Universe Today

April 15, 2009March 24, 2012 by Fraser Cain

Woowoo Ads on Universe Today

Hey everyone, I’ve noticed there’s a Twitterstorm going on out there over the kinds of ads showing up on Universe Today. You know the ones for 2012, and strange theories about how Einstein was wrong. These are the contextual ads provided by Google Adsense, and without them, Universe Today would be a shadow of its former self.

Tim Farley over at Skeptical Software Tools wrote a reasoned response to the controversy of allowing woowoo ads on a scientific site, and it pretty much matches my point of view. But I chimed in on the comments of his site with a more detailed response. Here’s what I had to say:

“Thanks Tim, I appreciate the reasoned response to the situation. What you’ve described is essentially my position on the matter. Google Adsense is the only advertiser out there that will actually pay the bills, so I can pay the writers, server costs, etc. Without the money from Adsense, Universe Today would be a shadow of its current self. I’d layoff the writers, move the site to a $10/month host, and go get a real job.

And don’t think that I haven’t tried to bring in real advertisers. I’ve started up advertising networks, cold-called every telescope manufacturer, and begged my readers to help find sponsors for Universe Today – and that was met with silence. I know that it’s just a matter of time before lots of advertising moves online, but until then what do people suggest we do?

So for now, it’s Adsense. Big, bold Adsense ads that take up a tiny fraction of the site’s total real estate. Compare that to a newspaper or magazine and you’ll see that UT has less advertising.

The big complaint, obviously, is that there are 2012 and woowoo ads selling all kinds of nutty theories. But those ads paid for a multi-part series of articles that debunked every aspect of the 2012 silliness. Those ads keep the BAUT forum going. And they’re not the only ads on the site, there are also ads for telescopes, trips to the Kennedy Space Center and other space-related stuff.

So why don’t I filter out the woowoo ads? I tried that. Within a day or so, I filled up my filter list completely and it was just a fraction of the ads out there. And there’s no way I can see them all. And if you filter some, it just lets others float to the top.

We’re at an uncomfortable time in the world economy, with massive advertising resources shifting from the old media publishers to the new online world. Universe Today and the other space media sites are perfectly positioned to reap the rewards when the shift is actually finished. And when it does, we’ll have lots of very appropriate advertisers, spending the kind of money required to keep these kinds of sites going. It’ll be awesome, and there’ll be ice cream for everyone.

But until then, we have to do what we can to survive. I’m grateful that I can pay salaries to 6 full and part time writers and still feed my children. And the woowoos are contributing to that. I think it’s a hilarious transfer of wealth, honestly.

Universe Today is financially stable and growing nicely. As it grows, I can bring on more writers and provide better coverage. The site is almost completely immune the current troubles in the world economy. (I’ve worked in my basement developing Universe Today in my spare time before and I can do it again)

If you don’t like ads, I suggest you install Adblock for Firefox. Zip done, never see an ad again. And the when the future has arrived, I’ll let you know.

But if you want to complain about Universe Today, I beg you to complain about the content, tone and coverage of the articles and our respect for science and skepticism. Don’t worry about the ads, they’ll get sorted out soon enough.

Fraser Cain
Publisher
Universe Today”

So there you go.

April 15, 2009December 24, 2015 by Nancy Atkinson

Where In The Universe #51

It’s Wednesday, so that means its time for another “Where In The Universe” challenge to test your visual knowledge of the cosmos. See if you can name where in the Universe this image is from, and give yourself extra points if you can name the spacecraft responsible for the image. Make your guess and post a comment, but please no links to the answer. Check back sometime on Thursday to find the answer and see how you did.

UPDATE: The answer has now been posted below. Don’t peek at the answer until you make your guess!

This is Waw An Namus, (or also called Uau En Namus) which is a volcano in south-central Libya. It was photographed from the Space Shuttle on mission STS-52. I love the description of this landform on the referring webpage from Oregon State:

“A low caldera about 4 km in diameter is surrounded by a 5 – 10 km wide dark black deposit of ash that stands out starkly against the yellowish desert. The few people who have visited have been struck by its beauty: The Italian geologist Angelo Pesce wrote that as seen from the rim, one is “overwhelmed by a scene of rare beauty….Inside, the only thing one wishes is to be alone and wander in admiration from one end to the other.” But Pesce also complains about the “veritable cloud of mosquitoes, which not having many occasions to feed on fresh blood warmly welcome visitors to their desert realm. The Arabic word Namus means mosquito.”

