Out There Somewhere

Image: NASA JHUAPLSWRI
YOU GOTTA HAVE HEART: We here at MPA have been busy Busy BUSY with stuff. Mostly helping neighbors stuff. It seems like everyone we know is moving rightnow!!! and they all need help, of course. We're happy to help, it just takes chunks of time and energy. But I digress. Let's talk about more important things like the newly released, somewhat blurry-looking image above!! It was taken on July 7 by New Horizons, the spacecraft rapidly approaching Pluto!

This photo when it was about 5 million miles from the dwarf planet, but you can see the heart on its hindquarters! 

Excitement is building as New Horizons closes in on Pluto, with July 14 set as its rendezvous date. Check out this promotional video, made to help hype it up.

https://youtu.be/_BgfYvwMoro

You can check out a countdown clock to New Horizon's closest Pluto pass, see all the latest images, and read up on the mission here: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/newhorizons/main/index.html

FIRSTS: Today, NASA announced the first group of astronauts who will be hitching rides on commercial space carriers (SpaceX and Boeing capsules to the International Space Station).  All spaceflight veterans, they are Robert Behnken, Eric Boe, Douglas Hurley and Sunita Williams. 

Image: NASA

Williams is one of my personal favorite astronauts. She's wicked smart, funny and ran a marathon on the ISS!

Here's a video about "Launching for America."

https://youtu.be/kPSk23XOGuk

VIRTUAL SUMMER CAMP: Happily, a couple of days ago, I stumbled across a link letting me know about "Camp Google."

It's a cool collaboration between Khan Academy, National Geographic, National Parks, and NASA in the form of a free, four-week online 'camp' for kids (targeted at those ages 7 to 10). Here's the promo video https://youtu.be/m8oMm_q1bpk

Starting on July 13, every Monday for the next four weeks, camp will kick off, accessible from the Camp Google site. The first adventure is Ocean Week. Campers will head deep into the depths of the Atlantic Ocean to explore. Future weeks include a live hike up an active volcano with a Park Ranger and a jam session with a music star.

You don't have to start camp on Mondays each week. Everyone and anyone is welcome to jump on in anytime. .

Along the Waterfront

SCENIC STROLL: This morning's attempt to get several thousand steps in took us to the east side of Puget Sound waterfront.

Specifically, we started off near the grain terminal in Centennial Park. 

 A huge ship from Hong Kong was in port. 

We checked it out while admiring nearby flowers. 

The kids climbed all over an art installation with enormous rocks. 

 It seemed like a piddly climb compared to the mountain we scaled a couple of weekends ago.

We encountered a couple of sprinklers along our walk. At first, the kids tried to stay dry ... 

 but pretty soon they didn't care about a little water.

We wound our way to the Olympic Sculpture Park. We had planned on turning around at the white lady, but when we spied a little cabin we'd not seen before across the way, we had to go check it out.

When we got there, we found out the cabin is a temporary, summer installation and a site-specific work by Seattle artist Dan Webb.

The cabin will be built over the summer, and it's incorporating some of the park's felled Douglas fir trees. 

I had the kids take the dogs on the porch of the cabin so I could get a photo of them there. Imagine our surprise when the artist popped out of the cabin and started talking to them. 

Specifically, he was encouraging his kids, a boy and a girl a little younger than CJ and Annabelle, to come up and check out the dogs.

We had a nice, protracted conversation with the artist and his kids about dogs. For better or for worse, they learned a lot about the Havanese breed this morning. 

Eventually, an official Seattle Art Museum tour came along and so we bugged out. But what an interesting stop it was.

Another item we noticed for the first time today was this 'file box.'

It's not just a cardboard box someone left behind. Rather, it's been in the park since 2004, made of steel with porcelain enamel, by artist Roy McMakin. What's funny is I also thought the ugly plastic chair out of place. Turns out it's part of the art installation. 

Here's the sign describing it all. 

Eventually, we headed back toward Magnolia on foot. On the way back, we stopped to admire Centennial Park's rose garden.

 The orange roses were especially appealing to my eye today. 

Roving

BEACHED: We decided to get a walk in first thing this morning, and chose the north beach at Discovery Park as our destination. Though it's right here in our neighborhood, we hadn't been to that particular spot in years. 

We made our way through a part of Discovery Park's forest and wound our way down to the shore. When you look to the north, you see Shilshole Marina. 

The beach has a couple of large granite erratics on site. The tide was out just far enough for us to get a closer look at this one. 

As we strolled, CJ noticed a red, squishy looking thing on the beach. He asked me what it was. I haven't a clue. I suggested he gently poke it with a stick and flip it over, to look at its other side. 

 He did so tentatively. The flipside provided no further clues. Kinda looks like some kind of sea tomato to me!

We hiked our way back up the hill to our car, about 6000 steps or 2 miles in all. 

As an added bonus, on our way home, the sprinklers were on at Bayview Park. Hooray!

