Soyuz TMA-20 lands safely in Kazakhstan
Soyuz TMA-20 lands safely in Kazakhstan.
Soyuz TMA-20 lands safely in Kazakhstan.
Tag: spaceflight
Soyuz TMA-20 lands safely in Kazakhstan
UK Skylon spaceplane passes key review
The United Kingdom’s Skylon spaceplane has passed a key European Space Agency review.
I’ve seen hundreds of these kinds of stories over the years. Skylon looks cool, and would be revolutionary if built. We shall see if it actually happens.
The United Kingdom’s Skylon spaceplane has passed a key European Space Agency review.
I’ve seen hundreds of these kinds of stories over the years. Skylon looks cool, and would be revolutionary if built. We shall see if it actually happens.
A hint at what the Soyuz images of the station and shuttle
A hint at what today’s images of the station and shuttle, taken from the Soyuz capsule, will look like.
A hint at what today’s images of the station and shuttle, taken from the Soyuz capsule, will look like.
Want to go to an asteroid?
A paper published today on the Los Alamos astro-ph preprint website has taken a close look at identifying the best nearby asteroids ideal for mounting a manned mission. The conclusion: our survey of such asteroids is very incomplete (only 65 known), and due to their location in Earthlike orbits they are very difficult to study.
Ultra-low delta-v NEOs are not readily found. Their closely Earth-like orbits mean that most of the time they are in the daytime sky, as seen from the Earth, and so are effectively undetectable. As they approach within <1AU of the Earth they start to lie near quadrature, and so come into the dawn or dusk sky on Earth. The strong scattered sunlight background makes optical surveys toward the dawn or dusk much less sensitive and, in practice, surveys do not look in these directions, preferring to observe where the sky is dark, within 45 degrees, and at most 60 degrees, of the anti-Sun, opposition, direction. As a consequence the lowest delta-v NEOs are undercounted by current surveys, and the factor by which they are undercounted is not yet known.
The paper proposes building a dedicated unmanned infrared mission and placing it in a Venus-like orbit where it would be better placed to see these difficult but important objects.
Images of Robert Bigelow’s ambitious private space station plans
Images of Robert Bigelow’s ambitious private space station plans.
Images of Robert Bigelow’s ambitious private space station plans.
Departing Soyuz crew to snap space station portrait
The departing Soyuz crew will do a photo-op fly around on Monday to photograph the completed station with a docked shuttle.
The departing Soyuz crew will do a photo-op fly around on Monday to photograph the completed station with a docked shuttle.
Chinese Journalists Barred From Shuttle Launch
Chinese journalists were barred from all official press areas during the Endeavour launch.
A NASA spokesperson says the agency was simply following instructions in last month’s 2011 spending bill that averted a government-wide shutdown. The legislation prohibits NASA from using any resources to host visits by a Chinese official to any NASA facility as well as for collaborations with any Chinese government entity. The Chinese journalists work for Xinhua, the official Chinese news agency, and thus are considered government employees.
Chinese journalists were barred from all official press areas during the Endeavour launch.
A NASA spokesperson says the agency was simply following instructions in last month’s 2011 spending bill that averted a government-wide shutdown. The legislation prohibits NASA from using any resources to host visits by a Chinese official to any NASA facility as well as for collaborations with any Chinese government entity. The Chinese journalists work for Xinhua, the official Chinese news agency, and thus are considered government employees.
Spacesuit Glitch shortens spacewalk at ISS
Spacesuit malfunction shortens spacewalk at ISS.
Spacesuit malfunction shortens spacewalk at ISS.
Last shuttle launch scheduled for July 8
Last shuttle launch scheduled for July 8.
Last shuttle launch scheduled for July 8.
The next Moon probe
The next Moon mission, launching this summer.
The next Moon mission, launching this summer.
Test drive a Peugeot, win a trip to space
Test drive a Peugeot and win a trip to space.
Test drive a Peugeot and win a trip to space.
Using a black hole as your starship engine
Gouges and dings found on the tiles on Endeavour’s belly
Seven damage sites, mostly small gouges and dings, have been found on the tiles on Endeavour’s belly.
“This is not cause for alarm, it’s not cause for any concern,” said [LeRoy Cain, chairman of NASA’s Mission Management Team]. “We know how to deal with these things in terms of how to assess them. We know that if we get to the point where we need some more data for our assessment, we have a plan for going and doing that.”
Seven damage sites, mostly small gouges and dings, have been found on the tiles on Endeavour’s belly.
“This is not cause for alarm, it’s not cause for any concern,” said [LeRoy Cain, chairman of NASA’s Mission Management Team]. “We know how to deal with these things in terms of how to assess them. We know that if we get to the point where we need some more data for our assessment, we have a plan for going and doing that.”
First feathered test flight of SpaceShipTwo
An evening pause: Video of the May 10 test flight of SpaceShipTwo. “Now we can come back from space.”
