Prometheus and the Ghostly F Ring

NASA - Cassini International logo.

Aug. 7, 2017

The thin sliver of Saturn's moon Prometheus lurks near ghostly structures in Saturn's narrow F ring in this view from NASA's Cassini spacecraft. Many of the narrow ring's faint and wispy features result from its gravitational interactions with Prometheus (86 kilometers, or 53 miles across).

Most of the small moon's surface is in darkness due to the viewing geometry here. Cassini was positioned behind Saturn and Prometheus with respect to the sun, looking toward the moon's dark side and just a bit of the moon’s sunlit northern hemisphere.

Also visible here is a distinct difference in brightness between the outermost section of Saturn's A ring (left of center) and rest of the ring, interior to the Keeler Gap (lower left).

This view looks toward the sunlit side of the rings from about 13 degrees above the ring plane. The image was taken in visible light with the Cassini spacecraft narrow-angle camera on May 13, 2017.

The view was acquired at a distance of approximately 680,000 miles (1.1 million kilometers) from Saturn. Image scale is 4 miles (6 kilometers) per pixel.

The Cassini mission is a cooperative project of NASA, ESA (the European Space Agency) and the Italian Space Agency. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. The Cassini orbiter and its two onboard cameras were designed, developed and assembled at JPL. The imaging operations center is based at the Space Science Institute in Boulder, Colorado.

For more information about the Cassini-Huygens mission visit https://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov and http://www.nasa.gov/cassini . The Cassini imaging team homepage is at http://ciclops.org and ESA's website: http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Space_Science/Cassini-Huygens

Image, Text, Credits: NASA/Tony Greicius/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute.

Greetings, Orbiter.ch

Weekly Recap From the Expedition Lead Scientist, week of July 31, 2017

ISS - Expedition 52 Mission patch.

Aug. 4, 2017

Image above: International Space Station crew members captured this image of Typhoon Noru as it approached the Pacific Asian coast on Aug. 1. Image Credit: NASA.

(Highlights: Week of July 31, 2017) - Three new crew members arrived at the International Space Station and immediately began work on investigations into how the human body reacts to microgravity.

Veteran ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Paolo Nespoli collected blood samples during his first full week on the space station for the Canadian Space Agency's (CSA) Bone Marrow Adipose Reaction: Red Or White (MARROW) investigation. MARROW measures fat changes in bone marrow before and after exposure to microgravity. Bone marrow is a vital organ responsible for the production of all red and white blood cells. Fat cells share the same space with blood-producing cells in bone marrow and, during prolonged bed rest on Earth, can grow at the expense of blood-producing cells. Scientists want to learn whether changes in bone marrow fat in space can help explain abnormalities detected in blood cells in microgravity, specifically, the changes of red and white blood cell functions.

Image above: European Space Agency astronaut Paoli Nespoli performs an investigation into muscle atrophy in space using the Muscle Atrophy Research & Exercise System on the International Space Station. Image Credit: NASA.

In space, the bone marrow fat is measured using magnetic resonance, while red blood cell function is measured by analyzing a breath sample with a gas chromatograph, and white blood cell function is studied through the cells' genetic expression. Data from this study may lead to treatments that would enable safer human space exploration and better recovery from prolonged bed rest on Earth.

Nespoli joined NASA astronaut Randy Bresnik and Russian cosmonaut Sergey Ryazanskiy for research into muscle atrophy in space for the Myotendinous and Neuromuscular Adaptation to Long-term Spaceflight (Sarcolab-3) study involving the Muscle Atrophy Research & Exercise System (MARES). This investigation studies the adaptation and deterioration of the soleus, or calf muscle, where it joins the Achilles tendon, which links it to the heel and carries loads from the entire body. Muscle fiber samples are taken from crew members before and after flight and analyzed for changes in structural or chemical properties. MRI and ultrasound tests and electrode stimulation are conducted to help assess muscle and tendon changes caused by microgravity exposure.

Image above: NASA astronauts Peggy Whitson, left, and Jack Fischer work in JAXA's (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) Kibo laboratory on the International Space Station. Image Credit: NASA.

