Those are among the abundant myths and misconceptions related to NASA and the space program that continue to persist.
NASA rarely gets around to debunking them, however, except in cases where “it impacts activities” of the space agency, said Roger Launius, a former chief historian of NASA.
It’s true that NASA has a database of more than 2,000 spinoffs or commercialized products and services that have been developed with the help of the space agency. Life-saving heart pumps, specialized workout clothes and solar refrigerators that can keep vaccines cool in Africa have all emerged from the space program.
Common NASA space myths
It may have been known as the drink of astronauts, but it was not invented for the space program. Created by General Foods in 1957, it gained in popularity after being selected to accompany John Glenn on his orbital flight in 1962.
Developed by DuPont in 1938, long before NASA and space were a thing. It subsequently was used by NASA for spacesuits, heat shields and other materials involved with space missions.
Invented by Swiss engineer George de Mestral in the 1940s, it became popular after it was used during the Apollo missions to anchor equipment for astronauts’ convenience in near-zero gravity situations, according to NASA.
But Tang, Teflon and Velcro — widely used in space for decades — did not originate in government labs.
The powdered Tang was developed by General Foods in 1957, but the product became a success — and popular with American families — after it was selected for orbital experiments performed by astronaut John Glenn in 1962.
Teflon was created by DuPont in 1938, but was used for heat shields, space suits and other space mission paraphernalia.
Velcro, invented by Swiss engineer George de Mestral in the 1940s, became popular after it was used during the Apollo missions to anchor equipment for astronauts’ convenience in near-zero gravity situations, according to NASA. It draws its name from a combination of the French words velour and crochet.
Space smarts
NASA enthusiasts also have contributed their grain of sand to the mythologies of space missions, sometimes attributing superintelligent or humanoid qualities to research equipment.
Although many people, for example, believe the Mars Rover robots are champions of Artificial Intelligence, the robots do not “employ state-of-the-art AI algorithms,” said Somdip Dey, an embedded Artificial Intelligence scientist at the University of Essex in Great Britain.
Dey said he learned the distinction while collaborating with the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory dedicated to robotic exploration of the solar system. AI algorithms require extensive energy consumption to be computed — something that would quickly put the rover out of action in outer space.
“On Mars, while exploring several large craters where sunlight might never reach, the rover has to commute and communicate in an optimized fashion with the least amount of external power source,” he said. “And having the state-of-the-art AI algorithm on such a robot would only drain the power source quicker.”
But that doesn’t mean the rover isn’t smart in its own way.
“Every ounce of the robot is optimized to perform the best at minimal cost,” he said. “So, next time, if you hear about Mars rover then be aware that it is the hard work and dedication of several intelligent researchers and engineers who had made that machine intelligent enough to do its job.”
Goodnight, Oppy
And then there’s the Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity.
The rover acquired some capabilities via software uploads from the Jet Propulsion Lab’s Artificial Intelligence Group, for example, to help it decide for itself whether to make additional observations of rocks, the agency reported.
And when the Rover Opportunity expired in February after 15 years of service, it became the latest saga of the NASA myths.
“My battery is low and it’s getting dark” was supposedly the last Rover Opportunity message from Mars before “dying,” according to some news reports.
The reports sparked viral posts on social media and widespread mourning, with people citing the poetic words on T-shirts around the world.
“You did great, sweetie,” some replied.
Except it wasn’t true. Oppy, with its long neck resembling a flightless bird with solar panel wings, could only speak in coded data — not in prose, as NASA has since said. The reporter who sparked the initial report later clarified that it was a translation of the data and was not a direct quote.
It finally died after its solar power source apparently became covered with dust, coming to rest in an area known as Perseverance Valley.
But it’s the source of one of the many NASA myths still alive.
https://www.houstonchronicle.com/local/space/mission-moon/article/From-the-absurd-to-the-poetic-NASA-is-fertile-13916210.php
2019-06-10 09:00:00Z
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