Aftermath

The day after Hurricane Katrina struck, the devastation in the Gulf Area is becoming apparent. Breaches in the levees around New Orleans mean the situation there may get worse before it gets better. The Governor of Louisiana has ordered an evacuation of those remaining in the city. (I haven't heard how this will be accomplished logistically.) MSNBC's web site provides an index of articles and a list of organizations accepting donations for post-storm aid. And we need to keep everyone involved in our prayers.

Katrina Targets New Orleans



The massive Hurricane Katrina approaches the Gulf Coast as residents evacuate or take shelter. May they be in our thoughts and prayers.

UPDATE: Monday 8/29 ~8:30 PM.
Katrina veered slightly to the east, sparing New Orleans from the worst case scenario, but there is still much devastation in the Gulf Region to recover from.

Hubble Peaks at the Moon

The Hubble Space Telescope (HST) was used last week to observe sites on the lunar surface in a test of remote sensing of lunar resources, according to Maggie McKee, who writes for New Scientist magazine.

"We're trying to ascertain the potential of ultraviolet spectra for indicating lunar resources," says Bruce Hapke, a planetary scientist at the University of Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania, US. He is one of a team of six researchers led by NASA's chief scientist, Jim Garvin, using Hubble to view the Moon.

In particular, the team hopes to be able to identify a mineral called ilmenite - or iron titanium oxide - which has previously been found in lunar soil samples. "It has properties which would be useful in constructing a lunar base," Hapke told New Scientist.

The article goes on to state the observations' relevance to NASA's exploration plans.

He adds that the time for the Hubble observations would probably not have been allocated were it not for US president George W Bush's "Vision for Space Exploration", which calls for returning people to the Moon by about 2018.

A Giant Leap For Nanotubes

Along with the biomedical development described in yesterday's post, this nanotechnology breakthrough could also have a big impact on society.

Space Tech Could Alter Stem Cell Field

A technology derived from NASA micro-gravity research could provide a new ethical and more effective source of stem cells, as reported at CNET.

Microgravity technology developed by NASA can multiply stem cells from a newborn's blood in large enough quantities to be used to regenerate human tissue, London scientists have found.

Researchers at U.K.-based Kingston University have discovered primitive stem cells in the umbilical cord blood of infants that are similar to those from human embryos, which can be used to develop into any tissue in the body. The newly discovered human cells, called "cord-blood-derived embryonic-like stem cells" or CBEs, are more versatile than adult stem cells, found in bone marrow, which can mend damaged tissue during life.

WYD 2005



Young people from around the world are gathering with Pope Benedict XVI in Cologne, Germany, providing a spark of Faith in Christ much needed in Europe right now. Amy Welborn provides a list of links and blogs for the event.

NET March 2006...

...for resumption of Space Shuttle flights.

Evolution and Design

Frederick Turner has an interesting analysis that transcends the conventional assumptions about evolution and Intelligent Design as being two mutually exclusive concepts.

A perfect creator would surely have no need to step in once the process was going. He would not be a "god of the gaps", where we bring God in just when we can't explain some connection in the history of the universe, on the assumption that this was where God had to fix some imperfection in the process. A perfect creator would not be hostage to the possibility that one by one the gaps would be filled by good clear science. He would not need to be successively robbed of the credit for making the warmth and light of the sun, the thunder and lightning, the motions of the planets, and the wonders of digestion and muscular contraction and psychological motivation as they are explained by science, because he could take the even greater credit for having created the natural process that produced all of them.

While there is much subtlety in the discussion of this whole topic, I find this article to be the most satisfying I've seen so far. I would add that this does not preclude God from intervening in human history, which He did by sending His Son to save us from our sins.

On the way to Mars


NASA/KSC

The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) was successfully launched this morning on an Atlas V booster. When it arrives at Mars next March, MRO will begin to image the Martian surface with unprecedented resolution, probably leading to more unimagined discoveries.

