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Bacteria that grow in colonies can be extremely difficult to eliminate; the bacteria in these groups often become resistant to drugs or antimicrobials. Known as biofilms, bacterial communities that grow on surfaces can be found in many places, including medical devices. Biofilms are far stronger than free-floating microbes on their own, and an estimated 80 percent of chronic infections are linked to biofilms. Scientists have now devised a new approach to attack these dangerous bugs, with a 'living medicine' that's made up of other microbes. The medicine was tested on catheters that were infected with biofilms in three settings: in the lab, in tissue taken from an organism, and in a mouse model. When the mouse model of infection was treated with the 'living medicine,' 82 percent of infections were eliminated. The findings have been reported in Molecular Systems Biology. Many biofilms are caused by Staphylococcus aureus, and standard antibiotics cannot remove them. So if a patient has a medical implant infected by an S. aureus biofilm, enzymes or antibodies are sometimes useful, but these treatments can harm normal cells and cause side effects because they are not designed to specifically target the infection. Patients may have to undergo surgery to remove the infection. Microbes are already engaged in a battle with one another for resources and survival. The researchers thought that the molecules produced by living microorganisms could be another way to treat biofilms. Bacterial genomes are also small and easily manipulated. In this study, the scientists selected a bacterium called Mycoplasma pneumoniae, which doesn't have a cell wall. As such, it can evade the immune system and can easily release therapeutic molecules. This microbe also tends to hold onto its DNA, which doesn't tend to mutate naturally, and not pass it to other microbes. The researchers began by eliminating the pathogenicity of this bacterium so it would not make people sick. They also engineered the bacterial genome to easily release two enzymes that it was modified to produce. Each of those enzymes can dissolve biofilms. The scientists are hopeful that these bacteria can be used first to remove biofilms from breathing tubes. Safety testing is complete. The next issue to address is manufacturing, "and we expect to start clinical trials in 2023," said co-corresponding study author María Lluch, Chief Science Officer of Pulmobiotics S.L. This technique might be applicable to other health problems."Bacteria are ideal vehicles for 'living medicine' because they can carry any given therapeutic protein to treat the source of a disease," suggested study co-author Luis Serrano, ICREA Research Professor and Director of the Centre for Genomic Regulation. "One of the great benefits of the technology is that once they reach their destination, bacterial vectors offer continuous and localized production of the therapeutic molecule." Sources: Centre for Genomic Regulation, Molecular Systems Biology
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Spaceflight is being marketed as a tourist opportunity for exorbitantly wealthy people, and lengthy space missions that could take astronauts to Mars are being planned. Researcher Jamila Siamwala was a part of NASA's Twins Study, which assessed the impact of spaceflight on astronaut Scott Kelly, who spent a year in space. His physiology was compared to that of his astronaut twin Mark Kelly, who remained on Earth during that time. Siamwala suggested that before we start ramping up commercial spaceflight efforts or embarking on other extreme endeavors in space, like manufacturing, we have to learn more about the potential impact of spaceflight on human health. A small study reported in the Journal of the American Heart Association has now investigated that question by studying blood samples that were taken from a group of astronauts. These samples were collected between 1998 and 2001 from fourteen NASA astronauts who were aboard the International Space Station for periods ranging from five to thirteen days. The researchers were able assess the levels of molecules called cell-free mitochondrial DNA in those samples. Mitochondria are crucial organelles that generate power and perform some other functions in cells. They carry their own tiny genome and can even produce their own proteins. Research has shown that this mitochondrial DNA can end up in circulation. That so-called cell-free mitochondrial DNA (cf mtDNA) has also been found to have an association with several human diseases. In NASA's Twin Study, it was found that there was an increase in the level of circulating cf mtDNA after Kelly's prolonged space flight compared to his Earth-based twin. This research has confirmed that finding; after the astronauts had returned to Earth, the levels of cf mtDNA in the blood had increased in all of the astronauts. Those levels continued to increase in the three days following their return. However, the degree of that increase was incredibly variable from one astronaut to another, ranging from a two- to 355 fold increase in cf-mtDNA. This cf-mtDNA may be driving inflammation, suggested senior study author Dr. David Goukassian. An additional analysis of the white blood cells in those blood samples revealed that markers of inflammation, oxidative stress, and DNA damage were all increased in the astronauts too. "It's a vicious circle: Radiation may induce DNA damage, which may induce oxidative stress, which leads to inflammation, which can lead to DNA damage," said Goukassian, a professor of cardiology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City. Sources: American Heart Association, Journal of the American Heart Association
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The old stereotype of the "dumb pothead" (think "Dude, Where's My Car?") may have just been debunked by the latest scientific findings from multiple research groups independently testing the effects of cannabis exposure on the brain and intelligence scores. Longitudinal studies, cross-sectional studies (for a description of each type of test, click here), and at least 1 meta-analyses have found very little, if any, impact of smoking on IQ scores or brain anatomy. This story broke yesterday in a piece on Truthout written by Paul Armentano. Photo source: Pixabay.com Mr. Armentano cites several studies which he uses to present his case that weed does not affect intelligence. For example, researchers at the University of California Los Angelos (UCLA), led by Dr. Laura A. Baker, used two longitudinal studies comparing adolescent twins. One of the twins smoked while the other did not. Researchers studied these twins over time and found no differences between the two in terms of IQ. However, IQ (Intelligent Quotient) is a dated form of measuring intelligence (and could be subject to socio-economic biases). What else has been done to support the claim that marijuana is not bad for your brain? Brain scans were performed on 781 young adults, ages 14-22, by researchers from the University of Pennsylvania led by Dr. J. Cobb Scott. His group found that, within the 147 cannabis users within the cohort, (109 occasional [≤1-2 times per week] and 38 frequent [≥3 times per week] users), there were no significant differences by cannabis group in global or regional brain volumes, cortical thickness, or gray matter density. Another brain scan study was just published in Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging by Dr. Rachel Thayer and colleagues at the University of Colorado - Boulder presenting their results of a pilot study comparing MRI scans in 28 cannabis users over the age of 60 versus matched controls. Cannabis users in the study, on average, had used marijuana weekly for 24 years. They concluded that "long-term cannabis exposure does not have a widespread impact on overall cortical volumes while controlling for age, despite over two decades of regular cannabis use on average". The results from this pilot study go against the literature suggesting that marijuana use, at least in adolescents on into adulthood, does produce neurological changes. This is where the results from the meta-analyses can help shed light on all of this data. Dr. Scott and colleagues from UPenn also performed a systematic review of 69 studies stemming from 1972 and found that continued cannabis was associated with small reductions in cognitive functioning, however, these deficits resolved after only 72 hours of abstinence. Photo source: Pixabay.com Another study published by Dr. Claire Mokrysz and colleagues of the University College London investigated associations between adolescent cannabis use and IQ and educational attainment in a sample of 2235 teenagers. They found that adolescent cannabis use is not associated with IQ or educational performance once an adjustment was made for potential confounds, in particular, adolescent cigarette use. They concluded that "modest cannabis use in teenagers may have less [of a] cognitive impact than epidemiological surveys of older cohorts have previously suggested". While these studies seem promising to pro-legislation groups, we have to remember that, in the world of research, a handful of studies, even meta-analyses, does not prove any facts either way. Instead, they help promote dialogue among all those involved. This includes researchers, lawmakers, patients, marijuana advocates, parents, teachers, etc. This is a much-needed discussion especially in the midst of changing marijuana laws. Sources: learning.closer.ac.uk, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meta-analysis, truthout.org, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of The United States, TheConversation.com, Neuropsychopharmacology, Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging, Current Pharmaceutical Design, JAMA
