Kennedy Space Center Readies for New
Visitor Complex Attraction (Source: Fort Myers Neighbor)
The Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex is home to numerous
attractions, experiences, educational opportunities and even launches.
Its newest attraction, “The Gantry at LC-39,” is slated to open
soon, bringing an innovative, interactive experience that
reimagines the historic Launch Complex 39 gantry, located amidst the
most iconic launch pads in space exploration.
Veteran astronaut Winston Scott paid a visit to Southwest Florida this
past week and spoke about all of the happenings at the complex. The
Gantry at LC-39 offers an “unprecedented” 360-degree view of Kennedy
Space Center and active launch pads, as well as a range of immersive
exhibits and experiences. The four-story gantry houses a full-scale
model of a rocket engine that comes to life during a simulated static
test fire. (5/9)
A Chorus of Gravitational Waves
Emerging from the Milky Way Core (Source: Daily Galaxy)
A recent study published on arXiv sheds light on an astonishing
discovery at the core of the Milky Way Galaxy. There, a complex
symphony of gravitational waves is being generated by a multitude of
cosmic sources, including a supermassive black hole, binary black
holes, neutron stars, and white dwarfs.
While these gravitational waves are currently too faint for us to
detect with existing technologies, future observatories like the Laser
Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) are poised to offer new insights
into these cosmic phenomena. This creates a new challenge for
astronomers as they prepare to sort through this rich “forest” of
signals in the hopes of uncovering more definitive patterns. Could we
truly hear these waves in the future, and what might this mean for our
understanding of the universe? (5/10)
Lessons Learned From Massive Solar
Storm? (Source: Space.com)
The May 2024 solar storm, also known as the Gannon storm or Mother's
Day solar storm, is now ranked by NOAA as one of the most memorable
solar events in history, and potentially the most powerful documented
this century. It included a parade of powerful solar flares between May
8-11, 2024. According to NOAA, during this time frame, there were at
least eight coronal mass ejections (CMEs), which are giant blasts made
up of magnetic field and plasma, that targeted Earth.
"At [NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC)], we continue to
work to help operators protect our critical infrastructure from such
storms," Clinton Wallace said. "More than ten years of planning and
preparation paid off. Thanks to early warnings and strong teamwork, the
people who run critical systems like power, farming, and satellites
were able to prevent most of the damage from the May 2024 storm. This
proves that being ready isn't just helpful, it's essential."
While there was a win in terms of how resilient the North American
power grid was in the face of the storm, the agriculture industry took
a hit as vulnerabilities with GPS systems that help guide tractors were
exposed when the solar storm reached Earth. "A few days outage might
not seem to be a big deal, but when the storm hits during planting or
harvest season, as big storms typically do (storm effects are enhanced
at the equinoxes), then the impact to the crop yield can be extremely
significant."
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