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Friday, 29 June 2007
Today In History
On this date in 1995, Atlantis, on its STS-71 mission, made the first Space Shuttle docking with the Russian Mir space station, forming the largest object ever in orbit.
Used tags: history, mir, nasa, roskosmos, space, space_shuttle
STS-118 Update
NASA has officially moved the launch date of STS-118 two days closer, to August 7, making it a nice birthday present for me if it actually launches then. I've fixed the countdown clock accordingly.
Used tags: launch_schedule, nasa, space, space_shuttle, sts_118
Thursday, 28 June 2007
Genesis II
It should tell you something about how busy I am that Bigelow Aerospace's Genesis II spacecraft is now in orbit, and this is the first I've written about it lately.Genesis II, the second experimental pathfinder spacecraft by Bigelow Aerospace, has been successfully launched and inserted into orbit. The privately-funded space station module was launched atop a Dnepr rocket at 8:02 a.m. PDT from the ISC Kosmotras Yasny Cosmodrome located in the Orenburg region of Russia.
Used tags: altspace, bigelow, space
iFuture
Per AppleInsider:...Jobs "discussed the gravity of the iPhone on Apple's business as well as how he perceives the parts played by the rest of the company."
The Apple co-founder reportedly described the handset's impending launch as an effort "to put the third leg onto a chair with only two legs" -- the first two legs being the company's Mac and iPod businesses.
Jobs added that some of the Mac systems coming out over the next year will be "off the charts." He similarly hinted that the company was working on next-generation iPods that, like iPhone, would run an embedded version of the Mac OS X operating system.
Used tags: apple, iphone, ipod, macintosh, steve_jobs
Phoning It In
Today is Thursday, which means that the week's new Hatbag strip is now online! Go! Read! Now!And, since apparently a bunch of ATW readers don't follow the weekly Hatbag link, I thought a brief explanation might be in order -- Hatbag is a weekly webcomic Lain and I create; following two old college buddies as they adjust to sort-of grown-up life. If you read ATW, take a few extra seconds to go read Hatbag. Please? Please?
Used tags: comics, hatbag, iphone
Wednesday, 27 June 2007
Regular Richie Feature
Recent search strings on alltheseworlds.net:- funny anti-mac cartoons
- lego fleet
- girl pilot
- soyuz target
- space shuttle atlantis
- hitt// dinner dash .com
- matt damon 07
- Ares V Delta IV
- loss of umbilicus
- 4th of july flags
- 7up reality russia
- david hitt las vegas
- names of STS-117 Atlantis shuttle crew picture
- dennis the menace
- american flag happy
- lego space
- Freedom 7
- italk
- superman ride
- Matt Damon wedding
Used tags: blog, monkeys, regular_richie_feature
Tuesday, 26 June 2007
iSurrender
OK, Steve, you win.I give up. You win.
Monthly service rates that are about what I'm paying now?
And I get to unbox it myself?
OK, you win. Where do I get in line?
(Actually, I've got a couple of other concerns. Getting one is contingent on being able to keep Nicole on Family Talk with the new plan. And I'm a bit worried about the insurance issue. But, yeah, it's more tempting every day.)
Reduced Hallows
In case anyone's planning on ordering the seventh Harry Potter book when it comes out, I thought I'd share that Amazon is offering a $5 gift certificate for pre-ordering Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Cover for the book is $34.99, and Amazon's price is $17.99, which means, after the "rebate," your paying $12.99.Of course, to really make the most of the offer, you need to place an order of over $25 so you get free shipping, so this would be a great time to go ahead and preorder the second book in the Outward Odyssey series, In the Shadow of the Moon: A Challenging Journey to Tranquility, 1965-1969
,
(more)
Used tags: apollo, books, history, moon, nasa, outward_odyssey, soviet, space
Another ITSS Review
Yeah, yeah, I still haven't finished reading 'Into That Silent Sea' by Francis French and Colin Burgess, the first book in the Outward Odyssey series. I'm a bad person.In the meantime, though, here's another review of the book, this one from The Space Review. I agree with some of his points, and disagree with others, but that will be in my (very positive) review when I finish it.
