President Donald Trump has indicated that he wants to make a splash in space. During his transition, he spoke with historian Douglas Brinkley about John F. Kennedys famous 1961 vow to go to the moon before the decade was out. Now Trump and his aides may do something very similar: Demand that NASA send astronauts to orbit the moon before the end of Trumps first term a move that one Trump adviser said would be a clear signal to the Chinese that the U.S. intends to retain dominance in space.

NASA already has a plan to launch its new, jumbo Space Launch System (SLS) rocket with an Orion capsule on top in late 2018, a mission known as EM-1. No one would be aboard. The capsule would orbit the moon and return to Earth, splashing down in the ocean.

This is intended as the first test flight of SLS and part of the integration of the new rocket and new capsule. Significantly, the SLS and Orion are both still under construction.

According to current plans, a crewed mission, EM-2, would not be launched until several years later under the NASA timeline certainly not during Trumps current term. That crewed mission would also orbit the moon.

But on Wednesday, NASAs acting administrator, Robert Lightfoot, sent a letter to employees saying hed instructed the top NASA official for human spaceflight, associate administrator William Gerstenmaier, to explore the feasibility of adding astronauts to the EM-1 flight.

Lightfoot wrote: I know the challenges associated with such a proposition, like reviewing the technical feasibility, additional resources needed, and clearly the extra work would require a different launch date. That said, I also want to hear about the opportunities it could present to accelerate the effort of the first crewed flight and what it would take to accomplish that first step of pushing humans farther into space.

This is, by NASA standards, a bombshell announcement, because major missions involving new hardware and astronauts are typically planned many years in advance. Rush jobs are not NASAs way.

At the same time, NASA officials and space policy experts understand that Trump wants to do something dramatic. Scott Pace, head of the Space Policy Institute at George Washington University, said earlier this week, There is strong interest in finding significant near-term accomplishments that can be done in the first term.

Bob Walker, an adviser to the Trump transition team and a former congressman who chaired the House science committee, said Tuesday: What I hear being discussed is the potential for sometime within the first Trump term being able to go and do an Apollo 8 mission meaning a lunar orbit mission like the one performed by Apollo 8 in December 1968.

This would be another precursor to ultimately landing. And I think sometime within a second Trump term, you could think about putting a landing vehicle on the moon, Walker said.

Its also a demonstration of our technological competence. At some point, I think the Chinese need to awaken to the fact that the U.S. does intend to maintain its pre-eminence in space. I can guarantee you that if we dont go ahead and do a program like this, the Chinese are headed in that direction. But Walker did not say such a mission would necessarily have to use NASAs SLS rocket and Orion capsule. Entrepreneurial space companies, including Elon Musks SpaceX and Jeffrey Bezoss Blue Origin, are planning their own heavy-lift rockets. (Bezos owns The Washington Post.)

Newt Gingrich, an influential adviser to Trump when it comes to space issues, is among those pushing for a more entrepreneurial space program. In an email to The Washington Post, Gingrich, who said he was on a trip to Antarctica, blasted NASA for becoming an agency that avoids risk, and said the space program should leverage the enthusiasm and money of the many billionaires interested in commercializing space.

The key is to liberate space from government monopoly and maximize the inventive entrepreneurial spirit of the Wright brothers, Edison, Ford and other classic Americans, Gingrich wrote. Done properly we can be on the moon in President Trumps first term and orbiting Mars by the end of his second term.

Here is the full Agency Update sent to NASA employees by acting administrator Robert Lightfoot: Good morning! As Ive discussed before, we continue working closely with the transition team. The members of the team are excited to be a part of this great agency and everyone is committed to keeping you informed of developments. I know youve been reading a lot in the media and hearing from colleagues about what may or may not be our future direction. I want you to know that when those decisions are made, youll hear it from me.

From my interactions with the transition team, NASA is clearly a priority for the President and his administration. Since most of you werent able to join me today at the Space Launch System/Orion Suppliers Conference, I wanted to share what I told that group. I told them how critical their work is to our future to the nations future and our next giant leaps in exploration.

I shared that weve already hit a lot of milestones, and the next ones are on the close horizon. Its a testament to your hard work that we were able to say that last year, and were confidently able to say it again this year.

The magnitude of what were doing with SLS and Orion is incredible, as are the capabilities were creating for this nation, which will take humans farther than we ever have before.

At NASA, were leveraging the very best the country has to offer on this work, and its advancing the national economy.

As the Acting Administrator, my perspective is that we are on the verge of even greater discoveries. President Trump said in his inaugural address that we will unlock the mysteries of space. Accordingly, it is imperative to the mission of this agency that we are successful in safely and effectively executing both the SLS and Orion programs.

Related to that, I have asked Bill Gerstenmaier to initiate a study to assess the feasibility of adding a crew to Exploration Mission-1, the first integrated flight of SLS and Orion. I know the challenges associated with such a proposition, like reviewing the technical feasibility, additional resources needed, and clearly the extra work would require a different launch date. That said, I also want to hear about the opportunities it could present to accelerate the effort of the first crewed flight and what it would take to accomplish that first step of pushing humans farther into space. The SLS and ORION missions, coupled with those promised from record levels of private investment in space, will help put NASA and America in a position to unlock those mysteries and to ensure this nations world pre-eminence in exploring the cosmos.

There has been a lot of speculation in the public discourse about NASA being pulled in two directions what has come before and what we want to do now. At NASA, this is an and proposition, not an or. To get where we want to go, we need to work with the companies represented at the SLS and Orion suppliers conference AND those industry partners that work with us in other areas across the country all of whom have the long-term view on this work. We must work with everyone to secure our leadership in space and we will.

This is indeed an exciting time for our agency, and I know all of us share in this enthusiasm. I admire your passion and energy, and I want you to know how important you are to the success of the team and to the future of NASA. Your innovation and creative thinking will drive Americas influence in the coming years and decades.

Stay focused. Thanks for all you are doing every day, and I will share more with you in future updates.

Go here to read the rest:

Make space travel great again: NASA, heeding Trump, may add astronauts to a test flight moon mission - National Post

Back to Blog Chris Hauff Feb 16, 2017

On Thursday, February 23, two-time space traveling astronaut Christopher Cassidy will board the USS Yorktown to discuss the life and accomplishments of S.C. hero Ron McNair during a Patriots Point Black History Month symposium titled In the Spirit of Ron McNair. The free program begins at 11 a.m. and is open to the public.

McNair was born and raised in Lake City, S.C. during the Civil Rights Movement. In 1984, after overcoming countless obstacles, he became the second African-American astronaut to travel to space. Just two years later, he was killed in the tragic space shuttle Challenger explosion.

In addition to learning about McNairs life from his younger brother Eric McNair, the audience, which will include several hundred fifth grade students, will also hear firsthand accounts from Christopher Cassidy about space travel. The current National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) astronaut has spent more than 182 days in space, has visited the International Space Station (ISS), and completed six spacewalks.

Christopher J. Cassidy (Captain, U.S. Navy) was selected by NASA in 2004 and is a veteran of two space flights, STS-127 and Expedition 35.

