Science: if we can learn something from sending a 1,200 lb. payload over Saskatchewan via (a very large) balloon, by golly we’re going to try.
News Release: Balloon Survival
Warning Label
For very important safety reasons, you should never point a telescope at the sun. Without proper safety filters and the utmost care, that is.
There’s a solar eclipse in a month, and we’re definitely pointing this particular telescope at the sun. With the proper filters and the utmost care, of course.
News Release: Buddy System
We’re not arguing here: contingency plans in a potentially dangerous situation are essential. One can reasonably assume that any and all tasks undertaken by astronauts while naut-ing in the astro are, if not inherently dangerous, at least dangerous-adjacent. And, as that time Tom Hanks almost died in space taught us, you can’t call 911 from space and expect them to do anything about it.
In case you were curious: the first 911 call was in Haleyville, Alabama in February, 1968. The Apollo 13 mission went sideways in April, 1970. Presumably any connection between the two would have to have been routed through CAPCOM anyway.
Pinholes
Much of our day revolves around the Physics and Astronomy labs in Olin Science Building, which was the finest construction the budget could shoulder in 1954.
Which, after 7 decades, some renovations, and who knows what else, means there are a few minor holes here and there.
Holes which act like a pinhole camera in an otherwise dark lab, casting images of the sun and tree branches on the floor.
News Release: Satellites
April 14th, 1961: NASA publishes a list of satellites and space probes orbiting the Earth, Moon, and Sun, and it all fits on a single, ordinary, typed sheet of letter-sized paper. Twenty-six in all.
Just take a moment to marvel at that.
Now, of course, we (as in humans, not the physics shop) are still sending scads of objects into space, and NASA maintains the ARES Orbital Debris Program to keep track of all the crap up there.
Remember: wishing upon the burning reentry of space debris is just as good as on the remnants of comet dust!
Copper-coated
Copper-coated steel BBs, used in several different labs throughout physics and astronomy. Like many of the odds and ends we use for labs and demonstrations, these aren’t used as intended by the manufacturer. In this case, one can only imagine that off-label use is actually safer.
News Release: Metric System
NASA makes an effort to switch over to the metric system. (For some things.) Because when your day-to-day job involves a lot of calculations and unit conversions, decimal-based order takes a lot of irritation out of doing ordinary stuff.
Of course, when you make the changeover from one system to another, it’s a challenge. Sometimes it’s necessary to use a few crutches before the comfort and ease settle in. (Note that this particular sheet predates the press release by the better part of a decade.)
Odd observations:
- It’s written out in plain English, rather than as a symbolic equation, like ” 1 km = 0.6214 mi. “
- There’s no 0 before the decimal point.
- The k for kilo is capitalized, and there’s a period after the m.
- But there’s no period at the end of the actual sentence.
- Love that old-school printed g.
Chair
Classic and simple, this wood and… leather-like chair has probably been in this office since the mid-20th century. Still in good shape! Nice curves, old-style rivets with a hammered finish, and a subdued brown-on-brown color palette. Sits comfortably.
Somehow, despite surviving the decades of use and age, a misaligned decal proclaiming “quality” gives one pause. Was it really that hard?
News Release: Space Food
Space food: it’s an immensely difficult challenge on many fronts, though we understand that – as on Earth – hot sauce makes everything better.
Plugstrip
The choice of eyebrows makes a surprising difference in interpretation. Clearly someone was having fun with a red marker.