Up and Over

Photo Credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

THERE IT GOES-S: This afternoon, we made a kind of unscheduled stop at Annabelle's learning center. We were there to install the monthly birthday bulletin board. Whilst there, Christian texted, reminding us of a NASA launch at 2 p.m. 

That was a bit of an 'oh no!' moment, as we've had trouble tuning in to NASA TV at that location before, troubles stemming from a combination of old software, child safety filters, and such. Ironic, given that nothing on NASA's channel is anything but educational, but things don't always make sense. ... Anyway, today we were happy the librarian was around, and she was able to help us get the launch coverage up and running.

My favorite part of watching launches in public places like that is that it's an instant outreach opportunity. There were three kids and one adult in the computer lab, and each one of them, ages about 3 to 50+, gathered 'round the monitors to watch the launch. 

They had questions, including, "Where is that?" (Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, in Florida.)

"Where is it going?"

It will be positioned in a geostationary orbit 22,300 miles above Earth, in approximately two weeks, 

"What are they launching?"

It's carrying the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite, or GOES-S. The satellite will provide faster, more accurate and more detailed data, in almost real-time, to track storm systems, lightning, wildfires, coastal fog and other hazards that affect the western United States.

It wasn't the biggest rocket or splashiest mission, but still, four people got to see a rocket launch live today (via the web), and I think it's something they'll remember. 

CAN YOU DIG IT?:  Meanwhile, on Mars, Curiosity has been having a bit of a challenge.

Turns out the Mars Science Laboratory's drill has been broken for awhile now, its drill motor out of order.  

However, skookum engineers on Earth have been troubleshooting work-arounds. And on Feb. 26, Curiosity drilled into Red Planet rock for the first time in more than a year.

The hole bored was about 0.5 inches (1.3 centimeters) deep into a target rock during the trial run of a new, technique, NASA officials said.

"We're now drilling on Mars more like the way you do at home," Curiosity deputy project manager Steven Lee, of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California, said in a statement. "Humans are pretty good at re-centering the drill, almost without thinking about it. Programming Curiosity to do this by itself was challenging — especially when it wasn't designed to do that."

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS