Author: Robert Zimmerman
“Now I dream of snowboarding down a Martian sand dune on a block of dry ice.”
Data from an experiment on Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter has confirmed that light plastics can provide sufficient protection for humans against radiation.
Data from an experiment on Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter has confirmed that light plastics can provide sufficient protection for humans against radiation.
This is very good news indeed. Combined with the data from Curiosity, which indicated that the radiation levels in interplanetary space were less intense that expected, it appears that radiation will not be a serious obstacle to interplanetary travel.
Now we just have to get the bone loss and vision problems solved.
Data from an experiment on Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter has confirmed that light plastics can provide sufficient protection for humans against radiation.
This is very good news indeed. Combined with the data from Curiosity, which indicated that the radiation levels in interplanetary space were less intense that expected, it appears that radiation will not be a serious obstacle to interplanetary travel.
Now we just have to get the bone loss and vision problems solved.
Despite the decline in Arctic sea ice during the past decade the population of polar bears in the Davis Strait has skyrocketed.
Despite the decline in Arctic sea ice during the past decade the population of polar bears in the Davis Strait has skyrocketed.
The increase might have even placed the population at the carrying capacity for the region.
In related news, the New York Times has finally admitted to the fact that the climate stopped warming fifteen years ago.
At the same time, the reporter has a great deal of trouble dealing with this fact, mainly because he refuses to recognize that the theories of carbon-dioxide-caused global warming might be mistaken.
Despite the decline in Arctic sea ice during the past decade the population of polar bears in the Davis Strait has skyrocketed.
The increase might have even placed the population at the carrying capacity for the region.
In related news, the New York Times has finally admitted to the fact that the climate stopped warming fifteen years ago.
At the same time, the reporter has a great deal of trouble dealing with this fact, mainly because he refuses to recognize that the theories of carbon-dioxide-caused global warming might be mistaken.
Engineers have successfully restored the weather satellite GOES-13 to full operations after it was hit by a micrometeorite in May.
Engineers have successfully restored the weather satellite GOES-13 to full operations after it was hit by a micrometeorite in May.
Engineers have successfully restored the weather satellite GOES-13 to full operations after it was hit by a micrometeorite in May.
China has launched its fifth manned mission, planned to be longest to date.
China has launched its fifth manned mission, planned to be longest to date.
China has launched its fifth manned mission, planned to be longest to date.
The metallic snow-capped mountains of Venus.
The metallic snow-capped mountains of Venus.
Yup, it rains metal on Venus, producing mountain caps made of heavy metals.
The metallic snow-capped mountains of Venus.
Yup, it rains metal on Venus, producing mountain caps made of heavy metals.
The red tape of the space bureaucracy
“An article in the Economist today has some chilling conclusions about the difficulties faced by the new commercial space companies.
Although the cost of developing new space vehicles, products and services is high, just as much of a burden can be imposed by such intangible expenses as regulatory compliance, legal fees and insurance premiums.
The article points out the heavy cost to these new space companies caused by insurance requirements and government regulation, including the ITAR regulations that restrict technology transfers to foreign countries. However, this paragraph stood out to me as most significant:
Then there is the question of vehicle certification. The first private astronauts and space tourists may soon take to the skies in new launch vehicles, and the FAA has initially agreed to license commercial spacecraft without certifying, as it does for aircraft, that the vehicles are safe to carry humans. The idea is that specific safety criteria will become apparent only once the rockets are flying and (though it is rarely admitted) an accident eventually happens. This learning period will keep costs down for makers of the new spacecraft, even if significant compliance expenses are likely when it is over. The exemption was meant to have expired last year and was extended to the end of 2015. Commercial space companies are understandably keen for it to be extended again. “In the dawn of aviation, planes had 20 to 30 years before significant legislation applied,” says George Whitesides, the boss of Virgin Galactic.
