Some trek the sand in exploration while others streak the sky. At 12:34 a.m. EDT on March 2, onlookers gazed in awe as Falcon 9 illuminated the starry morning. Crew-6 astronauts Stephen Bowen (commander), Warren Hoburg (pilot), Sultan Alneyadi (mission specialist), and Russian Cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev (mission specialist) began their travels from Kennedy Space Center launch … [Read more...]
To Nona & Beyond: SpaceX’s 60th Launch of 2022
On Wednesday, Dec. 28, at 4:34 a.m., we witnessed SpaceX’s 60th launch of 2022. The clear conditions made for optimal viewing from Lake Nona as Falcon 9 arched over The Wave Hotel, illuminating the early morning skies. The payload included 54 Starlink satellites that were delivered to low Earth orbit. This was the first mission dedicated to the second-generation Starlink … [Read more...]
To Nona & Beyond: The Monumental Mission of Artemis I
Ever since the termination of NASA’s Apollo program, taking place from 1961 to 1972, humanity has lacked the capability to send people to the moon. However, this will soon be coming to an end with NASA’s Artemis program – the successor to Apollo. The Artemis program aims to establish a permanent human presence on the moon. This would be quite a large leap over Apollo, where … [Read more...]
To Nona & Beyond: Celebrating Space Week
Last month, we celebrated World Space Week! It was established by the United Nations in 1999 and is observed each year from October 4-10. The dates were specifically selected as a nod to two very notable space events. On October 4, 1957, Sputnik, the first human-made satellite, was sent into orbit, opening the door to greater space exploration. On October 10, 1967, the … [Read more...]
To Nona & Beyond: Summer Night Sky
With the season for the Milky Way galactic core being in full swing, Emerson and I decided to trek out to our local dark sky site to capture the universe above. The best time to view the Milky Way, during any time of year, is around the New Moon. However, aligning this with clear skies is a whole other story! Fortunately, we had a clearing after numerous days of rain. When … [Read more...]