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The time has come for my annual short pre-Thanksgiving/Christmas fund drive for Behind The Black. I must do this every year in order to make sure I have earned enough money to pay my bills.

 

For this two-week campaign, I am offering a special deal to encourage donations. Donations of $200 will get a free autographed copy of the new paperback edition of Genesis: The Story of Apollo 8, while donations of $250 will get a free autographed copy of the new hardback edition. If you desire a copy, make sure you provide me your address with your donation.

 

As I noted in July, the support of my readers through the years has given me the freedom and ability to analyze objectively the ongoing renaissance in space, as well as the cultural changes -- for good or ill -- that are happening across America. Fourteen years ago I wrote that SLS and Orion were a bad ideas, a waste of money, would be years behind schedule, and better replaced by commercial private enterprise. Only now does it appear that Washington might finally recognize this reality.

 

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The rail gun: a cheap solution for getting payloads into orbit quickly.

The rail gun: a cheap solution for getting payloads into orbit quickly.

Genesis cover

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 print edition can be purchased at Amazon. from any other book seller, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. 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

5 comments

  • Sounds a lot like John Hunter’s Quicklaunch,which utilizes a gas gun. Hunter believes he has the solution to some technical problems associated with launching a high velocity object in the lower atmosphere. There’s not much mention here on that problem.

    But the military has deep pockets, so he may that problem handled.

  • wade

    launch is under terms of Lift. re entry Has always been a ratio of conditions as to rate of Fall in regards to friction encountered. the same as drag coefficient calculations regarding Brake Systems that most of of us easily understand. a by product of this unit of friction is indeed Heat. and therefore, ridding the proposed structure Of.

  • Kelly Starks

    Actually this doesn’t deal with any of the issues of launch costs as far as I can see. It would likely make them worse since few loads could take its high G and thermal loads, hence exacerbating the fixed cost vrs low market demand issue that dominates launch costs.

    Same way space Elevators would likely drive costs to orbit way up compared to rockets – (potentially tens or hundreds of times more with a similar market size).

  • wade

    interesting points Kelly, however, in respect to you. please have a look at replublicbikes.com as to mastering any of your own design levels of achievement. fancy yourself a spartan amongst the basics. and after , oh ….lets say 30years of direct contact with hardware beginning with the parabolic cone dimensions of nozzle design parameters in regards to nozzle velocities that produce desired thrust per seconds over a prescribed duration of load. equals a witty come back : i can Only hope.

  • wade

    not being mean, but i know where we can get some rather Spiff beanie caps with awesome revolving propellers affixed to their crowns

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