#Artemis 1 mission details

[nasa]

9 Out-of-This-World Moments for Space Communications & Navigation in 2023

How do astronauts and spacecraft communicate with Earth?

By using relay satellites and giant antennas around the globe! These tools are crucial to NASA’s space communications networks: the Near Space Network and the Deep Space Network, which bring back science and exploration data every day.

It’s been a great year for our space communications and navigation community, who work to maintain the networks and enhance NASA’s capabilities. Keep scrolling to learn more about our top nine moments.

The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the Dragon spacecraft lifts off from Launch Complex 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Thursday, Nov. 9, 2023, on the company's 29th commercial resupply services mission for the agency to the International Space Station. Liftoff was at 8:28 p.m. EST.

1. In November, we launched a laser communications payload, known as ILLUMA-T, to the International Space Station. Now, ILLUMA-T and the Laser Communications Relay Demonstration (LCRD) are exchanging data and officially complete NASA’s first two-way, end-to-end laser relay system. Laser communications can send more data at once than traditional radio wave systems – think upgrading from dial-up to fiber optic internet. ILLUMA-T and LCRD are chatting at 1.2 gigabits per second (Gbps). At that rate, you could download an average movie in under a minute.

NASA’s InSight lander captured this selfie on Mars on April 24, 2022, the 1,211th Martian day, or sol, of the mission.

2. Data analyzed in 2023 from NASA’s retired InSight Mars lander provided new details about how fast the Red Planet rotates and how much it wobbles. Scientists leveraged InSight’s advanced radio technology, upgrades to the Deep Space Network, and radio signals to determine that Mars’ spin rate is increasing, while making the most precise measurements ever of Mars’ rotation.

TBIRD is demonstrating a direct-to-Earth laser communications link from low Earth orbit to a ground station on Earth.

3. We set a new high record! The TeraByte InfraRed Delivery (TBIRD) payload – also demonstrating laser communications like ILLUMA-T and LCRD – downlinked 4.8 terabytes of data at 200 Gbps in a single 5-minute pass. This is the highest data rate ever achieved by laser communications technology. To put it in perspective a single terabyte is the equivalent of about 500 hours of high-definition video.

A 34-meter (112-foot) wide antenna at Canberra Deep Space Communications Complex near Canberra, Australia.

4. This year we celebrated the Deep Space Network’s 60th anniversary. This international array of antennas located at three complexes in California, Spain, and Australia allow us to communicate with spacecraft at the Moon and beyond. Learn more about the Deep Space Network’s legacy and future advancements.

An illustration of the LunaNet architecture. LunaNet will bring internet-like services to the Moon.

5. We are bringing humans to the Moon with Artemis missions. During expeditions, astronauts exploring the surface are going to need internet-like capabilities to talk to mission control, understand their routes, and ensure overall safety. The space comm and nav group is working with international partners and commercial companies to develop LunaNet, and in 2023, the team released Draft LunaNet Specification Version 5, furthering development.

The High-Rate Delay Tolerant Networking node launched to the International Space Station in November and will act as a high-speed path for data.

6. In addition to laser communications, ILLUMA-T on the International Space Station is also demonstrating high-rate delay/disruption tolerant networking (HDTN). The networking node is showcasing a high-speed data path and a store-and-forward technique. HDTN ensures data reaches its final destination and isn’t lost on its path due to a disruption or delay, which are frequent in the space environment.

The Communications Services Project (CSP) partners with commercial industry to provide networking options for future spaceflight missions.

7. The space comm and nav team is embracing the growing aerospace industry by partnering with commercial companies to provide multiple networking options for science and exploration missions. Throughout 2023, our commercialization groups engaged with over 110 companies through events, one-on-one meetings, forums, conferences, and more. Over the next decade, NASA plans to transition near-Earth services from government assets to commercial infrastructure.

Middle and high school students solve a coding experiment during NASA's Office of STEM Engagement App Development Challenge. 

8. Every year, NASA’s Office of STEM Engagement sponsors the App Development Challenge, wherein middle and high school students must solve a coding challenge. This year, student groups coded an application to visualize the Moon’s South Pole region and display information for navigating the Moon’s surface. Our space communications and navigation experts judged and interviewed students about their projects and the top teams visited NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston!

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket soars upward after liftoff at the pad at 3:27 a.m. EDT on Saturday, Aug. 26, from Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Complex 39A in Florida carrying NASA’s SpaceX Crew-7 crew members to the International Space Station. Aboard SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft are NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Andreas Mogensen, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov.

9. The Near Space Network supported 19 launches in 2023! Launches included Commercial Crew flights to the International Space Station, science mission launches like XRISM and the SuperBIT balloon, and many more. Once in orbit, these satellites use Near Space Network antennas and relays to send their critical data to Earth. In 2023, the Near Space Network provided over 10 million minutes of communications support to missions in space.

Here’s to another year connecting Earth and space.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space!

[toaarcan]

One of my favourite spaceflight facts is that, due to some heavy technicalities on what the universally accepted definition of an astronaut is, and the intense secrecy surrounding the Soviet Union at the time, the entire Vostok program, AKA the thing that first took humans into space, technically doesn't count and everyone just agrees to ignore that.

Submitting my claim that Vostok is actually the cutest spacecraft ever, which is an entirely normal statement.

When they sat down and defined what counts as a successful manned flight, part of the requirements included the astronaut(s) landing in the vehicle. But Vostok didn't do that. Instead, the Vostok cosmonauts ejected from the vehicle after re-entry and parachuted to the ground separately. This continued until the later Voskhod missions, where they ripped out the ejector seat so they could fit more guys inside (and on the second one, one guy and an inflatable airlock so one of them could do the first spacewalk), and put in a rollcage so that landing inside the vehicle wouldn't turn them to goo.

But by the time Voskhod 1 blasted off from Baikonur, all of the Mercury flights had already been flown, so this means that, according to the rules, America technically completed the first manned space flights.

Another technicality was added to the list a couple of years back, when the guys that make the rules futzed with said rules in order to deny Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson astronaut status, because fuck 'em. Now, in order to be an astronaut, you have to actually do something on the flight, otherwise you're just a passenger. And many of the Vostok flights were indeed more like passengers than crew. The Vostok spacecraft is pretty much a big satellite with a passenger compartment and a re-entry module, and it's fully automated.

So why didn't these technicalities get called out? The USA and USSR were never shy about trying to embarrass each other, or make each other look foolish on the world stage. One of the biggest reasons why we know the Moon Landing Conspiracy Theory is total stupidity is that the USSR congratulated NASA on the successful landing, because if it had been recorded on a soundstage in Area 51, the Soviets would've been the first to call bullshit.

Well, part of it is just that the Americans didn't know about the specifics of the Vostok program at the time. Whereas the American space program was a very public affair with cheering crowds showing up to watch every launch, the Soviets were much, much more clandestine than that. Baikonur is in the middle of the Kazakh desert, and the Soviets were keen to lie about anything that went wrong.

When their attempt at a moon rocket, the N1, endured four successive failures on launch, mostly caused by the Soviets lacking the funding and the facilities to properly test the thing, and instead just had to launch fully built rockets and hope they worked, the Soviets simply scrapped the last two and declared that they'd never intended to go to the Moon and were all about Earth orbit instead.

The N1 was actually more powerful than the Saturn V, but because it never reached operational status and the Soviets preferred to pretend it didn't exist, the Saturn V remained the world's most powerful rocket until Artemis 1 flew last year. A similar situation is happening now, with SpaceX's Superheavy being more powerful than the SLS, but also being basically a giant bomb at the moment.

Most Americans had no idea how Vostok worked, and didn't even know what it looked like. They didn't get to see what a Soviet spacecraft actually looked like up close until the Apollo-Soyuz mission in 1975.

Behold, the setting for the most expensive handshake in history.

By the time the full details came out, the world had known that the Soviets did it first for decades, and challenging that doesn't really do much for anyone besides the people that want to go "Um, ackchully" about everything.

