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NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day:

How does your favorite planet spin? Does it spin rapidly around a nearly vertical axis, or horizontally, or backwards? The featured video animates NASA images of all eight planets in our Solar System to show them spinning side-by-side for an easy comparison. In the time-lapse video, a day on Earth -- one Earth rotation -- takes just a few seconds. Jupiter rotates the fastest, while Venus spins not only the slowest (can you see it?), but backwards. The inner rocky planets, across the top, most certainly underwent dramatic spin-altering collisions during the early days of the Solar System. The reasons why planets spin and tilt as they do remains a topic of research with much insight gained from modern computer modeling and the recent discovery and analysis of hundreds of exoplanets: planets orbiting other stars.

NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day:

This 180 degree panoramic night skyscape captures our Milky Way Galaxy as it arcs above the horizon on a winter's night in August. Near midnight, the galactic center is close to the zenith with the clear waters of Lake Traful, Neuquen, Argentina, South America, planet Earth below. Zodiacal light, dust reflected sunlight along the Solar System's ecliptic plane, is also visible in the region's very dark night sky. The faint band of light reaches up from the distant snowy peaks toward the galaxy's center. Follow the arc of the Milky Way to the left to find the southern hemisphere stellar beacons Alpha and Beta Centauri. Close to the horizon bright star Vega is reflected in the calm mountain lake.

Photo by Gerardo Ferrarino

Wealthier neighborhoods in St. Louis have armed themselves with private police, giving them a level of service poor areas can’t afford and fueling racial and economic disparities.... Read more

NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day:

Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 were launched in 1977 on a grand tour of the outer planets of the Solar System. They have become the longest operating and most distant spacecraft from Earth. Both have traveled beyond the heliosphere, the realm defined by the influence of the solar wind and the Sun's magnetic field. On the 45th year of their journey toward the stars Voyager 1 and 2 reached nearly 22 light-hours and 18 light-hours from the Sun respectively and remain the only spacecraft currently exploring interstellar space. Each spacecraft carries a 12-inch gold-plated copper disk with recordings of sounds, pictures and messages. The Golden Records are intended to communicate a story of life and culture on planet Earth, preserved in a medium that can survive an interstellar journey for a billion years.

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NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day:

Fans of our fair planet might recognize the outlines of these cosmic clouds. On the left, bright emission outlined by dark, obscuring dust lanes seems to trace a continental shape, lending the popular name North America Nebula to the emission region cataloged as NGC 7000. To the right, just off the North America Nebula's east coast, is IC 5070, whose avian profile suggests the Pelican Nebula. The two bright nebulae are about 1,500 light-years away, part of the same large and complex star forming region, almost as nearby as the better-known Orion Nebula. At that distance, the 3 degree wide field of view would span 80 light-years. This careful cosmic portrait uses narrowband images combined to highlight the bright ionization fronts and the characteristic glow from atomic hydrogen, and oxygen gas. These nebulae can be seen with binoculars from a dark location. Look northeast of bright star Deneb in Cygnus the Swan, soaring high in the northern summer night sky.

Photo by Frank Sackenheim

NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day:

Near the center of a nearby star-forming region lies a massive cluster containing some of the largest and hottest stars known. Collectively known as star cluster NGC 2070, these stars are part of the vast Tarantula Nebula and were captured in two kinds of infrared light by the new Webb Space Telescope. The main image shows the group of stars at NGC 2070's center -- known as R136 -- in near-infrared, light just a bit too red for humans to see. In contrast, the rollover image captures the cluster center in mid-infrared light, light closer to radio waves. Since R136's brightest stars emit more of their light in the near infrared, they are much more prominent on that image. This LMC cluster's massive stars emit particle winds and energetic light that are evaporating the gas cloud from which they formed. The Webb images, released yesterday, shows details of R136 and its surroundings that have never been seen before, details that are helping humanity to better understanding of how all stars are born, evolve and die.

Photo by NASAESACSASTScI

It's not often that one stops to think about how infrastructure impacts the community. Yet, the outdoor spaces in which we find ourselves can have a significant impact on the way we approach life and can even impact how we interact with each other. Here's how.

