A few weeks back we introduced the collaborative synth kit between littlebits and KORG. If somehow that didn’t impress you, littlebits just made the advancement from music to science by releasing their latest collaboration with NASA – appropriately calling it the Space Kit.
If it wasn’t for the hackers from the Lunar Orbiter Image Recovery Project, we wouldn’t be looking at these photos of the moon that were brought back from 1,500 analog data tapes stowed away in someones shed since the late 60’s. They include the first high-resolution photographs ever taken from behind the lunar horizon, including the first photo of an earthrise. It’s actually a pretty long, but very interesting story and you can check the full, less lazy version via Wired.
Believe it or not, there are some things in life that are free; mother nature and outer space being two of the very few things left. Space.com has curated a list of celestial events like spring meteor showers and eclipses that will let you know when and where to look, so that you don’t miss out on any of the night-sky action. You can check a full list of events via Space.com, with the first event taking place April 14 and 15 (Mars’ closest approach in 2014 and a total eclipse of the moon). It goes on through the end of May, so be sure to read carefully through the whole thing, that way you’ll have your telescopes and binoculars ready for gazing.
Marketing efforts have been on point for the Sandra Bullock – George Clooney film Gravity. I don’t think much marketing was needed after grabbing seven awards from The Academy on Sunday, but a few hours before the awards NASA tweeted a beautiful set of real-life photos from outer space. The mind-boggling photos show what life is really like out in the universe, with photos of free flying missions, space walks and night shots of our beloved Earth. Utilizing the hash tag #RealGravity for their tweet, they definitely caught our attention. Check the set below.
Life on another planet is a subject that can be debated about for hours upon end, so why not do it over a cup of joe at your coffee table, while flipping through This Is Mars. The new book is compiled of panoramic images of Mars’ surface recently sent back by the U.S. observation satellite MRO (Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter). MRO has been mapping the surface of Mars, and sending back detailed images since its arrival in orbit around 2006. Velles Marineris canyons, black dunes of Noachis Terra, and the highest peak in our solar system, the Olympus Mons volcano, can all be seen and learned about in this first-of-it’s-kind book. Hey, if you’re lucky, maybe you’ll be able to spot the first signs of life during your debate (highly doubtful).
Traveling to outer space is something that few have and will accomplish in their lifetime. Sure, if you have about $250,000 to throw around you could book your next space ship to outer space with Virgin Galactic, but do you really have that lying around? Believe it or not, you can also go as a NASA Astronaut, just like Don Pettit did when he captured these images of Earth and the stars beyond in a motion we have never seen before. Pettit sets his camera to a 30-second shutter and snaps multiple exposures for 10-15 minutes at a time. Blending all of the images together the results are beautiful photographs of slow shutter space photography.
More images after the jump.
Direkt Concept 