SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

Post by AWS260 »

From the live broadcast: "Maybe next time we shouldn't announce our landing area ahead of time."

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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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From the capsule - "See anywhere to park?"

But ya that does seem kinda dumb to do.
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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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AWS260 wrote: Sun Aug 02, 2020 2:53 pm Also, the capsule landed safely. Pretty cool to see the first human water landing in my lifetime.
Ah you kids :wink:. It was the umpteenth of mine, as many as there have been. Clever how they hoisted the spacecraft on the ship and extracted the crew on stretchers. The Russians usually just bring lounge chairs :mrgreen:
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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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Yep before the shuttle it was always water. Saw many.

Still looked like it would be a jolt to hit the water even at that speed.
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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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SpaceX's Starship SN5 prototype soars on 1st test flight! 'Mars is looking real,' Elon Musk says
SpaceX just flew a full-size prototype of its Starship Mars-colonizing spacecraft for the first time ever.

The Starship SN5 test vehicle took to the skies for about 40 seconds this afternoon (Aug. 4) at SpaceX's facilities near the South Texas village of Boca Chica, performing a small hop that could end up being a big step toward human exploration of the Red Planet.

"Mars is looking real," Musk tweeted shortly after today's test flight.
Zaxxon wrote: Tue Aug 04, 2020 11:40 pm
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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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Interesting article: Space tourists will face big risks, as private companies gear up for paid suborbital flights

Excerpt:
Spaceflight is regarded as an inherently dangerous activity. While some hazards of spaceflight and the space environment – like G-forces, radiation, vibration and microgravity – are well documented, many risks remain unknown. The scope of physiological risks spans pre-flight, in-flight, and post-flight operations and activities.

FAA regulations also focus on the safety and protection of the public on the ground, not the civilian passengers who are called spaceflight participants. This includes anyone who is not crew or a government astronaut on a spacecraft.

As a result, regulations stipulate minimum requirements with regard to medical fitness and training for space tourists, as well as informed consent, and waivers of liability to protect the launch operator.

So prospective space participants are taking a big risk.
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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

Post by Holman »

On land vs water landings:

Did the Soviets experience any catastrophes with their Soyuz on-soil landings?

(I know there's a possibility that these would have been hushed-up.)
Much prefer my Nazis Nuremberged.
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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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Holman wrote: Mon Aug 10, 2020 6:47 pm On land vs water landings:

Did the Soviets experience any catastrophes with their Soyuz on-soil landings?

(I know there's a possibility that these would have been hushed-up.)
This is the only one I could find, via a Wikipedia article.
On April 5, 1975, Soyuz 7K-T No.39, the second stage of a Soyuz rocket carrying 2 cosmonauts to the Salyut 4 space station malfunctioned, resulting in the first crewed launch abort. The cosmonauts were carried several thousand miles downrange and became worried that they would land in China, which the Soviet Union was then having difficult relations with. The capsule hit a mountain, sliding down a slope and almost slid off a cliff; however, the parachute lines snagged on trees and kept this from happening. As it was, the two suffered severe injuries and the commander, Lazarev, never flew again.
And of course there was that landing where Sandra Bullock almost drown... :D
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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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Yes I recall one . Chute failed and he smacked the ground and cratered. Can only imagine how that was. RIP.

https://www.americaspace.com/2012/04/24 ... f-soyuz-1/
Whether such words were ever spoken can never be known. What is known, however, is the sheer horror which followed. Travelling at more than 640 km/h, Soyuz 1 hit the ground with the unbridled passion of a meteorite, killing Komarov instantly and completely flattening the capsule. Solid-fuelled rockets at its base – meant to fire, just before touchdown, to cushion the landing – actually detonated on impact and the remains of the craft burst into flames.
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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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For those following the SLS pre-launch progress, a report from Stennis: SLS Green Run test-firing to verify Core Stage design, analysis before first launch

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The Green Run test campaign for NASA’s first Space Launch System (SLS) Core Stage will culminate in two critical tests that will demonstrate the real-world performance of the large, complicated vehicle. The last two of the eight test cases of the campaign at the Stennis Space Center in Mississippi will finally load the stage with cryogenic propellant for the first time and then fire its four RS-25 engines, running the stage propulsion systems through a full mission cycle.

