Science and Society

Mars Rover: Stuck in the Mud

Ned Potter — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 14:51:50 -0500

Spirit, the Mars rover that landed in Gusev Crater on Mars in January 2004 and is still working, just isn't going forward or backward. Back in April its wheels broke through some crusty ground into thick, soft dust, and engineers back at the Jet Propulsion Lab in California haven't been able to get it out. "This lonely spot on the edge of a crater may be where Spirit ends its adventure on Mars," said Doug McCuistion, director of NASA's Mars Exploration Program...

Mars - NASA - Mars rover - Gusev Crater - Spirit rover

Tranquility Base

Ned Potter — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 08:00:00 -0500

Forty years after Neil Armstrong keyed his microphone and said, "Houston, Tranquility Base here, the Eagle has landed," a NASA probe in lunar orbit has returned this image of Apollo 11's landing site. Take a look.

Neil Armstrong - Apollo 11 - NASA - Tranquility Base - Space

NASA's Ares 1-X Test: The View From Above

Ned Potter — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 14:10:38 -0500

Cool video of NASA's Ares 1-X rocket test -- seen from above.

The Yes Men

Ned Potter — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 17:00:22 -0400

They say it helps to have a sense of humor in Washington. It helps elsewhere too, but Washington is a special case. Take the example of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce vs. The Yes Men -- one of America's most...

The Missing Link -- Not

Ned Potter — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 17:54:45 -0400

Remember Ida? She was the 47-million-year-old fossil, found in Germany, promoted in May as "The Link" -- a very early ancestor of humans. Paleontologists now say that unless you're really into evolutionary biology, you can pretty much forget her.

Moon Crash Kicked Up Plume After All

Ned Potter — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 11:26:20 -0400

Turns out the LCROSS lunar impact mission did kick up a plume of debris after all.

Moon Crash: Where's the Water?

Ned Potter — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 12:27:09 -0400

The lesson, perhaps, of Friday's lunar impact by NASA's LCROSS mission was to be careful what you wish for.

Green Apple: Firm is Latest to Leave U.S. Chamber of Commerce

Ned Potter — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 15:51:48 -0400

Apple is the latest company to resign from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, protesting its "extreme" position against fighting climate change.

Recovery.gov: Your Tax Dollars at Work

Ned Potter — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 17:01:02 -0400

How to you keep track of $797 billion? When the stimulus package was passed last winter, the government promised that citizens would be able to use a new Web site, Recovery.gov, to find out where money was being sent. It...

Climate: Power Companies Quit U.S Chamber of Commerce

Ned Potter — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 18:25:18 -0400

Electric companies, many of them with large investments in power plants that burn coal, oil or natural gas, might seem resistant at first glance to government mandates to control greenhouse gas emissions. But several have now been very public about...