Not sure I’d want to take a stroll through the clouds of mosquitoes!

This image was actually suggested by our publisher, Fraser Cain. We were hoping people would think it might be Io, which a few of you guessed. If anyone else has any suggestions for a Where In The Universe Challenge, email me at nancyatkinson04 at yahoo.com

Check back next week for another WITU Challenge!

April 15, 2009December 24, 2015 by Nancy Atkinson

Major Utility Company Makes Agreement for Space Based Solar Power

Solar Collecting Satellite. Image courtesy of Mafic Studios.

[/caption]
One of the largest utility companies in the US has decided to look towards space to find more power. Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) in California announced a proposed agreement with startup company Solaren Corporation to provide 200 mega watts of space based solar power (SBSP) starting in 2016. PG&E is now seeking approval from California state regulators for permission to sign this agreement. While PG&E is not making any financial investment at this time, the announcement shows that SBSP is being taken seriously as a viable energy source. PG&E and the two other California utilities are required by the state to source 20 percent of their power from renewable sources by 2010 and 30 percent by 2017. None are producing the required amount so far.

Solaren Corporation is a small, 8-year-old company based in California whose executives have experience working for Boeing and Lockheed Martin. According to PG&E’s website, Solaren says it plans to generate the power using solar panels in earth orbit, then convert it to radio frequency energy for transmission to a receiving station in California. From there, the energy will be converted to electricity and fed into PG&E’s power grid

The proposed agreement is for the delivery of 200MW starting in 2016 for 15 years.

Earlier this year Universe Today interviewed Peter Sage from Space Energy, another SBSP company. Sage said in a statement released today that this announcement is a
“huge step forward for both Solaren and Space Energy as it highlights to the investment community that utility firms are willing to recognize Space-Based Solar Power as a credible and viable source of energy.” Sage added that while the 200 mega watts Solaren is planning to provide represents only 20% of the planned capacity of one of Space Energy’s satellites, it successfully validates the overall business case for SBSP within the larger energy industry.

The U.S. Department of Energy and NASA began seriously studying the concept of solar power satellites in the 1970s, again in the 1990’s and in 2007, a major study by the Defense Department’s National Security Space Office gave the concept another boost, concluding that “there is enormous potential for energy security, economic development, improved environmental stewardship … and overall national security for those nations who construct and possess a SBSP capability.”

It seems like a win-win situation for PG&E. They told their customers, “If Solaren succeeds, PG&E’s customers have a great opportunity to benefit from affordable clean energy. There is no risk to PG&E customers; PG&E has contracted only to pay for power that Solaren delivers.”

PG&E has 5.1 million electric customer accounts and 4.2 million natural-gas customer accounts in Northern and Central California.

Sources: Space Energy press release, PG&E website

April 14, 2009December 24, 2015 by Nancy Atkinson

COLBERT on the ISS

[/caption]

2nd UPDATE: Watch the video of astronaut Suni Williams on “The Colbert Report” below .

There will be a COLBERT on the International Space Station. Word has it that NASA, however, did not name Node 3 on the ISS after comedian Stephen Colbert, who won a NASA-sponsored naming contest for the next module that will be brought to the station. According to Robert Pearlman on CollectSPACE, NASA will announce on Comedy Central’s “Colbert Report” later tonight (Tuesday) that the module’s name will be “Tranquility” – in deference to Apollo 11’s landing site on the Moon (40th anniversary and all this year). But NASA did name a new treadmill after Colbert, kinda sorta. NASA created an acronym for the treadmill as the Combined Operational Load Bearing External Resistance Treadmill, or COLBERT. Of course, this isn’t actually official yet. Pearlman’s article was published two hours before the “Colbert Report” aired (even though NASA’s press release specificially stated the name would “not be publicly released until the program airs.” Hmmm… guess nothing is sacred.) We’ll post the video and official word when available. You can see an image of the current treadmill on the ISS below.

UPDATE: Yes, it is true. Node 3 is Tranquility and the treadmill is C.O.L.B.E.R.T. The “official” treadmill patch is above, and the video from “The Colbert Report” is below. Colbert took it well, and he’s excited about the treadmill. Excerpts from NASA’s press release are below, as well.

Astronaut Suni Williams on the ISS treadmill. Credit: NASA

Here’s astronaut Suni Williams running on the current ISS treadmill. She ran a marathon in space on this treadmill.

