Category Archives: Video

Spacecraft 3D App (Augmented Reality)

Doug Ellison, of NASA JPL, gives a demo of the amazing Spacecraft 3D app. This free app allows you to explore 3D augmented reality imagery of the Mars Curiosity rover. The GRAIL spacecraft is also part of the current version of the app. Other spacecraft will be added over the coming months. NOTE: I clipped the video a few seconds BEFORE Doug starts talking about Spacecraft 3D… so first image is of another project. For full video of the MSL landing event see here.


Video streaming by Ustream

Download the app yourself, print out the target page and start exploring!

Maggie explores the Curiosity rover with 3D augmented reality!

For more about Mars Curiosity
On Twitter: Follow @MarsCuriosity and @NASAJPL
On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MarsCuriosity
Explore Mars Curiosity online

When Postcards are more than paper

This isn’t really science related, but it does help you to understand a little more about me! My friend and the ScienceOnline co-founder, Anton Zuiker, organized a narrative storytelling event that he called Talk Story. He asked me to tell the story of the postcards that I wrote to my mom during the last months of her life. Here is that story.

Mars Curiosity: 7 Minutes of Terror (or How to Land a Rover)

This video is amazing. For those who have been following the adventures and challenges of getting the Mars Science Lab (Curiosity) to Mars, this is the next big step. I was thrilled to watch the launch of Curiosity in November during a NASATweetup (see NASAsocial for info on how you can get inside NASA).

But there is more than a mission to Mars here. This video is a window to the science, creativity, problem-solving, and incredible human team (men AND women) who work at NASA — especially NASA JPL (Jet Propulsion Lab in Pasadena, CA).

Mark your calendars for Aug 5/6 (depending on which time zone you live in). The landing is anticipated at approximately 10:31 p.m. PDT Aug. 5 (1:31 a.m. EDT Aug. 6)

Curious to learn more? The Curiosity Mission page and Mars Science Lab website will get you started!

Alpaca Love (or, In Which I Have a Crush on a Camelid)

This is a slightly modified cross-post of one of my photo-journals from the NC Life and Science Museum’s Animal Keeper Blog (where I also blog).

Sherry Samuels and I recently visited the Carolina Alpaca Celebration to learn a bit about alpacas. Neither one of us really knew what to expect. We learned about their husbandry, their birthing needs, their food requirements, and just how many things you can make out of alpaca wool. I learned they are part of the camelid family (and yes, they can spit like camels and llamas, although I didn’t see one spit the whole day). But the best thing we learned is that THEY ARE DARN CUTE and THEY TALK TO YOU (well, sort of). In short, we like them. In fact, I even learned how to kiss an alpaca.

Isn't that an adorable face? We were surprised by the size of these camelids. They were smaller than we anticipated.

 

I told you I learned how to kiss an alpaca. This is "Overture" and he is one friendly alpaca.

 

This one looks like a hipster alpaca. There are two types of alpacas: Huacaya (wha-ky-a) and Suri. The Huacaya has the dense, fluffy fleece and the Suri has the dreadlocks look going on. Both types of fleece are extremely soft.

As soon as we walked into the building, we were greeted by the most surreal and sweet sound– an alpaca humming. They seem to talk to you, but in a quiet, hum.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2l6DZnnVpc[/youtube]