Friday Science Highlights – Andromeda’s Blue Clusters, Self-Healing Spaceship Shields, and the Latest on Deep-Space Exploration Research

Science Photo of the Week

The Hubble Telescope has been putting out some incredible pictures of our neighboring galaxy recently. A panorama of Andromeda was released earlier this year in stunning detail. Now the hundreds of images are being analyzed, bit by bit, to help us understand how Andromeda, and the rest of the universe, was formed.

Does this image make you feel small? Consider the mind-blowing resolution that has been captured as each square zooms in closer and closer to individual star clusters. Each of the six blue star clusters exhibited is 150 light years across.

And another neat factoid about this project is that the vast amounts of data is being analyzed not only by NASA astronomers, but also “citizen scientists” – volunteers who have lent their skills to help wade through the details and make new discoveries about the universe.

New Spaceship Shield Could Heal Itself upon Impact

Now that NASA is openly pushing for Mars, space exploration is getting a lot of attention! But the work has been going on behind the scenes for years, and every month it seems there are new technologies being invented specifically for pushing the limits on mankind’s presence in the universe.

One of the big concerns about humans traversing the solar system is the fact that space is filled with debris. That void isn’t as vacant as we might think – tiny fragments of celestial junk are whizzing about constantly in the gravitational pull of the planets and our sun. If they come into contact with a spaceship, the results can be catastrophic, depending on the size of the debris. Current methods for protecting our machines from these intruders is already quite impressive, but scientists are exploring the idea of “self-healing” shields that could mean the difference between life and death in large-impact situations.

Of course, there’s only so much a shield can do – if your ship gets hit by a large meteor or asteroid, you’re probably going to be icy-cold toast in a matter of seconds. But smaller objects that tear holes in the ship can lead to depressurization and loss of atmosphere. While the ship may maintain its general integrity, that doesn’t mean much to the humans inside it.

But these self-healing shields are using a combination of tough plastic sheets and a liquid plastic interior to allow for punctures to be instantly filled when the center layer is exposed to the oxygen inside the ship.

Testing has not yet been completed in the conditions of space, but so far the project looks promising!

Biological Experiments Further Man’s Hopes for Deep Space Exploration

And speaking of space exploration, here’s another good one! Last month the ISS team had their first taste of space-grown produce, and apparently it turned out just as tasty as our Terran-bred vegetables. This ability to grow food out in the void will be crucial to sustaining astronauts who take long trips to other planets. There’s only so much you can pack into a dehydrated pouch!

But growing plants isn’t the only research happening on the ISS that will later be used to further our reach in the solar system. Animals are also being studied to help us understand the long-term effects of space life. In addition to the year-long research plan that revolves around astronaut Scott Kelley and his twin brother, insects, fish, and even small mammals are central to making discoveries that will improve the health of future astronauts on their interplanetary missions.

You can catch up on all the latest ISS projects at NASA’s website, and even find out how the work going on upstairs is benefiting those of us back on Earth!