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We all (well, I do) wish we could work out more, but when we think about going to the gym we tend to promise ourselves that "we'll do it tomorrow, I mean it this time". We also (well, I do) try to eat healthy foods, but those candy bars look pretty tempting...oh a little couldn't hurt. The brain is biased towards reward and against pain (no pain no gain). Motivation is the factor here that determines whether you go for that jog or nibble on those cookies. And it turns out, our endocannabinoid system (ECS), which some call "the body's own marijuana system", may be behind the choices you make. Photo source: UnSplash.com The Institut National De La Sante et de la Recherche Medicale (Inserm), the French public institution of science and technology, acknowledges that a lack of intrinsic motivation to work out has major health consequences. Yet, the neurobiological bases of the motivation to exercise are unknown. The researchers wanted to find out whether the endocannabinoid system (ECS) is involved in this process. The study, published in the journal JCI Insight by Dr. Francis Chaoulof and colleagues, centers around the endocannabinoid receptor CB1. CB1 is represented mainly within the nervous system and is heavily expressed in areas of the brain involved in motivation. The researchers used wheel running, which mice will perform voluntarily, as a measure for activity or "exercise". Mice actually spend a lot of time wheel running, when given the chance, and scientists have found that the mice find it highly rewarding. The scientists developed a mouse operant procedure to compare the amount of effort (i.e. motivation) for either palatable food or access to an exercise wheel. The measure of motivation was the number of times mice poked their noses in a special port (aka "nose-pokes") were willing to perform for each option. They then used electrophysiological recordings of neuronal firing in dopamine neurons in anesthetized mice. They made an interesting observation; neuronal firing was correlated in mice who nose-poked for the wheel over controls with no wheel. Photo by Craig Swanson Another observation was that CB1 knock-out mice performed fewer active nose-pokes for the wheel even though they did not differ in how much running they actually did. The researchers interpreted this as less motivation to access the wheel, but not run on it. Ever dread going to the gym but feel fine once you start exercising (aside from work-out-related pain)? CB1 receptors on dopamine neurons may be involved in how "pumped" you are to get your burn on. And what about its role in snacking on junk food? Here we have a little more complicated situation. It turns out that CB1 receptors on GABAergic neurons are involved in the motivation for palatable food. Mice lacking CB1 receptors had fewer nose-pokes for either wheel running or palatable food when proposed alone, but the balance between these two drives became markedly dysregulated in favor of palatable food. Thus the CB1 receptor is necessary for both types of motivations, but the way in which it controls these two drives (energy expenditure versus energy intake) depends on the neurons (dopamine or GABA) that they are on. This can help explain why increasing CB1 activity via phytocannabinoids (e.g. THC) increases appetite (the "munchies"). What the main take-home message of this research is that our ECS is not a mirror for the effects we feel when using phytocannabinoids. Our ECS is much more complex than that. Sources: Inserm, JCI Insight, Current Clinical Pharmacology, Current Protocols in Mouse Biology, Animal Behaviour
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After launching the Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security-Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) mission in September 2016, NASA set out to become the first space agency to visit a near-Earth object (NEO) and collect surface samples that would then be returned to Earth for scientific analysis. Two years later, OSIRIS-REx arrived at its destination – an asteroid called Bennu – and the spacecraft has been studying the curious world ever since. Image Credit: NASA/Goddard/University of Arizona/Lockheed Martin OSIRIS-REx has been particularly productive over the past several months. Not only is it providing planetary scientists with an unprecedented look at the space rock’s composition and surface features, but it recently got up close and personal with some of the mysterious particle plumes that appear to erupt from the asteroid’s surface, gathering information in the process. “The discovery of plumes is one of the biggest surprises of my scientific career,” commented OSIRIS-REx mission principal investigator Dante Lauretta. “And the rugged terrain went against all of our predictions. Bennu is already surprising us, and our exciting journey there is just getting started.” Related: Bennu appears to be both a moist and rocky world OSIRIS-REx first recognized Bennu’s puzzling particle plumes in January as it was orbiting from just a mile away, but the mission hasn’t had a chance to explore them until now. One of the primary findings was that while some of those particles seemed to eject far enough away from Bennu that they weren’t pulled back in by the space rock’s gravity, some of those particles had actually fallen back to its surface. Another acutely surprising finding made by the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft was that Bennu’s surface is comprised of a higher boulder density than initially thought. NASA wasn’t aware of Bennu’s high surface boulder density earlier because all previous observations were made from Earth. It wasn’t until OSIRIS-REx arrived at the asteroid that scientists learned otherwise. “The first three months of OSIRIS-REx’s up-close investigation of Bennu have reminded us what discovery is all about — surprises, quick thinking, and flexibility,” added NASA’s Lori Glaze. “We study asteroids like Bennu to learn about the origin of the solar system. OSIRIS-REx’s sample will help us answer some of the biggest questions about where we come from.” Related: OSIRIS-REx snaps its first picture of Bennu The findings have implications for the mission because they will make collecting surface samples with the proposed Touch and Go (TAG) gathering method more challenging than initially anticipated. Instead, mission scientists are now devising an alternative approach, code-named Bullseye TAG, which will target a smaller sample site free of boulder-based hazards. Fortunately, OSIRIS-REx project manager Rich Burns seems confident that the mission will overcome these hurdles: “Throughout OSIRIS-REx’s operations near Bennu, our spacecraft and operations team have demonstrated that we can achieve system performance that beats design requirements,” he said. “Bennu has issued us a challenge to deal with its rugged terrain, and we are confident that OSIRIS-REx is up to the task.” OSIRIS-REx isn’t expected to return surface samples to Earth until 2023, and with that in mind, mission scientists still have plenty of time left to discern the best plan of attack. Until then, OSIRIS-REx will continue studying the asteroid’s surface with the hope of learning something new about it. Source: NASA
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After years of setbacks and delays, NASA’s much-lauded Space Launch System (SLS) carrying the uncrewed Artemis 1 mission lifted off in spectacular fashion at 1:46am EDT on November 16, 2022, from Cape Canaveral in Florida, the very launch complex that sent the Apollo astronauts to the Moon onboard the towering Saturn V rocket in the late 1960s and early 1970s. While this was SLS’s maiden flight to conduct a thorough systems check of both the launch vehicle and the Orion capsule for Artemis 1, this also started a new age in human space exploration as we plan to send humans back to the Moon in the next few years, followed by Mars in the next decade, or so. But the joy and excitement about SLS and what it can accomplish also brings with it a sense of concern, as mega rockets like SLS produce a lot of noise, which can be damaging to both humans and the environment. And it’s these very noise concerns that a team of researchers led by Brigham Young University (BYU) hope to address, as they measured the noise levels during liftoff from various locations around the launch site to better understand the acoustics of super heavy-lift rockets. This was done primarily due to SLS now being designated as the world’s most powerful rocket, eclipsing NASA’s Saturn V that launched the Apollo missions in the 1960s and 1970s by 13%, as the Saturn V produced about 7.6 million pounds of thrust, SLS produced about 8.4 million pounds of thrust. The purpose behind such a study is to verify current noise prediction models, which are required to both protect equipment and the surrounding community and environment, as well. Such data will come in handy as more powerful launch vehicles are expected to be built in the coming years and decades. “We hope these early results will help prevent the spread of possible misinformation, as happened with the Saturn 5,” Dr. Kent Gee, who is a Professor of Physics and Chair of the Department of Physics and Astronomy at BYU and lead author of the study, said in a statement. “Numerous websites and discussion forums suggested sound levels that were far too high, with inaccurate reports of the Saturn 5’s sound waves melting concrete and causing grass fires.” What Dr. Gee is referring to is a 2022 study published in The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America regarding “misunderstood or incorrect data” about the Saturn V’s acoustic levels. For the study, the researchers placed microphones at listening stations between 1.5 km (1 mi) and 5.2 km (3.2 mi) from the launch pad which is outside the designated blast danger area. The resulting noise maximum noise levels reached 136 decibels at 1.5 km from the launch pad and 129 decibels at 5.2 km from the launch pad, which surpassed predicted models by 20 percent. “We found the Artemis 1 noise level at 5 km had a crackling quality about 40 million times greater than a bowl of Rice Krispies,” said Dr. Whitney Cole, who is an Assistant Physics Professor at Rollins College and a co-author on the study. The researchers also compared the noise levels at 5.2 km from the launch site as on par with a chainsaw. “Although this study is an important step forward, we still have a long way to go to understand everything about the generation, propagation, and perception of rocket noise,” Dr. Gee concluded. The research team has some time to analyze their data, as Artemis 2 isn't scheduled to launch until sometime in 2024. Sources: Reuters, NASA, JASA Express Letters, EurekAlert!, The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, Space.com As always, keep doing science & keep looking up!
