Space Travel - Blog Posts

IC 405 & 410 Mosaic - Flame and Tadpole Nebulas

Refueling at Europa

So this is a short sci-fi story i wrote 2 to 3 years ago. I'm still learning, so please give me whatever constructive criticism you can.

I'll also be posting a few more of my stories while I'm currently working on that one lesbian bug alien romance story I posted about before.

Synopsis: A Blackbox from a group of Voyagers’ is recovered after their starship is found destroyed. It reveals that refueling off of the water from Jupiter’s moon Europa may not be the best idea.

“AY-005 to command.” the terminal crackled and the image of Lt. Pallin faded into view through the static. “One moment Pallin. Gotta clean up your image.” I replied into the microphone as I twisted the dials that lined the terminal. Slowly Lt. Pallin’s face became more clear and her voice lost some of the accompanying grain. “Alright go ahead.” I was eager to hear her report, usually being on night shift I rarely get any first hand contact. It's all told to me by the previous shifts or in emailed memorandums, this was a welcome surprise. “Right,” Lt. Pallin began “We found the black box that belonged to AX-004.” My heart leaped in my chest. This was astounding news, AX-004 had been destroyed a few months ago, and we only found out thanks to some routine telescopic searching. “That's fantastic news, Pallin. Send it in.” The loud clicking of my key-board nearly drowned out my instructions as I prepared the terminal to receive the blackbox’s contents. “Copy.” she replied and moved just off screen. I went and made myself a fresh pot of coffee as the data was being transferred, my shoes sticking and making awful squelches as I walked. They really need to clean this place. 

I made my way back and sat down with a new mug of coffee steaming, the pot set next to me. The terminal’s processor revved and the fan spun, working hard to complete the download. Finally the green bar with a ninety-nine percent hovering over finally filled and presented “DOWNLOAD COMPLETE” and Lt. Pallin’s face returned. “I’ll review this right away. Thanks Lieutenant. Be careful.” I praised, and I readied myself for a long night. Her chuckle was distorted as the feed gained more interference. Before she cut out I heard her say “All G— will con— need to refuel. Planning— Europa’s ocean.” Then she was gone. Honestly, I was surprised her communication had lasted as long as it did. These terminals may have been the latest and greatest in light-year communication, but even they have their limits. I queued up the file, only an audio log accompanied by descriptive text of the ship's onboard computer system. Sadly the AX series of ships were just old enough to not be equipped with cameras but were equipped with auditory receptors allowing the crew to use voice commands. That way they needn’t travel to a ship terminal just to adjust the temperature or run diagnostics. I grabbed myself a snack from my desk, my notepad, and settled in.

<SCS> 00:30 running diagnostics. Fuel low. Reserve error. Waking Captain…

(Capt. Love): Computer, what’s happening?

(SCS): Request not recognized.

(Capt. Love): God dammit. Computer run diagnostic.

(SCS): One moment. Diagnostic report: Engines- fine, shields-fine, landing gear- fine, life support- fine, Fuel - Low, Fuel Reserve - Error

(Capt. Love): So it's a fuel problem. Alright, damn. Computer, scan for possible fuel sources, enough to complete the mission.

(SCS): One moment.

<SCS> Scanning…

(SCS): Large source of H2O found. 325 miles from current position. Location: Europa.

(Capt. Love): Huh, okay. Computer wake crew. 

(SCS): One moment.

<SCS> Waking crew…

(Cpl. Benings): Awww, come on. What now?

(Pvt. Dell): What's going on? Are we here? 

(Dr. Ve): Well that was a nice nap.

(SCS): Captain, crew have been awakened.

(Capt. Love): All hands to the bridge. 

(Cpl. Bennings) What’s going on Captain?

(Capt. Love): Low on fuel and the reserve is malfunctioning. I found us a good refueling point, at least enough to finish the mission. Europa.

(Cpl. Bennings): Alright so we just fly down and grab some water, easy. I’ll go check out the reverve, see what's up. Though why’d you wake up these two?

(Pvt. Dell): Yeah I was gonna ask the same thing. I'm no engineer.

