What is Nasa: Definition and 299 Discussions

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government responsible for the civilian space program, as well as aeronautics and space research.NASA was established in 1958, succeeding the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA). The new agency was to have a distinctly civilian orientation, encouraging peaceful applications in space science. Since its establishment, most US space exploration efforts have been led by NASA, including the Apollo Moon landing missions, the Skylab space station, and later the Space Shuttle. NASA is supporting the International Space Station and is overseeing the development of the Orion spacecraft, the Space Launch System, and Commercial Crew vehicles. The agency is also responsible for the Launch Services Program, which provides oversight of launch operations and countdown management for uncrewed NASA launches.
NASA's science is focused on better understanding Earth through the Earth Observing System; advancing heliophysics through the efforts of the Science Mission Directorate's Heliophysics Research Program; exploring bodies throughout the Solar System with advanced robotic spacecraft such as New Horizons; and researching astrophysics topics, such as the Big Bang, through the Great Observatories and associated programs.

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  1. A

    AirForce & NASA Connections: Job Prospects?

    After attending a 4 year university, I'm interested in joining the AirForce. The AirForce is connected with NASA, I'm assuming, and I was wondering if this would make it easier to get a job at NASA. Is this true?
  2. Aaronvan

    NASA NASA cancels Laser Interferometer Space Antenna

    Bad news: http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2011/04/06/nasa-gives-up-on-lisa/
  3. C

    IBM vs NASA Internship: Help Me Choose!

    I'm in a tough situation and need help. I have the amazing opportunity to choose between and internship at IBM and an internship at NASA this summer. I know I'm in an great situation and probably can't go wrong either way, but I would still like to make the best choice and not just wing it. I...
  4. D

    Question about recent NASA artical

    I have a question about a recent NASA article Titled http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/hubble/science/cosmic-expansion.html" . Is it safe to assume that when hypothesis talk about a low density bubble that they mean a density lower than expected? Meaning that they have taken into account...
  5. D H

    NASA NASA's job? Not research. It's landscaping and janitorial services

    The US Senate made a counterproposal to the budget cuts proposed by the House. From http://appropriations.senate.gov/news.cfm?method=news.view&id=7e62b4eb-ed09-4dd4-86f0-411534783127 At this level, NASA will not be provided any funds for requested but new long-range space technology research...
  6. mugaliens

    NASA Scientist claims to have found concrete evidence for extraterrestial life

    http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2011/03/05/exclusive-nasa-scientists-claims-evidence-alien-life-meteorite/". Snippet:
  7. E

    NASA NASA Scientist Claims Evidence of Alien Life on Meteorite

    http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2011/03/05/exclusive-nasa-scientists-claims-evidence-alien-life-meteorite/ When you consider the intergalactic scale and that there are something like 3x10^24 stars it seems so probable that life would exist--even in more complex forms. I heard that other labs...
  8. P

    Hiring Scientists for Research: Are Physicists Needed?

    No its not but why do they not hire physicists? All the jobs are for engineers and astrobiologists. Don't they need scientists for research? For like the Hubble telescope or the new James Webb telescope? If I'm wrong tell me but I was just doing research and found no info on it.
  9. F

    What changes has Obama made to NASA?

    So I'm confused. I understand that the Shuttle Program is coming to an end, which was expected. I'm a high schooler who really wants to become an astronaut, (I know, I'm silly) but I'm not exactly understanding what Obama has done to NASA, so could someone please elaborate? Are the Ares I and V...
  10. F

    MIT Grades, NASA & Your Future

    Hello guys, I have a few Q's So I'm a sophomore in high school and I'm seriously thinking about my future, just like I have been for the past 4 years. I really want to get into a good college to study math or physics. My problem is that I got a 'C+' in my Honors US History class. I hate to...
  11. N

