20 Unknown & Interesting Facts About NASA – Part 2

11Moon trees

Moon trees

NASA gave away hundreds of trees that have been to the moon. They never kept track of who they gave them to. Now they are trying to find them. One was at the White House.


12Einstein's theory of gravity

Einstein's theory of gravity

NASA's 50-year project to research gravity and prove Einstein's theory of gravity was nearly abandoned after its research probe's instruments were off. It was saved by the donations of Turki Al Saud, a Saudi Prince who holds a Ph.D. in Aeronautics and Astronautics.


13Space jellyfish

Space jellyfish

In the early 1990s, NASA sent jellyfish to space to test how spaceflight would affect their development. The jellies did not develop the proper gravity-sensing capabilities and had trouble figuring how to swim around in normal gravity, with abnormal pulsing and movement when returned to Earth.


14Curiosity

Curiosity

In 2013, NASA’s Mars Curiosity rover hummed Happy Birthday to itself by vibrating its sample-analysis unit to obtain the musical tune, but did so only on its first “birthday.”


15Gemini XII

Gemini XII

On NASA's Gemini XII flight, the computer docking system failed and Buzz Aldrin successfully calculated the docking trajectory using a sextant and a slide rule.


16Electricity in space

Electricity in space

In 1996, NASA generated electricity with a satellite on a 13-mile long wire, released from Space Shuttle. The wire was clearly visible from Earth and was one of the biggest human-made objects in space.


17Falcon 9 booster

Falcon 9 booster

In 2011, NASA estimated that it would have cost the agency about US$4 billion to develop a rocket-like SpaceX's Falcon 9 booster using their traditional contracting processes. SpaceX's total development cost for the Falcon 9 rocket was estimated at approximately US$390 million.


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18Gemini 6

Gemini 6

NASA as a practical joke played Hello Dolly to wake the Gemini 6 crew in 1965. The astronauts loved it and a tradition was born. Until 2011, families were allowed to choose a favorite song to wake up their loved ones in space.


19Frozen bacteria

Frozen bacteria

In a 2005 NASA study, scientists successfully revived bacteria that had been in a frozen pond in Alaska for 32,000 years. The microbes had been frozen since when woolly mammoths still roamed the Earth. Once the ice melted, they began swimming around, unaffected, and quickly became infectious.


20NASA firefighters

NASA firefighters

NASA firefighters use military armored personnel carriers during every space shuttle launch in case they need to rescue astronauts at the launch site.

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