We are honored to have the opportunity to host a program about the extraordinary Ron McNair, said Patriots Point Executive Director Mac Burdette. McNair was raised during times of segregation in the South, and despite that, he was able to persevere to astronomical heights. His story, paired with the experiences of current NASA astronaut Christopher Cassidy, will make for a very inspiring program. There are very few people who can say theyve met an astronaut.

Respected Charleston musicians, Lonnie Hamilton and Ann Caldwell will perform the National Anthem. Hamilton will also perform a song at the conclusion of the symposium in tribute of Ron McNair one McNair had planned to play aboard the space shuttle Challenger before the launch took his life.

Admission and parking for In the Spirit of Ron McNair is free. The program, which will also be streamed live through the museums social media pages, is part of the ongoing Ordinary People Doing Extraordinary Things symposium series.

Don't miss out upcoming events and happenings at Patriots Point.

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Two-Time Space Traveling Astronaut to Speak at Black History ... - Patriots Point

A VR Company is Attempting to Make Holographic Videos for Space Travel Mobile Magazine The VR company is hoping that holographic communications can improve on space travel communications, given the often large time gaps that happen when communicating with earth beyond the moon's orbit. Unlike past sci-fi films like Star Trek and Star ...

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A VR Company is Attempting to Make Holographic Videos for Space Travel - Mobile Magazine

Astronaut Scott Kelly launched into space on a one-year mission to the International Space Station (ISS) in 2015. He was weightless for 340 days.

His identical twin brother, retired astronaut Mark Kelly, stayed on Earth.

Astronauts Scott Kelly, left, and Mark Kelly backstage at the fIfth annual Breakthrough Prize Ceremony on Sunday, Dec. 4, 2016 at the NASA Ames Research Center in Mountain View, Calif.

Because they are identical twins, Scott and Mark Kelly share almost all the same genetic material, or DNA. They agreed to let scientists study them before, during, and after Scotts mission to find out what a year floating in space may do to the human body.

The investigation is known as the Twins Study ... and the first results are now in.

Genetic changes

In the Twins Study, researchers are looking at 10 aspects of the human body. They are doing the investigation for NASAs Human Research Program. NASA is the American space agency.

The researchers who are involved in NASA's Twin Study. (Courtesy NASA)

They introduced some early findings at a conference in Texas last month. At the conference, researchers said that some genetic changes occurred in Scott Kelly while he was in space.

John Charles is the chief scientist for NASAs Human Research Program. He says researchers expected some of those changes. But there was a surprise: a change to Scotts telomeres.

Telomeres sit on the end of chromosomes. Chromosomes are the part of cells that hold DNA.

Usually, as people age, their telomeres become shorter. But when he was in space, Scott Kellys telomeres did the opposite: They became longer.

Charles says usually astronauts have shorter telomeres than other people. He thinks this may be because their intense training on Earth is stressful.

NASA astronaut Scott Kelly inside the cupola of the International Space Station, an area that provides a 360-degree viewing of the Earth and the station.

So being in space, Charles says, may actually be less stressful.

Theyre eating well, theyre sleeping we hope well, they have work that is meaningful to them. Theyre exercising, they have two hours everyday for exercise, a luxury many of us on Earth would like but cant afford...

Scott Kellys telomeres shortened again when he returned to Earth.

Microbiomes

Researchers are also looking at the twin brothers microbiomes. Those are the microorganisms, mostly good bacteria, that all humans carry in their intestines to help with digestion.

Scott Kelly with lemons in space. Researchers studied how diet affected his microbiome as part of NASA's Twins Study.

Scott and Mark had different microbiomes, but NASA says that is probably because the men had different diets and different environments.

Charles says Scott Kellys microbiomes showed the astronaut was very healthy going into space, and stayed healthy while he was there.

Bone loss

Scientists also compared the two mens bones. They expected Scott to have more bone loss, a known problem connected to weightlessness in space.

Sure enough, Scotts bone formation decreased during the second half of his mission. But over the year, the hormone that helps with bone and muscle health increased.

Researchers say the increase is probably connected to all the exercising Scott did every day to combat the bone and muscle loss.

So, while his bones did change, they may end up being just as strong as before.

Astronaut Scott Kelly working in the International Space Station. (Courtesy NASA)

Fine motor skills

The researchers also studied the mens fine motor skills how their hands and fingers work.

To test the skills, the twins performed tasks with their fingers on a tablet computer screen. The early results show that Scotts accuracy and reaction time may have decreased while he was in space.

Next steps

As for now, the Twins Study is continuing. NASAs John Charles says the results will give the agency a new and powerful tool to prepare astronauts for long space flights, including going to Mars one day.

If we understand their bodies and how they change in these long duration space missions beyond Earth, then we can better train them, better equip them, better prepare them, better support them for the missions that they are going to undertake.

Charles says the Twins Study will also take mental and emotional factors into account. Because long space flights to and from Mars will mean years away from loved ones on Earth, scientists are studying how to reduce feelings of isolation.

Expedition 46 Commander Scott Kelly on his third spacewalk outside the International Space Station, Dec. 21, 2015. (Courtesy NASA).

There is something really to think about as we consider sending people off to long duration missions off to Mars, where they wont have instantaneous communication whenever they feel like it...

But, Charles says, do not expect answers soon.

This is a painstaking, tedious process that will only gradually provide the results that were expecting from this mission. So that, give us a year or so to continue the analysis, and let the investigators talk amongst themselves and talk with our colleagues and make sure they have the right results...

Then, he says, there might be some surprises when researchers truly understand what happened genetically to Scott Kelly in space and Mark Kelly on the ground.

Im Anne Ball.

Anne Ball wrote this story for Learning English with material from Reuters. Kelly Jean Kelly was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section and visit us on our Facebook page.

Check your understanding of the story by taking this listening quiz.

_____________________________________________________________

telomeres n. the items on the end of a chromosome.

stressful adj. full of or causing stress or making you feel worried or anxious

hormone n. a natural substance that is produced in the body and that influences the way the body grows or develops

accuracy n. freedom from mistake or error

instantaneous adj. happening very quickly, in an instant

painstaking adj. done with great care and effort

tedious adj. boring or too slow or long

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How Does Long-Term Space Travel Affect Humans? - Voice of America

When it's not working on its two new games, Starbound developer Chucklefish finds the time to update, well, Starbound, its spacey, science fiction sandbox game. True to that, a new post on the Chuckleblog sheds a bit of light on an upcoming patch that will revamp the way space travel works. You'll soon be able to fly freely around star systems in your little pixel spaceship, or in a bunch of new vehicles that will be added as part of the update. Here's a GIF that shows the work-in-progress system off (I do like how your craft appears to automatically orbit planets if you get close enough).

"Space isnt just about stars and planets," Chucklefish's Molly explains in the update post, "its about the space between them, so youll now be able to fly freely around systems and explore all kinds of new locations, from space stations to traveling merchant ships to mysterious derelicts! Systems wont just be static, eithermoons orbit planets, planets orbit stars, and rich opportunities come and go, rewarding patient explorers with brand new perils and plunder!"

