Mia and the Martians cover and 5-star Amazon rating

Young Astronomer’s Tale Aims to Ignite Cosmic Curiosity (Science Magazine)

A vibrant pink rocket, soaring towards the cosmos—this is the captivating image greeting readers of Mia and the Martians. The children’s book whisks imaginations to the red planet with its intrepid protagonist, Mia, and her feline co-pilot, Nebula. Through Mia’s eyes, children see a young explorer driven by her love for Mars, the very world she plans to showcase at the school science fair.

Astrophysicists Emma Louden and Tanya Harrison have skillfully crafted a tale of discovery and inspiration, with illustrator Wouter Pasman giving life to the eagerly awaited adventure. Louden, a dedicated scholar from Yale, takes readers on a journey that mirrors her own lifelong fascination with the stars. Her goal? To inspire a new generation to gaze upwards with wonder and possibility.

Read more: Young Astronomer’s Tale Aims to Ignite Cosmic Curiosity by Maya Edwards

Yale Astronomy Graduate Student Writes a Martian Adventure Children’s Book (Yale News)

Opening the newly published children’s book “Mia and the Martians,” readers see a young girl rushing to the edge of the page, proudly outstretching a pink rocket in her hand. The reader learns what the girl, Mia, is going to present for next week’s science fair.

“My favorite planet, of course! Mars!” exclaims the protagonist, Mia.

In her custom-built spaceship, Mia embarks on a fantastical journey to Mars with her co-pilot cat, Nebula. They meet the “Martians,” based on the real-life rovers of Mars throughout the story. Enlisting the rovers’ help, Mia learns the lesson of perseverance and finds a way back home to Earth. 

To bring this story to the page, astrophysicists Emma Louden GRD ’26 and Tanya Harrison partnered with Wouter Pasman, an illustrator and space enthusiast to co-author their debut children’s book.

Read more: Yale Astronomy Graduate Student Writes a Martian Adventure Children’s Book (Yale News)

Boeing’s Starliner returns to Earth – leaving crew behind (Al Jazeera)

Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft has landed in New Mexico, wrapping up a three-month test mission that faced technical issues and forced it to leave the two astronauts it carried temporarily stranded in space.

The spacecraft touched down at White Sands Space Harbor in the New Mexico desert at 04:01 GMT on Saturday. The two crew members it had flown to space – Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams – remained at the International Space Station (ISS) due to safety concerns with the craft.

[…]

Wilmore and Williams, whose mission was initially planned for just eight days, must return to Earth on a vehicle from Boeing’s rival SpaceX, owned by Elon Musk, in February 2025.

“It must be demoralising in a way when you’ve gone expecting to be up there for eight days and suddenly your mission turns into eight months,” Tanya Harrison, a fellow at the University of British Columbia’s Outer Space Institute, told Al Jazeera.

“At the same time this is a highly trained crew that knows that stuff like this can happen … they’re trained, they’re ready,” she said.

Read more: Boeing’s Starliner returns to Earth – leaving crew behind

Planetary Science: Traveling To Mars With Tanya Harrison (Pacific Science Center)

Dr. Tanya Harrison has worked on multiple NASA missions to Mars, including the Opportunity, Curiosity, and Perseverance rovers. Hear Dr. Harrison explain her career journey into planetary science and answer student questions about how we send robots to Mars, what happens when robots break, and what it would be like to live on another planet.

To learn more about science programming check out: https://pacificsciencecenter.org/

Airlines Operating Special Solar Eclipse Flights To Give Passengers a 30,000-Foot View of Phenomenon (Airline Geeks)

Some airlines are offering special flights to see April’s total solar eclipse, giving passengers a unique opportunity to witness the astronomical event from 30,000 feet.

The April 8 eclipse — when the moon passes between the Earth and sun, blocking out the sun’s rays — will pass over North America, and those in the right place will spend about 4-and-a-half minutes under the cloak of darkness. A lucky few will have the opportunity to observe the eclipse’s totality for longer as they soar through the sky chasing the early night.

Southwest Airlines and Delta Air Lines are operating flights that will follow the eclipse’s path of totality in America. The Delta flight was so popular among astronomy enthusiasts that the flights sold out in 24 hours, prompting the airline to add a second. This next total solar eclipse visible from the contiguous United States won’t occur until 2044.

[…]

Alaska Airlines in 2017 operated a special invitation-only flight that gave passengers an unreal look at the eclipse. Although the airline isn’t offering flights that chase this year’s eclipse, it’s offering flights to destinations that fall in the eclipse’s path of totality to get space nuts in the right place.

Tanya Harrison, a planetary scientist who works at the Earth and Planetary Institute of Canada, was one of the experts on the 2017 flight who took in the eclipse from the skies. She has also witnessed a nearly total eclipse in Arizona and said viewing it from an airplane “was hands down probably the coolest thing I’ve ever gotten to do, including working on Mars Rovers.”

“There’s something about space that fascinates everyone,” she said. “The sky is a shared experience. We can all look up and see what’s going on.”