By understanding the mechanisms behind loss of muscle mass in space, scientists can develop countermeasures that are more effective for the crews -- pharmacological, dietary or exercise-based – and maintain or improve the health and performance of astronauts in orbit. Scientists also can gain insight into certain muscular conditions on Earth. Solutions developed for astronauts could be used for rehabilitation of patients with a variety of muscular conditions.

NASA astronaut Jack Fischer worked on a study monitoring solar radiation called the Dose Distribution Inside the International Space Station-3D (DOSIS-3D) investigation. DOSIS-3D uses several active and passive detectors to determine the radiation doses. The goal of the ESA investigation is to create a 3-D radiation map covering all sections of the orbiting laboratory, documenting the nature and distribution of the radiation field inside the orbiting laboratory. On Earth, flight crews and nuclear power plant workers are exposed to greater-than-average radiation. DOSIS-3D also provides insight into combining different devices for dosage monitoring and lessons in how to monitor real-time data. This could improve radiation monitoring for commercial and military airline crews, as well as other workers exposed to radiation on Earth.

Space to Ground: A Stunning Launch: 08/04/2017

Video above: NASA's Space to Ground is a weekly update on what is happening on the International Space Station. Social media users can post with #spacetoground to ask questions or make a comment. Video Credit: NASA.

Progress was made on other investigations this week, including: Fine Motor Skills, Rodent Research-5, Microbial Tracking, MELFI, DELIC, ISS Ham, Food Acceptability, NanoRacks Platform-2, Meteor, MagVector, Space Headaches, SABL, Cool Flames, and Dose Tracker.

Related links:

Bone Marrow Adipose Reaction: Red Or White (MARROW): http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/1931.html

Myotendinous and Neuromuscular Adaptation to Long-term Spaceflight (Sarcolab-3): https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/738.html

Muscle Atrophy Research & Exercise System (MARES): http://blogs.esa.int/iriss/2015/09/07/the-mares-machine/

Dose Distribution Inside the International Space Station-3D (DOSIS-3D): http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/184.html

Fine Motor Skills: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/1767.html

Rodent Research-5: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/2283.html

Microbial Tracking: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/1920.html

ISS Ham: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/346.html

Food Acceptability: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/1258.html

Meteor: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/1323.html

MagVector: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/1176.html

Space Headaches: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/181.html

Cool Flames: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/1947.html

Dose Tracker: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/1933.html

Space Station Research and Technology: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/index.html

International Space Station (ISS): https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/main/index.html

Images (mentioned), Video (mentioned), Text, Credits: NASA/Kristine Rainey/Jorge Sotomayor, Lead Increment Scientist Expeditions 51 & 52.

Best regards, Orbiter.ch

New Horizons' Next Target Just Got a Lot More Interesting

NASA - New Horizons Mission logo.

Aug. 4, 2017

Could the next flyby target for NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft actually be two targets?

New Horizons scientists look to answer that question as they sort through new data gathered on the distant Kuiper Belt object (KBO) 2014 MU69, which the spacecraft will fly past on Jan. 1, 2019. That flyby will be the most distant in the history of space exploration, a billion miles beyond Pluto.

Image above: One artist’s concept of Kuiper Belt object 2014 MU69, the next flyby target for NASA’s New Horizons mission. This binary concept is based on telescope observations made at Patagonia, Argentina on July 17, 2017 when MU69 passed in front of a star. New Horizons theorize that it could be a single body with a large chunk taken out of it, or two bodies that are close together or even touching. Image Credits: NASA/JHUAPL/SwRI/Alex Parker.

The ancient KBO, which is more than four billion miles (6.5 billion kilometers) from Earth, passed in front of a star on July 17, 2017. A handful of telescopes deployed by the New Horizons team in a remote part of Patagonia, Argentina were in the right place at the right time to catch its fleeting shadow — an event known as an occultation – and were able to capture important data to help mission flyby planners better determine the spacecraft trajectory and understand the size, shape, orbit and environment around MU69. 

