How Astronauts Train Underwater In NASA’s Neutral Buoyancy Lab, Which Includes A Full Sized Mock-up

Pale Blue Dot, taken by Voyager 1 in 1990 as it left the Solar System, 3.7 billion miles away.

Source: https://imgur.com/Hc4lkLG

Almost a month ago, the spaceflight company Blue Origin sent a rocket up to the edge of space and then guided it gracefully back down to earth, intact. It was a historic first.

But Blue Origin’s major competitor, SpaceX, was quick to point out that the rocket wasn’t going fast enough (or sideways enough) to place a satellite into orbit - just 4,600 kph (~2,860 mph). It went straight up, and then straight down.

Now, SpaceX has managed to put 11 satellites in orbit with a “reusable” rocket. Their rocket didn’t just go up and down - it reached a horizontal velocity of 6,000 kph (3,600 mph) before returning to earth. If SpaceX is able to refurbish the rocket and use it in another launch, they’ll have figured out a way to dramatically reduce the cost of spaceflight.

Here’s the full webcast. And here’s the full story.

Video credit: SpaceX

Perseid Fireball at Sunset Crater

In parts of Antarctica, not only is it winter, but the Sun can spend weeks below the horizon.At China's Zhongshan Station, people sometimes venture out into the cold to photograph a spectacular night sky.The featured image from one such outing was taken in mid-July, just before the end of this polar night.Pointing up, the wide angle lens captured not only the ground at the bottom, but at the top as well. In the foreground is a colleague also taking pictures.In the distance, a spherical satellite receiver and several windmills are visible.Numerous stars dot the night sky, including Sirius and Canopus.Far in the background, stretching overhead from horizon to horizon, is the central band of our Milky Way Galaxy.Even further in the distance, visible as extended smudges near the top, are the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds, satellite galaxies near our huge Milky Way Galaxy.

Credit: NASA

Time And Space

The God Brain: Roundtable Discussion on God and Spirituality for Brain Games

NeuroscienceNews was invited by National Geographic’s Brain Games to participate in a virtual roundtable discussion on the question:

“Is belief in God innate in our brains, as if it were installed by some divine programmer? Or is spirituality a more complex evolving adaptation that has both helped and harmed us as a species?”

Let us know what you think.

Image: Jason Silva sits with Jonathan, a grad student at IDC Herzliya as they test out the virtual reality EEG cap and goggles. Photo Credit: NG Studios/Andy Fram.

Rosette Nebula

Stardust

Kryptos is an encrypted sculpture by the American artist, Jim Sanborn, that is located on the grounds of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) in Langley, Virginia. Since its dedication on November 3, 1990, there has been much speculation about the meaning of the encrypted messages it bears. Of the four messages, three have been solved, with the fourth remaining one of the most famous unsolved codes in the world. The sculpture continues to provide a diversion for cryptanalysts, both amateur and professional, who are attempting to decipher the final section. The sculptor has given clues on several occasions.

The solved messages can be read here: [x]

(Fact Source) For more facts, follow Ultrafacts

Meet Surena III: University of Tehran Unveils Its New Humanoid Robot

Researchers from the University of Tehran unveiled the new generation of their humanoid robot called Surena III. The robot stands 1.9 meters tall (6.2 feet) and weighs 98 kilograms (216 lb). It is also  equipped with numerous sensors that includes a Kinect-based 3D vision module, and is powered by 31 servomotors. Surena III is capable of walking up and down ramps and stairs, and along irregular surfaces up to a speed of .2m/s (about 8 inches a second).

So perhaps the robot won’t be running any marathons anytime soon, but it’s still pretty remarkable. Plus, the robot was designed for other purposes besides speed.

Read more at: http://futurism.com/links/meet-surena-iii-university-of-tehran-unveils-its-new-humanoid-robot/