Bringing Fun To You

Six NASA astronauts who recently returned from space were honored before the start of a Baltimore Orioles baseball game April 29. Mission specialist Ricky Arnold, whose hometown is the nearby community of Bowie, Md., threw out the ceremonial first pitch before the Orioles-Angels game at Camden Yards. Arnold also presented the team with an Orioles jersey that flew to space with the STS-119 crew aboard space shuttle Discovery on its March mission to the International Space Station. Arnold is a former science teacher who conducted two spacewalks during his first spaceflight in March. Joining Arnold at the stadium was STS-119 Commander Lee Archambault, Pilot Tony Antonelli and Mission Specialists Joe Acaba, Steve Swanson, and John Phillips.

THE CREW OF STS-125 STS-125 is the final servicing mission (SM4) of NASAs Hubble Space Telescope. Led by commander and veteran astronaut Scott Altman, Atlantiss seven-member crew will install two new instruments, repair two inactive ones and perform the component replacements expected to keep the telescope operational through at least 2014. Five spacewalks are planned for the 11-day mission. Joining Altman on the flight will be Pilot Greg Johnson and Mission Specialists John Grunsfeld, Mike Massimino, Drew Feustel, Mike Good and Megan McArthur. Space shuttle Atlantis is targeted for launch on May 11, 2009

The seven STS-127 astronauts returned to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida in the early hours on Tuesday, June 9, for final preparations before Endeavours launch on Saturday, June 13. Space shuttle Endeavour will deliver the final components of Kibo to the station. The 16-day flight will include five spacewalks and the installation of two platforms outside of the Japanese module. Endeavour also will deliver a new crew member to the station. Tim Kopra will replace Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata, who has been aboard the orbiting laboratory for more than three months. Mark Polansky is Endeavours commander and Doug Hurley will serve as the pilot. The Mission Specialists are Chris Cassidy, Tom Marshburn, Dave Wolf, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Julie Payette.

The seven members of the STS-131 crew flew into NASAs Kennedy Space Center, Fla. April 1 for their upcoming mission to the International Space Station. Joining Commander Alan Poindexter on space shuttle Discoverys scheduled April 5 launch will be Pilot Jim Dutton, and Mission Specialists Rick Mastracchio, Stephanie Wilson, Dottie Metcalf-Lindenburger, Clay Anderson and Naoko Yamazaki of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. STS-131 mission will deliver a multi-purpose logistics module filled with science racks for use in the stations laboratories. STS-131 also will feature three spacewalks.

Impressionist Jon Culshaw visits fundraisers at Kellogg’s as Ross Kemp to see how they’ve been raising money for Comic Relief’s Red Nose Day. Donate to Comic Relief and help change lives at www.rednoseday.com

THE CREW OF STS-125 STS-125 is the final servicing mission (SM4) of NASAs Hubble Space Telescope. Led by commander and veteran astronaut Scott Altman, Atlantiss seven-member crew will install two new instruments, repair two inactive ones and perform the component replacements expected to keep the telescope operational through at least 2014. Five spacewalks are planned for the 11-day mission. Joining Altman on the flight will be Pilot Greg Johnson and Mission Specialists John Grunsfeld, Mike Massimino, Drew Feustel, Mike Good and Megan McArthur. Space shuttle Atlantis is targeted for launch on May 11, 2009

Boe, whose hometown is Atlanta, completed his first space flight as pilot on STS-126. Highlights of the almost 16-day mission included expanding the living quarters of the space station to eventually house 6 member crews by delivering a new bathroom, kitchenette, two bedrooms, an exercise machine, and a water recycling system, and included a total of four EVAs (spacewalks) by three members of the crew. STS-126 also delivered a new resident to the station, replacing Greg Chamitoff, Expedition 17-18 with Sandy Magnus, Expedition 18.

In this episode of NASA “Behind the Scenes,” astronaut Mike Massimino visits the Johnson Space Center’s Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory. The world’s largest indoor pool is where Al Drew, Tim Kopra, Mike Barratt and Nicole Stott of the STS-133 crew are practicing the mission’s planned spacewalks.

From outside their underwater laboratory in Florida, NASA Astronaut and NEEMO 16 Commander Dottie Metcalf-Lindenburger and European Space Agency astronaut Timothy Peake took a call from NASA Administrator Charlie Bolden on June 18. Bolden was speaking from the NASA TV studio at the agency’s headquarters in Washington, DC An international crew of four headed by Lindenburger has been performing spacewalks on the ocean floor to test concepts for future asteroid exploration as part of the 16th NASA Extreme Environments Mission Operations (NEEMO) mission. While living underwater in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Aquarius Underwater Laboratory off the coast of Key Largo, Fla., for 12 days, they’re scheduled to perform a total of 16 underwater spacewalks. The mission is investigating communication delays, restraint and translation techniques and optimum crew size for an asteroid mission.

Adelaide Hip Hop Dance Crew Pure Funk www.purefunk.com.au, perform @ Ausdance Christmas Showcase Dec 2009. The team is made up of students who have completed the advanced dance classes @ PURE FUNK. The team is available for Performances, Fundraisers and Competitions. Pure Funk runs courses from Kids to Advanced in a variety of styles, at two locations – The Atrium Lvl 3, Station Arcade, Nth Terrace Adelaide SA, and also @ Latin Dance Nation, Young Street Unley SA