Based on these new occultation observations, team members say MU69 may not be not a lone spherical object, but suspect it could be an “extreme prolate spheroid” – think of a skinny football – or even a binary pair. The odd shape has scientists thinking two bodies may be orbiting very close together or even touching – what’s known as a close or contact binary – or perhaps they’re observing a single body with a large chunk taken out of it. The size of MU69 or its components also can be determined from these data. It appears to be no more than 20 miles (30 kilometers) long, or, if a binary, each about 9-12 miles (15-20 kilometers) in diameter.

Image above: Second artist’s concept of Kuiper Belt object 2014 MU69, which is the next flyby target for NASA’s New Horizons mission. Scientists speculate that the Kuiper Belt object could be a single body (above) with a large chunk taken out of it, or two bodies (main image) that are close together or even touching. Image Credits: NASA/JHUAPL/SwRI/Alex Parker.

“This new finding is simply spectacular. The shape of MU69 is truly provocative, and could mean another first for New Horizons going to a binary object in the Kuiper Belt,” said Alan Stern, mission principal investigator from the Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) in Boulder, Colorado. “I could not be happier with the occultation results, which promise a scientific bonanza for the flyby.” 

The July 17 stellar occultation event that gathered these data was the third of a historic set of three ambitious occultation observations for New Horizons. The team used data from the Hubble Space Telescope and European Space Agency’s Gaia satellite to calculate and pinpoint where MU69 would cast a shadow on Earth's surface. “Both of these space satellites were crucial to the success of the entire occultation campaign,” added Stern.

New Horizons Pluto & Charon flyby. Animation Credit: NASA

Said Marc Buie, the New Horizons co-investigator who led the observation campaign, "These exciting and puzzling results have already been key for our mission planning, but also add to the mysteries surrounding this target leading into the New Horizons encounter with MU69, now less than 17 months away.”

Follow the mission and observation campaign at the NASA New Horizons website and the mission's KBO Chasers page.

Related links:

KBO Chasers page: http://pluto.jhuapl.edu/Mission/KBO-Chasers.php

NASA New Horizons: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/newhorizons/main/index.html

Images (mentioned), Animation (mentioned), Text, Credits: NASA/Bill Keeter.

Greetings, Orbiter.ch

New Clues to Universe's Structure Revealed

Dark Energy Survey logo.

August 4, 2017

Image above: Map of dark matter made from gravitational lensing measurements of 26 million galaxies in the Dark Energy Survey. The map covers about 1/30th of the entire sky and spans several billion light years in extent. Red regions have more dark matter than average, blue regions less dark matter. Image credits: Chihway Chang/Kavli Institute for Cosmological Physics at the University of Chicago/DES Collaboration.

What is our universe made of, and has its composition changed over time? Scientists have new insights about these fundamental questions, thanks to an international collaboration of more than 400 scientists called the Dark Energy Survey (DES). Three scientists from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, are part of this group that is helping to further our understanding of the structure of the universe.

The advances in astrophysics from DES are crucial to preparations for two upcoming space missions that will probe similar questions about the nature of the universe: ESA's Euclid mission (which has significant NASA participation) and NASA's Wide-Field Infrared Survey Telescope mission, both expected to launch in the 2020s.

"With this study, we are showcasing what's going to be possible with these much more complex observatories," said Andres Plazas Malagon, a postdoctoral researcher at JPL, who helped characterize DES's Dark Energy Camera detectors and who is also involved in detector studies for WFIRST.

 Wide-Field Infrared Survey Telescope (WFIRST). Animation Credit: NASA

Leading models of the universe suggest it is mostly composed of entities we cannot see: dark matter and dark energy. Dark matter acts like invisible glue, holding galaxies and galaxy clusters together gravitationally, while dark energy is thought to be responsible for the accelerated expansion of the universe. Some of our best predictions for how much dark matter and dark energy are in the universe come from the European Space Agency's Planck satellite, which looks at the light from about 400,000 years after the Big Bang.

Now, the Dark Energy Survey has examined the composition of the recent universe. Remarkably, the new results are close to forecasts made from Planck measurements of the distant past, allowing scientists to understand more about how the universe has evolved over approximately 14 billion years. The findings were revealed in a presentation at the American Physical Society Division of Particles and Fields meeting at the U.S. Department of Energy's Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory in Batavia, Illinois.

