In this time-lapse from Babak Tafreshi, the mirrors of the MAGIC telescope array in La Palma, one of Spain's Canary Islands, collect light created by energetic cosmic gamma rays that can't penetrate our atmosphere. Their brief flashes are called Cherenkov light. The observatory complex is on the top of a massive volcanic caldera, benefiting from exceptionally clear and dark skies. Music by composer Barbad Bayat, from our growing project Celestial Orchestra. Explore more @babaktafreshi. #twanight#astronomy#science#exploration
Fact ! 🤣😅 But the good thing is I am now ready to share lots of remaining material from the mission, and to document the next steps of the journey!! We need some positive news… It’s hard, though, to find the time to share my adventures on social media, entirely by myself and on top of work hours… but hey no one said being an astronaut was going to be easy. Just out of curiosity… would anyone be willing to help? 😉
Heureusement j’ai plein de photos/vidéos restantes (y compris les coulisses 😉😇), et après un peu de repos les nouvelles étapes vont reprendre qui m’emmèneront je l’espère une nouvelle fois dans l’espace ! Pas facile en ce moment de conjuguer travail intense, un peu de repos et de temps pour les miens, et le partage de mes aventures sur les réseaux sociaux… surtout tout seul ! Juste par curiosité : il y en a qui seraient prêts à me donner un coup de main ? 😇😉🙃
#astronaut#esa#nasa#iss#space#exploration#earth#flight#spaceflight#science#technology#environment#climatechange#france#cnes#jaxa#csa#roscosmos#cosmos#explore#train#fitness#goals
Into the deep 🤿 At the bottom of a very dark swimming pool, divers are getting ready for missions to the Moon. Take a look at this a recent test in the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory at @NASAJohnson. In this lab is where astronauts train for spacewalks, and soon, moonwalks. @NASAAstronauts are no strangers to extreme environments. We best prepare them by exposing them to training environments here on Earth that simulate the 1/6th gravity, suit mobility, lighting and lunar terrain they'll expect to see on a mission to the Moon. When astronauts go to the Moon’s South Pole through @NASAArtemis program, the Sun will only be a few degrees over the horizon, creating long, dark shadows. To recreate this environment, divers at the lab turned off the lights, put up black curtains on the pool walls to minimize reflection, and used powerful underwater lamps to simulate the environment astronauts might experience on lunar missions. The sand at the bottom is common pool filter sand with some other specialized combinations in the mix. This was a test with divers in SCUBA gear to get the lighting conditions right, but soon, NASA plans to conduct tests in this low-light environment using spacesuits. Credit: NASA
#NASA#Science#Moonwalker#UnderwaterAesthetic#Simulation#Exploration#Lights#LowLightPhotography
La période se prête à regarder l’année écoulée dans le rétroviseur et à en faire le bilan, ce qui est toujours un exercice délicat. Il y a eu comme pour tout le monde des hauts et des bas, des joies intenses et des peines qui ne l’étaient pas moins, des objectifs à atteindre et énormément de travail pour y arriver, des obstacles aussi. Je finis l’année avec des souvenirs incroyables de ma mission et des images inoubliables plein la tête, mais le plus important c’est sans doute qu’aujourd’hui il m’arrive de rencontrer des gens qui disent « si je me suis lancé [dans la sélection d’astronaute, ou dans des études difficiles, ou pour essayer de réaliser mon rêve, etc.] c’est un peu grâce à vous ». Au moins pour ça, et si tant est que ma mission ait amené un peu de rêve et d’évasion, 2021 aura été un succès. Évidemment il reste TELLEMENT à faire sur la planète et ailleurs, alors maintenant au boulot pour la suite en 2022 et au-delà !
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2021 was by any standard a very challenging year, there were bumps in the road, but the year turned out to be amazing for many reasons. Prepping for a space mission in times of COVID required tons of effort from everyone to keep us safe, and executing the mission came with quite a few challenges. When you go to space, expect the unexpected! We had the best crew and faced adversity side-by-side. It was hard to be separated from those we treasure for so long, but I am thankful for all the love we received along the way. To anyone who helped make the mission a success: I am grateful and I feel indebted to you. For those who followed along on social media: thanks for the energy you gave us! I feel like I’ve learned new things and received so much and I’ve had opportunities to grow, so thank you. Of course the work will not end with 2021 and I promise there’s a lot left to look forward to in 2022 and beyond… I can’t wait!
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#bye2021#aurevoir2021#bonjour2022#nouvelan#nouvelan2022#grid#newyear#happynewyear#2021#2022#MissionAlpha#space#esa#europeanspaceagency#spacecraft#iss#nasa#astronaut#astronautlife@astro_kimbrough@astro.megan@novitskiy_iss@anton_astrey#spaceflight#thomaspesquet#espace#exploration#cosmos#earth
De retour aux États-Unis pour de longues séances de debriefings : on fait le bilan de la mission avec les très nombreuses équipes qui nous ont formés et accompagnés, afin d'améliorer encore les futures missions. On passe quelques semaines dans le bâtiment de quarantaine des astronautes, c'est notre fief quand on rentre de mission : il y a des chambres, des salles de réunions, une cuisine, des équipements de soin pour surveiller notre santé, une salle de sport (et évidemment des experts qui sont là pour nous aider)... bref tout ce dont on a besoin pour se réadapter à la vie sur Terre en sécurité, tout en travaillant le plus efficacement possible. Le plus dur étant probablement de se réhabituer aux réunions
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Back in Houston, Texas, for @nasa debrief sessions: the point is to reinforce what went well, and discuss what could be better... with the numerous teams of experts involved in a space mission. It takes some time but it's a hugely valuable exercise! @nasajohnson has an astronaut quarantine/return facility, which is our kingdom for a few weeks when we're back from space: bedrooms, meeting rooms, a kitchen, medical facilities etc. All you need to readapt to life on Earth and do a good job (while being taken care of medically). Yes re-adapting to meetings is a thing too 😄
#MondayMotivation#meeting#meetingmonday#debrief#debriefing#MissionAlpha#space#esa#europeanspaceagency#spacecraft#iss#nasa#astronaut#astronautlife@astro_kimbrough@astro.megan@novitskiy_iss@anton_astrey@jaxajp@europeanspaceagency@cnes_france@roscosmosofficial@canadianspaceagency@agencespatialecanadienne@iss@spacex#spaceflight#thomaspesquet#CNES#espace#exploration