Category Science

Space probes are designed to do different jobs. Some fly by their target at a distance of several thousand kilometres, taking pictures of the planet’s surface and surveying its atmosphere. Other probes are designed to enter a planet’s orbit, which allows them to survey the planet in more detail. The probes that provide the most information about planets are called landers because they touch down on the planet’s surface.

This is a list of space probes that have left Earth orbit (or were launched with that intention but failed), organized by their planned destination. It includes planetary probes, solar probes, and probes to asteroids and comets, but excludes lunar missions, which are listed separately at Lunar proves and Apollo mission. Flybys (such as gravity assists) that were incidental to the main purpose of the mission are also included. Flybys of Earth are listed separately at Earth flybys. Confirmed future probes are included, but missions that are still at the concept stage, or which never progressed beyond the concept stage, are not.

Space probes are made to conduct science experiments. They do not have people on them. Space probes have helped scientists get information about our solar system. Most probes are not designed to return to Earth. Some have landed on other planets! Others have flown past the planets and taken pictures of them for scientists to see. There are even some space probes that go into orbit around other planets and study them for a long time. The information they gather is used to help us understand the weather and other changes which happen on planets other than the Earth. This information is important in helping to plan other space missions such as ones to Mars and to Saturn.

During the summer of 2003, NASA launched twin robotic rovers named Spirit and Opportunity. The rovers were launched approximately 3 weeks apart, but they had the same destination. Spirit and Opportunity were headed to Mars. The rovers landed in January of 2004 on different parts of the planet. They were sent to Mars to look for evidence of water. Each rover carried scientific instruments to help scientists explore the planet from Earth. The Earth-bound scientists tell the rovers where to go and what to examine. As the rovers move across the surface, they examine soil and rocks. This information is sent back to Earth. The rovers were built to last approximately 90 days. Spirit went silent on March 22, 2010. Opportunity is still working as of November 1, 2015! And they have found lots of evidence that water was once all over the surface of Mars!

The Cassini probe to Saturn was launched on October 15, 1997. It is the biggest and most expensive probe to ever visit another planet. The Cassini spacecraft went into orbit around Saturn in July 2004. It has studied the planet, its ring system, and many of its moons for more than ten years!

The New Horizons spacecraft was launched in 2006, and flew past Pluto in the summer of 2015. It was the first spacecraft to visit that dwarf planet, and is now moving farther away from our Sun to explore more distant objects for the first time.

The first human being to leave the confines of a spacecraft and take a “walk” in space was the Soviet cosmonaut Alexei Leonov. He crawled through the airlock of Voskhod 2 in 1965 and was so overwhelmed by the view that he shouted out the first words he could think of: “The Earth is round!” During his twenty minutes in space, Leonov’s spacesuit expanded, due to the lack of pressure, and he was barely able to fit back in the airlock.

Selected alongside Yuri Gagarin among the first 20 Soviet Air Force pilots to train as cosmonauts in 1960, Leonov flew twice into space, logging a total of 7 days and 32 minutes off the planet.

Launched on Voskhod 2, the world’s 17th human spaceflight, on March 18, 1965, Leonov made history as the first person to exit his spacecraft for an extravehicular activity (EVA).

“The Earth is round!” he exclaimed, as he caught his first view of the world. “Stars were to my left, right, above and below me. The light of the sun was very intense and I felt its warmth on the part of my face that was not protected by a filter,” said Leonov in a 2015 interview with the Fédération Aeronautique Internationale (FAI) on the 50th anniversary of his spacewalk.

After several minutes outside, his spacesuit ballooned, making it very difficult for him to maneuver. His crewmate, Pavel Belayev, unable to do anything to assist, Leonov made the decision to release air from his suit in order to be able to re-enter his capsule. “I decided to drop the pressure inside the suit … knowing all the while that I would reach the threshold of nitrogen boiling in my blood, but I had no choice,” Leonov told the FAI, the world governing body that certifies aviation and space records.

Ultimately, Leonov made it safely back inside after 12 minutes and 9 seconds floating outside his spacecraft. He and Belyayev returned to Earth the next day on March 19, 1965, having shown it was possible for a human to survive working in the vacuum in space.

