Where Does Space Begin

Space launches are exciting to watch and feel. A rocket leaps off the pad to space, roaring its way up and creating a shock wave of sound that rattles your bones (if youre within a few miles). Within a few minutes, it has entered space, ready to deliver payloads (and sometimes people) to space.   But, when does that rocket actually enter space? Its a good question that doesnt have a definite answer. There is no specific boundary that defines where space begins. There isnt a line in the atmosphere with a sign that says, Space is Thataway!  Ã‚   The Boundary between Earth and Space The line between space and not space is really determined by our atmosphere. Down here on the surface of the planet, its thick enough to support life. Rising up through the atmosphere, the air gradually gets thinner. There are traces of the gases we breathe more than a hundred miles above our planet, but eventually, they thin out so much that its no different from the near-vacuum of space.  Some satellites have measured tenuous bits of Earths atmosphere out to more than 800 kilometers (nearly 500 miles) away. All satellites orbit well above our atmosphere and are officially considered in space. Given that our atmosphere does thin so gradually and there is no clear-cut boundary, scientists had to come up with an official boundary between atmosphere and space. Today,  the commonly agreed-upon definition of where space begins is around 100 kilometers (62 miles). Its also called the von Kà ¡rmà ¡n line. Anyone who flies above 80 km (50 miles) in altitude is usually considered an astronaut, according to NASA. Exploring Atmospheric Layers To see why its difficult to define where space begins, take a look at how our atmosphere works. Think of it as a layer cake made of gases. Its thicker near the surface of our planet and thinner at the top. We live and work in the lowest level, and most humans live in the lower mile or so of the atmosphere. Its only when we travel by air or climb high mountains that we get into regions where the air is quite thin. The tallest mountains rise up to between 4,200 and 9,144 meters (14,000 to nearly 30,000 feet).   Most passenger jets fly at around up around 10 kilometers (or 6 miles) up. Even the best military jets rarely climb above 30 km   (98,425 feet). Weather balloons can get up to 40 kilometers (about 25 miles) in altitude. Meteors flare about 12 kilometers up. The northern or southern lights (auroral displays) are about 90 kilometers (~55 miles) high. The International Space Station orbits between 330 and 410 kilometers (205-255 miles) above Earths surface and well above the atmosphere. It is well above the dividing line that indicates the beginning of space.   Types of Space Astronomers and planetary scientists often divide the near-Earth space environment into different regions. There is geospace, which is that area of space nearest Earth, but basically outside the dividing line. Then, theres cislunar space, which is the region that extends out beyond the Moon and encompasses both Earth and the Moon. Beyond that is interplanetary space, which extends around the Sun and planets, out to the limits of the Oort Cloud. The next area is interstellar space (which encompasses the space between the stars). Beyond that are galactic space and intergalactic space, which focus on the spaces within the galaxy and between galaxies, respectively. In most cases, the space between stars and the vast regions between galaxies are not really empty. Those regions usually contain gas molecules and dust and effectively make up a vacuum. Legal Space For purposes of law and record-keeping, most experts consider space to begin at an altitude of 100 km (62 miles), the von Kà ¡rmà ¡n line. Its named after Theodore  von Kà ¡rmà ¡n, an engineer and physicist who worked heavily in aeronautics and astronautics. He was the first to determine that the atmosphere at this level is too thin to support aeronautical flight.   There are some very straightforward reasons why such a division exists. It reflects an environment where rockets are able to fly. In very practical terms, engineers who design spacecraft need to make sure they can handle the rigors of space. Defining space in terms of atmospheric drag, temperature, and pressure (or lack of one in a vacuum) is important since vehicles and satellites have to be constructed to withstand extreme environments. For purposes of landing safely on Earth, the designers and operators of the U.S. space shuttle fleet determined that the boundary of outer space for the shuttles was at an altitude of 122 km (76 miles). At that level, the shuttles could begin to feel atmospheric drag from Earths blanket of air, and that affected how they were steered to their landings. This was still well above the  von Kà ¡rmà ¡n line, but in reality, there were good engineering reasons to define for the shuttles, which carried human lives and had a higher requirement for safet y.   Politics and the Definition of Outer Space The idea of outer space is central to many treaties that govern the peaceful uses of space and the bodies in it. For example, the Outer Space Treaty (signed by 104 countries and first passed by the United Nations in 1967), keeps countries from claiming sovereign territory in outer space. What that means is that no country can stake a claim in space and keep others out of it. Thus, it became important to define outer space for geopolitical reasons having nothing to do with safety or engineering. The treaties that invoke the boundaries of space govern what governments can do at or near other bodies in space. It also provides guidelines for the development of human colonies and other research missions on the planets, moons, and asteroids.   Expanded and edited by Carolyn Collins Petersen.