Back in 2004 I noted in a UPI column the problems caused by these regulations, even as they were being written. (I had also done something at the time that few reporters ever do: I actually read the law that Congress was passing.) Then I said,
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According to Ohio’s Insurance Department, Obamacare will cause healthcare rates to rise next year by 88 percent.
Finding out what’s in it: According to Ohio’s Insurance Department, Obamacare will cause healthcare rates to rise next year by 88 percent.
What are the drivers of the increase? According to Milliman, the two biggest drivers are (1) risk pool composition changes, such as forcing the young to subsidize the old, and the healthy to subsidize the sick; and (2) Obamacare’s required expansion of insurance benefits, particularly its mandated reductions in deductibles and co-pays.
This is a significant concept to understand. Some people have the impression that the main reason that rates are going up under Obamacare is because of the law’s requirement that insurers cover people with pre-existing conditions. But that accounts for only a fraction—around a quarter—of the rate hike. The rest comes from all the other things that Obamacare does, such as forcing people to buy richer insurance benefits; to buy products with all sorts of add-ons they might not need; to pay Obamacare’s premium tax; and to pay a lot more, if they’re young, to subsidize older individuals.
In other words, you won’t be able to buy the plan you want. Obamacare forces you to buy a more expensive plan, even if you don’t need it.
Finding out what’s in it: According to Ohio’s Insurance Department, Obamacare will cause healthcare rates to rise next year by 88 percent.
What are the drivers of the increase? According to Milliman, the two biggest drivers are (1) risk pool composition changes, such as forcing the young to subsidize the old, and the healthy to subsidize the sick; and (2) Obamacare’s required expansion of insurance benefits, particularly its mandated reductions in deductibles and co-pays.
This is a significant concept to understand. Some people have the impression that the main reason that rates are going up under Obamacare is because of the law’s requirement that insurers cover people with pre-existing conditions. But that accounts for only a fraction—around a quarter—of the rate hike. The rest comes from all the other things that Obamacare does, such as forcing people to buy richer insurance benefits; to buy products with all sorts of add-ons they might not need; to pay Obamacare’s premium tax; and to pay a lot more, if they’re young, to subsidize older individuals.
In other words, you won’t be able to buy the plan you want. Obamacare forces you to buy a more expensive plan, even if you don’t need it.
Another IRS official has been removed as a result of the agency’s harassment of conservatives.
Another IRS official has been replaced as a result of the agency’s harassment of conservatives.
We don’t know however whether this person was fired, suspended, or merely shifted to another position. All are possible, and it makes a significant difference.
Another IRS official has been replaced as a result of the agency’s harassment of conservatives.
We don’t know however whether this person was fired, suspended, or merely shifted to another position. All are possible, and it makes a significant difference.
China’s next manned mission is now scheduled for launch tomorrow, Tuesday, June 11.
China’s next manned mission is now scheduled for launch tomorrow, Tuesday, June 11.
The spacecraft will travel in the space for 15 days and go through two docking tests with the orbiting space lab module Tiangong-1, one automatic and the other manual.
China’s next manned mission is now scheduled for launch tomorrow, Tuesday, June 11.
The spacecraft will travel in the space for 15 days and go through two docking tests with the orbiting space lab module Tiangong-1, one automatic and the other manual.
Fleetwood Mac – Rhiannon
The whistleblower who leaked the NSA surveillance program to the press has gone public.
The whistleblower who leaked the NSA surveillance program to the press has gone public and is talking. Key quote:
Q: Does your family know you are planning this?
A: “No. My family does not know what is happening … My primary fear is that they will come after my family, my friends, my partner. Anyone I have a relationship with …
I will have to live with that for the rest of my life. I am not going to be able to communicate with them. They [the authorities] will act aggressively against anyone who has known me. That keeps me up at night.” [emphasis mine]
It tells us how far the United States has fallen if this man fears our government so much he thinks that government will go after his family.
Read the whole interview. It is quite horrifying, especially now that we know there are federal agents willing to use their power to target specific people solely because of their politics.
The whistleblower who leaked the NSA surveillance program to the press has gone public and is talking. Key quote:
Q: Does your family know you are planning this?
