Space News Update - November 21, In the News Story 1: Story 1: Reliable nuclear device to heat, power Mars Science Lab Story 2: Story 2: Space station trio coming back home Monday night Story 3: Story 3: Mobile Launcher Moves to Launch Pad Departments The Night Sky ISS Sighting Opportunities Space Calendar NASA-TV Highlights Food for Thought Space Image of the Week

Reliable nuclear device to heat, power Mars Science Lab The Mars Science Laboratory's radioisotope power system was fueled and tested at Idaho National Laboratory. Credit: Idaho National Laboratory

Space station trio coming back home Monday night

Mobile Launcher Moves to Launch Pad

The Night Sky Monday, Nov. 21 · During dawn Monday morning the waning crescent Moon points down to Saturn and Spica, as shown above. On Tuesday morning, the three form a roughly horizontal line. Tuesday, Nov. 22 · Comet Garradd continues glowing at about magnitude 6.5 as predicted, but it's getting low. Find it in the west with binoculars or a telescope right at the end of twilight. To locate the exact spot to examine, start from the head-star of Hercules (Rasalgethi) using our finder chart online or in the November Sky & Telescope, page 52. In a few weeks Comet Garradd will become too low to view well after sunset but will become more easily visible before dawn.onlineNovember Sky & Telescope Wednesday, Nov. 23 · These moonless evenings are a fine time to get out the telescope and explore the Veil Nebula and lesser-known deep-sky sights in Cygnus, which is still very high in the west in early evening. See Sue French's "Deep-Sky Wonders" article, charts, and photos in the November Sky & Telescope, page 56.November Sky & Telescope Thursday, Nov. 24 · The Great Square of Pegasus floats highest in the south these evenings. It's somewhat bigger than your fist at arm's length. Its right-hand (west) side points down roughly to Fomalhaut much, much lower in the south. Its left- hand (east) side point down roughly to dimmer Beta Ceti (Diphda), not quite as low. Friday, Nov. 25 · Tonight Jupiter's icy, enigmatic moon Europa crosses onto the face of the planet at 9:45 p.m. EST, then exits at 12:10 a.m. EST. Europa's tiny black shadow crosses Jupiter from 11:08 p.m. to 1:34 a.m. EST.icy, enigmatic moon Europa · New Moon (exact at 1:10 a.m. on this date EST). The Moon partially eclipses the Sun for Antarctica, Tasmania, and small sections of South Africa and New Zealand.

ISS Sighting Opportunities Sighting information for other cities can be found at NASA’s Satellite Sighting InformationSatellite Sighting Information For Denver: SATELLITELOCALDURATIONMAX ELEVAPPROACHDEPARTURE DATE/TIME(MIN)(DEG)(DEG-DIR) ISSMon Nov 21/05:13 AM23232 above N10 above NE ISSTue Nov 22/05:52 AM21514 above NW11 above NNE ISSWed Nov 23/04:58 AM< above NNE11 above NNE ISSThu Nov 24/05:37 AM< above N10 above N

NASA-TV Highlights November 21, Monday 1 p.m. - NASA Science Briefing - What Do We Know About Mars - KSC (All Channels) 2:15 p.m. - ISS Expedition 29 Farewells and Hatch Closure Coverage (hatch closure scheduled at 2:45 p.m. ET) - JSC(Public, HD and Media Channels) 5:30 p.m. - ISS Expedition 29/Soyuz TMA-02M Undocking Coverage (undocking scheduled at 6:00 p.m. ET) - JSC (Public, HD and Media Channels) 8 p.m. - ISS Expedition 29/Soyuz TMA-02M Deorbit Burn and Landing Coverage (Deorbit burn scheduled at 8:32 p.m. ET, landing in Kazakhstan scheduled at 9:25 p.m. ET) - JSC via Kazakhstan (Public, HD and Media Channels) November 22, Tuesday 12 a.m. - Video File of the ISS Expedition 29/Soyuz TMA-02M Landing and Post-Landing Activities - HQ (Public, HD and Media Channels) 10 a.m. - ISS Update - JSC (All Channels) 11 a.m. - NASA Science Briefing - Looking For Signs of Life in the Universe - KSC (All Channels) 12 p.m. - Video File of the ISS Expedition 29/Soyuz TMA-02M Landing and Post-Landing Activities; includes post-landing interviews with Expedition 29 Commander Mike Fossum of NASA and Flight Engineer Satoshi Furukawa of Japan and the return of Cosmonaut Sergei Volkov to Chkalovsky Airfield near Star City, Russia - JSC (Public, HD and Media Channels) 1 p.m. - MSL Post LRR Pre-Launch Briefing - KSC (All Channels) 2 p.m. - MSL Mission Science Briefing - KSC (All Channels) Watch NASA TV on the Net by going to NASA website.NASA website.

