Survive and Thrive Bloghop, Tiny Satllites, and Space Junk

Hi everyone, and thanks for stopping by. Lots going on this week, but the most important is the 2014 Survive and Thrive Bloghop set for Monday, October 20th. This is the follow up to last year’s Get Healthy Blog Hop and sponsored by the same group of bloggers: Alex Cavanaugh, Diane Wolfe, Michael Di Gesu, and myself.

 

The Survive and Thrive Bloghop is meant to bring awareness of disease prevention and early detection regarding medical conditions that may be averted or treated if caught in the early stages.

 

Our desire is to motivate people to go in for early screening, and if a condition is caught early and treated, then our world just became a little better place to live.

 

The topics are wide open. You can post about a particular cause you support. Or you can share a personal or family experience that is near to your heart.

Last Year's Get Healthy Badge

 

For Example: I had pre-cancerous polyps removed (twice) that were caught during a routine colonoscopy. Thanks to early detection, I had them removed. And I had no polyps during my recent colonoscopy earlier this month. So if I can inspire people to go in for a colonoscopy and they catch and remove cancerous polyps, then I’m happy I could help someone.

 

So sign up on the Linky list below. This promises to be one of the most practical Blog Hops of 2014 as we can all share something with the world that can help make it a better place.

 

Did You Know: NASA’s newest generation of satellites depart radically from current models. The clunky machines we’re used to are being replaced by increasingly smaller devices, some of which could comfortably fit in your hands. One of these new nanosatellites is the CubeSat. As its name implies, it’s simply a small cube, 10 centimeters (4 in) long and weighing a measly 1.3 kilograms (3 lb).

 

These satellites are highly customizable and easy to transport, which is why NASA is currently allowing students and schools to submit their own designs. The chosen sats will then be launched into space. They’re so small that they can easily be carried as payloads on previously scheduled missions.

 

But they get even smaller. A series of stamp-sized satellites was launched into space in 2011 onboard the shuttle Endeavour to be affixed to the ISS. These are completely inconspicuous and barely larger than your thumbnail. And if testing goes well, NASA plans to launch these tiny stamps en masse. Once in space, the lightweight chips would drift about like specks of dust, replacing today’s much more expensive and labor-intensive satellite production. Reference

 

Fun Facts: Speaking about manmade stuff orbiting Earth, there are tens of millions of pieces and fragments of human-made debris in orbit. 500,000 are large enough that NASA feels its necessary to track them.

 

In 2005 there were 13 nuclear reactor cores, eight thermoelectric generators, and thirty two nuclear reactors orbiting at less than 1,700 kms above us.

 

China's 2007 anti-satellite test, which used a missile to destroy an old weather satellite, added more than 3,000 pieces to the debris problem. Particles such as paint flakes (under 1 mm) can cause small craters in walls and windows. Almost 100 Space Shuttle windscreens have had to be replaced (as of 2008) due to pits caused by such impacts. I

 

It does seem slightly incredible that a paint flake can cause a crater in a windscreen. However, the reason is the velocity of space debris impacts. A typical impact occurs at a closing velocity of 10 km/sec or 36,000 kilometres per hour! Reference

 

Finally: My Detroit Tigers are in the playoffs again, wining their division for the fourth straight year. Go Tigers!

 

Question: Do you have a team in the playoffs that you are following?

 

Well, that space stuff sure was fun. And don’t forget to sign up for the 2014 Survive and Thrive Blog Hop!