Additionally, the rules weren't even written yet at the time, so there's even less reason to start changing shit up now. Vostok might be technically breaking the rules, but nobody cares, and downplaying the immense technical achievements of Sergei Korolev, Yuri Gagarin, and everyone else that worked on the early Soviet spaceflights on account of a rules quirk that wasn't even written yet is just kinda dumb.

(Random sidenote, Korolev was the chief designer of much of the USSR's early spacecraft, including the R7 rocket that carried both Sputnik and Vostok into space, and still carries some of the Soyuz flights to this day. And, like pretty much every major achievement of the USSR, he wasn't Russian. He was, in fact, Ukrainian.)

[daisha-mochizuki]

Link: Over Again (Chpt. 1)

summary: Seven years. Wally’s been trapped for seven years.

And now he’s back.

(Wally coming back from the Speed Force to find Artemis in a new relationship, and he seeks out Dick for comfort) Slowburn Birdflash with some angst on the side ^^

Wally gasped and shook as he was startled back into the real, or rather, normal world, the sudden and deafening cacophony of noises overstimulating his brain. He couldn’t see momentarily and it struck a chord in his heart, the searing light causing him to believe that maybe his time and torture in the Speed Force had finally come to an end and he could finally rest easy while awaiting Artemis…

“Wally! Wally, is it really you?!”

The ringing in his ears cleared for the time being, letting a strangely familiar voice shine through the darkness that shrouded his mind. His green eyes slowly blinked open, sniffling slightly from the watering in his eyes that the light had caused, and soon became aware of the fact that he was looking into another person’s bright blue eyes which had the depths of a thousand oceans. Wally shrunk back slightly and nearly tipped over onto the floor. The blue eyes were crying, and now that he was farther back, Wally could see the full face of the figure the blue eyes belonged to.

As he looked over the blue-eyed figure, Wally’s eyes widened and he realized; blonde hair, pale skin, blue eyes, toned build; how could he ever forget?

“B-… Barry?” Wally asked in a weak and tentative voice as his breath caught in his throat for a moment, and as he was slapped in the face with a recognition his breath began shaking. This could only mean two things: that he had died, and that Barry had died as well at some point and had come to greet him. Or…

He had been transported out of the Speed Force?

Barry laughed as tears dripped along his face, the tears a mix of grief and pure and utter joy. He nearly pounced on the boy and drew him into a tight embrace, his shoulders racking with sobs that could probably be heard through the walls of the house. Iris was out for the day, at work, and the twins were at school by now. Barry was alone, and Barry had been alone, all throughout his own mission to bring Wally back. The only person he had ever told was Bruce, and even then the details were vague, but he had needed Bruce to have the little machine built that could bring Wally back.

Wally sat in the embrace, shocked and still disoriented for a few seconds, but quickly returned the hug as his own green eyes welled up with years of unshed tears at the comfort and the human contact. He choked back a sob, his throat quivering with the noises that threatened to escape him. He clawed at Barry’s back as his emotions overwhelmed him, gripping onto Barry’s shirt in a desperate attempt to prove to himself that he wasn’t dreaming and that he was alive.

“Wally, you're okay. You’re back, you’re back, you’re safe,” Barry repeated through his tears as he started to rock Wally back and forth, treating the boy as if he was younger than his actual age at 28. Wally didn’t mind, though. He just wanted to enjoy the company and the affection after years and years of being alone.

Wally hiccuped in Barry’s arms, and he kept his face buried into the older man as he tried to breathe. Barry’s hand threaded through Wally’s knotted red slight-curls as he gently scratched at Wally’s scalp, trying to give the boy another sense or way of comfort. A familiarity of the feeling caused a thought to shoot through Wally’s mind, and he drew back from Barry slightly to look him in the eyes, his green eyes meeting Barry’s blue ones.

“A-Artemis…?” he garbled out, his tears and sobs slurring his speech.

Barry cringed slightly at the name, having slightly hoped that Wally wouldn’t bring up his old lover’s name. He sighed, cupping Wally’s face in his hands and gently ran his thumbs under Wally’s eyes to rhythmically wipe away the tear streaks as he spoke as calmly and softly as he could. “I really don’t know how to tell you this. I wish I didn’t have to tell you…”

Wally’s expression fell, and he sat there, almost limply, as he looked up at Barry with wide-eyed disbelief. “…dead?”

“No, no, she’s not dead, Wally. She’s just… moved on...” Barry’s face morphed into a pained expression, and he sucked in a sharp breath. “From… you.”

Dumbfounded. Wally was dumbfounded. He scoffed, acting as if he didn’t believe Barry, but deep, deep down in his gut, a little bubble of hurt and jealousy spurted up and began to form. “Please, we were practically inseparable. I’d need to see it with my own eyes.”

“Wally, you were gone for seven years,” Barry said firmly as he held Wally’s face. He hated that Wally was denying this, but he also understood it too. And he hated that even more. “I’ve been trying to get you back for seven years. I’m sorry, really, I truly am.”

The younger male grabbed at Barry’s hands and pulled them off of his face, trying to mask his hurt and panic behind a mask of anger. He glared at Barry, although the hurt was still mostly prominent in his eyes. “I don’t care. I still want to see her anyway. I don’t believe you.” Wally’s voice cracked terribly, cracking his facade slightly. He was never really that good at hiding his emotions from people. Not from the ones he loved.

Barry sighed gently as he knew that Wally wouldn’t take this information lying down and would try to get evidence, real evidence, not just someone’s words. He got up gingerly and walked into the kitchen, scrounging around for a few minutes in silence before he found a spare phone they had stored in case someone’s phone broke and they needed another. He brought it back out to Wally, and they both set up the phone.

Once set up, Barry took the phone and added a few contacts into it, telling everyone he added that this was one of his spare phones, leaving it up to Wally to decide when he wanted to tell people he was back.

“Of course, I’ll have to tell Iris, but everyone else you can set boundaries with and decide when they find out. I trust you, Wally.”

Both men stood up, Barry drawing the shorter into a tight hug for one last time for a few minutes before he ultimately had to let go in order to give the boy his freedom and free reign. Barry sniffled, trying hard not to burst into tears the second he let go of Wally. He nodded toward the door, as the man was unable to speak any words without breaking.

Wally attempted to give Barry a lopsided smile, but it was clear that it was forced. He shoved the gifted phone into his pocket, and then with a burst of his old speed, he zipped out the front door and to the location Barry had given him, setting out to find his love.

What. The. Fuck.

Why were there two cars in the driveway? Artemis didn’t have two cars.

Wally grumbled at the image before him, his hands clenched slightly into fists as he stood in front of Artemis’ driveway. He and Artemis, when they had been dating, had both agreed that they would only need one car because wherever they went they would always be with each other. And now she was here with two cars? Wally scoffed, feeling his lips twist into a frown as his heart plummeted. He took a deep, shaky breath, and then willed himself to go fast and make the world move slower around him. With that, he used this as a chance to see what was happening with Artemis without actually affecting anything.

He entered the house, time slowed around him, and started wandering around. He felt a small tugging at his heart, a terrible and maybe even slightly guilty feeling pooling into his gut, and by following his instincts, he strode into the living room.

The speedster slowly stepped into the room, his breaths quickening, and he looked around for any signs of Artemis. What he did see caused him to nearly collapse to his knees and caused tears to spring into his eyes.

“Artemis…” Wally whispered to himself, reaching out as if to touch Artemis’ face but winced and quickly drew his hand back.

Artemis’ features; her long blonde hair, her warm brown eyes, her soft and pale skin. He remembered it all, and yet it was so different. When had she changed? Had matured? Had gotten over him?

She sat next to a man. Another man. A man with short brown hair, dark green eyes, and clear tan skin. A man who had given Artemis a ring and she had taken it. A man who was nowhere near like Wally had been. And it hurt. It hurt a lot.

