Bill Housley
Science Fiction and Fantasy Author
About.me
Bill Housley
Author, Actor, Father, Wildman
Hates the World;
Loves the world;
Writes about the world;
End of Story.
Contact
Into the Dark–Escape of the Nomad
Where’s The Cat?
Another Man’s Terrorist
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Space.com Top Stories
- Spinning 'Origami' Antenna Successfully Deployed In Space | Video February 26, 2015NASA's Soil Moisture Active Passive mission team deployed its spacecraft's large antenna on Feb. 24th, 2015. The mission will track and map soil moisture on Earth.
- Worldwide Precipitation Time-Lapsed From Satellite Data | Video February 26, 2015NASA's Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) satellite can measure global precipitation (rain and snow) every 30 minutes. The data has been transformed into high resolution imagery that tracks the movement of precipitation over the entire globe.
- Aided by Art, Theory of Life's Extra-Solar Origin Gets Boost February 26, 2015Did life come to Earth from the shattered rocks of a distant star?
- Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson to Get National Academy of Sciences' Top Award February 26, 2015Tyson will receive the Academy's most prestigious award, the Public Welfare Medal, in recognition of his extensive efforts to get the public excited about science.
- New Space Telescope Tech Could Be 1,000 Times Sharper Than Hubble February 26, 2015The Aragoscope would consist of an orbiting space telescope sitting behind an opaque disc up to 0.5 miles (0.8 kilometers) wide. This disc would be made of a black plastic material, similar to a garbage bag.
- The Father of SETI: Q&A with Astronomer Frank Drake February 26, 2015An interview with Frank Drake, who conducted the first search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) experiment in 1960 and came up with a famous equation that estimates the possible number of alien civilizations.
- US Needs a Mars Colony, Buzz Aldrin Tells Senators February 26, 2015Going to Mars without setting up a colony — round-trip manned missions, in other words — would not be enough for the U.S. to reclaim its leadership in space, nor would setting up human outposts on the moon, Aldrin said.
- Spring Constellations, Planets and a Solar Eclipse - March 2015 Skywatching Video February 26, 2015The Gemini Twins and a dimmer Cancer constellation make their way into the night sky in March.
- LISTEN LIVE @ 2 pm ET: NASA Update on Earth Science Missions October 6, 2012NASA launched five Earth science missions in the past 12 months. Today (Feb. 26), space agency officials will host a teleconference explaining what those Earth-watching projects have found during their time in space.
- NASA Celebrates Crawler-Transporters' 1st 50 Years with Test Drive February 26, 2015With an eye towards the future, NASA has marked the first 50 years of its two rocket-moving crawler-transporters by taking one of the newly-upgraded massive machines out for a test drive to the launch pad.
- Ground-Based Telescope Peers Further Than Hubble | Video February 26, 2015The European Very Large Telescope's MUSE instrument took a deeper dive into the famous Hubble Deep Field and discovered more galaxies than the Hubble Space Telescope. MUSE data also reveals elements of galactic motion.
- Cosmonaut Alexei Gubarev, Led 1st Multi-National Space Crew, Dies at 83 February 26, 2015Soviet-era cosmonaut Alexei Gubarev, who trained to fly to the moon but instead led the first multi-national space station crew, died on Feb. 21. He was 83. Gubarev logged 37 days in orbit during the Soyuz 17 and Soyuz 28 missions.
- Best 3D View of Deep Universe Reveals Astonishing Details (Video) February 26, 2015Astronomers have just released a brand-new, best-ever 3D view of the deep universe, and it's a doozy.
- Mystery Spot on Dwarf Planet Ceres Has Mysterious Partner (Photos) February 25, 2015New photos captured by NASA's Dawn spacecraft, which is scheduled to arrive in orbit around Ceres on the night of March 5, reveal that a puzzling bright spot within a large crater on the dwarf planet's surface has a buddy of sorts.
- Monster Black Hole Is the Largest and Brightest Ever Found February 25, 2015Astronomers have discovered the largest and brightest black hole ever seen — an ancient monster with a mass about 12 billion times that of the sun — that dates back to when the universe was less than 1 billion years old.
