Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin’s accomplishment was witnessed by more than 530 million people worldwide and left an indelible mark on our hearts, inspiring further space exploration, strengthening American pride and showing that anything is possible. At 4:17 PM, Armstrong radioed Mission Control in Houston with the news: “Tranquility Base here; Eagle has just landed.”…
When sunlight hits the atmosphere it scatters. Blue wavelengths tend to disperse more quickly than any other colour; that’s why the sky looks bluer. At sunrise and sunset, when the Sun is low near the horizon, its light must travel further through the atmosphere before it can reach you. As such, shorter wavelengths such as…
NASA’s Orion spacecraft will take astronauts further into deep space than ever before – beyond even the International Space Station and towards Moon and Mars. Orion was designed to withstand the rigorous environment of outer space with its heat shield and in-space propulsion system, radiation sensors, vibration monitoring instruments and accelerometers. Spacecraft Overview Orion spacecraft…
Butterflies go through four distinct stages during their life cycle and look different at each step. A butterfly begins as an egg that hatches and transforms into a caterpillar, which then consumes and expands over time, before eventually shedding its skin several times and emerging as an adult butterfly. Once a caterpillar lays her eggs,…
Most people tend to assume Venus is closest, according to recent research; however, according to an alternative viewpoint Mercury could actually be closer. Live Science reports that most people use an inaccurate method for calculating distance between planets. Averages taken into account, while their distance can change rapidly as planets orbit each other – giving…
Answering this question is more complex than simply saying it looks blue. Sunlight passes through the atmosphere and is dispersed into all directions by air molecules; shorter wavelengths like blue light tend to be dispersed more strongly by these air molecules than longer ones such as UV. As such, this is why the sky appears…
Not long before Apollo 11’s historic moon landing, flight controllers and stand-in astronauts conducted a simulation of its planned descent to the lunar surface – unknowing it would become one of history’s defining moments seen live around the globe on television. America is commemorating the 50th anniversary of this legendary space mission with events across…
When we gaze upon the sky, its color usually appears blue. This hue comes from light being scattered by molecules in our atmosphere. Blue wavelengths tend to get scattered more, making them appear brighter than their longer-wavelength counterparts. Other colors may also appear differently depending on factors carried through the air such as weather or…
No nation had successfully sent a human into space until 12 April 1961, when Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin made one orbit aboard Vostok 1. Gagarin’s flight triggered the Space Race between Russia and America and marked humanity’s venture into outer space. Prior to World War II, Germany experimented with various military space programs involving human…
