Lone American in space might vote for President from the International Space Station

NASA astronaut Kate Rubins might not make it home in time for the U.S. Presidential election in November, and could be voting from orbit.

Kate Rubins is unsure whether she will be able to get home to Earth in late October as was originally planned. Rubins is up on the ISS with two crewmates – one Russian and one Japanese astronaut – and is unable to return to Earth until the next crew arrives. Apparently NASA likes to have an overlap of several days if possible.

Reportedly the Russians have delayed the next launch of crew to the ISS due to technical reasons. A changeover was supposed to happen on Friday, but now it has been postponed for at least a month. For this reason, Rubins, the lone American up on the International Space Station, might have to vote from space. Luckily for Rubins, she requested an absentee ballot when she left Earth in July, just in case something went wrong. When she’s not orbiting the planet, home for the female NASA astronaut is Houston, Texas.

Rubin made the news recently by wearing a colorful space suit on the ISS, designed by cancer patient kids. The kids are patients at M.D. Anderson Cancer Centre in Houston and they got the chance to talk to Flight Engineer Rubin life on the International Space Station. The young patients all took part in the U.S. Space Suit Art Project to design three space suits, dubbed Hope, Courage and Unity, over the past year. Reportedly the idea behind the project is to raise awareness about the benefits of pairing art and medicine.

Rubin said the project really inspired her. She said it was an amazing opportunity to get to paint with the children and that she remembers seeing the suit when it was just a blank canvas. It turns out Rubins has a degree in cancer biology and wore the Courage suit during their conversation between Earth and the ISS. 



Photo: Screengrab via YouTube
Source: NY Daily News

Gorilla attack on the International Space Station (is Scott Kelly having fun yet?) [Video]

There was fun afoot on the International Space Station recently when Scott Kelly dressed up like a gorilla and chased a fellow astronaut around.

Commander Scott Kelly is close to the end of his year in space mission on the International Space Station and he has obviously decided to have some fun before he heads home. He got his twin brother, Mark Kelly, to send up a gorilla suit in a care package. 

In the video posted by his brother Mark on Twitter, we can see Scott emerging from a white box in the middle of the ISS and, accompanied by lively music, chases British astronaut Tim Peake around on the space station in zero gravity conditions. Mark's Twitter version had the Benny Hills theme, but it won't play on all browsers.
Watch the fun below.

Scott is scheduled to return home to Earth in March after spending one year in space. NASA is hoping his mission will allow them to measure the effects of long-term space travel on astronauts.

Besides the gorilla stunt, Scott has done some pretty important work up on the ISS including entertaining videos, incredible images of Earth from the ISS as well as the first zinnia flowers to bloom in space, paving the way to successfully farm food off planet.

He also played water ping pong for our entertainment, watched the Super Bowl both on TV and from a huge distance through the ISS window, and he and his fellow astronauts paid a touching tribute to David Bowie from up in the stars.

Earthlapse: Timelapse video of Earth ... from space

While the music could maybe be a bit more dramatic than mere house music, this timelapse video is absolutely stunning.  

It was created from photos taken by ESA astronaut Alexander Gerst while orbiting Earth on the International Space Station.

The video was created in Ultra High Definition - the highest available, so if you have the bandwidth, for full effect don't forget to change your settings on the YouTube video while watching...




According to the description on YouTube, basically this time lapse video is a sequence of still photos, taken at a resolution of 4256 x 2832 pixels at a rate of one every second. The high resolution allowed the ESA production team to create a 3840 x 2160 pixel movie, also known as Ultra HD or 4K.

The artistic effects of the light trails from stars and cities at night are created by superimposing the individual images and fading them out slowly.

Alexander Gerst is a member of the International Space Station Expedition 40 crew. He is spending five and a half months living and working on the ISS for his Blue Dot mission.

Some of the odd and quirkier 2014 FIFA World Cup news

Various unusual, and not always strictly sport related, stories have come out of the ongoing 2014 FIFA World Cup, and here are a selection of them below for your fun and edication ...

US astronauts on ISS lose World Cup bet, then hair (Video)

It is not only those of us down on the ground who are keeping tabs on the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Astronauts on the International Space Station are also caught up in the football craziness, it seems. United States astronauts Reid Wiseman and Steve Swanson and German astronaut Alexander Gerst were cheering on their teams and following their progress in the World Cup. Then it was time for the match between the US and Germany and that is when the fun really began.... read more

Report: Brazilian sniper asked permission to shoot at World Cup opening

São Paulo law enforcement authorities said Friday that during the opening game of the World Cup in that city, a police sniper asked permission to open fire. He had reportedly seen an armed man approaching Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff and other officials.There were more than 60,000 spectators in the Itaquerao Stadium on June 12, waiting to watch the first World Cup match. When the sniper saw the armed man approaching President Rousseff and other officials, he became concerned and asked for permission to shoot.... read more

Austrian restaurant builds realistic 'favela' for World Cup viewing

When people imagine Brazil, they think parties, sandy beaches, gorgeous weather, but for tens of millions of ordinary Brazilian people, the situation is far different. To bring awareness to their plight, a Graz man has built a realistic "favela" (the Brazilian word for slum) in his café for his clients to watch the World Cup. Tens of millions of Brazilians survive on less than the cost of a cup of coffee per day and Gernot Saiko, owner of Café Luise im Kunsthaus, decided it was time to bring peoples' attention to the incongruity of supporting a country that spends almost $14 billion on a sporting event, while around 22 million of its poorer inhabitants have less than $1.60 per day... read more

Baby elephants want to play in the World Cup, too (Video)

Orphaned baby elephants at the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust in the Nairobi National Park in Kenya also love "the beautiful game," it seems, and according to Julius Letoiya, staff keeper at the facility, they even have a few football tricks up their sleeve.Barcroft TV, who published the above video, cleverly describes them as "Pele-phants" as they enjoy their playtime, kicking the ball around and using back-heel tricks in an attempt to slow the game down. Apparently, they had a visit from a superstar from Manchester City last year, and midfielder Yaya Toure gave them a few tips... read more

The Brazilian World Cup mascot needs our help

The mascot for the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil is a three-banded armadillo, which was the perfect choice, as this fascinating little critter is able to roll itself into a ball when it feels threatened.  And threatened it is, indeed. The tatu-bola or ball armadillo, as it is known locally, is in some serious trouble, as it only exists in small, isolated populations in Brazil and is currently on the very edge of extinction... read more 

 

 

Pubs to lose money as Spain crashes out of FIFA World Cup

According to a study run in the country by a price comparison website, it is not only the football-crazy fans that will lose out as Spain was beaten by Chile in the FIFA World Cup. Shops, bars and restaurants are set to lose out too. Kelisto.es, a price comparison website, reckons that the country's retail industry is set to lose out on a whopping 600 million euros ($818 million) as Spain loses against Chile and returns home in shame ... read more

Purin the Super Beagle has World Cup footballing talent (Video)

As many of our favorite teams let us down during the 2014 FIFA World Cup, it is interesting to note that a football-crazy dog in Japan could actually show these guys a move or two. This eight-year-old, football-crazy pooch has been named "Purin the Super Beagle" and her favorite hobby is playing ball in her local park in Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan. With her spectacular ball skills, Purin is rapidly becoming an international hit during the World Cup, currently running in Brazil and it certainly looks like she could show both the UK and Spain a trick or two.. read more