Wally fumed, tears pricking at the corners of his bright green eyes and a few slipped down his freckled pale skin. He clenched his fists, and his fingernails dug into his palms so hard they nearly drew blood. He bit at his lip and trembled as he stood. Why was he like this? Why couldn’t have he been a better boyfriend and had stayed for Artemis? Why did he have to be so slow?

Deep down, he knew he couldn’t stay any longer. He couldn’t stay both for his own sanity and because he would soon get caught by the woman of his now-shattered dreams and her new boy toy.

He zipped out of the house, time finally going back to normal for him as he stopped a few hundred miles away from Artemis’ house. He needed a place to go. He didn’t want to go back to Barry. He didn’t want to admit that Barry had been correct. He knew that he was, but he didn't want to face that fact just yet. Instead, he pulled out his new phone with a shaking hand and looked over the list of addresses Barry had typed out for him.

There.

That was where he would go. After a few quick rubs to his eyes, Wally set off down the streets in a full sprint, as fast as he could using the Speed Force, to the city of Blüdhaven, where he hoped an old friend would be home and not out on a mission.

He only hoped his friend could stay whelmed.

Wally zipped into the apartment that had been written down as his friend’s, stopping in the middle of the poorly decorated living room with his heavy pants being the only thing that filled the silence. He looked around desperately, hoping to find his best friend.

“Where are my souvenirs, Rob?!” Wally called out into the seemingly empty apartment, hoping upon hope that his friend was there.

There was a few seconds of frantic shuffling, a pained grunt, and very quickly a half-dressed Richard Grayson came nearly tripping into his living room. Dick wasn’t wearing a shirt, his sweatpants hanging loosely around his waist and mix-matched socks - both being varying heights - on his feet. The brush in Dick’s hand clattered to the ground as his gaze settled on the redhead that had appeared in his apartment. His long raven locks flopped in front of his bright cerulean blue eyes, which widened as he sucked in a sharp breath as if the air had been slammed out of his lungs.

“W-Walls…?” Dick gasped, his breath shaky and uneven as he panicked.

Wally attempted to smile, his hands sliding to the back of his head in a laid-back pose. “Uh, duh? Who else could it be!” Wally laughed, although that laugh died in his throat when he saw Dick start to break down into heavy sobs.

“I-it can’t be…” Dick cried, stumbling forward and reaching out toward Wally before quickly retracting his hands in fear of it being a hallucination.

Wally felt his own tears beginning to well up again at the sight of his best friend’s now tear-streaked face. He carefully stepped forward, cringing slightly as he watched Dick walk back in response to Wally’s advancing actions. Wally stopped and held out his arms to Dick.

“Rob… Dick… it’s me, I promise,” Wally whispered, his voice a quiet rasp in the almost silence of the apartment. “I promise.”

Dick reached out with a tentative, almost hesitant, hand as he kept from making direct eye contact with Wally. Their hands brushed, and Dick gasped softly as he saw that Wally didn’t disappear with a touch. Dick choked on his breath as he stepped forward and ran his hand along Wally’s face, through his hair, down his neck; anything to let him know that his closest friend was there in front of him.

When his hand didn’t phase through or cut through the man in front of him and he was touching his solid skin and features, Dick threw himself at Wally, sobbing so loud he could possibly lose his voice in the morning. Wally wrapped his arms around Dick as tight as he could and squeezed, breaking into sobs himself. The pair crumpled to the floor, years and years of grief and agony spilling out of both boys.

“Promise me you won’t ever leave me again…” Dick whispered in between choked sobs. He clung to Wally for dear life, his body trembling as it was racked with his heavy cries. Wally bit his lip as his body shook as well, although he tried to quiet his cries.

They would never be apart, Wally promised. This could be their chance to build anew.

This could be the time to start over again.

[dynamite124]

I couldn’t get this out of my head as soon as I thought of it for my Dragonborn, and I blame the Main Story Preview with Taliesin for this hilarity.

Context: Artemis just received word from the Jarl of Whiterun that she is needed to aid the fight of a dragon. Taliesin, Lucien, and Inigo are currently in her party.

*Lucien and Inigo are chatting on the sidelines as Taliesin approaches Artemis*

Taliesin: Did I hear that correctly? They want you to fight a dragon? A dragon?!

Artemis: Look, I get it. It’s not something favorable I would like to do, but we can’t just stand here and let these people and let these people be terrorized. It’s best that we put up a fight and let it learn the hard way. Like how animals would usually move locations if there are more dangerous predators nearby. Can’t be the same from back then, can’t it?

Taliesin: Hmph, for me it should be the same as hunting Talos Worshippers, though they’re not immortal…at least I hope not…

Artemis: You’d already have an army coming for your head if they were Tally.

Taliesin: Good point, but anyway…What about you? Have you any experience on how to fight a dragon?

Artemis: Back at Hellen I guess, but I don’t think being bound by the hands and running from it most of the time counts as any good experience.

Taliesin: Oh. Well in that case, you’re likely the most experienced person for the job then.

Artemis: *Looks away in frustrated disappointment* Hmph. Not a good job unfortunately.

Taliesin: We can even recreate the scene, if you’d like. I happen to be quiet proficient at knots.

Artemis: *Snaps her head back to look at him with full blown wide eyes, wondering if she heard that right* Uhh- I. W-what??

Taliesin: *He smugly leans in closer to her face to fluster her* And…I’m not opposed to being the one in chains this time either.

Artemis: *Upon hearing this the feathers on the top of Artemis’s head flare and puff up as she becomes more flustered from his words. She continuously tries to smooth it down with her hand as it keeps shooting up while she tries to hide herself with her other hand by covering her face* [Gasp!!!] I-I-UH…I DON’T— WAIT. HUH???

Taliesin: *He takes a step back from her and chuckles deeply at her flustering.* We can work out the details later if you prefer. But for now let’s get back to what we were doing, yes? *And with that, he walks away and leaves her there completely disoriented and flustered by what just transpired.*

Artemis: *Her mind is a complete mess of emotions and confusion* WHAT. I— WHAT JUST????

*She looks towards where Inigo and Lucien were conversing before only to be met with their equal stares back at her, signaling that they heard the whole thing. Lucien has the same look of bewilderment as her while Inigo dawns a proud cheeky smile at her direction.*

Artemis: *Points to herself and the direction that Taliesin walked off to. And finally spits out a coherent sentence to either towards the group or as a statement to herself of what just transpired* DID I HEAR THAT CORRECTLY?!?!!?

That’s it, that’s how the whole situation would be handled by my Dragonborn. A complete mess.

Hahaha mission complete!

Tally- 1

Team Dragonborn - still getting a 1 because they're awesome!

[threewaysdivided]

Deathly Weapons Writing Roundup 2022

Total Wordcount: 83,458 Published Chapters: 19/45

New Chapters Released This Year

Ch19: Chapter 18: Black Gold

MISSION 1 High seas and high stakes!  Learning to work with a new Teammate always comes with challenges, but when eco-terrorists commandeer a deep-water oil rig, the pressure has never been greater.  With lives on the line and fingers twitching on triggers, will Phantom’s powers let them swim… or sink?

Wordcount: 21,176 Release Date: 25 Feb 2022 Concept Art Piece

Sure feels like a decade has passed between then and now but nope, this was only published in February. In which I kick off Act II proper by adding 25% to the total length of the story!

I’m really proud of how this one came out.  Black Gold is the first of a series of planned mission-episode chapters with semi-self-contained A-plots that feed into the larger Arc Plot of Act II.  We’ve got some brand new antagonists inspired by characters from the wider DC Comics catalogue, in an entirely original story.  With this one I tried hard to mimic the feel of a YJS1 TV-mission, and based on the comments it seems I swung pretty close to the mark.  I didn’t talk about it in the chapter notes, but I also sought out some sensitivity-writing advice for this one, as well as having a friend sens’-read a few key scenes, and I think it resulted in overall better handling of the civilian OCs.  It might have taken a while to put together it’s almost the size of a Deltora Quest book all on its own but I think the result was worth the wait.