Infrastructure can help promote societal interactions

The way a city or town is designed can help to promote societal interactions. Furthermore, the more architectural developments there are, the greater likelihood for people to be outdoors, which enhances the potential of relationships being formed organically, whether it be at the park, the library, community centers, etc.

Speaking of building relationships, one can also use the accessibility of public spaces to network for business purposes. For example, meeting with others at a convention center can help to boost potential prospects if you're looking to network. But suppose you're not that experienced at meet and greets or you feel that it's not your strong suit because you are naturally introverted, then be
sure to practice your pitch on friends and family first. Or, why not get networking tips from your most extroverted friend to help give you that extra confidence boost you need when meeting new people?

Infrastructure can help promote the public's wellbeing When there is the necessary infrastructure in place, people are often more willing to partake in outdoor activities that are good for their health. For example, when parks, subways, and other confined spaces are well lit, people feel safer engaging in healthier outdoor activities such as jogging or cycling to get more fit.

Lighting as a key design feature

As far as design features go, lighting comes out on top as a must-have, especially if it is a place that people use often. For example, parking garages should be one of the safest places there are because there tends to be a lot of traffic in and through here daily. Not only is lighting needed for walkways or stairways leading to parking garages for safety as well as visibility reasons, but these LED lights for parking areas and structures also help to boost visibility for drivers in underground parking spaces too.

Examples of design infrastructures that benefit the public

Housing infrastructure

Housing infrastructure that is accessible and financially affordable to all, no matter your income status, race, or background.

Transportation

There should be sufficient transportation routes in terms of accessible and convenient roads and highways, as well as a variety of public transportation that is available to the masses.

Recreational spaces

There should also be ample recreational spaces for the public to enjoy the outdoors, such as parks and botanical gardens, and access to cultural places such as community and arts and culture centers. For instance, if you’re in the Washington area, then why not make a pit stop at Bellevue Downtown Park to take in its beautiful waterfall, picnic area, and playground for the kids? Or, if you’re a beach fan, what about the Meydenbauer Bay Park to have a glimpse of scenic beach views and hiking trails?

Ways to facilitate communication with one another

In today's digital world, there has to be provision for internet services and a sufficient signal when it comes to mobile, not forgetting utility poles when it comes to landlines and your computer.

Certainly, infrastructure plays an important role in how we go about our daily lives. So if you are choosing to move to a new town, it would be wise to look at the infrastructure in place there to determine if it is going to be easy and enjoyable to live there or not. Furthermore, safety should be a big consideration also; hence, why lighting plays such a critical role in the infrastructure of most major cities.

Comment below If you have something to say that you feel would benefit your community or browse Kudos 365 for other items that may be of interest to you

Image via Pexels

NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day:

Yes, but how many dark clouds have a multicolored lining? Pictured, behind this darker cloud, is a pileus iridescent cloud, a group of water droplets that have a uniformly similar size and so together diffract different colors of sunlight by different amounts. The featured image was taken last month in Pu'er, Yunnan Province, China. Also captured were unusual cloud ripples above the pileus cloud. The formation of a rare pileus cloud capping a common cumulus cloud is an indication that the lower cloud is expanding upward and might well develop into a storm. Explore Your Universe: Random APOD Generator

Photo by Jiaqi Sun （孙嘉琪）

NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day:

Stars created these cliffs. Specifically, the destructive winds and energetic light from the stars in the open cluster NGC 3324 eroded away part of a mountain of dark interstellar dust in the northern part of the Carina Nebula. Several of these stars are visible toward the top of this highly detailed image taken recently by the James Webb Space Telescope, the largest astronomical telescope ever launched. Webb's large mirror and ability to see dust-piercing infrared light has enabled it to capture fascinating details in the dust, hundreds of previously hidden stars, and even some galaxies far in the distance. The featured jagged cliffs occur in part of Carina known as the Gabriela Mistral Nebula -- because when viewed in another orientation, they appear similar to the facial profile of the famous Chilean poet. These nebular cliffs occur about 7,600 light years away toward the southern constellation of Carina. Astrophysicists: Browse 2,800+ codes in the Astrophysics Source Code Library

I travel across
a bridge so high,
a stair way to heaven,
but not for I.