Photos from Mountain View, California

gerard-kuiper-airborne-observatory / NASA's C-141 jet was named after astronomer Gerard Kuiper and outfitted with a 36-inch telescope. It operated until 1995 and is now decommissioned.

global-earthquake-early-warning / A global earthquake early warning system, which measures changes in rock conductivity, a joint venture of NASA Ames and QuakeFinder, at Yuri's Night

google-headquarters-1 / Headquarters of popular search company Google Inc.

google-headquarters-2 / Headquarters of popular search company Google Inc.

google-headquarters-3 / Headquarters of popular search company Google Inc.

light-bulb-art-project-yuris-night / Light bulb art project, with bicycles and color-shifting bulbs, on display at Yuri's Night World Space Party at NASA Ames

nasa-ames-research-center-party / One of three hangars at NASA Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, pressed into service for Yuri's Night and World Space Party

nasa-quiet-short-haul-research-aircraft / NASA's Quiet Short Haul Research Aircraft, QSRA, built from C-8 Buffalo and used to research short-takeoff aircraft design, on display at Yuri's Night party

peter-foucault-robot-drawing-machine / Multimedia artist Peter Foucault's Robot Drawing Machine #8, with two line-drawing robots that respond to applause, on display at Yuri's Night space party

windmill-kaleidoscope / Windmill on display at Yuri's Night World Space Party at NASA Ames looks like a kaleidoscope when spinning

world-space-party-2007 / World Space Party 2007, a science and dance combination, to celebrate anniversary of Yuri Gagarin's historic orbital flight on April 12, 1961

world-space-party-yuri-gagarin / World Space Party at NASA Ames to celebrate anniversary of Soviet astronaut Yuri Gagarin's historic orbital flight on April 12, 1961

yuri-night-world-space-party / Yuri's Night World Space Party at NASA Ames, to celebrate Yuri Gagarin's historic orbital flight, looks eerily similar to annual Burning Man festival