March 19, 2024 Quick space links
Courtesy of BtB’s stringer Jay, who has finally returned from the Solomon Islands after his DX ham expedition (a week late). As he wrote me,
Flights got cancelled on my last week and we were stuck for another week in the Solomons. One of the reasons why we got flown off was it is election time next month, so all the politicians are flying as well. Never fly Fiji Airlines and Solomon Airlines.
I did go to the sites of the battles during the Guadal Canal campaigns during WW2, those are bloody battles that you do not hear or read about.
The Solomon Islands is a third world country and they hate the Chinese. The people are pissed off that their elected officials sold their fishing rights to the Chinese for $85,000. Yes, you read that correctly, a multi-million dollar industry for $85,000 USD. Lots of graft and corruption there. They have so much potential, and they squander it. Only a three hour jump to the west is Fiji, and it enjoys a huge booming tourist economy.
On to the quick links. This post is also an open thread. I welcome my readers to post any comments or additional links relating to any space issues, even if unrelated to the links below.
- ULA’s CEO touts the Vulcan upper stages now ready in its manufacturing building
Three are shown in the image, suggesting ULA is ready for at least that many launches, assuming Blue Origin delivers the necessary first stage engines.
- Boeing has begun fueling Starliner for launch
Takes about two weeks. Once completed the capsule will be sent to ULA’s assembly building for stacking on the rocket. This loading however says they are now committed to the May launch.
- Video of the flight crew preparing in Kazakhstan for launch to ISS this week
The launch is scheduled for March 21, 2024 on a Soyuz-2 rocket.
- Image of China’s Queqiao-2 lunar relay satellite
It will be used to relay signals from China’s next mission to the far side of the Moon. Launch is expected later today.
- On this day in 1965, Aleksei Leonov did the first spacewalk in history
The spacewalk had been hurriedly put together to beat the planned U.S. spacewalk on an upcoming Gemini mission. As such, Leonov’s spacesuit was not ideal for the task. It expanded so much in space that he had great difficulty getting back inside the capsule.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
Courtesy of BtB’s stringer Jay, who has finally returned from the Solomon Islands after his DX ham expedition (a week late). As he wrote me,
Flights got cancelled on my last week and we were stuck for another week in the Solomons. One of the reasons why we got flown off was it is election time next month, so all the politicians are flying as well. Never fly Fiji Airlines and Solomon Airlines.
I did go to the sites of the battles during the Guadal Canal campaigns during WW2, those are bloody battles that you do not hear or read about.
The Solomon Islands is a third world country and they hate the Chinese. The people are pissed off that their elected officials sold their fishing rights to the Chinese for $85,000. Yes, you read that correctly, a multi-million dollar industry for $85,000 USD. Lots of graft and corruption there. They have so much potential, and they squander it. Only a three hour jump to the west is Fiji, and it enjoys a huge booming tourist economy.
On to the quick links. This post is also an open thread. I welcome my readers to post any comments or additional links relating to any space issues, even if unrelated to the links below.
- ULA’s CEO touts the Vulcan upper stages now ready in its manufacturing building
Three are shown in the image, suggesting ULA is ready for at least that many launches, assuming Blue Origin delivers the necessary first stage engines.
- Boeing has begun fueling Starliner for launch
Takes about two weeks. Once completed the capsule will be sent to ULA’s assembly building for stacking on the rocket. This loading however says they are now committed to the May launch.
- Video of the flight crew preparing in Kazakhstan for launch to ISS this week
The launch is scheduled for March 21, 2024 on a Soyuz-2 rocket.
- Image of China’s Queqiao-2 lunar relay satellite
It will be used to relay signals from China’s next mission to the far side of the Moon. Launch is expected later today.
- On this day in 1965, Aleksei Leonov did the first spacewalk in history
The spacewalk had been hurriedly put together to beat the planned U.S. spacewalk on an upcoming Gemini mission. As such, Leonov’s spacesuit was not ideal for the task. It expanded so much in space that he had great difficulty getting back inside the capsule.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
Incredible tracking of Monday night’s SpaceX launch.
https://youtu.be/YhfSL0ZE6hE
4:35
Watch for the gas thrusters on the fairing halves. First time I’ve seen this.
Jeff-
Great video!