Here’s info from NASA’s official press release on the new Node 3 name:

“The public did a fantastic job and surprised us with the quality and volume of the suggestions,” said Bill Gerstenmaier, associate administrator for Space Operations. “Apollo 11 landed on the moon at the Sea of Tranquility 40 years ago this July. We selected ‘Tranquility’ because it ties it to exploration and the moon and symbolizes the spirit of international cooperation embodied by the space station.”

“We don’t typically name U.S. space station hardware after living people and this is no exception,” Gerstenmaier joked. “However, NASA is naming its new space station treadmill the ‘Combined Operational
Load Bearing External Resistance Treadmill,’ or COLBERT. We have invited Stephen to Florida for the launch of COLBERT and to Houston to try out a version of the treadmill that astronauts train on.”

The treadmill is targeted to launch to the station in August. It will be installed in Tranquility after the node arrives at the station next year, scheduled for February 2010.

April 14, 2009December 24, 2015 by Nancy Atkinson

The Anatomy of a Solar Explosion in 3-D

STEREO-A viewing a coronal mass ejection leaving the sun between December 12-13, 2008. Credit: NASA

Wouldn’t it be great if solar physicists could predict sun storms just like meteorologist predict hurricanes? Well, now perhaps they can. NASA’s twin STEREO observatories have made the first 3-D measurements of solar explosions, known as coronal mass ejections (CMEs), allowing scientists to see their size and shape, and image them as they travel approximately 93 million miles from the sun to Earth. With STEREO, scientists can now capture images of solar storms and make real-time measurements of their magnetic fields, much the same way that satellites allow forecasters to see the development of a hurricane. Eruptions from the sun’s outer atmosphere, or corona, can wreak havoc on satellites (and astronauts) in orbit or induce large currents in power grids on Earth, which can cause power disruptions or black outs.

“We can now see a CME from the time it leaves the solar surface until it reaches Earth, and we can reconstruct the event in 3D directly from the images,” said Angelos Vourlidas, a solar physicist at the Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, and project scientist for the Sun Earth Connection Coronal and Heliospheric Investigation aboard STEREO. In the video above, see some of the 3-D imagery, and hear Vourlidas talk about about the new findings.

[/caption]
CMEs spew billions of tons of plasma into space at thousands of miles per hour and carry some of the sun’s magnetic field with it. These solar storm clouds create a shock wave and a large, moving disturbance in the solar system. The shock can accelerate some of the particles in space to high energies, a form of “solar cosmic rays” that can be hazardous to spacecraft and astronauts. The CME material, which arrives days later, can disrupt Earth’s magnetic field, or magnetosphere, and upper atmosphere.

STEREO consists of two nearly identical observatories that make simultaneous observations of CMEs from two different vantage points. One observatory ‘leads’ Earth in its orbit around the sun, while the other observatory ‘trails’ the planet. STEREO’s two vantage points provide a unique view of the anatomy of a solar storm as it evolves and travels toward Earth. Once the CME arrives at the orbit of Earth, sensors on the satellites take in situ measurements of the solar storm cloud, providing a “ground truth” between what was seen at a distance and what is real inside the CME.

The combination is providing solar physicists with the most complete understanding to date of the inner workings of these storms. It also represents a big step toward predicting when and how the impact will be felt at Earth. The separation angle between the satellites affords researchers to track a CME in three dimensions, something they have done several times in the past few years as they have learned to use this new space weather tool.

Visualization of a coronal mass ejection event on December 12-13, 2008 as seen simultaneously by the two STEREO spacecraft. The images on the right were taken by STEREO-A, while the images on the left were taken by STEREO-B. The images were taken by the COR2 telescopes on STEREO’s SECCHI instrument suite. Credit: NASA

“The in situ measurements from STEREO and other near-Earth spacecraft link the physical properties of the escaping CME to the remote images,” said Antoinette “Toni” Galvin, a solar physicist at the University of New Hampshire, and the principal investigator on STEREO’s Plasma and Suprathermal Ion Composition (PLASTIC) instrument. “This helps us to understand how the internal structure of the CME was formed and to better predict its impact on Earth.”

Until now, CMEs could be imaged near the sun but the next measurements had to wait until the CME cloud arrived at Earth three to seven days later. STEREO’s real-time images and measurements give scientists a slew of information—speed, direction, and velocity—of a CME days sooner than with previous methods. As a result, more time is available for power companies and satellite operators to prepare for potentially damaging solar storms.

