Night sky highlights for February 2023

** What’s Up: February 2023 Skywatching Tips from NASA – NASA JPL

What are some skywatching highlights in February 2023?
See Jupiter and Venus appear nearer each night, as they head for a close conjunction at the start of March. Use bright stars Capella and Elnath to identify the constellation Auriga, and then find your way to two distant star clusters using Sirius as a guidepost.

0:00 Intro
0:12 Moon & planet highlights
0:47 The constellation Auriga
1:52 Easy-to-find star clusters
3:10 February Moon phases

Additional information about topics covered in this episode of What’s Up, along with still images from the video, and the video transcript, are available at https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/skywatch….

** Tonight’s Sky: February 2023 – Space Telescope Science InstituteTonight’s Sky

In February, the Winter Triangle is your guide to the night sky: The northern hemisphere is treated to views of the stars Procyon, Sirius, and Betelgeuse. Keep watching for the awe-inspiring space-based views of the Orion Nebula, which is sculpted by the stellar winds of central bright stars.

** What to see in the night sky: February 2023BBC Sky at Night Magazine

Pete Lawrence and Paul Abel reveal the best things to see in the night sky this month, including Mercury, Venus, Comet C/2022 E3, Orion, Gemini and the Moon.

** Sky & Telescope’s Sky Tour Podcast – February 2023 – Sky & Telescope Youtube

Our monthly Sky Tour #astronomy #podcast provides an informative and entertaining 10-minute guided tour of the nighttime sky. Listen to the February episode and explore the #Moon’s phases, watch three #planets in the evening sky, take stock of winter’s brightest #stars, and track down two lesser-known #constellations.

Listen and subscribe to this podcast at https://skyandtelescope.org/observing/ and don’t forget to subscribe to S&T’s YouTube channel to get alerts about new videos, including this monthly podcast.

See also

** Night Sky Notebook February 2023Peter Detterline

** The Night Sky February 2023 | What To Photograph In N. HemisphereAstroFarsography – YouTube

The Night Sky February 2023 is here and we begin saying farewell to our emission nebulae as galaxy season begins to rear its head.

The Night Sky is a curated list of deep sky targets, planets and other events that happen in our night skies during February in the Northern Hemisphere.

All targets are split into focal length ranges and are based off of a full frame camera sensor. However equivalent focal lengths are provided.

To use equivalent sizes is simple. Find the camera you’re using and see what focal length I’ve supplied. This is the focal length of telescope you need to match the example I’ve suggested.

All planets are from my latitude in the United Kingdom of about 52° North and I only include them if they rise above 20° altitude for a decent amount of time during the month. So depending on how high or low you are will vary your seeing conditions!

Clear skies everyone, keep looking up and keep them cameras clicking.

** See also:

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Stellaris: People of the Stars

Videos: “Space to Ground” & other space habitat reports – Jan.29.2023

Here is the latest episode in NASA’s Space to Ground weekly report on activities related to the International Space Station:

** DARPA small satellite RED-EYE jettisoned from International Space Station (ISS)Millennium Space Systems – YouTube

Deployed in 2019 and 2020, the RED-EYE small sats demonstrated advanced satellite constellation technologies. Read more: https://www.millennium-space.com/medi…

** Care In SpaceAxiom Space

Together with Boryung and Starburst, we are providing space start-ups with capital, business and technical guidance and access to space. All of this through the Care In Space Challenge!”
— — —

Axiom Space is guided by the vision of a thriving home in space that benefits every human, everywhere. The leader in providing space infrastructure as a service, Axiom offers end-to-end missions to the International Space Station today while privately developing its successor – a permanent commercial destination in Earth’s orbit that will sustain human growth off the planet and bring untold benefits back home. More information about Axiom can be found at www.axiomspace.com.

See also:

** See NASA spacewalkers install and deploy a new solar array in epic time-lapseVideoFromSpace

Astronauts Josh Cassada and Frank Rubio installed and deployed an ISS Roll Out Solar Array (iROSA) on Dec. 22, 2022. The rollout occurred while the International Space Station was flying over the Pacific Northwest. Full Story: https://www.space.com/astronauts-spac…

** Astronaut Nicole Mann Answers Flathead Reservation, Lake County Student Questions Jan. 26, 2023 – NASA Video

Aboard the International Space Station, NASA Expedition 68 Flight Engineer Nicole Mann answered pre-recorded questions about life and work on the orbiting laboratory during an in-flight event January 26 with students attending the Boys and Girls Club of the Flathead Reservation and Lake County in Ronan, Montana. Mann is the first native American woman to fly in space and is in the midst of a science mission living and working aboard the microgravity laboratory to advance scientific knowledge and demonstrate new technologies for future human and robotic exploration missions as part of NASA’s Moon and Mars exploration approach, including lunar missions through NASA’s Artemis program.