(Capt. Love): Good experience for you Dell and I figured the Doc wouldn't want to miss landing on a moon made of ocean.

(Dr. Ve.): Thank you.

(Capt. Love): Computer chart course for Europa

(SCS): One moment.

<SCS> Charting course. Ideal landing zone found. Engaging Autopilot. Engaging engines…  

<SCS> 01:20 Deploying landing gear. Intciating landing…

(SCS): Please be advised. The temperature on Europa is currently -260℉ or -160℃. Thermal suits are recommended.

(Cpl. Bennings): No shit sherlock. Oww, sorry.

(Capt. Love): Alright, Everyone ready?

(Cpt. Bennings): Yep.

(Pvt. Dell): Yes Sir.

(Dr. Ve): Almost. Okay.

<SCS> All crew members have left the ship. Switching to remote communications.

(Cpl. Bennings): Holy shit, I thought my mother in-law was cold. 

(Capt. Love): Imagine it without the thermal suits. Now Dell, bring that over here. Alright This is literally the definition of plug and chug. We insert the drill, it drills the ice, sucks it up and puts it in the reserve. Then when we reach the water below the surface, that will fill up our main tank.

(Dr. Ve): Would you look at those geysers? Amazing.

(Capt. Love): Hey Doc don't go too far, the surface is very unstable from the shifting currents. 

(Dr. Ve): Oh right. Sorry.

(SCS): All members be advised. Large life-form detected. Proceed with caution.

(Pvt. Dell): What?

(Capt. Love): Computer, elaborate.

(SCS): Sure. Lifeform location 85 miles below the surface. Lifeform appears to be 360 

feet in length. Weight estimated to be 467 tons. Creature’s thermal signature indicates it is an endotherm.

(Cpl Bennings): What the fuck? Really? First alien life we encounter and this type of shit. Great.

(Capt. Love): Hold it together Bennings. Computer, track lifeform. Warn us if it's within 2.75 miles of the surface. Dell get the Doctor back to the ship, I'll finish here.

<SCS> Lifeform movement 63 miles from surface. Fuel 54% complete. 

(Pvt. Dell): Watch your step Doctor. 

<SCS> 2 of 4 crew members on board. Lifeform movement 34 miles from the surface. Fuel 65% complete.

(Clp Bennings): Come on Sir. I don't like this, it's too quiet. 

(Capt. Love): Just as quiet as before Bennings. 

(Clp Bennings): Yeah but now there’s a fucking leviathain beneth us.

(Capt. Love): What? 

(Clp. Bennings): Nothin’. 

<SCS> Lifeform movement 22 miles. Fuel 78% complete

(Capt. Love): Dell get the ship ready for departure. We are not waiting to see this thing, understood?

(Pvt. Dell) Yes sir. Computer, prepare the cockpit for liftoff.

(SCS) Sure. One moment…

<SCS> Initiating manual piloting system… 

(Capt. Love): Computer, Fuel status update.

(SCS): One moment… Fuel 86% complete

(Clp Bennings): Alright. Alright, we making progress.

(SCS): ALERT! ALERT! ALERT! Lifeform within 2.75 miles of surface. ALERT! ALERT! ALERT!

(Clp. Bennings): Fuck.

(Capt Love): Run!

(SCS): Lifeform 2.00 miles from surface.

(Dr. Ve): Come on! Hurry!

(SCS): Lifeform 1.52 miles from surface. Warning surface becoming unstable.

(Capt. Love): The Ice is cracking, come on Bennings! Dell start lift off!

(Pvt. Dell): Yes Sir!

<SCS> Manual liftoff engaged. All control to pilot.

(Clp. Bennings): Oh Shit! Guys Help! Fuck thats cold!

(Capt. Love): Shit Bennings! Fuck! Dell get this thing off the ground so we can get him!

<SCS>3 of 4 crew members onboard. Gaining altitude… (SCS): Lifeform within 0.46 miles of surface.

(Clp. Bennings): Oh shit I think I see it! Fuck, I think it sees me!

(Capt. Love): We’re coming, Bennings! Get to a high point!