Read more: Airlines Operating Special Solar Eclipse Flights To Give Passengers a 30,000-Foot View of Phenomenon by Brinley Hineman

SpaceBound 2023: Earth Observation Commercial Opportunities (CPAC)

Space Canada hosts its annual conference in Ottawa, where leaders in the space industry gather to discuss how to strengthen the Canadian space sector. James Slifierz (Co-Founder and CEO of SkyWatch), Michael Carter (chief technology officer of SpaceAlpha), Tanya Harrison (CEO and director of the Earth and Planetary Institute of Canada) and Nick Kellett (founder and CEO of Deploy Solutions) discuss the commercial opportunities with satellite earth observation data. Corinne Havard moderates the panel.

Watch here: SpaceBound 2023: Earth Observation Commercial Opportunities by CPAC

CultureLab: What would life on Mars be like? The science behind TV series For All Mankind (NewScientist)

Freezing temperatures, dust storms, radiation, marsquakes – living on Mars right now would be hellish. And getting there remains a multi-year journey. But what if we could make it habitable? Could we one day build settlements on the Red Planet or send human scientists to search for life?

That’s the premise of the TV series For All Mankind, which explores a future where the space race continued after the moon landing and humanity kept spreading out across space. But in the name of a good story, real science occasionally took the backstage. 

In this episode, TV columnist Bethan Ackerley speaks to NASA Astronaut Garrett Reisman, who was also a consultant on the show, as well as planetary scientist Tanya Harrison who’s worked on multiple NASA missions to Mars. Between them, they explore how far off we really are from living on Mars, what it would take to surmount the remaining challenges – and why it’s still a dream worth pursuing in the real world.

Listen here: CultureLab: What would life on Mars be like? by Bethan Ackerley

2nd Annual John S. MacDonald Outer Space Lecture featuring Jan Chodas (Outer Space Institute Society)

The 2nd Annual John S. MacDonald Outer Space Lecture was hosted on September 24, 2023 at the Cecil Green Park House, UBC. Our guest speaker was Jan Chodas, former Director for Planetary Science at NASA. The event was moderated by Dr. Tanya Harrison, planetary scientist and fellow of the Outer Space Institute (OSI). The lecture and Q&A centred on Jan’s time at JPL, where she held both technical and management positions during her 40-year career there. Jan discusses the challenges and breakthroughs on both the technical and management side of science missions that she oversaw, including Juno, which remains in orbit about Jupiter, and the Europa Clipper, a mission to the Jovian moon (launch 2024). This event was sponsored by the Outer Space Institute (OSI) and MDA Space.

Watch the First “Star Trek Prodigy” with Tanya Harrison & Rico E. Anderson (Falling Tower)

A nerd, a scientist, an actor, and a planetary scientist review and react to the first episode of “Star Trek Prodigy” on Netflix. Watch the First is Falling Tower’s new podcast, where we watch, review, and share our reaction to the first (pilot) episode of our favorite and your favorite television shows. Star Trek Prodigy is now on Netflix, as of Christmas, 2023.

To Infinity and Beyond: Space Travel, Mars and Ethics (SNF Dialogues)

From the Cold War space race and humanity’s first steps on the moon to science fiction and the Star Trek frenzy, space travel has transcended contemporary history books and pop culture. But today, it seems more relevant than ever. As we stand on the precipice of irreversible climate change, continuous war, and energy crisis, space travel and the possibility of inhabiting new planets seem to many as a necessary step forward for humanity. For others, space travel holds the risks of serving as luxury tourism for the elites as well as a competitive playground for the world’s commercial giants. What are the prospects and implications of space travel and how will it affect us all? The SNF Dialogues discuss with Dr. Tanya Harrison, planetary scientist, Mars expert, and Co-founder/Director of the Earth and Planetary Institute of Canada, seeking answers to the above questions. 

Listen here: To infinity and beyond: Space Travel, Mars and Ethics by SNF Dialogues (Anna-Kynthia Bousdoukou)

Five Martian Mysteries That Have Scientists Scratching Their Heads (AGU Eos)

Mars looms large in the scientific imagination, as well as in fiction. Of all the worlds of the solar system, it’s the only one Earth-like enough for exploration with Earth-like tools: Its atmosphere is thin and transparent, its surface is dry and cold, and it’s close enough for regular study. From telescope eyepieces, we’ve probed the Red Planet for centuries. And over the past 50 years, we’ve even sent instruments for a closer look.

However, in geological terms, that’s just a sliver of time. Mars’s deep history remains a mystery.

Read more: Five Martian Mysteries That Have Scientists Scratching Their Heads by Matthew R. Francis

UBC welcomes former NASA Director of Planetary Science Jan Chodas (The Ubyssey)

At the second Annual John S. MacDonald Outer Space Lecture on September 18, UBC welcomed an acclaimed Canadian-born NASA researcher to discuss her decades-long career at the forefront of space exploration.

Jan Chodas is a NASA icon. She’s enjoyed a successful 40-year career at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and a stint as the Director of Planetary Science before retiring this year. Her leadership as project manager was integral to several NASA projects, including the Juno mission to Jupiter and the Europa Clipper mission to Jupiter’s moon Europa.

The Outer Space Institute welcomed her to UBC with space tech company MDA.

Tanya Harrison, a fellow Canadian astrophysicist and Outer Space Institute fellow, moderated the talk as Chodas reflected on her out-of-this-world career, shared her hopes for the future and answered audience member’s burning questions about the great beyond

Read more: UBC welcomes former NASA Director of Planetary Science Jan Chodas by Sophia Russo