Much like a hurricane’s destructive force depends on its direction, size, and speed, the seriousness of a CME’s effects depends on its size and speed, as well as whether it makes a direct or oblique hit across Earth’s orbit.

CMEs disturb the space dominated by Earth’s magnetic field. Disruptions to the magnetosphere can trigger the brightly colored, dancing lights known as auroras, or Northern and Southern Lights. While these displays are harmless, they indicate that Earth’s upper atmosphere and ionosphere are in turmoil.

Sun storms can interfere with communications between ground stations and satellites, airplane pilots, and astronauts. Radio noise from a storm can also disrupt cell phone service. Disturbances in the ionosphere caused by CMEs can distort the accuracy of Global Positioning System (GPS) navigation and, in extreme cases, induce stray electrical currents in long cables and power transformers on the ground.

The twin STEREO spacecraft were launched October 25, 2006, into Earth’s orbit around the sun.

Sources: NASA, APL

April 14, 2009December 24, 2015 by Fraser Cain

Volcanic Ash

Ash plume from Mount Cleveland. Image credit: NASA

[/caption]
When volcanoes erupt, they can release large quantities of lava, rocks, hot gasses and volcanic ash. This volcanic ash is made up of pulverized rock and glass particles smaller than 2 millimeters in diameter. Once ejected into the air, it can travel for hundreds of kilometers before coming back to Earth.

There are two kinds of volcanic ash: fine ash, with particles smaller than 0.063 mm, and course ash, with particles smaller than 2 mm. Larger rocks aren’t kept aloft and rain down around the volcano’s cone during an eruption. The largest rocks are called volcanic bombs, and they can be as large as 6 meters across.

Ash is created when solid rock shatters and magma separates into tiny particles during an explosive eruption. The violent eruption together with steam tears apart the rock surrounding the volcano’s vent, and fires it up into the air – sometimes many kilometers into the air.

Once the volcanic ash is in the air, obscures light from the Sun, turning the sky hazy and yellow. It can even make spectacular sunsets. A large enough eruption can spread volcanic ash around the world, cooling the Earth for several years. The smallest particles can be held aloft in the Earth’s atmosphere for years, and spread around the planet on high-altitude winds.

Volcanic ash is part of one of the biggest dangers with volcanoes: pyroclastic flows. These occur when hot gas and ash erupt from a volcano and flow down its flanks at high speed. These flows can have temperatures higher than 1,000 degrees C, and travel at more than 700 km/hour. It’s impossible to outrun a pyroclastic flow.

When the ash finally lands around a volcano, it can cause further problems. Just a few centimeters of ash is heavy enough to collapse roofs, and kill animals and crops. If there’s rain, the ash turns into a sticky, muddy mess that will take months to clean up.

We have written many articles about volcanoes for Universe Today. Here’s an article about different types of volcanoes, and here’s one about different types of lava.

Want more resources on the Earth? Here’s a link to NASA’s Human Spaceflight page, and here’s NASA’s Visible Earth.

We have also recorded an episode of Astronomy Cast about Earth, as part of our tour through the Solar System – Episode 51: Earth.

April 14, 2009December 24, 2015 by Fraser Cain

List of Volcanoes

Redoubt volcano crater showing rapidly melting glacier and enlarged "ice piston" feature. Picture Date: March 21, 2009 Image Creator: Cyrus Read, Image courtesy of AVO/USGS.

[/caption]
There are thousands and thousands of known volcanoes around the world. Many have no names, and most are located deep underneath the ocean at the point where the Earth’s tectonic plates are spreading apart. This is just a partial list.