Because astronauts can be in their spacesuits for up to seven hours, they need water to avoid dehydration. Spacesuits are equipped with the In-suit Drink Bag (IDB), a plastic pouch connected to the inside of the suit’s torso. It can hold nearly 2 litres (32oz) of water that can be accessed via a straw. The helmet also has a slot for rice-paper-covered fruit and a cereal bar, should the astronaut get hungry.

There is a slot in the hard upper torso (HUT) portion of the EMU for a rice paper-covered fruit and cereal bar. The bar is designed so that the astronaut can take a bite and pull the remainder up. The entire bar must be eaten at once to prevent crumbs from floating within the helmet. However, most astronauts prefer to eat prior to the spacewalk and not use this bar.

The space suit has the In-suit Drink Bag (IDB), which is a plastic pouch mounted inside the HUT. The IDB can hold 32 ounces or 1.9 liters of water and has a small tube (straw) that fits up next to the astronaut’s mouth. The astronaut can move his/her head within the helmet and suck water through the tube.

Each spacewalking astronaut wears a large, absorbent diaper called a Maximum Absorption Garment (MAG) to collect urine and feces while in the space suit. The astronaut disposes the MAG when the spacewalk is over and he/she gets dressed in regular work clothes.

Astronauts basically do the same thing when they go to space shuttle. Preparation varies with the food type. Some foods can be eaten in their natural forms, such as brownies and fruit. Other foods require adding water, such as macaroni and cheese or spaghetti. Of course, an oven is provided in the space station to heat foods to the proper temperature. There are no refrigerators in space, so space food must be stored and prepared properly to avoid spoilage, especially on longer missions.

Condiments, such as ketchup, mustard and mayonnaise, are provided. Salt and pepper are available but only in a liquid form. This is because astronauts can’t sprinkle salt and pepper on their food in space. The salt and pepper would simply float away. There is a danger they could clog air vents, contaminate equipment or get stuck in an astronaut’s eyes, mouth or nose.

Astronauts eat three meals a day: breakfast, lunch and dinner. Nutritionists ensure the food astronauts eat provides them with a balanced supply of vitamins and minerals. Calorie requirements differ for astronauts. For instance, a small woman would require only about 1,900 calories a day, while a large man would require about 3,200 calories. An astronaut can choose from many types of foods such as fruits, nuts, peanut butter, chicken, beef, seafood, candy, brownies, etc. Available drinks include coffee, tea, orange juice, fruit punches and lemonade.

Moving around in space is much like trying to move underwater. Wearing a large suit makes movement even more difficult, and when time is short, an astronaut must be able to move quickly. The Manned Maneuvering Unit was specially designed to allow astronauts to move swiftly and safely through space. The MMU is like an armchair with small thrusters attached. It is operated by a hand control similar to those used in computer games.

The manned maneuvering unit (MMU) is a self-contained backpack with all the necessary systems to enable the extravehicular activity (EVA) astronaut to fly free in space and reach work areas remote from the supporting spacecraft. An experimental MMU tested onboard the NASA Skylab Program orbital workshop established key piloting characteristics and capability base for future MMU systems. An operational MMU now exists for the Space Shuttle Program. This versatile mobility system has been flown on nine sorties and accumulated 10 hr and 22 min of flying time during three Space Shuttle missions. These Space Shuttle flights have demonstrated a capability for free space traverses up to 98 m (320 ft.), cargo transfer, and tracking, docking, stabilizing, and orienting large satellites. These and additional MMU capabilities will benefit the Space Station and its onboard payloads. First and foremost is the capability to rescue an EVA crewmember that might inadvertently separate from the Space Station. There will also be tasks at worksites inaccessible by other Space Station equipment and tasks where EVA time is critical. Many Space Station and payload assembly and inspection tasks will need MMU support. Significant Space Station mission flexibility is added by the MMU for backup and contingency roles. These Space Station roles will require a major upgrade to the Space Shuttle MMU design.