Endeavour has docked with ISS
Endeavour has docked with ISS.
Endeavour has docked with ISS.
Testing beer in zero gravity
Video and images from the zero gravity beer test Plus some results!
Video and images from the zero gravity beer test Plus some results!
The first space shuttle launch, April 12, 1981
If you schedule a launch they will come
We arrived at Space View Park in Titusville at around 9 pm, bringing with us camp chairs, a softside cooler with food, cameras, tripods, and light jackets. I also brought a light fleece sleeping bag for additional warmth. Even though it was still twelve hours before launch, the entire shoreline was occupied by a line of people either sitting or lying on blankets or pads. Back from the water and under the trees there were more than a dozen small tents set up.
We found a spot where the line was only one deep and set up our chairs. In front of us were a group of Floridians who had never seen a launch up close, though they told us how they had often watched shuttle launches from their front door. As one of them said, “There won’t be many more chances to see this, so we decided we better come down.”
Also set up in the park under a tarp was a electronic setup with television feeds and speakers linked to NASA TV, run by the Space Walk of Fame Foundation, a volunteer organization that maintains Space View Park and the monuments to space that are on display there.
Looking east out across the Indian River was Merritt Island, with the launchpad lit up like a Christmas tree eleven miles distant. To the right was the VAB.
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The launch
After fifty years of following space, I finally saw a big rocket launch today. Below is one of the pictures I took of Endeavour as it roared into the sky.
The experience was immensely satisfying, to put it mildly. Watching the shuttle rise up on a column of flame and smoke made me feel young again, my heart racing with excitement. Then Endeavour disappeared into the clouds, and we stood waiting for the roar of liftoff to travel the eleven miles to us. The long wait made this experience far different from what one sees on television. Then the rumble arrived, deep and low, but not as loud as I expected. One experienced launch-watcher explained that the low clouds and humidity might have muffled the sound. Bob Rose said that it was what he expected for this location, and that my expectations were based on those who experienced the launch from the press site at three miles. I think Bob is almost certainly right.
Later today I will put up a longer post, describing what it was like to stand among like-minded space nuts who had traveled from far and wide to see a crew of humans leave the Earth’s gravity and help trace a warm line of life across barren space.
At Space View Park
We have now set up at Space View Park in Titusville, Florida. The picture below shows what we found when we went by earlier today to scout out the location. As you can see, several people were already there. There were also people who had put up tents, as well as two food vendors.
The launchpad is the tiny spike visible on the horizon directly at the end of the pier. You can also see the VAB to the right.
Apollo 11 launch, July 16, 1969
An evening pause: If all goes well, I will be watching a variation of this live from Florida tomorrow morning. The action really begins at the five minute mark. Also, this particular video gives you the best flavor of what it was like to see the launch live, rather than on film or video.
A review of India’s GSLV rocket puts a hold on its next moon probe
A review of India’s troubled GSLV rocket has put a hold on its next moon probe.
A review of India’s troubled GSLV rocket has put a hold on its next moon probe.
On the way to the Cape
As I write this I am sitting in the back seat of Bob & Brenda Rose’s minivan as we drive down to Florida for Monday’s shuttle launch. We plan to arrive at Space View Park in Titusville around 8 pm Sunday to claim a good location for seating, waiting, and watching the launch. We will be about 11 miles away, but this park is considered one of the better locations for the general public, with a clear view of the launchpad.
Stay tuned for more updates!
Refueling the empty tanks of communication satellites
Countdown begins for Monday shuttle launch
The countdown has begun for Monday’s shuttle launch.
If all goes well, I will be there to watch it (albeit from 11 miles away). Right now mission controllers estimate a 70% chance of liftoff, depending on the weather.
The countdown has begun for Monday’s shuttle launch.
If all goes well, I will be there to watch it (albeit from 11 miles away). Right now mission controllers estimate a 70% chance of liftoff, depending on the weather.
Another successful test flight of SpaceShipTwo
Another successful test flight of SpaceShipTwo took place on Tuesday. Via Clark Lindsey.
Another successful test flight of SpaceShipTwo took place on Tuesday. Via Clark Lindsey.
The first tourist in space, a woman from Britain
The first tourist in space was not Dennis Tito, but this woman from Britain.
The first tourist in space was not Dennis Tito, but this woman from Britain.
India designing reusable spacecraft
ISRO, India’s space agency, pushes to get funding for a reusable spacecraft.
ISRO, India’s space agency, pushes to get funding for a reusable spacecraft.
Dawn Captures First Image of Asteroid Vesta
Dawn captures its first image of the asteroid Vesta as it closes in on a rendezvous set for July 16.
Dawn captures its first image of the asteroid Vesta as it closes in on a rendezvous set for July 16.
First Soyuz launch from French Guiana set for October
The first Soyuz launch from the European spaceport in French Guiana is now scheduled for October.
The first Soyuz launch from the European spaceport in French Guiana is now scheduled for October.