Bacterial cells may shut down for many reasons - nutrients might have become scarce, they may be dealing with pathogens, or they may be under stress in their environment from harsh conditions such as heat or pressure. Some microbes can become dormant, and enter a state in which they become spores that can withstand the unfavorable conditions, as they are nearly dead. But when the time is right, spores can wake up, sometimes after years, and begin life anew. While we knew that spores awaken by rehydrating and getting their physiology and metabolism going again, researchers did not know how spores could sense their environment without awakening, and how they were able to differentiate between truly favorable conditions in their environment and vaguely positive signals. Scientists have now shown that spores do indeed evaluate their environment actively while staying in a physiologically dormant state. To do so, spores use electrochemical energy that is held in reserve to recognize favorable conditions. The findings have been reported in Science. In this time-lapse movie, electrochemical potential is color coded and overlaid on an image of one spore. Though the spore stays dormant, it can count stimuli, which are indicated by electrochemical potential changes, seen as multicolor-coded flashes. The video is by the Süel Lab/Kaito Kikuchi. "This work changes the way we think about spores, which were considered to be inert objects," said senior study author Gürol Süel, a professor at the University of California - San Diego, among other affiliations. "We show that cells in a deeply dormant state have the ability to process information. We discovered that spores can release their stored electrochemical potential energy to perform a computation about their environment without the need for metabolic activity." Spores are a good survival strategy for bacteria, but they can also pose a threat to human health as contamination in food and medicine. This movie shows color-coded jumps in the electrochemical potential value of one spore, as it reacts to short stimuli. The spore inches closer to exiting dormancy with every flash, seen as the color transitions from deep purple to yellow. The video is by the Süel Lab/Kaito Kikuchi. Dormant Bacillus subtilis spores were able to detect short signals, and could count each small input. Once a certain threshold was reached, they exited dormancy and restarted biological activity. The microbes use an integrate-and-fire mechanism, which is based on the influx of potassium into the cell from its environment. Spores could respond to favorable signals even when they were short. A bit of potassium was stored and summed up, for the spore to decide whether it would exit dormancy. The researchers noted that this work has changed the idea that spores are in dormant states that are like being dead. It may impact how researchers assess spores that might be found on space missions or meteors. "This work suggests alternate ways to cope with the potential threat posed by pathogenic spores and has implications for what to expect from extraterrestrial life," noted Süel. "If scientists find life on Mars or Venus, it is likely to be in a dormant state and we now know that a life form that appears to be completely inert may still be capable of thinking about its next steps." Sources: University of California - San Diego, Science
Antibiotic resistant bacteria are considered a major threat to public health and is expected to get more serious. Drug-resistant bacteria were once found primarily in healthcare settings and patients receiving antibiotics were at greater risk of infection. But since then, antibiotic-resistant microbes have been turning up in more environments, putting more people at risk. Scientists have also been tracking antibiotic resistance among wild animals, and have found that it’s increasing. "In 2009, we reported a high prevalence of antibiotic resistance in wild dolphins, which was unexpected," said lead study author Adam M. Schaefer, MPH, an epidemiologist at Florida Atlantic University's (FAU) Harbor Branch. "Since then, we have been tracking changes over time and have found a significant increase in antibiotic resistance in isolates from these animals. This trend mirrors reports from human health care settings. Based on our findings, it is likely that these isolates from dolphins originated from a source where antibiotics are regularly used, potentially entering the marine environment through human activities or discharges from terrestrial sources." The researchers collected data over thirteen years for this study. They took several samples including feces and gastric fluid after capturing wild dolphins, which were released afterwards. The scientists isolated 733 pathogens from 171 bottlenose dolphins during that time. Some of the pathogenic microbes they recovered are capable of infecting people. Several bacteria were identified frequently, including E. coli and S. aureus. The scientists found that just over 88 percent of the bacteria were resistant to at least one antibiotic. Most were resistant to erythromycin, while about 77 percent were resistant to ampicillin and about 62 percent had cephalothin resistance. Over their sampling period, resistance to ciprofloxacin increased more than two-fold among the E. coli the researchers were isolating, which is similar to what’s been seen in humans. The Multiple Antibiotic Resistance (MAR) index also went up significantly for Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which can cause respiratory system and urinary tract among other infections, and Vibrio alginolyticus, which can cause seafood poisoning. "The Health and Environmental Risk Assessment or HERA Project has helped discover that the emerging bacterial resistance to antibiotics in bottlenose dolphins is prevalent. Bottlenose dolphins are a valuable sentinel species in helping us understand how this affects human and environmental health. Through HERA we've been able to provide a large database of information in order to continue learning from these impressive animals," said study co-author Gregory D. Bossart, V.M.D., Ph.D., senior vice president and chief veterinary officer at Georgia Aquarium. "Antibiotic resistance is one of the most significant risks to public health. As resistance increases, the probability of successfully treating infections caused by common pathogens decreases." "The nationwide human health impact of the pathogen Acinetobacter baumannii is of substantial concern as it is a significant nosocomial pathogen with increasing infection rates over the past ten years," said study co-author Peter McCarthy, Ph.D., a research professor and an associate director for education at FAU's Harbor Branch. Sources: AAAS/Eurekalert! via Florida Atlantic University, Aquatic Mammals
The universe is a gigantic place, and while there’s still much we don’t know about it, that hasn’t stopped NASA from making strides in exploring its depths in the name of science. The American space agency’s latest plan is to move forward with a new mission called the called Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization and Ices Explorer (SPHEREx), an initiative that would push our understanding the universe even farther. Image Credit: Caltech “I’m really excited about this new mission,” explained NASA’s acting Administrator Jim Bridenstine in regards to the announcement. “Not only does it expand the United States’ powerful fleet of space-based missions dedicated to uncovering the mysteries of the universe, it is a critical part of a balanced science program that includes missions of various sizes.” Related: NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory is now back up and running after some technical difficulties According to one of NASA’s public statements on the matter, SPHEREx would survey the entire sky in both optical and near-infrared light to try and grasp a better idea of what’s out there. Furthermore, the SPHEREx mission would combine tried and true technologies from both Earth-orbiting satellites and Mars-centric spacecraft to map out the universe in 96 color bands. This data would augment our ever-expanding database of known stars and galaxies, among other things. "This amazing mission will be a treasure trove of unique data for astronomers,” added Thomas Zurbuchen of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate. “It will deliver an unprecedented galactic map containing ‘fingerprints’ from the first moments in the universe’s history. And we’ll have new clues to one of the greatest mysteries in science: What made the universe expand so quickly less than a nanosecond after the big bang?” Related: NASA fixes the Hubble Space Telescope's gyroscope issues, officially brings it back online NASA says the SPHEREx mission is slated to launch by 2023, after which it will spend two years congregating information about the universe in unprecedented detail. This information would comprise of data about stellar systems right here in the Milky Way in addition to that of galaxies residing far away from our own. SPHEREx’s near-infrared capabilities make it ideal for sniffing out the building blocks of life, such as water and other organic molecules. It’s worth noting that the SPHEREx mission won’t directly analyze points of interest, but instead draw astronomers’ attention to them. It will be up to much larger observatories, such as NASA’s upcoming James Webb Space Telescope, to conduct detailed analytics concerning said points of interest, a task that the observatory’s state-of-the-air infrared optics should see no challenge in doing. While it remains to be seen what SPHEREx might discover when it finally launches, it should indeed be interesting to learn what it will contribute to science. After all, humans have been searching for potentially-habitable words outside of our solar system for eons. Source: NASA
Microorganisms that end up on the International Space Station (ISS) just do their best to survive, researchers at Northwestern University have found. The environment on the ISS is not pushing microbes to mutate into virulent or antibiotic-resistant bugs, they determined. Although bacteria found on the ISS do carry genes that are different from their earthbound counterparts, these new genes are not creating dangerous bugs, they’re just responding to their environment and trying to live. The findings have been reported in mSystems. "There has been a lot of speculation about radiation, microgravity and the lack of ventilation and how that might affect living organisms, including bacteria," said the study leader Erica Hartmann, an assistant professor of environmental engineering in Northwestern's McCormick School of Engineering. "These are stressful, harsh conditions. Does the environment select for superbugs because they have an advantage? The answer appears to be 'no.'" This research is not only important to astronauts that travel on shuttles or stay onboard the ISS for months. It’s also relevant to tourism efforts that will take people to space, or potential missions to Mars. "People will be in little capsules where they cannot open windows, go outside or circulate the air for long periods of time," noted Hartmann. "We're genuinely concerned about how this could affect microbes." The ISS has plenty of microbial passengers on board, which have hitched a ride with astronauts or stowed away in the cargo. A freely accessible database maintained by The National Center for Biotechnology Information contains genetic data from many of those microbes. In this study, the researchers utilized that database to compare two strains of bacteria that live on Earth and have been found on the ISS, Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus cereus. "Based on genomic analysis, it looks like bacteria are adapting to live, not evolving to cause disease," said the first author of the work Ryan Blaustein, a postdoctoral fellow in the Hartmann lab. "We didn't see anything special about antibiotic resistance or virulence in the space station's bacteria." In an effort to survive on inhospitable surfaces, bacteria might mutate, or microbes that carry genes that enable them to get by are the ones that last. For ISS microbes, those genes might help the microbes deal with stress, gather nutrients, grow and live in a harsh place. "Bacteria that live on skin are very happy there," Hartmann said. "Your skin is warm and has certain oils and organic chemicals that bacteria really like. When you shed those bacteria, they find themselves living in a very different environment. A building's surface is cold and barren, which is extremely stressful for certain bacteria." The researchers point out that while their study is good news for astronauts and space tourists, it’s still possible for sick people to spread virulent bacteria around space shuttles and stations. "Everywhere you go, you bring your microbes with you," Hartmann explained. "Astronauts are exceedingly healthy people. But as we talk about expanding space flight to tourists who do not necessarily meet astronaut criteria, we don't know what will happen. We can't say that if you put someone with an infection into a closed bubble in space that it won't transfer to other people. It's like when someone coughs on an airplane, and everyone gets sick." Learn more about why researchers study space bacteria from the video above. In the video below, learn more about what happens when someone does get sick in space. Sources: AAAS/Eurekalaert! via Northwestern University, mSystems
The Axiom-2 mission is currently docked at the International Space Station (ISS) and due to return to Earth on May 31. Axiom-2 is not only the second private mission to the ISS, but it's also taking part in several science experiments, one of which is to test nanobioreactor experiments from the UC San Diego Sanford Stem Cell Institute, which will study how the microgravity environment impacts human stem cell inflammation, cancer, and aging. UC San Diego Sanford Stem Cell Institute researchers evaluating cell samples after they have returned from space. (Credit: UC San Diego Health Sciences) Since the dawn of the space age, scientists have learned that microgravity causes a myriad of both short-and long-term health issues ranging from bodily fluid relocation to slower heart rate to aging. Better understanding how microgravity impacts an astronaut’s health will help scientists make better informed decisions when we start sending astronauts to the Moon and Mars. Scientists at UC San Diego will examine astronauts’ blood stem cells before, during and after spaceflight. (Credit: UC San Diego Health Sciences) “Space is a uniquely stressful environment,” said Dr. Catriona Jamieson, who is a professor at the UC San Diego School of Medicine, Koman Family Presidential Endowed Chair in Cancer Research at UC San Diego Health, and director of the Sanford Stem Cell Institute. “By conducting these experiments in low Earth orbit, we are able to understand mechanisms of cancer evolution in a compressed time frame and inform the development of new cancer stem cell inhibitory strategies.” Along with better understanding how astronauts respond to microgravity, the findings from these experiments also hold the potential to develop improved predictive models and better medicines—both here and in space—in the fight against numerous cancers, including breast and colorectal cancer, leukemia, and immune dysfunction-related diseases. “We are pleased to have the opportunity with our private astronaut missions to advance this important work, aligned with the White House Cancer Moonshot initiatives,” said Christian Maender, executive vice president of in-space solutions at Axiom Space. “Our mission is to improve life on Earth and foster the possibilities beyond by building and operating the world’s first commercial space station. Together with the Sanford Stem Cell Institute team, we are building history.” This research builds off previous stem cell research conducted on the ISS that identified elevated amounts of pre-cancerous markers after only one month in space. Follow-up studies include a longitudinal study designed to monitor long-term impacts on stem cells of astronauts. What new discoveries will scientists make about stem cells, cancer, and the impacts of long-term spaceflight on human health? Only time will tell, and this is why we science! Sources: UC San Diego Today As always, keep doing science & keep looking up!