All of which sounds fab, particularly in a space-focused exploration sandbox game like this one. There's no date for the patch yet, so while you wait you'll have to make do with Starbound's current method of space travel. (Thanks, RPS.)

The rest is here:

Starbound to revamp space travel in future update - PC Gamer

Irish American astronauts Mark and Scott Kelly make history. Never have two twins both spent so long in space.Nasa.gov

The next big challenge for the space industry will be putting people on our nearest planetary neighbor, Mars. The journey time could take up to 300 days and before people are asked to make the trip, scientists at NASA have looked at the effect of space on the bodies of astronauts whove already spent a year in orbit.

Step forward the identical Kelly twins; Mark and Scotts Irish family hailed from Cork and Kerry and the intrepid pair have both spent over a year in space each. The NASA study will determine what effect space travel has had on their respective bodies through blood tests and the examination of other biological material.

The fact that the Kellys are genetically identical means theyll have their own Twins Study - a first in the industry - and theyve already got all the material they need. NASA is currently analyzing and the results should be made public within a year or two.

Nature have previously reported that after Scott spent just under 50 weeks in space tests, reveal[ed] changes in gene expression, DNA methylation and other biological markers.

Such changes, scientists concluded, were most likely from his near year in space.

Heres a short video from NASA explaining the Twin Study:

Previous tests have shown the two brothers to have had very similar results but that Scott had slightly longer telomeres - the caps on the end of chromosomes - than his brother Mark. Even though they returned quickly to their normal length, the finding shocked scientists, as telomeres are supposed to shrink over the course of an individuals lifetime.

That is exactly the opposite of what we thought, said Susan Bailey from Colorado State University.

NASA scientist, John Charles, said even if the results were unusual they were thankfully not concerning, Its important to appreciate that telomere lengthening is not always a good thing, as telomere lengthening is also associated with some disease processes and pathologies, he explained before adding, That is not the case in this instance, however.

Its expected that the tests will reveal more mind-boggling results like this once properly examined.

The Kelly twins first decided they wanted to be astronauts when they 8, their father Richard recalled to our sister publication, Irish America. Grandma, were going up in space someday, they proclaimed and in 1996 they got their wish when NASA selected them to be two of the elite few to travel to the stars.

And although the pair are most well known for their professional work, theyve also made headlines when tragedy struck their family in 2011 when Marks wife Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords was shot in failed assassination attempt.

Giffords was holding a town hall meeting when a gunman opened fire, a bullet narrowly missing the crucial midline of her brain. She has since made strong progress with her recovery.

Scott was in space at the time but released a statement when informed about his sister-in-laws brush with death.

We have a unique vantage point here aboard the International Space Station, he said. As I look out the window I see a very beautiful planet that seems very inviting and peaceful. Unfortunately, it is not. These days we are constantly reminded of the unspeakable acts of violence and damage we can inflict upon one another not just with our actions but also with our irresponsible words. We are better than this. We must do better.

Even if the tragedy kept Mark from space for a while, it was never going to stop if forever. When asked if it was a difficult decision to leave his wife, then still recovering from the shooting, Kelly said I know her very well and she would be very comfortable with the decision that I made.

Nevertheless, his marriage remains the most important thing in his life. The wedding ring he gave her had inscribed on it, Youre the closest to heaven that Ive ever been.

Read more: Gabrielle Giffords love story with husband Mark Kelly

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NASA's Irish Twins Study reveals first results of space travel on humans - IrishCentral

Lacoste may be best known for its presence on the tennis court, but today its designer Felipe Oliveira Baptista chose to honour its founder Ren Lacoste's lesser-known career history working in the aircraft industry during the time of the first transatlantic crossings.

For Baptista, whose father was a pilot, this meant delving into the world of space travel - a place where fantasy meets technology.

Accordingly, the models in this New York Fashion Week show took their turn on a catwalk transformed to resemble the surface of Mars.

High performance fabrics - a signature ingredient in any Lacoste catwalk collection - were propelled to new heights, with high-shine foil nylon coupled with fleece and industrial leather, while the hero of the offering was a series of boilersuits inspired by the uniform of astronauts. Though the result, while futuristic, was far from unattainable.

"I didnt want it to look like a cold, futuristic vision of the future," said Baptista, speaking backstage after the show.

To this end, the Portuguese designer brought the collection back down to earth with a host of natural elements, from the wool and linen lining the inside of reversible waterproof jackets, to the fluid cocoon shapes seen on velour drawstring dresses.

Functionality also remained high on the agenda with multiple patch pockets and roomy backpacks. Bold colour combinations, such as ochre with lilac, were also taken from the landscape of the cosmos, while the iridescent prints of planets were reproductions from the work of space artist Ron Miller.

But Baptistas vision wasnt focused solely on the future, he also took one giant leap into the Nineties seeking further inspiration. Citing legends such as Kurt Cobain among his muses, the designer recast grunge signatures including checked shirts and slouchy mohair cardigans.

"I wanted to explore what was timeless about the nineties," said Baptista. Jumbo cord cargo pants, puffer jackets and hooded cagoules were also among Lacostes future classics.

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Lacoste delves into the world of space travel at New York Fashion Week as Baptista honours founder's lesser-known ... - Evening Standard

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 6:02 p.m. CT Feb. 9, 2017

U.S. astronaut Scott Kelly and former astronaut Mark Kelly.(Photo: USA TODAY)

The following editorial appeared in Monday's Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on Monday, Feb. 6:

When astronaut Scott Kelly returned to Earth after nearly a year on the International Space Station, he was 2 inches taller than his twin brother, astronaut Mark Kelly. When Scott left for the mission, he and his earthbound brother were the same height.

What happened? Scientists at NASA are poring over the data compiled from the Twins Study, information that benchmarks Scott and Mark Kellys genomic and physical markers before and after Scotts yearlong mission on the space station.

So far weve learned that being in space for prolonged periods does have an effect on the chromosomes, bone structure and even the content of the culture in an astronauts gut. Scotts DNA and RNA underwent hundreds of mutations in space that gradually returned to normal once he was back on Earth.

Scott Kelly exhibited declining bone density, but a healing hormone kicked in during his exercise regimen on the space station. Still, his cognitive abilities and muscle dexterity showed signs of having slowed a bit once he returned to Earth.

That will be a factor to consider when astronauts land on Mars after six months traveling through space. Setting up their living environment on the planet will present both physical and mental challenges.

NASAs plans for manned missions to Mars in the 2030s are still in the early stages. The rival civilian space programs that have popped up are shooting for a Mars mission in the early-to-mid-2020s. Whoever gets to Mars first will be better prepared for the challenges of space travel thanks to the Twins Study.

Read or Share this story: http://www.gosanangelo.com/story/opinion/editorials/2017/02/09/kelly-twins-offer-vital-sign-space-travel/97643904/

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Kelly twins offer a vital sign for space travel - San Angelo Standard Times

Waikato Times

The Expanse and Frankie Adams: Meet the Kiwi who's conquered space travel Waikato Times The producers of sc-fi series The Expanse had dreaded casting the role since production began. The character: Bobbie Draper, a soldier of Polynesian ancestry, six foot and 100 kilos of pure muscle. "We dreaded the task of going out into the world and ... and more »

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The Expanse and Frankie Adams: Meet the Kiwi who's conquered space travel - Waikato Times

Can traveling through outer space reverse the aging process?

