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After four cancelled attempts at a launch, NASA’s Artemis I mission finally successfully launched on November 16th, 2022 in Cape Canaveral, Florida at 12:47 AM Central Time.

This launch signifies a new era of manned spaceflight, with the ultimate goal to have a base on the moon, as the United States and various other countries attempt to solidify their presence in space.

The Artemis program is a series of ongoing space missions that will be run by NASA in the coming months and years.

Artemis I tested the most powerful rocket ever built, The Space Launch System, which generated over 8 million pounds of thrust during its liftoff. That is over 1.3 million pounds more powerful than the Saturn V rocket that was used for the Apollo missions in the mid 20th century.

The Space Launch System powers the Orion Capsule, which will take a 25 day journey to navigate the moon and surrounding areas. It is meant to test the capsule to its limits, as it will hold precious human lives. The capsule is projected to land somewhere off the coast of San Diego, California in the Pacific Ocean on December 11.

Although it is just a test flight, and an unmanned mission, Artemis I is an extremely serious endeavour. Humans have not been to the moon in over half a century. This new ‘space race’ will bring in billions if not trillions of dollars to economies of countries all over the globe.

NASA used mannequins to simulate the humans that will eventually be on board. They collected crucial data that will be used to ensure the safety of the astronauts when the second and third phases launch.

Artemis mission manager, Michael Sarafin admitted to running into various problems that did not match their predictions in terms of how the equipment has functioned, along with the data they have collected thus far.

An example of this is the Orion capsule’s star tracker, an intricate system that uses a map of the cosmos to tell the engineers of NASA on the ground how the capsule is oriented in space itself. Various data readings were not coming back as the crew had expected. However, NASA officials said it was simply part of the learning curve that comes every time with flying a new type of spacecraft.

“We had an understanding of the system headed into the mission. We had predictions whether it was how much power would we consumed or how much propellant or how hot the vehicle would be — and we’re not exactly matching that. And in most cases it is performing better. We’re seeing things that don’t quite match our predictions. And the team is spending the time to go through that with a fine-tooth comb to make sure that there isn’t something else there that is potentially a latent issue.” Safarin said.

There are three Artemis missions that NASA currently has in progress: Artemis I, an unmanned test flight, that will circle and fly past the Moon, collecting data and pictures simultaneously. Artemis II will be a crewed flight, and will take them beyond the Moon, and will take humans the furthest they’ve ever been in space. Artemis III will be the final leg of the program, in which NASA will land the first female astronaut, and first astronaut of color on the Moon. The crew plans to collect extensive data, and will spend approximately a week performing scientific studies on the lunar surface. Artemis III will be the first manned lunar landing since Apollo 17 in 1972.

NASA’s long-term goals for the Artemis program are even more ambitious. They plan to use the knowledge, technology and research developed during the flights of Artemis to inform their eventual launch of a crewed mission to Mars in the coming decades.

In order to accomplish this grand feat, they plan to establish a long term presence on the moon, and create a lunar base. They will use this base to mine materials from the lunar surface, and transport astronauts as they embark on the journey to the distant planet, as well as to and from the International Space Station. It will serve as a ‘space hotel’ of sorts, and will be a rest stop for space travelers.

This base will also be used to transport large amounts of materials mined in asteroids. This is a ways away, but there is nearly an infinite amount of resources in asteroids just waiting to be mined, humans just merely lack the means to access them. There are certain asteroids that contain quintillions of dollars worth of materials, such as Iron, Nickel, Platinum, and many more.

Some say there is enough money in asteroids to make every person on Earth a billionaire. The base on the moon will make that fantasy slightly more realistic in the decades to come, and it all began on November 16th with the launch of Artemis I.

