As always, please go to the links for the full articles/ op eds.
The successful OSIRIS-REx spacecraft's mission to the ancient asteroid Bennu, an Empire State Building sized object over 200 million miles from Earth, has resulted in the collection of enough asteroid material to stow:
Two days after touching down on asteroid Bennu, NASA’s OSIRIS-REx mission team received on Thursday, Oct. 22, images that confirm the spacecraft has collected more than enough material to meet one of its main mission requirements – acquiring at least 2 ounces (60 grams) of the asteroid’s surface material.
The spacecraft captured images of the sample collector head as it moved through several different positions. In reviewing these images, the OSIRIS-REx team noticed both that the head appeared to be full of asteroid particles, and that some of these particles appeared to be escaping slowly from the sample collector, called the Touch-And-Go Sample Acquisition Mechanism (TAGSAM) head. They suspect bits of material are passing through small gaps where a mylar flap – the collector’s “lid” – is slightly wedged open by larger rocks.
“Bennu continues to surprise us with great science and also throwing a few curveballs,” said Thomas Zurbuchen, NASA’s associate administrator for science at the agency’s headquarters in Washington. “And although we may have to move more quickly to stow the sample, it’s not a bad problem to have. We are so excited to see what appears to be an abundant sample that will inspire science for decades beyond this historic moment.”
The team believes it has collected a sufficient sample and is on a path to stow the sample as quickly as possible. They came to this conclusion after comparing images of the empty collector head with Oct. 22 images of the TAGSAM head after the sample collection event.
The spacecraft will eventually return to Earth in 2023. Hats off to the scientists, engineers and all who contributed to this major achievement for mankind.
Our QOTD yesterday from E.J. Dionne, Jr., argued rightly for the re- balancing of the Supreme Court (and, we might add, lower courts). Adam Serwer has an important read detailing the long, racist history behind Republican efforts to use the courts to disenfranchise Democratic constituencies and rig the vote:
[Justices] Alito, Thomas, Gorsuch, and Kavanaugh have made no secret of their commitment to allowing Republicans to disenfranchise Democratic constituencies. On Monday, all four indicated their support for a GOP lawsuit seeking to overturn a Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruling allowing absentee ballots postmarked November 3 to be counted, even if they are received up to three days after the election. Roberts, in one of his rare breaks with the right wing of the Court, joined the liberals in a split 4–4 decision that allowed the original ruling to stand.
The message is clear: There is no constitutional amendment, no federal statute, no state law, no half-baked legal philosophy, and no federalist principle that will prevent the conservatives on the Court from upholding Republican efforts to sever Democratic constituencies from the franchise. Whether Trump wins or loses in November, they will pursue this agenda in earnest. And with Barrett on the Court, it is unlikely that even Roberts’s rare defections will be an obstacle to them.
The Democratic presidential nominee, Joe Biden, has refused to rule out the possibility of expanding the Court, and Republicans have responded with considerable alarm and anguish. They sacrificed their dignity, their House majority, and their principles to elevate a clownish reality star to the presidency, a would-be strongman whose disastrous tenure has seen hundreds of thousands of deaths, the collapse of the American economy, and the nadir of American global influence. Everything Republicans have done for decades has led to this moment, and the possibility of that victory becoming Pyrrhic is terrifying for them.
After reading Serwer's piece, if you remain unconvinced that the Democrats need to make re- balancing the courts should they sweep the election, we don't know what else to say except please get out of the way.
Along those lines, former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) had some sage advice for Joe Biden:
Former Senate leader Harry Reid says if Democrats win the presidency and the Senate, Joe Biden should take “no more than three weeks” to test bipartisanship before ending the filibuster so Democrats can overcome what they call Republican obstruction and pass bills.
The retired Nevada Democrat told The Associated Press in an interview that he understands Biden wants to work with Republicans, as the former vice president and Delaware senator has in the past. But Reid said there is just too much that needs to be done in the country to wait around trying to reach agreements under the decades-old Senate practice of requiring 60 votes to advance legislation.
ICYMI, the 60 Minutes interview with COVID Donnie aired last night. As might be expected, before he petulantly ran away from Lesley Stahl, there were lots of lies. If you're inclined, the excellent Daniel Dale has 16 of them from both the aired and unaired footage.
Here's today's dumbass drunk Trumpanzee Floriduh man:
The man, later identified by police as 26-year-old James Blight, was charged with grand theft auto and trespassing, according to the outlet.
He's a blight, all right. Sounds like some public intoxication and destruction of private property charges should be thrown in there, too.
Finally, we once again urge you to continue your reading adventure by visiting Infidel 753's link round-up (or "Collection des liens pour le 25 Octobre 2020") for a really comprehensive set of links to items of interest from around the Internet -- en anglais! There isn't a better round- up, so don't even bother looking.
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