Used tags: books, history, mercury, nasa, outward_odyssey, soviet, space
Monday, 25 June 2007
KVP Update
I'm late to getting this posted, but the official Star Trek fan fic contest thing is now taking submissions for the first round. The challenge is to write a scene of up to 7,500 characters in screenplay format based on the following scenario:
(more)
Used tags: contest, star_trek, writing
Good Character
Are you the main character in your life?I was reading something this weekend saying that, when writing fiction, writers should give the main characters names with long vowel sounds, and the minor characters names with only short vowel sounds. So, of course, I decided to apply it to real life and so who is the main character in groups of people I know.
In my marriage, Nicole and I (David) are both equal leads, which doesn't surprise me.
Nor am I shocked to discover who is the main character among my brother Jonathan, his wife Erin and their daughter Bethany.
My team at work is a pretty good ensemble group: David, Kathy, Becky, Jocasta, Mindi, Jocasta and one supporting character, Heather. (In whose family, she, her husband and the their firstborn are all supporting characters to their youngest.)
How about you and yours?
Good Taste In Shoes
From my trip to Nashville:
Yum!
Used tags: funny, photography
Saturday, 23 June 2007
STS-118 Update
As of yesterday afternoon, STS-117 is safely on the ground, so I've now started the countdown clock for STS-118, even though the rumors are that the date may change. But for the better this time, so that's good.
Used tags: launch_schedule, nasa, space, space_shuttle, sts_118
Hello
Greetings from the Apple Store Green Hills in Nashville, Tenn.!
Used tags: apple, apple_store
Friday, 22 June 2007
Today In History
On this date in 1978, astronomer James Christy discovered Charon, the largest moon of Pluto (so large, relative to Pluto, that last year it came really close to being a planet). In 2005, two more moons were discovered orbiting Pluto.
Also on this date, in 1973, the first crew of Skylab returned to Earth after a record-setting (briefly) 28-day stay.
Used tags: astronomy, history, nasa, planets, skylab, space
STS-117 Update
Per NASA:Five landing opportunities are available today for space shuttle Atlantis and the STS-117 crew. Flight controllers and forecasters continue to monitor the weather at Kennedy Space Center, Fla., and Edwards Air Force Base, Calif.
Atlantis’ first landing opportunity is at 2:18 p.m. EDT on orbit 218. If controllers elect to take it, Commander Rick Sturckow will perform the deorbit burn at 1:12 p.m. to begin the descent to Kennedy. Orbit 219 provides opportunities at both landing sites – a 3:49 p.m. landing at Edwards and a 3:55 p.m. landing at Kennedy.
The second opportunity for the California base is on Orbit 220. The deorbit burn would occur at 4:18 p.m. with the landing at 5:23 p.m. The final opportunity is on Orbit 221 and it calls for the deorbit burn to occur at 5:56 p.m. with the landing at 6:59 p.m.
Thunderstorms in the vicinity of Kennedy forced flight controllers to wave off both opportunities Thursday. Today’s weather forecast for Kennedy calls for the threat of thunderstorms in the area and high winds are a possibility at Edwards. Opportunities are also available Saturday.
Used tags: nasa, space, space_shuttle, sts_117
Thursday, 21 June 2007
Today In History
Used tags: altspace, history, space
Going And Going And Going
Remember the Mars Exploration Rovers Spirit and Opportunity? They're not in the news as much as they were, say, three years ago, but they're still on Mars (of course) and still rolling (less of course).In fact, recent events may keep Spirit rolling even longer. The rover got another spring cleaning from Martian winds, increasing the amount of power generated by its solar arrays.