At the center of the two tests is a ten-minute long terminal countdown leading up to the eight minutes the stage is planned to fire in the stand. NASA and Core Stage prime contractor Boeing have several experiments planned during the terminal count and test firing to help validate and calibrate their analytical models on how the stage design behaves.
I was at Stennis in the late seventies for a couple Space Shuttle full up engine runs, it is a pretty amazing experience. Back then it was still called NSTL (National Space Technology Laboratories) of course, the renaming after Senator Stennis didn't happen till a number of years later.
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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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Who is it here works at NASA? I was wondering if they still sold official mission patches from older stuff like the 90s and onward. I mean official patches not cheap knockoffs. Ive always wanted a Pathfinder / Sojourner patch.
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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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Arecibo radio telescope severely damaged

A Broken Cable Has Wrecked One of Earth's Largest Radio Telescopes
The cable tore a 100-foot hole in the gargantuan dish in Puerto Rico, which was featured in Carl Sagan's novel 'Contact' and the James Bond film 'GoldenEye'.
The Arecibo Observatory, one of the largest single-aperture radio telescopes in the world, has suffered extensive damage after an auxiliary cable snapped and crashed through the telescope’s reflector dish.

The accident left a 100-foot hole in the observatory, which stretches 1,000 feet over a karst sinkhole in northern Puerto Rico.
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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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Damn it, Sean Bean!
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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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Isgrimnur wrote: Wed Aug 12, 2020 11:24 pm Damn it, Sean Bean!
:lol:

Black Lives Matter

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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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He was pushed.
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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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Fastest star ever seen is moving at 8% the speed of light

In the center of our galaxy, hundreds of stars closely orbit a supermassive black hole. Most of these stars have large enough orbits that their motion is described by Newtonian gravity and Kepler's laws of motion. But a few orbit so closely that their orbits can only be accurately described by Einstein's theory of general relativity. The star with the smallest orbit is known as S62. Its closest approach to the black hole has it moving more than 8% of light speed.
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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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Thursday May See 2 Rocket Launches in Florida
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — The Space Coast may see some space traffic on Thursday as both United Launch Alliance and SpaceX are scheduled for two different launches, with another SpaceX liftoff possible on Friday [now Saturday]. The first launch is ULA’s Delta IV Heavy rocket that is scheduled for a 2:12 a.m. EDT. Its mission is to send up a classified spy satellite for the National Reconnaissance Office. It was originally scheduled for a Wednesday morning launch at the same time, but according to the company’s tweet, the NRO requested a date change for the liftoff. The launch is scheduled to take place at SLC-37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

For Thursday evening, SpaceX plans to launch the SAOCOM satellite for Argentina's space agency. The liftoff is scheduled for 7:14 p.m. EDT at the Space Launch Complex 40 at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. On Saturday, SpaceX is also targeting its next Starlink mission launch for 10:30 a.m.. If it is a go, it will take place at the Kennedy Space Center on Launch Pad 39A. If these trio of liftoffs do happen, it will be the first time since 2001 that the Space Coast saw three launches in a three-day span.
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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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I HATE Starlink.
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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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NASA Discovers Galaxy Shaped Like Darth Vader's TIE Fighter
NASA announced Tuesday that it has discovered a galaxy far, far away that's shaped like an imperial TIE fighter from Star Wars.

The active galaxy -- designated TXS 0128+554 -- is located 500 million light-years from us in the Cassiopeia constellation.

“The first time I saw the results, I immediately thought it looked like Darth Vader’s TIE fighter spacecraft from Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope," said Purdue University scientist Matthew Lister, one of the authors of a paper published in The Astrophysical Journal announcing the findings.
The galaxy TXS 0128 as observed by the Very Long Baseline Array. (Credit: NRAO)
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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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Carrington Event still provides warning of Sun’s potential 161 years later

Introduction:
On 28 August 1859, a series of sunspots began to form on the surface of our stellar parent. The sunspots quickly tangled the Sun’s magnetic field lines in their area and produced bright, observed solar flares and one — likely two — Coronal Mass Ejections, one major.

The massive solar storm impacted our planet on 1-2 September 1859, causing widespread disruption to electrical and Telegraph services and spawning auroras visible in the tropics.

Officially known as SOL1859-09-01, the Carrington Event as it has become known colloquially showcased for the first time the potentially disastrous relationship between the Sun’s energetic temperament and the nascent technology of the 19th century.


