Look out below! NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center

NASA/Mary Ann Harness and Troy Asher

Here I am in a modified Gulfstream G-3 research aircraft, flying with test pilot Troy Asher of NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center at 41,000 feet – almost eight miles high – above the Kilauea volcano in Hawaii. The G-3 carries a radar instrument called the Glacier and Ice Surface Topography Interferometer (GLISTIN). Scientists were using it to monitor the volcano, which was erupting below us!

Traveling in the spirit of a Newfoundland dog that became one of the most famous members of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, Seaman Jr. will enjoy the sights of our home planet from the International Space Station, including amazing views of our national trails, in honor of the 50th anniversary of the National Trails Act and NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration 60th anniversary.

The National Park Service and Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail invite you to learn more about Seaman, Jr.’s space journey! Follow his blog (go.nps.gov/NewfieNews) for special updates to see all of the missions in space and flashbacks to his training adventures at NASA centers and on the national trails.