The Universe on a Ball
- By Maggie Masetti
- September 24, 2010
- 8 Comments
[Sara’s note: This is the original blog entry that sparked the roadtrip – the interview about the as-seen-on-TV beach ball that got us onto the Warner Brothers studio lot. How many beach balls can do that? This is part 2 of our Blueshift roadtrip series. We’ll have the eagerly-anticipated Big … Continue Reading →
Blueshift Roadtrip 2010
- By Sara Mitchell
- September 22, 2010
- 1 Comment
It all started with a Big Bang. Well, actually, it all started with a beach ball. Not just any beach ball, but one imprinted with data from the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (just call it WMAP for short – we do, it’s much easier). This educational beach ball was developed … Continue Reading →
Awesomeness Round-up – 9/20/10
- By Maggie Masetti
- September 20, 2010
- Comments Off on Awesomeness Round-up – 9/20/10
Remember that squirrel that photobombed that couple’s vacation photo? Well, this is kind of like the astronomical equivalent! This image of dwarf galaxy PGC 39058 is dominated by this bright star that just happens to lie between us and the galaxy! The star, much dimmer when viewed from Earth, shines … Continue Reading →
Blueshift hits the road!
- By Sara Mitchell
- September 17, 2010
- Comments Off on Blueshift hits the road!
Roadtrip! Well, actually, to be fair… we’re going on a planetrip. But that doesn’t have the same ring, does it? The Blueshift team got an offer to visit somewhere amazing, and we couldn’t refuse. We’re leaving next Tuesday on our grand adventure, and we’ve been quietly plotting to bring you … Continue Reading →
Awesomeness Round-up – 9/13/10
- By Maggie Masetti
- September 13, 2010
- 1 Comment
Another milestone for the James Webb Space Telescope – the first primary mirror segment to be coated in gold (it’s a flight spare and engineering design unit) is undergoing cryo testing! Isn’t it pretty? I can’t wait to see what the whole mirror assembly will look like once it’s all … Continue Reading →
Blueshift ponders…who’s your favorite fictional scientist?
- By Maggie Masetti
- September 10, 2010
- 17 Comments
If you recall this week’s link round-up, we linked to a very cool subway map of science. Sara printed out her own copy (it’s easier to follow if you can see the whole thing at once, instead of scrolling around on a screen), and this got us thinking of what … Continue Reading →
Solving Real World Problems Virtually!
- By Maggie Masetti
- September 8, 2010
- 2 Comments
Those of us who work on education and outreach for the James Webb Space Telescope have wanted to do an engineering design challenge for a long time. The chance finally presented itself in the form of a teacher from Virginia – and a project where students get to solve real … Continue Reading →
Awesomeness Round-up – 9/6/10
- By Maggie Masetti
- September 6, 2010
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You might remember when Stephen Colbert “interviewed” to become an astronaut – we linked to the segments in one of our older link roundups. NASA Johnson just released a whole bunch of images of Colbert’s visit. Here he is on the C.O.L.B.E.R.T: (Speaking of things named for Colbert, we named … Continue Reading →
Goddard Hosts “Gastro-nauts”
- By Sara Mitchell
- September 2, 2010
- 4 Comments
I love astronaut ice cream – that freeze-dried, crispy block of strawberry, vanilla, and chocolate sugary sweetness that melts on your tongue into something that vaguely resembles melted ice cream. Though it was developed for the Apollo program, I was disappointed to find out that it wasn’t very popular and … Continue Reading →
Blueshift ponders… what’s next in space exploration?
- By Sara Mitchell
- September 1, 2010
- 8 Comments
This past weekend, I attended an unconference called SpaceUP DC, which drew together space enthusiasts from near and far to talk about the future of space exploration and advocacy. It’s an “unconference” because it’s not like a regular professional conference – it’s much more free-form, and attendees determine the structure, … Continue Reading →