    NASA NASA Photos: Global Eruption Rocks the Sun

    "Dec. 13, 2010: On August 1, 2010, an entire hemisphere of the sun erupted. Filaments of magnetism snapped and exploded, shock waves raced across the stellar surface, billion-ton clouds of hot gas billowed into space. Astronomers knew they had witnessed something big. It was so big, it may...
  12. Simfish

    NASA discovers new lifeform with totally different DNA than anything else

    http://gizmodo.com/5704158/nasa-finds-new-life This might EASILY be the most amazing discovery in several decades, if not a century. Seriously, could anyone's theory have anticipated this discovery? EDIT: Okay it might not be independently evolved from other lifeforms (gizmodo article was too...
  13. chemisttree

    NASA NASA Sets News Conference on Astrobiology Discovery

    The LGM hunters have something to say! http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2010/nov/HQ_M10-167_Astrobiology.html
  14. chemisttree

    NASA Sets News Conference on Astrobiology Discovery

    Pay attention on Thursday at 2pm ET! http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2010/nov/HQ_M10-167_Astrobiology.html
  15. chemisttree

    NASA Has NASA Discovered Evidence for Extraterresterial Life?

    All the buzz is that NASA has found out something important. http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2010/nov/HQ_M10-167_Astrobiology.html
  16. B

    NASA NASA'S Fermi Telescope Discovers Giant Structure In Our Galaxy

    Sorry if someone already posted this link but did anyone see this in the news? http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2010/nov/HQ_10-295_FERMI.html What are people's opinions on what this might be?
  17. J

    Would I work for NASA as an astronaut with a course in Aerospace Engineering?

    Hey, I'm interested in studying Aerospace Engineering when I leave high school. I have still 2 more years to go before I leave, but I'm really interested in space exploration, rockets, etc. The ultimate goal would be to work for NASA as an astronaut. At this moment, I'm taking Physics, Maths...
  18. L

    NASA Are NASA's Satellite Images Showing UFOs or Natural Phenomena?

    THeres probably an explanation for these, but the forum I discussed it on is a music forum so people are presuming UFO's/ExtraTerr Check this link out http://www.flashearth.com/?lat=38.643836 Its supposedly NASA's daily satellite images of the Earths surface now zoom in on thick clouds and...
  19. Simfish

    Is it common for astrophysicists to work at NASA?

    The popular perception certainly thinks so. When I tell people that I'm into astrophysics and they ask what I want to go into, they often ask if I want to go into NASA. But I don't see NASA as a common profession for astrophysicists (it's really the planetary scientists/earth scientists who...
  20. T

    NASA Explanation needed: unknown objects orbiting our sun in NASA images

    Greetings, I've stumbled upon some peculiar images of our sun that appear to have extremely large objects in orbit which don't appear to be planets. The images are from the following NASA database. Each image is taken every ~10 minutes...
  21. F

    NASA Mars Now - Third Alternative To NASAs Mars Who Knows When Program

    Mars Now -- Third Alternative To NASAs Mars "Who Knows When" Program My main objective, using current state of technology, is to safely get men and women to Mars and back to Earth without having to utter the phrase "People Will Certainly Die" as NASA does. To achieve this I would freeze all of...
  22. G

    NASA Is an Engineering Educational background required for NASA Astronauts?

    Hi I will be attending University in the fall to obtain a B.A degree in Astrophysics. Ever since I was little, I've wanted to be an Astronaut and have loved space, and obviously, still do. However, I'm a bit worried, it seems that every Astronaut has an engineering College Education...
  23. M

    NASA NASA SDO Satellite Captures Solar Eruption VIDEO

    More goodies from NASA. This time around they've been able to capture some remarkable high-resolution photos of the Sun. They also got footage of the Solar Prominence Eruption on March 30, 2010. http://edition.cnn.com/2010/US/04/21/solar.observatory.images/
  24. C

    Egg Launch and Recover-I need NASA level help

    Egg Launch and Recover--I need NASA level help! Homework Statement Another variation on the classic Egg Launch and Egg Drop Science projects, only this 9th grade science teacher believes in upping the ante. Goals are to launch a raw egg, achieving at least 30 feet of vertical height, using...
  25. B

    What are the career possibilities at NASA for a PhD/MD?