Used tags: mars, nasa, rovers, space
Cowboys & Aliens
OK, yeah, I will totally go see Cowboys and Aliens, an upcoming movie based on a graphic novel about exactly what it sounds like it would be about. The movie sounds like it's being made by people who would want to make it good, too.It's a little bit like the movie "sequel" I want to see -- Picture Independence Day, but after the alien invaders used their big spacecraft to take out all the major cities. At some point, they can't just keep blowing up towns from the air; they're gonna run into towns that are two spread out and don't have enough mass concentration. At that point, they have to land and start a ground campaign. And that's the movie I would like to see -- alien invaders, accustomed to hands-off combat from the air, trying to conquer the South, encountering resistance from rednecks with shotguns in the back of their pick-ups. Sort of "Independence Deliverance." I'm telling you, it's gold.
STS-117 Update
Per NASA:Landing day has arrived for space shuttle Atlantis and the STS-117 crew. Atlantis is scheduled to land at Kennedy Space Center, Fla., at 1:55 p.m. EDT.
Forecasters and flight controllers will be monitoring the weather closely today. There is a chance of thunderstorms of the Florida spaceport.
If flight controllers elect to take the 1:55 p.m. opportunity, Commander Rick Sturckow and Pilot Lee Archambault will perform the deorbit burn on Orbit 202 at 12:50 p.m. The other opportunity available on Thursday is Orbit 203, which calls for the deorbit burn at 2:25 p.m. and a 3:30 p.m. touchdown at Kennedy.
Landing coverage will be available on NASA TV, and can be viewed online.
Used tags: nasa, space, space_shuttle, sts_117
Book 'Em, Guy!
This week's new Hatbag strip is dedicated to our friend Jesse Holland. Go check it out!And, since apparently a bunch of ATW readers don't follow the weekly Hatbag link, I thought a brief explanation might be in order -- Hatbag is a weekly webcomic Lain and I create; following two old college buddies as they adjust to sort-of grown-up life. If you read ATW, take a few extra seconds to go read Hatbag. Please? Please?
Used tags: books, comics, hatbag
Wednesday, 20 June 2007
eMusic
A while back I started working on an eMusic recommendation list, with the idea that I would use it to create a post encouraging people to check the service out. I got as far as picking out 11 songs before getting sidetracked, and then just never got back to finishing it, despite the fact that I've come across some more great stuff since I set it aside.Anyway, a friend of mine told me yesterday that he was checking the service out. From a selfish standpoint, had I actually gotten around to referring him, I would stand to have gotten some free music out of it. But from a more benevolent viewpoint, you're able to get twice as many free songs if you're referred by someone as you do if you just wander in on your own.
I find the eMusic really rather agreeable. You pay a low monthly fee, and you get to pick a number of songs out each month. It's technically a subscription service, since you, well, subscribe, but unlike most subscription services, you're buying the music. Once you download songs, they're yours, permanently, with no DRM. From a terms point of view, as much as I hate to say it, it's better than iTunes. The catch, and of course there is one, is that the selection is much more limited. You're not going to find the hottest new releases here, generally speaking (with some exceptions, like the new Paul McCartney album). That said, I've been a member for months now, and am still months away from getting everything on my list right now. There's a ton of good stuff there.
BeaucoupKevin wrote a good piece a while back about why you should use eMusic that better explains the merits of the service.
So, anyway, point being, if anyone is interested in trying it out, drop me a line, and I'll send you a referral that will let you get 50 songs in your trial period instead of 25.
Used tags: emusic, itunes, music
Today In History
I'm outsourcing today's Today In History to my coworker Heather since she blogged about Cola Wars in Space.That said, whatever happened to the Cola Wars? There's still competing colas, but they really don't seem to war as much. Did they reach some sort of detente? Are we in a Cola Cold War? My personal hope is that there's some sort of behind-the-scenes Cola Mutually Assured Destruction, a secretly developed cola so powerful that were one company to unleash it on the market, it would totally devastate the cola industry as we know it.
Used tags: history, nasa, space
STS-117 Update
Image courtesy collectSPACE, from NASA TV.
"That's no TIE fighter, it's a space station!"
After undocking yesterday, Atlantis flew around the International Space Station and took pictures of the new configuration.
Pics of what the ISS looks like now can be seen here and here. (This one is particularly nice, in my opinion.)
