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Space Shuttle Atlantis/Endeavor launches/Astronomy/Manned Space Flight

Archive: 134 posts

I'm currently watching the countdown to Space Shuttle Atlantis launch to Hubble and thought I'd ask if anyone else out there never misses a launch?

You can watch coverage at www.nasa.gov on Nasa TV.		2009-05-11 18:51:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

If you like that you should look up the James Webb Space Telescope. Its going to be replacing Hubble in 2014 i belive. It will orbit earth at a million miles and its primary mirror is 3 times bigger than Hubble's.2009-05-11 19:03:00

Author:
redmagus
Posts: 667

Yea - I saw that mockup they did - it's huge! Looking forward to that one too. Although I'll miss the visible light of Hubble.2009-05-11 19:04:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Yep but you have to admit it had a good run2009-05-11 19:06:00

Author:
redmagus
Posts: 667

Yeah just watched it go up pretty cool to see2009-05-11 19:06:00

Author:
OverWork
Posts: 873

Hubble did have an awesome run. I love the nebula images. I always have them as the backgrounds on my computers.

So far so good on the Atlantis Launch. Great video from the Solid Rocket Booster Cam!		2009-05-11 19:08:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Hehe... Morgana you ARE a nerd ^^ I'm joking of course... This is LBPcentral after all, land of Nerdome

To be honest that was pretty awesome. It was cool when you could barely see the outline of the shuttle through a haze, and the massive orange flare coming off the rockets.

I've never watched a launch before, but I was there to see the Solar Eclipse in Cornwall. It was beautiful... everything went dark, and about a million camera flashes went off... I could see the whole of england light up with flashes from the top of a hill 		2009-05-11 19:12:00

Author:
Pitcard
Posts: 779

Yup - I'm about as nerdy as I can be and still be bad at math. Although it's hard to say if I'm more "geek" or "nerd" I tend to wave the geek flag.2009-05-11 19:13:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

aarrgghhh... i was watching this st00f for 2 minutes but i didn't realize they where actually going to launch a shuttle and that it was live!...

I actually wanted to see that :/

hmm... >_<		2009-05-11 21:37:00

Author:
Yarbone
Posts: 3036

I saw it at school, it was cool... but what I'm really interested in is the knowledge we will gain from it. >_<

I'm watching a video about the universe with Carl Sagan, so if anyone is a nerd, it's me. >_>		2009-05-11 21:41:00

Author:
Code1337
Posts: 3476

I love Carl Sagan! I grew up watching Cosmos and between him and my father I didn't stand a chance avoiding the fascination that comes with knowing that it's a big universe out there. Sagan was so passionate and it was infectious for me as a child. I know some scientists didn't care for his methods of bringing science to the general public but I didn't care how he did it at the time.2009-05-11 21:49:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

I once planned to become an astronomer. I decided against it due to the frustration I felt when watching those space programs because of our lack of technology. I could never be one of those guys who says "we think there's something interesting there, but won't be able to explore it for another 1,000 years".2009-05-11 21:50:00

Author:
Killian
Posts: 2575

I love Carl Sagan! I grew up watching Cosmos and between him and my father I didn't stand a chance avoiding the fascination that comes with knowing that it's a big universe out there. Sagan was so passionate and it was infectious for me as a child. I know some scientists didn't care for his methods of bringing science to the general public but I didn't care how he did it at the time.
Well I'm watching him now, because I feel that scientific education down here is in a horrible need of a revamp. One thing I really do wish schools would teach better is the purpose of science. The way they explained science to us was "Science started off with Francis Bacon's scientific method. Science was then used to explain the universe, but some people refute science."*cue creationist video*

And yes, I am entirely serious here. I hated science because they made it the most boring thing, while when I listen and learn on my own, it becomes on of my favorite subjects.

And that was elementary school science.

I once planned to become an astronomer. I decided against it due to the frustration I felt when watching those space programs because of our lack of technology. I could never be one of those guys who says "we think there's something interesting there, but won't be able to explore it for another 1,000 years".
Well, with our ever increasing technological developments, I think we might get there sooner then thought. I mean, just look at how much better video games have gotten in the last 10 years. 		2009-05-11 22:03:00

Author:
Code1337
Posts: 3476

Well, with our ever increasing technological developments, I think we might get there sooner then thought. I mean, just look at how much better video games have gotten in the last 10 years.

Indeedness... Technology is rapidly developing :O		2009-05-11 22:06:00

Author:
Yarbone
Posts: 3036

Well I'm watching him now, because I feel that scientific education down here is in a horrible need of a revamp. One thing I really do wish schools would teach better is the purpose of science. The way they explained science to us was "Science started off with Francis Bacon's scientific method. Science was then used to explain the universe, but some people refute science."*cue creationist video*

And yes, I am entirely serious here. I hated science because they made it the most boring thing, while when I listen and learn on my own, it becomes on of my favorite subjects.

And that was elementary school science.

They teach creationist/intelligent design in Neverland?

I'm so sorry - sounds like you're stuck in my version of hell. I'll never understand people remaining willfully ignorant about the world we live in and insisting on keeping others equally ignorant. Just my opinion though - no insult intended to those who would disagree - that's also part of what I beleive. They have a right to remain ignorant if they choose.		2009-05-11 22:19:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Carl Sagan is a scientific god. Why did he have to die of AIDS Most ironic death for scientist that brilliant. I saw a video he did on genetics. Blew my mind. It actually gave me an idea for changing human DNA using an artificially engineered virus.

ANYWAYS, I saw they were going to do this live on the Science channel, but seems I have missed it Oh well. At least I saw the other launch.		2009-05-11 22:20:00

Author:
Astrosimi
Posts: 2046

They teach creationist/intelligent design in Neverland?

I'm so sorry - sounds like you're stuck in my version of hell. I'll never understand people remaining willfully ignorant about the world we live in and insisting on keeping others equally ignorant. Just my opinion though - no insult intended to those who would disagree - that's also part of what I beleive. They have a right to remain ignorant if they choose.
LOL I don't really live in neverland, I live in Georgia. Where we never learn anything, never do anything, and never get anywhere.

Of course I have to say I like a lot of people in Georgia, and it has redeeming qualities, but politics here are controlled by evangelicals.		2009-05-11 22:22:00

Author:
Code1337
Posts: 3476

Well - at least you have access to the internet so you know there are other opinions regarding science than just the ones you are presented at school. I was dissapointed in my science education in terms of Space/Astronomy up here in Wisconsin too. They only bring up space in our 8th grade level Physical Science classes. Never mentioned in High School at all. My dad really helped find my passion for Astronomy and manned space exploration. He had me watching Shuttle launches back in 82 and dragged the whole family out to see Haley's commet at 3am back in the 80's too. I was too little to appreciate what he was doing but it left it's mark in my life and now I can't imagine not being fascinated by it. It's as close to spirituality as I can get I think.2009-05-11 23:31:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Aaaannyway, other than Carl Sagan and AIDS, "now something completely different" (u c wat i did thar mont3 pyth0n luvahz?). I'm gonna miss the little light in the night sky that's Hubble. 2009-05-11 23:52:00

Author:
Xenifus
Posts: 306

Ok - end of the urban myth.

After a long and difficult fight with myelodysplasia, which included three bone marrow transplants, Sagan died of pneumonia at the age of 62 at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, Washington on December 20, 1996.

Not AIDS		2009-05-12 01:31:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

my parents saw a space shuttle launch lRL once2009-05-12 15:55:00

Author:
Don Vhalt
Posts: 2270

I think the shuttle lauches are a joke and there are technology far beyond what we understand made by other civilizations. I'm serious.2009-05-12 16:08:00

Author:
BasketSnake
Posts: 2391

You don't believe we can make a machine capable of sending man into space without help from an extra terrestrial species?

Doesn't give humanity a lot of credit does it? I think it's pretty clear the math and science behind the technology and I have no doubts that humanity is capable of this level of engineering and much more given the time and the will.

To each his own though.		2009-05-12 16:29:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

I simply look at the stars and conclude we're not alone in a universe that's so vast we cannot even understand it. I'm not saying we live in the stone age but compared to what whoever is out there have we most definately are. In fact NO I won't give humanity any credit. We're still in tribal warfare and with the earth overpopulating at a fast rate I dare not think of our future.

