Showcasing Our Efforts to Monitor Earth’s Climate on This Week @NASA – March 11, 2022

TL;DR

NASA updates on climate monitoring, progress of Psyche and Europa Clipper missions, observations of magnetar, and a unique opportunity for individuals to have their names on the Artemis 1 mission.

Transcript

showcasing our efforts to monitor earth's climate a spacecraft for an asteroid mission is close to its final configuration and assembly of our europa clipper spacecraft is underway a few of the stories to tell you about this week at nasa on march 8 u.s special presidential envoy for climate john kerry visited our ames research center in northern ca... Read More

Key Insights

• 💦 NASA is actively working on climate monitoring using a combination of remote sensing tools, data from aircraft and spacecraft, and supercomputers.
• 🤑 The Psyche spacecraft, set to launch in August 2022, will explore the metal-rich asteroid Psyche and provide valuable insights into early solar system formation.
• 🥮 Assembly of the Europa Clipper spacecraft is in progress, with the mission aiming to investigate the potential for life on Jupiter's moon Europa.
• 🤩 NASA's NICER instrument on the International Space Station offers unique observations of neutron stars, contributing to our understanding of crust-magnetic field interactions.

Questions & Answers

Q: What was the purpose of John Kerry's visit to NASA's Ames Research Center?

John Kerry visited Ames Research Center to learn about how NASA uses remote sensing tools, data from aircraft and spacecraft, and supercomputers to study and monitor Earth's climate. He also explored the National Full-Scale Aerodynamics Complex, focused on climate-related innovation.

Q: When will the Psyche spacecraft launch and what is its mission?

The Psyche spacecraft is scheduled to launch in August this year. Its mission is to study the metal-rich asteroid Psyche and gain insights into the formation and composition of protoplanets in the early solar system.

Q: What progress has been made in the assembly of the Europa Clipper spacecraft?

Assembly of the Europa Clipper spacecraft is underway, with engineering components and science instruments being delivered from various locations. Most of the flight hardware is expected to be completed by the end of the year.

Q: What is the purpose of NASA's Neutron Star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) instrument?

NICER is mounted on the International Space Station and observes phenomena related to neutron stars, such as the merging of multi-million degree x-ray spots on the surface of a magnetar. It aims to enhance understanding of magnetic fields and crust structures in these extreme objects.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• U.S special presidential envoy for climate, John Kerry, visited NASA's Ames Research Center to learn about how they use remote sensing tools and data from aircraft and spacecraft to study and monitor Earth's climate.

• The Psyche spacecraft is closer to its final configuration, with solar arrays recently attached. It will launch in August 2022 and study the metal-rich asteroid Psyche in 2026.

• Assembly of the Europa Clipper spacecraft has begun, and most of the flight hardware is expected to be complete by the end of the year. The mission aims to investigate the potential for life on Jupiter's moon Europa.

• NASA's Neutron Star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) instrument on the International Space Station has observed the merging of x-ray spots on a magnetar's surface, providing insights into the interaction between crust and magnetic fields.

• Individuals can have their names added to a flash drive for the Artemis 1 mission's historic trip around the moon and back.