com/moon/usa/new-york?month=7&year=2022>(1837 GMT), according to timeanddate.com. While definitions of "supermoon" vary, NASA eclipse watcher Fred Espenak counts July's full moon <https://www.space.com/37341-july-full-moon.html> as the third of four supermoons <https://www.space.com/super-flower-blood-moon-eclipse-may-2022-espenak> in a row.

New York City observers will see the almost-full moon set at about 4:55 a.m. local time on July 13, according to timeanddate.com; the slightly waning moon will rise again at 9:00 p.m. 

Liftoff replay...Atlas V USSF-12 Launch from the beach...
https://twitter.com/ulalaunch/status/1543013658514669568?cxt=HBwWgIC-9eiv8ekqAAAA&cn=ZmxleGlibGVfcmVjcw%3D%3D&refsrc=email <https://twitter.com/ulalaunch/status/1543013658514669568?cxt=HBwWgIC-9eiv8ekqAAAA&cn=ZmxleGlibGVfcmVjcw==&refsrc=email> 

United Launch Alliance’s Atlas 5 rocket lifts off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida, to begin the USSF-12 mission for the U.S. Space Force. Credit: United Launch Alliance
A United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket fired off its launch pad at Cape Canaveral Friday on a six-hour climb to geosynchronous orbit, deploying a classified payload and a U.S. Space Force satellite to test an improved infrared heat-sensitive sensor design that could help detect and track enemy hypersonic missiles. The mission, designated USSF-12, released the two Space Force satellites into an on-target orbit more than 22,400 miles (about 36,100 kilometers) over the equator, according to ULA. The spacecraft are expected to maneuver into their final operating positions a couple hundred miles lower in the geostationary belt, where they will orbit in lock-step with Earth’s rotation. One of the payloads, called the Wide Field of View Testbed, will demonstrate a new instrument design that could help give the military better warning of a missile attack. The USSF-12 Ring spacecraft, riding below the WFOV Testbed payload during the launch sequence, hosts classified experiments and tech demo payloads. Launching a day late after stormy weather scrubbed a countdown Thursday, the Atlas 5 ignited its Russian-made RD-180 main engine and four strap-on solid rocket boosters at 7:15 p.m. EDT (2315 GMT) Friday to kick off the fourth mission of the year for United Launch Alliance, a 50-50 joint venture between Boeing and Lockheed Martin. The countdown Friday was also delayed by bad weather. The Atlas 5 launch team waited more than an hour for electrically charged anvil clouds and upper level winds to become more favorable for liftoff. The weather concerns cleared, and ULA engineers gave approval to commence the final four minutes of the countdown, culminating in the Atlas 5’s fiery departure from Florida’s Space Coast.

If you could #travel <https://twitter.com/hashtag/travel?src=hashtag_click> anywhere in space, where would you go?
Would you visit Jupiter to see its incredible auroras? Or maybe a faraway planet that has not one Sun but two!
Imagine taking a trip off-world with these inspiring travel posters from 
@NASAJPL <https://twitter.com/NASAJPL>! 
https://go.nasa.gov/3xYmR6o <https://t.co/Nwu3yqoFIT>

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