Oh...credit to MM for making lbp.		2009-05-12 17:09:00

Author:
BasketSnake
Posts: 2391

I think I understand your point better now. I agree that we aren't alone in the universe. The only question is are we, as sentient "intelligent" creatures rare or common. I think Sagan speculated that we wouldn't be terribly rare but that any civilization ran a very high risk of taking itself out via warfare and other manifestations of the "reptillian" brain.

I also can agree that as a species we have major issues. But I'm an optimist - I think enough people - perhaps generations from now - will be exploring parts of the universe we can barely imagine now. I'm just sad I probably won't be around to see it.		2009-05-12 17:18:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

I saw it's trail in the sky yesterday when it took off. It's about 3 hrs away though. It's better at night when I can see the glow and see it moving across the sky.
I need to drive up there and watch one a lot closer.

Here is a list of the remaining launches : http://www.nasa.gov/missions/highlights/schedule.html		2009-05-12 18:01:00

Author:
Nattura
Posts: 86

That is so cool! I've been trying to get down there to see one before they scrap the program. Guess I'd better get my butt in gear - not too many left.

Thanks for the list!		2009-05-12 18:05:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

I have an aunt and ungle who were engineers for the shuttle . A long time ago (maybe 15 years) they got me into the bunker right near it for the launch. Man, THAT was pretty awesome. But yeah, I only really go out and watch the shuttle if its launching at night. It's kind of cool down here being able to hear the sonic boom also.2009-05-12 18:08:00

Author:
CCubbage
Posts: 4430

Just a friendly heads up that Space Shuttle Endeavor is scheduled to lauch in about 26 minutes. You can watch it online on Nasa TV on www.nasa.gov.

http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/index.html		2009-07-15 22:41:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Hey thanks for posting

Always been interested in stuff like this but i've never seen a launch live before

5 minutes to go i think		2009-07-15 22:49:00

Author:
Dexiro
Posts: 2100

Just a friendly heads up that Space Shuttle Endeavor is scheduled to lauch in about 26 minutes. You can watch it online on Nasa TV on www.nasa.gov.

http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/index.html

Will you marry me lol

I love anything to do with space and thanks to you I'm now watching 		2009-07-15 22:53:00

Author:
dorien
Posts: 2767

LOL - well I am available but I think your spoken for.

I'm a space nut too. I blame my father. I'll be watching the whole time that it's online and I check in to watch the spacewalk video too. Really cool view of the earth when they do that. It's like having the best office window in the world for a few days here for me.

EDIT: Looked great on video. Successful launch so far 		2009-07-15 22:57:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

LOL - well I am available but I think your spoken for.

I'm a space nut too. I blame my father. I'll be watching the whole time that it's online and I check in to watch the spacewalk video too. Really cool view of the earth when they do that. It's like having the best office window in the world for a few days here for me.

EDIT: Looked great on video. Successful launch so far

Yeah it looked great and I'm hooked again

I used to go on NASA and other sites all the time when I lived at my parents house and had them all in my favourites. I've faved it and gonna check back. Also I subscribed to their youtube channel as I'm youtube all the time

And yes I am taken for and long distance relationships never work anyway, so I want my ring back

Thanks again.		2009-07-15 23:32:00

Author:
dorien
Posts: 2767

I was watching it earlier. My father actually designed most of the stuff in the tail of the shuttle.2009-07-16 01:24:00

Author:
TheMarvelousHat
Posts: 542

I was watching it earlier. My father actually designed most of the stuff in the tail of the shuttle.

o_0



...




...






...


o_0




That's awesome.		2009-07-16 01:37:00

Author:
hilightnotes
Posts: 1230

I was watching it earlier. My father actually designed most of the stuff in the tail of the shuttle.

Should have 'suggested' some LBPC advertising on it

"The first fansite into outer space"


But on the video; has that guy been talking all this time 0.o		2009-07-16 01:46:00

Author:
Shermzor
Posts: 1330

That's so cool about your dad!

They swap out shifts so the guy at mission control probably hasn't been talking "all day". They also have an announcer on the public channel during the actual launch and they only narrate on launch and landing for the most part. Otherwise you just get to hear the public channel audio between Huston & the shuttle or the ISS.

I also subscribe to the NASA video podcast on itunes. It has a lot of good info and some nice computer simulations of things. Can get a little storage heavy on the HD if you don't weed it regularly though.

Oh yea - here's the ring back dorien.... I'm more of a white gold kind of girl myself


EDIT: Anyone who want to see the International Space Station or the Shuttle from the ground can reference this website. Just select the country you want from the drop menu on the left side of the page then put in your area/city and it will give you all available sighting times. There's a section for how to read the numbers if you don't know what they mean. If you see it, it will look like a star moving across the sky. It won't blink (like an airplane) but it will get brighter and dimmer depending on the angle of the sun relative to the Station or Shuttle. It's pretty cool to watch it when the station and the shuttle are undocked as they "chase" each other in the sky. Enjoy - I know I do.


http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/realdata/sightings/		2009-07-16 05:04:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Sorry for the double post but I wanted to put out a heads up that for anyone interested the Space Shuttle Discovery is set to lift off on Friday. Here's a link to the nasa page with the info.

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/main/index.html		2009-08-26 17:38:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

This is all too cool. How did I miss this thread?

I love this stuff. I don't always follow launches religiously, but whenever NASA does anything, I think, deep down inside... "those are my people."

I'm a little bit of an apollo nut. There was a new book released recently about the apollo program, with all sorts of new interviews and information, and as soon as I finish this god-awful book I'm on right now, I'm going to eat it. Sorry, READ it. No, I should go ahead and be honest. I AM going to eat it.

EDIT: A station resupply mission. This is exactly the sort of launch that may someday be replaced with a space elevator (http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2000/ast07sep_1.htm).

Going up! Yeah, WAY up! HAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAAHAHA
Space elevators!		2009-08-26 21:35:00

Author:
Teebonesy
Posts: 1937

Space Elevators are a neat concept. My father (the science teacher) and I have been talking about those for a few years now. They seemed to gain some popularity after the discovery of those carbon "bucky balls" things. (Sorry I am not a scientist and must resort to common english sometimes) As they would be strong but flexible enough to build such an elevator from. Haven't heard much about this lately though.

Apollo is cool as heck - I'm not an encyclopedia about that program but I am a fan. If you haven't seen it I highly recommend "In The Shadow of the Moon" (film) which has interviews with many of the surviving Apollo astronauts and their memories and impressions about those great times. Bean's interview is funny - he's always such a down to earth kind of guy in interviews. Very nice movie for historical purposes and a great film for the opinion of why manned space flight, while dangerous, is so important for mankind.		2009-08-26 22:05:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Awesome movie! In the Shadow of the Moon, For All Mankind, From the Earth to the Moon (not a documentary obviously, and features one or two AWFUL episodes). you name it I've probably seen it. The Right Stuff, Apollo 13.

And why, not, I'm here, I might as well list one of my favorite movies of all time, Le Voyage dans la Lune. Certainly my avatar wouldn't be what it is if not for this movie.

Carbon nanotubes! That's the stuff the space elevator's ribbon would be made out of. And you're correct, it hasn't been in the news now as it was 6 or 7 years ago, as far as I know there are zero concrete plans at this point to actually build the thing.

But I'm at least as excited about the James Webb telescope and the LISA sattelites.
If there's one thing that'll drive me nearly to tears, it's the photos that hubble has sent back, especially of the ultra deep field.

You've heard about the upcoming discovery channel show "Stephen Hawking's Universe"? Huge multimillion dollar project aiming to be the cosmo sister show to Planet Earth and Blue Planet. One quote from the producers of the show: "When we take you to Mercury you?re going to feel like you?re on Mercury."

I've been chomping at the bit.		2009-08-26 22:50:00

Author:
Teebonesy
Posts: 1937

ooooohhhh I hadn't seen any previews for the Stephen Hawking show. I am a huge fan of Cosmos - I saw it on TV with my father when I was in 5th and 6th grade and it gave me a curiosity and wonder for the universe that I still have to this day. I'm not a religious person but the closest I think I can come to a spiritual experience is looking at Hubble photos and staring up at the night sky. It's so big and mysterious and wonderful that I can't help but feel small and I smile to think mankind is beginning to understand it more and more. I feel hope for mankind when I start thinking about this kind of stuff. Guess I might be too optimistic about it.

