Burt Rutan retiring
It isn’t the first time he’s said it, but Burt Rutan, designer of SpaceShipOne, says he is retiring from Scaled Composites.
Author: Robert Zimmerman
Discovery launch scrubbed due to hydrogen leak
Discovery’s launch is scrubbed again, this time due to another hydrogen leak. Next possible launch date is Monday, which means it is possible the launch will be delayed until early December.
An Early Warning System for Asteroid Impact
In a paper posted tonight on the Los Alamos astro-ph website, an astronomer is proposing an early warning system for asteroid impact. Key quote from the abstract:
This system, dubbed “Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System” (ATLAS), comprises two observatories separated by about 100km that simultaneously scan the visible sky twice a night, and can be implemented immediately for relatively low cost. The sensitivity of ATLAS permits detection of 140m asteroids (100 Mton impact energy) three weeks before impact, and 50m asteroids a week before arrival. An ATLAS alarm, augmented by other observations, should result in a determination of impact location and time that is accurate to a few kilometers and a few seconds.
NASA could be in budget limbo for months after Tuesday’s election
From the Huntsville Times: NASA could be in a budget limbo for months as a result of Tuesday’s election.
More info on Deep Impact flyby of Comet Hartley 2
First close-up photos of Comet Hartley 2 reveal a space peanut.
Statement from new chairman of House Science and Technology Committee
What will the global warming scientists do? The new chairman of the House Science and Technology Committee calls for “strong oversight . . . in key areas including climate change, scientific integrity”.
Watching the Deep Impact flyby of Hartley 2
Watch the Deep Impact flyby of Hartley 2 this instant (11:06 AM eastern)! The images are incredible. Update: The fly-by is over, but the live stream is still available (as of 11:30 am Eastern), showing some of the images taken. The comet itself is a peanut-shaped object about two miles long, with a jet of water coming out one end.
Florida Today calls for more NASA spending from new Congress
The first hints of the new space war over NASA: Florida Today calls for the new Congress to continue the NASA budget increases as authorized by the old Congress.
Baikonur allows its first feature film
The Baikonur space port: a movie set.
Weather causes shuttle launch to be scrubbed
The last launch of the space shuttle Discovery has been scrubbed today, this time because of weather. They will try again on Friday.
California Dreamin’
An evening pause: Since I am out in California, giving a lecture to the Orange County section of the AIAA, I figure this song might be appropriate.
Pro Cap & Trade Democrats slaughtered in elections
“Global climate disruption” takes another hit! Democrats who had voted for the Cap & Trade bill in 2009 were slaughtered in yesterday’s elections.
The Making of a Mind-Blowing DIY Sun Photo
A do-it-yourself photo of the Sun that looks as good as any taken from space. And it’s art too!
Destroy Earth from home
Space and the election results
Yesterday’s elections will clearly force changes again to NASA’s future. Below are a few links from some other space experts expressing their thoughts on the matter. I will follow with my own essay sometime next week, after the election results have some time to shake out.
From SpacePolicyOnline, an overview of the results in relation to space policy.
From Rand Simberg: Great election news for space.
From Space Politics: Brooks wins, Giffords with a narrow lead.
See also this Space.com article: Election Brings New Leadership to NASA Oversight Committees.
Overall, the defeat of Congressmen like Oberstar and Grayson, both of whom loved to regulate, can only be good for the future of private space.
The updated monthly sunspot graph, as of November 2, 2010
NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center today published its monthly update of the Sun’s developing sunspot cycle, showing the slow rise in sunspots in comparison with the consensis prediction made by the solar science community in May 2009.
Unlike October graph, which showed a clear jump in sunspot activity, this November update shows that the rise in sunspot numbers has once again slowed down. As I’ve noted repeatedly, these numbers suggest that we are heading for the weakest solar maximum in two hundred years, far below predictions. And when that last happened, around 1810, it was called the Dalton minimum and the Earth experienced one of its coldest periods in many many decades.
We ain’t goin’ away
An evening pause: As election day is just about over, I think this song will help explain to our elected officials the kind of government the United States has, and how the results from today are merely a single moment in a long struggle.
Electrical problem on Discovery could delay launch
An electrical problem on the space shuttle Discovery could delay tomorrow’s launch. Update: NASA has decided to definitely delay the launch until Thursday, at the earliest.
Astronauts on ISS vote from space
Democracy marches on! The American astronauts on ISS used a secure email system to vote early from space.
Dollar could lose 20% of its value in next few years
According to the manager of the world’s largest mutual fund, the U.S. dollar could lose 20% of its value in next few years, due to actions of the Federal Reserve.