Solar Sail Flotilla Could Divert Possibly Dangerous Asteroid
Another scheme to stop a dangerous asteroid: Use a flotilla of solar sails to divert Apophis.
Tag: engineering
How Close to the Sun could we get?
How close to the Sun could we get?
Flight to test the taste of beer in microgravity delayed until February
The first flight to test the taste of beer in microgravity has been delayed until February due to poor weather.
Electricity from wind plant so expensive no one will buy it
The electricity produced from a proposed wind plant will be so expensive the company can’t find customers. They do have one customer, however, but one wonders why:
In its 15-year deal, National Grid agreed to pay 18.7 cents per kilowatt hour for Cape Wind power beginning in 2013, with a 3.5 percent annual increase. The starting price is twice what National Grid pays today for power from fossil fuels, and regulators say the contract will add about 1.7 percent to its residential customers’ bills.
Read the whole article. It explains a lot about the failures of renewable energy, and how the efforts of the government and environmentalists to force it on us is misguided and downright foolish.
A team of explorers and scientists have today completed the first there-and-back crossing of Antarctica in wheeled vehicles.
A 10-man team of explorers and scientists today completed the first there-and-back crossing of the continent of Antarctica using wheeled vehicles. From the expedition blog:
We quickly took ourselves to the mess tent for some hot coffee and something which we had been craving for a while – Coca Cola. The feeling among the team was satisfaction and elation at what we had achieved and relief that the belt drive had held out! The first Expedition ever to travel coast to coast and back again, with the privilege of visiting the South Pole twice. We joked in the mess tent before deciding that we were not going to sleep and headed over to the Mechanic Area and back to the vehicles.
Valve Leak Prompts ISRO To Delay Satellite Launch
A valve leak in the Russian-built upper stage of India’s GSLV rocket has caused India to delay the launch.
Continuing problems with Boeing’s new airplane
What does this tell us about Boeing’s manned spaceflight efforts? The problems continue to pile up with Boeing’s new airplane, the 787 Dreamliner.
Drop test of 15-percent scale model of private reusable spacecraft
Private meets government: Rather than build it themselves, NASA’s Dryden Flight Research Center merely provided support for a drop test of a 15 percent scale model of a reusable spacecraft being designed and developed by the new-space company Sierra Nevada.
Shuttle Tank test yields no initial clues to fuel tank cracks
The initial results from the tank test performed today on the shuttle external tank are as yet inconclusive.
Soyuz capsule docks with International Space Station
The Soyuz capsule, carrying the next crew to the International Space Station, has docked safely with the station.
Cracked nozzled was possible cause of Japanese Venus probe failure
Engineers now think that a cracked nozzle caused the Japanese probe Akatsuki to miss Venus.
Tank tests today for cause of cracks in shuttle external tank
NASA will be conducting tank tests today on the Discovery’s external tank in an effort to find the cause of the recently discovered cracks.