Every computer I've had control over (home & work) always has a Hubble image on the desktop. Best office "window" ever - well, next to live spacewalk video running on one of my monitors. I love the images it's sent down. Personal fav's would be the Orion nebula, Pillars of Creation, the one named after Italian marble... begins with a C... dang, can't think of it at the moment.

btw - I tend to think of NASA guys as "my people" too even though by comparison I'd be like a caveman smashing rocks together compared to the brilliant minds down there. I'm more of a artsy dreamer type that can really appreciate the science without all the math and chemistry and physics getting in the way. 		2009-08-26 23:18:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Cosmos is great!! I love Carl Sagan. Wait, that doesn't come across nearly strong enough.

I LOVE CARL SAGAN.


I'm not a religious person but the closest I think I can come to a spiritual experience is looking at Hubble photos and staring up at the night sky.

I'm with you 100% on this one. I have a Christian-leaning agnostic friend (he's not religious, but he's scared to death of Hell), and he's endlessly intrigued by how I manage to live and be such a firm atheist. He thinks it's terribly depressing to imagine that NOTHING happens when you die. I tell him - what difference does it make when you die? YOU'LL be dead! In dreams (and with the influence of certain drugs) our sense of time can become greatly distorted. A 5 minute dream may feel like it takes hours. Likewise, DMT will cause someone to experience what may feel like a day-long experience, but it's only 15 minutes. What if you have a dream just as you die, that your brain perceives as eternity? It could be heaven or hell. It could be limbo. So we talked about what we would do with all that time.

Given anything, I'd explore the universe. I couldn't care less about Heaven, I have no idea what that could possibly be. But the Universe through time, that's where I'd go. I might linger on Earth for a while, check out some of the events in history I've always been fascinated by. After that it's the moon and then outward from there. I've had dreams where I've literally done nothing but fly through the cosmos, exploring. it's my favorite fantasy.

Did you ever play Spore? I played that game ravenously, but it killed me, that final space section. It doesn't just let you have fun and explore, it's always BUGGING you to do this, take care of that... Shut up! I have uncharted binary systems to explore!

2001: A Space Odyssey sort of imagines this possibility at the end, the evolution to the "star child", a celestial being able to zip through the universe, unencumbered by material laws.


Personal fav's would be the Orion nebula, Pillars of Creation, the one named after Italian marble... begins with a C... dang, can't think of it at the moment.

What a coincidence - I do believe that the photo you're thinking of is my CURRENT desktop wallpaper - the Carina nebula. I've got it in resolution higher than my monitor can even handle.

the crab nebula is awesome too - if you've never seen The Fountain, it's a very interesting movie, with a heavy science fiction element. for the visual effects when the astronaut enters a nebula, they used macro photography of substances reacting in petri dishes. It looks almost identical to the crab nebula, the remnants of an exploded star.
The sombrero galaxy. horsehead. Evil Eye! There's this one incredible looking one with a giant red star surrounded by brown dust. Not sure what it's called but it's incredible, and frightening.

No photo has affected me more than the deep field photos. Have you seen the 3D fly-through of the deep field? They use the "red shift" property of gathered light to determine distance, and developed a 3D fly-through of the ultra deep field. The narrator's a little goofy, but the video is amazing:
YouTube - The Hubble Ultra Deep Field in 3D

Haha - "have you seen this?" "have you seen this?" Look at this one!" "did you ever play this?"

honestly I could go on all day. I need to pace myself a little bit here.		2009-08-26 23:49:00

Author:
Teebonesy
Posts: 1937

Yes I'd seen that and it's really moving. I'm gonna miss that telescope. Webb is going to be cool too but I like visual light images. Although some of the Chandra ones are beautiful too.

Sombrero Galaxy always make me giggle. I like the light effect at the center of that one though. Carina - yes that's the one. You can actually get a wall mural size of that from a website I found once. You have to pay to print it of course but what a wall it would be!

I always affectionately refer to Carl Sagan as "brother Carl" I think it's my way of conferring on him monk like status in my world. A scientist with passion that made astronomy accessible to my child brain. I know many other scientists at the time didn't care for his "dumbing down" of astronomy but his shows ignited a curiosity in me that I'm forever grateful for. He is one of the most influential people in my world to this day.

I played the ipod version of spore. It's the levels until you get to the beach. I could see myself loosing hours of spare time playing that game so I'd best avoid it for now. lol

I'd love to explore the universe as well. I hope that in my lifetime we as a species make space travel accessible to everyday folk - if only for a few minutes at a time. Spaceship One is making that seem more like a reality I might live to see so I'm hopeful. I'd just like to see the Earth from space. To see how small it really is and how lucky we are to live on it. It might do people some good to get a little perspective on how insignificant some of the stuff we kill each other over truly is.

On your other thread you were talking about technology and the merging of biologic and synthetic intelligence and it made me wonder did you ever read "The Light of Other Days"? The end of the book has a neat concept of immortality through a collective conscious that can bring people back physically if they choose. It has other really weird but interesting stuff too about viewing every point in history through pinpoint wormholes and how culture and society would develop if there were no way to ever assume you had privacy - ever. Neat book.		2009-08-27 00:49:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

The Light of Other Days, I have not read it, but Clarke's one of my favorite authors. Well, mostly, he can be hit and miss. I'm trying to bulldoze my way through Rama II. I adored the first book, but the first 80 pages of the sequel have been pretty close to awful so far. Cowritten with Gentry Lee. Here's a winning excerpt:


Francesca finished her cigarette, stubbed it out in the ashtray, and went back into her hotel room. As soon as she opened the door she could hear the sound of heavy breathing. The oversized bed was in disarray and a naked Reggie Wilson was lying across it on his back, his regular snoring disturbing the silence of the suite. You have great equipment, my friend, she commented silently, both for life and for lovemaking. But neither is an athletic contest. You would be more interesting if there was some subtlety, perhaps even a little finesse.

end chapter.

Hooooo boy. Yeah, it's a winner.

Carl Sagan, what I absolutely love about the guy is that he doesn't separate the emotional, intuitive response to our discoveries of the universe from the "hard" science. In fact, he seems to be all about the emotional response - the humbling, awesome, frightening scale of it - the perspective it gives us on our tiny world and lives.

I take it you've heard of Joe Kittinger - This is the man that took a helium balloon to the front porch of the universe. And to get back home, he took the shortcut.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81gn2oLeC_U#t=0m09s

Note on the above video: The quotations are from John Malcovich's narration from the movie "Alive", about the true story of a rugby team whose plane crashes in the Andes.		2009-08-27 03:42:00

Author:
Teebonesy
Posts: 1937

Yes - my brother has shown me a video of him. He's the guy that basically stepped off the balloon at the edge of space. As I recall he had a hole in one of the gloves and neglected to tell the medical crew so he could still make the jump. Talk about determination. What a view though!

Yikes for Rama II! Good thing I skipped that one. I'd read the first one when I way a bit too young and never quite got it all. I've been meaning to re-read it with adult eyes and just haven't found the time.

I think your right about Sagan. He's accessible to non-science (as opposed to facts & data crunchers) folks who have an appreciation for science as idea and explanation of bigger concepts. The guys on Radio Lab out of NYC Public Radio have a similar approach to getting science concepts to the general public without scaring many with data recitation and technical jargon. They also don't talk down or pander to the audience either which I truly appreciate.

Ever make it out to Dulles, Virginia to the Smithsonian Air & Space museum's hanger? They have a space wing in it that has Space Shuttle Enteprise in it. Very cool to be up close to it - even if it never was "in space". They have some excellent airplanes there too if your into aviation as well. A concord, a SR-71 Blackbird, The Enola *** and a bunch of others. My family's kind of big on airplanes as well as Space although I tend to gravitate to the space stuff.		2009-08-27 08:50:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

I've heard many good things about the Air and Space Museum. I'd love to head out there. I've spent such little time anywhere in the Eastern States outside of New York and Massachusettes.

This discussion put me a bit on an astronomy kick and I started downloading a bunch of the History Channel's "The Universe" show... Watched the first episode so far, on the Sun... Eeek... it's got some good stuff... They've got Neil deGrasse Tyson, always entertaining... buuuuut... BUUUUUUUUUT...

Well. I'll give you a little tidbit from the show.