The new symmetric configuration is particularly exciting since the station has finally taken on something substantially similar to its proper form -- matching arrays mounted on its Y-axis truss. For decades, this, or something along these lines, has been what a space station is supposed to look like. The station finally appears as it did on the first crew's patch, seven years ago.
Atlantis is scheduled for landing at 12:55 p.m. CDT tomorrow.
Used tags: collectspace, international_space_station, nasa, space, space_shuttle, sts_117
Tuesday, 19 June 2007
COTS Update
Taking another step towards the day that NASA astronauts and cargo will catch rides to the International Space Station aboard private commercial spacecraft, NASA has signed space act agreements with three more companies under the Commercial Orbital Transportation Services program. The three new companies -- SpaceDev, SPACEHAB and Constellation Services International -- join current partners SpaceX and Rocketplane Kistler.SpaceDev, SPACEHAB and CSI will work to develop and demonstrate the vehicles, systems and operations needed to transport cargo to and from a low Earth orbit destination. SpaceDev also will include crew transport in its development program.
...
"This is a significant development," said Scott Horowitz, NASA associate administrator for Exploration Systems. "First there were two, and now there are a total of five private companies cooperating with NASA by dedicating entirely private funding to help establish a robust commercial space transportation industry."
Used tags: altspace, international_space_station, nasa, space
Trek XI Update
Casting is reportedly currently underway for Trek XI, with cast announcements planned for next month, and shooting scheduled to begin in November.Writer Roberto Orci talks some about the casting process and writing the film in this interview.
Used tags: movies, star_trek, star_trek_xi
Stargate Sale
Hey, Joe (and anyone else who's interested) --Amazon's running a big sale on the Stargate boxed sets, along with other MGM TV DVD sets, today in their Gold Box deals
section, in case there are any you need.Just FYI.
Used tags: dvd, television
STS-117 Update
Per NASA:Space Shuttle Atlantis’s 10-day stay at the International Space Station will come to an end today when it undocks at 10:42 a.m. EDT.
The STS-117 crew said farewell to the Expedition 15 crew Monday before the hatches closed at 6:51 p.m. EDT, wrapping up joint operations.
...
The crew installed the truss June 11 and conducted four spacewalks to activate the S3/S4 and assist in the retraction of solar array on the Port 6 truss. During the third spacewalk, the crew repaired an out of position thermal blanket on the left orbital maneuvering system pod.
...
Atlantis is scheduled to land at Kennedy Space Center, Fla., at 1:54 p.m. EDT Thursday.
And from the station homepage:
Flight controllers in Moscow conducted a test to check the ability of the Russian segment’s terminal computer to fire thrusters and maintain attitude of the International Space Station.
Russian and U.S. mission managers gave the computer a passing grade.
Used tags: international_space_station, nasa, roskosmos, space, space_shuttle, sts_117
More Dave-Friend Book-Pimping
Editor's Note: I moved this post up from Saturday, since blog readership is less over the weekend and I wanted to make sure people saw it.As regular readers of ATW know, I enjoy pimping books written by friends of mine, in part because I like the fact that I actually know people who have written real-live books. And 2007 has been an incredible year for that!
The latest book by someone I know is by Jeff Weddle, whom I saw around Ole Miss, where he was a grad student instructor, and who went on to become the director of the Sunflower County library system while I was working for the newspaper in Indianola. Jeff went on to make something of himself, earning his PhD and teaching at the University of Alabama.
According to Jeff, his publisher was supposed to have started shipping his book to resellers yesterday, so it should start shipping to buyers soon.
The book, Bohemian New Orleans: The Story of the Outsider and Loujon Press
, "uses the day-to-day operations of a small press as a lens through which the nascent underground publishing industry can be understood":In 1960, Jon Edgar and Louise "Gypsy Lou" Webb founded Loujon Press on Royal Street in New Orleans's French Quarter. The small publishing house quickly became a giant. Heralded by the Village Voice and the New York Times as one of the best of its day, the Outsider, the press's literary review, featured, among others, Charles Bukowski, Allen Ginsberg, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Robert Creeley, Denise Levertov, and Walter Lowenfels. Loujon published books by Henry Miller and two early poetry collections by Bukowski.