A recent study published in Nature Communications examines how microgravity can impact red blood cells and bone density in astronauts while bone marrow fat can restore them when the astronauts return to Earth from the International Space Station (ISS). This study holds the potential to help scientists and future astronauts better understand the impact of reduced gravity on the human body, both in space and upon their return to Earth. This study also comes at a time when NASA is preparing to send humans back to the Moon with the Artemis missions, and for the first time since Apollo 17 in 1972. “We found that astronauts had significantly less fat in their bone marrow about a month after returning to Earth,” said Dr. Guy Trudel, who is a Professor of Medicine, Surgery, and Biochemistry at the University of Ottawa, and a co-author on the study. “We think the body is using this fat to help replace red blood cells and rebuild bone that has been lost during space travel.” For the study, the researchers examined 14 astronauts both before and after conducting six-month missions to the ISS. They specifically focused on the astronauts’ bone marrow and conducted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans at various times throughout the study. While the researchers discovered a 4.2 percent reduction in bone marrow fat approximately one month after returning from space, they also found these levels slowly returned to normal the longer the astronauts stayed on Earth, which corresponded with increased levels of red blood cells and bone restoration. “Since red blood cells are made in the bone marrow and bone cells surround the bone marrow, it makes sense that the body would use up the local bone marrow fat as a source of energy to fuel red blood cells and bone production,” said Dr. Trudel. “We look forward to investigating this further in various clinical conditions on Earth.” This study builds off a 2022 study published in Nature Medicine and first-authored by Dr. Trudel that examined what is called “space anemia”, and was part of ongoing research known as MARROW. For that study, Dr. Trudel found that microgravity resulted in a 54 percent reduction in red blood cells in astronauts after returning to Earth compared to how their bodies would have reacted entirely under Earth’s gravity. Like this most recent study, the researchers also examined 14 astronauts, but this time the analyses were conducted during their six-month missions to the ISS. Astronaut Thomas Pesquet imaged inserting blood samples for MARROW research into the Minus Eighty-Degree Laboratory Freezer aboard the International Space Station. (Credit: NASA) “Thankfully, anemia isn’t a problem in space when your body is weightless, but when landing on Earth and potentially on other planets or moons with gravity, anemia would affect energy, endurance, and strength and could threaten mission objectives,” said Dr. Trudel. “If we can find out exactly what’s controlling this anemia, we might be able to improve prevention and treatment.” While further studies are required to better understand the impacts of microgravity on the human body, and specifically red blood cells and bone degradation, this study helped lay the groundwork for what astronauts can expect when traveling to the Moon and even Mars, someday. What new discoveries will researchers make about how microgravity impacts the human body? Only time will tell, and this is why we science! As always, keep doing science & keep looking up! Sources: Nature Communications, NASA, NASA (1), NASA (2), EurekAlert!, Nature Medicine, Government of Canada
NASA is very interested in learning exactly how long term space missions affect the human body, and thanks to the experiment involving the Kelly twins, Mark and Scott, NASA might finally have some leads into how exactly long term space missions impact the human body. Image Credit: NASA Scott was the ex-astronaut that spent 340 days in space on the International Space Station between 2015 and 2016 before he retired shortly after, while his identical twin brother stayed right here on Earth during the experiment to play the role as a control variable; Mark was a retired NASA astronaut himself. The goal behind the experiment was to see what kinds of differences would be seen in Scott’s body after spending such a long time in space. Mark was his identical twin, and as a result, NASA had a very good ‘before and after’ variable that they could attribute to the study. When Scott came back home to Earth after spending so much time on the International Space Station, NASA requested DNA samples, including but not limited to blood samples, from both Mark and Scott so that they could be compared after the fact. The findings were nothing short of interesting. The telomeres, or the small caps at the ends of their white blood cell chromosomes, were reportedly longer on Scott’s after spending such a long time in space. More importantly, as Scott started to spend more time on Earth following his space mission, the length of his chromosomes’ telomeres is said to have returned to normal size. For what it was worth, experts thought the exact opposite was going to happen; that Scott’s telomeres would shrink rather than lengthen, so this study was quite the learning experience. There isn’t yet much insight as to why Scott’s telomeres returned to normal after he returned back to Earth. Citing Nature, they returned to normal “relatively quickly,” and figuring out why this change occurred in the first place could be instrumental to understanding what goes on in the human body while it is in space for long periods of time. As puzzling as it is, it wasn’t the only difference that was noticed. It was also found that there were significant differences in gene expression signatures in both Mark and Scott. These changes were most noticeable in Scott, which researchers say could have been the result of stress from the many things Scott had to put up with while coping in a micro-gravitational environment that he wasn’t used to. Much of the research still has yet to be completed, as the study is very much a work in progress at this point in time. Nevertheless, we should expect to see papers some time before the end of this year that go a little more in depth about what was found. On the other hand, the research is also quite personal, as it deals directly with the genetics of two live men. That said, it’s possible that NASA will have to be selective about what information is released to the public and what isn’t in order to respect the privacy of the two test subjects. With so many long-term space missions planned for the future, including those of not only the International Space Station, but also for sending astronauts to Mars and even the Moon, it’s important that we gather as much information as possible about the possible long-term negative side effects so that proper combatants can be formulated. This might include the development of new medicines to prevent their bodies from experiencing as many of the negative side effects as possible. It should be very enlightening to learn more about the information this study will provide to mankind as the research slowly trickles in. Source: NASA, Nature
Rest easy, chips-and-dip lovers, the world's guacamole supply has been secured for future generations. Scientists have been able to successfully preserve the tips of avocado shoots; they put the tips in deep-freeze, called cryopreservation, and then revived them into healthily growing plants. The work, which comes after decades of research, has been reported in Plant Cell, Tissue and Organ Research. "The aim is to preserve important avocado cultivars and key genetic traits from possible destruction by threats like bushfires, pests, and disease such as laurel wilt - a fungus which has the capacity to wipe out all the avocado germplasm in Florida," said University of Queensland (UQ) graduate student Chris O'Brien. He created the first important steps of the avocado cryopreservation protocol. "Liquid nitrogen does not require any electricity to maintain its temperature, so by successfully [freezing] avocado germplasm, it's an effective way of preserving clonal plant material for an indefinite period." Cryopreservation is often used to preserve samples and cells. The samples are usually suspended in a media and placed in special tubes (cryotubes) that can withstand the cold, then suspended in liquid nitrogen, which is around minus 196 degrees Celsius. Other plants like bananas, grape vines, and apples have been successfully cryopreserved. O'Brien and an international team of colleagues worked to perfect the process for avocados. Tissue propagation techniques led to technology in which a single shoot tip can give rise to 500 plants that are true to type. The shoot tips are placed onto foil strips so they can be cooled and rewarmed very quickly, and these foil strips are put into the cryotubes that sit in liquid nitrogen. "At first I was just recovering brown mush after freezing the avocado tips," noted O'Brien. "There was no protocol so I experimented with priming the tips with Vitamin C, and used other pre-treatments like sucrose and cold temperature to prepare the cells - it was a question of trial and error to get the optimal mixture and correct time points." Once placed in a Petri dish with a sucrose solution, the frozen shoot types can be easily rehydrated and revived. "It takes about 20 minutes to recover them," O'Brien said. "In about two months they have new leaves and are ready for rooting before beginning a life in the orchard." About 80 percent of frozen Reed avocado plants and 60 percent of Velvick cultivar were revived successfully. Eighty of these avocado plants continue to grow in a UQ glasshouse, where they will be monitored for flooring times and fruit quality. "I suppose you could say they are space-age avocados - ready to be cryo-frozen and shipped to Mars when human flight becomes possible," said Mitter. "But it is really about protecting the world's avocado supplies here on earth and ensuring we meet the demand of current and future generations for their smashed 'avo' on toast." Sources: AAAS/Eurekalert! via University of Queensland; Plant Cell, Tissue and Organ Culture
Following a two-year journey through our solar system, NASA’s Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security-Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) asteroid intercept mission officially arrived at its destination this week: an asteroid known to astronomers as Bennu. Image Credit: NASA/Goddard/University of Arizona Although Bennu resides within the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter like any other asteroid would, it’s of particular interest to astronomers because of the secrets it might contain about the formation of the planets and the origins of life in our solar system. “The OSIRIS-REx team is proud to cross another major milestone off our list -- asteroid arrival,” explained Dante Lauretta, the OSIRIS-REx mission’s principal investigator. “Initial data from the approach phase show this object to have exceptional scientific value. We can’t wait to start our exploration of Bennu in earnest. We’ve been preparing for this moment for years, and we’re ready.” Related: This is the first picture of Bennu that OSIRIS-REx ever snapped OSIRIS-REx isn’t orbiting Bennu just yet; instead, it’s flying around the asteroid from about 19 kilometers away such that it can photograph the rocky body’s equatorial region and its North and South poles. OSIRIS-REx will begin orbiting Bennu by December 31st, earning the asteroid the title of ‘smallest object ever orbited by a spacecraft.’ As OSIRIS-REx takes all these pictures and beams them back to Earth, astronomers will hopefully be able to discern telling attributes about the world including its mass, shape, and spin rate, among other things. “During our approach toward Bennu, we have taken observations at much higher resolution than were available from Earth,” added Rich Burns, the project manager of OSIRIS-REx. “These observations have revealed an asteroid that is both consistent with our expectations from ground-based measurements and an exceptionally interesting small world. Now we embark on gaining experience flying our spacecraft about such a small body." Related: NASA adjusts the course of its OSIRIS-REx mission But NASA’s OSIRIS-REx mission is about so much more than just visiting a puny space rock, entering an orbit around it, and snapping a bunch of pictures. Instead, NASA wants to use the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft to collect surface samples that can be returned to Earth for analysis by September 2023; NASA says it can grab up to two full ounces of dust and rocks from the distant world. This is a particularly important step because a space sample this significant hasn’t been brought back to Earth since the Apollo era. OSIRIS-REx also gets to enjoy setting other precedents in space exploration, such as being the first American mission to return an asteroid sample to Earth, being the first spacecraft to visit a primitive B-type asteroid, and being the first spacecraft to visit a potentially hazardous space rock. But what makes Bennu so hazardous? According to planetary scientists, Bennu poses the potential threat of colliding with Earth between the years of 2175 and 2199. This mission could shed more light on why this is expected to happen. While it’s exciting that Bennu has finally reached its destination, it will be even more exciting when the first oodles of scientific data begin rolling in. As you can probably imagine, we’re just as thrilled as those involved with the mission to learn more about a previously-unexplored space rock. Source: NASA