"If another "perfect storm" on the sun occurs, it could prove to be devastating worldwide. Scientists agree that the peak time for big solar storms to occur is once every 11 years. The last peak was in 2001... Meaning a catastrophic solar storm may be due -- in 2012." *boooom!!* *giant solar flare shoots out of corona* *shots of people looting city streets, citywide power outages*

There's some cool information, some neat discussion, some absolutely ridiculous visual illustrations... at one point pool cue balls represent light photons reaching earth, at another point they represent particles of plasma blasted out in solar winds, and I don't even know what else they probably represent later on, anytime pool balls started bouncing around the screen my eyes were rolling too hard to see them clearly.

Well. I'll give the show a second chance. I'll watch episode 2. But really I'm just holding my breath for the big guns, the upcoming Discovery Stephen Hawking show. Which is still quite a ways off I believe.		2009-08-27 09:29:00

Author:
Teebonesy
Posts: 1937

I've seen a few of the Universe shows on History channel. They are ok but you just can't beat Science Channel shows on astronomy. Space week is my favorite week of TV

Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson is awesome. I first saw him on Nova Science Now and have learned to appreciate his sense of humor and brilliance. He and Dr. Michio Kaku never cease to blow my mind.

I got really into that series the BBC did years ago called "The Planets" it's worth watching just for the music from Holst in the background.		2009-08-27 17:09:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Oh, man, I can't believe I missed this thread!
I follow the launches on NASA.com, and tend to react to them in much the same way most people around here react to the super bowl; "Wooooooo hoo! Go, baby,Go! yeaaaaaah!
". (alot of people around here don't really get me anyway)

I saw Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson on the daily show a while back... the next day there was a small segment about how they give their guests a gift-pack that includes a Rubik's cube. Tyson was so distracted by it, that he did not leave the studio until he had solved it.

Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson is way cool!

thanks for starting this thread! 5 stars and a heart!		2009-08-28 10:28:00

Author:
swanbrown
Posts: 898

deGrasse Tyson and Michio Kaku both are just ridiculously lovely human beings. I love these guys. They're so loveable. They're both like kids when it comes to talking about their favorite subjects, and this makes them easier to listen to, certainly easier to understand, but their passion is infectious, and they're incredibly sharp guys. You never doubt for a second that they really do know what they're talking about.

deGrasse Tyson is a particular favorite of mine because of his huge sense of humor and the ease with which he flusters himself talking about anything he's really passionate about!

"So... Here we have these guys... THESE GUYS DIDN'T EVEN... I... THEY--COPERNICUS, WHEN HE... I'm sorry! I'm sorry! HAHAHA!!"
*hardcore astrophysicists in audience look at each other like 'what in the hell are we doing here?'*
*everyone else's hearts melt*		2009-08-28 22:35:00

Author:
Teebonesy
Posts: 1937

lol - yea they are pretty amazing human beings. Your absolutely right about them wearing their passion on their sleeves too. You can't help but try to understand what they are saying when they speak. I wish more people with this kind of passion and ability to translate these hard to understand scientific concepts to "average" people were on TV and teaching in schools.

EDIT: Hey - they delayed the launch for this morning but it's scheduled to launch in an hour and 23 minutes from now. If your awake here's a link to the NasaTV feed.

http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/index.html

Best of Luck Discovery!		2009-08-29 03:17:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Just saw it, a small speck, and it was cloudy, so only a few seconds of slight viewing, but I saw it. From 200 miles away!2009-08-29 05:13:00

Author:
Astrosimi
Posts: 2046

Cool! It lit up the screen here on TV so that was cool. I am a bit disappointed with the media coverage though. It's the last mission to the ISS and a spectacular night launch and the only network that had it was CNN and they covered it for about 3 minutes. Real shame.

I'm going to try and catch a glimpse of them tonight flying separately as they will have docked by Sunday night. I'm not very hopeful though as the viewing time is less than a minute and pretty low to the horizon for my area. Hope you guys out there have better luck. 		2009-08-29 19:19:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

I like those special Blu Ray's they have come out with like When we Left Earth and Blue Planet. Cool stuff.2009-08-29 20:42:00

Author:
jwwphotos
Posts: 11383

I like those special Blu Ray's they have come out with like When we Left Earth and Blue Planet. Cool stuff.

OMG! I can't believe I missed this thread. I love space, but the best we get in the UK is either The Sky at Night or Jodrell Bank *sigh*

Anyway, great thread.

Totally off-topic - jww, you are (un)officially the most pleasant male on LBPC! I've told Her Majesty the Queen, but unfortunately she was busy opening new buildings and walking Her corgie dogs to comment. But, Buckingham Palace sent the following: "Oh yes, jww, one has heard of him!"

2009-08-29 20:47:00

Author:
MrsSpookyBuz
Posts: 1492

OMG! I can't believe I missed this thread. I love space, but the best we get in the UK is either The Sky at Night or Jodrell Bank *sigh*

Anyway, great thread.

Totally off-topic - jww, you are (un)officially the most pleasant male on LBPC! I've told Her Majesty the Queen, but unfortunately she was busy opening new buildings and walking Her corgie dogs to comment. But, Buckingham Palace sent the following: "Oh yes, jww, one has heard of him!"




AWWWWWW!!!! You are such a sweetheart!!! Bless your sacktacious heart!! :blush:

2009-08-29 20:51:00

Author:
jwwphotos
Posts: 11383

I'd like to second that sentiment from MrsSpookyBuz - must be that good old fashioned midwestern charm 'eh jww?

Did you ever see "The Dream is Alive"? That's a great one too in terms of IMAX movies about space/earth. I loved Blue Planet 		2009-08-29 21:38:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Oh yes, Blue Planet. Stunning!

Don't want to hijack the thread, Chroma, but my hubby's father was a part-time astronomer. I've got some absolutely wonderful pictures of the moon and sun that were taken from his telescope in the back garden.

I'll see if I can scan them in and maybe post them up. They made me cry, but you know how soft I am.		2009-08-29 21:49:00

Author:
MrsSpookyBuz
Posts: 1492

I'd like to second that sentiment from MrsSpookyBuz - must be that good old fashioned midwestern charm 'eh jww?

Did you ever see "The Dream is Alive"? That's a great one too in terms of IMAX movies about space/earth. I loved Blue Planet

AWWWwww I am so blessed to have such great friends here! Thanks!
:blush:
BTW.. I think all the females here are so wonderful. I don't think I would even want to think which one is most precious as you all are so darn sweet!!

Ok whew... back on topic a bit!!

I will have to check that one out.. I love the Imax ones on Blu-Ray as it fills the whole screen and looks like you would just fall in though I'd bump my head on the screen.. Amazing stuff!!

I have been a huge fan of the space program since I was young. One of my favorite family vacations as a kid was traveling to Florida to tour the Space Center. Such great great memories!!		2009-08-29 23:00:00

Author:
jwwphotos
Posts: 11383

@MrsSpookyBuz - if it means great photos - hijack away! lol Chroma.2009-08-29 23:31:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

AWWWwww I am so blessed to have such great friends here! Thanks!
:blush:
BTW.. I think all the females here are so wonderful. I don't think I would even want to think which one is most precious as you all are so darn sweet!!


Okay, you three! cuddle session's over!
http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc107/amylu224/All%20Animals/Guinea%20Pigs/GuineaPigKitten.jpg


Oh yes, Blue Planet. Stunning!

Don't want to hijack the thread, Chroma, but my hubby's father was a part-time astronomer. I've got some absolutely wonderful pictures of the moon and sun that were taken from his telescope in the back garden.

I'll see if I can scan them in and maybe post them up. They made me cry, but you know how soft I am.

Very cool. I'd love to see some of the photos! I vote yes, share the love. I always wanted a telescope, but it just never happened for me, and I'd have to mooch off my friends who usually didn't really care about their family's telescope, were always just bored by them.

"iunno. it's just the moon. what's the big deal? Want to have pizza and play some vids?"
*i raise my face from the eyepiece, salty tears squirting*
"Jesus. Sor-REE! You don't HAVE to have any pizza!"

I love it. Give me a telescope and I'll stay up all night.

I'm insanely curious with microscopes too. I just love looking at everything up close, seeing the insane textures common items have up close. Paper becomes a violent, ragged landscape. I used to sharpen a pencil to a NEEDLE point, and write TINY TINY text entirely inside just the blue lines of ruled notebook paper - looking at the paper it looks just like a dashed line, but under the lens it was readable text. I just loved doing this.

Well, that's off-topic!