NASA-TV Highlights November 23, Wednesday 6:30 a.m. - ISS Food B-Roll Feed - JSC (Public, HD, Media and LIMO Channels) 7 - 8:30 a.m. - Live Interviews with Astronaut Clay Anderson and Johnson Space Center Food Scientist Vickie Kloeris on Thanksgiving on the ISS - JSC (Public, HD, Media and LIMO Channels) 9:35 a.m. - ISS Expedition 30 In-Flight Interview with CBS Radio Network - JSC (Public, Media and HD Channels) 11 a.m. – ISS Update (Media and Education Channels) 11 a.m. - Curiosity Tweet-Up - KSC (Public Channel) p.m. - Scientist in Action for MSL - KSC (Education Channel) 1 p.m. - NASA Science Briefing - Why Mars Excites and Inspires Us - KSC (Public, HD and Media Channels) 2 p.m. - Missions to Mars: Robotics and Humans Together Briefing - JSC (Public, HD and Media Channels) November 25, Friday p.m. - Scientist in Action for MSL - KSC (Education Channel) Watch NASA TV on the Net by going to NASA website.NASA website.

Space Calendar Nov 21 - [Nov 21] Soyuz 27 Return to Earth (International Space Station)Soyuz 27 Return to Earth Nov 21 - [Nov 21] Asteroid 2011 WQ4 Near-Earth Flyby (0.005 AU)Asteroid 2011 WQ4Near-Earth Flyby Nov 21 - Asteroid 5261 Eureka Closest Approach To Earth (0.514 AU)Asteroid 5261 EurekaClosest Approach To Earth Nov 21 - Asteroid 1284 Latvia Closest Approach To Earth (1.228 AU)Asteroid 1284 Latvia Nov 21 - Asteroid 1432 Ethiopia Closest Approach To Earth (1.257 AU)Asteroid 1432 Ethiopia Nov 21 - Asteroid 8672 Morse Closest Approach To Earth (1.733 AU)Asteroid 8672 Morse Nov 22 - Comet 60P/Tsuchinshan Closest Approach To Earth (1.354 AU)Comet 60P/TsuchinshanClosest Approach To Earth Nov 22 - Asteroid 115 Thyra At Opposition (9.6 Magnitude)Asteroid 115 ThyraAt Opposition Nov 23 - Cassini, Distant Flyby of HeleneCassini Nov 23 - [Nov 20] Cassini, Orbital Trim Maneuver #300 (OTM-300)CassiniOrbital Trim Maneuver #300 (OTM-300) Nov 23 - Comet C/2010 G2 (Hill) Closest Approach To Earth (1.245 AU)Comet C/2010 G2 (Hill)Closest Approach To Earth Nov 23 - Asteroid 2 Pallas Occults TYC (10.0 Magnitude Star)Asteroid 2 Pallas Occults TYC Nov 23 - Asteroid Philplait Closest Approach To Earth (1.396 AU)Asteroid Philplait Nov 24 - Cassini, Distant Flyby of Enceladus, Epimetheus & TitanCassini Nov 24 - [Nov 14] Comet 253P/PANSTARRS Perihelion (2.039 AU)Comet 253P/PANSTARRSPerihelion Nov 24 - Asteroid 433 Eros Occults HIP (7.9 Magnitude Star)Asteroid 433 Eros Occults HIP Nov 24 - [Nov 21] Asteroid 2011 WP4 Near-Earth Flyby (0.004 AU)Asteroid 2011 WP4Near-Earth Flyby Nov 24 - Asteroid 5277 Brisbane Closest Approach To Earth (1.187 AU)Asteroid 5277 Brisbane Nov 25 - [Nov 19] Partial Solar Eclipse, Visible in Africa, Antarctica, TasmaniaPartial Solar Eclipse Nov 25 - AsiaSat 7 Proton M-Briz M LaunchAsiaSat 7Proton M-Briz M Launch Nov 25 - [Nov 20] Asteroid 2011 WN2 Near-Earth Flyby (0.021 AU)Asteroid 2011 WN2Near-Earth Flyby JPL Space Calendar

Food for Thought If An Impact Looms, Then What?

Space Image of the Week W5: Pillars of Star Formation Image Credit & Copyright: Lori Allen, Xavier Koenig (Harvard-Smithsonian CfA) et al., JPL-Caltech, NASAHarvard-Smithsonian CfAet al.JPL-CaltechNASA