** Chinese New Year celebrated by Tiangong space station crewVideoFromSpace

Shenzhou-15 astronauts Fei Junlong, Deng Qingming and Zhang Lu send down their Chinese New Year message from the Tiangong space station.

** ISS Live video stream – IBM/ISS HD Earth Viewing Experiment

Currently, live views from the ISS are streaming from an external camera mounted on the ISS module called Node 2. Node 2 is located on the forward part of the ISS. The camera is looking forward at an angle so that the International Docking Adapter 2 (IDA2) is visible. If the Node 2 camera is not available due to operational considerations for a longer period of time, a continuous loop of recorded HDEV imagery will be displayed. The loop will have “Previously Recorded” on the image to distinguish it from the live stream from the Node 2 camera. After HDEV stopped sending any data on July 18, 2019, it was declared, on August 22, 2019, to have reached its end of life. Thank You to all who shared in experiencing and using the HDEV views of Earth from the ISS to make HDEV so much more than a Technology Demonstration Payload!

==================

Check out the
The Lurio Report
for news and analysis of key developments in NewSpace

The latest issue:
Moving, China’s Starship, Tracing New Space in India
Vol. 17, No. 7, December 31, 2022  (Issued January 2023)

Space Frontier Foundation Award for NewSpace Journalism

==================

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Outpost in Orbit:
A Pictorial & Verbal History of the Space Station

Videos: “Space to Ground” & other space habitat reports – Jan.21.2023

Here is the latest episode in NASA’s Space to Ground weekly report on activities related to the International Space Station:

** The Age of Private Space StationsBloomberg Quicktake: Explained

Voyager Space CEO Dylan Taylor shares his vision for the future of the space industry, from travel to commercial space stations. “I’m super excited about where we are, and even more excited about where we’re headed.”

** U.S. Spacewalk 84 Animation – January 20, 2023 NASA Johnson

Expedition 68 astronauts Nicole Mann of NASA and Koichi Wakata of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) will step outside the International Space Station for a six-and-a-half hour spacewalk to conduct preparation work for upcoming solar array upgrades for the station’s 1A and 1B power channels. The current solar arrays which were designed for a 15-year service life are functioning well, but have begun to show signs of degradation, as expected. The first pair of solar arrays were deployed in December 2000 and have been powering the station for more than 20 years. The new ISS Roll-Out Solar Arrays (IROSAs) will be positioned in front of six of the current arrays, increasing the station’s total available power from 160 kilowatts to up to 215 kilowatts.

Learn more about the research being conducted on the space station: https://www.nasa.gov/iss-science

** Spacewalk with Astronauts Nicole Mann and Koichi Wakata at the Space Station (Jan. 20)NASA

Astronauts Nicole Mann of NASA and Koichi Wakata of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) will step outside the International Space Station for their first spacewalk to finish work preparing for solar array additions planned for this summer.

The spacewalk is scheduled to begin at 8:15 a.m. EST (1315 UTC) and will last up to seven hours.

Follow the space station blog for more updates: https://blogs.nasa.gov/spacestation

** Spacewalk begins to prep space station for new solar arraysVideoFromSpace

Expedition 68 astronauts Nicole Mann of NASA and JAXA’s Koichi Wakata. began a spacewalk on Jan. 20, 2023. They will “conduct preparation work for upcoming solar array upgrades for the station’s 1A and 1B power channels,” according to NASA. Watch live: https://www.space.com/space-station-f…

** NASA’s Plan To Rescue Stranded Astronauts – Playing Sardines In A Space Capsule – Scott Manley

In 1973 there were concerns that the crew on Skylab may be stuck without a ride home after half the thrusters on the Service module failed. In response NASA turned to its existing Skylab Rescue plans which involved squeezing 5 people into a capsule designed for 3, and assigned Vance Brand and Don Lind to train for this mission. Over the next few days this crew showed the rescue was possible, but as they analyzed the problem in with the spacecraft they also showed that there were safe ways to return the damaged spacecraft without needing the rescue mission. This story is of course relevant 50 years later because Soyuz MS22 has a crippled cooling system and the crew will have to wait for a replacement.