Bohemian New Orleans traces the development of this courageous imprint and examines its place within the small press revolution of the 1960s.
Drawing on correspondence from many who were published in the Outsider, back issues of the Outsider, contemporary reviews, promotional materials, and interviews, Jeff Weddle shows how the press's mandarin insistence on production quality and its eclectic editorial taste made its work nonpareil among peers in the underground. Throughout, Bohemian New Orleans reveals the messy, complex, and vagabond spirit of a lost literary age.
And, heck, while you're buying that, go ahead and get a Weddle bonus book by picking up Mondo Barbie
, a collection to which Jeff contributed a poem. You can pick up a used copy for only a penny, which ain't bad at all.And while you're shopping for books that only have limited contributions by people I know, this would also be a great time to finally get that copy of The Duchovny Files: The Truth Is in Here
, an unauthorized X-Files book published many moons ago, for which the author actually paid Lain Hughes $20 Canadian for the rights to include some Top Ten lists Lain had written. The bad news is, it's out of print, but the good news is that means you can also get it used for a penny! And it's worth every, uh, ha'penny of that.And to review, here are other recent books being published this year by people I know, which you should buy immediately if you haven't already (the books, not the people):
- Into That Silent Sea: Trailblazers of the Space Era, 1961-1965
, by Francis French and Colin Burgess, the first book in the Outward Odyssey series that will include my work next year.
- In the Shadow of the Moon: A Challenging Journey to Tranquility, 1965-1969
- Black Men Built the Capitol: Discovering African-American History In and Around Washington, D.C.
, by Jesse Holland, my former editor at The Daily Mississippian.
- Spatula Forum Greatest Hits, by Nik Dirga.
I've probably diluted this entry into uselessness at this point, but, seriously, you should buy Jeff's book. I did! (more)
Used tags: apollo, blog, books, broken_triad, comics, history, journalism, media, mercury, mississippi, moon, nasa, newspapers, ole_miss, outward_odyssey, skylab, soviet, space, writing
Monday, 18 June 2007
Making A Scene
Personally, I found that this list of the top ten superhero movie scenes played it rather safe, going for lots of stuff from successful, big-budget recent films. Not that any of these were bad, but I'm sure if I gave it some thought, I could come up with scenes I like better. For example, "Come to me, Superman! I defy you! Come and kneel before Zod!" Or perhaps the training montage from The Incredibles. Heck, there's probably something in Mystery Men that I would take over a third scene from the Spider-Man flicks.
Used tags: batman, comics, movies, spider_man, superman
Today In History
Used tags: history, nasa, space, space_shuttle
Mach 10
The vehicle was developed by Australia's defense Science and Technology Organization and the U.S. DARPA.
STS-117 Update
Per NASA:Russian flight controllers will fire thrusters today to test the operation of the navigation computers that went offline last week. If the flight controllers and mission managers like what they see, space shuttle Atlantis and the STS-117 crew will undock from the International Space Station and begin the journey home on Tuesday. The test is set for 10:28 a.m. EDT.
The STS-117 crew is scheduled to bid farewell today to the Expedition 15 crew before the hatches close at 6:23 p.m. EDT between Atlantis and the station. Atlantis is slated to undock at 10:42 a.m. Tuesday.
Used tags: computers, international_space_station, nasa, space, space_shuttle, sts_117
Sunday, 17 June 2007
Ratatouille Review
Many many moons ago, I went to see Toy Story. And I liked it.But then I saw the preview for Pixar's next film. And I was doubtful about how good it would be.
Their CGI approach worked well for the plastic world of toys, but for living creatures? And who wants to see a movie about bugs?
And then I saw Bug's Life. And I liked it.
To be honest, I skipped Toy Story 2 when it hit theaters. I saw it much later on DVD, and I liked it.
But then I saw the preview for their next film. And I was doubtful about how good it would be.
The character design in the previews for Monsters Inc. just didn't impress me much, and I was afraid the actors would dominate the characters.
