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Doug Ellison

@dougellison.bsky.social

Dad, Husband, Mars Rover Crew Chief. Opinions and views expressed are my own. Not a NASA account. Contains strong language. He/Him. www.dougellison.com

149 Posts844 Follower125 Folgt
Chase Million@millionconcepts.com · 2mo ago

Jared's hobby rocket does not have much support among planetary scientists. Nobody asked for it. NEP was barely more than a footnote in the Decadal. Also, nobody asked for Skyfall. It appears to exist only to give the NEP demo something charismatic to carry. It won't do meaningful science.

“What keeps me awake at night is, in three years’ time, will we have a space nuclear program?” asked Bhavya Lal, former NASA associate administrator for technology, policy and strategy and the co-author of a 2025 study that looked at the long, troubled history of space nuclear programs. Space nuclear programs enjoy strong support today, she said, “but this support is positional, not structural. It is attached to people and not to paper. So, what happens in January 2029?” That is an issue for SR-1, which she said is a program without a clear customer. It is carrying a technology demonstration payload, a set of Mars helicopters called SkyFall, but she noted those could fly on a different mission. The LR-1 lunar reactor program is also not directly dependent on SR-1. “The only thing that truly needs SR-1 is SR-2, SR-3 and SR-4, and those don’t exist.”Members of the MEPAG community, There have been deeply concerning developments in the NASA MEP budget and proposed federal R&A funding policy in the last several weeks that many of you may not be aware of and have arguably worse consequences than last year’s budget threat. If there was ever a time to take action in support of the Mars Exploration Program and federally-funded scientific research, now is that time. MEP status: The Mars Exploration Program has been directed to absorb and manage the Skyfall payload on the Space Reactor-1 (SR-1) demonstration mission within its budget. This will largely be under the Mars Future Missions line, effectively eliminating any new developments/missions until after SR-1/Sky- fall launches. It is also anticipated that the costs for Skyfall will exceed the available funding in that line ($110M), which means that without a budget augmentation in FY27, the chances are quite high that more than one currently operating mission at Mars will be terminated and their funds redirected to supporting Skyfall.
SpaceNews @spacenewsinc.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Space nuclear programs face near- and long-term challenges While space nuclear programs are “having a moment,” industry officials say they face near-term challenges as well as longer-term concerns....

Doug Ellison@dougellison.bsky.social · 2mo ago

"On July 25, an initial onsite inspection by the NASA Madrid Deep Space Communications Complex (MDSCC) emergency response team found wildfire damage primarily to pavement and surrounding vegetation, with no significant structural damage observed to antennas or buildings. "

Bethany Stevens @NASASpox On July 25, an initial onsite inspection by the NASA Madrid Deep Space Communications Complex (MDSCC) emergency response team found wildfire damage primarily to pavement and surrounding vegetation, with no significant structural damage observed to antennas or buildings. Additional inspections and testing will continue as safety procedures allow. The situation remains dynamic, and comprehensive assessments will proceed as conditions stabilize and access improves. Meanwhile, NASA's Space Communications and Navigation (SCaN) Program has seamlessly transitioned mission support to its other Deep Space Communications Complexes in Goldstone, California and Canberra, Australia, ensuring continuity of operations and uninterrupted spacecraft communications. The safety of NASA personnel remains the agency's highest priority. All personnel at MDSCC are safe, and NASA extends its sincere gratitude to Spanish emergency responders and members of The Ministry of Defense, The Ministry of Interior, and The Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities for their professionalism and tireless efforts in helping protect the facility under extremely challenging conditions. NASA is also thinking of its partners at the European Space Agency (ESA), whose colleagues continue to be affected by the broader wildfire emergency. NASA will continue to monitor the situation closely and provide updates as new information becomes available.A picture of burned dry grass around a fence underneath what appears to be a large satellite ground station.
Doug Ellison@dougellison.bsky.social · 2mo ago

This appears to be DSS-55 at the south end of MDSCC, one of the 34 BWG antennas. ( comparing ground features to www.google.com/maps/@40.423... ) I just hope everyone got out safe. Stuff can be rebuilt. People can't.

