This Week's Messier Moments: Space Race
This week we're inspired by NASA's asteroid-hunter coming home.
Hi all,
I pre-scheduled this message on Sunday (your yesterday) because I’ll be taking Monday off to observe Yom Kippur. When I was younger I didn’t like the holiday because it seemed like a guiltfest piling on to a tradition that already felt too drenched in guilt. But as I’ve gotten older I appreciate the opportunity to slow down, reflect, and think about how I could be better to the people and natural world around me. The period between Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year) and Yom Kippur (the Day of Atonement) is known as the Days of Awe.
In the spirit of awe, this week we’ll focus on something awe-inspiring: NASA’s four billion mile roundtrip journey to an asteroid and back — with a precious half-pound payload of asteroid rock. Here are three Moments for you to sprinkle throughout your week:
DIVERGENT THINKING: What are all the most surprising things that could be found in the payload of asteroid rock? What are the most surprising discoveries it could unlock? Spend 5-10 minutes writing them all down.
WRITING: In honor of the four billion mile journey, write 4 four-line poems from varying perspectives. For example, one might be from the perspective of the asteroid (Bennu). Another could be from that of a NASA engineer.
VISUAL ART: Walk around outside and take pictures of things that could look like the surface of asteroid Bennu. Assemble them into a photo collage on your phone.
Commencing countdowns engines on
— David Bowie