And then I saw the movie. And I liked it. Although, to be honest, I still consider it the weakest link in the Pixar movie roster. It was fun, but not great.
When I saw the previews for Finding Nemo, I was doubtful as to how much I would like it. (By this point, however, I'm beginning to gave them the benefit of the doubt.) It looked like just a standard-issue kids' movie, the kind anyone would produce. And in some ways it was, but it was very much a Pixar film. And I liked it.
The first time I saw anything about The Incredibles, I wanted very very much to love it. But, to be sure, I was a bit concerned that it was too ambitious. Sure, they'd worked out CGI for toys, and bugs, and hairy monsters, and fish underwater, but a movie all about people?
And I saw the movie. And, oh, did I love it.
But then I saw the preview for their next film. And I was doubtful about how good it would be.
I mean, cars? They don't move! (Well, you know what I mean.) How can they be dynamic characters?
I think Cars, since Toy Story itself, was the most pleasant surprise of the Pixar films for me. I liked, for example, The Incredibles better, but in terms of expectations versus pay-off, none has impressed me more. Good stuff.
But then, yes, I saw the preview for their next film. And, yes, I was doubtful about how good it would be.
I mean, who wants to watch a film about rats? And, like Nemo, it looked a little too conventional for me.
One of our theaters here was showing a special sneak preview of it, and we went to check it out.
And, yes, I liked it.
I maintain I wasn't completely wrong about the rat thing. And this one is, like Nemo, a little more conventional, but still a whole lot of fun.
This isn't much of a review, I realize, so here's your four-word review of Ratatouille: It's a Pixar film.
And it had a preview of the next one, WALL•E. You know, I'm really looking forward to it.
Two other thoughts:
The theater folks said as we were going in that they were going to get feedback from us about the film afterwards, but then they didn't, much to my great disappointment.
Ratatouille is scheduled for release on June 29 from a company made great under the watchful eye of Steve Jobs. So while I appreciated the sneak preview, I couldn't help think that I would have preferred a similar experience with another product that fits that description.
Used tags: iphone, movies, steve_jobs
Orbital Sandbox
In case you hadn't heard, there were some problems on the International Space Station this week.Which means, of course, another round of I-told-you-so's from the chorus of ISS naysayers. If those voices are to be believed the problems just demonstrate the fragility of the space station. And for those who think that the ISS was a misstep in space exploration -- that we should have skipped getting "mired" in Earth orbit and gone on to exploring other worlds -- this is just another piece of evidence for that argument as well.
The truth, though, is just the opposite in both cases. The space station has proved its worth against both of those arguments this week.
Fragile? Among other things, the oxygen generation system went down, and the crew was prepared to stay for a couple more months without it. In fact, it's still down. The oxygen generation system. One of those things that sounds like it would be rather important. But the station system is sturdy enough, and has enough redundancy, that it turns out you can live without it. For months. That's pretty far from fragile in my book.
And an unneeded step that could be skipped? If a vital, multiple-redundant computer system that is supposed to be immune to single-point failures is, in fact, not immune to single-point failures, I'd rather be hours from Earth's surface than months when I found that out. When a spacecraft departs for Mars, or even the moon, we need to have the best-possible understanding of everything that can go wrong, how it could be fixed, and what you need to have with you in order to fix it.
While some would like to portray them as set-backs, the truth is that problems like those that occurred on the International Space Station this past week bring us a step closer to other worlds.
Used tags: computers, constellation, international_space_station, nasa, roskosmos, space, sts_117
STS-117 Update
Per NASA:Mission Specialists Patrick Forrester and Steven Swanson began their Father’s Day spacewalk at 12:25 p.m. EDT. While outside, they are scheduled to tackle a number of tasks, including work to prepare the International Space Station’s new truss segment for operation.
The STS-117 crew installed the Starboard 3 and 4 (S3/S4) truss segment onto the station on June 11. The spacewalkers will prepare S3/S4’s Solar Alpha Rotary joint (SARJ) for activation. The SARJ will allow the S3/S4 arrays to track the Sun.