A new study cracks the door open to just that possibility, but Colorado State University professor Susan Bailey says age-conscious adventurers shouldnt boldly go just yet.

A lot of the work is still to be done, she said.

Bailey was among a handful of researchers selected to participate in one of the most ingenious science experiments of our time. In 2015, astronaut Scott Kelly was launched into orbit to spend a year aboard the International Space Station. His identical twin brother, Mark, remained on Earth. Bailey and her colleagues studied how they changed part of a NASA project to figure out how long-term space flight impacts human health in prelude to a possible trip to Mars.

Baileys work, specifically, focused on the Kellys DNA and the critical pieces called telomeres.

What are telomeres? Theyre the little bits of genetic coding that reside on the ends of each chromosome and provide a buffer like tiny DNA bumpers for the more important stuff in the code. As people get older, their telomeres generally shorten, and many researchers believe this shortening contributes to the ways the body breaks down as it ages. As a result, telomere length has become something of an obsession among anti-aging enthusiasts.

Going into the study, Bailey assumed that the stresses of space travel would accelerate the shortening of Scott Kellys telomeres. When she and her colleagues ran the tests, though, they found the opposite occurred. While Scott Kelly was in space, his telomeres actually grew longerwhile Marks remained more or less the same length. When Scottreturned to Earth, his telomeres shrank back to the same length as Marks.

Samples taken from other astronauts appear to confirm the finding that telomeres lengthen in space, Bailey said.

You do the research, and youre always surprised, Bailey said. I couldnt be more surprised by this result.

Cue the headlines proclaiming space flight a fountain of youth.

Except that may not be whats going on.

In any one person, telomere lengths arent always the same they can vary greatly from cell to cell. Bailey said it is possible that the extra-strong radiation that astronauts are exposed to in space might weed out cells with shorter telomeres, leaving only those with long ones and creating the impression that telomere lengths grew.

Perhaps those cells are dying, and that gives you the shift, she said.

Bailey said more research is needed to learn if something about being in space actually builds up telomeres by activating the enzyme, called telomerase, that constructs them. Even if it does, thats not necessarily a good thing, she said, because telomerase activity is also key to cancer cell growth.

If theres something about space flight that is activating telomerase, youve turned on one of the steps toward carcinogenisis, Bailey said.

That means, rather than finding a tidy conclusion, Baileys research has so far turned up mostly questions. All that she knows right now for certain, she said, is that Scott and Mark Kelly were basically the same when Scott left Earth and they returned to being basically the same afterhe landed.

We do need to figure out what was happening in the middle there, she said.

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Did a CSU study find that space travel makes you younger? Not so ... - The Denver Post

Posted: Feb. 10, 2017 2:35 pm

WHEN astronaut Scott Kelly returned to Earth after nearly a year on the International Space Station, he was 2 inches taller than his twin brother, astronaut Mark Kelly. When Scott left for the mission, he and his earthbound brother were the same height.

What happened? Scientists at NASA are poring over the data compiled from the Twins Study, information that benchmarks Scott and Mark Kelly's genomic and physical markers before and after Scott's yearlong mission on the space station.

So far we've learned that being in space for prolonged periods does have an effect on chromosomes, bone structure and even the content of the culture in an astronaut's gut. Scott's DNA and RNA underwent hundreds of mutations in space that gradually returned to normal once he was back on Earth.

Scott Kelly exhibited declining bone density, but a healing hormone kicked in during his exercise regimen on the space station. Still, his cognitive abilities and muscle dexterity showed signs of slowing a bit once he returned to Earth.

That will be a factor to consider when astronauts land on Mars after six months traveling through space. Setting up their living environment on the planet will present both physical and mental challenges.

NASA's plans for manned missions to Mars in the 2030s are still in the early stages. The rival civilian space programs that have popped up are shooting for a Mars mission in the early-to-mid-2020s. Whoever gets to Mars first will be better prepared for the challenges of space travel thanks to the Twins Study.

More here:

Twins study offers valuable data on space travel - Herald-Whig - - Herald-Whig

Last updated11:41, February 11 2017

Syfy / YouTube

Earth. Mars. The Asteroid Belt. It's time to pick a side in The Expanse.

The producers of sc-fi series The Expanse had dreaded casting the role since production began.

The character: Bobbie Draper, a soldierof Polynesian ancestry, six foot and 100 kilos of pure muscle.

"We dreaded the task of going out into the world and finding this person," The Expanseexecutive producer Hawk Ostly toldIndieWire.

Syfy

Frankie Adams as Martian patriot Bobbie Draper in The Expanse.

Based on books byDaniel Abraham and Ty Franck,The Expanseis set 200 years in the future as the human race expands into space.

READ MORE: *Netflix aquires The Expanse, starring Frankie Adams *Shortland Street's Frankie Adams on Wentworth *Frankie's most embarrassing Shortland Street moments

Bobbie Draper is a marine fromthe colony of Mars who dreams of the red planet having its own government.

YOUTUBE/SCREEN SHOT

Frankie Adams in The Expanse.

The Expanse's producers were reportedly so aware of doing Bobbie right that they structured the plot of the season's first few episodes to ease the actress into the role.

"What we did on a creative level was slowly work [the character] into the season she's in [Episodes] 1, 3 and 6 partially so she could get used to the part and partially so we could get used to writing the character," executive producerNarenShankar said.

Casting directorsRobin Cook (based in Canada),Julie Tucker and her team (working out of New York) and New Zealand-basedLiz Mullane were all involved in the hunt for Bobbie, but Ostby said that at the beginning of the search, he was pretty sure that "New Zealand would be a very interesting place to look."

Frankie Adams (centre) played inmate Tasha on Wentworth.

Adams' New Zealand agent,Imogen Johnson, said they were lucky to have Mullane working out of New Zealand.

"We are very lucky that top New Zealand casting director Liz Mullaneis a huge fan of Frankie's and worked closely with her and us to secure this role.

"The production were doing a world wide search for this character but as soon as they saw Frankie's audition she was short-listed.We then worked in tandem with her US reps and assisted with closing of her the deal and she literally had to leave for Canada a week later. We couldn't be prouder of her!"

Frankie Adams as Ula Levi on Shortland Street.

Adams, born in New Zealand of Samoan heritage, had two television roles under her belt, asUla Levi inShortland StreetandTasha Goodwin inWentworth.

The Expanseproducers were excited not only by her acting experience, but also by her work as an amateur boxer.

According to executive producer Mark Fergus, it was book author Ty Franck who first saw Adams' tape and identified her as the right choice.

"It was ahuge thrill for us that one of the guys who invented her character just saw right into her eyes and knew it was her almost immediately," he said.