** Care in SpaceAxiom Space

Together with Boryung and Starburst, we are providing space start-ups with capital, business and technical guidance and access to space. All of this through the Care In Space Challenge!”

Axiom Space is guided by the vision of a thriving home in space that benefits every human, everywhere. The leader in providing space infrastructure as a service, Axiom offers end-to-end missions to the International Space Station today while privately developing its successor – a permanent commercial destination in Earth’s orbit that will sustain human growth off the planet and bring untold benefits back home. More information about Axiom can be found at www.axiomspace.com.

https://youtu.be/zuOe4p3s9zg

** ISS Live video stream – IBM/ISS HD Earth Viewing Experiment

Currently, live views from the ISS are streaming from an external camera mounted on the ISS module called Node 2. Node 2 is located on the forward part of the ISS. The camera is looking forward at an angle so that the International Docking Adapter 2 (IDA2) is visible. If the Node 2 camera is not available due to operational considerations for a longer period of time, a continuous loop of recorded HDEV imagery will be displayed. The loop will have “Previously Recorded” on the image to distinguish it from the live stream from the Node 2 camera. After HDEV stopped sending any data on July 18, 2019, it was declared, on August 22, 2019, to have reached its end of life. Thank You to all who shared in experiencing and using the HDEV views of Earth from the ISS to make HDEV so much more than a Technology Demonstration Payload!

==================

Check out the
The Lurio Report
for news and analysis of key developments in NewSpace

The latest issue:
Moving, China’s Starship, Tracing New Space in India
Vol. 17, No. 7, December 31, 2022  (Issued January 2023)

Space Frontier Foundation Award for NewSpace Journalism

==================

=== Amazon Ads ===

LEGO Ideas International Space Station Building Kit,
Adult Set for Display,
Makes a Great Birthday Present
(864 Pieces)

====

Outpost in Orbit:
A Pictorial & Verbal History of the Space Station

Videos: “Space to Ground” & other space habitat reports – Jan.14.2023

Here is the latest episode in NASA’s Space to Ground weekly report on activities related to the International Space Station:

** Expedition 68 Space Station Crew Talks with WPLG-TV, Miami, and KFAN-FM, Minneapolis- Jan. 11, 2023 – NASA Video

Aboard the International Space Station, Expedition 68 Flight Engineers Josh Cassada and Frank Rubio of NASA discussed life and work aboard the orbital outpost during an in-flight event January 11 with WPLG-TV “Local 10 News” in Miami, Florida and KFAN Sports Talk FM Radio in Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota. Cassada and Rubio are in the midst of a science mission living and working aboard the microgravity laboratory to advance scientific knowledge and demonstrate new technologies for future human and robotic exploration missions as part of NASA’s Moon and Mars exploration approach, including lunar missions through NASA’s Artemis program.

** Expedition 68 Space Station Crew Talks with Consumer Electronics Show – Jan. 6, 2023 – NASA Video

Astronauts on the International Space Station talk with participants at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas on Friday, Jan. 6, 2023, using ultra-high definition television. The live interaction was sponsored by the non-profit Center for the Advancement of Science in Space, which coordinates International Space Station National Laboratory research for NASA. The conversation with astronauts Nicole Mann and Frank Rubio focused on how a variety of users are leveraging the space station to further technological advancements that can bring value to humanity, improve the quality of life for those living and working in space, and enable a sustainable market in low Earth orbit. The orbiting laboratory continues to maintain an uninterrupted human presence after more than 22 years.

** SpaceX Dragon CRS-26 Cargo Ship Departs International Space Station – NASA Video

Loaded with experiments and hardware, the unpiloted SpaceX-26 cargo ship undocked from the Harmony module of the International Space Station Jan. 9, headed for a splashdown off the coast of Florida. The resupply vehicle arrived at the orbital complex in late November to deliver several tons of food, science experiments and hardware for station maintenance, science investigations and upgrades.

** A Realistic Way to Make Space Habitats From Asteroids – Fraser Cain

We can build space habitats from asteroids by spinning them fast enough. That’s what Professor Adam Frank suggests in a recent paper he co-wrote. In this interview, we discussed the idea, how realistic it is and what technology will be needed to achieve it, what applications it can have and when we can expect something like that.

