Space News Update - May 30, In the News Story 1: Story 1: LDSD Testing for Large Payloads to Mars Story 2: Story 2: Chandra Helps Explain "Red and Dead" Galaxies Story 3: Story 3: Probing Satellites’ Mysterious Death Tumbling Departments The Night Sky ISS Sighting Opportunities Space Calendar NASA-TV Highlights Food for Thought Space Image of the Week

LDSD Testing for Large Payloads to Mars

Chandra Helps Explain "Red and Dead" Galaxies

Probing Satellites’ Mysterious Death Tumbling

The Night Sky Sky & Telescope Friday, May 30 Look low in the west-northwest in twilight for the hairline crescent Moon with dim Mercury to its right. They're far down to the lower right of bright Jupiter, as shown here. Binoculars will help. Comet 209P/LINEAR, the source of the (few) Camelopardalid meteors last week, is barely past its closest to Earth. But it's faint, only about 11th magnitude. The comet is rapidly heading south; it crosses from Crater into Hydra tonight. Saturday, May 31 The Moon, Jupiter, and Pollux above them form a nearly straight line in twilight as seen from North America, as shown above. Sunday, June 1 At nightfall, Mars shines yellow-orange in the south. Look 4° (two or three finger-widths at arm's length) above it for 3rd-magnitude Porrima (Gamma Virginis). This is a famous, fast-changing close double star for telescopes. This year its two components, equal in brightness, are 2.2 arcseconds apart. A decade ago they were unresolvable. Monday, June 2 With summer not far off, can you still catch Procyon low in the twilight? It's lower left of Jupiter and, this evening, below or perhaps lower right of the Moon (depending on your latitude). How much later into the season can you follow it? The first day that a star becomes completely invisible in the afterglow of sunset is called its heliacal setting.

ISS Sighting Opportunities Sighting information for other cities can be found at NASA’s Satellite Sighting InformationSatellite Sighting Information ISS For Denver: DateVisible Max HeightAppearsDisappears Sat May 31, 00:44 AM2 min19°19 above N10 above NNE Sat May 31, 2:20 AM< 1 min10°10 above NNW10 above N Sat May 31, 3:57 AM1 min15°11 above NNW15 above N Sat May 31, 11:55 PM1 min19°19 above NNE10 above NE Sun Jun 1, 1:30 AM< 1 min11°10 above NNW11 above NNW Sun Jun 1, 3:08 AM< 1 min12°10 above NNW12 above N Sun Jun 1, 4:44 AM6 min38°10 above NW11 above E Sun Jun 1, 9:26 PM< 1 min10°10 above S Sun Jun 1, 11:01 PM6 min47°10 above WSW10 above NE Mon Jun 2, 00:40 AM1 min13°10 above NW13 above NNW Mon Jun 2, 2:19 AM< 1 min10°10 above N Mon Jun 2, 3:55 AM6 min25°10 above NNW10 above E Mon Jun 2, 10:12 PM6 min84°10 above SW11 above NE Mon Jun 2, 11:50 PM4 min17°10 above WNW11 above NNE

NASA-TV Highlights (all times Eastern Daylight Time) 11:00 a.m., Monday, June 2 - Space Station Live Daily Mission Coverage of the activities on the International Space Station 1:45 p.m., Tuesday, June 3 - Live coverage of NASA's Low Density Supersonic Decelerator (LDSD) 2014 Flight Test - HQ/JPL/GSFC Flight Test Watch NASA TV online by going to the NASA websiteNASA website

Space Calendar JPL Space Calendar May 30 - Comet 92P/Sanguin At Opposition (2.216 AU)Comet 92P/SanguinAt Opposition May 30 - Asteroid Robinhood Closest Approach To Earth (1.064 AU)Asteroid Robinhood May 30 - Asteroid CCD Closest Approach To Earth (1.476 AU)Asteroid CCD May 30 - [May 30] Alexey Leonov's 80th Birthday (1934)Alexey Leonov's May 31 - Comet 69P/Taylor At Opposition (4.265 AU)Comet 69P/TaylorAt Opposition May 31 - Asteroid 757 Portlandia Occults HIP 443 (4.6 Magnitude Star)Asteroid 757 Portlandia Occults HIP 443 May 31 - Asteroid Okina-Ouna Closest Approach To Earth (1.807 AU)Asteroid Okina-Ouna May 31 - Asteroid 2848 ASP Closest Approach To Earth (2.650 AU)Asteroid 2848 ASP Jun 01 - Comet 181P/Shoemaker-Levy Closest Approach To Earth (1.779 AU)Comet 181P/Shoemaker-LevyClosest Approach To Earth Jun 01 - Asteroid 15 Eunomia At Opposition (9.5 Magnitude)Asteroid 15 EunomiaAt Opposition Jun 01 - Asteroid 2008 WK32 Near-Earth Flyby (0.073 AU)Asteroid 2008 WK32Near-Earth Flyby Jun 01 - Asteroid Malinafrank Closest Approach To Earth (1.283 AU)Asteroid Malinafrank Jun 01 - Asteroid 4017 Disneya Closest Approach To Earth (1.584 AU)Asteroid 4017 Disneya Jun 02 - Comet C/2013 R1 (Lovejoy) At Opposition (1.664 AU)Comet C/2013 R1 (Lovejoy)At Opposition Jun 02 - Asteroid 2014 JV54 Near-Earth Flyby (0.032 AU)Asteroid 2014 JV54Near-Earth Flyby Jun 02 - Asteroid Dancingangel Closest Approach To Earth (1.325 AU)Asteroid Dancingangel Jun 02 - [May 30] Asteroid Ahau Closest Approach To Earth (1.732 AU)Asteroid AhauClosest Approach To Earth Jun 02 - Asteroid Jacquecassini Closest Approach To Earth (1.907 AU)Asteroid Jacquecassini Jun 02 - Asteroid 1071 Brita Closest Approach To Earth (2.092 AU)Asteroid 1071 Brita

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Space Image of the Week Satellite Station and Southern Skies Image Credit & Copyright: James GarlickCopyrightJames Garlick