I host public outreach events about the science and research taking place everyday on the International Space Station. A favorite event of mine is called "Story Time From Space", where astronauts onboard the ISS read children's stories featuring space science and STEM topics. (Opinions are my own.)
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Latest Posts by jbrackettssa - Page 5
Sorta clear skies last night. This is one of my favorite regions on the Moon. The area includes the Apennine Mountains. The tallest one, Mons Huygens, is 18,000 feet tall. For perspective, the Matterhorn in Switzerland is 14,692 feet tall. My shot is a single image, so it’s a little fuzzy. It was too windy tonight to work how I intended. #celestron127slt #moon #astronomy #backyardastronomy https://www.instagram.com/p/B-gp_GjHgCF/?igshid=r2fjudkd7etm
1) Check weather conditions for a town in New Mexico. 2) Remotely access a telescope in New Mexico. 3) Select target and parameters (Andromeda Galaxy, 60 second exposure...) 4) Wait until next morning to see results. 5) Open email to see A FREAKIN’ PLANE OR SATELLITE HAS JACKED UP YOUR OTHERWISE GORGEOUS IMAGE!😳🤬🤬 https://www.instagram.com/p/B95s_87HE6e/?igshid=1nodpm0ocwj3i
“The Dolphin” - Located in the Southern Temperate Belt of Jupiter and imaged by the Juno Spacecraft. Taken on PJ16. Processed by John Brackett credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / SwRI / MSSS / John Brackett #missionjuno @nasajuno #juno #jupiter @nasa @nasasolarsystem #nasa https://www.instagram.com/p/B9N6dR-nTps/?igshid=1uonlxjmq96ie
PJ-25 Northern Circumpolar Cyclones : This is a processed image of cyclones near Jupiter’s North Pole. #nasa #juno #missionjuno @nasajuno @nasa @nasasolarsystem #jupiter https://www.instagram.com/p/B9I6M7CHwEe/?igshid=1nsqalaeb1idh
State of NASA Address at Marshall Space Flight Center
On February 10, 2020 I was honored to be a part of a group of 30 people who were granted special access to the goings on at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama as part of the NASA Social program.
The day started off with the issuing of our credentials which would allow us access through the main gate.
The pure joy of seeing my name at the bottom of that badge was glorious.
After driving through the main gate, we wound up at the heart of MSFC, Building 4200. This is where we had our first briefing of the day. It was an overview of MSFC by Steve Miley, MSFC Associate Director. Director Miley filled us in on the importance of MSFC to the whole of NASA, and the state of Alabama. Huntsville is a Top 10 city for career opportunities. During this briefing, the topic of ARTEMIS was addressed. ARTEMIS is our country’s new manned lunar landing program. NASA intends to land the first woman and next man on the Moon by 2024.
Next up was the live stream of NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine’s State of NASA address. Administrator Bridenstine detailed the efforts behind the Space Launch System, the Lunar Gateway, the Orion spacecraft, and the ARTEMIS missions to the Moon. There was excitement in the air as budget increases by the current administration were discussed.
After the State of NASA address, we went to the Lunar Lander Lab for a briefing by Logan Kennedy. Mr. Kennedy showed us concepts for the next Moon landings by contrasting with the Apollo program. During the Apollo missions, the astronauts brought all of their supplies with them. This severely limited the amount of time the astronauts had on the Lunar surface. For ARTEMIS, the intent is to land payloads on the Moon ahead of the manned landings. Mr. Kennedy showed us concepts of relatively inexpensive Pallet Landers which payloads could be wheeled off of.
Next up, was a tour of the ISS Payload Operations and Integration Center. Amanda Lowman briefed us on the Payload Control Area. This is where all the science and experiments on the ISS are controlled and monitored 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Vince Vidaurri then briefed our group about the Laboratory Training Complex. The LTC is a mock-up of the U.S. lab on the ISS. Procedures for experiments are ironed out by controllers in the LTC before being communicated to the astronauts on the ISS.
We then went to the Nuclear Thermal Propulsion Lab. Engineer Mike Kynard showed us hardware that could replicate the results of testing a nuclear rocket at a fraction of the cost and many times more safely.
Our last stop of the day was the SLS System Integration Lab for a briefing by Dan Mitchell. The SIL contains a full size “control ring” for the SLS rocket. This control ring has all the computers and systems that monitor every aspect of the SLS. Everything is placed exactly where it would be on the actual rockets. Even the wiring is measured to the same distances to avoid any lags or time differences. There are three redundant computers that are the “brains” of the whole deal.
At this time I want to thank the team at Marshall Space Flight Center for hosting our group and giving us the opportunity to report on the progress of the Space Launch System and the ARTEMIS program. I am excitedly looking forward to being a part of ARTEMIS over the next few years as my career develops.
1969 pieces... 2 arthritic hands... 2 nights going to bed at 2:30AM... 6 Advil... 1 cranky wife yelling, “GO TO BED, IDIOT!” ... 1 six year old who wants to “help”... 4 curse words... Ok, I lied... 8 curse words... 1 freakin’ finished LEGO Saturn V. 👍🏻 #nasa #lego #saturnvrocket #saturnv #moonlanding #space https://www.instagram.com/p/B68_1X-HEUJ/?igshid=1c0o06h1hnbg0
Kids These Days...
Before judging the first round of submissions in the NASA / JPL Name the Mars 2020 Rover Contest, I didn’t quite know what to expect from the various young minds. I knew I was going to see the occasional Rover McRoverface, or the overly complicated acronyms.