- Connie Radar Defends the Moon from Apollo 11 in Retro Sci-Fi Short Film February 25, 2015What would the first woman on the moon do if she saw a bunch of astronauts coming down to steal her glory? She'd attempt to shoot them down with her space guns, of course.
- Astronaut Reports Minor Water Leak in Spacesuit Helmet After Spacewalk February 25, 2015An American astronaut found water inside his spacesuit helmet at the end of an otherwise flawless spacewalk outside the International Space Station today (Feb. 25), but he was never in any danger, NASA officials say.
- Forging Metamaterials: Labs Craft Invisibility Cloaks, Perfect Lenses and Nanostructures (Kavli Roundtable) February 25, 2015What does it take to craft an invisibility cloak?
- Case of the Missing 'Failed Star' Has Scientists Stumped (Video) February 25, 2015A new alien planet-hunting tool found no trace of a failed star more than 100 light-years from Earth, puzzling astronomers.
- 4 Awesome Robots Spotted at Toy Fair 2015 | Video February 25, 2015Space.com writers @CallaCofield and @MiriKramer hit the fair in NYC on President's Day weekend and a few robots caught their attention.
NASA Breaking News
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LiveScience.com – Top Stories
- Snow Storms Monitored By GPM Satellite - 3D Views | Video February 26, 2015Data from the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Core Observatory was converted into 3D imagery of 2 storms over the United States on Feb. 17th and 21st, 2015.
- Ancient Mesopotamian Artifacts Smashed in New ISIS Video February 26, 2015To the horror of archaeologists and history buffs around the world, ISIS released a new video showing ancient Mesopotamian sculptures being smashed inside northern Iraq's Mosul Museum.
- Photos of Siberia's Mysterious Craters February 26, 2015Seven giant craters have mysteriously appeared in northern Siberia, possibly due to methane gas released from melting permafrost. And scientists think may be dozens more.
- More Mysterious Craters Found in Siberia, Scientist Says 'Urgent’ Investigation Needed February 26, 2015Last summer, the discovery of several new giant craters in Siberia drew worldwide interest, launching wild speculation that meteorites, or even aliens, caused the gaping crevasses. And now, scientists have found even more of them.
- Worldwide Precipitation Time-Lapsed From Satellite Data | Video February 26, 2015The International Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) satellite can measure global precipitation (rain and snow) every 30 minutes.
- Cool Pacific Ocean Slowed Global Warming February 26, 2015The Pacific was a planetary air conditioner for the past two decades, but the relief may soon end, a new study finds.
- Want to Cut Your Cancer Risk? Lose That Weight (Op-Ed) February 26, 2015Obesity and heart disease are well known, but now doctors can link excess weight to many cancers.
- 'Big Brain' Gene Found in Humans, Not Chimps February 26, 2015A single gene that is found only in Homo species may partly explain why the human neocortex, the seat of higher cognitive functions, is so large.
- Beach Microbes Starving Baby Sea Turtles of Oxygen February 26, 2015These endangered sea turtles are facing a new threat: sand microbes encouraged by the decomposing eggs.
- Let's Call It: The Planet's Warmer (Op-Ed) February 26, 2015If you’re younger than 30, you’ve never experienced a month in which the average surface temperature of the Earth was below average.
- Stephen Hawking Thinks These 3 Things Could Destroy Humanity February 26, 2015Stephen Hawking may be most famous for his work on black holes and gravitational singularities, but the world-renowned physicist has also become known for his outspoken ideas about things that could destroy human civilization.
- Plant Plastics Seed New Tech, from Miatas to Tea Bags February 26, 2015Plastic doesn't grow on trees . . . or does it?
- Rare Roman Tombstone Discovered in England February 26, 2015A 1,800-year-old tombstone was discovered at a Roman cemetery in England this week. The large stone slab bears an inscription to commemorate the deceased: a 27-year-old woman named Bodica.