Getting the role was a huge thrill for Adams, too. Speaking to IndieWire, she said she "screamed in excitement" when she got the phone call.

She was concerned she wouldn't be muscular enough for the part, so embarked on a training regime of strength and conditioning work, with no cardio.

Shankar said finding Adams was well worth the search.

"It requires you to work harder and to go to places that haven't traditionally been on the radar," he said.

"But when you do, you're always getting rewarded for it."

The Expanse Season Two premieres on SKY's The Zone on February 8, 8.30pm.

-Stuff

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The Expanse and Frankie Adams: Meet the Kiwi who's conquered space travel - Stuff.co.nz

Dr Shawna Pandya has been leading an interesting life for a while now, but its only recently the citizen scientist has been finding herself in the news. Reports indicate Dr Pandya might be next in line as the third woman of Indian-origin to make her way into space, but things arent exactly as clear as all that. Were going to break it down for you right now.

Dr Shawna Pandya is a 32-year-old general practitioner based in Alberta, Canada. Many reports indicate shes a neurosurgeon, but Dr Pandya herself has stated that, though she trained in neurosurgery for a short period, her medical licence is as a general practitioner. However, medicine isnt her only scientific love, given that she registered for two citizen scientist-astronaut programs (CSA) years ago.

Dr Pandya is part of both Project PoSSUM and the PHEnOM Project, both of which are research projects that dont actually involve going into space. PoSSUM is an acronym for Polar Suborbital Science in the Upper Mesosphere. It involves imaging noctilucent clouds from a high-altitude balloon over Antarctica, as well as later using manned reusable suborbital vehicles to study the fine structures of the clouds during a week-long deployment. And while PoSSUM evolved out of an earlier NASA-funded project to study climate change, its not officially a NASA venture, and instead works in partnership with the Canadian National Research Council.

PHEnOM, on the other hand, stands for Physiological, Health, and Environmental Observations in Microgravity. Its a project by the SeaSpace Exploration & Research Societys SeaSpace Research Institute and focuses on studying the effects of microgravity on humans, including research in biomedical science, pharmacology, and materials science. This project, similar to PoSSUM, is not tied to any space agency like NASA or the ESA, but is instead under the SeaSpace Societys ambit, in the US.

While participants in both these projects are highly qualified individuals in the fields of engineering, research, and medicine, and also receive astronaut training of a sort, the teams never leave Earths gravity entirely. Instead, research is carried out in Earth-bound labs, parabolic aircraft, and eventually commercial suborbital spaceflight vehicles.

Dr Shawna Pandya (L) and crew testing commercial spacesuits in microgravity at the National Research Council. (Ross Lockwood/Facebook)

As you can see once all the information is gathered, Dr Shawna Pandya is a qualified doctor, now a trained citizen scientist-astronaut, and a researcher in her own right. However, this is far from circulating reports that indicate shes joining the ranks of Kalpana Chawla and Sunita Williams. Dr Pandya herself has indicated that, despite being on the CSA team of the PHEnOM Project, theres still no guarantee of her being onboard the flights into upper altitudes, instead of one of her other crew members.

Yet, even if Dr Pandya may not have the chance to really break free from Earths gravity and experience the final frontier, shes still getting closer to it than most us could dream of, and her teams research will greatly benefit those that do have that chance. That in itself is definitely something worthy of pride, so lets not do her a disservice by muddling her contributions.

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Shawna Pandya clears the air on rumours of space travel - Daily News & Analysis

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HOUSTON A soccer ball that was inside the Space Shuttle Challenger when it exploded in 1986 is now in space.

During the recovery of the Challenger, a few things survived. One of the items was a soccer ball carried by one of the astronauts and signed by the players form Clear Lake High School in Houston. After it was recovered, it was donated to the high school and has been on display.

Astronaut Shane Kimbrough, whose daughter now attends that same high school, asked if the school would like to send anything into orbit. The soccer ball received a second chance at space flight. Kimbrough launched to the space station in October and just last week posted a photo of the ball in space.

When the ball returns from space, it will go back to Clear Lake High School for a permanent display.

Read more:

Piece of tragic shuttle history gets a second chance at space travel - WQAD.com

"Since I was a kid, I loved space, I loved the stars. So this kind of is a realisation of a life-long dream," says Shawna Pandya who is set to become the third Indian-origin woman to travel in space. The 32-year-old will undertake the expedition with eight others in 2018.

A neurologist by profession, Pandya works as a general physician at the Alberta University Hospital in Canada. On her expedition, she will be conducting experiments with bio-science and medical science, as well as studying the effects of microgravity on health and physiology. She will also study climate change as a part of the Polar Suborbital Science in the Upper Mesosphere (PoSSUM) project.

The Mumbai-born Canadian doctor is one of the two candidates selected from 32,000 people under the Citizen Science Astronaut programme. "All my junior high science projects or reports, they were all space related ... I think the idea of doing something that's so adventurous and really pushes the bounds of exploration, and the fact that you'd get to space really, really resonated with me," Pandya told CBS.

So, after she earned a B.Sc. in Neuroscience, she went on to do her post graduation in space sciences from the International Space University. She then pursued her MD in Medicine from the University of Alberta.

It isn't just her academic record that impressive. Pandya is an international taekwon-do champion and Hindustan Times reports that she trained with a Navy SEAL in Muay Thai. According to a report in the Indian Express, she is a Silicon Valley entrepreneur and has even walked the runway as a model. Add to that her fluency in Russian, French and Spanish.

It seems that space exploration is not the only thing on this brilliant young woman's mind. She is also an integral part of the team preparing to undertake a 100-day underwater mission called Project Poseidon, at the Aquarius Space Research Facility in Florida.

Also on HuffPost India

'Indica: A Deep Natural History Of The Indian Subcontinent' Is More Compelling Than Sci-Fi

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Meet Shawn Pandya, The Third Indian-Origin Woman To Space-Travel - Huffington Post India

When astronaut Scott Kelly returned to Earth after nearly a year on the International Space Station, he was 2 inches taller than his twin brother, astronaut Mark Kelly. When Scott left for the mission, he and his earthbound brother were the same height.

What happened? Scientists at NASA are poring over the data compiled from the Twins Study, information that benchmarks Scott and Mark Kellys genomic and physical markers before and after Scotts yearlong mission on the space station.

So far weve learned that being in space for prolonged periods does have an effect on the chromosomes, bone structure and even the content of the culture in an astronauts gut. Scotts DNA and RNA underwent hundreds of mutations in space that gradually returned to normal once he was back on Earth.

Scott Kelly exhibited declining bone density, but a healing hormone kicked in during his exercise regimen on the space station. Still, his cognitive abilities and muscle dexterity showed signs of having slowed a bit once he returned to Earth.

That will be a factor to consider when astronauts land on Mars after six months traveling through space. Setting up their living environment on the planet will present both physical and mental challenges.

NASAs plans for manned missions to Mars in the 2030s are still in the early stages. The rival civilian space programs that have popped up are shooting for a Mars mission in the early-to-mid-2020s. Whoever gets to Mars first will be better prepared for the challenges of space travel thanks to the Twins Study.