However, some of these kids really got what this is all about. Their essays conveyed how much they really want to invest in science and the future of space exploration. You could see the amount of research that went into their name choices. Several times, I had to look up words or the meanings behind possible name choices. Leave it to me to accidentally ok a cool sounding name that belongs to an anime character who farts a lot. (didn’t really happen)
It wasn’t just the scientific names and essays that were rewarding. Some students wrote passionate essays about naming the rover after a beloved relative or pet. The level of respect and/or compassion from the minds of fifth graders almost had me in tears at some points.
The Pleiades - Messier 45 Imaged with the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics / Observing With NASA Remote Telescope. Processing by John Brackett https://www.instagram.com/p/B5REi4HnAOV/?igshid=15vf2tgm5vbzj
Copernicus (upper left), FRA MAURO (mid left), and the Ptolemaeus Crater Trio (mid right). #space #moon #astronomy #celestron #celestron127slt https://www.instagram.com/p/B5E6us7HZQ-/?igshid=1hkq6pe7icfrk
In honor of the anniversary of the Apollo 12 Moon landing, here is one of my images I reprocessed. (Celestron 127slt mak, iPhone 8) #space #apollo #apollo12 #apollo50th #moon #astronomy #nasa https://www.instagram.com/p/B5CEVqrHS6L/?igshid=byug01nzfwhx
Restored Apollo Mission Control Console. #nasa #space #apollo #apollo50th (at Fernbank Science Center) https://www.instagram.com/p/B41f495n7eX/?igshid=sw3ocqsox3z1
Just a quick shot through the eyepiece. Not much, other than the black dot being a planet that is 3,000 miles across and is 57 million miles away. Plus, the big orange thing is another 36 million miles behind that. #space #astronomy #mercurytransit #mercurytransit2019 https://www.instagram.com/p/B4xGXVhH9YB/?igshid=977uiy82c22m
Had fun marking every single crater, boulder, and rock in images taken as part of the OSIRIS-REx Mission. Can’t wait for a sample of Bennu to be headed to Earth soon. #bennu #osirisrex #space #asteroid #nasa https://www.instagram.com/p/B4L43ncHzWk/?igshid=1y15577s74bmf
I bet Neil deGrasse Tyson’s wife never made him a really cool, tongue-in-cheek t-shirt. #astronomy #space #astrophysics #neildegrassetyson https://www.instagram.com/p/B3bKmaPnB-W/?igshid=1oj68t0cep4hn
Another Side Project...
John’s Side Project #248 - Tagging NASA footage for the National Archives.
If you know anything about anything, volunteer for the National Archives and Records Administration. They need people to do the things computers can’t... Things such as transcription, identification of things and places, and tagging films that have been digitized. For example, they have a collection of photos from World War I. These photos often have handwritten captions or locations that a computer can’t make out. It takes people to examine the captions and transcribe them for searching.
For my current project, NASA has thousands of hours of footage from tests and missions that need to be tagged in order to be searchable. This is where my insomnia is put to good use.
Fun night learning my way around the Moon. In 1965, Ranger 9 was intentionally crashed into the crater Alphonsus. Imaged with a Celestron 127slt mak and iPhone 8. #moon #space #nasa #celestron127slt #telescope #backyardastronomy #craters https://www.instagram.com/p/B2KIOK0HWhY/?igshid=jtolznfnslrd
Playing with blue filter on my Celestron 127slt mak. To windy for tracking, so this is a single image. #backyardastronomy #moon #celestron127slt #telescope #space #atlanta #apollo11 #iphone https://www.instagram.com/p/B2DiQnqnUiX/?igshid=w0r1bcpxky8q
Saturn 08/29/2019 from Atlanta, GA - Celestron 127slt mak, iPhone 8, registax, ps for brightness and contrast. #astrophotography #astronomy #backyardastronomy #space #atlanta #georgia #celestron127slt #celestrontelescope https://www.instagram.com/p/B1xv_NKHzPl/?igshid=8qwoa1osws83
Saturn...
Took the telescope rig out to see if I could finally get a look at Saturn this Summer. It seemed every time I wanted to go out, it was cloudy, rainy, or I was already exhausted from the day. Other times, it would be a perfect evening, but I was nowhere near my home and scope.
On Tuesday, 8/6/2019, I saw the rings of Saturn for the first time through my own scope. There’s almost an emotional aspect added when it’s your own equipment you’re observing through. Anyway, here is my first ever capture of Saturn taken with an iPhone 8 and a Celestron 127slt mak.
A little fun celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Apollo 11. #nasa #usspaceandrocketcenter #apollo11 #apollo50thanniversary https://www.instagram.com/p/B0Cd1fyHVBX/?igshid=btqoa800zd26
NASA Airborne Science Program...
Super stoked! Found out earlier this week I’m now a part of the NASA Airborne Science Program. This opens up even more opportunities for me!
Jupiter, Europa, and Ganymede - Celestron 127slt mak - 05/20/2019 https://www.instagram.com/p/Bxr6DEgnMN0/?igshid=1h59aw6rt2hg0
Jupiter Day/Night Terminator - Juno Mission PJ19 #nasa #junomission https://www.instagram.com/p/BxXWlCVnhPx/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=12gkastdkd9n6
Moon rock retrieved by Alan Bean on Apollo 12 #nasa #apollo #moon #huntsvillealabama #usspaceandrocketcenter (at U.S. Space & Rocket Center) https://www.instagram.com/p/Bw0klJcHh-V/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=wffxjvgphmc4