A: “No. My family does not know what is happening … My primary fear is that they will come after my family, my friends, my partner. Anyone I have a relationship with …
I will have to live with that for the rest of my life. I am not going to be able to communicate with them. They [the authorities] will act aggressively against anyone who has known me. That keeps me up at night.” [emphasis mine]
It tells us how far the United States has fallen if this man fears our government so much he thinks that government will go after his family.
Read the whole interview. It is quite horrifying, especially now that we know there are federal agents willing to use their power to target specific people solely because of their politics.
The National Security Agency can secretly access user data provided by as many as fifty American companies, ranging from credit rating agencies to internet service providers.
The National Security Agency can secretly access user data provided by as many as fifty American companies, ranging from credit rating agencies to internet service providers.
The furor this week over this NSA snoop scandal is fascinating to me. The snooping really isn’t news, as it has been known for years that the NSA delves into these kinds of records in its effort to identify terrorist activity.
So, why the sudden furor and outrage? Up until a few weeks ago, most Americans assumed the federal government restricted this kind of snooping to foreign sources and to specifically hunting for terrorists. Now, however, after the IRS scandal, the public realizes that this government, under Obama at least, is quite willing to abuse its power for partisan political reasons. Under Obama, the IRS was used to target innocent Americans, merely because they disagreed with Obama. The public now realizes that it is also likely that this administration will abuse its access to the private information gathered by NSA, and that sends chills up people’s spines.
Thus, the furor. This kind of snooping is suddenly perceived as a real threat to Americans.
The National Security Agency can secretly access user data provided by as many as fifty American companies, ranging from credit rating agencies to internet service providers.
The furor this week over this NSA snoop scandal is fascinating to me. The snooping really isn’t news, as it has been known for years that the NSA delves into these kinds of records in its effort to identify terrorist activity.
So, why the sudden furor and outrage? Up until a few weeks ago, most Americans assumed the federal government restricted this kind of snooping to foreign sources and to specifically hunting for terrorists. Now, however, after the IRS scandal, the public realizes that this government, under Obama at least, is quite willing to abuse its power for partisan political reasons. Under Obama, the IRS was used to target innocent Americans, merely because they disagreed with Obama. The public now realizes that it is also likely that this administration will abuse its access to the private information gathered by NSA, and that sends chills up people’s spines.
Thus, the furor. This kind of snooping is suddenly perceived as a real threat to Americans.
A Texas high school cut off the mike of a valedictorian during his speech when he deviated from his approved speech and began to talk about the Constitution.
The new freedom: A Texas high school cut off the mike of a valedictorian during his speech when he deviated from his approved speech and began to talk about the Constitution.
The school absolutely has the right in this context to cut off his microphone. I just find it a terrible approach to teaching.
The new freedom: A Texas high school cut off the mike of a valedictorian during his speech when he deviated from his approved speech and began to talk about the Constitution.
The school absolutely has the right in this context to cut off his microphone. I just find it a terrible approach to teaching.
“The IRS scandal is much worse than anyone realizes.”
“The IRS scandal is much worse than anyone realizes.”
How did I know this was a coordinated attack on conservative critics and donors? Because just in my small inner circle of friends, virtually every businessman that I met was getting hit with IRS audit notices only weeks after writing checks to the GOP and Mitt Romney. Strange coincidence, huh?
In one case, a friend of mine who is a hedge fund CEO attended the first major Wall Street fundraiser for Mitt Romney. Only a select few Wall Street big shots attended. After they went home, almost every one of them in the room that wrote a check to Romney later reported receiving IRS audit notices.
In another case, a friend of mine wrote a big check to Romney. He called me to report his suspicions when only weeks later he received an IRS notice. In another case, my next-door neighbor (who is a big GOP donor) reported being under vicious IRS attack. In another case, my accountant was suddenly audited only months after my first IRS attack. Even my publicist received an IRS audit notice.