(SCS): ALERT! ALERT! ALERT! Lifeform has reached the surface. ALERT! ALERT! ALERT!

(Clp. Bennings): Holy— how many eyes does this thing have?!?

(Capt. Love): What the fuck? 

(Dr. Ve): Oh God.

(Capt. Love): Dell, you see him? Avoid those tentacles! 

(Pvt. Dell): Holy shit! Holy shit! Why didn't I just go to College!

(Capt. Love): Keep it together. Bennings grab my hand!

(Clp Bennings): Ha, got ya! Ok, now pull my ass up!

(Capt. Love): We’re trying! Not our fault you're a mountain of muscle, lay off the gym will ya?

(Clp. Bennings): I’m Sorry! 

<SCS> All Crew members have returned to ship. Sealing outer doors…

(Dr. Ve): Alright let me check you over. 

(Capt. Love): Ha, good Flying, Dell. Now get us the Fu–

       *End of all downloaded information*

I leaned back in my chair sweating, exhausted from simply listening and reading the recount of what happened. My mind spun with billions of horrific images, attempting to grasp what they had encountered. In the end I only succeeded in conjuring a headache, and took a swig of my forgotten coffee, now chilled by the AC unit running full blast. I sat in silence for minutes that stretched for hours, shudders and chills ran up and down my spine. Then a thought pierced me, spurred me into frantic action.

 I twisted and pulled on the terminal’s hard unfeeling dials, typing command after command to the point I thought the keyboard would break. I had to reach the Lieutenant, warn her. I know they didn't have the correct equipment to have seen what I had seen, read what I read. I finally got the signal out. One minute turned into two, two to ten, ten to thirty. But the Terminal only displayed static.

A revamp of an older painting, wanted to see if I could improve it more! 🚀

The Exploration Behind the Inspiration at NASA

Are we alone? How did we get here? Where are we headed?

At NASA, our mission is to explore. We visit destinations in our solar system and study worlds beyond to better understand these big questions.

We also dream. We dream of traveling to distant worlds, and what that might be like. In the video above you can see fanciful, imagined adventures to real places we’ve studied at NASA.

How We Did It

Check out how we created these otherworldly scenes in the video below. A NASA videographer used green screens to add motion and real people to bring life to our series of solar system and exoplanet travel posters.

Let’s dive into one example from the video. The shot of kayaking on Titan showcases the real rivers and lakes of liquid methane and ethane that slosh and flow on Saturn's largest moon. Titan's mysterious surface was revealed by our Cassini spacecraft, which also deployed the European Space Agency’s Huygens probe to the surface. The atmosphere on Titan is so thick, and the gravity so light, that with each strike of a paddle, you might be lofted above the swift current as you ride the tides through a narrow strait called the Throat of Kraken. NASA scientist Mike Malaska studies Titan and collaborated on the poster featured in the video. His research informed the artwork, and so did a hobby: kayaking. Those ultra-cold chemical seas might be even more of a challenge than shown here. Your boat might crack, or even dissolve, Malaska said.

We’ll learn more about Titan when our Dragonfly mission of dual quadcoptors — rotorcraft with eight blades each — visits the icy moon in 2034.

Science Never Stops

Our understanding of other worlds is always evolving, and sometimes we learn new details after we illustrate our science. In one of our travel posters, we show a traveler standing on the surface of exoplanet Kepler-16b with two shadows formed by the planet’s two suns. The planet does indeed orbit two stars, but with later size and mass refinements, we now think it would be hard to stand there and enjoy a binary sunset. There isn't a solid surface to stand on a gas planet, and that's what Kepler-16b now appears to be!

In addition to sharing how sublime science can be, these scenes are a reminder that there are lots of careers in the space program, not just scientist, engineer, or astronaut. A creative team at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California produced the travel posters, originally to help share the work of NASA's Exoplanet Exploration Program. They are the result of lots of brainstorming and discussion with real NASA scientists, engineers, and expert communicators. The video versions of these spacey travel scenes were produced by visualization experts at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.

All of this work is meant to inspire, and to explore the edge of possibility. It’s also an invitation. With science, we’re stepping into the future. Join us?