Most things in life don’t come easy. You must work hard and build success through trial and error. Starting an expansion franchise in the NFL is no different. Teams such as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Seattle Seahawks struggled to get things on the right path when it came to winning football games when they were first established. However, for some team’s things fall into place without really expecting it. The story of the Jacksonville Jaguars is the perfect example of this.
The late 1990s were great for the Jaguars organization. In only their second season of being a franchise, the Jaguars made it to the AFC Championship, where they fell to the eventual Super Bowl runner-up New England Patriots. Led by rising star quarterback Mark Brunel, and the untouchable receiver duo of Kenan McCardell and Jimmy Smith, the Jacksonville Jaguars had the best record in the AFC in 1999, going 14-2 throughout the regular season, losing only to the new-look Tennessee Titans who had just relocated from Houston Texas. The trend would continue as the Jaguars were set to appear in their first Superbowl. Unfortunately, the team they would face in their second AFC Championship birth would be the team that handed them their only two losses all season.
Following the turn of the century, the Jaguars organization really struggled to find an identity in professional football. The team of the 90s would eventually disappear as the years went on, and the replacement players would not continue that same type of success that happened before. The Jaguars would only make the playoffs three times after 1999, reaching yet another AFC Championship in 2017, where they would fall to Tom Brady’s New England Patriots. Many thought this was the start of something new in Jacksonville, as their defense was considered one of the league’s best.
Unfortunately, this would be the last time the organization would make the playoffs.
Nowadays, the Jacksonville Jaguars are still one of the bottom-tier teams in the NFL.
Run by owner Shad Khan and general manager Trent Balkie, the Jags have consistently been at the top of the draft board and have really struggled to build a winning culture. There have been a few reasons for this. Unfortunately, the organization’s location is one of these factors, as Jacksonville has never been a huge NFL market. The other main reason they have struggled is poor draft selections.
For most fans, the years of struggling seemed to be over when the team acquired a generational talent in Trevor Lawrence. Since the Mark Brunel years, the Jaguars have only sent one quarterback to the NFL’s version of the all-star game, the pro bowl. This player was former East Carolina product David Gerard, who Jacksonville drafted in the fourth round in 2002. Since then, the Jaguars have gone through a carousel of quarterbacks. Nowadas, the Jaguars have shown flashes of having a star quarterback in Lawrence, but the young QB is still developing.
Going back to Trevor, the Jaguars selected him first overall in the 2020 NFL draft with high hopes of becoming a successful franchise once again. The team also drafted his college teammate and highly touted running back Travis Etn to help give Trevor a running back with which he has strong chemistry. Unfortunately, Etn would get injured in the 2020 preseason, and Trevor would have to play his rookie season alone. This would be a rough start for the rookie QB, as Lawrence’s first season as a Jaguar would be one to forget. By the end of the 2021 season, he would throw only 12 touchdowns to a league-tying 17 interceptions.
After the end of a rough season, the casual Jaguar fan might have given up on Trevor; however, those that followed the team throughout 2021 know that there was more. Before the start of Trevor’s rookie year, the Jaguars hired former Ohio State coach Urban Myer to take the reins of the Jags. This coaching hire failed horribly as Urban could not motivate the team and, more than anything, disrespected the organization. Players didn’t like him, and fans for sure had their own issues. Urban would cause many problems, such as kicking the Jag’s placekicker in the leg before he was let go by the Jaguar’s front office.
While 2021 was a challenging year for the Jags, the team ended 2021 with a win over divisional opponent the Indianapolis Colts knocking them out of playoff contention. Many thought the best was yet to come following multiple free agent picks and, ultimately, the hiring of former super bowl winning coach Doug Peterson. Unfortunately, the losing has continued as the team has only accumulated three wins so far this season. Things seem bleak right now, but there is still time, as Trevor is only 23 years old. While the record doesn’t show it, coaching has been better, and Trevor has shown slight improvement overall as a player, so there is no reason to give up entirely on this team.

It is officially flu season in Texas and it seems like every corner you turn someone else tests positive. Why don’t we talk about the flu, how it is spread, symptoms, medications to help, places to go for testing, and recovery? As college kids, we find ourselves out in the world living while mom and dad are back home. Therefore, we are in charge of taking care of ourselves and that includes when we get… sick.

The flu, that pesky little three-lettered word packs quite the punch to it. As we get back to a sense of normalcy with covid our immune systems are getting quite the flu shock. The flu is a viral infection that attacks our lungs, nose, and throat and the symptoms include headaches, stomachaches, fatigue, runny nose, coughing, etc. Most people who get the flu also find themselves with a fever as well. While the flu is a very common infection and we hear a lot about it all of the time, that doesn’t mean we can treat it as if it is not dangerous. If we do not properly medicate and care for our bodies while were sick, the flu can become a much larger problem with much greater risks. One of the main ways to know if you have come down with the flu is the way the infection presents itself. The flu slams your body at one time. Meaning, you could be perfectly fine at 7:00 am, but by 9:00 am you could be coughing, sneezing, and the body aches could be in full effect. If you feel like you may have the flu and would like to get tested San Marcos has many different urgent care clinics that you can go to, but be aware that without insurance you could find yourself paying a very costly copay for your visit.

Being college students, we wander around campus all day long, jogging up staircases, and hopping the bus. When we get caught up in the speed of things we don’t think about all of the surfaces we’re touching. The flu is spread through droplets we expel when we cough, sneeze or talk. Ideally, if you have the flu wearing a face mask, as we do for covid, is the most beneficial way to prevent the spread of droplets. Carrying hand sanitizer in your backpack or purse is a need after you get off of the bus, or when you arrive at class. Taking care of your immune system is just as important as it was when the pandemic first began, so remember to be cautious and considerate towards others as we don’t all function the same. For this reason, I highly encourage students to get tested if they feel their symptoms are those of the flu. Now, let’s talk about school. Absences are dangerous in college, you are 100% responsible for all of your actions, including getting your own note and registering it with the school. If you go get that official test, be sure to convey it to your professors. Being sick is not an excuse to let those grades slip!

You will want to go get some medicine because medicating it from the start will make the entire thing much easier. Personally, I use Vick’s Dayquill and Nyquil liquid gels, which you can purchase at any grocery store or pharmacy. As an asthmatic, I develop a nasty cough just about any time I get sick, so Delsum cough suppressant is a total lifesaver. Cough drops are always a necessity for me as well. Be very observant of the directions, take the proper dosage, and follow all directions! I know you hear it everywhere but you need to drink your water. Consistently taking fluids such as water, Gatorade, and juices help to break down all of that phlegm. Dealing with body aches is usually the most painful part of the flu. Taking Motrin will help with the body aches, but always make sure to check that you are able to take it with whatever medications you are already taking.

Personally, this is the first time I have gotten genuinely sick while away from my parents as a student.  I can’t lie, I really did not think it would be this difficult. We grow up knowing that when you feel sick, you tell your parents who can then call the doctor and get you all the different medicines you need. Then they ship you to college and suddenly you have to be the one to take yourself to the doctor, you have to go to the store and find the medicine, and you begin to realize that we are now the adults here. The goal was to help inform readers today so that when you are in that situation you are fully prepared.  Please please keep yourself safe and healthy!