The author of this article — a well known conservative critic of Obama — was himself audited twice, and exonerated twice. The second audit notice came five days after he had won in court the first time.
“The IRS scandal is much worse than anyone realizes.”
How did I know this was a coordinated attack on conservative critics and donors? Because just in my small inner circle of friends, virtually every businessman that I met was getting hit with IRS audit notices only weeks after writing checks to the GOP and Mitt Romney. Strange coincidence, huh?
In one case, a friend of mine who is a hedge fund CEO attended the first major Wall Street fundraiser for Mitt Romney. Only a select few Wall Street big shots attended. After they went home, almost every one of them in the room that wrote a check to Romney later reported receiving IRS audit notices.
In another case, a friend of mine wrote a big check to Romney. He called me to report his suspicions when only weeks later he received an IRS notice. In another case, my next-door neighbor (who is a big GOP donor) reported being under vicious IRS attack. In another case, my accountant was suddenly audited only months after my first IRS attack. Even my publicist received an IRS audit notice.
The author of this article — a well known conservative critic of Obama — was himself audited twice, and exonerated twice. The second audit notice came five days after he had won in court the first time.
Astronauts on ISS this week initiated a four year study of the vision problems that scientists have discovered occur to some individuals after long exposure to weightlessness.
Astronauts on ISS this week initiated a four year study of the vision problems that scientists have discovered occur to some individuals after long exposure to weightlessness.
Astronauts on ISS this week initiated a four year study of the vision problems that scientists have discovered occur to some individuals after long exposure to weightlessness.
Opportunity, now moving to another target 1.5 miles away, has found evidence of drinkable water on Mars.
Opportunity, now moving to another target 1.5 miles away, has found evidence that some of the water on Mars was once drinkable.
Before trekking off last month, Opportunity used a grinder to scrape away the top layer of a light-colored rock for a peek inside. The rock was so lumpy and covered with crud that it took the rover several tries to crack open its secrets. Unlike other rocks that Opportunity inspected during the past nine years, the latest told a different story: It contained clay minerals, a sign that water coursed through it, and formed in an environment that might have been suitable for microbes. Previous rock studies by Opportunity pointed to a watery past on Mars, but scientists said the water was acidic.
“This is water you can drink,” said mission chief scientist Steve Squyres of Cornell University.
More details here, noting that this water comes from an earlier time on Mars, when the planet’s environment was more benign.
So the rover has now sampled both sides of the momentous planetary transition from a wet, benign environment more than 4 billion years ago to a colder, drier, harsher one since then
Opportunity, now moving to another target 1.5 miles away, has found evidence that some of the water on Mars was once drinkable.
Before trekking off last month, Opportunity used a grinder to scrape away the top layer of a light-colored rock for a peek inside. The rock was so lumpy and covered with crud that it took the rover several tries to crack open its secrets. Unlike other rocks that Opportunity inspected during the past nine years, the latest told a different story: It contained clay minerals, a sign that water coursed through it, and formed in an environment that might have been suitable for microbes. Previous rock studies by Opportunity pointed to a watery past on Mars, but scientists said the water was acidic.
“This is water you can drink,” said mission chief scientist Steve Squyres of Cornell University.
More details here, noting that this water comes from an earlier time on Mars, when the planet’s environment was more benign.
So the rover has now sampled both sides of the momentous planetary transition from a wet, benign environment more than 4 billion years ago to a colder, drier, harsher one since then
Fifteen famous living trees.
NASA has decided that the best use for two space mirrors donated to the space agency by the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) would be to study either dark energy and extrasolar planets.
NASA has decided that the best use for two space mirrors donated to the space agency by the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) would be to study either dark energy and extrasolar planets.
There is no funding as yet for either mission, so for the moment the mirrors will remain on the ground, in storage.
NASA has decided that the best use for two space mirrors donated to the space agency by the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) would be to study either dark energy and extrasolar planets.
There is no funding as yet for either mission, so for the moment the mirrors will remain on the ground, in storage.