- Big Bang, Deflated? Universe May Have Had No Beginning February 26, 2015A new way to reconcile quantum mechanics and general relativity could imply that the age of the universe is infinite, and that there was no true Big Bang that started it all.
- Ancient Bolivians Stripped Flesh from Dead Bodies in Ritual Complex February 26, 2015Archaeologists discovered a ritual complex in Bolivia where dead bodies were dissolved down to their bones in sizzling pots of caustic chemicals.
- Meet 2 New Spider Species: 'Skeletorus' and 'Sparklemuffin' February 26, 2015A graduate student studying peacock spiders in Australia discovered two new species of the colorful eight-legged beasts.
- Apple to Wal-Mart, Big Biz is Betting on Green Energy (Op-Ed) February 26, 2015Huge companies including Apple, Wal-Mart and Ikea have spent big bucks on green energy — why are so many governments lagging behind?
- U.S. 'Pet' Tiger Trade Puts Big Cats at Great Risk (Op-Ed) February 26, 2015Tigers make lousy house pets, and outside of accredited zoos, they are at high risk of abuse — or worse.
- Drop Sugar for Lent? Here's How Your Brain's (Not) Coping February 25, 2015If you are abstaining from sweets for Lent this year, here’s what you can expect over the next 40 days.
- Deadly Gut Bacteria Cause Half a Million Infections Yearly February 25, 2015Nearly half a million cases of the difficult-to-treat and sometimes deadly infection called "C. diff" now occur yearly in the United States.
Discover Magazine — Space
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NASA Blog Updates
- NASA Deputy Administrator's Blog June 26, 2013A Great Day for Equality
- NASA Administrator June 26, 2013Protecting Planet Earth
- NASA IV&V Matters June 24, 2013Summer Interns Return to IV&V
NASA Image of the Day
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Masten-space.com Blog updates–X-Prize winner!
- Summer 2015 Internships December 3, 2014Masten is now accepting applications for internships for the Summer of 2015. If you’ve followed us you know we’ve had a great history of outstanding interns working with us. There are few places like us that can deliver an internship with this level of responsibility and hands on work. We’re not looking for gophers, we’re looking
- Masten Space Systems selected by Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency for XS-1 Program July 23, 2014Mojave, CA (July 23, 2014) — Masten Space Systems, Inc. (Masten) announced today that the company has been awarded a contract from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) as part of Phase 1 of the Experimental Spaceplane (XS-1) program to develop a reusable launch vehicle. Over the last decade, Masten has built three highly
- Astrobotic Technology And Masten Space Systems Perform Visually Guided Precision Landing June 30, 2014Contact John Thornton contact@astrobotic.com Sean Mahoney smahoney@masten.aero FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ASTROBOTIC TECHNOLOGY AND MASTEN SPACE SYSTEMS PERFORM VISUALLY GUIDED PRECISION LANDING Groundbreaking effort integrates two privately developed technology platforms to validate performance of autonomous precision landing capability Mojave, CA: Astrobotic Te […]
- Spring 2015 Internships June 30, 2014Masten is now accepting applications for internships for the Spring of 2015. If you’ve followed us you know we’ve had a great history of outstanding interns working with us. There are few places like us that can deliver an internship with this level of responsibility and hands on work. We’re not looking for gophers, we’re looking
- Project Prometheus May 19, 2014A lot has been going on in the past year, and while we have been busy with clients and flying customer payloads, the Masten Team has also been thinking about ways we could engage the broader community and increase accessibility to our VTVL vehicles. One of the largest barriers to entry for any technology developer
- Masten featured on PBS documentary December 2, 2013We get asked on a regular basis what life is like working at Masten. Well, the good folks at KQED (San Francisco Bay Area PBS affiliate) came out in May to capture a slice of Mojave with a healthy dose of Masten rockets. Watch for Masten to appear around time marker 13:47. We really enjoyed hosting
- Summer 2014 Internships November 11, 2013Masten is now accepting applications for internships for the Summer of 2014. If you’ve followed us you know we’ve had a great history of outstanding interns working with us. There are few places like us that can deliver an internship with this level of responsibility and hands on work. We’re not looking for gophers, we’re looking