List of Volcanoes
Fogo Caldera, SW Cape Verde Is. Atlantic Ocean
Merapi Volcano, Java, Indonesia
Batur Voclano, Bali, Indonesia
Rabaul Caldera, Papua New Guinea
Pinatubo Volcano, Central Luzon, Philippines
Mt Canlaon, Negros Islands, Philippines
Bulusan, Luzon, Philippines
Parker, Southern Mindanao, Philippines
Gemini Seamount, New Hebrides Island Arc, Vanuatu Islands
Aoba (Ambae Island), Vanuatu Islands
Barren Island, Andaman Islands, Indian Ocean, India
Mt Unzen, Japan
Bezymianny Volcano, Kamchatka, Russia
Karymsky Volcano, Kamchatka, Russia
Klyuchevskoi Volcano, Kamchatka, Russia
Avachinsky Volcano, Kamchatka, Russia
Kilauea Volcano, Hawaii
Loihi Seamount, Hawaii
Marianis Islands
Metis Shoal, Tonga
Ruapehu, New Zealand
Taupo Volcanic Zone, New Zealand
Akutan Volcano, Aleutian Islands
Shishaldin Volcano, Aleutian Islands
Mt Spurr, Alaska
Pavlof Volcano, Alaska Peninsula
Gorda Ridge, Northeast Pacific Ocean
Mount St. Helens
Mount Lassen, California
Lake Superior Ice Volcanoes, Michigan
Popocatepetl, Mexico
Santa María Volcano, Guatemala
Pacaya Volcano, Guatemala
Fuego Volcano, Guatemala
Tacaná Volcano, Guatemala
Cerro Quemado Volcano, Guatemala
Arenal Volcano, Costa Rica
Volcano Rincon de la Vieja, Costa Rica
Coatepeque, El Salvador
Ilopango, El Salvador
Izalco, El Salvador
San Miguel, El Salvador
San Salvador, El Salvador
San Vicente, El Salvador
Santa Ana, El Salvador
Cerro Negro, Nicaragua
Soufriere Hills, Montserrat, West Indies
Galeras, Nevado Cumbal, Dona Juana, Cerro Negro de Mayasquer, Azufral
Galapagos, Fernandina
Stromboli Volcano, Italy
Etna Volcano, Italy
Bardarbunga/Grimsvotn Volcanoes, Iceland
Askja Volcano, Iceland
Krafla Volcano, Iceland
Hekla Volcano, Iceland
Katla Volcano, Iceland
Vestmannaeyjar Volcano, Iceland
Mount Erebus, Antarctica

Thanks to the list at the MTU Volcanoes Page. The best list of volcanoes is located at the Oregon State University website. And another great list from NASA.

We have written many articles about volcanoes for Universe Today. Here’s an article about dormant volcanoes, and here’s an article about extinct volcanoes.

Want more resources on the Earth? Here’s a link to NASA’s Human Spaceflight page, and here’s NASA’s Visible Earth.

We have also recorded an episode of Astronomy Cast about Earth, as part of our tour through the Solar System – Episode 51: Earth.

April 14, 2009September 16, 2016 by Fraser Cain

What are Extinct Volcanoes?

There are three ways to describe a volcano’s activity; there can be active, dormant, or extinct volcanoes. Active volcanoes have erupted recently. A dormant volcano isn’t erupting right now, but vulcanologists expect it could erupt at any time. Extinct volcanoes haven’t erupted for tens of thousands of years, and aren’t expected to erupt again.

What causes volcanoes to go extinct? Simply put, they’re cut off from their supply of lava. This is where a chamber of magma underneath the surface of the Earth finds its way to the surface through weaknesses in the crust. A good example of this is the hotspot that created the chain of Hawaiian Islands. The tectonic plate carrying the islands is slowly moving, so that volcanoes are cut off from the hotspot underneath. Eventually they go extinct, while the hotspot creates a new volcano further to the East.

Some volcanoes look extinct, but it might just be a long time since they’ve erupted. For example, the Yellowstone Caldera in Yellowstone National Park hasn’t had a violent eruption in about 640,000 years, but scientists think it’s still active. There has been minor activity and lava flows as recently as 10,000 years ago. The region also has regular minor earthquakes and ground is lifting up in some areas, so scientists think that’s it’s still an active volcano.

Volcanoes thought to be extinct have erupted again. For example, Mount Vesuvius erupted famously in AD 79, destroying the towns of Herculaneum and Pompeii. And the Soufriere Hills volcano on the island of Montserrat resumed activity in 1995.

Other volcanoes are clearly extinct, with only the heavily eroded lava plug remaining.

We have written many articles about volcanoes for Universe Today. Here’s an article about shield volcanoes, which can sometimes be extinct. And here’s another about dormant volcanoes.

Want more resources on the Earth? Here’s a link to NASA’s Human Spaceflight page, and here’s NASA’s Visible Earth.

We have also recorded an episode of Astronomy Cast about Earth, as part of our tour through the Solar System – Episode 51: Earth.