(Fun fact: Act II is deliberately structured to emulate a TV episode experience so if I do it right you should be able to pick up any given mission-block and enjoy the A-plot as a standalone story.  Black Gold wouldn’t be a bad jumping on point if you wanted to try Deathly Weapons out without committing to the full 83K read.)

Roundup of other 2022 development for this story under the cut:

Overall Structure

Structure has now been fleshed out enough for me to formalise the breakdown of chapters. I also decided to write episode teasers for each mission-block, which you can find here.  Currently looking like it’ll be 45 chapters in total, but that may expand to 46 if Mission 9 turns out to need a 2-parter.

Former Mission 5 (Enemy Lines) and Mission 6 (In the Mists) have had their places swapped. In the Mists was a bit of a floating mission structurally, and it turned out to work better when placed before the China and Emeralds interlude.  Meanwhile, the character-chapter following Enemy Lines felt better once placed later.

Our much neglected but no less beloved sorceress Zatanna now has a mini character arc about ghost-magic, starting at Mission 3 and cropping up as a background thread throughout later chapters.  As a side bonus, it comes with some fun meta-implications for my headcanons about Nabu and Clockwork being petty work-rivals.

The memento-shelf has now become a recurring motif in Danny’s character journey.

A set of “story bible” documents have been fleshed out with more detailed character profiles, plot summaries and the overall scheme of the villains.

Act II: Mission 2

Drafted the first scenes for Chapter 19: Flashpoints.

The three key OCs for Chapter 19 have been developed.  The police officer has been swapped out for an investigative journalist.  The other two were somewhat less-anticipated additions but I quite like them in a spiteful sort of way.

Artemis’ chapter 19 scene now gets more in-depth character focus.

Chapter 20 remains already in detailed outline.

Chapter 21 is now in full detailed outline, with 2 scenes in rough draft since 2021.

Act II: Mission 3

Opening outline has seen more development, feat. cameo appearance from Detective Montoya.

Zatanna now gets a character-focus thread to do with expectations and her growth as a sorceress.

The Arc-clue and the souvenirs have been adjusted.  Zatanna now also gets to take something home.

Act II: Mission 4

More development to the opening scene.  Artemis now reads a thematically-relevant part of Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Found There rather than a generic magazine.

Added a continuation to Zatanna’s arc.  She gets to take home another souvenir.

The Kaldur-centric post-mission chapter (Il-Lit Ships) has seen more outline development.

The Sam-centric post-mission chapter (Withered Red Rose) has also seen more detailed outline development.

Act II: Mission 5

This is now In the Mists.

Conner now has a detailed character thread providing emotional beats.  Galagos, Gorillas and making fun of the Team’s mentors ensue.

Interlude: China and Emeralds

Added more details to the opening scene, feat. gymnastic calisthenics.

Conner and Superman now have a scene together.

Act II: Mission 6

This is now Enemy Lines.

The M’gann-focussed post-mission chapter (Humans) is now in full detailed outline.  Accompanying Meta on Martian Bigotry in the DW!verse was written up to better underpin the discussion of her experiences.

Act II: Mission 7

Added more detail to the post-mission reveal discussion, particularly Phantom and M’gann’s similar experiences.

Act III: Mission 9

Structural outline for the mission-chapter and character interactions have been developed in more detail.

Zatanna’s arc about ghost-magic continues.

The first of two Conner-centric post mission chapters (Alliances) is now in full detailed outline.

Act III: Mission 11

Detail development for the post-mission character-centric chapters, including Dick, Danny, Bruce and the Team.

Development of detailed outlines for the first of three epilogue scenes.

Other stuff

Art things: Deathly Weapons now has a new Banner-Style Fic Cover and Book-Style Fic Cover

Community: There is now a DW Discord.

Lovely gifts: I’ve said it before and I shall say it once more: endless thanks to the inimitable @doodly-doop​ for their wonderful gift art of Wally’s wall-slam manoeuvre from Chapter 18  and @cryxdraws​ for their art of Danny’s upgraded costume from Chapter 16.

And of course, thanks to you (whoever, wherever and whenever you may be) for joining me on this ride.

Here’s to a productive 2023.

[nawapon17]

NASA finds, but does not disclose, root cause of Orion heat shield erosion - SpaceNews

[spacenutspod]

Teams from NASA and ESA (European Space Agency), including NASA astronaut Stan Love (far right) and ESA astronaut Luca Parmitano (far left) help conduct human factors testing inside a mockup for the Gateway lunar space station. Thales Alenia Space Teams at NASA, ESA (European Space Agency), and Thales Alenia Space, including astronauts Stan Love and Luca Parmitano, came together in Turin, Italy, this summer for a test run of Gateway, humanity’s first space station to orbit the Moon. The group conducted what is known as human factors testing inside a mockup of Lunar I-Hab, one of four Gateway modules where astronauts will live, conduct science, and prepare for missions to the Moon’s South Pole region. The testing is an important step on the path to launch by helping refine the design of spacecraft for comfort and safety. Lunar I-Hab is provided by ESA and Thales Alenia Space and is slated to launch on Artemis IV. During that mission, four astronauts will launch inside the Orion spacecraft atop an upgraded version of the SLS (Space Launch System) rocket and deliver Lunar I-Hab to Gateway in orbit around the Moon. ESA, CSA (Canadian Space Agency), JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and the Mohammad Bin Rashid Space Centre of the United Arab Emirates are providing major hardware for Gateway, including science experiments, the modules where astronauts will live and work, robotics, and life support systems. International teams of astronauts will explore the scientific mysteries of deep space with Gateway as part of the Artemis campaign to return to the Moon for scientific discovery and chart a path for the first human missions to Mars and beyond. A mockup of ESA’s Lunar I-Hab module, one of four elements of the Gateway space station where astronauts will live, conduct science, and prepare for missions to the lunar South Pole Region.Thales Alenia Space An artist’s rendering of ESA’s Lunar I-Hab module in orbit around the Moon, one of four elements of the Gateway space station where astronauts will live, conduct science, and prepare for missions to the lunar South Pole Region.NASA/Alberto Bertolin, Bradley Reynolds Learn More About Gateway Share Details Last Updated Oct 22, 2024 EditorBriana R. ZamoraContactDylan Connelldylan.b.connell@nasa.govLocationJohnson Space Center Related TermsGateway Space StationArtemisArtemis 4Earth's MoonExploration Systems Development Mission DirectorateGateway ProgramHumans in SpaceJohnson Space Center Explore More 1 min read Gateway Stands Tall for Stress Test The Gateway space station’s Habitation and Logistics Outpost has successfully completed static load testing in… Article 3 weeks ago 6 min read NASA’s Artemis IV: Building First Lunar Space Station Article 7 months ago 2 min read Gateway: Energizing Exploration Discover the cutting-edge technology powering Gateway, humanity's first lunar space station. Article 2 months ago Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA Space Launch System (SLS) Orion Spacecraft Gateway Human Landing System

[sunaleisocial]

NASA, Collaborators Announce New Lunar Autonomy Challenge

New Post has been published on https://sunalei.org/news/nasa-collaborators-announce-new-lunar-autonomy-challenge/

NASA, Collaborators Announce New Lunar Autonomy Challenge

Space is hard, but it’s not all hardware.  

The new Lunar Autonomy Challenge invites teams of students from U.S. colleges and universities to test their software development skills. Working entirely in virtual simulations of the Moon’s surface, teams will develop an autonomous agent using software that can accomplish pre-defined tasks without help from humans. These agents will be used to navigate a digital twin of NASA’s ISRU Pilot Excavator (IPEx) and map specified locations in the digital environment. The IPEx is an autonomous mobility robot engineered to efficiently collect and transport lunar regolith, the loose rocky material on the Moon’s surface.     