In May 2018, NASA announced the three teams that would be receiving five-year grants of about $8 million each to study astrobiology: the origins, evolution, distribution and future of life in our universe. Studies will explore the development of Earth’s organisms; the possibility of life on Saturn’s largest moon, Titan; the organic molecules found in meteorites, and more intricacies of how life comes to be. Director of the Astrobiology Program at NASA Headquarters Mary Voytek said: The intellectual scope of astrobiology is vast, from understanding how our planet became habitable and inhabited, to understanding how life has adapted to Earth’s harshest environments, to exploring other worlds with the most advanced technologies to search for signs of life. The three teams will become members of the NASA Astrobiology Institute, or NAI, located in Silicon Valley, California. NAI seeks to answer these questions: “How does life begin and evolve? Is there life beyond Earth and, if so, how can we detect it? What is the future of life on Earth and beyond?” ENIGMA Evolution of Nanomachines in Geospheres and Microbial Ancestors, or ENIGMA, is a research program joining NAI from Rutgers University in New Jersey. ENIGMA seeks to explore the evolution of proteins, which it refers to as nanomachines, as the main catalysts of life on Earth. Proteins are big molecules that are made of compounds called amino acids. Proteins carry out a wide range of functions in living beings, including converting food into energy, building DNA and sending signals to coordinate many processes between parts of the body. Because the origin of these nanomachines remains an enigma, this team of scientists will explore their synthesis and functions, their increasing complexity in our microbial ancestors, and their co-evolution with the geosphere. Titan and Beyond In an undertaking called, “Habitability of Hydrocarbon Worlds: Titan and Beyond,” a NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, or JPL, team will search for a habitable environment on Titan and related biosignatures -- any substances used to prove evidence of past or current life. In 2014, data from the Cassini spacecraft revealed that Titan likely has a salty subsurface ocean. These researchers aim to determine how to transport organic materials from the atmosphere to the surface to the subsurface ocean, which they identify as the “most likely habitable environment,” and back to the atmosphere. They want to know what biosignatures might exist, how they will be recognized, and, perhaps most importantly, if the ocean’s chemical and physical processes create stable habitats. Organic Molecules From Earth and Other Environments Researchers from Pennsylvania State University will be studying astrobiology by examining the origins of molecules in diverse environments on Earth and beyond. They will focus on patterns of isotopes, which are atoms missing a neutron or possessing an extra neutron. The scientists will use advanced computing to build a predictive understanding of the isotopes of organic compounds “found in meteorites, dissolved in deep Earth fluids, from individual living organisms, within microbial ecosystems and in organics associated with minerals and ice.” NASA Scientist Jim Green said of the three teams’ missions: With NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite on its way to discover new worlds around our nearest stellar neighbors, Cassini’s discovery of the ingredients necessary for life in Enceladus’s plumes, and with Europa Clipper and Mars 2020 on the horizon, these research teams will provide the critical interdisciplinary expertise needed to help interpret data from these missions and future astrobiology-focused missions. Source: NASA
Since the Star Wars series first hit the theatre four decades ago, it has created its own sci-fi culture and captivated audiences around the world. Have you ever wondered how close we are to achieve those futuristic technologies in the movies? Is it possible to create a lightsaber? Can someone build a Death Star for real? With so many advances in robotics and AI, has anyone already created a robot like R2-D2 or C-3PO? Lightsaber The idea that a beam of laser light can be shaped into a blade, and clash with other sword-like beams is purely imaginative. The name lightsaber is misleading since there are no laser swords (even George Lucas admitted in interviews). But there are other options to consider for building a glowing melee weapon: accelerated particles, ionized plasma gas and a newly discovered material known as photonic molecules. Particle accelerators like cyclotrons can spin particles such as protons at high velocity and spit them out to a targeted outlet. Proton beam is an increasingly popular method for cancer radiotherapy because its emission can be conditioned to stop at a specific range without overshooting, just like the blade of a sword. But putting a particle accelerator, which comes with the size between a vending machine and a small room, inside a sword handle is almost an unimaginable task on it own. Plasma is an ionized gas, a very hot gas. You could picture it as an extreme hot soup of atoms and electrons. Plasma can be used to build a lightsaber, but it would require very strong magnetic fields to confine the distribution of plasma so that it can form a sword shape. The good thing about the plasma is that it can explain the colors of the lightsaber: different kinds of gasses, different plasma, can create different colors. First theoretically predicted in 2007, photonic molecules are a natural form of matter which can also be made artificially in which photons bind together to form "molecules". In a 2013 study, scientists pumped gaseous rubidium atoms into a vacuum chamber and cooled close to the absolute zero. As photons the light particles entered the gaseous cloud, their energy excited atoms along their path, causing them to be stuck within the rubidium atoms. If you designed it right, it could just be in the shape of a sword. One may excuse the delicate conditions how these photonic molecules are formed, but the mass-less existence of electromagnetic interaction can barely do any harm to anything in the path. In fact the extreme cold condition of the cloud may cause someone frostbite. So to build a sword that cuts through metal and flesh, and comes with a colorful glow, we still have a lot to figure out. Death Star In the movie, the Death Star launched its lethal attack by firing up a six-beam laser that conjoined in the middle of the circle, before dealing a single, devastating photonic blow to the target. But in real life is that the six rays would pass through each other and head off in six different directions. Again, the violation of physics behind how light works make it impossible to construct a weapon that acts like the Death Star. But how about just normal laser weapon without the fancy appearance, but as powerful as the Death Star? Laser weapon systems nowadays can deal extensive damages and have been equipped US navy vessels in defense of hostile drones, helicopters, and fast patrol craft. The directed energy (which would need stayed focus on the target for a couple of seconds to allow for damage) can burn through structures or melt holes on the object surface. In a 1998 test, a Mid-Infrared Advanced Chemical Laser (MIRACL) fired at a retiring satellite that was 432 kilometers (268 miles) above the Earth’s surface and temporarily blinded the sensors on broad. The 2.2-megawatt laser was believed to be able to melt the satellite if allowed. The energy output of any laser weapons needs to be proportional to the amount of energy that is pumped into or generated within them. Any weapon that can blow up a planet, for example, the size of the Earth, into pieces, it would need to deliver an output of 2 * 10^32 joules, which is equal to 2.3% of the sun’s annual energy output. With such mind-blowing amount of energy, it is hard to believe anyone can power up a weapon anywhere close to the Death Star. However, this is not to completely dismiss the possible existence of a planet killer. In fact, there is another source of power no one has imagined could destroy an entire planet—a star. A 2016 study had dug up some convincing evidence. The host star in the HIP 68468 system had likely ingested some of its planets, according to the star's composition. It contains four times more lithium and other elements that are abundant on rocky planets. So alternatively, if you cannot afford to build a Death Star but manage to move or nudge a real star close to the target planet with other methods, it would be just as good as a Death Star. Intelligent robots like R2D2 and C3PO With the advances made in both robotic technology and artificial intelligence, one would expect that intelligent robots would become reality soon. Take the Curiosity rover for example, this world-renowned robotic adventurer has been working on the surface of Mars via remote control from NASA. It conducted exploratory tasks such as taking and analyzing rock samples on Mars, as well as sending the data back to Earth. Atlas, a human-like robot built by Boston Dynamics, can act more agile and nimble than both R2D2 and C3PO. It is now capable of doing backflips with decent success rate. On the artificial intelligence front, Google DeepMind's AlphaGo defeated professional Go, chess, and poker champions multiple times since 2016. AlphaGo Zero, a most recent version of the system demonstrated some eerily intelligent behaviors: all previous versions learned Go by observing millions of moves of human players, AlphaGo Zero learned by playing only against itself. So, as you see, the chance is high that someday we may have robots that possess or surpass the mobility and intelligence of R2D2 and C3PO. What's new, Atlas? Credit: Boston Dynamics Source: CBC/Scientific American/Wikipedia