    Hi Everyone, I'm about to graduate from college with a BA in physics (basically BS but missing a couple of classes) and as I am waiting to hear back from physics grad schools (MS) I wanted to see if I could get some input about what kinds of work one can do with NASA. I've done the whole...
  26. O

    Career in NASA for International students

    Hey all..what are the career options for international students/expereinced persons in NASA... wish to join this premier organisation...i hve done masters in physics and a thesis on nuclear physics as well..after tht now i have a expereince of 2 years as a software engineer in an IT company...
  27. A

    What careers are used in NASA?

    I was thinking in mechanical engineering or mechatronic engineering, i really want to build things and love physics and math. I only left 4 months to choose career, some lights please.
  28. cronxeh

    NASA finds shrimp dinner on ice beneath Antarctica

    I am not sure if this was posted, or even if it belongs in Biology forum, but I found this a bit hinky Is it plausible the sample was contaminated? What are the odds of 2 life forms being in such a remote location and with no food to sustain themselves...
  29. Aquafire

    NASA Help NASA return to the Moon : Sign the Petition.

    As most of us know, President Obama intends to cut NASA's funding to such an extent that the Constellation project is going to be cancelled. What is implicated in this decision is the fact that it will leave the USA without any space vehicle of any kind to get into space. This means the...
  30. edpell

    NASA NASA reluctance to use centrifugal acceleration

    I do not know which forum to place this in so it is here Why has NASA so completely resisted ever experimenting with rotation in space to provide "artificial gravity" to mitigate the effects of weightlessness on humans?
  31. F

    NASA NASA - The Political/Semi-Science Organization

    NASA -- The Political/Semi-Science Organization Hi, I have these thoughts about NASA. They Have a disrespect for life The flew the Space Shuttle when they were warned not .. twice killing all on board Suddenly, they are trying to get to Moon but are using old Apollo technology because...
  32. BobG

    NASA NASA Scientists Plan to Approach Girl

    NASA Scientists Plan to Approach Girl by 2018. Film at 11 (or right below) http://www.theonion.com/content/video/nasa_scientists_plan_to_approach?utm_source=slate_rss_1 Best of all, her eyes are the color of Magnesium Iron Silicate.
  33. mugaliens

    NASA BushObama unveils NASA expansion plan

    http://www.cnn.com/2004/TECH/space/01/14/bush.space/" : "President Bush Wednesday [January 14, 2004] unveiled an ambitious plan to return Americans to the moon by 2020 and use the mission as a steppingstone for future manned trips to Mars and beyond."...
  34. D H

    NASA Obama Backs New Launcher and Bigger NASA Budget

    “President Barack Obama will ask Congress next year to fund a new heavy-lift launcher to take humans to the moon, asteroids, and the moons of Mars, ScienceInsider has learned. The president chose the new direction for the U.S. human space flight program Wednesday at a White House meeting with...
  35. M

    NASA Nasa needs help with crackpots

    Nasa has decided to weigh in as part of Sony's publicity machine for their new movie. They have a page attempting to dissuade people that 2012 isn't the end of the world. http://www.nasa.gov/topics/earth/features/2012.html Not sure if Nasa is being ironic here (now that would be a major...
  36. J

    NASA Jupiter sounds (so strange) NASA-Voyager recording

    Is this real stuff? My first reaction was that that must be fake. Somebody just composed some sounds effects, and is making fun of astronomy. I didn't succeed in finding any debunking for that though, from the internet, yet. Then I found this NASA site...
  37. B

    Internship at JPL for NASA: What to Expect and How to Prepare?

