Space News Update- June 27, 2014 -

In the News

Story 1: Orion passes final full-up parachute test before flight

Story 2: NASA's STEREO Maps Much Larger Solar Atmosphere Than Previously Observed

Story 3: Russia to debut first new space rocket design since Soviet era

 Departments

The Night SkyISS Sighting Opportunities

Space CalendarNASA-TV Highlights

Food for ThoughtSpace Image of the Week

Orion passes final full-up parachute test before flight

NASA's STEREO Maps Much Larger Solar Atmosphere Than Previously

Observed

Russia to debut first new space rocket design since Soviet era

The Night Sky

Sky & Telescope

Friday, June 27This is the time of year when, at the end of dusk, the dim Little Dipper floats straight upward from Polaris (the end of its handle) — like a helium balloon on a string, escaped from some summer evening party. Look due north. (Through light pollution, all that you may see of the Little Dipper are Polaris at one end and Kochab, the lip of the Little Dipper's bowl, above it at the other end.) Saturday, June 28Can you see the big Coma Berenices star cluster from where you live? Does your light pollution really hide it, or do you just not know exactly where to look? It's 2/5 of the way from Denebola (Leo's tail) to the end of the Big Dipper's handle (Ursa Major's tail). Its brightest members form an inverted Y. The cluster is about 5° wide overall — a big, dim glow in at least a moderately dark sky. It nearly fills a binocular view. If you have a good dark sky, look east after the final glow of twilight fades out. All across the low eastern sky on any clear night now, the starry, mottled band of the Milky Way is looming up. It rises higher through the night and crosses straight overhead around 3 a.m. Sunday, June 29Shortly after sunset, look for thin waxing crescent moon very low in the west-northwest, then look for Jupiter well to its right, as shown here. Monday, June 30Now the thickening crescent Moon is higher and easier to see in twilight, with Jupiter farther to its lower right and stars of Leo above it, as shown here.

ISS Sighting Opportunities

Sighting information for other cities can be found at NASA’s Satellite Sighting Information

ISS For Denver:

No sightings for Denver June 25 – July 11, 2014

NASA-TV Highlights

(all times Eastern Daylight Time)

7 p.m., Sunday, June 29 - Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 Prelaunch News Conference and Mission Science Briefing (all channels)

9:35 a.m., Monday, June 30 - ISS Expedition 40 In-Flight Event for ESA with the German ZDF Network (will be interpreted into English) (all channels)

12:30 p.m., Monday, June 30 - NASA Social for OCO-2 Mission – KSC/VAFB (all channels)

3:45 a.m., Tuesday, July 1 - Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 Launch Coverage (all channels)

7:45 a.m., Tuesday, July 1 - ISS Expedition 40 In-Flight Interviews with the NBC “Today” Show and WJZ-TV, Baltimore (all channels)

8:30 a.m., Tuesday, July 1 - Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 Post-Launch News Conference (all channels) 

Watch NASA TV online by going to the NASA website

Space Calendar

JPL Space Calendar

Jun 27 - SPOT 7/ CanX 4 & 5/ AlSat/ linusat PSLV-C24 LaunchJun 27 - [Jun 26] Asteroid 2014 ME6 Near-Earth Flyby (0.023 AU)Jun 27 - [Jun 26] Asteroid 2014 MG6 Near-Earth Flyby (0.024 AU)Jun 27 - Asteroid 9533 Aleksejleonov Closest Approach To Earth (1.898 AU)Jun 27 - Asteroid 3264 Bounty Closest Approach To Earth (2.384 AU)Jun 27 - Asteroid 5738 Billpickering Closest Approach To Earth (2.845 AU)Jun 28 - [Jun 26] Low-Density Supersonic Decelerator (LDSD) Test FlightJun 28 - Comet C/2012 X1 (LINEAR) Closest Approach To Earth (1.553 AU)Jun 28 - Comet P/2014 L3 (Hill) Perihelion (1.854 AU)Jun 28 - Comet 255P/Levy At Opposition (4.032 AU)Jun 28 - Asteroid 1994 CJ1 Near-Earth Flyby (0.091 AU)Jun 28 - Asteroid 2102 Tantalus Closest Approach To Earth (0.424 AU)Jun 28 - Asteroid 6827 Wombat Closest Approach To Earth (1.999 AU)Jun 28 - Kuiper Belt Object 307261 (2002 MS4) At Opposition (45.956 AU)Jun 29 - Comet 92P/Sanguin Closest Approach To Earth (2.110 AU)Jun 29 - Asteroid 2004 Lexell Closest Approach To Earth (1.297 AU)Jun 29 - Asteroid 15495 Bogie Closest Approach To Earth (2.044 AU)Jun 30 - [Jun 26] 10th Anniversary (2004), Cassini, Saturn Orbit InsertionJun 30 - MexSat 1 Proton M-Briz M LaunchJun 30 - Comet 43P/Wolf-Harrington At Opposition (3.980 AU)Jun 30 - Comet C/2012 LP26 (Palomar) Closest Approach To Earth (6.187 AU)Jun 30 - Asteroid 39 Laetitia At Opposition (9.8 Magnitude)Jun 30 - Asteroid 4 Vesta Occults 2UCAC 31512954 (12.1 Magnitude Star)Jun 30 - Asteroid 11083 Caracas Closest Approach To Earth (1.530 AU)Jun 30 - Asteroid 3199 Nefertiti Closest Approach To Earth (1.779 AU)Jun 30 - 30th Anniversary (1984), Aomori Meteorite Fall (Hit Building in Japan)Jul 01 - [Jun 24] Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 (OCO-2) Delta 2 LaunchJul 01 - Comet 104P/Kowal At Opposition (3.672 AU)Jul 01 - Asteroid 2011 UZ255 Near-Earth Flyby (0.066 AU)Jul 01 - Asteroid 177049 (2003 EE16) Near-Earth Flyby (0.097 AU)Jul 01 - Asteroid 30785 Greeley Closest Approach To Earth (0.641 AU)Jul 01 - Asteroid 2511 Patterson Closest Approach To Earth (1.045 AU)Jul 01 - Asteroid 8722 Schirra Closest Approach To Earth (1.343 AU)Jul 01 - Asteroid 96205 Ararat Closest Approach To Earth (1.367 AU)Jul 01 - Asteroid 6136 Gryphon Closest Approach To Earth (2.195 AU)Jul 01 - 15th Anniversary (1999), Giotto, Earth Flyby

Food for ThoughtHas the Cosmology Standard Model become a Rube

Goldberg Device?

Space Image of the Week

The Iris Nebula in a Field of Dust Image Credit & Copyright: Mikel Martínez