Anxiety Is A Common Mental Health Concern Affecting...

Anxiety is a common mental health concern affecting children, and children with ASD are at a higher risk for anxiety and concurring mental health concerns (Reaven, Blakeley-Smith, Leuthe, Moody, Hepburn, 2012; White, Ollendick, Scahill, Oswald, Albano, 2009; Wood et al., 2015). Studies suggest that anxiety disorders occur in 2.2-2.7% of the general population of children, while reports suggest that children with ASD are reported to have anxiety issues as much as two times higher (Reaven et al., 2012; Scattone Mong, 2013). Anxiety is associated with substantial functional impairment in children with ASD at home, school, and community environments (Reaven, Blakeley-Smith, Culhane-Shelburne, Hepburn, 2011; Wood et al., 2015). Anxiety in children with ASD may lead to excessive worry, distress, inability to socialize effectively, isolation, and insufficient performance in school (Reaven et al., 2012; Weiss, Viecilli, Bohr, 2014; Wood et al., 2015). Children’s anxiety symptoms may also change over time (Reaven et al., 2012). Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) has increasingly been identified as one of the standard approaches for children with ASD (Reaven et al., 2012; Weiss et al., 2014; Wood et al., 2015). CBT focuses on the change in cognition or how thinking is processed (Reaven et al., 2011). The program incorporates exposure, relaxation, and role-play with the social-cognitive information-processing factors related to anxiety (Weiss et al., 2015). Target goals areShow MoreRelatedAnxiety And Its Effects On Children1501 Words   |  7 PagesABSTRACT Anxiety is problematic in schools and affects children in the classroom. Anxiety is a feeling that makes them feel they are in danger even when there is not a threat. The anxious children may have an uneasy, persistent feeling about situations which can result in catastrophic thinking. 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Summary The Native Son Free Essays

The Native Son is a novel by Richard Wright, which is set in southern part of Chicago in the 1930’s. The novel, which was divided into three books, Fear, Flight, and Fate, is basically a story of 22-year old Bigger Thomas, an African-American, and his struggles living an impoverished life of crime The scene opens with Bigger being awakened by the screams of his sister, Vera and mother. He saw that the cause of the commotion was a big rat. We will write a custom essay sample on Summary: The Native Son or any similar topic only for you Order Now He and his brother, Buddy, drove the rodent into a corner, but the rat retaliates and wounds Bigger. Ultimately, Bigger kills the rat with a heavy iron skilled Bigger’s wanted to become an aviator but is instead given a job for a white millionaire-philanthropist named Henry Dalton. During this time, his mother warns him to forget his criminal habits, lest he end up in prison and also tells him to go out and get a job if he â€Å"had any manhood in him.† Although he sincerely cares about his family, Bigger knows that he will never have a big time job that will enable him to support his family Despite his mother’s warning, Bigger meets his gang and they hatch a plan to rob Blum’s Deli. However, he is actually afraid to commit robbery and he tells this to his friend Gus, who in turn calls Bigger’s bluff. This angered Bigger and he attempted to stab his would-be friend but gets up being kicked out of the gang. He then prepares for the interview with Mr. Dalton. Although Bigger doesn’t really want to take the job, he is amazed by the massive wealth of his potential employer so he decides to proceed. However, he fails to answer clearly at the interview and frightened by some of the house’s furniture as well as Mr. Dalton’s blind wife, his maid Peggy and daughter Mary. Bigger remembers seeing Mary in a newsreel which showed that she was Communist sympathizer along with her boyfriend, Jan Elrone, who is a communist herself. How to cite Summary: The Native Son, Essay examples