The Perils of Living in Space: An introduction to the Earth’s Space Environment.

With the International Space Station, mankind has taken the first step of permanently living in space beyond the protective cocoon of the Earth’s atmosphere. This seminar will explore the Earth’s space environment and the dangers that current and future astronauts and satellite systems face. Discussion topics include interplanetary and interstellar travel, the prospects for extra-terrestrial life, and how the variable Sun influences the Earth’s space environment.

All power-point presentations made in class will be uploaded on this page. This introductory Space Weather presentation contains images and movies from a variety of NASA satellites.

Week 1 Power Point Presentation

Week2 Power Point Presentation

Week3 Power Point Presentation

Week4 Power Point Presentation

Week5 Power Point Presentation

Week6 Power Point Presentation

Week7 Power Point Presentation

Week8 Power Point Presentation

Week9 Power Point Presentation

This seminar will have a final report due the last week of class. The final report needs to discuss any aspect of the space environment. The short report should be at least 3 pages in length but no more than 5. Figures (optional) and references (required) do not count towards the page count. The paper should be in 12pt Times double spaced with 1 inch margins. Hard copy or electronic submittal of an ADOBE PDF file is acceptable. The topic of the paper needs to be approved by the instructor no later than the 7th week of classes. A draft title and 1 paragraph description needs to be submitted. Include at least one original reference. The report counts for half of your grade. Therefore you cannot pass without submitting an acceptable paper. The UCLA student honor code will be strictly enforced.

Look here for other material introduced during the quarter including other powerpoint presentations, videos, and web resources that were discussed in class.

Links of History of Space

NASA History

National Academies History

IEEE History

Look here for miscellaneous web sites that will allow you to explore topics discussed in class deeper. Also look under the LINKS page for additional resources.