"The Planck results have been the landmark constraints in cosmology. It is truly amazing that you have a model that describes the universe at 400,000 years old, and now we have a similarly precise measurement of the universe at 13 billion years [old] that agrees with the model," said JPL's Tim Eifler, who led the Dark Energy Survey analysis team to develop the science software for the interpretation of the results.

Scientists find that about 70 percent of the energy in the universe is contained in dark energy. About 25 percent is composed of the mysterious dark matter, with normal matter making up the remainder. All of this agrees with precise measurements made to date. So far, DES has found no evidence that the amount of dark energy has changed over time -- a finding that is consistent with Albert Einstein's idea of a "cosmological constant."

The results are especially important to the scientific community because they mark the first time that observations from the more recent universe -- the "adult" universe -- by a technique called gravitational lensing and galaxy clustering, have yielded results as precise as those from the cosmic microwave background radiation -- light from the "infant" universe.

"This is the crossover point where gravitational lensing and galaxy clustering measurements and surveys will be the primary driver of what we know about dark energy in the universe," said Eric Huff, a JPL researcher who invented a new method of extracting the weak lensing signal, enhancing the precision of the DES galaxy shape catalogs.

The results come from the first-year data set of the Dark Energy Survey, which uses a 570-megapixel camera mounted on the 4-meter Blanco telescope at the National Optical Astronomy Observatory's Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile. Its data are processed at the National Center for Supercomputing Applications at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

To measure dark matter, scientists first created maps of galaxy positions. Then, they precisely measured the shapes of 26 million galaxies to directly map patterns of dark matter over billions of light years, using gravitational lensing and galaxy clustering.

The DES team developed new ways to detect the tiny lensing distortions of galaxy images. In the process, they created the largest guide to spotting dark matter in the cosmos ever drawn. The new dark matter map is 10 times the size of the one DES released in 2015 and continues to grow.

The DES collaboration will publish on a data set five times larger over the next two years.

"There is a feeling of true discovery in the collaboration. For the first time, we have the data and tools in hand to see whether Einstein's cosmological constant prevails. We are all excited to explore the physical nature of dark energy," Eifler said. "In particular we want to see if there are hints in the data that suggest modifying the laws of gravity on the largest scales in the universe."

Read more at:

http://news.fnal.gov/2017/08/dark-energy-survey-reveals-accurate-measurement-dark-matter-structure-universe/

Related link:

Dark Energy Survey (DES): https://www.darkenergysurvey.org/

Image (mentioned), Animation (mentioned), Text, Credits: NASA/JPL/Elizabeth Landau.

Greetings, Orbiter.ch

The ALPHA experiment explores the secrets of antimatter

CERN - European Organization for Nuclear Research logo.

Aug. 4, 2017

Image above: Alpha Experiment (Image: Maximilien Brice/CERN).

In a paper published yesterday in Nature, the ALPHA experiment at CERN’s Antiproton Decelerator reports the first observation of the hyperfine structure of antihydrogen, the antimatter counterpart of hydrogen. These findings point the way to ever more detailed analyses of the structure of antihydrogen and could help understand any differences between matter and antimatter.

The researchers conducted spectroscopy measurements on homemade antihydrogen atoms, which drive transitions between different energy states of the anti-atoms. They could in this way improve previous measurements by identifying and measuring two spectral lines of antihydrogen. Spectroscopy is a way to probe the internal structure of atoms by studying their interaction with electromagnetic radiation.

In 2012, the ALPHA experiment demonstrated for the first time the technical ability to measure the internal structure of atoms of antimatter. In 2016, the team reported the first observation of an optical transition of antihydrogen. By exposing antihydrogen atoms to microwaves at a precise frequency, they have now induced hyperfine transitions and refined their measurements. The team were able to measure two spectral lines for antihydrogen, and observe no difference compared to the equivalent spectral lines for hydrogen, within experimental limits.

“Spectroscopy is a very important tool in all areas of physics. We are now entering a new era as we extend spectroscopy to antimatter,” said Jeffrey Hangst, Spokesperson for the ALPHA experiment. “With our unique techniques, we are now able to observe the detailed structure of antimatter atoms in hours rather than weeks, something we could not even imagine a few years ago.”