Another random aside - It's only a matter of time before they take cameras up into space to film scripted fictional movies. My bet is on James Cameron pulling it off first.		2009-08-31 02:35:00

Author:
Teebonesy
Posts: 1937

It's time yet again to turn our gazes skyward as Space Shuttle Atlantis is scheduled to lift off Monday at 2:28pm Eastern US time. There are only 6 more flghts of the shuttle fleet scheduled including this one so check it out!

Here's a link to the article:
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/main/index.html

For viewing the launch on NASA TV:
http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/index.html

For viewing the Space Station and Shuttle from the ground. Cick your country on the left side then follow the prompts:
http://spaceflight1.nasa.gov/realdata/sightings/


Good Luck Atlantis! Go Baby Go!		2009-11-16 06:12:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

You mean to say that we, as in, humankind, are going to send a rocket-propelled vehicle piloted by PEOPLE (called "astronauts") into OUTER SPACE, and it's going to be recorded live and streamed for all to see? And this is happening TOMORROW?

This, I will watch.

the EVA scene in Modern Warfare 2 beyond all shadow of a doubt was the highlight for me.

"Please look to your right, toward the dark side of the Earth..."
NO!! *looks at Milky Way* WWWOOOOWWWW!!
"Please look down and left. We need the feed from your helmet cam. Please look down."
WOOOOWWW!! *looks at alpha centauri*
"Please look down."		2009-11-16 06:32:00

Author:
Teebonesy
Posts: 1937

"Please look to your right, toward the dark side of the Earth..."
NO!! *looks at Milky Way* WWWOOOOWWWW!!
"Please look down and left. We need the feed from your helmet cam. Please look down."
WOOOOWWW!! *looks at alpha centauri*
"Please look down."



What will they be using once they are done with Space Shuttle? Will we rely solely on the Sojus (?) ?		2009-11-16 11:28:00

Author:
Syroc
Posts: 3193

Launch looked awesome!

When the retire the Shuttle fleet they'll rely on Sojus to supply and ferry to the Space Station until the US has their Constellation program set up. The Ares rockets are pretty cool. They plan to use them to send guys back to the moon (Orion Capsules) and eventually to Mars.

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/ares/index.html		2009-11-16 19:36:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Why'd they cancel the shuttle program anyways? If they were too dangerous they could have improved the design.....2009-11-16 22:50:00

Author:
Astrosimi
Posts: 2046

All right space fans here we go again. Plenty of notice this time around. Space Shuttle Endeavor is scheduled to launch at 4:39am Eastern Time (USA) on Sunday.

Here's the link to the article:

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/main/index.html

Check post #62 for links for viewing online.


God Speed Endeavor!		2010-02-06 00:48:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

All right space fans here we go again. Plenty of notice this time around. Space Shuttle Endeavor is scheduled to launch at 4:39am Eastern Time (USA) on Sunday.

Here's the link to the article:

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/main/index.html

Check post #62 for links for viewing online.


God Speed Endeavor!

Yep... I'm not going to miss this one. to anyone who doesn't realize:

This will be your last chance ever to witness a night shuttle launch.

After this, no more night shuttle launches ever, and if you live anywhere on the east coast, there's a chance you can pop outside and witness it first-hand:

http://imgur.com/lbKYf.jpg

If you live anywhere near Cape Canaveral, the brilliance of a night launch is akin to an artifical sunrise. It's so bright it'll light up like morning.

Being on the west coast, I'm not lucky enough to check it out for reals, so it's online streaming for me. But anytime a major addition is added to the Space Station I'm happy. I'm one of the crazies amongst us who would actually CHOOSE to live on that thing for 6 months if I could. Whenever they gain another piece, I feel like I'm gaining another piece. This one's main cargo is the new Tranquility Node, pride of Italy.

This trip up is mainly to add this new node to the station, including the "cupola", an Empire-Strikes-Back-esque paneled window that'll give the residents an unprecedentedly awesome view from the interior. Prior to now, astronauts have had to use cameras and fuzzy monitors to use the robotic Canada Arm, and the new cupola will allow them to look out a freaking cool dome window while they operate the arm. The windows are made from glass which makes them a bit dangerous and prone to damage, so windows on the ISS come with shutters to protect the windows from micrometeorites and debris. As sweet as it would be to have the windows visible all the time, most of their time will probably be spent shuttered.

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/ap/20100204/capt.b747b66c69e7464f913af6cf57540499.space_shuttl e_ny116.jpg?x=258&y=345&q=85&sig=_b0DAQHrz0rvZgpiweHp2Q--

After this mission, the Space Station will apparently be "98% complete". Although I don't know how accurate that really is, with Obama's new budget extending the duration of the Space Station mission, we might see more stuff being added over the next decade. There's even talk of artificial gravity with a future centrifuge addition.

I was severely bummed about Constellation being cancelled, but having read a number of articles (http://www.space.com/news/nasa-far-out-plans-100201.html), endorsements (http://buzzaldrin.com/statement-from-buzz-aldrin-a-new-direction-in-space/), interviews (http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/air_space/4344636.html?nav=RSS20&src=syn&dom=yah_buzz&mag=pop) and analysis (http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2010-02/nasa-budget-constellation-officially-canned-deep-space-future-bright), I've come around, and while it sucks that we're going to have to wait so much longer before we put people on other worlds, a more "futuristic" program may be in the books for NASA. Depending on how the private sector responds, we may still end up seeing people on the moon in the next decade or so.		2010-02-06 05:38:00

Author:
Teebonesy
Posts: 1937

Thanks for the heads up, fellow Spacesacks, as well as the very informative post from you, T-Bone. I'll be sure not to miss it; I'll be fainting the next day at school from lack of sleep, but I got to see the last nightly shuttle launch!

.....Last nightly shuttle launch 		2010-02-06 05:45:00

Author:
Astrosimi
Posts: 2046

Yep it's the end of an era here. I love the night launches. Teebonsey's right. I catch them in HD on HDNet when they cover them and it's a sight to behold on an HD 56" screen. I'd have loved to have seen one in person but with the delays they usually have it was really hard to plan a vacation around a launch. Maybe the one in June... I'm hopeful.

So yea, I'm bummed about the funding being cut on Constellation too. It may turn out for the best, your right T but I'm just so frustrated that we haven't made it a priority to promote space exploration, astronomy and other sciences that benefit from being a space faring species. I guess it's like Red from "That's 70's Show" he said "They promised us jetpacks." referring to the future when he was much younger. I'm ready for my jetpack metaphorically speaking.... I'm ready now.		2010-02-06 05:51:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

So yea, I'm bummed about the funding being cut on Constellation too. It may turn out for the best, your right T but I'm just so frustrated that we haven't made it a priority to promote space exploration, astronomy and other sciences that benefit from being a space faring species. I guess it's like Red from "That's 70's Show" he said "They promised us jetpacks." referring to the future when he was much younger. I'm ready for my jetpack metaphorically speaking.... I'm ready now.

Yeah, I know... A pressurized ROVER for God's sake! We could have a pressurized lunar rover in the works!! AAAAWWWW!! That thing got me all sassy and excited. That would be so friggin awesome. Look at this thing!!

http://imgur.com/UgAQ4.jpg

No space suit required. You see what this means?? You could have CUP HOLDERS. You could sip coffee while driving a pressurized rover on the freaking moon. RRRRRGG....

I think the real problem is that our method of getting out there right now is the same as it was in the 60s. We mount a tiny module - even the planned lunar cargo modules are pretty small-time - on the tip of a massive 4-story Ares rocket. The cost versus the cargo in terms of money, time, and resources are incredible - It might amount to something like 97% spent, 3% gained. So hopefully this new direction will actually amount to better, more efficient space travel technology, and while we won't go to the moon as early as Constellation would have gotten us, perhaps as a result WE'LL go to the moon sooner. And by WE'LL I mean LITERALLY YOU AND ME. Round-trip tourist tickets.

I'm worried about future administrations though. This is a ridiculous part of NASA life. New presidents come in and decide to screw with things. I hated Bush, but I was really looking forward to Constellation. And now it's canned and we're moving on to more "realistic" endeavors. Okay.
But what if the next president cancels the newer projects and says we should scoop some dust on the moon? This keeps happening! It's no wonder NASA can't get anything done! Gaww!!

