10 Interesting Facts about NASA

NASA was established on July 29, 1958, by reorganizing the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics as part of the “space race” following the Soviet Union’s launch of the first artificial Earth satellite. Interesting facts about this organization are here:

1. Since 1968, NASA’s main space center, the Kennedy Space Center, has been based on Merritt Island in Florida. Only 9% of the spaceport’s area is used for its intended purpose, with the rest being a wildlife sanctuary.
2. NASA is structured as a large network of research laboratories and aerospace centers. Its main task is to coordinate NASA’s overall operations and oversee the development of four strategic directions: space exploration; Earth research; human operations; and the development of new technologies for future projects.
3. Cape Canaveral in Florida was chosen as the launch site due to its proximity to the equator, where Earth’s rotational speed is greatest. Launching rockets eastward from this location gains extra speed from Earth’s rotation. Additionally, having a sparsely populated area near the launch site is desirable in case of accidents, making the Atlantic Ocean an ideal choice.
4. In 1995, a pair of woodpeckers caused significant damage to NASA by drilling numerous holes in the insulation of the Discovery shuttle’s fuel tank, forcing a two-month launch delay.
5. In 2006, NASA admitted to accidentally erasing the original audio recording made during the moon landing. Fortunately, it was not the only recording.
6. In 2012, NASA released an audio recording titled “Earthsong,” produced by Earth itself. The recording was made by two NASA spacecraft studying Earth’s radiation belts. The sounds are the result of an electromagnetic phenomenon caused by plasma waves in the planet’s radiation belt.
7. During preparations for lunar missions, no insurance company would insure astronauts’ lives due to the high risks. To compensate for potential costs to the astronauts’ families, NASA produced special postcards signed by the crew before launch. If an astronaut died, their family could sell the postcards to collectors at a high price. However, all lunar missions from Apollo 11 to Apollo 16 were carried out without fatalities.
8. As part of personnel training, NASA shows them the movie “Armageddon” and then asks them to list as many scientific inaccuracies as they noticed.
9. Images and videos obtained by NASA and its divisions, including those from numerous telescopes and interferometers, are published as public domain and can be freely copied.
10. Since 2016, NASA astronauts have been trained in the Russian language.

NASA’s activities are often criticized by experts. The harshest criticism came after the Challenger and Columbia space shuttle disasters, accusing NASA of neglecting astronauts’ lives. NASA is also criticized for what some experts view as short-sighted policies.