Space Weather report

the dscovr launch

by Uncle John

“For the eyes of the world now look into space, to the moon, and to the planets beyond.” –JFK

 the horizon

 Ever since man set his sights on our planet from above it has opened new doors of discovery and mysteries to explore. John Glenn Jr. was the first astronaut, who rode the Mercury spacecraft, on the first United States mission Manned Orbital Space Flight. Mercury was designed  to “sustain a man in a space environment for a given period of time, to protect him from external heating and acceleration during exit and reentry, to provide him with means for controlling the attitude of the spacecraft, to permit him to perform observations and a limited number of experiments in space, and to then bring him safely back to earth with sufficient location aids to permit rapid recovery by surface forces.” In the Pilot’s Flight Report: “A number of questions have been raised over the ability of a man to use the earth’s horizon as a reference for controlling the attitude of the space vehicle. Throughout this flight no trouble in seeing the horizon was encountered. During the day the earth is bright and the background of space is dark. The horizon is vividly marked. At night before the moon is up, the horizon can still be seen against the background of stars. After the moon rises & during the flight, the moon was full, the earth is well enough lighted so that the horizon can be clearly seen. With this horizon as a reference, the pitch and roll attitudes of the spacecraft can easily be controlled. The window can be positioned where you want it.” Communication, and astronomical, meteorological, and terrestrial observations bring descriptive results.

space science

There’s no place like our home! NASA has shed new light on earth science, launching missions with practical and relevant research that will explore our planet to help us deal with environmental problems from a new perspective.  Some of the recent satellites launched to explore and improve our environment on earth include: The Global Precipitation Measurement Core Observatory, observes precipitation on earth, rain and snowfall; the Soil Moisture Active Passage Mission Observatory will map the amount of moisture in the earth’s soil; Orbiting Carbon Observatory is a mission NASA describes as “watching Earth breathe”. Important instruments deployed to space include:  International Space Station-Rapidscat that will measure ocean wind speed and direction and the data will be used to aid weather and marine forecasting to determine weather patterns and climate. Eric Lindstrom, program scientist says “International Space Station-RapidScat will extend NASA’s measurements of winds at the ocean surface. This knowledge has been critical to mariners since the invention of boats, and is critical today, both for our marine economy and for understanding the role of ocean in climate. It’s really amazing all the uses we have found for a radar in space that measures the ripples on the sea surface." The Cloud-Aerosol Transport System (CATS) measures airborne particles and clouds. It focuses on what’s in our atmosphere, particularly aerosol particles that pose human health risks, and influence our climate.

There is a problem yet to be dealt with. It’s the space debris, garbage cluttering the space surrounding our planet. Satellites orbiting within 1200 miles of Earth represent about 5% of the objects there. 95% is space junk, "derelict spacecraft, discarded launch rockets to explosive bolts, lens caps, flecks of chipped paint, and tens of millions of smaller particles". Orbital debris also results from accidental explosions and collisions of objects. There are more than sixty countries and numerous companies with satellites in orbit and no international body regulates them. The more debris, the more difficult and expensive space missions become. The frequency of object launches causing the increase, congestion of space debris, poses a risk of collison. This is the orbital environment where all manned space launches have gone (except for the lunar landings). Space is a big place. We should be grateful to access this technically artistic, low orbit environment , the author of the universe created, and endeavor to clean up after ourselves.

earth's environment

Our environment includes our habitat, and our extended domain into space, all the conditions, circumstances, and influences surrounding and affecting the development of organisms. We must be aware of the reality of the climate crisis at hand, and the problems caused by littering, and dumping garbage into the ocean, in order to help find the solution to pollution on our planet. Climate changes, we witness everywhere globally, shows us extreme developments in the atmospheric conditions, with bigger results that last longer, bringing us chaotic and eccentric weather.

On a positive note, Earth’s fragile ozone layer is beginning to recover, mainly due to the phase out of some chemicals used in refrigerants and aerosol cans according to scientists who work on our ecological crises.

the deep space climate observatory

The Deep Space Climate Observatory (DSCOVR) is managed by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in partnership with NASA and the U.S. Air Force (USAF). It will operate a post nearly a million miles from Earth to help forecasters by collecting data on solar storms, solar wind, to give notice of solar stars that can disrupt communications, trigger power outages, or endanger polar air traffic & satellites. At this location it will have a continuous view of the Sun and the daylight side of Earth. DSCOVR will provide critical info about supersonic solar wind that streams from the sun to interact with Earth's magnetosphere & upper atmosphere." according to Tom Berger, director of NOAA & Space Weather Center in Colorado. "Most of us know this interaction through its generation of the Aurora Borealis or Northern Lights, the most visible aspect of space weather."