John Wayne in The Longest Day
An evening pause: As this is June 6, the anniversary of D-Day in World War II, let’s watch John Wayne show us how Americans once did it. From the 1962 film, The Longest Day.
Sierra Nevada has begun the testing program of Dream Chaser’s engines.
The competition heats up: Sierra Nevada has begun the testing program of Dream Chaser’s engines.
These tests were to verify that the engine test stand will function properly when they begin testing the engines themselves. Note also that Sierra Nevada provided the engines for SpaceShipTwo, and that Dream Chaser’s engines appear to be some variant of that hybrid engine design.
The competition heats up: Sierra Nevada has begun the testing program of Dream Chaser’s engines.
These tests were to verify that the engine test stand will function properly when they begin testing the engines themselves. Note also that Sierra Nevada provided the engines for SpaceShipTwo, and that Dream Chaser’s engines appear to be some variant of that hybrid engine design.
A senator asks Attorney General Holder if the Obama administration has spied on Congress with its access to Verizon phone records and Holder refuses to answer.
The KGB comes to America: A senator asks Attorney General Holder if the Obama administration has spied on Congress with its access to Verizon phone records and Holder refuses to answer.
Video below the fold.
» Read more
The KGB comes to America: A senator asks Attorney General Holder if the Obama administration has spied on Congress with its access to Verizon phone records and Holder refuses to answer.
Video below the fold.
» Read more
Despite the failure of any climate model to predict the climate, the Obama administration is increasing the cost and strictness of regulation because of what it sees as the “social cost of carbon dioxide.”
Despite the failure of any climate model to predict the climate, the Obama administration is increasing the cost and strictness of regulation because of what it sees as the “social cost of carbon dioxide.”
[E]ssentially, the government is now incorporating newer climate models that capture the future damage from sea-level rise more explicitly. Those models also project that agriculture will suffer more heavily in a hotter world. So, in its central estimate, the federal government now assumes a ton of carbon-dioxide emitted in 2013 does roughly $36 in damage, rather than its previous estimate of $22, with the value rising each year.
Meanwhile, new data also suggests increased carbon dioxide in the atmosphere might actually be beneficial, not damaging.
Shouldn’t the EPA and the Obama administration get their heads out of the sand?
Despite the failure of any climate model to predict the climate, the Obama administration is increasing the cost and strictness of regulation because of what it sees as the “social cost of carbon dioxide.”
[E]ssentially, the government is now incorporating newer climate models that capture the future damage from sea-level rise more explicitly. Those models also project that agriculture will suffer more heavily in a hotter world. So, in its central estimate, the federal government now assumes a ton of carbon-dioxide emitted in 2013 does roughly $36 in damage, rather than its previous estimate of $22, with the value rising each year.
Meanwhile, new data also suggests increased carbon dioxide in the atmosphere might actually be beneficial, not damaging.
Shouldn’t the EPA and the Obama administration get their heads out of the sand?
Two IRS employees in Cincinnati have told congressional investigators that officials in Washington directed and established the policy of harassing conservative groups that began in 2010.
Two IRS employees in Cincinnati have told congressional investigators that officials in Washington directed and established the policy of harassing conservative groups that began in 2010.
I especially like this quote:
Hofacre said she was outraged last month when IRS higher-ups, including Lois Lerner, then the head of the IRS tax-exempt division, blamed the problem on employees in Cincinnati. “I was furious,” Ms. Hofacre told interviewers. “It looked like Lois Lerner was putting it on us.”
Yup, that is exactly what Lerner was doing — looking for a fall guy.
Two IRS employees in Cincinnati have told congressional investigators that officials in Washington directed and established the policy of harassing conservative groups that began in 2010.
I especially like this quote:
Hofacre said she was outraged last month when IRS higher-ups, including Lois Lerner, then the head of the IRS tax-exempt division, blamed the problem on employees in Cincinnati. “I was furious,” Ms. Hofacre told interviewers. “It looked like Lois Lerner was putting it on us.”