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Andy Scollick@andyscollick.bsky.social · 2mo ago

The Madrid Deep Space Communication Complex at Robledo de Chavela municipality in the Community of Madrid, Spain on fire. Burgohondo wildfire. 📷 via Infues Avila

Doug Ellison@dougellison.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Things you'll find in MSL uplink Three lava lamps, a rover pinata still decorated for Christmas....with a plushy capybara on it. Several 3D printed fidget toys. An emotional support plush tiger from our tiger team room. A rubber stamp that says "From the desk of ECAM". And SO many memes.

Michelle Rapp ➡️ MagicCon Atlanta@kilnfiendpotter.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Essay by the NASA scientist who brought Sailor Moon merch to the Artemis II launch. My shoujo loving, magical girl adoring, nerdy ass heart is so full. reactormag.com/why-sailor-m...

Doug Ellison@dougellison.bsky.social · 3mo ago

I don't for one second think the comments are going to change the direction OMB wants to take. I also don't think I could live with myself if I didn't say something. Making science a victim of political whim will destroy science and damage the US economy in the process.

Katie Mack@astrokatie.com · 3mo ago

There is still time to submit your comment and tell the government that you don't want US research to be completely destroyed by politicians meddling in individual grants. You can submit your comments here: www.regulations.gov/commenton/OM...

Paul Voosen@voosen.me · 3mo ago

This "Promise" pitch/floater will be a good test for the space press who primarily focus on human spaceflight. Talk to planetary scientists. Where's that RTG gonna come from (and take away from)? How in the world do they think it would actually be flight operable?

Doug Ellison@dougellison.bsky.social · 5mo ago

Last week was one of those weeks where you go "Oh f*#$....." and then "Oh hell yeah...." because you're a small part of an incredible team that is as smart as it is creative as it is dedicated when it comes to solving problems, finding solutions and being generally amazing.

Riding With Robots@ridingrobots.bsky.social · 5mo ago

From NASA: Got something weighing you down? Shake it off (like Curiosity)! The Martian explorer unintentionally picked up a rock while drilling a recent sample, but the team was able to dislodge it by having the rover move its robotic arm and vibrate the drill until the rock fell off. 1/2

Doug Ellison@dougellison.bsky.social · 5mo ago

I took all the JSC Artemis pics, split them by camera type, zipped it up and put it on Archive.org. Once it’s clear that’s all of them I’ll do a version 2 with UTC acquisition time into the file names so they’re easier to browse in time order. In the meantime, enjoy. archive.org/details/arte...

artemis_2_image_dump_2026_05_03 : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive

Camera sorted archive of all Artemis 2 images available via https://eol.jsc.nasa.gov/SearchPhotos/ShowQueryResults-TextTable.pl?results=1777835956132601 on...

archive.org

Casey Dreier@caseydreier.bsky.social · 6mo ago

The FY 2027 budget request for NASA is an insult to the four astronauts currently risking their lives to explore the Moon. The world should be celebrating humanity's return to deep space, as well as the space agency and partners that put them there. [1/2]

Doug Ellison@dougellison.bsky.social · 9mo ago

Kudos to our project scientist who helps advocate for these every ~year when I think the view might work and we've got a little bit of energy and time spare in a plan. Doing the science on the day to day is important. Taking a moment now and again to do something just for art is important as well.

Riding With Robots@ridingrobots.bsky.social · 9mo ago

From NASA – Swiftly flow the days: As we approach the end of one year and the beginning of another on Earth, the Curiosity rover paused to send a postcard from Mars. The image combines one panorama taken after sunrise and another taken before sunset. images.nasa.gov/details/PIA2...

A panoramic image of a desert landscape. The robotic Curiosity rover is visible in the immediate foreground at the bottom center of the frame. In the background, a rocky desert floor is dominated by long, linear ridges, with hills of layered stone in the distance. Wheel tracks appear in the dust near the rover.
Naomi Klein@naomiaklein.bsky.social · last yr.

If you, like me, are the parent of a neuro-atypical child dreading this autism press conference, please remember: These are the people hurting our kids. Not us. They are the ones stigmatizing and pathologizing them. They are the ones peddling untested science. And we should be very, very angry.