This project was originally known as TRIANA, named after the first sailor to sight land in the Americas, Rodrigo de Triana, one of Christopher Columbus’ crew. The idea was first proposed by then Vice-President Al Gore at MIT  17 years ago. Al Gore was at the launch on February 8 to talk about his project, two fold, a camera that will send back pictures (beginning around July) that will inspire people and raise awareness about our planet, and measurement devices to study changes in Earth’s radiation, and measure solar winds for space weather predictions. Ozone and aerosol levels will be monitored, as well as cloud dynamics, properties of the land and vegetations.  Gore said, “What we call global warming is not really best measured with temperature. Temperatures are what scientists call a noisy signal. Since 90% of energy trapped by global warming pollution goes into the oceans, and since the oceans turn over very slowly, it’s a noisy indicator. This satellite will for the first time, far more accurately, measure the energy budget of planet Earth.”

space before the climax

On Sunday, we ride over to the launch pad view, near a bald eagle’s nest, we had to stop on the road to let an armadillo cross. There was so much anticipation and waiting as the countdown began. I was basking in the expectation of the rocket’s mighty roar, the blowback from the windy plume as the rocket rises. The tracking and ground instrumentation network play an instrumental role watching every detail with sure precision. When the countdown hit 2 minutes :31 seconds we heard, “It’s a no go for launch, no go for launch today”. The setback was overwhelming. The last time I felt disappointment like this was at a Grateful Dead concert in Sacramento outdoors on a Saturday night. They had closed their show with "Sugar Magnolia" and the audience was stirred with excitement as the band returned for an encore. They started tuning their instruments, and kept tuning them up as anticipation builds and expectation grew in the audience. The wait then was the same feeling I had waiting for the rocket to launch. Over twenty minutes they continued to tune up and then Bobby announced that “our instruments are broke. We’ll see you tomorrow.” The bringdown was overwhelming as we camped there that night and saw the next show at noon, when Bobby announced, “We’re going to start with last night’s encore.” I remember the great elation I felt and the energy rise when they played “One More Saturday Night”, the same ecstatic feeling I had when I saw this rocket lift off on Wednesday.

the Mercury Effect

The launch was scrubbed Sunday due to tech problems, postponed on Monday due to rain, and scrubbed on Tuesday because of high winds. Someone mentioned that this launch seemed to be hexed. Since the 23^rd of January the launch was postponed three times in January and now had one more opportunity this week.The planet Mercury, closest to the sun,  was retrograde for three weeks, January 21- February 11. This means at certain points on Mercury’s surface, an observer would be able to see the Sun rise part way, then reverse and set before rising again, all within the same day. This apparent retrograde motion of the Sun occurs because Mercury’s angular orbital speed exceeds its rotational velocity. Mercury’s elliptical orbit is farther from circular than that of any other planet in our solar system, resulting in substantially higher orbital speed near perihelion (when it’s closest to the sun). This astronomic effect affects our magnetic fields of influence. Three times a year this happens, and we notice with regularity how it impinges anything technological : computer crashes, cell phone glitches, cable out, communication breakdowns are all results. On February 8 the radar tracker failed on Falcon 9 causing the delay for launching. On February 11, a little after 6am, Mercury went prograde (direct). A little after 6pm DSCOVR was launched successfully on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket in near perfect conditions.   

science mission

We must remain vigilant. We now live in the age of recycling, renewable energy, wind power and solar energy, computer chips and mobile phones. Magnetic fields are also influenced by the solar rays. This 2 year mission for this satellite (with five years of fuel) will have a constant view of the Sun and the sunlit side of Earth. Al Gore issued a statement after the launch. “It was inspiring to witness the launch of the Deep Space Climate Observatory. DSCOVR has embarked on its mission to further our understanding of Earth and enable its citizens and scientists alike to better understand the reality of the climate crisis and envision its solutions. DSCOVR will also give us a wonderful opportunity to see the beauty and fragility of our planet and, in doing so, remind us of the duty to protect our only home."

Uncle John @ Kennedy space center for the launch of the deep space climate observatory.

Click picture,to see SpaceX Falcon Rocket Launch of DSCOVR satellite 02/11/2015

space Weather report

voyager 1 & 2 are the first man-made satellites from earth to leave our solar system to search through intergalactic space. looking back from voyager we can now see our solar system looks like a giant eye. VOYAGER 1 HAs LEFT THE HELIOpause OF OUR SOLAR SYSTEM travelling through THE BOW SHOCK TO BEGIN ITS trip INTO INTERSTELLAR SPACE. voyager 2 is still in the heliosphere, that is like a giant air conditioner. When voyager 1 went into the heliopause there was like a tsunami of interstellar wind. it then entered into a very hot space signaling the arrival into interstellar space. voyager 2, that has more working instruments than voyager 1, will leave the heliopause about the same time the first humans fly-by mars, a few years down the celestial road. its instruments will send a much clearer signal once it reaches interstellar space. both voyagers carry time capsules known as the golden record, a 12 inch, gold-plated copper disc with images and sounds of earth, so extraterrestrial intelligent life can learn about us. WE HAVE NOW GONE FURTHER THAN EVER BEFORE.

Next: Voyager's accomplishments visiting the planets in our system. voyager moves ahead to the next unknown in instellar space & leaves us this snapshot of our solar system :