Autonomous systems allow spacecraft, rovers, and robots to operate without relying on constant contact with astronauts or mission control. Before hardware is trusted to operate independently on location, which for Artemis missions includes the Moon, it must be tested virtually. High-fidelity virtual simulations allow NASA to anticipate and improve how systems, both software and hardware, will function in the physical world. Testing in virtual simulations also allows technologists to explore different mission scenarios, observe potential outcomes, and reduce risks. 

In the Lunar Autonomy Challenge, students will develop their knowledge of autonomous systems by working with the same simulation tools created in-house by Caterpillar Inc. of Irving, Texas, over decades of research and development. Teams will need to utilize the IPEx digital twin’s cameras and orientation sensors to accurately map surface elevation and identify obstacles. Like with real lunar missions, teams must also manage their energy usage and consider the Moon’s harsh terrain and low-light conditions. Through the competition, participants will learn more about autonomous robotic operation, surface mapping, localization, orientation, path planning, and hazard detection. 

Teams must be comprised of at least four undergraduate and/or graduate students and a faculty advisor at a U.S. college or university.

The challenge will take place between November 2024 and May 2025 and will include both a qualifying round and a final round. Interested teams must apply by Thursday, Nov. 7.

Round 1: Selected teams will develop and train their agent using provided virtual environments. Teams will have three opportunities to submit their agent to run in a qualification environment. For each submission, their agent will be scored based on performance. The top scoring teams will be invited to continue.

Round 2: Teams will work to further refine the agents. Teams will have multiple opportunities in total to submit their agents to the competition environment. The top three teams will be named challenge winners.   

Interested teams should carefully review the Challenge Guidelines and the Lunar Autonomy Challenge site for more details, including proposal requirements, FAQs, and additional technical guidance. 

The top three highest-scoring teams on the leaderboard in the finals will be awarded cash prizes: 

First Place: $10,000 

Second Place: $5,000 

Third Place: $3,000 

   

Applications must be submitted to NASA STEM Gateway by Nov. 7, 2024.   Learn more about the challenge: https://lunar-autonomy-challenge.jhuapl.edu

The Lunar Autonomy Challenge is a collaboration between NASA, The Johns Hopkins University (JHU) Applied Physics Laboratory (APL), Caterpillar Inc., and Embodied AI. APL is managing the challenge for NASA. 

Authored by: Stephanie Yeldell, Education Integration Lead Space Technology Mission Directorate NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC

[lightning-arias]

"Another You" + Young Justice

Muse of your choice

Avatar the last airbender

Elva and Jordan

We'll do Jordan for Young Justice this time

Jordan is roughly 16 when he's first introduced in season 1. He shows up unexpectedly to help on a mission, much to Wally's delight, as apparently he's met him and Roy before, having helped both of them on missions they both tried to run on their own before regarding museum robberies, all of stuff on the ancient Greeks. Jordan mentions he likes going to Star City to show up Green Arrow. Robin's a bit uncertain of him, as he's mentioned that Batman doesn't trust him as he's part of some unknown organization. Jordan teases him for this and flirts a bit with both M'gann and Artemis. Wally says that even Jordan is a better fit for their archer than Artemis is, which Jordan feigns hurt for, but admits some admiration for Red Arrow. There's a point during the mission where Artemis confronts him for making a shot that was "literally impossible" which only earns her a cheeky grin and remark that maybe he's just better than her and is blessed by Apollo, and that her secret is safe with him.

Later, at the end of the end of the season, Jordan reveals he knows Artemis wasn't trained by Green Arrow because she fired completely differently, not that just anyone would have noticed that, and Diana asks The Team where they found that Demi-god after Jordan's left to gods know where and that he is indeed bless by Apollo.

Season 2 Jordan is mentioned the first time during Depths, where he's called to be asked to be part of the mission. He declines, saying that while he'd be thrilled to fight alongside the goddess of archery again, that he's still recovering from surgery. Wally is grumpy about this compliment, but Artemis tells him not to worry about it.

There's a few times throughout the season where it seems that Jordan is working with the Light and feeding them information. It's revealed during these interactions that Jordan is a son of Ares.

When Roy Harper(original) is brought to the hospital, Ollie and Red Arrow(Will) briefly discuss how will Roy adjust, and Will mentions that they already know a one armed archer who might be willing to help if Roy wants to be an archer again. Before Will goes to find Ollie he briefly calls someone to ask a favor. There's a brief pause before Jordan answers and says, "Anything for you."

He's shown again for the first time during the episode "True Colors" trying to train Arsenal, and both of them just pissing the other off. Later he's shown hanging out with Will, complaining about training Roy. Will points out that he reminds him a lot of Jordan when he was younger and Jordan says "yeah but you liked me better." and asks how they're going to handle names, and Will admits he doesn't know yet. And Jordan tells him "well I know a thing or too about changing names if you want help."

Jordan is part of the Intervention mission and the Summit. There's a few moments where it might be thought Jordan is a traitor to the Team and the Justice League as his org is mentioned having interest in The Reach and The Light. Only for it to be revealed they were double agents. Though Jordan was not aware of Kaldur's involvement. He helps hunt down the drones.

Season 3 Jordan is at the Bowhunter's security office when Dick and the others arrive, and helps Will tear into Dick about neglecting the outsiders. Dick is surprised that Jordan is there and how he knows about The Outsiders, and Will tells him that Jordan figured it out all on his own... and he might have walked in on Halo using her powers. As for why he's there, Jordan says that they're friends and can't they hang out? And when Dick insists he doesn't remember Will and Jordan being that close Jordan says "things change." When the others are strong armed into going on the security detail, Roy asks why Jordan isn't coming too, and Jordan says that he has "other plans" and he's not the one who's asking for the favor. While Jim makes a joke that Jordan might fist fight Roy if they have to work together again.

While they're on the mission Jim teases Will about Jordan again which Will denies the teasing. Jordan does later join them for busting the Meta-Human trafficking ring, and tells Will he still looks great in the suit.

Jordan is at one point captured for the Meta-Human trafficking, but when he's found to not be a meta human he's drugged and turns half feral and is let loose on The Team when they rescue him. Not knowing where to take him, they bring him to Will, who takes care of him.

After Will and Artemis have their date Jordan is shown to be very jealous and angry, which confuses Will. At the end of the season, Jordan and Will kiss.

During season four, Jordan is fully in a relationship with Roy, but they aren't living together yet. Jordan accompanies Ollie and Will to escort Onyx, and is bit short with Ollie, to Will's embarrassment. Will begs both Roy and Jordan not to destroy shit, and Jordan yells back that he's always careful, only to get socked in the face and break a window with his arrows. Jordan agrees with Will that they can't be certain if the two League of Shadows defectors are villains or not, but sides with Artemis that they have to wait and see what the truth is. He thinks something's off with how Cassandra S holds herself with her missing arm but can't place what.

Jade hates Jordan as she wishes she could be in his place.

Jordan is made a Justice League Reservist and Roy finally asks him to move in with him. During M'gann and Conner's wedding Jordan shows some symptoms that he might be pregnant.

ATLA Elva

Obviously Elva is a firebender lol. She's descended from the Sun Warriors. She lives in Republic city during Avatar Korra's time and is a singer. She's quite well known but isn't one to live extravagantly. While Korra and Bolin are excited to meet her, she isn't involved much in the plot other than being a repeating background figure and meeting team Korra, where she admits she's a fan of Korra too.

