Rocket

Sounding Rocket Launch, TOMEX+ Experiment from NASA’s Wallops Island, VA Facility

Last Wednesday night, on Aug 27, NASA successfully launched The TOMEX+ (Turbulent Oxygen Mixing Experiment Plus) mission from the Wallops Island launch complex on the Eastern Shore of Virginia, and I got to watch it from home! Building on the success of the original TOMEX mission launched in 2000, TOMEX+ used a trio of sounding…Read more Sounding Rocket Launch, TOMEX+ Experiment from NASA’s Wallops Island, VA Facility

Noctilucent Clouds – Ethereal Indicators of a Changing Atmosphere

If you're in high latitudes, step outside on a clear summer night around twilight and look up. If you're lucky – and increasingly, you might be – you'll witness one of nature's most ethereal displays: noctilucent clouds. These delicate, ghostly streaks of silver and blue seem to shimmer against the darkening sky, appearing almost otherworldly…Read more Noctilucent Clouds – Ethereal Indicators of a Changing Atmosphere

Rocket Science (Astronomy: Week of 5/13/18)

On Friday, SpaceX made the news again with the successful launch and recovery of their upgraded Falcon 9 booster, the Block 5, this time carrying a Bangladeshi telecommunications satellite into orbit. Like many tech breakthroughs, the success of the Falcon 9 series has almost become routine to the point that it doesn't get any attention…Read more Rocket Science (Astronomy: Week of 5/13/18)