April 14, 2009December 24, 2015 by Tammy Plotner

Catching Up With Comet Yi-SWAN

Comet Yi-SWAN Rough Locator Chart - April 14/16

[/caption]

Now that the Moon is out of the early evening sky, far northern observers are out in force hunting down Comet C/2009 Yi-SWAN… and it’s there! In 10X50 binoculars it appears like a very faint, small globular cluster, but definitely has the signature of a comet in a 4.5″ telescope. Surprisingly enough, it’s not very hard to find. Would you like a hand?

First use the rough locator chart that I’ve provided for you at the beginning of this article to get you in the right area. Don’t forget that Cassiopeia is circumpolar and you will need to orient the map according to its position at the time you view it. Rather than confuse you further – just remember as the days pass that Yi-SWAN’s trajectory will take it slowly towards the left hand side of the chart. Here is a close up look at where it will appear in a magnitude 8 filtered field of stars on the night of April 15.

At this point I personally have not observed any tail, nor has any of my co-observers. By using the de-focusing method, we estimate the Comet Yi-SWAN to be right at its 8.5 magnitude mark, totally diffuse and no sign of a bright nucleus at this time. We’d be interested in hearing your observations, too!

Best of luck…

April 14, 2009December 24, 2015 by Nancy Atkinson

Life of the ISS May be Extended

[/caption]
Fifteen partnering nations have agreed in principle to extend the life of the International Space Station, and keep it operating through 2020, according to an article in the Wall Street Journal. That is at least five years beyond the current deadline. Until now, the major partners – NASA, ESA and the Russian Space Agency – hadn’t committed to keeping the station operational past 2015, and questions loomed about the future of the ISS and its worthiness as a platform for scientific research. An extension could give new momentum to science, but may force NASA to siphon money away from other projects – like the new Constellation program – in order to pay for the additional years of operation.

The ISS has been under construction since 1998 and over the life of both designing and building the orbiting outpost, costs have crept upwards of $100 billion USD. But some feel that prolonging the facility’s life, particularly in the midst of the current global economic turmoil, could also force some tough questions within NASA. Adding five more years to the life of the ISS could cost about $10 billion or more between 2015 and 2020. NASA’s annual budget is around $18 billion, less than .7% of the US’s national budget.

Additionally, some members of Congress are looking to extend the life of the shuttle to avoid the five year gap (2010-2015) between shuttle retirement and the first human mission of the Ares/Orion combo, and Constellation’s goal of returning humans to the moon faces potentially significant delays unless Congress provides additional funds for NASA’s budget.

But does NASA put all the money towards building the space station and then abandon it? Neither Congress nor the White House wants the political flak for cutting off station operations without reaping the benefits of prior spending. Decisions have been complicated by the fact that arguments between the White House and some lawmakers have held up nomination of the next NASA administrator.

Astronaut Michael Fincke, Expedition 18 commander, works on the Multi-User Droplet Combustion Apparatus (MDCA) Chamber Insert Assembly (CIA) in the Harmony node of the International Space Station. Credit: NASA

A NASA spokesman said last week that the agency is developing cost estimates for extending station operations through 2020 “in the event the [Obama] administration decided to propose” that option in future budget requests. The agency also said that in the meantime, it “continues to take no steps that would preclude extending station operations.”

The international partners agreed that keeping the station operating past 2015 doesn’t “pose any significant technical challenges” and space-agency heads “committed to work with their respective governments” toward that goal, according to a NASA official.

NASA’S counterparts in Russia, Japan, Canada, various European countries and most of the other partners are eager to maintain political support and funding for the station. Space agencies around the globe believe the 2020 date is “an eminently logical goal” and “momentum is heading in that direction,” according to a source quoted in the Wall Street Journal. In order for an extension to become official, individual governments must formally agree and come up with a funding plan.

The ISS has provided promise of scientific breakthroughs in areas from medicine and biology to manufacturing microelectronic components. Scientists say the lack of gravity will provide new insights into molecular structures, cell activity and medical issues such as loss of bone density. Some of the first advances have already begun with recent findings of how salmonella poisoning forms in food and how human cells react to vaccines in space.

The Obama administration hopes the station’s extension will spark further international cooperation on space endeavors and scientific research. When the station crew grows to six in May, experiments this summer will look at how gravity may affect biofuels and for “what could possibly be a vaccine for multiple viruses,” said Joy Bryant, the head of Boeing Co.’s space-station team. “We’re just now beginning to see the full potential” of the research, she told reporters at a recent industry conference.

Source: Wall Street Journal