Jordan is harder to pin down. I think he's an earth bender, also during the time of Korra. He bends earth like he's fire bending. He has a bounty hunter and has a prosthetic made of metal bending. Again, he's not much involved in the plot but he does help stop other slimier bounty hunters from capturing the new air benders

[galoretechs]

Must-Know: 6 Upcoming Space Missions 2024

Must-Know: 6 Upcoming Space Missions 2024 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v6NcLj42atw Must-Know: 6 Upcoming Space Missions 2024 Get ready for an out-of-this-world adventure with the latest video from Galore Techs you must know! Discover the must-know details about 6 upcoming space missions in 2024, including the highly anticipated Europa Clipper. Join us as we dive into the exciting world of space exploration and get ready to be amazed. Don't forget to hit subscribe for more cosmic updates! Products: =================================== ================================= 🔔 Join Galore Techs to watch more content on innovative Ideas and Technology: https://www.youtube.com/@galoretechs ✅ Stay Connected With Us. ============================= Time Stamps: 0:00 - Intro 0:22 - Europa Clipper 1:44 - Artemis II Launch 3:10 - Viper Rover Search For Moon Water 💦 4:28 - Lunar Trailblazer & Prime-1 Missions 6:05 - JAXA’s Martian Moon eXploration Mission 7:23 - ESA’s Hera Mission ============================= 👉Facebook: https://ift.tt/MvETbB6 👉Instagram: https://ift.tt/LW5KlkG 👉Tiktok: https://ift.tt/LfS7RdY ✅ For Business Inquiries: galoretechs@gmail.com ============================= ✅ Music Credits: Music from InAudio: https://inaudio.org/ Track Name: Technology Future Bass [Future Bass Music] by MokkaMusic / Space Toaster  • (No Copyright Music) T... Music provided by "MokkaMusic" channel and https://inaudio.org Track: Good Times - Ason ID [Audio Library Release] Music provided by Audio Library Plus Watch: • • Good Times - Ason ID |... Free Download / Stream: https://ift.tt/Goaq46i ✅ Recommended Playlists 👉Movies Tech Reviews: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLIz67rSO6VqKMpli3v483CbwEY_PeFPmt 👉List of New Technologies: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLIz67rSO6VqLiHMsSI028gKBiOtXgiF-C ✅ Other Videos You Might Be Interested In Watching: 👉The Future of Creativity: Understanding the Rise of Generative AI https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MbbJw8GWdjk 👉The Secrets Behind Creed III: Unveiling the Hidden Tech https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sY4rkDoE-oI 👉TOP 12 Emerging Tech Trends of 2023 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bSQlYg9TXxk 👉A Vivid Multidimensional Film: Is Across the Spider-Verse the FUTURE of Animated Movies? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mcxdmahh3WQ ============================= ✅ About Galore Techs. Galore Techs does its best to present you with new gadgets, tech ideas, and technological advancements to look out for in the upcoming future. This channel is meant to be educational and informative about how these new technologies will change the world as we know it. “The Web as I envisaged it, we have not seen it yet. The future is still so much bigger than the past.” -Tim Berners-Lee, Inventor of the World Wide Web. Are you curious about science and technology? Want to learn more about the technology of the past, present, and future? Subscribe to our channel. For Collaboration and Business inquiries, please use the contact information below: 📩 Email: galoretechs@gmail.com 🔔Subscribe for more videos on new gadgets, tech ideas, and technological advancements: https://www.youtube.com/@galoretechs ================================= #GaloreTechs #Technology #Innovation #mindblowingtech #futuristicinnovations #emergingtech #aiadvancements #nasa #spacex #techideas Disclaimer: We do not accept any liability for any loss or damage incurred from you acting or not acting as a result of watching any of our publications. You acknowledge that you use the information we provide at your own risk. Do your own research. Copyright Notice: This video and our YouTube channel contain dialog, music, and images that are the property of Galore Techs. You are authorized to share the video link and channel and embed this video in your website or others as long as a link back to our Youtube Channel is provided. © Galore Techs via Galore Techs https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCTyjV2lcEUMfTz4lxuB1ukg June 07, 2024 at 11:27PM

[hobbyspacer]

Videos: Space habitat reports – Nov.15.2023

This week's selection of videos about space stations and living in space including NASA's latest Space to Ground report for the International Space Station: https://youtu.be/BqtazyxX90o ** Expedition 70 Astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli Answers Pensacola, FL Student Questions - Nov. 15, 2023 - NASA Video Aboard the International Space Station, NASA Expedition 70 Flight Engineer Jasmin Moghbeli discussed living and working in space during an in-flight event Nov. 12 with students attending the Creative Learning Academy in Pensacola, Florida. Moghbeli is in the midst of a science mission living and working aboard the microgravity laboratory to advance scientific knowledge and demonstrate new technologies. Such research benefits people on Earth and lays the groundwork for future human exploration through the agency’s Artemis missions, which will send astronauts to the Moon to prepare for future expeditions to Mars. https://youtu.be/lZ5t0N9nz_4 **  - ISS National Lab ** Expedition 70 SpaceX Dragon CRS-29 Cargo Ship Space Station Docking - Nov. 9, 2023 - NASA Video Loaded with scientific experiments and supplies, an unpiloted SpaceX Dragon cargo ship automatically docked to the International Space Station’s Earth-facing port of the Harmony module Nov 11. The SpaceX resupply craft launched from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida Nov. 9 as part of the company’s 29th commercial resupply mission for the agency and will remain at the station for one month. https://youtu.be/wVkbxLG_Zq4 ** SpaceX Commercial Resupply Resource Reel - NASA Johnson SpaceX Commercial Resupply – One of two American providers delivering cargo to the International Space Station. Download available at: https://images.nasa.gov/details-jsc20... Rollout – 00:10 Launch Pad – 00:46 Late Load – 1:21 Launch (day) – 1:48 Launch (night) – 6:37 Second Stage Separation – 9:04 Arrival and Docking – 10:01 Unpack – 13:59 Cold Stowage – 14:36 Pack – 16:58 Undock – 18:04 Splashdown – 20:25 Under NASA’s commercial resupply services contract, SpaceX delivers critical science, hardware, and supplies to crew aboard the International Space Station. SpaceX’s Dragon cargo spacecraft lifts off atop the company’s Falcon 9 rocket from Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Complex 39A in Florida. Commercial resupply by U.S. companies significantly increases NASA’s ability to conduct more investigations aboard the orbiting laboratory. These investigations lead to new technologies, medical treatments, and products that improve life on Earth. Other U.S. government agencies, private industry, and academic and research institutions can also conduct microgravity research through the agency’s partnership with the International Space Station National Laboratory. https://youtu.be/gC_j45CQiMQ ** Shenzhou-17 Crew Fulfills Diverse Missions in Orbit - CCTV Video News Agency The Shenzhou-17 crew is conducting diverse missions orderly in China's Tiangong space station. https://youtu.be/z59lLnNOwUs ** The ISS has more gravity than you think! - @_cosmic00 https://youtube.com/shorts/YVY0nEx_gyA ** What’s So Cool About NASA’s Cold Atom Lab? - NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory NASA’s Cold Atom Laboratory on the International Space Station is regularly the coldest known spot in the universe. But why are scientists producing clouds of atoms a fraction of a degree above absolute zero? And why do they need to do it in space? Quantum physics, of course. Here’s how CAL is helping scientists learn more about the physics behind things like miniaturized technology and the fundamental nature of the particles that make up everything we see. For more about CAL and its science, visit https://coldatomlab.jpl.nasa.gov/ https://youtu.be/FBzU8L01O7E ** Highlight: South Africa - Cape Town to Pretoria - Nov 13, 2023 - 13:45 UTC - ISS Above Pretoria is at the bottom of the frame about about the 3m mark Captured from NASA's EHDC6 Live views of the Earth from the International Space Station https://youtu.be/e5-0VqTUAYM ** Live Video from the International Space Station (Official NASA Stream) - NASA Watch live video from the International Space Station, including inside views when the crew aboard the space station is on duty. Views of Earth are also streamed from an external camera located outside of the space station. During periods of signal loss due to handover between communications satellites, a blue screen is displayed. The space station orbits Earth about 250 miles (425 kilometers) above the surface. An international partnership of five space agencies from 15 countries operates the station, and it has been continuously occupied since November 2000. It's a microgravity laboratory where science, research, and human innovation make way for new technologies and research breakthroughs not possible on Earth. More: https://go.nasa.gov/3CkVtC8 Did you know you can spot the station without a telescope? It looks like a fast-moving star, but you have to know when to look up. Sign up for text messages or email alerts to let you know when (and where) to spot the station and wave to the crew: https://spotthestation.nasa.gov https://www.youtube.com/live/xAieE-QtOeM?feature=share ====

ISS after undocking of STS-132 === Amazon Ads === Lego Ideas International Space Station 21321 Toy Blocks, Present, Space, Boys, Girls, Ages 16 and Up  ==== Outpost in Orbit: A Pictorial & Verbal History of the Space Station  Read the full article

[unicminds-codingforkids]

Coding Competitions For Kids & Teenagers

Computer Science has literally changed the world forever in the last 30 years. And coding for kids has actually become as essential as mathematics for kids in today’s world. It is probably appreciated a bit more because it enforces kids to learn mathematics practically, while mathematics itself sometimes most of us don’t learn practically at school. Today, kids all across the world are learning coding and there are many kids coding competitions running all round the calendar year.