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Another View: NASA's Twins Study offers vital sign for space travel - Press Herald

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Newspaper review: Heartthrob and space travel in Wednesday's papers BBC News A Hollywood heart throb, icebergs and space travel, are just some of the stories featured in Wednesday's papers. "What I've said so far is only the tip of the iceberg" is the headline in the Belfast Telegraph. The paper has an exclusive interview with ...

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Newspaper review: Heartthrob and space travel in Wednesday's papers - BBC News

February 1, 2017 Interstellar journey: The aim of the Starshot project is to send a tiny spacecraft propelled by an enormous rectangular photon sail to the Alpha Centauri star system, where it would fly past the Earth-like planet Proxima Centauri b. The four red beams emitted from the corners of the sail depict laser pulses for communication with the Earth. Credit: Planetary Habitability Laboratory, Univesity of Puerto Rico at Arecibo

In April last year, billionaire Yuri Milner announced the Breakthrough Starshot Initiative. He plans to invest 100 million US dollars in the development of an ultra-light light sail that can be accelerated to 20 percent of the speed of light to reach the Alpha Centauri star system within 20 years. The problem of how to slow down this projectile once it reaches its target remains a challenge. Ren Heller of the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research in Gttingen and his colleague Michael Hippke propose to use the radiation and gravity of the Alpha Centauri stars to decelerate the craft. It could then even be rerouted to the red dwarf star Proxima Centauri and its Earth-like planet Proxima b.

In the recent science fiction film Passengers, a huge spaceship flies at half the speed of light on a 120-year-long journey toward the distant planet Homestead II, where its 5000 passengers are to set up a new home. This dream is impossible to realize at the current state of technology. "With today's technology, even a small probe would have to travel nearly 100,000 years to reach its destination," Ren Heller says.

Notwithstanding the technical challenges, Heller and his colleague Michael Hippke wondered, "How could you optimize the scientific yield of this type of a mission?" Such a fast probe would cover the distance from the Earth to the Moon in just six seconds. It would therefore hurtle past the stars and planets of the Alpha Centauri system in a flash.

The solution is for the probe's sail to be redeployed upon arrival so that the spacecraft would be optimally decelerated by the incoming radiation from the stars in the Alpha Centauri system. Ren Heller, an astrophysicist an astrophysicist working on preparations for the upcoming Exoplanet mission PLATO, found a congenial spirit in IT specialist Michael Hippke, who set up the computer simulations.

The two scientists based their calculations on a space probe weighing less than 100 grams in total, which is mounted to a 100,000-square-metre sail, equivalent to the area of 14 soccer fields. During the approach to Alpha Centauri, the braking force would increase. The stronger the braking force, the more effectively the spacecraft's speed can be reduced upon arrival. Vice versa, the same physics could be used to accelerate the sail at departure from the solar system, using the sun as a photon cannon.

The tiny spacecraft would first need to approach the star Alpha Centauri A as close as around four million kilometres, corresponding to five stellar radii, at a maximum speed of 13,800 kilometres per second (4.6 per cent of the speed of light). At even higher speeds, the probe would simply overshoot the star.

During its stellar encounter, the probe would not only be repelled by the stellar radiation, but it would also be attracted by the star's gravitational field. This effect could be used to deflect it around the star. These swing-by-manoeuvres have been performed numerous times by space probes in our solar system. "In our nominal mission scenario, the probe would take a little less than 100 years or about twice as long as the Voyager probes have now been travelling. And these machines from the 1970s are still operational," says Michael Hippke.

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Theoretically, the autonomous, active light sail proposed by Heller and Hippke could settle into a bound orbit around Alpha Centauri A and possibly explore its planets. However, the two scientists are thinking even bigger. Alpha Centauri is a triple star system. The two binary stars A and B revolve around their common centre of mass in a relatively close orbit, while the third star, Proxima Centauri, is 0.22 light years away, more than 12,500 times the distance between the Sun and the Earth.

The sail could be configured so that the stellar pressure from star A brakes and deflects the probe toward Alpha Centauri B, where it would arrive after just a few days. The sail would then be slowed again and catapulted towards Proxima Centauri, where it would arrive after another 46 years about 140 years after its launch from Earth.

Proxima Centauri caused a sensation in August 2016 when astronomers at the European Southern Observatory (ESO) discovered an exoplanet companion that is about as massive as the Earth and that orbits the star in its so-called habitable zone. This makes it theoretically possible for liquid water to exist on its surface water being a key prerequisite for life on Earth.

"This finding prompted us to think about the possibility of stopping a high-velocity interstellar lightsail at Proxima Centauri and its planet," says Ren Heller. The Max Planck researcher and his colleague propose another change to the strategy for the Starshot project: instead of a huge energy-hungry laser, the Sun's radiation could be used to accelerate a nanoprobe beyond the solar system. "It would have to approach the Sun to within about five solar radii to acquire the necessary momentum," Heller says.

The two astronomers are now discussing their concept with the members of the Breakthrough Starshot Initiative, to whom they owe the inspiration for their study. "Our new mission concept could yield a high scientific return, but only the grandchildren of our grandchildren would receive it. Starshot, on the other hand, works on a timescale of decades and could be realized in one generation. So we might have identified a longterm, follow-up concept for Starshot," Heller says.

Although the new scenario is based on a mathematical study and computer simulations, the proposed hardware of the sail is already being developed in laboratories today: "The sail could be made of graphene, an extremely thin and light but mega-tough carbon film," Ren Heller says. The film would have to be blanketed by a highly reflective cover to endure the harsh conditions of deep space and the heat near the destination star.

The optical and electronic systems would have to be tiny. But if you were to remove all the unnecessary components from a modern smartphone, "only a few grams of functional technology would remain." Moreover, the lightweight spacecraft would have to navigate independently and transmit its data to Earth by laser. To do so, it would need energy, which it could harness from the stellar radiation.

Breakthrough Starshot therefore poses daunting challenges that have so far only been solved theoretically. Nevertheless, "many great visions in the history of mankind had to struggle with seemingly insurmountable obstacles," Heller says. "We could soon be entering an era in which humans can leave their own star system to explore exoplanets using fly-by missions."

Explore further: Image: Hubble's best image of Alpha Centauri A and B

More information: Heller, R., & Hippke, M. (2017) "Deceleration of high-velocity interstellar sails into bound orbits at Alpha Centauri", The Astrophysical Journal Letters, Volume 835, L32, DOI: 10.3847/2041-8213/835/2/L32

The closest star system to the Earth is the famous Alpha Centauri group. Located in the constellation of Centaurus (The Centaur), at a distance of 4.3 light-years, this system is made up of the binary formed by the stars ...

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With the completion of New Horizons' Pluto fly-by, its primary mission, should we now set our sights even higher, ambitiously taking aim at other star systems? If so, Alpha Centauri would probably be considered as the best ...

NASA scientist William Zhang has created and proven a technique for manufacturing lightweight, high-resolution X-ray mirrors using silicona material commonly associated with computer chips.

