Two NASA Publications You Need to Discover

January 3, 2017

A lot of stuff goes on at NASA besides pioneering the next steps in space exploration and taking humanity to the next achievable frontier. There’s simply no end to the research and technology that world’s biggest space agency puts forth.

GPO makes available two publications that are great examples of such space-related science.

033-000-01378-7_tour-of-the-electromagnetic-spectrumTour of the Electromagnetic Spectrum

Radiation is everywhere, at all times. Radio waves, microwaves, infrared waves, gamma rays, x-rays, and ultraviolet rays are types of radiation. Physicists call them electromagnetic waves. Together, these electromagnetic waves constitute the electromagnetic spectrum. Each wave type carries a distinct level of photon energy.

This publication breaks down the anatomy, behaviors, and categories of waves. And it shows how scientists visualize wave using NASA science examples.

033-000-01328-1_the-sun-the-earth-and-near-earth-space-a-guide-to-the-sun-earth-750The Sun, the Earth, and the Near-Earth Space: A Guide to the Sun-Earth System

Our space environment is complex system of electric currents, magnetic fields, and radiation. All of those forces affect near-Earth and Sun-Earth energy relationships.

This publication uses tables, graphs, and illustrations to detail space-weather and sun climate phenomena. It’s a valuable reference for understanding that big, close star’s effect on our planet.

Author John A. Eddy writes in his introduction (making a great conclusion to this blog post), “In a world of warmth and light and living things we soon forget that we are surrounded by a vast universe that is cold and dark and deadly dangerous, just beyond our door.”

HOW DO I OBTAIN THESE PUBLICATIONS?

Shop Online Anytime: You can buy eBooks or print publications —with FREE Standard Shipping worldwide— from the U.S. Government Online Bookstore at http://bookstore.gpo.gov.

Shop our Retail Store: Buy a copy of any print editions from this collection at GPO’s retail bookstore at 710 North Capitol Street NW, Washington, DC 20401, open Monday–Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., except Federal holidays, Call (202) 512-0132 for information or to arrange in-store pick-up.

Order by Phone: Call our Customer Contact Center Monday through Friday, 8 am to 5:30 pm Eastern (except US Federal holidays). From US and Canada, call toll-free 1.866.512.1800. DC or International customers call +1.202.512.1800.

Visit a Federal depository library: Search for U.S. Government publications in a nearby Federal depository library. You can find the records for most titles in GPO’s Catalog of U.S. Government Publications.

About the author: Blogger contributor Chelsea Milko is a Public Relations Specialist in GPO’s Public Relations Office.

Leave a Comment » | NASA, Science & Technology | Tagged: , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Trudy Hawkins

Celebrate the Life of a Global Space Pioneer and American Legend – John Glenn

December 9, 2016

BringingTheFutureWithinReach_033-000-01377-9Few Americans have made a greater personal contribution to America than the recently departed John Glenn. His life path defines what it is to place your country first and to do it with grace and style. He put his own life in harm’s way to move the nation to the forefront of space exploration at a time we needed it most.

He traveled to outer space and through the halls of the U.S. Senate as Senator of Ohio. He also was an activist for keeping America safer by introducing legislation to curb worldwide nuclear proliferation.

Now, you can bring home publications that honor Glenn’s contribution to our space effort. Bringing the Future Within Reach: Celebrating 75 Years of the NASA John H. Glenn Research Center, 1941-2016 provides in-depth descriptions of the many research specialties NASA embarked upon that helped the U.S. win the race to the moon; and that championed electric propulsion, considered key to future space flight.

033-000-01375-2_spinoff-2016Another publication, Spinoff, 2016 features dozens of commercial products derived from NASA technology that are improving everything from medical care and software tools to agricultural production and vehicle efficiency.

To find other publications related to John Glenn, visit the Government Publishing Office’s online bookstore at http://bookstore.gpo.gov  and type “John Glenn” into the search box. You will be directed to publications that honor his life and the contributions he’s made to our space program and to exciting technologies that lie just ahead in the near future.

For that young girl or boy in your life, here’s a true role model depicting how one person can make such a significant difference by following his or her dream, and by living an exemplary life that shows anything is possible.

HOW DO I OBTAIN THESE PUBLICATIONS?

Shop Online Anytime: You can buy eBooks or print publications —with FREE Standard Shipping worldwide— from the U.S. Government Online Bookstore at http://bookstore.gpo.gov.

Shop our Retail Store: Buy a copy of any print editions from this collection at GPO’s retail bookstore at 710 North Capitol Street NW, Washington, DC 20401, open Monday–Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., except Federal holidays, Call (202) 512-0132 for information or to arrange in-store pick-up.