CRISPY: During our walk today, Annabelle asked me how long it has been since it has rained in Seattle. I wasn't sure, but was happy that just a bit later, the answer to that popped up in my Facebook feed. According to KOMO's weather expert Scott Sistek, it has been 36 days since Seattle last had significant rainfall. It has been 23 days since we've last had a high below 70 degrees, 18 days since we've had a traditional cloudy day, we've had 12 days in a row with highs above 80 degrees, and a record-tying 5 days in a row at 90 degrees. 

Sistek put together a tribute to Seattle rain, using video from KOMO news photographers Mike McLaughlin and Doug Pigsley

http://www.komonews.com/weather/blogs/scott/Click-here-if-you-miss-Seattles-gray-skies-and-rain-311936591.html

GOOD STUFF:  NASA has just released its second edition of the book International Space Station Benefits for Humanity. You can buy an ink on paper version, but it's free to read online in a PDF format: http://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/jsc_benefits_for_humanity_tagged_6-30-15.pdf

The book highlights benefits in a number of key areas including human health, disaster relief and education programs to inspire future scientists, engineers and space explorers.

In a NASA press replase, Julie Robinson, NASA International Space Station chief scientist, said, "People do not realize how much their lives today have been made better by the space station. You would be surprised to know that station research has resulted in devices that can help control asthma and sensor systems that significantly improve our ability to monitor the Earth and respond to natural hazards and catastrophes, among many other discoveries." 

NASA also has a section of its Web site all about ISS' benefits for humanity. It's definitely worth checking out!

STRUMMING: Here's a little ditty the kids have been working on the past couple of days. It's "Chasing Cars" by Snow Patrol. https://youtu.be/yjmmJq8blU4


ROVING: On this day (July 7) in 2003, NASA's rover Opportunity launched from Cape Canaveral, destination, Mars!

                        Photo: NASA, naturally

Opportunity landed on the Red Planet on January 25, 2004, and since then it has "run" (rolled, really) the equivalent of a marathon. Here's a cool video of the durable rover's travels.

MURALS ON THE MOVE: We turned on the local news tonight (a bit of a rarity in our house, actually), and we were pleased to seen an update about the massive Native American-themed murals on the exterior of the kids' former learning center. You can view the video here: http://www.komonews.com/news/local/Murals-On-The-Move-312302601.html

Going Fourth

WELCOME TO AMERICA:  Busy weekend 'round these parts. We started our Saturday, the Fourth of July, by heading to Seattle Center to see brand-spanking-new citizens sworn in in a ceremony at Fisher Pavilion.

We arrived at 11 a.m. and listened to about an hour of patriotic music thanks to a small orchestra playing in the blazing heat. 

Soon-to-be citizens shielded themselves with their immigration documents. 

Before the speeches and such, there was a flyover with vintage military craft. I was so darn mad I had the wrong lens on at the time. :/

 There were Americans of every shape and size at the event. 

 I think this was my favorite photo of the day. :)

At noon, the dignitaries assembled on stage, including Senator Maria Cantwell and Congressman Jim McDermott. 

 Mayor Ed Murray was the Master of Ceremonies.

A local judge read the oath, and the 504 people from 85 different countries, each with their own story, became American citizens. 

Annabelle's thoughts ...

On the 4^th of July, I went to Seattle Center to see a citizenship ceremony, where many people became citizens of the United States. The ceremony started at 11:00 with patriotic music, but the people became citizens around 12:50. Many state representatives and natives appeared, and there was even an audio recording from the president. Many people watched the ceremony as well. The ceremony was overall interesting to watch even though it was really hot and sunny outside.

And CJ's observations ... 

On July 4th, 2015, we went to a citizenship ceremony at Seattle Center, where we saw 504 immigrants from 85 different countries become United States citizens. Before the actual ceremony started, a small orchestra played multiple patriotic songs to welcome the people who were about to become citizens. Although we arrived at about 11:00 A.M (which was also when the music started), according to my mom, the people in the ceremony did not officially become citizens until about 12:50. At the ceremony, there were several state and local politicians visiting, including Ed Murray, the mayor of Seattle, Jay Inslee, the governor of Washington, and Maria Cantwell, a U.S Senator who represents Washington. Just prior to the ceremony, Ed Murray gave a short speech about the diversity of Seattle, mentioning places in Seattle such as the Chinatown-International District (which has a self-explanatory name) and the East African Orthodox Church (which also has a self-explanatory name). Overall, it was a very interesting experience seeing hundreds of people from all across the planet become citizens of the United States.

LATER ON: For the evening of the Fourth, we headed north, to Everett, where the Mariners' single A-level team took on the Hillsboro Hops', a single A team of the Arizona Diamondbacks.

 The game was entertaining and, to the chagrin of every single person in the stadium awaiting post-game fireworks, it went into extra innings. 

The stadium in Everett has a lovely backdrop.

 My favorite part of the night was after the game, watching a dude in Wranglers with a Bic lighter kick fireworks around centerfield. 'Murica!