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100grams is also pretty ambitious (as it includes the weight of the sail). Graphene weighs 0.77milligrams per square meter. So 100k square meter sail already 77g If you add any kind of reflective layer this will be WAY over the 100g mark. And you need some structural elements to make sure it doesn't collapse under the pressure of the radiation for accelerating/decelerating it.

The StarChip probe package is envisioned at a few grams with a 'compact laser for data transmission'. However I've not seen anyone mention how such a small laser can transmit data over 4 light years.

Sure, the 100 gram useless piece of space junk will be a $100Mil monument to the dumbass ego. Hopefully no aliens will notice it (only 0.00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000012 chance they will, as no one lives in Alpha Centauri system).

What level of drag do you get from this size sail, from the thin interstellar medium? How do you compensate for the unknown medium and wind particulates drag near proxima?

Yes, to say the least, this presented concept is problematic. The asteroid belt contains sufficient kinetic energy to send a much larger probe out at as high or higher speed with far greater safety. Why don't they use that? Asteroids are just sitting there waiting for someone clever enough to start bouncing things around, so to speak. The physics is Newtonian for crying out loud.

I really have no idea how such a small probe can pack all of the systems needed for this probe to be worth while. How is it generating power, storing it, keeping itself warm. What about redundant systems for when a cosmic particle crashes through the probes electronics? Can the probe receive over the air software updates in order to fix the software glitch the system will no doubt be launched with. Can we really track this probe to sufficient accuracy in order to perform corrective trajectory manoeuvres? What bit rate can you achieve from such a tiny, low powered (where's the power coming from) laser? Is it possible to point lasers so accurate we can hit this probe from Earth, 4 light years away??? Surely bi-directional communication is required. Better not need to update the probe in a hurry, 4 years is some savage communication lag!!!!! Unfurling and furling of the sail repeatedly and probe stabilisation during the process...... GOOD F_cking luck with that!!!!!!

Even the swarm-antenna idea doesn't quite work as at the speed and how they are being sent they would only remain in a viable configuration for a tiny amount of time.

This article is about a much slower speed mission which I think might be impractical based on limited attention span of civilization. Also the possibility that we'll have much better propulsion systems before the probe could get there - the probe could find itself being passed by tourist ships on the way to the same destination. 😉

The gravitational focus concept is fascinating because it implies low power interstellar communications are possible. Alas, still limited to lightspeed.

You can graph the time it takes at which a probe (or manned craft) could get there. You can also graph the time it takes each time we double the capabilities of our thrust systems. By those graphs it currently makes no sense to launch, because technological advance will make a craft that is launched *later* arrive there earlier.

We shouldn't be concerned with how we get information back with technology we could make now. We should look to how to get information back at a time when we are close to the break-even point of "travel time vs. tech advance"

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Read more from the original source:

Space travel visionaries solve the problem of interstellar slowdown at Alpha Centauri - Phys.Org

When astronaut Scott Kelly returned to Earth after nearly a year on the International Space Station, he was 2 inches taller than his twin brother, astronaut Mark Kelly. When Scott left for the mission, he and his earthbound brother were the same height.

What happened? Scientists at NASA are poring over the data compiled from the Twins Study, information that benchmarks Scott and Mark Kellys genomic and physical markers before and after Scotts yearlong mission on the space station.

So far weve learned that being in space for prolonged periods does have an effect on the chromosomes, bone structure and even the content of the culture in an astronauts gut. Scotts DNA and RNA underwent hundreds of mutations in space that gradually returned to normal once he was back on Earth.

Scott Kelly exhibited declining bone density, but a healing hormone kicked in during his exercise regimen on the space station. Still, his cognitive abilities and muscle dexterity showed signs of having slowed a bit once he returned to Earth.

That will be a factor to consider when astronauts land on Mars after six months traveling through space. Setting up their living environment on the planet will present both physical and mental challenges.

NASAs plans for manned missions to Mars in the 2030s are still in the early stages. The rival civilian space programs that have popped up are shooting for a Mars mission in the early-to-mid-2020s. Whoever gets to Mars first will be better prepared for the challenges of space travel thanks to the Twins Study.

See the article here:

Celestial bodies: The Kelly twins offer a vital sign for space travel ... - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

We're creating a positive news network. We need your help.

Its called quantum entanglement, its extremely fascinating and counter to what we believe to bethe known scientific laws of the universe, so much so that Einstein himself could not wrap his head around it. Although its calledquantum entanglement, thoughEinstein referred to it as spooky action at a distance.

Recent research has taken quantum entanglement out of the theoretical realm of physics, and placed into the one of verified phenomena.An experiment devised by the Griffith Universitys Centre for Quantum Dynamics, led by Professor Howard Wiseman and his team of researchers at the university of Tokyo, recently published a paper in thejournalNature Communicationsconfirming what Einstein did not believe to be real: the non-local collapse of a particles wave function. (source)(source), and this is just one example of many.

They did this by splitting a single photon between two laboratories, and testing whether measurement of it in one laboratory would actually cause a change in the local quantum state in the other laboratory. In doing so, researchers were able to verify the entanglement of the split single photon.

Researchers have since replicated this experiment over and over again, with results of entanglement seen at kilometres of distance. Below is a great visual depiction of what quantum entanglement from the film, What The Bleep Do We Know.

Space is just the construct that gives the illusion that there areseparateobjects Dr. Quantum

Sure, there are a lot of philosophies regarding what all of this stuff actually means, but, as Dr. Elizabeth Rauscher puts it, its a pre-curser to realizing that everything is connected, and that everything in the universe is one. What happens in what we call reality, is effecting something else in that same reality, its all touching. (source)

Whats happening here is that, either we are witnessing the transfer of information at a speed far greater than the speed of light, or even better, something completely instantaneous.

If all points in space are connected, that means vast distances between places are simply an illusion. Furthermore, quantum entanglement challenges Einsteins theory of relativity, but theories are developed to be tweaked and changed. Unfortunately, our world is plagued with secrecy, and you can learn more about that in an article about the black budget linked at the bottom of this article.

Rich was the second director of Lockheed Skunkworks from 1975-1991. Hes been called the Father of Stealth, having overseen the development of the stealth fighter, the F-117Anighthawk.Before his death, Rich made several shocking open statements about the reality of UFOs and extraterrestrials.

We already have the means to travel among the stars, but these technologies are locked up in black projects, and it would take an act of God to ever get them out to benefit humanity. Anything you can imagine, we already know how to do it. (1)

We now have technology to take ET home. No it wont take someones lifetime to do it. There is an error in the equations. We know what it is. We now have the capability to travel to the stars. (1)

There are two types of UFOs the ones we build and the ones they build. (1)

Where Quantum Entaglement Comes In

When Rich was asked how UFO propulsion worked, he said,Let me ask you. How does ESP work?The questioner responded with, All points in time and space are connected?Rich then said, Thats how it works!

Interesting to think about, isnt it? Perhaps the vast distances that exist between planets, solar systems and more isnt really as much of a barrier as we thought it was.

