Storms start to move out of Minnesota, continue for western Wisconsin

MPR News helps you turn down the noise and build shared understanding. Turn up your support for this public resource and keep trusted journalism accessible to all. 

Turn Up Your Support

December marks 43 years since the last Apollo mission to the moon, the last time humans walked upon another world. Since then we have repeatedly sent humans into low Earth orbit on the space shuttles and Soyuz capsules. 

All the while, we were periodically pitching probes off into the darkness on long journeys to destinations far flung and some not so far. In 2015 many of our proxy explorers reached their destinations across the solar system, at dwarf planets, icy moons and even a comet. 

Read Part 2 of your year-end reading list here

After four years in orbit, the Messenger probe took a final journey into the surface of Mercury at more than 8,700 mph after its fuel ran out. 

Project Apollo Archive opens access to previously unreleased images

NASA made available more than 14,000 images from Apollo missions that the agency undertook as it tested systems for its eventual moon landing. The images provide a candid view of the very human endeavor that is space travel.  Making the archive available in this manner invited members of the public to put the images to creative use, and the results are spectacular. 

The Aqua Earth-observing satellite, launched in 2002, kept a close eye on fires around the world in 2015. 

NASA announced the detection of briny flowing water on the surface of Mars. 

The Cassini probe, launched in 1997, spent 2015 in an intricate choreography with the moons of Saturn. 

The probe took a new high-resolution image of 


Cassini managed to line Tethys up as a backdrop for Enceladus, as it made a 

William Lager

Author

From Mercury to Pluto, a year-end look at our exploration of our solar system with some historical gems that recently came to light.

NASA

NASA | Project Apollo Archive

courtesy of NASA | Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Rapid Response Team

NASA| JPL-Caltech | University of Arizona

NASA | JPL | SSI

Saturn's moon Enceladus passing before Tethys

NASA | JPL-Caltech | Space Science Institute

I was looking through the Project Apollo Archive (https://www.flickr.com/photos/projectapolloarchive/) and at one point, I began clicking through a series of pics quickly and it looked like stop motion animation.  So, I decided to see what that would look like without me having to click through it.  Enjoy!


Music:

Lift Motif by Kevin MacLeod found at Free Music Archive (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Kevin_MacLeod/Classical_Sampler/Lift_Motif).  CC license:  http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Start Start by Built By Snow.  You can find the song feature in this video here (free!):  http://www.builtbysnow.com/ and be sure to check out JP's page here:  http://velcrowolf.com/

Where we go: Part 1 of your year-end reading list

Go Deeper.

Like this?