Peter Berg has been working at NASA since 2007. He is an Aerospace Engineer and the Design and Analysis Team Lead in the Integrated Systems Health Management (ISHM) and Automation Branch at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. He also currently works with the Mission and Fault Management Team for the Space Launch System (SLS), Human Landing System (HLS), Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV), and Solar Cruiser. To commemorate this year’s National Engineers Week, Labroots Science Writer and Planetary Geologist, Laurence Tognetti, spoke with Berg about what drew him to space exploration, how he came to be an engineer at NASA, and what it’s like working for NASA in this new age of space exploration. Laurence Tognetti: Tell us a bit about your background, your experiences training to be an engineer, and where you are right now in your career. Peter Berg: I earned my bachelor’s in science in Aerospace Engineering with minors in math and physics from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU) Prescott Arizona Campus, but that was far easier said than done. Early in my school career at ERAU, my grades were not the best and it took 5-years to get my degree after having to retake Calculus and Physics classes. With a lot of self-reflection and unwavering support from my parents, the poor grades in math and physics couldn’t overpower my passion and insistence on becoming an aerospace engineer and working at NASA. During Spring Break before graduation, I decided to stay on campus, in case I needed to fly to various places for interviews like Houston, Tucson, China Lake, instead of going home to the Bay. Little did I know that an opportunity to return home and work in the Bay Area would arise after I applied to an Engineer Level 2/3 position on a whim. When I started my engineering career, like me, discussions on new ways of doing space, including the commercialization of space, were in their infancy. I started working on the Constellation program on what was then called the Abort Fault Detection Notification and Response (AFDNR). Luckily fault management as a discipline was also in its beginnings and I received the best advice a manager can give an entry level engineer from my manager Greg, “be a sponge”. My managers at Ames also allowed me to explore new ways of looking at fault management and fault propagation models of an integrated system. In the death throes of Ares and the Constellation program, an idea emerged to use Finite State Machines (FSM) to represent system behaviors. This caught the attention of the Software Technical Discipline Lead for an elite group at NASA known as the NESC, or NASA Engineering and Safety Center. One day that I will never forget, my team lead, Dwight, pulled me into his office with my manager Greg and asked me to close the door behind me. This brought back memories of me as a young kid getting in trouble and being sent to the principal’s office. I had surprisingly been asked to work on the Toyota Unintended Acceleration investigation and counted amongst the top NASA engineers at 25 years old. After Toyota’s investigation and 700+ page report completed, I was trying to figure out what would be next. Luckily, NASA's Ames Research Center had been planning a Lunar exploration and technology demonstration mission, the Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE). LADEE was incredible. The average age of folks working the program was easily in the 30s, and for a NASA mission at the time, that was very, very low. We all were figuring out how to do things as a group. I had to be flexible in my roles as Software Systems Engineer, Fault Management Engineer, Mission Operations Simulation Engineer, and Console Operator. But LADEE was not the only program I was working on at the time. The old gang from Constellation came back together for a young program called Artemis and a re-org at Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) created the Mission and Fault Management (M&FM) group. I continued looking at FSM as a way to model the SLS vehicle plant and software in a method called State Analysis Modeling (SAM). While LADEE was occluded by the moon, I would work on the SAM, getting it to the point where it was making an actual impact on the way SLS operated. And after the impact of LADEE on the moon, I found myself looking towards my future with NASA and how to push the SAM concepts further. I am now the Design and Analysis Team Lead in the Integrated System Health Management and Automation Branch at MSFC, home of the M&FM team, far from where I began as an engineer, but close to the action of where NASA is going in the future. Laurence Tognetti: What got you interested in working for NASA? Were there any inspirational figures in your life or moments where you realized this is what you wanted to do? Peter Berg: I think it primarily was my desire to solve problems, by being creative and exploring elegant simple solutions to answer the complex and confusing. My first introduction to NASA was when an engineer from Ames came to talk to my grammar school class. I don’t remember who they were nor what they said, but they inspired me to not only look into a career at NASA, but also to remember to pay it forward and take an opportunity to talk to schools and classes whenever I can. I was also blessed by having several inspirational figures in the engineering field surrounding me in life. My godfather Lee worked at Hughes Aerospace; my mother’s uncle Vic worked at Lockheed Martin on the Hubble Space Telescope. Laurence Tognetti: Have you always had a passion for space exploration or is that something that came in time? Peter Berg: As a child, my grandma Rina, an immigrant from Italy, would take me to the nearby San Francisco International Airport (SFO) to watch aircraft take-off and land. It was at that point I decided that I wanted to become an Aerospace Engineer and design aircraft. Once I got to college, I learned that there isn’t as much design that goes into aircraft and that there would be so much more to invent and explore in space. Laurence Tognetti: How did you land working at Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) in Alabama? Peter Berg: I had never heard of Huntsville until I started working at NASA Ames on Constellation and closely collaborated with the engineers at MSFC. About once a year for ten (10) or so years, I traveled to Huntsville for a Technical Interchange Meeting (TIM). I saw how great the town of Huntsville was and what moving here would do to my career and the acceptance of the SAM as a product. An opportunity with Aerodyne Industries, a sub-contractor to Jacobs, the main support contractor to NASA at MSFC opened. This would let me join the ISHM and Automation branch and allow me to continue working on the SLS and SAM opened. It was not an easy decision, requiring me to move 2,000 miles away from family and friends, like my grandparents before me. Even though it was going from California to Alabama, there wasn’t too much of a negative difference, besides actually having weather and seasons. When the opportunity opened up to become a Civil Servant, I immediately took it, and once I did, I could almost literally hear the multiple doors of opportunity open. Laurence Tognetti: Can we ask what current and/or future space missions you’re working on? Peter Berg: Following, and even preceding, the well-known successful flight of Artemis I, our team worked on incorporating several features and improvements necessary to have the abort system enabled for the crew of Artemis II. We’re just about to start working on data analysis from the SLS System Integration Lab (SIL) after running the tests ahead of time in the SAM. Simultaneously, we are working on developing the algorithms and fault management for the upcoming SLS Block 1b, which will first be used for Artemis IV. But SLS is obviously not the only program NASA and MSFC are working on and there are a lot of exciting projects being worked on and planned. The Human Landing System (HLS) Program is led out of MSFC and my branch is a part of the Integrated Performance Functional Analysis and Mission Planning teams, providing functional analysis models as well as a novel adaption of the SAM to use FSMs in an agent-based model to build timelines in a tool called STEDe. The Branch is also developing the Mission and Fault Management algorithms for the Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV), which is part of the Mars Sample Return (MSR) program. The process of developing these algorithms relies heavily on the processes used during Constellation and SLS, as well as experience with cFS on LADEE. We’re also working with technologies beyond launch vehicles as MSFC works on exotic space propulsion missions like solar sails with Solar Cruiser. For this, the Mission and Fault Management algorithms are being integrated within the Guidance Navigation and Control (GN&C) simulation. MSFC is also leading the way for Habitation systems for the Moon, transit to Mars and of course on Mars itself. The ISHM and Automation branch is developing the System Health, Autonomy, and Redundancy Control (SHARC) Lab to develop and promote Artificial Intelligence (AI) / Machine Learning (ML) and other advanced Fail-Active Autonomy and Self-Reliant systems and System-of-Systems techniques. Laurence Tognetti: How excited are you for the success of Artemis 1 and the upcoming Artemis missions? Peter Berg: Artemis I’s launch is a shining light to the new age of space exploration that’s fueled by decades of unseen problem solving and sacrifices. Personally, I have sacrificed many days of being too busy to hang out with friends and family. Was it worth it, absolutely, and I’m lucky enough to be surrounded by friends and family who understand the meaning of it. There wasn’t much celebration after the launch, but I can almost guarantee that Huntsville will have its night of dancing in the streets again – when we have boots back on the Moon. Laurence Tognetti: Describe a typical day for you at MSFC. Peter Berg: A typical day for me starts waking up and biking on my stationary bike for at least 30 minutes before heading to MSFC. I usually arrive at work around 7am, early enough to be there before everyone and avoid as much of the Huntsville traffic as possible. There’s lots of projects going on, which usually means lots of meetings and lots of frequent visits by people coming into my office and working out elegant solutions out in groups or on whiteboards. On days when I don’t have leftovers from my fiancé packed in my lunch, I will walk across the street to the MSFC food truck corral. Most of the team interaction and coordination occurs online, especially with the team only needing to be in the office two days a week. Laurence Tognetti: What advice would you give to students who wish to work for NASA? Peter Berg: I think I should answer this in two parts, before you work at NASA and after. Before you work at NASA and while you’re in the interview process, be sure to do things like research the people giving the interview. When you show interest in some personal research projects of the interviewer, it can really set you apart. Additionally, don’t worry so much about the minimum requirements of what you’re applying for. Apply for what you want to do and where you want to work. Finally, as I am a big example of this, your GPA is important but probably not as important as your ability to explain a design process and think critically. This advice applies whether you work at NASA, any NASA support contract, or any job in the space industry. I think the advice my first manager, Greg, provided me still holds as the best, he said “be a sponge”, meaning absorb everything and anything presented in a meeting or discussion, this is valuable because at any moment you may be asked for some of that information in the future. One of my personal pieces of advice, which I take from watching lots of hockey, is to use “we” and not “I” when describing something a team has done together. Laurence Tognetti: Is there anything else you feel our readers need to know about your amazing career? Peter Berg: Engineering isn’t only about technical work, with as mentally exhausting and emotionally draining as it can be, it is best to have fun and an open mind on different approaches. With that said, I’ve found that one of the best ways to express emotions through comedy is with memes. During LADEE, I consistently documented different mission activities and problems with memes, but it wasn’t till LADEE decommissioned into the side of the Sundman V crater that I showed them to the team. You can connect with Peter Berg on LinkedIn and read more about his work at NASA here.
