WEBVTT

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[dramatic percussion music]

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- HEY, AND WELCOME
TO "NASA LAUNCHPAD."

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I'M YOUR HOST TAYLOR LYONS.

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HOW DO EXPLORERS NAVIGATE

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WHEN THEY DON'T KNOW
WHERE THEY'RE GOING?

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SINCE ANCIENT TIMES,
PEOPLE HAVE LOOKED TO THE SKY

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TO FIND THEIR WAY USING
THE SUN DURING THE DAY

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AND OTHER STARS AT NIGHT.

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THE NORTH STAR HAS BEEN
ONE OF THE MOST HELPFUL,

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AND STORIES FROM SAILORS
ON THE OPEN SEA

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TO THE FREEDOM SEEKERS
OF THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD

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HAVE BEEN PASSED DOWN
FOR GENERATIONS.

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ANCIENTS HAD A CLOSE
RELATIONSHIP WITH THE STARS.

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JUST LOOK AT THE STORIES
THEY TOLD ABOUT THE STARS

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AND HOW THEY SAW PICTURES WHEN
THEY LOOKED UP AT THE NIGHT SKY,

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PICTURES THEY NAMED
LIKE ORION OR CASSIOPAEA,

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SCORPIO OR PEGASUS.

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TODAY WE CALL THOSE
STAR PICTURES CONSTELLATIONS.

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BUT FAR-AWAY STARS AND STORIES
AREN'T THE MOST ACCURATE FORM

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OF GUIDANCE, SO CARTOGRAPHY,
OR THE PRACTICE OF MAPMAKING,

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BECAME INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT.

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BUT WHAT DO THEY DO
WITH ALL OF THOSE MAPS?

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- THE USGS IS THE U.S.
GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

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OUR JOB IS TO FIGURE OUT
WHICH MAPS NEED TO GO TOGETHER

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TO ANSWER A CERTAIN QUESTION.

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WE USE LAYERS OF INFORMATION
TO MAKE GEOLOGIC MAPS

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FOR SURVEYING, TOPOGRAPHY,

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AND THEN ALSO MINING
AND MINERAL RESOURCES.

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- AND MAPS ARE STILL
REALLY IMPORTANT TODAY.

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JUST THINK ABOUT IT.

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HOW OFTEN DO YOU OR SOMEONE
YOU KNOW PULL UP DIRECTIONS

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ON YOUR PHONE OR COMPUTER?

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- MAPS COME IN LOTS
OF DIFFERENT FLAVORS.

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MAPS CAN BE MAPS THAT WE USE
ON OUR PHONE THAT SHOW US

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HOW TO GET TO LUNCH
OR GET HOME OR AVOID TRAFFIC.

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- ALSO, ON THE WALL
OF YOUR CLASSROOM, I GUARANTEE,

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SOMEWHERE IN ONE
OF YOUR CLASSROOMS,

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THERE'S A POLITICAL MAP THAT
SHOWS BOUNDARIES OF COUNTRIES.

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THERE ARE ALSO MAPS
THAT CAN SHOW ENERGY USAGE,

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HOW MUCH COAL IS USED
PER PERSON IN THIS COUNTRY,

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SO MAPS CAN BE USED TO SHOW
ANY KIND OF INFORMATION.

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- AND ANOTHER IMPORTANT ELEMENT

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IS THE SCALE AT WHICH
WE'RE DOING THIS.

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SCALE ABSOLUTELY MATTERS.

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THE POINT OF A MAP IS TO
ESTABLISH SOME KIND OF CONTEXT,

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AND CONTEXT MEANS
YOU HAVE TO HAVE SCALE.

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- THE INFORMATION WE NEEDED
TO BUILD OUR MAPS

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BEGAN WITH THE FIRST EXPLORERS,

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AND JUST LIKE
THOSE EARLY EXPLORERS,

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NASA IS STILL IN THE BUSINESS
OF MAP-MAKING,

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BUT THE MAPS WE'RE MAKING TODAY

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ARE OF THE PLACES
WE'RE EXPLORING

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THROUGHOUT OUR SOLAR SYSTEM.

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- WE'VE KIND OF EXTENDED
THAT WITH WHAT WE DO NOW

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WITH ASTROGEOLOGY
INTO OTHER PLANETS,

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SO WE MAKE MAPS
OF OTHER PLANETS.

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OUR JOB AT THE USGS
AND AS GEOLOGIC MAPPERS

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THAT ARE FUNDED THROUGH NASA
IS TO FIGURE OUT,

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WHAT ARE THE APPROPRIATE
DATA SETS TO USE

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TO SOLVE CERTAIN PROBLEMS?

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- MAPPING IS ALWAYS THE FIRST
STEP TO UNDERSTANDING

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A PLANET'S SURFACE,
AND UNDERSTANDING ITS SURFACE

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IS THE BEST WAY WE HAVE
TO UNDERSTAND THE INTERIOR.