Later in the article:
However, a Carrington-class superstorm did erupt from the Sun on 23 July 2012 and narrowly missed Earth by just nine days, providing a stark warning from our solar parent that it is only a matter of time before another Carrington-class event impacts Earth. [discussed in the above video]

Coming shortly after the 2012 near miss, researchers from Lloyd’s of London and the Atmospheric and Environmental Research agency in the United States estimated that a Carrington-class event impacting Earth today would cause between $0.6 and $2.6 trillion in damages to the United States alone and would cause widespread — if not global — electrical disruptions, blackouts, and damages to electrical grids.

Cascading failures of electrical grids, especially in New England in the United States, are also particularly likely during a Carrington-class event. Power restoration estimates range anywhere from a weak[sic] to the least affected areas to more than a year to the hardest-hit regions.

Electronic payment systems at grocery stores and gas stations would likely crash, electric vehicle charging stations — that rely on the power grid — would likely be unusable for some time, as would ATMs which rely on an internet and/or satellite link to verify account and cash disbursement information.

Television signals from satellites would be majorly disrupted, and satellites, too, would experience disruptions to radio frequency communication, crippling GPS navigation.

Planes flying over the oceans would likely experience navigation errors and communications blackouts as a result of the disrupted satellite network.

Astronauts onboard the International Space Station would either seek shelter in one of the radiation-hardened modules of the outpost or, if enough time permitted and the CME event was significant enough, enter their Soyuz or U.S. crew vehicle and come home.

The question of exactly how to best protect astronauts on the Moon or at destinations farther out in the solar system is an on-going discussion/effort.
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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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Awaiting the launch of the Delta IV Heavy, originally scheduled for right about now, in a hold while engineers assess some compartment temperature issues. Live broadcast video site below.

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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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SpaceX doubleheader! Watch 2 Falcon 9 rockets lift off from Florida Sunday
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — SpaceX is preparing for a potential launch doubleheader on Sunday (Aug. 30), and you can watch the action live online.

On Sunday morning, the company’s Starlink internet megaconstellation is expected to grow as SpaceX plans to launch an additional 60 satellites into orbit atop a Falcon 9 rocket. Just nine hours later, a different Falcon 9 is slated to deliver the Argentinian satellite SAOCOM-1B into a polar orbit, marking the first such mission to fly from the Cape since the 1960s.

The Starlink mission is scheduled to launch from Pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center at 10:12 a.m. EDT (1412 GMT). SAOCOM-1B will fly from SpaceX’s other Florida launch pad, at Space Launch Complex-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. That liftoff is scheduled for 7:18 p.m. EDT (2318 GMT).
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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

Post by Sudy »

Anyone know a good introduction to astronomy/astrophysics YouTube video/series that's better than Crash Course? Crash Course is amazing, but at 40 episodes it's a little... long.

Wanted to share some information with my sister who's learning disabled and was asking about deep space objects, and my mother who apparently didn't know that stars orbit the supermassive black holes at the centers of their galaxies. (In her defense, I don't think she's kept up with astronomy much since she went to school in the 60/70s.)

I saw a commercial on late night TV. It said, "Forget everything you know about slipcovers." So I did. And it was a load off my mind. Then the commercial tried to sell me slipcovers, and I didn't know what the hell they were. -- Mitch Hedberg
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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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I just depend on the old Cosmos with Carl Sagan. Its out of date.

Did you guys know Mars sunsets are blue? :)

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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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The PI of Dragonfly giving her TED talk on the mission.
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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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Speaking of authentic patches and whatnot, this evening I was emptying out a bottom cabinet in my office to make room for my wheel/pedal set and I came across a box of my old Space Shuttle stuff, packed away many years before I even retired, probably back in the 1980s when I moved from my office trailer at Pad-39A to an office complex (made of railroad cars!) near the VAB.

Holy smokes, what a treasure trove of old space stuff. Cloth and paper mission patches, commemorative pins and coins, payload and mission handbooks (handy references for engineers) and lots of other stuff. Several copies of the KSC news bulletin that did a story on our LOX/LH2 storage facilities, including a picture of your truly. And car launch passes to the official NASA causeway viewing areas that I just didn't manage to give to someone, including one for STS-51L. And one for access to a KSC landing of Endeavour.