Here is a list of a few coding competitions for primary and secondary grade children around the world.

The International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI) doesn’t need any new introduction as it is the ultimate coding and computer-science competition for children. This Olympiad is conducted along with other olympiads such as the Mathematics Olympiad and the Physics Olympiad. Details of this competition and the syllabus covered for this contest are mentioned in this post.

Zonal Informatics Olympiad (ZIO) and Indian National Olympiad in Informatics (INOI) level 1 and level 2 exams for India Coding Olympiad and for the final selections of IOI from India. More information on these exams are mentioned in this post.

International Kids Coding Competition (IKCC) conducts a range of kids coding competitions in various programming languages and platforms and across both world-wide and regional levels.

Canadian Computing Summer Contest (CCSC – Grades 3-12) The CCSC is a competition for students across the globe to provide an opportunity to showcase their problem-solving and critical thinking skills. There is a focus on Python in this competition but the languages accepted could change every year.

The American Computer Science League (ACSL)  is an international coding competition among over 300 schools in the US for grades K-12. Competitions occur online throughout the year and consist of four contests. Each contest consists of a written section to analyse code and a programming section.

UnicMinds Coding Competition is our own coding competition in Scratch and Python block based coding. Children of ages 8-14 across the world can participate in this online coding competition and win prizes and certificates. A series of 20-25 questions to be answered under one hour by kids attending the respective competing categories.

Bebras Computing Challenge tests students of 6-18 years age group on various computational problems and puzzles and with grade based questioning. Students from 6 to 18 years old work through a set of tasks that focus on different topics and skills within informatics and computational thinking. They will have 45 minutes to complete as many tasks as they can, they are not expected to finish them all. The challenge has six different age categories with each their own set of tasks to keep things exciting and challenging for all students:

Scratch Olympiad is a coding competition for kids all around the world. Students from 7 years old and adults from any corner of the planet can become participants in the Scratch Olympiad.

NASA’s App Development Challenge is a coding challenge in which NASA presents technical problems to middle and high school students seeking student contributions to deep space exploration missions. By responding to the ADC, students take a part directly in the Artemis Generation endeavours to land American astronauts, including the first woman and first person of colour on the Moon. Grades: 9-12

The Congressional App Challenge is a prestigious competition designed to encourage creativity. Students create and submit an app using any programming language and about any theme or topic they choose. To get ready for the challenge, we recommend your child completes app development, game development and web development courses ( HTML/CSS/Javascript). Then they can join our Congressional App Challenge Mentoring Classes to build their project for the challenge from end to end, guided by our experienced teachers. Grades: 6-12

The Young Coders Competition is a coding contest in Scratch for young children attending school in certain parts of Europe such as Scotland and Ireland. 

Hong Kong International Coding Olympiad (HKICO) is a regional coding in South Asia. It tests on problem solving skills and algorithmic skills in informatics and computer science.

Design Championship Online is a coding competition in India for kids 6-16 years old. The competitions are held regionally first  in many age-group and programming categories such as App Design, Game Design, Web Design, Movie Making, and others. Then the national level selections happen for the finals.

There could be many kids coding challenges and competitions in individual countries that we probably couldn’t cover. But, you get the idea that today there are many coding competitions for children to prepare for and make a mark for themselves and learn from these opportunities.

Hope this is useful, thank you.

[phoenixdataart]

Here it is - my Lunar Missions #datavisualization art, Fly me to the Moon, is complete!

Yesterday, #NASA announced the #astronauts who will fly on the #Artemis2 mission next year, and pave the way for the return of Humans to the lunar surface, which includes Christina Koch, the first woman, and Victor Glover, the first black man to be named as crew of a lunar mission.

This #dataviz artwork celebrates the dawn of a new era of lunar exploration and shows details of all the lunar missions from Pioneer, in 1958, to Artemis 1, in 2022. Swipe right for close-ups of the details.

More information about this visualisation, the data used, and visual influences on the piece can be found on my website, phoenixdataart.com.

Prints of this and some of my other works are available online via my Redbubble shop, phoenixdataart.redbubble.com.

All profits go to the International Astronomical Union (IAU), supporting astronomy and its contribution to societal change across the world. You can make a direct donation to the IAU here: https://www.iau.org/donate/

[threewaysdivided]

Euughhh I can’t decide between #18 or #20, so I will let you decide :)

Meta asks for writers

18. Do any of your stories have alternative versions?

(Plotlines that you abandoned, AUs of your own work, different characterisations? Tell us about them.)

I think this may have come up as a glancing mention in the past but the Deathly Weapons you know is actually a stealth-re-write starting at around Chapter 10.  When I first came up with the idea, I had enough of a detailed outline to carry me to Interference, plus some loose notes for later plot-beats.  In that initial burst of unfettered creativity I kept going and freewrote up to roughly the equivalent of Chapter 17: Assessment in DW’s canon timeline.

There was some fun stuff in there (the “And here I thought I was just a pretty face” quip from Zatanna in Chapter 18/ Mission 1 comes from the OG version of Chapter 10) but there was also a reason I didn’t release those versions, and was already wanting to go back and re-do them.  The stealth-draft was incredibly barebones/compressed in places and some now-key scenes were straight-up missing (Propositions, Constants and Roads to Safe Places were all timeskipped over).  Plus I was leaning more heavily into fanon since I hadn’t decided to go back and revisit either show yet, which meant things were more surface-level and “standard” in a few ways.  In the stealth-draft, Ghost-Obsessions were explicit lore a headcanon which is fine but that I realised didn’t interest me or serve the story that much on consideration, Danny was more of an OP Gary-Stu type the OG version of the training session was a free-for-all spar where he beat the whole Team, which… no, and Danny and Wally’s conflict was a lot more superficial/arbitrary/unsatisfying.

I’ve walked myself to the stocks over this before but in the spirit of good-natured lampooning I’m happy to rummage through the old draft some more should you want further samples to jeer and hiss at.

20. Tell us the meta about your writing that you really want to ramble to people about?

(Symbolism you’ve included, character or relationship development that you love, hidden references, callbacks or clues for future scenes?)

Considering my status as a shameless meta aficionado who can and will ramble for up to 20 pages on the barest prompting, one could say you’re playing a dangerous game here, nonnie.

For the sake of brevity I’m going to rapid-fire a bunch of meta I’d love to talk about and let anyone who’s interested take their pick:

I haven’t found a place to really dig into it in-story, but I went and read Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland etc. collection for extra Artemis material, and there’s some interesting parallels you could read into between Alice/Artemis and The Cheshire Cat/Jade, and what it suggests about their dynamic.  It could also indicate some things about how they themselves perceive their relationship given that Jade deliberately took the name Cheshire as her alias in-universe.  The Nguyen-Crock sisters are interesting.

YJ!Wally deviates from many iterations of Comics!Wally in that he canonically has a loving and functional homelife rather than an abusive one.  I have some potentially-controversial but mostly sappy thoughts about why that changed backstory is actually good for this iteration of the character and what it lets him bring to his version of the Team.

