DailyDirt: To Space And Back

from the urls-we-dig-up dept

The biggest challenge to modern space exploration isn't figuring out how to do it, it's marshalling the necessary resources and support — especially for cash-strapped government agencies like NASA. Here are just a few of the latest ways that people are working to make space a little more accessible (and a little more popular).

• SpaceX has successfully tested a recoverable rocket booster that could shave millions off the cost of a space launch. The booster delivered cargo to the ISS then performed a controlled ocean landing, leaving it intact for re-use. [url]
• NASA's ongoing efforts to drum up space-excitement via social media have garnered this Tron-like crowdsourced design for a new spacesuit prototype. The agency's many PR programs are hit-and-miss, but the new suit does look pretty damn cool. [url]
• A 2008 project where Japanese children sent cherry seeds into space has resulted in something of a minor mystery, with the resultant trees blooming years ahead of schedule. The experiment wasn't strictly scientific, but the results still defy explanation, and remind us that there are still a lot of simple things we don't know about space — and plenty of reasons to keep going back. [url]

If you'd like to read more awesome and interesting stuff, check out this unrelated (but not entirely random!) Techdirt post via StumbleUpon.

Filed Under: exploration, nasa, space
Companies: spacex