00:00 Intro
01:35 Meet Professor Adam Frank
02:27 Building space habitats from asteroids
13:16 Materials required to achieve that
18:00 Generation ships
24:52 Asteroid mining
27:29 Exponential technological progress
34:45 Great Realistic SciFi
35:56 Outro

Professor Adam Frank on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AdamFrank4

Habitat Bennu: Design Concepts for Spinning Habitats Constructed From Rubble Pile Near-Earth Asteroids
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/…

The Fermi Paradox and the Aurora Effect: Exo-civilization Settlement, Expansion, and Steady States
https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10…

** Update on Soyuz MS-22 and Soyuz MS-23 SciNews

Update on the Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft docked to the International Space Station and on the planned launch of the Soyuz MS-23 spacecraft, from Joel Montalbano (International Space Station program manager, NASA) and Sergei Krikalev (Human Space Flight Programs executive director, Roscosmos) on 11 January 2023. A coolant leak was detected from the aft end of the Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft docked to the International Space Station, on 14 December 2022. The Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft carried NASA astronaut Frank Rubio and Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin into space after launching from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Sept. 21.
Credit: NASA/Roscosmos

** ISS Live video stream – IBM/ISS HD Earth Viewing Experiment

Currently, live views from the ISS are streaming from an external camera mounted on the ISS module called Node 2. Node 2 is located on the forward part of the ISS. The camera is looking forward at an angle so that the International Docking Adapter 2 (IDA2) is visible. If the Node 2 camera is not available due to operational considerations for a longer period of time, a continuous loop of recorded HDEV imagery will be displayed. The loop will have “Previously Recorded” on the image to distinguish it from the live stream from the Node 2 camera. After HDEV stopped sending any data on July 18, 2019, it was declared, on August 22, 2019, to have reached its end of life. Thank You to all who shared in experiencing and using the HDEV views of Earth from the ISS to make HDEV so much more than a Technology Demonstration Payload!

====

=== Amazon Ads ===

LEGO Ideas International Space Station Building Kit,
Adult Set for Display,
Makes a Great Birthday Present
(864 Pieces)

====

Outpost in Orbit:
A Pictorial & Verbal History of the Space Station

The Space Show this week – Jan.9.2023

The guests and topics of discussion on The Space Show this week:

1. Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023; 7 pm PST (9 pm CST, 10 pm EST): No program today due to DL dental work back in SF. Hopefully this is my last of these appointments.

2. Hotel Mars – Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023; 1:00 pm PST (3:00 pm CST, 4:00 pm EST): TBD. Check the Upcoming Show Menu at www.thespaceshow.com for  updates on scheduling.

3. Friday, Jan.13, 2023; 9:30-11 am PST (11:30 am-1 pm CST, 12:30-2 pm EST): We welcome Tony Frego of Spaceflight Inc.

4. Sunday, Jan.15, 2023; 12-1:30 pm PST (2-3:30 pm CST, 3-4:30 pm EST): We welcome in our first Open Lines program of the year. All callers welcome, first time callers very much appreciated. I will be discussing the future Space Show schedule, the results of the 2022 campaign and other issues plus whatever you want to talk about.

Some recent shows:

** Sunday, Jan.8.2023M. G. Lord discussed

her new podcast. LA Made with a Season 1 focus on the history of JPL as only M.G. can related to us. Do not miss this fun, exciting and very informative program. A classic.

** Friday, Jan.6.2023Lt. General Steven Kwast, USAF (RET) talked about, “Why commercial space is essential, space as the path for prosperity and peace, China, influencing our policy, Russia, Ukraine, Skycorp, innovation, orbital commercial activities, global space policies and more“.

** Tuesday, Jan.3.2023Robert Zimmerman discussed the “2022 launch rate as a record, SLS, Artemis, Starship fuel compared to SLS, China and their program, India’s program and launchers, life at Venus, Artemis moon landers and more“.

** Friday, Dec.30.2022Thomas A. Olsonwas back with us for our annual space year in review“.

** Wednesday, Dec.28.2022Dr. Haym Benaroya and Raymond Martin discussed “their paper about using lunar lava tubes for habitats. Dr. Benaroya was the thesis advisor for Raymond and this published paper was his Master’s Thesis in engineering“.

** Tuesday, Dec.27, 2022Dr. Thomas Spilkerof Orbital Assembly was back with us for a detailed update re OAC, plus a great discussion on orbital and inspace construction, economics, technology, markets and such“.

** See also:
* The Space Show Archives
* The Space Show Newsletter
* The Space Show Shop

The Space Show is a project of the One Giant Leap Foundation.

The Space Show - David Livingston
The Space Show – Dr. David Livingston

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