The central emotional arc of Deathly Weapons is Danny/Phantom’s journey through grief to healing.  I like how the planned scenes ended up coming together in a pattern where he initially tries to avoid talking about it with other people, then starts to reluctantly talk when asked, then starts talking freely when prompted, and eventually starts willingly volunteering information as he begins to form new bonds and move forward.  It wasn’t a conscious thing when I first set them out but it feels correct in hindsight.

There’s lots of little things that I’m either setting up on purpose to pay off later or have found ways to bring back as echoes in late-game chapters:

Danny’s appearance at Cadmus has developed into a pretty seminal point for his and Team Phantom’s journey between leaving Amity Park and joining The Team.  More information to come in Equilibrium but keep an eye out for references to the incident or things about his left shoulder.

I recently did some Martian Meta in prep for M’gann’s later focus chapter but there’s also a dynamic I’ve started setting up between her and Phantom (especially in the sparring scene) and it’s going to be interesting to see if anyone picks up on where that’s going.

There’s a very late game scene where Danny is talking to Conner about Danielle and The Clone Thing where I have Danny planned to say “but either way, she’s here and she picked our side.  The how and why… guess it just didn’t take that long to stop mattering” as an echo of Bruce’s conversation with Clark in the YJ Episode Schooled.

There’s a conversation between Wally and Dick in the final chapters whose ending parallels the end of Danny and Dick’s scene in Trade Secrets, paying off a promise that will be made in Equilibrium.

And, as you can see, there is so much Equilibrium character-meta which I am desperate to discuss about but also don’t want to talk about for spoiler reasons.  I am going to be so normal about it when publication day comes.

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[highpowerrocketryspace]

WASHINGTON — The two men who participated in NASA's first commercial crew mission to the International Space Station in 2020 received a rarely awarded medal from the White House on January 31. In a brief ceremony, Vice President Kamala Harris presented the Congressional Space Medal of Honor to former NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley in recognition of their flight on the Demo mission -2 Crew Dragon to the station in 2020, the first crewed orbital spaceflight from the United States since the shuttle was retired in 2011. She credited Behnken and Hurley not only for flying the mission, but for the years of work leading up to it, advising SpaceX during the development of the spacecraft. “Together, Bob and Doug, and the SpaceX team, worked for years to design a new crew capsule,” she said. "Every part of the capsule, from the flight controls and emergency procedures to the computer screens and cockpit layout, has all been shaped by Bob and Doug's decades of craftsmanship." The successful two-month Demo-2 mission allowed NASA to begin a series of regular crew rotation flights on Crew Dragon, ending reliance on the Russian Soyuz vehicle to access the station. "Bob and Doug have together written the first page of a new chapter in the history of American spaceflight," Harris said. "Through their ingenuity and bravery, they helped rebuild America's bridge to low Earth orbit and to the International Space Station." While Harris is chair of the National Space Council, which oversees interagency coordination of space policy, she did not address other space issues in her remarks beyond a passing reference to the Artemis lunar exploration campaign. from NASA. Neither Behnken nor Hurley spoke at the public ceremony. The prize surprised some members of the space community, in part because the prize is so rare. The last time an astronaut received the medal was Robert Crippen, best known as the pilot of the first shuttle mission, in 2006. NASA announced that Behnken and Hurley would receive the medal less than 24 hours before the ceremony, and neither the agency nor the White House provided details on why they received the award now or whether the White House plans to award additional awards. Despite its name, Congress is not involved in awarding the Congressional Space Medal of Honor. Congress passed legislation in 1969 authorizing the president to award a medal of that name "to any astronaut who, in the performance of his duties, has distinguished himself by exceptionally meritorious effort and contribution to the welfare of the nation and humanity". Official nominations for the award are made by the NASA Administrator to the President. While the law creating the medal was passed in 1969, the first medals were not awarded until 1978 by President Jimmy Carter. Six astronauts, including the first American in space, Alan Shepard; the first American to orbit the Earth, John Glenn; and the first human to walk on the moon, Neil Armstrong, was then awarded medals. Seventeen of the current 30 winners were posthumous: the three astronauts who died on Apollo 1 and the seven who each lost on Challenger and Columbia. President George W. Bush has awarded the medal the most often, although 14 of his 16 recipients have been the crews of Challenger and Columbia. The other two winners were Crippen and Bill Shepherd, the first American to complete a long-duration mission to the ISS. Several famous astronauts did not receive the award, including Apollo 11's Buzz Aldrin and Mike Collins. While Apollo 13 commander Jim Lovell received the medal in 1995, his teammates, Fred Haise and Jack Swigert, did not receive the award. haven't done it. Both Behnken and Hurley left the astronaut corps after the Demo-2 mission. Hurley retired from NASA in July 2021 and is now Director of Business Development for Northrop Grumman's Propulsion Systems Business Unit. Behnken retired from NASA in November 2022 and joined Lockheed Martin's space division as director of technology acceleration.

[technologistsinsync]

Artemis 1 Update - Reoccurrence Of Liquid Hydrogen Leak.

Latest Update: Liquid Hydrogen Flows Again to Core Stage Tank.

Engineers are once again pumping liquid hydrogen to the core stage after warming the location of the liquid hydrogen leak.

A second instance of the liquid hydrogen leak was discovered.

A hollow between the ground and flight side plates of a fast connection in the engine section has once again developed a leak of liquid hydrogen, which has caused the problem to recur.

Additional attempts to troubleshoot are now being discussed by the teams.

After discovering a leak of liquid hydrogen in a fast disconnect cavity, the engineers halted the flow of the propellant to the core stage so that they may investigate the cause of the problem.

Additional attempts to troubleshoot are now being discussed by the teams.

After discovering a leak of liquid hydrogen in a fast disconnect cavity, the engineers halted the flow of the propellant to the core stage so that they may investigate the cause of the problem.

The launch controllers are now trying to reseat the quick disconnect by heating it up in an effort to create a good seal. Liquid oxygen flow is ongoing.

A problem with a hydrogen leak has prevented NASA from continuing the launch preparations for its Space Launch System (SLS) rocket that was scheduled to take place today, Saturday, September 3.

The problem began during the tanking process, which is when the rocket is loaded with fuel in preparation for the launch. This process is still happening.

There have been numerous issues along the road, including a prior leak of liquid hydrogen that occurred during the several wet dress rehearsals that the rocket went through earlier in the year.

The launch that took place today represents the conclusion of years of effort on the SLS.

The fuel for the rocket is a combination of liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen, and in order for the rocket to function properly, these liquids have to be fed into it via a line.

The flow of liquid oxygen also needed to be mediated while the leak of liquid hydrogen was being addressed in order to maintain the correct ratio of liquid oxygen to liquid hydrogen, which is required for proper operation.

On September 3, shortly before 7:30 a.m. Eastern Time, a cavity for a fast disconnect began leaking hydrogen, which led to the release of liquid hydrogen.

The flow of hydrogen was stopped so that engineers could work on the quick disconnect to get it to seal properly, an operation that took around half an hour to complete.

During this time, the quick disconnect was disconnected from its supply.

After eight in the morning Eastern Time, the problem seemed to have been fixed, and the flow of liquid hydrogen resumed.

After warming up a quick disconnect in the engine section where a hydrogen leak was detected in the cavity between the ground and flight side plates of the quick disconnect, "launch controllers have resumed flow of liquid hydrogen to the core stage," NASA wrote in an update.

"Launch controllers have resumed flow of liquid hydrogen to the core stage." The fast disconnect was warmed up by the teams in an effort to reseat it and create an adequate seal.

The issue, however, reemerged once the flow of propellant was restarted, and the pressure was brought back up to its previous level.

Once the tanks of liquid oxygen had reached 56% of their capacity and the tank of liquid hydrogen had reached 8% of its capacity, the connection to the rocket core stage began to leak again.

In the next step, engineers will reportedly try to reseat the quick disconnect by using helium to increase the pressure in the line.

This information comes from NASA TV.

Courtesy: nasa.gov

~ Jai Krishna Ponnappan

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