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- THE SPACECRAFT AND ROBOTIC
MISSIONS NASA SENDS OUT

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INTO THE SOLAR SYSTEM
MAKE DETAILED MAPS OF THE MOONS

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AND PLANETS THEY VISIT,

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AND NASA IS USING CUTTING-EDGE
TECHNOLOGY TO MAKE THOSE MAPS.

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- SO THERE ARE ALL KINDS
OF TECHNOLOGIES THAT WE CAN USE

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TO MAP THE SURFACES
OF EARTH AND OTHER PLANETS.

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ONE OF THE MOST REVEALING
IN TERMS OF THE INFORMATION

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THAT IT CAN CARRY IS TO MAP
THE TOPOGRAPHY

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OR THE ELEVATION
OF A PLANET SURFACE.

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A LOT OF GOOD INFORMATION
CONTAINED IN JUST HOW TALL

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THE MOUNTAINS ARE,
WHERE THEY ARE,

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HOW DEEP THE VALLEYS ARE,
WHERE THEY ARE,

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AND THE MOST RELIABLE WAY
TO DO THAT IS USING A LASER.

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IT IS TRANSMITTED
FROM A SPACECRAFT

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TO THE PLANET SURFACE,

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BOUNCES BACK OFF THE PLANET
SURFACE BACK TO THE SPACECRAFT.

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WE MEASURE THE AMOUNT
OF TIME THAT TAKES.

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A SHORT AMOUNT OF TIME MEANS
THAT THERE WAS A TALL MOUNTAIN.

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A LONG AMOUNT OF TIME MEANS
THAT THERE WAS A DEEP VALLEY.

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- GRAIL IS AN AMAZING MISSION,
THAT IT WAS ABLE

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TO COORDINATE TWO SPACECRAFT
CALLED EBB AND FLOW,

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AND BY MEASURING THE PRECISE
DISTANCES BETWEEN EBB AND FLOW--

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AND BY PRECISE,
I MEAN THE DISTANCE

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BETWEEN THOSE TWO SPACECRAFT
COULD BE MEASURED

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WITHIN THE THICKNESS
OF A HUMAN HAIR--

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WE CAN UNDERSTAND
THE GRAVITY OF THE MOON.

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AND THAT GIVES US INFORMATION
ABOUT DEEP INSIDE THE MOON,

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THINGS WE COULD NEVER
GET ANY OTHER WAY,

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THE DENSITY OF THE SURFACE,
WHETHER THE INSIDE OF THE MOON

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IS MORE LIKE THE EARTH
OR LESS LIKE THE EARTH,

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WHICH TELLS US
ABOUT ITS FORMATION.

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WELL, LRO IS
A FANTASTIC SPACECRAFT.

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IT'S GOT ALL KINDS
OF INSTRUMENTS ON IT

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THAT ARE GIVING US UNPRECEDENTED
IMAGES OF THE MOON,

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BUT ALSO COLLECTING TOPOGRAPHIC
DATA AND COMPOSITIONAL DATA.

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- MESSENGER IS A SPACECRAFT
ORBITING MERCURY,

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AND IT IS GATHERING LOTS
OF DIFFERENT INFORMATION.

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THIS IS IMAGING INFORMATION,

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SO YOU HAVE ACTUAL PICTURES
IN THE VISIBLE RANGE,

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AND COLOR PICTURES THAT ARE
ACTUALLY SAYING SOMETHING

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ABOUT THE COMPOSITION.

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- CASSINI IS A SPACECRAFT
THAT HAS BEEN SENT

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TO ORBIT THE SATURN SYSTEM,
SO IT'S DESIGNED TO IMAGE SATURN

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AND ITS RINGS
AND THE ATMOSPHERE OF SATURN,

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BUT ALSO ONE
OF SATURN'S MOONS, TITAN.

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TITAN IS THE LARGEST MOON
IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM.

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DAWN IS A MISSION
THAT WAS DESIGNED TO ORBIT

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AND COLLECT DATA
FOR THE ENTIRE SURFACE

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OF TWO OF THE LARGEST ASTEROIDS,

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AND IT'S COMPLETED
ITS MISSION TO VESTA.

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IT'S AN ASTEROID THAT'S
ABOUT 250 KILOMETERS ACROSS,

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AND BY CAREFULLY
IMAGING THE SURFACE,

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WE CAN GET INFORMATION ABOUT
THE COMPOSITION OF THE SURFACE,

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AND WE'VE IDENTIFIED MINERALS
ON THE SURFACE OF VESTA

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THAT ARE SIMILAR TO MINERALS

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WE HAVE ON EARTH,
WHICH IS FANTASTIC.

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- THE MORE DATA WE HAVE
ABOUT THESE OBJECTS IN SPACE,

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THE MORE WE CAN LEARN ABOUT
HOW THEY WERE FORMED

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AND HOW THEY ARE CHANGING,
SO JUST LIKE OUR ANCESTORS,

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WE STILL LOOK TO THE SKY
FOR ANSWERS.

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WELL, THAT'S IT
FOR THIS EPISODE.

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THANKS FOR WATCHING.

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I'M TAYLOR LYONS.

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SEE YOU NEXT TIME
ON "NASA LAUNCHPAD."

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[dramatic percussion music]