With their trapping techniques, ALPHA are now able to trap a significant number of antiatoms – up to 74 at a time – thereby facilitating precision measurements.  With this new result, the ALPHA collaboration has clearly demonstrated the maturity of its techniques for probing the properties of antimatter atoms.

The rapid progress of CERN’s experiments at the unique Antiproton Decelerator facility is very promising for ever more precise measurements to be carried out in the near future.

Image above: The ALPHA experiment is a successor of an earlier antimatter experiment, ATHENA. Set up in late 2005 with similar overall research goals as its predecessor, ALPHA makes, captures and studies atoms of antihydrogen and compares these with hydrogen atoms. Image: CERN.

Creating antihydrogen depends on bringing together the two component antiparticles, antiprotons and positrons, in a trapping device for charged particles. Since antihydrogen atoms have no electric charge, once they form they can't be confined in such a device. In the ATHENA experiment the antiatoms would drift naturally to the walls of the trap. Because these walls were made of ordinary matter, the contact caused the antiatoms to annihilate a few microseconds after they were created.

ALPHA is picking up from where ATHENA left off. ALPHA uses a different trapping method to hold the antihydrogen atoms, and will keep them for a longer period before they annihilate with ordinary atoms.

In June 2011, ALPHA reported that it had succeeded in trapping antimatter atoms for over 16 minutes: long enough to begin to study their properties in detail. This should give the physicists time to take measurements and to find more answers to the antimatter mystery.

Note:

CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, is one of the world’s largest and most respected centres for scientific research. Its business is fundamental physics, finding out what the Universe is made of and how it works. At CERN, the world’s largest and most complex scientific instruments are used to study the basic constituents of matter — the fundamental particles. By studying what happens when these particles collide, physicists learn about the laws of Nature.

The instruments used at CERN are particle accelerators and detectors. Accelerators boost beams of particles to high energies before they are made to collide with each other or with stationary targets. Detectors observe and record the results of these collisions.

Founded in 1954, the CERN Laboratory sits astride the Franco–Swiss border near Geneva. It was one of Europe’s first joint ventures and now has 22 Member States.

Related links:

Nature paper: http://doi.org/10.1038/nature23446

ALPHA experiment: http://home.cern/about/experiments/alpha

Large Hadron Collider (LHC): http://home.cern/topics/large-hadron-collider

For more information about European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), Visit: http://home.cern/

Images (mentioned), Text, Credits: CERN/Stefania Pandolfi.

Best regards, Orbiter.ch

Astronauts Work Muscle Scans and Science Gear Upgrades

ISS - Expedition 52 Mission patch.

August 3, 2017

From leg muscle scans to observing materials burning at high temperatures, the Expedition 52 crew continued researching what happens when you live in space. The space residents also upgraded electronics gear and installed new science racks.

Image above: Astronauts Peggy Whitson and Jack Fischer work on station systems inside Japan’s Kibo laboratory module. Image Credit: NASA.

Astronauts Randy Bresnik and Paolo Nespoli are barely a week into their 4-1/2 month long mission and are already exploring what space is doing to their bodies. The astronauts took ultrasound scans of their legs today to assess the changes their leg muscles and tendons are undergoing. The data will later be compared to the condition of their muscles before and after their spaceflight mission.

Jack Fischer of NASA installed new electronics gear in a science rack to speed up the communications rate at which data is uploaded and downloaded from the research facility. Station veteran Peggy Whitson swapped out samples exposed to high temperatures inside a specialized furnace. She later installed a pair of NanoRacks research platforms in the Kibo laboratory module. The commercial science devices will support upcoming experiments being delivered on the next SpaceX Dragon mission.

Image above: A Look Inside the Space Station's Experimental BEAM Module. Image Credit: NASA.

NASA astronaut Randy Bresnik looks through the hatch of the International Space Station's Bigelow Expandable Aerospace Module (BEAM) on July 31, 2017. He shared this photo on social media on August 2, commenting, "Ever wonder how you look when you enter a new part of a spacecraft? Well, this is it.  First time inside the expandable BEAM module."

