The International Year of Astronomy 2009 (IYA2009) officially ends on January 10th.

The closing ceremony will be held in the Aula Magna of the University of Padova, where Galileo taught astronomy and physics, in Padova, Italy. It’s the final event of a year long global celebration of astronomy and its contribution to society and culture.

Official Website: www.astronomy2009.org/

IYA YouTube Channel: www.youtube.com/user/astronomy2009

Follow Live Streaming Video on www.beyond2009.org

This video was aired when NASA Television was honored with a Primetime Emmy Award by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.

The 2009 Philo T. Farnsworth Award recognizes the agency for engineering excellence and commemorates the 40th anniversary of the technological innovations that made possible the first live TV broadcast from the moon by the Apollo 11 crew on July 20, 1969.
(Source YouTube:) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NYyENdNiAPM

NASA is celebrating the 40th anniversary of the first lunar landing and the Apollo space program.  It was forty years ago when Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins circled the moon in the Apollo 11 spacecraft and entered the United States space program into a new chapter in history.

NASA is celebrating with multiple events surrounding the 40th anniversary of the first lunar landing; check out the following links for more information on this historic event!

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/apollo/40th/

http://wechoosethemoon.org/

http://www.youtube.com/user/NASAtelevision

http://twitter.com/AP11_CAPCOM

http://twitter.com/AP11_SPACECRAFT

watch?v=9lMjY4RdSaw

I was wondering what it must be like to celebrate a holiday like Thanksgiving in space.  A quick search discovered this year-old video from the collectspace YouTube Channel. It shows two of the astronauts aboard the International Space Station describing their Thanksgiving dinner and counting their blessings.

The current astronauts have bid farewell to the space station crew, as they prepare to undock and depart the station Friday morning for a return to earth.  The Endeavour shuttle mission was declared a success with four spacewalks completed in eleven days.  More info at www.nasa.gov

Space Shuttle Endeavour landed at Florida’s Kennedy Space Center Wednesday night after a remarkable 16 day mission. The crew of STS-123 accomplished a record five spacewalks, during which they constructed the Dextre Robotics System and installed the first module of the Kibo Japanese Experiment Logistics Module.

The International Space Station will now receive the new Jules Verne Automated Transfer Vehicle, or ATV, from Europe. The ATV is scheduled to dock with the station on April 3rd.

Shuttle crew members Rick Linnehan and Mike Foreman have completed the second spacewalk of Endeavour’s STS-123 mission. They worked outside the International Space Station for seven hours assembling the Canadian-built mechanical maintenance robot called Dextre.

Andrew Potter reports via Reuters Video

This is a busy time for NASA crews aboard the space shuttle Endeavour and the International Space Station. They’re outfitting the new Japanese Logistics Module with supplies and equipment, which is the first onboard laboratory for the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. The astronauts are also finishing assembly of the Canadian robotic service system, called Dextre. This shuttle mission (STS-123) will be the longest mission to the space station, because it’s a sixteen day flight. Plus there are five spacewalks planned, two of which are already completed.

Andrew Potter reports via Reuters Video:

Did you know NASA has their own YouTube Channel? Well they do, and here’s a video of the launch of space shuttle Endeavour from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, beginning the STS-123 mission to the International Space Station. www.youtube.com/user/ReelNASA

Space shuttle Atlantis launched into orbit today carrying the Columbus science laboratory, which is Europe’s primary contribution to the International Space Station.

Full story at nasa.gov

Launch Video at anon.nasa-global.edgesuite.net