    I am going to be applying for an internship at JPL for NASA (Undergraduate Student Research Program). Does anyone know anything about this? I've talked to a robotics engineer at JPL and he says any internship program is good, along with the Space Grant program. I guess I'm wondering...
  38. J

    NASA The Future of NASA: What Changes Will the Augustine Commission Make?

    I am wondering what you guys think the future of NASA is going to be, what changes do you think the Augustine commission will make? Are we going to the moon as planned, skipping the moon and heading straight for mars, or are we going to just focus on the space station?
  39. J

    Guarenteed to qualify for being physicist in NASA (salary at least $90000)

    Hello guys, I am going into U.S. Navy next year, and I am signed up in Nuclear Power Program (Nuclear Physics) thing in the Navy. Then, I will also get a bachelor's degree in the Navy while aboard a ship, and after all that six years, I can stay in Navy, and go for the PhD for physics, so...
  40. J

    NASA Buzz aldrin posing, NASA artists?

    I've noticed that there are (at least) two kind of photos of the famous Buzz Aldrin posing. and Other one is more gray, and other one has greater contrast with darker boundaries. What's the story behind this difference? I don't have a link now, but I recall I once read somewhere that the...
  41. R

    NASA NASA Tech Briefs Magazine for free to Engineers

    Hello guys, allow me to share to you a free magazine from NASA Tech Briefs. I can't believe it's free. Its really cool, they send me the first copy of my free monthly subscription. The magazine was offered free by Associated Business Publications International to USA, Canada, Mexico, and some...
  42. Borek

    NASA NASA sticking to pounds & inches

    http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn17350-nasa-criticised-for-sticking-to-imperial-units.html
  43. L

    Lenticular Galaxy - Formula for Probable Location of Stars

    I bought a nexstar 114gt a few months ago, and I have been unable to use the auto align features, which would allow me to use the tracking and goto features on the telescope. I am not certain if the telescope itself is flawed, or if I am simply doing something wrong. I sent two emails to...
  44. Mordred

    NASA Is Mars Home to a Fungus and the Center of a NASA Lawsuit?!

    Roflmao this article is too hilarious not to share. http://www.space.com/24529-mars-mystery-rock-nasa-lawsuit.html
  45. D

    Are NASA engineering salaries competitive in the current job market?

    I am really interested in NASA, but after doing a little research on starting salaries I quickly became concerned. If this website is correct (http://nasajobs.nasa.gov/jobs/entrypay.htm ), NASA starting salaries are almost half of what I am expecting from my other potential offers. Before...
  46. D H

    NASA NASA planetary science budget woes

    This is from last week (I was on vacation and then I worked like a dog to make up for the vacation): Nature news article on the subject: http://www.nature.com/news/nasa-funding-shuffle-alarms-planetary-scientists-1.14304 Eric Berger on the subject...
  47. AdrianHudson

    NASA NASA planning to develop warpdrive?

    http://spaceref.com/nasa-hack-space/propulsion/clarifying-nasas-warp-drive-program.html I don't know how good the source is and the issue date is suspect but could NASA really be on the road to developing something like this? They mention that $50k has been put into the program but if something...
  48. K

    Aspiring Astronaut: How To Reach Your Goal of Working at NASA

    I am an aspiring astronaut want to go in International Space Station also want to work in nasa. I am a 16 year old guy from India...will complete studies till 20... I want to know what are the criterion for reaching my goal, has all the qualities which an aspirant should have.. just need a...
  49. edpell

    NASA SLS NASA 18 Billion for first two launches

    Is 18 billion dollars for the first two launches of the SLS a good buy? It seems NASA could buy the same weight to orbit today from Space-X for about 0.6 billion dollars. Why not just use the existing provider?
  50. N

    NASA JPL Graduate Fellowship Program

    Has anyone here had any experience with the NASA JPL Graduate Fellowship Program? I am interested in applying for it, and was wondering how competitive it may be, or what the chances of getting it were. Does it depend on which lab you want to join? I am also a Canadian citizen attending a...
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