The BEAM is an experimental expandable module launched to the station aboard SpaceX's eighth commercial resupply mission on April 8, 2016, and fully expanded and pressurized on May 28.  Expandable modules weigh less and take up less room on a rocket than a traditional module, while allowing additional space for living and working. They provide protection from solar and cosmic radiation, space debris, and other contaminants. Crews traveling to the moon, Mars, asteroids, or other destinations may be able to use them as habitable structures.

BEAM berthed to ISS. Image Credits: NASA/Bigelow Aerospace

The BEAM is just over halfway into its planned two-year demonstration on the space station. NASA and Bigelow are currently focusing on measuring radiation dosage inside the BEAM. Using two active Radiation Environment Monitors (REM) inside the module, researchers at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston are able to take real-time measurements of radiation levels.

Related article:

Dragon to be Packed with New Experiments for International Space Station
http://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.ch/2017/08/dragon-to-be-packed-with-new.html

Related links:

Expedition 52: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/expeditions/expedition52/index.html

Space Station Research and Technology: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/index.html

International Space Station (ISS): https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/main/index.html

Images (mentioned), Text, Credits: NASA/Mark Garcia/Sarah Loff.

Best regards, Orbiter.ch

Dragon to be Packed with New Experiments for International Space Station

SpaceX - CRS-12 Mission logo.

Aug. 3, 2017

Dragon catch by the robotic Canadarm on ISS. Image Credit: NASA

The International Space Station is a unique scientific platform enabling researchers from around the world to develop experiments that could not be performed on Earth. A line of unpiloted resupply spacecraft keeps this work going, supporting efforts to enable future human and robotic exploration of destinations well beyond low-Earth orbit.

The next mission to the space station will be the 12th commercial resupply services flight for SpaceX. Liftoff is targeted for Aug. 13 at approximately 12:56 p.m., from Launch Complex 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. This underscores the center's role as a premier, multi-user spaceport as this will be the ninth SpaceX rocket to take off from the launch pad, all this year. Pad 39A's history includes 11 Apollo flights, the launch of the Skylab space station in 1973, and 82 space shuttle missions.

Image above: When the Dragon arrives at the International Space Station, NASA astronaut Jack Fischer and European Space Agency astronaut Paolo Nespoli will grapple the spacecraft using the station's robotic arm and install it on the station’s Harmony module. Dragon will deliver almost 6,000 pounds of supplies and payloads, including materials to support more than 250 science and research investigations during Expeditions 52 and 53. Image Credit: NASA.

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will boost a Dragon spacecraft filled with almost 6,000 pounds of supplies. The payloads include crucial materials to directly support dozens of the more than 250 science and research investigations that will occur during Expeditions 52 and 53.

About 10 minutes after launch, Dragon will reach its preliminary orbit and deploy its solar arrays. A carefully choreographed series of thruster firings are scheduled to allow the spacecraft to rendezvous with the space station. NASA astronaut Jack Fischer and European Space Agency astronaut Paolo Nespoli will grapple Dragon using the space station’s robotic arm and install it on the station’s Harmony module.

The station crew will unpack the Dragon and begin working with the experiments that include plant pillows containing seeds for NASA’s Veggie plant growth system experiment. The plant pillows were prepared in Kennedy's Space Station Processing Facility.

Image above: Inside the Veggie flight laboratory in the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, the agency's Veggie project lead, Dr. Gioia Massa, prepares plant pillow experiments. Image Credits: NASA/Ben Smegelsky.

Veggie, like most of the research taking place on the space station, is demonstrating how the research benefits life on Earth as it advances NASA’s plans to send humans to Mars.

The Dragon spacecraft will spend approximately one month attached to the space station. It will remain until mid-September when the spacecraft will return to Earth with results of earlier experiments, splashing down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Baja California.

Related links:

Commercial resupply services: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/structure/launch/index.html

Dragon: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/structure/elements/dragon.html

SpaceX: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/structure/launch/spacex.html

Veggie plant growth system: https://www.nasa.gov/content/veggie-plant-growth-system-activated-on-international-space-station

International Space Station (ISS): https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/main/index.html

Kennedy Space Center: https://www.nasa.gov/centers/kennedy/home/index.html

Images (mentioned), Text, Credits: NASA's Kennedy Space Center, by Bob Granath.

Best regards, Orbiter.ch