Oddly Satisfying #NASAMoonKits 🌙

What would you take with you to the Moon? 🧳

We’re getting ready for our Green Run Hot Fire test, which will fire all four engines of the rocket that will be used for our Artemis I mission. This test will ensure the Space Launch System rocket is ready for the first and future missions beyond Earth’s orbit, putting us one step closer to landing the first woman and the next man on the Moon!

In celebration of this important milestone, we’ve been asking everyone (yeah, you there!) to dust off your suitcase, get creative, and show us what you would take if you were heading to the Moon!

Take a moment to peruse these #oddlysatisfying #NASAMoonKits submitted by people like you, and let them inspire you to lay out your own masterpiece. Post a picture of what you’d pack for the moon using the hashtag #NASAMoonKit for a chance to be shared by us! ⁣

1. @alexandra4astronaut

A stunning #NASAMoonKit in blue. 💙

2.@timmerman.jess

Looks like a little friend is hoping to catch a ride with this #NASAMoonKit. 🐶

3. @guido_aerus_lombardo

A #NASAMoonKit fit for an explorer. 🧭

4. @melli.jp

Shout out to the monochrome #NASAMoonKit enthusiasts! 🖤

5. @mycactusdress

This #NASAMoonKit is thoughtfully laid out by a true fan. 📚

6. Mar Christian V. Cruz

This geologist’s #NASAMoonKit rocks. ⛏️

7. Nelli

Beauty in simple #NASAMoonKits. ✨

8. @urbanxkoi

This #NASAMoonKit successfully fits into our Expert Mode — a volume of 5” by 8” by 2” (12.7 cm x 20.32 cm x 5.08 cm). The Expert Mode dimensions are based on the amount of space astronauts are allowed when they travel to the International Space Station!

9. PWR Aerospace

Nothing like a cozy #NASAMoonKit. 🧦

10. LEGO

This #NASAMoonKit is clearly for the builder-types! 🧸

How to Show Us What’s In Your #NASAMoonKit:    

There are four social media platforms that you can use to submit your work:

Instagram: Use the Instagram app to upload your photo or video, and in the description include #NASAMoonKit  

Twitter: Share your image on Twitter and include #NASAMoonKit in the tweet  

Facebook: Share your image on Facebook and include #NASAMoonKit in the post  

Tumblr: Share your image in Tumblr and include #NASAMoonKit in the tags

If a #NASAMoonKit post catches our eye, we may share your post on our NASA social media accounts or share it on the Green Run broadcast! 

Click here for #NASAMoonKit Terms and Conditions.  

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

How could your research in diseases help missions to the Moon, Mars and other places in our solar system?

What future missions are you looking forward to the most?

We’re sending people to space this week 🚀 Here’s your chance to ask a past Flight Director in Mission Control your questions!

Ginger Kerrick will be taking your questions in an Answer Time session on Friday, September 27 from 12pm - 1 pm ET here on NASA’s Tumblr! Ginger served as a Flight Director in Mission Control for 11 years and is now the Flight Integration Division Chief at Johnson Space Center. Find out what it’s like to send humans to space and learn more about her position as our first female Hispanic flight director. Make sure to ask your question now by visiting http://nasa.tumblr.com/ask!

Ginger Kerrick, as a child, dreamed of growing up to be either a basketball player or an astronaut. When neither dream came to fruition, Kerrick developed a fresh perspective – best summed up by the phrase “It just wasn’t meant to be” – and later became part of our team, serving in the Mission Control Center at the NASA Johnson Space Center as a Flight Director who has, to date, supported 13 International Space Station and five joint space shuttle missions. It was there that Kerrick, a few years earlier, became the first non-astronaut Capsule Communicator (CapCom), the flight controller that speaks directly to the astronaut crew in space, on behalf of the rest of the Mission Control team. 

Today, Ginger Kerrick is the Flight Integration Division Chief at our Johnson Space Center. Her department is responsible for crew safety and training, among a list of other duties. She has worked for NASA since 1994, and interned here while she was earning a bachelor’s degree in physics from Texas Tech University. She also has a master’s degree in physics from the university.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com