Movement in space is very difficult because if you push on something, you will move in the opposite direction. Astronauts on the Gemini missions complained that when they tried to use a spanner in space they spun in the opposite direction. Microgravity means that an astronaut is in danger of floating away mid-job, or losing a vital tool into outer space. To aid astronauts to move around outside, spacecraft are equipped with handles and special footholders into which feet can be locked.

When on a spacewalk, astronauts use safety tethers to stay close to their spacecraft. Tethers are like ropes. One end is hooked to the spacewalker. The other end is connected to the vehicle. The safety tethers keep astronauts from floating away into space. Astronauts also use tethers to keep tools from floating away. They tether their tools to their spacesuits.

Another way astronauts stay safe during spacewalks is by wearing a SAFER. SAFER stands for simplified Aid for EVA Rescue. SAFER is worn like a backpack. It uses small jet thrusters to let an astronaut move around in space. If an astronaut were to become untethered and float away, SAFER would help him or her fly back to the spacecraft. Astronauts control SAFER with a small joystick, like on a video game.

When astronauts go on spacewalks, they wear spacesuits to keep themselves safe. Inside spacesuits, astronauts have the oxygen they need to breathe. They have the water they need to drink. Astronauts put on their spacesuits several hours before a spacewalk. The suits are pressurized. This means that the suits are filled with oxygen.

Once in their suits, astronauts breathe pure oxygen for a few hours. Breathing only oxygen gets rid of all the nitrogen in an astronaut’s body. If they didn’t get rid of the nitrogen, the astronauts might get gas bubbles in their body when they walked in space. These gas bubbles can cause astronauts to feel pain in their shoulders, elbows, wrists and knees. This pain is called getting “the bends” because it affects the places where the body bends. Scuba divers can also get “the bends.”

Astronauts are now ready to get out of their spacecraft. They leave the spacecraft through a special door called an airlock. The airlock has two doors. When astronauts are inside the spacecraft, the airlock is airtight so no air can get out. When astronauts get ready to go on a spacewalk, they go through the first door and lock it tight behind them. They can then open the second door without any air getting out of the spacecraft. After a spacewalk, astronauts go back inside through the airlock.

Astronauts have to perform many different duties that involve leaving their spacecraft. The International Space Station, which is currently under construction, requires many adjustments that can only be done by trained personnel. Robotic equipment is used to put the components of the space station together, but much of the construction can only be done by hand. Astronauts also have to make repairs to complicated items such as the Hubble Space Telescope and damaged satellites.

Astronauts perform many tasks as they orbit Earth. The space station is designed to be a permanent orbiting research facility. Its major purpose is to perform world-class science and research that only a microgravity environment can provide. The station crew spends their day working on science experiments that require their input, as well as monitoring those that are controlled from the ground. They also take part in medical experiments to determine how well their bodies are adjusting to living in microgravity for long periods of time.

Working on the space station also means ensuring the maintenance and health of the orbiting platform. Crew members are constantly checking support systems and cleaning filters, updating computer equipment: doing many of the things homeowners must do to ensure their largest investment stays in good shape. Similarly, the Mission Control Center constantly monitors the space station and sends messages each day through voice or email with new instructions or plans to assist the crew members in their daily routines.

In the early days, the job description of an astronaut was basically that of being an observer – someone who would view and document what was happening. It didn’t take long for NASA to understand that human interaction would be required. These astronauts work with pilots to conduct experiments, launch satellites, and maintain spacecraft and equipment. Their background can be in engineering, science, or medicine. They can also work as astronaut educators, inspiring students to consider joining the US space program.

These astronauts serve as space shuttle and international space station pilots and commanders. They are responsible for the crew, the mission, the mission success and the safety of the flight. The Johnson Space Center provides a number of simulators and facilities to prepare the astronauts for their work in space, such as a neutral buoyancy simulator, which simulates weightlessness on earth, and a 200′ long and 40′ deep pool where astronauts train for spacewalks underwater.

When in orbit, most of the time is spent in the craft or space station. At times, a spacewalk is required to make repairs, or to deploy a satellite, and the astronaut must wear a space suit, or an EMU (extravehicular mobility unit) for protection. Most missions last two to three weeks, but long duration missions may run as long as half a year. Training for long duration missions is very arduous and takes approximately two to three years.