- Joy and Sadness November 11, 2013Most of the time these blog posts update you on just a glimpse of what’s going on behind the curtain over here at Masten, and the man behind that curtain for most of those posts over the last three plus years has been Colin. Today’s post is a little different. Today, it is both with
- Xaero B Rises March 18, 2013Since last summer, even while we focused on Xombie flights for JPL and expanding Xaero’s flight envelope, we were working. Designing, tweaking, and starting to build the next iteration of Xaero that we affectionately (and creatively) call Xaero-B. We’re finally ready to pull the curtain back and share her with you! Xaero-B is intended to
- February Flight Frenzy! February 1, 2013We finished our work early and now we have extra time for you! As a result, a special one-time deal can be yours this February. Think of it as our Valentine’s Day present to the space community. For projects that can fly by the end of February, we’re offering an open loop flight on our
Discovery Space News
- Spacesuit Water Leak Discovered After NASA Spacewalk February 26, 2015An American astronaut found water inside his spacesuit helmet at the end of an otherwise flawless spacewalk outside the International Space Station on Wednesday.
- Ceres' Mystery Bright Dots May Have Volcanic Origin February 25, 2015As NASA's Dawn mission slowly spirals in on its dwarf planet target, Ceres' alien landscape is becoming sharper by the day.
- Baby Universe Spawned Weirdly Monstrous Black Hole February 25, 2015Astronomers have discovered an out-of-place supermassive black hole -- 12 billion times more massive than the sun -- that inexplicably formed when the universe was less than 900 million years old.
- DNews: Large Hadron Collider Reboot Ready to Rumble February 25, 2015Version 2.0 of CERN's large hadron collider is set to get back in the discovery business next month, boasting twice the power, tougher wiring, better cooling systems, and upgraded cameras.
- Curiosity's New Selfie Awash With Epic Mars Science February 25, 2015In a spectacular new Mars selfie, rover Curiosity stands proud on the bedrock at the base of Mount Sharp at it's Mojave work site in an area nicknamed Pahrump Hills.
- Reentering Chinese Rocket Sparks North America Fireballs February 24, 2015Last night, the third stage of a spent Chinese rocket returned into the atmosphere in grand fashion, sparking a family of spectacular fireballs as it incinerated over the western part of North America.
- Using Jupiter as an Alien World Analog February 24, 2015A new study has taken a look at the gas giant from a whole different perspective -- as an alien, living far beyond the solar system, would see it.
- Star Quadruplets Spied Growing Inside Stellar Womb February 23, 2015New observations of a star-forming nebula have revealed four stellar embryos, providing clues as to how multiple star systems evolve.
- World View Parafoil Test Flight Touches Edge of Space February 23, 2015A private company that aims to send tourists to the edge of space broke a record by flying a parafoil higher than anyone has before.
- Hawking: Our Aggression Will Destroy Humanity February 23, 2015The British physicist believes that our aggressive nature needs to be counteracted by empathy to ultimately save our civilization from collapse.
New Scientist
- First photo of Earth from space was from deadly rocket February 26, 2015The first ever photograph of our planet from space marks the moment when rockets became space exploration vehicles and not just bomb carriers
- Ancient black hole had an inexplicable growth spurt February 25, 2015Reaching 12 billion times the mass of the sun just a billion years after the big bang, a black hole has astronomers mystified about its rapid growth
- Watch desert dust cross the ocean as seen from space February 25, 2015For the first time, a satellite has calculated the whopping amount of Saharan dust that is blown over the ocean to reach the Amazon rainforest every year
- The plan to find alien life in Europa's icy seas February 24, 2015We're getting ready to send a probe to Jupiter's icy moon – but how will we know if anything lives there?
- Actual race on moon could decide Lunar XPrize winner February 24, 2015Three rovers may travel to the moon together, meaning the prize would be determined by a sprint finish on lunar soil
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