If nothing else, opening the doors to collaboration with private companies will have major lasting effects and take a bit of the budgetary slack off. Again - assuming it actually works out. It seems to me like a lot of people in NASA, a lot of astronomers, astronauts, and people in the industry are excited about the new direction. So I'm learning to be excited too.		2010-02-06 06:24:00

Author:
Teebonesy
Posts: 1937

Darn - well, they had a scrub tonight and are going to attempt it after a 24 hour hold. So tomorrow at 4:14am Eastern.... This one will be tricky as I have to work on Monday. Bummer2010-02-07 09:34:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

I'm actually relieved. I read the times as being 4 AM Sunday NIGHT instead of Sunday MORNING, so I thought it was tonight, and therefore, had it not been canceled, I would have missed it

Time for a powernap, I guess

EDIT: Hahaha, that's right! Go Endeavor! Soaring through the sky, 200 degrees, that's why they call it Mr. Farenheit!

Best night for a nightly shuttle launch. Conditions, and by that I mean visibility, were FLAWLESS. The only problem was a slight, and unusually frigid, Florida cold, which I never really mind. I would snapped some pictures, but IPhones don't pick up rockets at 200 miles :/ My dad was there, it was pretty much a Kumbaya kind of moment.

Now off to sleep 		2010-02-08 02:19:00

Author:
Astrosimi
Posts: 2046

That's awesome, astro! I'm jealous. I caught it here on tv, it was a beautiful launch. I'm hoping to catch some of the EVA coverage when they do the spacewalks.

I was reading the last chapter of a recent book on Apollo, "Rocket Men", and it covered the post-Apollo years at NASA and meanwhile on TV I had images of a desolate Houston mission control room, followed by something of a very sad, very quiet, very sparse and subdued press conference following Endeavor's successful launch. The effect was that I became overwhelmingly sad. It's these little details that I never knew before - like what happened to a lot of the young genius engineers who worked on Apollo. After Nixon nearly obliterated NASA, a lot of these kids didn't have anywhere to go. Thousands were unemployed, some ended up on the street. These guys' boss accepted the medal of freedom from the president, the highest honor a civilian could receive, and on their behalf. And some of these guys ended up pumping gas in the years following Apollo. That's not a metaphor. Literally, they got jobs at gas stations pumping gas. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to pump gas, but these ones were doing it. I'm excited about the mission, I'm excited about the future, but really, right now, I'm just feeling sad. I watched a beautiful launch, and it's the last night launch of a shuttle ever, with only 5 more launches before NASA's manned spaceflight days may be all but over, and all I can see when I close my eyes is a ****ed gas station.		2010-02-08 12:18:00

Author:
Teebonesy
Posts: 1937

Just wanted to post a bit of media covering the launch:

Nasa's astronomy picture of the day (http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/astropix.html) was of the launch, and it's amazing: big version here (http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/image/1002/sts30nightlaunch_nasa_big.jpg).

there's also a video, and I highly recommend this in HD:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W-aDSv494v4		2010-02-10 00:42:00

Author:
Teebonesy
Posts: 1937

It was beautiful wasn't it Gorgeous night for it and the warm yellow glow was so beautiful as it punched through the ceiling of clouds. Just breathtaking! The guys on the nasacast even said it was perfect from a technical pov. They don't go much better than that.

That pic of the day is really cool. Love how everyone has their phones up to take pics too. A real snapshot of our culture in a microcosm there.

Glad I decided to stay up to see it

That's just gut wrenching about geniuses pumping gas. If I had the money those guys would be making rockets as long as they wanted to. Shame that society can't support people's talents financially - what a waste.		2010-02-10 01:50:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Sorry to bump, but once more, Astronomical Anomalies are at hand!
http://scietech.files.wordpress.com/2008/09/157244890_a6dc37221c.jpg
This is the approximation of what I saw today at about 10 PM EST over Miami. Probably the most fantastic thing I've seen in my life. I found the image above under "moon ring", although I am unsure if it's the actual term, nor do I know what causes it. I could Google it, but that's not fun, now is it

Discuss!		2010-02-27 03:32:00

Author:
Astrosimi
Posts: 2046

Wow.. It's amazing isn't it? If anybody asks me what I want to do in the future, I'm always going to reply 'first man on mars' whether they like it or not. I can dream. 2010-02-28 22:43:00

Author:
AgentBanana
Posts: 511

Wow.. It's amazing isn't it? If anybody asks me what I want to do in the future, I'm always going to reply 'first man on mars' whether they like it or not. I can always dream. 2010-02-28 22:44:00

Author:
AgentBanana
Posts: 511

That's really pretty! Aren't those called Moon Dogs? Either way I love those halos around the moon. They can get quite large around here in the winter. 2010-03-01 00:32:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Sorry for the double post but it's that time again space fans! Space shuttle Discovery is set to launch at 6:21 Eastern time Monday morning a little less than 12 hours from now. Tune in using the links

For viewing the launch on NASA TV:
http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/index.html

For viewing the Space Station and Shuttle from the ground. Cick your country on the left side then follow the prompts:
http://spaceflight1.nasa.gov/realdata/sightings/

or read more here:

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/main/index.html

God Speed Discovery!		2010-04-04 23:36:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Go Commander Poindexter! *snicker*2010-04-05 00:11:00

Author:
Teebonesy
Posts: 1937

Apologies for the bump, but I felt a need to share this with my fellow Sagan-ites.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wupToqz1e2g		2010-04-12 02:12:00

Author:
Astrosimi
Posts: 2046

Of course things like this happen every once in a while but unfortunately Americas Wonderful Vice President cancelled the moon launch and if we cant get any moon rocks we cant continue our study of Helium-3. i just cant wait for some other political basterd to cancel the Mission to Mars also2010-04-12 03:36:00

Author:
Charlemagne
Posts: 513

Of course things like this happen every once in a while but unfortunately Americas Wonderful Vice President cancelled the moon launch and if we cant get any moon rocks we cant continue our study of Helium-3. i just cant wait for some other political basterd to cancel the Mission to Mars also

Just on the off-chance you're not joking - I hate to break it to you but there's no concrete plan right now for a manned mission to Mars.

Actually there's no concrete plan for manned missions ANYWHERE beyond low-earth orbit where the satellites and space station live.

Neil Degrasse Tyson has some very compelling thoughts on what's wrong with the new plan for NASA.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RQhNZENMG1o

To boil it down, he suggests that what we need is heroes to inspire young people. Robots do lovely science, but what we need are people out on the frontier.

"What worries me, is if you take away the manned program - a program, which if you advance frontiers, HEROES are made - there's a force operating on the educational pipeline that stimulates the formation of scientists, engineers, mathematicians and technologists... They are the ones that make tomorrow come."		2010-04-13 11:57:00

Author:
Teebonesy
Posts: 1937

Love Dr. Neil (yea I know it's his firs name but I do that with the science guys I adore - you know. Like Carl. )

Yea, basically the plan is nada at the moment. Really bums me out.		2010-04-13 15:51:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Thats exactly why i said future mission. I know that there is no scheduled mission but id expect one around the 2030's. Im just saying that most political idiots are more concerned in passing health care bills and some other bullcrap than collecting rocks on the moon so that we can study Helium-3.The Helium-3 in a single moon rock can power a single city for about a month2010-04-14 06:04:00

Author:
Charlemagne
Posts: 513

I was at the launch site 2 days before it launched. I just missed it! It was so cool!2010-04-14 12:23:00

Author:
austimerr
Posts: 385

Big news!


In the face of united bipartisan opposition to his plans to cancel NASA's follow-on shuttle program, President Obama is reviving the capsule component of the scuttled Constellation program and setting a time frame for development of a new heavy-lift booster intended to take astronauts beyond Earth's orbit for the first time since the Apollo moon missions ended in 1972.

Obama is scheduled to speak about the new policy on Thursday at the Kennedy Space Center. In advance of the president's speech, the White House's Office of Science and Technology Policy Tuesday night released some details about the revamped plan.

So Obama's giving a speech TOMORROW on the details of the new plan. Here are some of the preliminary tidbits (http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewsr.html?pid=33884).

For anyone who doesn't want to comb through, here's some of the big stuff to expect:

- NASA's getting more money, to the tune of just over a billion dollars more a year for the next 5.
- More frontier-oriented. There will be clearer goals to send people farther out into space - to asteroids, to the moons of Mars, and to Mars.
- A new rocket to be developed specifically with the above goals in mind.
- Constellation's Orion capsule is back - this time as an addition to the Space Station as an escape pod.