NASA's groundbreaking science mission to retrieve a sample from an ancient space rock has moved closer to fruition. The Origins Spectral Interpretation Resource Identification Security Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) mission has passed a critical milestone in its path towards launch and is officially authorized to transition into its next phase.Key Decision Point-D (KDP-D) occurs after the project has completed a series of independent reviews that cover the technical health, schedule and cost of the project. The milestone represents the official transition from themission's development stage to delivery of systems, testing and integration leading to launch. During this part of the mission's life cycle, known as Phase D, the spacecraft bus, or the structure that will carry the science instruments, is completed, the instruments are integrated into the spacecraft and tested, and the spacecraft is shipped to NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida for integration with the rocket."This is an exciting time for the OSIRIS-REx team," said Dante Lauretta, principal investigator for OSIRIS-Rex at the University of Arizona, Tucson. "After almost four years of intense design efforts, we are now proceeding with the start of flight system assembly. I am grateful for the hard work and team effort required to get us to this point."OSIRIS-REx is the first U.S. mission to return samples from an asteroid to Earth. The spacecraft will travel to a near-Earth asteroid called Bennu and bring at least a 60-gram (2.1-ounce) sample back to Earth for study. OSIRIS-REx carries five instruments that will remotely evaluate the surface of Bennu. The mission will help scientists investigate the composition of the very early solar system and the source of organic materials and water that made their way to Earth, and improve understanding of asteroids that could impact our planet.OSIRIS-REx is scheduled for launch in late 2016. The spacecraft will reach Bennu in 2018 and return a sample to Earth in 2023."The spacecraft structure has been integrated with the propellant tank and propulsion system and is ready to begin system integration in the Lockheed Martin highbay," said Mike Donnelly, OSIRIS-REx project manager at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. "The payload suite of cameras and sensors is well into its environmental test phase and will be delivered later this summer/fall."The key decision meeting was held at NASA Headquarters in Washington on March 30 and chaired by NASA's Science Mission Directorate.On March 27, assembly, launch and test operations officially began at Lockheed Martin in Denver. These operations represent a critical stage of the program when the spacecraft begins to take form, culminating with its launch. Over the next several months, technicians will install the subsystems on the main spacecraft structure, comprising avionics, power, telecomm, thermal systems, and guidance, navigation and control.The next major milestone is the Mission Operations Review, scheduled for completion in June. The project will demonstrate that its navigation, planning, commanding, and science operations requirements are complete.The mission's principal investigator is at the University of Arizona, Tucson. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, will provide overall mission management, systems engineering and safety and mission assurance for OSIRIS-REx. Lockheed Martin Space Systems in Denver will build the spacecraft. OSIRIS-REx is the third mission in NASA's New Frontiers Program. NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, manages New Frontiers for the agency's Science Mission Directorate.OSIRIS-REx complements NASA's Asteroid Initiative, which aligns portions of the agency's science, space technology and human exploration capabilities in a coordinated asteroid research effort. The initiative will conduct research and analysis to better characterize and mitigate the threat these space rocks pose to our home planet.Included in the initiative is NASA's Asteroid Redirect Mission (ARM), a robotic spacecraft mission that will capture a boulder from the surface of a near-Earth asteroid and move it into a stable orbit around the moon for exploration by astronauts, all in support of advancing the nation's journey to Mars. The agency also is engaging new industrial capabilities, partnerships, open innovation and participatory exploration through the NASA Asteroid Initiative.NASA also has made tremendous progress in the cataloging and characterization of near Earth objects over the past five years. The president's NASA budget included, and Congress authorized, $20.4 million for an expanded NASA Near-Earth Object (NEO) Observations Program, increasing the resources for this critical program from the $4 million per year it had received since the 1990s. The program was again expanded in fiscal year 2014, with a budget of $40.5 million. NASA is asking Congress for $50 million for this important work in the 2016 budget.NASA has identified more than 12,000 NEOs to date, including 96 percent of near-Earth asteroids larger than 0.6 miles (1 kilometer) in size. NASA has not detected any objects of this size that pose an impact hazard to Earth in the next 100 years. Smaller asteroids do pass near Earth, however, and some could pose an impact threat. In 2011, 893 near-Earth asteroids were found. In 2014, that number was increased to 1,472.(Source NASA)
A recent study published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters discusses a groundbreaking discovery using the Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) onboard NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) to reveal the processes responsible for planetary formation, specifically the transition of water from the colder, outer regions of a protoplanetary disk to the warmer, inner regions. This study was conducted by an international team of researchers and holds the potential to help astronomers better understand the complex processes behind planetary formation, which could also help us better understand how our own solar system formed billions of years ago. “Webb finally revealed the connection between water vapor in the inner disk and the drift of icy pebbles from the outer disk,” said Dr. Andrea Banzatti, who is an assistant professor of physics at Texas State University and lead author of the study. “This finding opens up exciting prospects for studying rocky planet formation with Webb!” Using MIRI, which is sensitive to water vapor in protoplanetary disks, the researchers analyzed four protoplanetary disks orbiting Sun-like stars, although much younger, at only 2-3 million years old, and the four disks analyzed consisted of two compact disks and two extended disks. The compact disks were hypothesized to deliver ice-covered pebbles to a distance equivalent to the orbit of Neptune in our solar system, and the extended disks were hypothesized to deliver ice-covered pebbles as far out as six times Neptune’s orbit. The goal of the study was to determine if the compact disks exhibited a greater amount of water in the inner regions of the disk where rocky planets would theoretically form. Artist’s rendition comparing two types of traditional, planet-forming disks orbiting newborn, Sun-like stars, a compact disk (left), and an extended disk with gaps (right), which were the basis for this study. (Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, Joseph Olmsted (STScI)) In the end, MIRI revealed the compact disks exhibited larger amounts of cooler water than the extended disks, which is a finding the researchers were expecting, and that the cooler water results from ice evaporating as the pebbles travel farther inward towards their parent star. While the researchers found the initial data confusing, once they overlaid it with data from the extended disks, they found the compact disks contained large amounts of water inside the snow line. Graphic depicting data from Webb’s MIRI, which is sensitive to water vapor in disks showing the contrast between pebble drift and water content in a compact disk compared to extended disk with rings and gaps. (Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, Joseph Olmsted (STScI)) This finding is profound as, aside from Earth, the three other rocky planets, Mercury, Venus, and Mars, are completely devoid of water. Present research postulates that water is typically swallowed up by larger planets, leaving the rocky planets water-poor, but this discovery could open allow for the formation of planets closer to their stars to contain much larger volumes of water than previously thought. “For two months, we were stuck on these preliminary results that were telling us that the compact disks had colder water, and the large disks had hotter water overall,” said Dr. Banzatti. “This made no sense because we had selected a sample of stars with very similar temperatures. Now we finally see unambiguously that it is the colder water that has an excess. This is unprecedented and entirely due to Webb’s higher resolving power!” The researchers note this new discovery could open doors for further exploring the chemistry of planetary formation within inner disks using JWST. What new discoveries will researchers make about planetary formation in the coming years and decades? Only time will tell, and this is why we science! As always, keep doing science & keep looking up! Sources: The Astrophysical Journal Letters, EurekAlert!, NASA
Have you heard of the tardigrade before? These microscopic critters are considered by many scientists around the world to be some of the toughest forms of life on Earth. Image Credit: Tanaka S, Sagara H, Kunieda Numerous studies have proven their resilience, showing that tardigrades can survive in even the most extreme circumstances where other forms of life couldn’t. For example, tardigrades have shown their ability to withstand pressures as high as 600 megapascals (MPa), which is far greater than any exhibited by our ocean floors. In another experiment, scientists sent tardigrades up into space to see if they could survive the cold and bitter vacuum where most other life forms would die, and miraculously, many survived and continued reproducing. Did you think starving them might work? Think again; these creatures can survive several decades without drinking or eating a single thing. Now that we’re all back to square one with this mind-boggling question, what would it take to cause a mass extinction event for tardigrades? That’s a question researchers from both Harvard University and the University of Oxford tried to answer in a study published in the journal Scientific Reports. With their durability being duly noted by the scientific community, the researchers wanted to think outside the box and consider what kind of astrophysical-based disaster would have the potential to wipe out the tardigrade species. “A lot of previous work has focused on 'doomsday' scenarios on Earth - astrophysical events like supernovae that could destroy the human race. Our study instead considered the hardiest species - the tardigrade,” said study co-author Dr David Sloan from the University of Oxford. “As we are now entering a stage of astronomy where we have seen exoplanets and are hoping to soon perform spectroscopy, looking for signatures of life, we should try to see just how fragile this hardiest life is.” Related: This is how tardigrades mate They brainstormed a host of astrophysical events that might fit the bill for wiping out life on Earth as we know it, including asteroid impacts, gamma-ray bursts, and supernovae, and then used mathematic modeling to determine their effectiveness. Each of these events would have a high likelihood of wiping out human and other surface animal species, but perhaps not for tardigrades. An asteroid impact is one of the extinction theories for the dinosaurs, so we’re aware of just