Prof. Warren Hoburg speaks with Jeffrey Mervis of Science about his decision to leave MIT to join NASA’s 2017 class of astronauts. He explains that he is working on ensuring his students can continue their research. “I think we have a bunch of ideas that are really powerful, and I want to set up my students to continue that research.”
A study co-authored by MIT researchers shows that the moon’s magnetic field could have lasted for as long as two billion years, according to Xinhua. “The researchers are planning to analyze more lunar rocks to determine when the dynamo died off completely.”
MIT researchers have found that the moon’s magnetic field lasted at least 1 billion years longer than initially thought, reports Charles Q. Choi for NBC News. “Understanding more about the nature of the magnetic field of Earth's moon could shed light on the magnetic fields of distant moons and planets, which could influence their habitability."
By examining a lunar rock from the Apollo 15 mission, researchers from MIT and Rutgers University have found that the moon had a magnetic field for at least one billion years longer than initially thought, reports Nicola Davis for The Guardian. The researchers found that the, “lunar dynamo was still going until somewhere between one billion and 2.5bn years ago.”
Boston Globe reporter Martin Finucane writes that a new study co-authored by MIT researchers provides evidence that the moon’s magnetic field lasted 1 billion years longer than previously thought. “Researchers now believe the moon’s magnetic field existed for a total of at least 2 billion years,” Finucane explains.
MIT researchers have developed a laser sensing technique that can decipher the makeup of space debris orbiting around Earth, reports Alex Kingsbury for The Boston Globe. Knowing what material the debris is made of, “will allow for more precise calculations of momentum, velocity, and the danger they may pose to other objects aloft in orbit,” explains Kingsbury.
Writing for Science, Jeffrey Mervis features NASA’s 2017 astronaut candidates, which included three MIT affiliates. Mervis highlights how at MIT, Prof. Warren Hoburg, one of this year’s candidates, was focused on developing an, “unmanned, solar-powered airplane that could fly nonstop around the world.”
Alumna Jasmin Moghbeli speaks with NPR’s Emma Bowman about being selected for NASA astronaut training. Moghbeli, one of three trainees with MIT ties, explains that she hopes to inspire girls of color. “If they can see someone similar to them that they can relate to more, then it makes it all that much more possible…to imagine doing this.”
Los Angeles Times reporter Karen Kaplan writes that NASA’s newest class of astronaut trainees includes Prof. Warren Hoburg and MIT alumni Raja Chari and Jasmin Moghbeli. “These would-be astronauts were chosen from among more than 18,300 applicants,” notes Kaplan. “That means their odds of being selected were less than 1 in 1,500.”
AP reporter Marcia Dunn writes that NASA selected MIT Prof. Warren Hoburg and two MIT alumni - Raja Chari and Jasmin Moghbeli – to join their 2017 class of astronauts. After two years of training, the astronauts could be “riding commercial rockets to the International Space Station or flying beyond the moon in NASA's Orion spacecraft. Their ultimate destination could be Mars.”
In an article for The Boston Globe, Travis Anderson highlights how several of NASA’s new class of astronauts have MIT ties. Prof. Warren Hoburg and two MIT graduates - Raja Chari and Jasmin Moghbeli - were selected for NASA’s 2017 astronaut class from 18,300 applications, the largest pool ever, according to NASA.
Boston Globe reporter Steve Annear writes that in a recent video posted to Twitter, MIT graduate and NASA astronaut Jack Fischer demonstrated how to eat pudding in space. Annear writes that Fischer, who is currently aboard the International Space Station, has been, “spending some of his time on the space station connecting with people back on earth.”
Boston Globe reporter Steve Annear writes that MIT students will have an opportunity to chat with NASA astronaut Jack Fischer, an MIT alumnus who is currently aboard the International Space Station.
CBS News reporter William Harwood writes that MIT alumnus Jack Fisher, a NASA flight engineer, is on his way to the International Space Station for a planned 135-day mission. Harwood notes that Fisher is an Air Force colonel and former test pilot with a master’s degree in aeronautics and astronautics from MIT.
MIT researchers have observed a black hole devouring a star, reports Torah Kachur for CBC News. After looking at about a year’s worth of data, researchers found that the “star was getting pulled apart and literally shredded into a debris stream that spiraled around the center of this black hole,” writes Kachur.