New NASA space cowboy successfully deploys its 'lasso'
Monday, March 2, 2015 - 11:00
in Astronomy & Space
Like a cowboy at a rodeo, NASA's newest Earth-observing satellite, the Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP), has triumphantly raised its "arm" and unfurled a huge golden "lasso" (antenna) that it will soon spin up to rope the best soil moisture maps ever obtained from space.