how catastrophic one would be to humans and other animal species. On the other hand, the dangers of gamma-ray bursts and supernovae come from the radiation that becomes beamed at the Earth, which could eradicate our ozone layer, destroy all living cells on the Earth’s surface, and boil the water in the oceans. Tardigrades, which are known to survive just fine in the harsh conditions of outer space, seem to be resistant to the damaging effects of radiation, so perhaps gamma-ray bursts and supernovae are out of the question completely. Additionally, they would occur so far away from Earth that they wouldn’t boil the oceans; if anything, they might just hinder life on the surface. That just leaves the asteroid theory, but astronomers don't think there any projected intersections with asteroids large enough to wipe life out in the future, so we’re probably safe on that front too. “To our surprise we found that although nearby supernovae or large asteroid impacts would be catastrophic for people, tardigrades could be unaffected,” Sloan continued. “Therefore it seems that life, once it gets going, is hard to wipe out entirely. Huge numbers of species, or even entire genera may become extinct, but life as a whole will go on.” Related: Tardigrades have tons of foreign DNA With these findings in mind, tardigrades seem to have it made. The research strongly suggests that tardigrades could survive longer than any other animal species on the planet. Moreover, they’re likely to stick around until the day our Sun grows into a red giant and swallows the Earth. Until then, however, we’ve still got plenty of time to learn from tardigrades; we’re still at least 7-10 billion years away from the day the Earth gets swallowed by the Sun. The study really makes you think about what could be hiding just below the surface on seemingly "lifeless" planets. If tardigrades could survive such harsh conditions on Earth, then what's to stop them (or another comparably-durable species) from surviving on other planets? This concept highlights why it's so important to study planets like Mars and moons like Enceladus, Europa, and Titan. Source: University of Oxford
This series will explore historic space missions from the start of the Space Age to the present day, including both crewed and robotic missions. Here we will investigate the scientific rationale behind each mission and, most importantly, what we learned from these early missions and how they helped shape future missions that will launch to the Moon and Mars within the coming years. We recently explored some of NASA’s first robotic missions to study the Moon and planets: Pioneer, Ranger, and Surveyor. This week, we will begin exploring the history of NASA’s crewed spaceflight, which not only helped shape the Apollo Program to the Moon, but crewed spaceflight, overall. The first American crewed program was Project Mercury, with each of the missions carrying a 7 after their respective titles in honor of the first seven astronauts of NASA. Project Mercury was NASA’s very first human spaceflight program which operated from 1958 to 1963, having a total of 26—six crewed and 20 uncrewed—flights to space. While we lost the race to space when the Soviet Union’s Yuri Gagarin became the first human in space on April 12, 1961, the United States was determined to keep going. With Project Mercury, we saw the first Americans launch into the void and orbit the Earth, with the first two flights being short 15-minute suborbital missions and progressively got longer throughout the program. The first mission of Project Mercury was called Freedom 7 and saw astronaut Alan B. Shepard Jr. become the first American to lift off from the surface of the Earth on May 5, 1961, mere weeks after Gagarin’s historic flight. While Freedom 7 lasted only 15 minutes and 28 seconds, it nonetheless proved that the United States possessed the capabilities to put humans into space. Next was Liberty Bell 7, which launched astronaut Virgil “Gus” Grissom into space on July 21, 1961, once again consisting of a suborbital flight of 15 minutes and 37 seconds. Despite a successful launch and splashdown, the mission almost ended in disaster when the hatch of Grissom’s spacecraft prematurely blew off, causing ocean water to rapidly fill the capsule and almost drowning Grissom. While Grissom was thankfully pulled to safety, the capsule sank to the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean, not being recovered until 1999. The third mission of Project Mercury was Friendship 7, launching astronaut John H. Glenn Jr. into space on February 20, 1962, making him the first American to orbit the Earth, which he successfully did three times. This flight lasted far longer than its two predecessors for a total of 4 hours, 55 minutes, and 23 seconds. With this mission, the United States was able to even the score with the Soviet Union, as Gagarin’s historic flight also orbited the Earth. Aurora 7 launched only a few months later, May 24, 1962, putting astronaut Scott Carpenter into space and surpassing Glenn’s mission duration by a smidgen at 4 hours, 56 minutes, and 5 seconds. This mission successfully duplicated Glenn’s spaceflight of three orbits, but temporarily stranded Carpenter at sea on his life raft for over an hour after splashdown due to misfiring of the capsule’s retrorockets. The second to last mission of Project Mercury was Sigma 7, which launched on October 3, 1962. This mission saw astronaut Walter M. Schirra surpass the previous two missions by orbiting the Earth a total of six times for a mission duration of 9 hours, 13 minutes, and 11 seconds. Unlike Aurora 7, the Sigma 7 capsule had a near-perfect splashdown as it was recovered only half a mile from the aircraft carrier. Upon recovery, Schirra successfully blew open the hatch and climbed out, which was designed to absolve Grissom of wrongdoing, as some had accused him of accidentally blowing the hatch, causing his capsule to sink to the bottom of the Atlantic. The final mission of Project Mercury was Faith 7, which launched astronaut L. Gordon Cooper Jr. into space on May 15, 1963. Both the mission duration and number of orbits surpassed all of the previous mission combined, cataloging a total of 22 orbits around the Earth for a duration of 1 day, 10 hours, 19 minutes, and 49 seconds. This not only marked the longest US spaceflight, but closed the book on a resoundingly successful Project Mercury, which not only saw the first Americans fly to space but laid the groundwork for Project Gemini. We owe our infinite gratitude to the brave first astronauts on Project Mercury, as they not only helped usher in American human spaceflight but was a historic first step toward landing astronauts on the Moon, which we will be once again doing with Artemis in the next few years. Sources: Labroots, Labroots (2), Labroots (3), NASA, NASA (2), NASA (3), National Air and Space Museum, NASA (4), NASA (5), NASA (6), Spaceflight Insider, Space Center Houston As always, keep doing science & keep looking up!
Dr. Alyssa Rose Rhoden is a Principal Scientist within the Planetary Science Directorate at the Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) in Boulder, Colorado. She is an expert in the geophysics of ocean worlds, specifically Jupiter’s moon Europa, but has since expanded her studies to include Pluto’s moon Charon, Saturn’s moons Enceladus, Mimas, and Tethys, Mars’ moon Phobos; and irregular-sized moons of Jupiter. She is also a mom of two, an avid guitar player, and enjoys the outdoors in her spare time. “I strive to make a difference in the world, create strong friendships, have an awesome time raising my kids, and have an active lifestyle,” Rhoden writes on her website. Alyssa is a testament to how you can both be a scientist and have a successful and well-balanced life outside of science, too, and says she was driven to become a scientist after receiving encouragement from her mother. “Of course, I also had a sense of wonder for the natural world, blended with curiosity and a deep interest in solving mysteries, so the field suited me,” she explains in a short biography. Alyssa stumbled around a bit, once she got to college, because she did not see people like her—quirky, creative types who could not seem to effortlessly speak the language of math and physics. At one point, she decided to leave science to pursue a career as a lawyer but says this serendipitously led her to the field of planetary science. “The images of the diverse worlds of our solar system—particularly of the outer solar system—gave me the spark I had been lacking. And I have been studying icy moons ever since.” She further explains. Alyssa Rose Rhoden officially began her career in planetary science as a second-year undergraduate at the University of Arizona after switching from astrophysics, graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Physics in 2003. As an undergraduate, she worked with Dr. Richard Greenberg, who was working on understanding Jupiter’s moon, Europa, using the recently-acquired data from the Galileo spacecraft, saying the images of Europa’s surface is what drew her in. “But the thing that sealed the deal was that Europa’s surface, interior, and orbit are all linked through the process of tides,” she explains. “The idea that we could learn about the entire system of a planetary body by looking at each individual component of its surface was fascinating to me. I wasn’t just learning about one feature or one process, but the whole history of Jupiter’s moons. Even today, more than 20 years later, I am most interested in the way satellite systems function and evolve.” Upon graduation, she spent the next two years as a Research Assistant at the University of Arizona’s Lunar and Planetary Laboratory studying tidal tectonic on Europa, a position she started as an undergraduate. She went on to get her PhD in Earth and Planetary Science at UC Berkeley in 2011 under her PhD advisor, Dr. Michael Manga, with the PhD Dissertation title, “The rotation and fracture history of Europa from modeling of tidal-tectonic processes”. After earning her PhD, Dr. Rhoden continued to hone her geophysics modeling skills as a NASA Postdoctoral Program fellow and later a Mission Scientist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center where she was part of a Discovery mission proposal team. She completed her postdoc experience as a post-doctoral Staff Scientist at Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory working on the Europa Clipper pre-project team. In 2015, Dr. Rhoden accepted a tenure-track position as an Assistant Professor of Planetary Science at the School of Earth and Space Exploration at Arizona State University, where she polished her skills as both a teacher and mentor for undergrad and grad students with the Rhoden Research Group. In 2018, she accepted her current position as a Principal Scientist at SwRI where she continues to receive funding for various ocean world studies. She says working at SwRI is “pretty amazing”. “I always thought it seemed like a fantasy job – brilliant people just sitting around chatting about science and figuring out the Universe,” she says. “And now that I work at SwRI, I can tell you, it’s exactly like that. With donuts.” She thinks students don’t get enough exposure to research institutions outside universities. She also believes the notion that anything but a faculty job at a research-focused university is somehow “less than" is garbage. “Of course, universities can be amazing institutions for scientific inquiry, but they are not the only places or the best places.” She explains and further says the various institutions she’s worked at are all different in terms of culture. “They each have pros and cons. But the best place for you to be a scientist is the place where you can flourish as an individual and as a collaborator, and there is no one right fit for all people.” Sources: ASU, Weebly