Voices of 9/11

The release of the New York Fire Department's recordings of emergency radio traffic remind us of the unspeakable evil but also the great courage and kindness shown that day.

RTM Wrap-Up

A quite comprehensive report on the Return to the Moon conference in Las Vegas which I attended last month is posted at HobbySpace.

Welcome Home Discovery!

It may be a day late and at the other end of the country, but the crew of the Shuttle Discovery returned safely from their crucial mission this morning.

With veteran commander Eileen Collins at the controls, Discovery swooped to a ghostly, tire-smoking touchdown on runway 22 at Edwards Air Force Base in California's Mojave Desert at 8:11:22 a.m. EDT, one day late because of concern about cloudy weather in Florida. The crew had two shots at a Kennedy Space Center landing today, but off-shore storms forced entry flight director LeRoy Cain to divert the shuttle to California.

A New World

Astronomers have announced the discovery of a new object in the outer Solar System that is larger than Pluto. Assuming Pluto retains its designation as the ninth planet, this new object will likely become known as number ten.

Jeff Foust links to several articles about this exciting and historic development.

Notorious Anti-Abortion Group

I'm finally catching up with this story, and critics of Supreme Court nominee John Roberts seem to have backed off from the line of attack concerning his wife's involvement with a certain prolife group. Perhaps it is because they realize that the more they draw attention to Feminists for Life, the more they undercut their own argument that abortion is in the best interest of women.

Embryonic Gyrations

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist has announced that he supports embryonic stem cell research (ESCR). Of course the Senator and other ESCR supporters and especially the Old Media continue to 'overlook' the fact that the real action is with adult stem cells.

Future Shuttle Flights Grounded

NASA has announced that the large pieces of foam that came off the External Tank during ascent (thankfully missing the Orbiter Discovery) indicate a problem that needs to be fixed before future flights are launched. At least with all of the imagery obtained on this flight, engineers will have a head start in troubleshooting the problem.

Return to Flight!!


NASA/KSC

Space Shuttle Discovery lifted off this morning and the crew is beginning to carry out their mission on orbit. Today's launch is the culmination of two-and-a-half years of hard work and dedication following the tragic loss of Shuttle Columbia and her crew.

Space Geeks Do Vegas!

Well, attendees at the Return to the Moon conference did have a good time. However, the conference brought together some of the leaders in government, established and entrepreneurial space companies, scientists, engineers, lawyers and citizen space advocates to examine where we are in the effort to return to the Moon to stay.

Technical aspects of flying to the Moon and using its resources were discussed, along with a stimulating discussion by leading space lawyers on the topic of space property rights. But the big news coming out of the conference is the announcement by NASA officials of new approaches to achieving its space exploration goals.

There’s just one problem with this approach: the money’s not there. Shank made that clear in his presentation as he outlined the overall exploration roadmap. “We’ve run the numbers, the budget numbers, and we can’t afford this plan—we simply can’t—if we follow the business-as-usual approach.” He didn’t go into the specifics of what made this unaffordable, although he later indicated that the problems were in the out-years beyond 2010 when NASA had to fund continued operations of the ISS and the new CEV while developing a heavy-lift launch vehicle and other systems needed for a human return to the Moon.

However, as Shank put it, “If there’s one thing about Mike Griffin that industry and stakeholders are learning about, it’s that he’s not a business-as-usual kind of guy… The NASA budget is only so much per year. It is just a matter of what it is you want to do with that money. So we, NASA, need to be smarter customers.”

Apollo Anniversary


NASA

Tomorrow is the 36th anniversary of humanity's first expedition to the lunar surface, and I'll be off to attend the Return to the Moon VI conference.

Also, tomorrow is the second anniversary of the launch of this humble blog. (Please scroll to the bottom for the inaugural post.)

John Roberts It Is

W has announced his pick of Appeals Judge John Roberts as Associate Justice of the Supreme Court. Judge Roberts is widely respected for his qualifications and legal thought. Never-the-less, the howling and shrieking from the usual suspects has begun. (Obvious example here.)