One of the sources is aerospace journalist, James Goodall, who wrote for publications such asJanes Defense Weekly, Aviation Week and Space Technology, and Interavia. He is an accomplished speaker specializing in the history, development, and operations of the worlds only Mach 3 capable, manned air breathing aircraft, the SR-71 family of aircraft. (1) (source)(source)(source)

He is also an author, as well as the Associate Curator at the Pacific Aviation Meseum, HI. He was also the restoration manager at the Museum of Flight in Paine Field, Everett, WA.

Goodall interviewed many from the classified black budget world (read more about that world here.) He claimed that some of his contacts told him thatwe have things out there that are literally out of this world, better than Star Trek or what you see in the movies. (1)

From his work alone, James Goodall knew Ben Rich well. In a video interview, Goodall stated that he spoke to Rich approximately 10 days before he died:

About ten days before he died, I was speaking to Ben on the telephone at the USC Medical Center in LA. And he said, Jim, we have things out in the desert that are fifty years beyond what you can comprehend. They have about forty five hundred people at the Lockheed Skunk works. What have they been doing for the last eighteen or twenty years? Theyre building something. (1)

Another source comes from John Andrews, who was a legendary Lockheed engineer. He had written to Rich, stating his own belief inUFOs, both manmade and extraterrestrial. Andrews has asked Rich if his own beliefs covered extraterrestrial as well as manmade UFOs. Richs reply was as follows:

Yes, Im a believer in both categories. I feel everything is possible. Many of our man-made UFOs are Un-Funded Opportunities. There are two types of UFOs, the ones we build, and the ones they build. (1)

In Richs reply, he underlined the U, F, and O in unfunded opportunities.

Thirdly, Jan Harzan, a senior executive with IBM, along with Tom Keller, an aerospace engineer who has worked as a computer systems analyst for NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory, discusses a talk Ben gave some time ago. OnMarch 23rd, 1993 at a UCLA School of Engineering talk where he was presenting a general history of Sunk Works, he said this:

We now know how to travel to the stars. There is an error in the equations, and we have figured it out, and now know how to travel to the stars and it wont take a lifetime to do it. It is time to end all the secrecy on this, as it no longer poses a national security threat, and make the technology available for use in the private sector. There are many in the intelligence community who would like to see this stay in the black and not see the light of day. We now have the technology to take ET home. (1)

Here is a video of Jan telling the story:

Its quite remarkable how many verified statements we have regarding UFOs (unidentified flying objects) andextraterrestrials from people who have held the highest positions possible within the government, military, academia, politics and more. To be honest, its overwhelming, and when you put all of those statements together with all of the previously classified documentation that has been released over the past few years, it paints a startling picture. Anybody who has done even a fair amount of research, and adheres to the philosophy of condemnation without investigation is the height of ignorance, would not be able to deny this, and I have yet to come across someone who has done the research that still subjectsthis topic to the conspiracy theory realm.

If youd like to learn more about UFOs, a great place to start is by checking out what happens when they are tracked on military radar.

To view a fraction of some verified quotes, and documents, and more, you can sift through the exopolitics section of our website and browse through our heavily sourced articles there.

Below is an example, and a video Ive used many times before, as it is an extremely powerful statement. I apologize if youve seen it before, but it really hits home. There really is an abundant amount of evidence.

Below is a great lecture given by researcher Richard Dolan. A great place to start. I apologize if youve seen this content before, but we always have new readers visiting our site, so its important to constantly put this information out there for those new eyes.

A century from now, it will be well known that: the vacuum of space which fills the universe is itself the real substratum of the universe; vacuum in a circulating state becomes matter; the electron is the fundamental particle of matter and is a vortex of vacuum with a vacuum-less void at the center and it is dynamically stable; the speed of light relative to vacuum is the maximum speed that nature has provided and is an inherent property of the vacuum; vacuum is a subtle fluid unknown in material media; vacuum is mass-less, continuous, non viscous, and incompressible and is responsible for all the properties of matter; and that vacuum has always existed and will exist forever.Then scientists, engineers and philosophers will bend their heads in shame knowing that modern science ignored the vacuum in our chase to discover reality for more than a century.

The quote above comes from Paramahamsa Tewari, Inventor of whats called the Reactionless AC Synchronous Generator (RLG).

What he says above has been the subject of discussion within the realms of physics and astronomy for decades. At the turn of the nineteenth century, physicists started to explore the relationship between energy and the structure of matter. In doing so, the belief that a physical, Newtonian material universe that was at the very heart of scientific knowing was dropped, and the realization that matter is nothing but an illusion replaced it. Scientists began to recognize that everything in the Universe is made out of energy.

Quantum physicists discovered that physical atoms are made up of vortices of energy that are constantly spinning and vibrating, each one radiating its own unique energy signature. This is also known as the Vacuum or The Zero-Point Field.

Whats even more fascinating is that the stuff within this space can be accessed and used. This was experimentally confirmed when The Casimir Effect illustrated zero point or vacuum state energy, which predicts that two metal plates close together attract each other due to an imbalance in the quantum fluctuations(source)(source). You can see a visual demonstration of this concepthere.Before Casimir, these pockets of nothing were thought to be voids.

Unfortunately, when contemplating the nature of our reality and what we perceive to be our physical world, the existence of the vacuum and and what lies within what we call space is very much over-looked. I find it amusing how were still searching for the God particle when a large amount of evidence points to the idea that most of what we refer to as reality is actually something we cant perceive with our physical senses!

No point is more central than this, that space is not empty, it is the seat of the most violent physics John Wheeler

Its quite confusing, which is why I am posting the video below of someone (out of many people) who spends their life researching and experimenting with these cool concepts.

Below is a video of Nassim Haramein giving a TEDx talk at USCD. Nassim currently leads teams of physicists, electrical engineers, mathematicians and other scientists to explore the frontier of unification principles and their implications. Harameins lifelong vision of applied unified physics to create positive change in the world today is reflected in the mission of The Resonance Project Foundation. He shares the developments of his research through scientific publications and educational offerings through the Resonance Academy.

Currently Nassim is focused on his most recent developments in quantum gravity and their applications to technology, new energy research, applied resonance, life sciences, permaculture, and consciousness studies. Nassim currently resides in Kauai compassionately raising his two young sons, and surfing the sunlit swells on the shores of the magnificent Hawaiian islands.

HERE is an example of some of his published research, with co authors, one of whom is Elizabeth A. Rauscher, an American physicist. She is a former researcher with the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, the Stanford Research Institute, and NASA.

Space is actually not empty and its full of energyThe energy in space is not trivial theres a lot of it and we can actually calculate how much energy there is in that space and that reality might actually come out of it. Everything we see is actually emerging from that space.

Related CE Articles:

Distinguished Scientists Gather To Emphasize That Matter Is Not The Only Reality

Sources:

(1)Dolan, Richard. UFOs For the 21st Century Mind: New York: Richard Dolan Press, 2014(Historian, author, one of the worlds leading researchers on the topic of UFOs)

Related CE Article: Learn More About The Black Budget.

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Quantum Entanglement May Be Key To Long Distance Space Travel Ex Lockheed Exec Said It's Already Happening - Collective Evolution