It sounds like Obama's been listening to the criticisms. I'm buckling up for tomorrow's speech. This is pretty exciting stuff!		2010-04-15 03:32:00

Author:
Teebonesy
Posts: 1937

The final frontier! I hope life is like Star Trek soon. I can't wait for transponders or automatic doors.2010-04-15 03:54:00

Author:
monstahr
Posts: 1361

I'd heard about this and I'm excited to hear what he has to say. : Thanks for the heads up!2010-04-15 06:32:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Obama sets goal for Mars (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8623691.stm)

Barack Obama says it should be possible to send astronauts to orbit the planet Mars by the mid-2030s and return them safely to Earth, and a landing on Mars will follow. Sort of like Apollos 8, 9, and 10.

So Obama's setting some concrete, and hugely ambitious goals. He stresses that NASA has its work cut out for it solving these new problems, like a new propulsion system to get astronauts farther out into deep space than ever before, and bring them all the way back. They're getting the resources to research it to the tune of over a billion dollars more each year.

Ladies, and gents:
We're going to asteroids.
We're going to Mars.
It's happening in the next couple of decades.

Until Obama's successor kills the plan, that is. But let's try to remain optimistic.

This is awesome. It sounds like Dr. Neil himself sat Obama down and said, "here's what you should do." With the exception being that it seems we're skipping another moon landing, which Tyson thinks we should do just to get our "flying proficiency up" so to speak. Sort of a way to practice again, it's a whole new generation at NASA who have never been to the moon.		2010-04-15 23:51:00

Author:
Teebonesy
Posts: 1937

Well that's awesome news! Speaking of awesome check this out... I missed it because I was on LBP... dang!


View from Milwaukee

http://www.wisn.com/video/23160606/index.html

Cops dashboard cam from Iowa

http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2010/04/15/meteor-lights-midwest-skies/		2010-04-16 00:03:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

With the exception being that it seems we're skipping another moon landing, which Tyson thinks we should do just to get our "flying proficiency up" so to speak. Sort of a way to practice again, it's a whole new generation at NASA who have never been to the moon.

Yeah, this is the only part of the plan I found misguided. We have a lot to learn before we head to Mars and more trips to the Moon would help.

Other than that, I was really excited about these announcements!		2010-04-16 02:27:00

Author:
mrsupercomputer
Posts: 1335

I think we should focus on the moon more than we need to focus on Mars.Helium-3 is a very important substance, and it could solve our fuel crisis as well as global warming, If we continue our study and learn how so extract it, 1/1000th of the moon could power every single city of earth for millions of years, and no pollution in the process2010-04-16 06:17:00

Author:
Charlemagne
Posts: 513

I think we should focus on the moon more than we need to focus on Mars.Helium-3 is a very important substance, and it could solve our fuel crisis as well as global warming, If we continue our study and learn how so extract it, 1/1000th of the moon could power every single city of earth for millions of years, and no pollution in the process

Man, you're not a Helium 3 lobbyist are you?

Sign me up though, if they're going to mine the moon, I wouldn't mind a temporary career change.

I think we're a pretty long way off from being able to financially profit from space missions. Payloads to and from space are so expensive, we're just not ready to be building moon bases and shipping and processing the stuff for some time. I don't doubt that if NASA's funding didn't peter into tiddlywinks at the end of Apollo that we would be there doing it today though.

In other... stuff? I just wanted to drop a line about a little something playing in Imax theaters called "Hubble 3D". This is the type of thing you might have to hunt down a science center, space center, or museum for. It's only about 40 minutes.

It's one of the most incredible movie-going experiences of my life. I just saw it this weekend. I genuinely think it clearly outdoes Avatar in terms of the impact of the 3D cinematography. But the segments in which the movie allows you to explore space, to go out, absolutely immersed in the cosmos, and witness up close the places discovered by Hubble... they nearly crippled me. i couldn't speak or move. It was seizing. It was a fantasy of mine come true.

Every space cadet owes it to themselves to go out and see this movie. Hunt it down if you have to! I had to take a 4 hour train ride! These 40 minutes are absolutely worth whatever hell you have to go through to get there.		2010-04-20 02:21:00

Author:
Teebonesy
Posts: 1937

Luckily, I have a science museum about 20 minutes from my house. With an IMAX theater. You were right about Avatar, so heck, I'll take your word for this one. Thanks for the heads up!2010-04-20 02:28:00

Author:
Astrosimi
Posts: 2046

I knew very early on watching this that it was almost immediately putting Avatar in second place in terms of the effectiveness of 3D. But that's largely to do with the bigger Imax format and drastically increased resolution as well. I saw Avatar in Imax too, but it wasn't shot natively on Imax, and so it didn't take up the full screen and was at blown-up resolution.

This one though... There's plenty of "post" 3d stuff, and even some really crappy quality video footage that they've converted into 3d, but these are all just part of the hubble mission document - I'd much rather see the real thing than a fake CG version anyway.

But it's the real-deal native Imax 3D stuff, both with the live action footage of the launch and the astronauts, as well as the CG "fly-through" composites of hubble's photographs that steps in front of Avatar as possibly the greatest 3D footage ever created.

Let me put it this way. There's a shot pretty early on of Megan McArthur suited up for her mission, with engineers prodding and fiddling and testing various parts of her suit. She's sitting patiently, slightly awkward with the camera right in front of her.

I found myself almost wondering if I should make or avoid eye contact and thinking "should I say something? I've never met an astronaut before, should I start the conversation, or..."

Right, right. Not real. Movie.

And this is just the tip of the iceberg with this thing. I've never been more fully immersed in a movie theater before. That's quite an achievement.		2010-04-20 08:02:00

Author:
Teebonesy
Posts: 1937

Looks like the closest place showing it around here is in Chicago.... argh. I'll have to get a plan together to get down to Navy Pier.2010-04-20 15:27:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Woooo! Chicago awaaay!

I've always wanted to go to Chicago. I had to head down to Seattle myself to see it. I love experiencing cities. I love downtowns and giant towering architecture, and nothing beats Chicago for beautiful skyscraping. Plus you can just pop in any random old bar/club/venue and Billy Corgan might come out and start playing. That's pretty rad.

Anyway, it's a shame this movie isn't more available. I checked it on rottentomatoes, and there are only 20 reviews for it. It's been out since mid March! Nobody sees Imax movies, so why would a 40 minute Imax documentary be on anyone's radar? it isn't. But it also just so happens to be the coolest thing I've ever seen.		2010-04-21 23:22:00

Author:
Teebonesy
Posts: 1937

Saw this on aol and thought it was cool.

http://www.aolnews.com/science/article/here-comes-the-sun-in-high-definition/19449994?icid=main|main|dl1|link2|http%3A%2F%2Fwww .aolnews.com%2Fscience%2Farticle%2Fhere-comes-the-sun-in-high-definition%2F19449994		2010-04-23 07:25:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Another neato link time! This is the launch of Apollo 11 from a 500 frames-per-second 16mm camera right near the launch pad. It stretches 30 seconds of launch into 8 minutes, and it's got commentary walking you through what's happening. Very cool.


http://www.boingboing.net/2010/04/26/apollo-11-launch-rev.html		2010-04-27 21:06:00

Author:
Teebonesy
Posts: 1937

It's that time again. This one is historic too. The last flight of Space Shuttle Atlantis. Blast off is 2:20pm so about an hour and 20 minutes from now. Check it out live on Nasa TV here http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/index.html?param=public

Read article here:

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/main/index.html

Best of Luck Atlantis and Thank you for your service!		2010-05-14 18:05:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Yup... have the tv running and will be recording for sure. Kinda sad really.

Quick update.. We are under a Launch Constraint. They found a ball bearing and not sure where it came from. Teeb? Were you messing around again??		2010-05-14 18:56:00

Author:
jwwphotos
Posts: 11383

Yea it is a little Sad. Atlantis has had a good run though. Are you as amused as I am that they're talking about that ball bearing they found in the aft of the payload bay yesterday? They're not sure where it's from but they're sure it won't be a problem for the ship. Shows you how seriously they take this stuff.2010-05-14 19:01:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Well... that is one vehicle that extra pieces laying around is a scary thing!2010-05-14 19:02:00

Author:
jwwphotos
Posts: 11383

So true. lol consindering they lauch faster than a bullet from a gun even a tiny bit of debris could be catastrophic.... well, we've seen what happens if that happens. *sigh*

Good news is they hold is done and looks like they are for sure going in a matter of minutes!		2010-05-14 19:15:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Wow... was truly a beautiful sight. Picture perfect awesomeness!!