The stuff included the 130+ page special from the Florida Today newspaper, published just before the first launch. Very cool, with a bunch of articles about the shuttle and KSC, written with local interest in mind. The ads are pretty neat, businesses from 1981. And on the last inside page, a one page scifi story called "The Last Shuttle", written by Issac Azimov.

And something I didn't even realize I had. Back before STS-1 we got all sorts of goodies passed to us since we were firing room console operators. One thing was a little folder with the STS-1 logo and the printed signatures of John Young and Bob Crippen. I probably just tossed it in the drawer with everything else. So today for the first time I opened up the little folder. In it was a nice printed note saying how much they (the crew) appreciated our support, plus a couple of peel and stick stickers that were for employees only, not available to the public. And there was a 3x5 index card, blank on the lined side, and on the other side, written in ink, was "Best Wishes" and signed by John Young and Bob Crippen :D. Pretty cool, although I can imagine John and Bob sitting at a table, signing their names over and over on little index cards and making grumbling noises :wink:

Finally, something both sentimental and spooky. It is a hand drawn and photocopied invitation (with my name written on it) to a BBQ held at a condo complex in Titusville famous for being the home of many of my company's bosses. I got an invite because back then I was a wunderkind and management was grooming me for bigger things. I remember the BBQ, lots of fun, most of my bosses there, plus a few special guests. And working the grill was Ellison Onizuka, one of the astronauts who later perished in the Challenger disaster.
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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

Post by Kraken »

What a treasure trove.

I have a foamcore poster for "Lost Moon", the book that would become the "Apollo 13" movie, with a nice personal autograph on the back by Jim Lovell for the afternoon we spent together promoting his book (one of the high points of my life). I have books signed by Alexei Leonov and Valentin Lebedev from the Soviet Space exhibit. I have an 8x10 promo shot of the STS-73 Columbia crew, autographed by all of them and made out, for some reason, to "Raytheon Employees," of which I was never one; I honestly can't remember how I got that. And I have another 8x10 portrait of shuttle astronaut Richard Mullane, STS 410, 27, 36, personally autographed on 7/20/95, from another author tour. I remember feeling sorry for him because his presentation and book signing flopped. Space shuttle astronauts were a dime a dozen in the '90s. :wink:
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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

Post by jztemple2 »

The shame is with all my stuff, I have no one in my or my wife's family that really cares about space and would appreciate the stuff. I could donate the stuff to the local space museum but with thousands of ex-shuttle employees still living in the county they have been inundated with plenty of these items. They wouldn't even care about the more personal items like the BBQ invite.

I also have plenty of stuff I had with me when I retired in 2011, including an almost complete set of firing room access badges, most with my printed name on them, from pre-STS-1 events through last launch. Individually they are of some passing interest, but since I was at all 135 launches it is probably one of the few sets that has pretty much all the badges. But since there were always a couple of hundred people at each launch issued these badges, they aren't really rare or anything.

With the fortieth anniversary of the first launch coming up next year there might be some renewed interest, but I guess I'm going to have to wait till 2031 and the fiftieth launch anniversary, then go set up a table just outside the KSC property limits and sell my stuff to tourists :D
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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

Post by Kraken »

Is there life on Venus? Maybe...in the sulfuric acid clouds.

Scientists have detected a whiff of phosphene gas. On Earth, only life makes that, and that ought to be true on all rocky planets. First, they have to verify that it's really phosphene; then, they have to rule out any abiotic sources. Some exobiologists have proposed phosphene as a signal of life on exoplanets. Now we can test that idea on the planet next door.

Phosphene, btw, smells like rotting fish. So that's delightful.
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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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* phosphine
It's almost as if people are the problem.
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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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Let's call the whole thing off.
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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

Post by jztemple2 »

Three upcoming launches in three days at Cape Canaveral.
TRIPLE HEADER 🚀
Delta IV Heavy set to launch just after midnight Sunday 9/27/20 12:10 am
SpaceX Falcon 9 also poised to lift off Monday morning 9/28/20 10:22 am
Another Falcon 9 with military GPS satellite set for Tuesday 9/29/20 9:55-10:10 pm
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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

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Re: SPACE - random thread about space stuff

Post by Kraken »

Daehawk wrote: Thu Oct 01, 2020 11:38 am Life on Venus?
Roll up six posts. BAM.
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