Order by Phone: Call our Customer Contact Center Monday through Friday, 8 am to 5:30 pm Eastern (except US Federal holidays). From US and Canada, call toll-free 1.866.512.1800. DC or International customers call +1.202.512.1800.

Visit a Federal depository library: Search for U.S. Government publications in a nearby Federal depository library. You can find the records for most titles in GPO’s Catalog of U.S. Government Publications.

About the author: Blogger contributor Ed Kessler is a Promotions Specialist in GPO’s Publication and Information Sales program office.

Leave a Comment » | Aviation, NASA, Science & Technology, Uncategorized | Tagged: , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Trudy Hawkins

NASA Publications Hotter Than the Sun

September 7, 2016

It seems like there’s no end to the number of articles and books written about and by NASA. But then again, there’s no end to the research and technology that NASA puts forth. Of course, it’s not nearly enough to fill the cosmos that the agency so intrepidly explores. Yet, as always, NASA’s pioneering science and technology research endeavors to take humanity to the next achievable frontier.

If you’re ready to sponge up more of NASA’s scientific discoveries, or you’re just interested in all things space-related, check out these publications available through GPO. Countdown to liftoff…3…2…1…

 NASA’s Journey to Mars: Pioneering Next Steps in Space Exploration

033-000-01376-1In this century, NASA may have the answer to the David Bowie song “Life on Mars?” The agency’s goal is to send humans to an asteroid by 2025 and then to Mars in the 2030s. This booklet serves as a mission framing document.

Four decades of robotic missions and spaceflight have developed and tested the technologies needed for exploration of deep space. Data gathered by surface scouts show that the Martian environment may be suitable—and sustainable—for a human presence. In response, NASA is leveraging core capabilities to “logically progress from current Earth Reliant operations…to Earth Independent pioneering.”

While much remains to be learned about extending human presence in space, “we are closer to sending humans to Mars than at any point in NASA’s history.” Just in case life is ever found on the Red Planet, or any planet for that matter, NASA has an Office of Planetary Protection. No kidding.

Spinoff, 2016

033-000-01375-2_spinoff-2016According to NASA’s 2016 budget, the Federal Government spends about 0.5% of its purse on the world’s biggest space agency. That means NASA receives $0.005 of every taxpayer dollar. It pours those cents into groundbreaking technologies, many of which have been successfully commercialized through the Technology Transfer Program.

Spinoff, 2016 profiles the novel inventions that have spun off into handy applications for transportation, health and medicine, information technology, and even consumer goods. Here are a few highlights:

  • An astronaut G-suit saves women from post-birth hemorrhaging.
  • A Mars methane detector can identify dangerous gas leaks.
  • A CO2 recovery system allows microbrewers to more efficiently carbonate beer.

As Administrator Charlie Bolden writes in his foreword to book, NASA’s work has resulted in “technology coming down to Earth…[these] spinoffs have made an impact on nearly every facet of American life.”

Reference Guide to the International Space Station

033-000-01373-6The International Space Station (ISS) is both the most complex scientific effort and the most expensive project ever undertaken. This reference guide details the unique research accommodations, support systems, and international partnerships that lend credibility to the ISS’ position as an extremely agile—and awe-inspiring—platform of discovery.

This orbiting laboratory of weightless, extreme conditions has a low-orbit path over 90 percent of the Earth’s population. Tricked-out features enable it to execute research that cannot be done anywhere else. Eighty-three countries that have been involved with its activities. And astronauts use it as a “proving ground” to solve difficult challenges associated with establishing viable human activity beyond Earth. The ISS is truly a symbol of the best of human knowledge and cooperation.

Fun fact: you can sign up to receive text messages from NASA whenever the International Space Station passes over your location!

HOW DO I OBTAIN THESE NASA PUBLICATIONS?

Shop Online Anytime: You can buy eBooks or print publications —with FREE Standard Shipping worldwide— from the U.S. Government Online Bookstore at http://bookstore.gpo.gov.

 Shop our Retail Store: Buy a copy of any print editions from this collection at GPO’s retail bookstore at 710 North Capitol Street NW, Washington, DC 20401, open Monday–Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., except Federal holidays, Call (202) 512-0132 for information or to arrange in-store pick-up.

Order by Phone: Call our Customer Contact Center Monday through Friday, 8 am to 5:30 pm Eastern (except US Federal holidays). From US and Canada, call toll-free 1.866.512.1800. DC or International customers call +1.202.512.1800.

Visit a Federal depository library: Search for U.S. Government publications in a nearby Federal depository library. You can find the records for most titles in GPO’s Catalog of U.S. Government Publications.

About the author: Blogger contributor Chelsea Milko is a Public Relations Specialist in GPO’s Public Relations Office.

Leave a Comment » | NASA, Science & Technology, Technology | Tagged: , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Trudy Hawkins

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