Yup, that is exactly what Lerner was doing — looking for a fall guy.
What “Happily Ever After” really looks like.
The repairs to the cracks in the first Orion capsule have withstood static stress tests.
I’m so glad: The repairs to the cracks in the first Orion capsule have withstood static stress tests.
In addition to the various loads it sustained, the Orion crew module also was pressurized to simulate the effect of the vacuum in space. This simulation allowed engineers to confirm it would hold its pressurization in a vacuum and verify repairs made to superficial cracks in the vehicle’s rear bulkhead caused by previous pressure testing in November.
The November test revealed insufficient margin in an area of the bulkhead that was unable to withstand the stress of pressurization. Armed with data from that test, engineers were able to reinforce the design to ensure structural integrity and validate the fix during this week’s test. [emphasis mine]
I love how this NASA press release describes the cracking of the capsule bulkhead during the November testing, indicated in bold. “Insufficient margin”, eh?
Normally I am very forgiving when things fail during engineering tests, but for the bulkhead of this capsule to crack during these tests was actually pretty shameful, considering the decades of engineering work previously done in the building of space capsules and submarines. Things can certainly go wrong when you build something new, but I don’t see anything particularly revolutionary about Orion’s design. Lots of things might fail, but making sure the bulkhead could withstand the normal and well known stresses of spaceflight should not have been one of those things. The bulkhead failure suggests to me some sloppy engineering work took place in Orion’s initial design.
I’m so glad: The repairs to the cracks in the first Orion capsule have withstood static stress tests.
In addition to the various loads it sustained, the Orion crew module also was pressurized to simulate the effect of the vacuum in space. This simulation allowed engineers to confirm it would hold its pressurization in a vacuum and verify repairs made to superficial cracks in the vehicle’s rear bulkhead caused by previous pressure testing in November.
The November test revealed insufficient margin in an area of the bulkhead that was unable to withstand the stress of pressurization. Armed with data from that test, engineers were able to reinforce the design to ensure structural integrity and validate the fix during this week’s test. [emphasis mine]
I love how this NASA press release describes the cracking of the capsule bulkhead during the November testing, indicated in bold. “Insufficient margin”, eh?
Normally I am very forgiving when things fail during engineering tests, but for the bulkhead of this capsule to crack during these tests was actually pretty shameful, considering the decades of engineering work previously done in the building of space capsules and submarines. Things can certainly go wrong when you build something new, but I don’t see anything particularly revolutionary about Orion’s design. Lots of things might fail, but making sure the bulkhead could withstand the normal and well known stresses of spaceflight should not have been one of those things. The bulkhead failure suggests to me some sloppy engineering work took place in Orion’s initial design.
Richard Branson has revealed that Justin Bieber has signed on to fly on SpaceShipTwo.
Richard Branson has revealed that Justin Bieber has signed on to fly on SpaceShipTwo.
The competition is now really heating up. Bieber probably doesn’t want to be left behind, considering the publicity Sarah Brightman has been getting for her planned space flight to ISS.
Richard Branson has revealed that Justin Bieber has signed on to fly on SpaceShipTwo.
The competition is now really heating up. Bieber probably doesn’t want to be left behind, considering the publicity Sarah Brightman has been getting for her planned space flight to ISS.
The scientists operating Curiosity have decided it is time to begin the trek up Mt. Sharp
The scientists operating Curiosity have decided it is time to begin the trek up Mt. Sharp.
The scientists operating Curiosity have decided it is time to begin the trek up Mt. Sharp.
Europe successfully launched its heaviest unmanned cargo freighter to ISS today.
Europe successfully launched its heaviest unmanned cargo freighter to ISS today.
The docking of the ATV freighter, dubbed Albert Einstein, will take place after ten days of checkout in orbit.
Europe successfully launched its heaviest unmanned cargo freighter to ISS today.
The docking of the ATV freighter, dubbed Albert Einstein, will take place after ten days of checkout in orbit.