Airport scanners barely used on day before Thanksgiving
Body scanners at Newark airport were hardly used yesterday, suggesting to me that the TSA decided to avoid the battle on National Opt-out day.
Category: Behind The Black
Obama administration plans to establish 187,000 square mile polar bear reserve
Another government land grab: Obama administration plans to establish 187,000 square mile polar bear reserve.
Climate change will destroy Thanksgiving
Better stop using that SUV! Global warming will not only destroy the Earth, a food scientist now claims that it will also destroy your Thanksgiving dinner!
Pasty, dry turkey meat along with expensive fruits, vegetables and potatoes could be on the horizon if more variable extremes in regional weather patterns continue as a likely result of climate change, indicates author Neville Gregory.
Lockheed plans test flight of Orion capsule
The space war continues. Lockheed is now planning a test flight of Orion capsule in 2013. The flight would occur, not on an Ares rocket, but on a Delta IV Heavy. More here.
Specifics of the proposed test flight haven’t been reported before. But those plans may run into flak as Republican lawmakers take control of House committees and subcommittees that oversee NASA, according to industry officials, including competitors, critical of Lockheed Martin’s efforts.
At least some of the incoming Republican panel chairmen and other senior GOP lawmakers, these officials said, may view the proposed test flight as circumventing congressional language to quickly develop a new heavy-lift NASA rocket able to transport astronauts past low-earth orbit. Congress has adopted language strongly favoring space-shuttle derived rockets for this purpose, rather than a version of the Delta IV. The Delta IV is operated by a joint venture between Lockheed Martin and Boeing Co.
Jupiter’s stripe is coming back.
Jupiter’s south equatorial stripe appears to be reappearing.
Cassini back in operation
Cassini back in operation.
Discovery’s launch delayed until December 17 at the earliest
Discovery’s launch delayed until December 17 at the earliest. Key quote:
Shannon said that one of the concerns was that another major crack might liberate a piece of insulating foam large enough to damage Discovery, as happened during the January 2003 liftoff of Columbia. A suitcase-sized chunk of foam punched a hole in Columbia’s wing, dooming the ship and her crew of seven astronauts when they reentered the atmosphere.
Shannon said that teams were also examining the possibility that the tanks have been flying with undetected cracks for years.
Cracks became more common after the 1998 debut of “super-lightweight” tanks built with a more brittle aluminum-lithium alloy. Since then, 29 cracks in stringers making up the ribbed “intertank” section that separates liquid hydrogen and oxygen tanks have been found and repaired in 18 tanks, including Discovery’s and a tank scheduled for use by the shuttle Atlantis next summer.
George Winston – Thanksgiving
An evening pause: George Winston, playing “Thanksgiving.”
The administrator of TSA speaks
The administrator of TSA speaks: You are my servant and you will bend over.
Update of Discovery’s launch status
An update of Discovery’s launch status, including possible launch dates.
Brian Marsden, 1937-2010
ISS next expedition main, backup crews to begin exam
This week the Russians will give “final exams” to the main and backup crews for the next expedition to ISS.
Though NASA constantly rates its astronauts, it does not give them “exams.” This whole procedure (as well as how this Russian article is written) gives a nice flavor of the cultural differences between the U.S. and Russia.
X-37B mission almost complete?
Is the mission of the X-37B space plane almost complete?
Judy Garland on television – Somewhere over the rainbow
An evening pause: Judy Garland, from a 1955 live television performance, singing the show finale.
Nuclear engines for Russia’s space program
Is this real, or a call for funding? The Russian space company Energia says it will begin work next year on nuclear engines for Russia’s space program.
Saving NASA’s astrophysics budget and Webb
The struggle to find $1.5 billion to save NASA’s astrophysics budget as well as the overbudget James Webb Space Telescope. Note that this article once again allows a variety of NASA managers and scientists push the false story that Webb is a replacement for Hubble. It is not. Hubble looks at the universe mostly in optical wavelengths, as our eyes do. Webb will be an infrared telescope. It will do wonderful things, but different things than Hubble.
Gore admits that ethanol was bad policy
Gore admits that he knew that ethanol in cars was bad environmental policy, but voted for it anyway to win votes in the 2000 election. Key quote:
“One of the reasons I made that mistake is that I paid particular attention to the farmers in my home state of Tennessee, and I had a certain fondness for the farmers in the state of Iowa because I was about to run for president,” the former vice president said.
TSA apologizes to man whose pat down caused him to be drenched in urine
Progress! TSA apologizes to man whose pat down caused him to be drenched in urine.
NASA solar sail reaches orbit
A prototype solar sail was launched from Alaska on Friday. If it unfurls as planned, it will be the U.S.’s first solar sail success after several failures.
500th exoplanet found
The numbering ain’t really that precise, but today scientists announced the discovery of the 500th extrasolar planet.