Eclipse Day Weather

At 10:42 a.m. Central Time we are experiencing thunderstorms in the eastern part of the Kansas City metro area. :(

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The Times They Are a-Changin'

December 30, 2014

From NASA's Earth Observatory:

With consistent records of satellite observations that date back decades, it's possible to literally see Earth changing over time. Some changes are part of Earth's natural atmospheric and geologic rhythms. The responsibility for other changes, such as the shrinking of the Aral Sea and the Antarctic ozone hole, falls squarely on humanity’s shoulders. Our World of Change series documents how our planet’s land, oceans, atmosphere, and Sun are changing over time. See the World of Change galleries at
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Features/WorldOfChange/

Looking Back

From NASA:

Engineers from the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), who joined NASA after its creation, tested, developed, and recommended one of the most vital technologies that the United States needed in order to successfully launch the Saturn rockets in the 1960s. These engineers had become experts in the field of high-energy propellants, particularly liquid hydrogen, and believed it should be used to power the upper stages of the Saturn rocket. Read more: http://1.usa.gov/1wYDxoB

Space Station Live: ISS: The Research Possibilities are Endless - YouTube

Video (6:29)



Space Station Live: ISS: The Research Possibilities are Endless - YouTube

Exploration and Agriculture: Connecting the Next Generation with Science to Grow the Future

From USDA:

Posted by Deputy Secretary Krysta Harden, on December 11, 2014 at 4:00 PM

Deputy Secretary Harden and 4-H'ers observe plant growing experiments at the NASA Space Life Science Center, Cape Canaveral, Florida.

Last week, we entered a bold new era of exploration and discovery as NASA launched the Orion spacecraft, a major step testing the possibility of going to Mars.

As NASA contemplates sending human missions to Mars, one question we must answer is: what will the astronauts eat and what foods will assist future missions? NASA and USDA are working together to develop plants that can grow, thrive, and produce in new environments – signaling opportunities for fresh, nutrition-rich food for astronauts on long duration space flights.

In conjunction with the Orion launch, I toured the Kennedy Space Center’s Space Life Science Center with local 4-Hers. Together, we marveled at the research, technology, and biotechnology found in NASA’s labs. We saw dwarf plums that USDA and NASA developed together, designed to fit in small spaces and produce fruit continually – not seasonally. We saw plants growing without soil and plants growing with minimal water.

We saw some of the science that NASA is using to begin growing food in space, learned about the technologies that are being developed to enrich our agricultural production and conservation efforts here on Earth, and discussed all of the possibilities that science holds for us as farmers and ranchers. Do roots grow towards gravity or water?  Do plants have to only make fruit within one season?

USDA and NASA cross paths in many ways.  Through satellite imagery provided by NASA, USDA can make better drought and flood predictions and help forecast global food supplies.  Working with USDA, NASA has developed new varieties of plants that can thrive in space exploration environments. We share data, science, and the experience of exploration as we push the boundaries of both of our fields.

Last week was about making science and the opportunities involved in the production of food available real to the students I met with – and to inspire them to consider their part in our future.

These students and I both left with a deep sense of opportunity and excitement about the intersection between USDA and NASA. Growing tomorrow’s farmers and ranchers requires investment and engagement at all ages. Together with these youth, our scientists will build an appreciation for the fundamentals of agriculture along with a pioneering spirit.

Orion’s First Flight Test Reviewed - YouTube

Video (43:30)



Orion’s First Flight Test Reviewed - YouTube

Orion Post-Scrub News Conference - YouTube

Video (27:43)



Orion Post-Scrub News Conference - YouTube

Stopping a Winged Purveyor of Disease and Death

USDA Blog Post:

Posted by Sandy Miller Hays, USDA-Agricultural Research Service Information Staff, on April 7, 2014 at 12:00 PM

The mosquito Aedes aegypti can spread several diseases as it travel from person to person. Only the females feed on blood. In this photo, the mosquito is just starting to feed on a person’s arm.

During the month of April we will take a closer look at USDA’s Groundbreaking Research for a Revitalized Rural America, highlighting ways USDA researchers are improving the lives of Americans in ways you might never imagine.  For example, researching mosquitoes that spread diseases that threaten human health worldwide.

Today is World Health Day, and this year’s theme is vector-borne diseases—those diseases spread by organisms like insects, ticks and snails.  Significant vector-borne diseases in the Americas include dengue fever, malaria, leishmaniasis, lymphatic filariasis and schistosomiasis.

One of the most egregious offenders is the mosquito, and the scientists of USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) are taking aim at this winged attacker with weapons ranging from traditional remedies to computer modeling and satellite images.

Rift Valley Fever (RVF) is a viral disease spread to livestock and humans via mosquito bites, and is a major threat in Africa and the Middle East. ARS scientists partnered with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the World Health Organization (WHO) and federal partners from NASA, CDC and the Department of Defense to form the Rift Valley Fever Outbreak Early-Warning Team to develop and transfer an early-warning system to detect and predict outbreaks of RVF.

The model is based on analyzing satellite images to detect when temperatures in the Pacific and Indian oceans elevate concurrently to produce widespread and heavy rainfall in Africa. The right conditions can give rise to major increases in the number and longevity of infected mosquitoes that spread the disease. Similar models can help predict outbreaks of malaria and dengue.

In October 2006, the model predicted that RVF would flare up within three months in sub-Saharan Africa, and warnings were sent to countries in harm’s way to allow them to step up surveillance and controls for disease-carrying insects. Additional warnings were issued from 2007-2010 in Sudan, Southern Africa and Madagascar months prior to the detection of RVF disease.

At a remote patrol base in Iraq, ARS scientist and U.S. Army entomologist Seth Britch applies a pesticide treatment to camouflage netting and shade cloth that will be suspended over outdoor eating and cooking areas and areas between dormitories. This treatment reduces populations of biting flies and mosquitoes by transferring lethal doses to the insects when they rest on the camouflage material.

In other work, ARS scientists have shown that compounds in the oil of seeds of Jatropha curcas—burned in homes in India—are effective mosquito repellents. They’ve also shown that a naturally occurring compound from pine oil seems to deter mosquito biting and repels two kinds of ticks.

Additionally, ARS scientists have evaluated treatments applied to uniforms to help protect military personnel against biting insects, and have helped the military evaluate spray equipment to combat insects that threaten the health of deployed soldiers.

These are just a few examples of the ways ARS scientists serve every day on the front lines in the battle against mosquitoes, ticks and other creatures that pose ongoing, serious threats to the health of the world’s population.

ARS agricultural engineer Clint Hoffmann evaluates a pesticide spray nozzle as ARS works to devise better ways of protecting military personnel from disease-transmitting insects like mosquitoes.