Buckyballs, Historic flights, asteroids, and education on This Week @ NASA
Astronomers using data from NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope have, for the first time, discovered buckyballs in a solid form in space: around a pair of stars 65-hundred light-years from Earth. Until now, the microscopic carbon spheres had been found only in gas form. Named for their resemblance to the geodesic domes drawn by late architect Buckminster Fuller, buckyballs are made up of 60 carbon molecules arranged into a hollow sphere, like a soccer ball. Their unusual structure makes them ideal candidates for electrical and chemical applications on Earth, including superconducting materials, medicines, water purification and armor. Also, Space Agencies Leaders meet in Canada, NASA’s top leaders continued with their field center visits after rollout of the president’s proposed 2013 budget, The 50th anniversary celebration of John Glenn’s historic Friendship 7 flight continued in Cleveland and NASA celebrates Women’s History Month 2012.