Space News Update - February 2, 2016 - In the News Departments Story 1: NASA Space Launch System’s First Flight to Send Small Sci-Tech Satellites into Space Story 2: One Trillion Kilometers Apart: a Lonely Planet and its Distant Star Story 3: Hubble Sees Monstrous Cloud Boomerang Back to our Galaxy Departments The Night Sky ISS Sighting Opportunities Space Calendar NASA-TV Highlights Food for Thought Space Image of the Week

NASA Space Launch System’s First Flight to Send Small Sci-Tech Satellites into Space In this computer graphic, NASA's Voyager 1 probe, moving toward upper left, nears the edge of the sun's influence, flying through a region of space dominated by a "magnetic highway" that helps mediate the flow of particles into and out of the solar system. The region includes particles from the sun's southern hemisphere that have been forced northward by the pressure of the interstellar wind. Voyager 1 is expected to cross the boundary into interstellar space sometime within the next few years if not sooner. (Credit: NASA)

One Trillion Kilometers Apart: a Lonely Planet and its Distant Star

Hubble Sees Monstrous Cloud Boomerang Back to our Galaxy

The Night Sky Sky & Telescope Tuesday, February 2 In early dawn of Wednesday the 3rd, you'll find Saturn and Antares below the waning Moon. Wednesday, February 3 Orion stands high in the southeast to south these evenings, proudly displaying the sky's brightest orange-red supergiant, Betelgeuse, in his armpit. But did you know about the redder carbon stars glimmering faintly elsewhere in upper Orion? The only sizable objects that are closer to the Sun than Earth is are Venus, Mercury, and (at this time of the lunar month) the Moon. See all three at once low in the southeast in early dawn. Thursday, February 4 In early dawn Friday morning the 5th, catch the crescent Moon pointing the way down to Venus and Mercury, as shown at right. Friday, February 5 On Saturday morning the 6th, the crescent Moon, vibrant Venus, and shy Mercury form a triangle low in the southeast, as shown here.. Sky & Telescope

ISS Sighting Opportunities ISS For Denver: Date Visible Max Height Appears Disappears Tue Feb 2, 6:47 PM 3 min 73° 23° above WSW 44° above NE Wed Feb 3, 5:54 PM 5 min 53° 16° above SSW 11° above ENE Wed Feb 3, 7:31 PM 1 min 19° 14° above WNW 19° above NW Thu Feb 4, 6:39 PM 32° 26° above WNW 19° above NNE Fri Feb 5, 5:47 PM 4 min 58° 42° above W 10° above NE Fri Feb 5, 7:23 PM 14° 10° above NW 14° above NNW Sat Feb 6, 6:30 PM 13° above WNW 12° above NNE Sighting information for other cities can be found at NASA’s Satellite Sighting Information

NASA-TV Highlights (all times Eastern Time Zone) MAVEN Launch November 18, 2013 NASA MAVEN Launch November 18, 2013 NASA MAVEN Launch November 18, 2013 NASA NASA-TV Highlights (all times Eastern Time Zone)   Tuesday, February 2 10 a.m. - Space Station Live (all channels) 11 a.m. - NASA Announcement on Science, Technology Missions for First Flight of Space Launch System (all channels Wednesday, February 3 7:30 a.m. - Coverage of ISS Expedition 46 Russian Spacewalk (Spacewalk begins at 8:10 a.m. ET; Malenchenko and Volkov) (all channels) Thursday, February 4 12:30 p.m. - ISS Expedition 46 Educational Event with Colorado Mesa University in Grand Junction, Colorado (Starts at 12:35 p.m.) (all channels) Friday, February 5 12:30 p.m. - ISS Expedition 46 Interviews for KTRK-TV, Houston and TIME Magazine with Commander Scott Kelly of NASA and Flight Engineer Mikhail Kornienko of Roscosmos (Starts at 12:25p.m.) (all channels) Watch NASA TV online by going to the NASA website

Space Calendar JPL Space Calendar   Feb 02 - Beidou-3 I3-S CZ-3B/YZ1 Launch Feb 02 - Comet 73P-AT/Schwassmann-Wachmann At Opposition (2.252 AU) Feb 02 - Comet 73P-AC/Schwassmann-Wachmann Closest Approach To Earth (3.093 AU) Feb 02 - Ernst Zinner's 130th Birthday (1886) Feb 03 - 50th Anniversary (1966), Luna 9 Landing on the Moon (1st Moon Landing) Feb 03 - Cassini, Orbital Trim Maneuver #440 (OTM-440) Feb 03 - Comet 73P-AH/Schwassmann-Wachmann Closest Approach To Earth (3.015 AU) Feb 03 - Comet P/2014 U4 (PANSTARRS) At Opposition (3.029 AU) Feb 03 - Comet 73P-AN/Schwassmann-Wachmann Closest Approach To Earth (3.030 AU) Feb 03 - Comet 73P-L/Schwassmann-Wachmann Closest Approach To Earth (3.031 AU) Feb 03 - Comet 73P-X/Schwassmann-Wachmann Closest Approach To Earth (3.033 AU) Feb 03 - Asteroid 3784 Chopin Closest Approach To Earth (2.614 AU) Feb 03 - Asteroid 13897 Vesuvius Closest Approach To Earth (3.581 AU) Feb 04 - Sentinel 3A Rokot/Briz-KM Launch Feb 04 - Comet 141P/Machholz Closest Approach To Earth (1.496 AU) Feb 04 - Comet 141P-A/Machholz Closest Approach To Earth (1.498 AU) Feb 04 - Comet P/2008 WZ96 (LINEAR) Closest Approach To Earth (2.107 AU) Feb 04 - Comet 73P-Z/Schwassmann-Wachmann Closest Approach To Earth (2.984 AU) Feb 04 - Comet 73P-AO/Schwassmann-Wachmann Closest Approach To Earth (2.984 AU) Feb 04 - Comet 312P/NEAT At Opposition (3.248 AU) Feb 04 - Comet 306P/LINEAR At Opposition (3.260 AU) Feb 04 - Comet C/2015 V4 (PANSTARRS) Closest Approach To Earth (5.150 AU) Feb 04 - Amor Asteroid 2016 AL66 Near-Earth Flyby (0.068 AU) Feb 04 - Asteroid 293934 MPIA Closest Approach To Earth (1.218 AU) Feb 04 - Asteroid 50240 Cortina Closest Approach To Earth (1.278 AU) Feb 04 - Asteroid 144633 Georgecarroll Closest Approach To Earth (1.423 AU) Feb 04 - Clyde Tombaugh's 110th Birthday (1906) Feb 05 - GPS 2F-12 Atlas 5 Launch JPL Space Calendar

Dying Star Betelgeuse Keeps Its Cool ... and Astronomers Are Puzzled Food for Thought Dying Star Betelgeuse Keeps Its Cool ... and Astronomers Are Puzzled

Blast from Black Hole in a Galaxy Far, Far Away Space Image of the Week Blast from Black Hole in a Galaxy Far, Far Away Credits: X-ray: NASA/CXC/Univ. of Hertfordshire/M. Hardcastle et al.; Radio: CSIRO/ATNF/ATCA