Woo hooo!!		2010-05-14 19:32:00

Author:
jwwphotos
Posts: 11383

yea that was spectacular! Great shot of the earth as they did their heads up roll about 7 minutes in. For the next week or so I'm gonna have the best window office in the world as I stream it's video on my work computer! 2010-05-14 19:35:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Sad times! It's going to be a serious bummer when the last shuttle launch finishes. I have a feeling they'll extend the program for a while longer.

I'll have to keep dreaming about going up there. I really think that I could have very easily taken a very different track with my life. I happened to, very very early in my life, latch onto movies magnetically. But one tiny thing could have set me on a fundamentally different path. I'll just have to write some science fiction and insist on shooting it "on location." That'll do it, right?

I guarantee you James Cameron will hitch a ride up to shoot the first on-location narrative film in outer space. Mark these words! The rich jerk!

Just re-read the pair of old Tintin books - Destination Moon and Explorers on the Moon. I absolutely love these books. Dreamlike space travel adventures full of slapstick comedy and cold war thrills written in the 50s. Thank you Jesus Herge!		2010-05-18 11:03:00

Author:
Teebonesy
Posts: 1937

I own both those Tintin books, they are basically my childhood.

I wonder if we'll ever really get to the point when we can send commercial flights up. Probably not in my lifetime.. bummer. Though we did have that X Prize winner (SpaceshipOne). I think they actually lost money on it with the 10 million dollar prize. Hmm.		2010-05-18 11:52:00

Author:
monstahr
Posts: 1361

Epic revival for an important announcement for our North American friends!

http://www.nasa.gov/topics/solarsystem/features/eclipse/index.html

There's going to be an awesome lunar eclipse tonight... If you guys are planning to stay up for a bit you may be able to catch it! Conditions couldn't be more perfect here in S. Florida with a full moon and clear skies.

In the unfortunate case that you're too late, NASA has set up some webcams (linked in above article) which let you view it, should your interest be piqued!		2010-12-21 06:10:00

Author:
Astrosimi
Posts: 2046

Ya I was psyched about it and am on my porch now. Only problem is it's really cloudy. Betting I'm not going to get to see this one.2010-12-21 06:19:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

I really want to see that Hubble 3D (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1433813/)in IMAX... saw a trailer when I went to see Tron and it just looked mind-blowing2010-12-21 09:03:00

Author:
Macnme
Posts: 1970

For those of you who haven't heard, today is the last launch of the Space Shuttle Discovery. It's set to lift off at 4:50 Eastern Time USA, (about 4 hours from now).

Info on the mission can be found here (http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/main/index.html)

Viewing the launch/mission online links are here (http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/)

And for the first time you can watch the launch live on Playstation Home... you know, if you happen to be there. Info can be found here (http://blog.us.playstation.com/2011/02/23/final-nasa-shuttle-launch-is-first-live-streaming-event-in-playstation-home-weekly-update/?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=home_nasa_022311).

Best wishes to the crew of STS 133! 		2011-02-24 17:27:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Of course, we only want to go back into space so that we can strip mine the moon for Helium-3 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helium-3), and use it as an alternative fuel source once all of the earths natural resources are expended.

So, not content with ruining our own planet - we now want to ruin the moon aswell

One Giant Leap for Mankind - One Boot in the Buttocks for the Solar System!		2011-02-24 17:38:00

Author:
Macnme
Posts: 1970

aw dang i think i missed it?!?!

were they really going up there to mine the moon? how sad.

weird that i havent heard anything of it over in england ...		2011-02-24 22:12:00

Author:
Skalio-
Posts: 920

Yep just launched about 10 minutes or so ago.

No they aren't going up to mine the moon on this mission.... or the next one. I think he means future missions.... potential future missions as the US has no space flight plans at the moment.		2011-02-24 22:14:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

I recorded it this morning before I ran off.

Unfortunately, it's just not as exciting as watching it live...		2011-02-24 22:18:00

Author:
Sage
Posts: 2068

Yep just launched about 10 minutes or so ago.

No they aren't going up to mine the moon on this mission.... or the next one. I think he means future missions.... potential future missions as the US has no space flight plans at the moment.

Yup, but the whole reason so many different countries are now interested again in manned space flights (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helium-3#Extraterrestrial_supplies) - after decades of disinterest, is because as Oil & Gas inevitably run out and become prohibitavely expensive (by which time we will all have switched to Electric Cars) - they will need an alternative power source to power those electric cars - almost certainly nuclear, which will need lots of Helium-3 (a rare element on Earth, but abundant on the Moon) in order to produce enough energy for human-kinds instatiable appetite for energy - without (as much) toxic byproducts as traditional uranium.

Of course, first there'll be an exciting World War III, as we fight over who owns and controls the moon - and therefore owns and controls planet earths energy production.

All this will probably happen within the next 50 to 100 years. Exciting, isn't it!		2011-02-25 14:49:00

Author:
Macnme
Posts: 1970

Well it's that time again. This time we have the final launch of Space Shuttle Endeavour. This is the second to the last launch (last lauch ever is STS-135 Space Shuttle Atlantis sometime in June) for the shuttle program. The commander of this mission is the husband of Gabrielle Giffords, the US Representative who survived an asasination attempt back in January Link to her wiki page (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gabrielle_Giffords) if you don't know the story.

Mission overview can be found here: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/main/index.html

To watch the launch live click here: http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/index.html
If the plug in doesn't work, there are a few other options on that page.

Best of Luck to the STS-134 Crew!


EDIT: Well this sucks. Launch was just scrubbed (canceled) because of 2 APU heaters failing. Earliest attempt will be 48 hours from now but knowing NASA it will be later. I'll update as soon as I find out what they're planning.		2011-04-29 16:32:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Thanks for keeping this updated Morg.
Hopefully it won't get delayed again.		2011-04-30 04:55:00

Author:
Maxi
Posts: 1176

Man, we're finally drawing to to the end of this magnificent era - I do hope this pays off and we start going further than ever before. The sooner we develop better long-distance space flight, the better.2011-04-30 05:24:00

Author:
Astrosimi
Posts: 2046

May be a bit of a late reply, but only a week to go for the final launch...

And I'll be there to see it .
Just so happens my holiday crosses over with the schedule for the launch (in the right location), so I'll be keeping an eye out 		2011-07-01 01:06:00

Author:
Nurolight
Posts: 918

Yep, I'm a little sad I'm going to miss this one. I'll be on vacation and won't likely be able to see it online.2011-07-05 15:38:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

I do hope the visibility is good, I'm hoping to see this one. Maybe I can convince my parents to ferry us to Cape Canaveral to see it. Not sure if it'll be as crowded as Atlantis's last flight, but it'll certainly be as crowded, if not more, than any other launch.2011-07-05 19:09:00

Author:
Astrosimi
Posts: 2046

Good news, if they launch on schedule I can see this last launch! Yay!

So here's the link to the shuttle page at nasa.gov http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/main/index.html

This is the FINAL LAUNCH of THE SPACE SHUTTLE EVER!

Launch is set for 11:26am Eastern US time today!

To watch online click http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/index.html If it doesn't work, try another viewing option on the right of that page or open that link in another web browser.

Best of Luck to the Crew of the Space Shuttle Atlantis and let's hope the weather is good!		2011-07-08 07:36:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

is this the last last or just the last of that one <_< they keep saying its the last but what are they going to use for now on?

PS i love how raw it look the steam ^^; coming off they not really alot to it just light the thing and hope nothing go wrong		2011-07-08 09:26:00

Author:
jump_button
Posts: 1014

Last of the Last.2011-07-08 16:04:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

I am watching.. sad to see it is the last one.2011-07-08 16:21:00

Author:
jwwphotos
Posts: 11383

Just watched a little bit live, and realised I'd never actually seen the thing being dropped off until now, and it's the last one.2011-07-08 16:36:00

Author:
kirbyman62
Posts: 1893

Ugh, I can barely watch it. It just keeps freezing every two bloody seconds...2011-07-08 16:37:00

Author:
Veyneru
Posts: 115

Beautiful launch! So glad I got to see this. Thanks for sharing this moment in history with me guys 2011-07-08 16:40:00

Author:
Morgana25
Posts: 5983

Just incredible... to me that never gets old. 2011-07-08 16:45:00

Author:
jwwphotos
Posts: 11383


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