And on the Station side:
The Russian computers aboard the International Space Station are back in near normal, stable operation. Two of three channels of each computer are operating. A third channel is believed to be functioning well, but currently in standby.
The Mission Control Center in Moscow has restarted all Russian systems except the Elektron oxygen generation system, which has been powered but not yet started.
Flight controllers are planning to test Russian thrusters on Monday as they maneuver the station and Space Shuttle Atlantis to a water dump attitude.
Used tags: computers, eva, international_space_station, nasa, roskosmos, space, space_shuttle
Saturday, 16 June 2007
STS-117 Update
Per NASA's Space Station homepage:Russian Flight Controllers Send Commands to Computers
Efforts to bring the Russian navigation computers back to full operation will continue today. Friday, Russian flight controllers and the station crew were able to power-up two lanes of the Russian Central Computer and two lanes of the Terminal Computer by using a jumper cable to bypass a faulty secondary power switch.
Flight controllers began sending commands overnight to restart some systems. The Central Computer is now communicating with the U.S. command and control computer, and the Terminal Computer is communicating with U.S. navigation computers. The plan calls for more system restarts today.
The Russian navigation computers provide backup attitude control and orbital altitude adjustments. For now, the station’s control moment gyroscopes are handling attitude control, with the shuttle’s propulsion system providing backup.
And per the Space Shuttle page:
The Mission Control Center in Houston told the STS-117 crew today that space shuttle Atlantis’ thermal protection system is cleared for re-entry. The astronauts got the good news about 11:20 a.m. EDT while they were transferring cargo between Atlantis and the International Space Station.
The heat shield was cleared after STS-117 Mission Specialist Danny Olivas repaired a protruding thermal blanket on one of Atlantis’ orbital maneuvering system pods during Friday’s spacewalk. Atlantis is scheduled to leave the station on Tuesday and land Thursday.
Early this morning, Mission Specialist Suni Williams set the record for the longest-duration single spaceflight by a woman. Williams passed the previous record of 188 days, 4 hours at 1:47 a.m. as STS-117 and Expedition 15 crew members slept aboard Atlantis and the station.
Used tags: eva, international_space_station, nasa, roskosmos, space, space_shuttle, sts_117
Friday, 15 June 2007
Purple Flight
I didn't post this yesterday, because I was hoping that there would be a piece on NASA.gov or a news story that I could link to this morning, but, as of yet, the only coverage I can find is on collectSPACE. Apollo-era Flight Director Phil Shaffer died yesterday morning. I never met Shaffer; my only interaction with him was a few e-mails, but Joe Kerwin worked closely with him on our book, Homesteading Space. Shaffer provided us with a wealth of information of what was going on in Mission Control during the Skylab flights, and is basically the voice of mission ops in the book. The Skylab flight controllers were faced with some fascinating challenges, and always managed to find answers.
Sad news, and sad that no one seems to care that another key player in the history of our space program has been lost.
Godspeed, Phil.
Used tags: apollo, books, history, nasa, outward_odyssey, skylab, space
Bookstore Reaches Final Chapter
I'm posting this mainly for Richie, afficianado of the independent book dealer, but thought others might find it interesting as well.Huntsville-based independent book store Shaver's Books will close next month, citing inability to compete in the current marketplace.
But he said it's tough to compete with "the big boys" of Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million, Costco and Amazon.com: "We survived, but we didn't thrive."
His death knell, though, came from Yahoo and Google, Internet search engines that can take potential book buyers to the information they need without having to spend a penny.
Used tags: books, huntsville, media
STS-117 Update
Per NASA:The STS-117 crew resumed retraction of the starboard P6 solar array at 12:25 p.m. Thursday. The crew and flight controllers decided to conclude the efforts just before 4 p.m. with about half of the 31½ array bays retracted. The crew will resume retraction activities Friday with the help of the spacewalkers if needed.
The schedule for STS-117 Mission Specialists Jim Reilly and Danny Olivas includes a review of procedures and the practice of techniques they will use during the spacewalk set to begin at 1:38 p.m. EDT Friday. The first task of the extravehicular activity is the repair of a thermal blanket that pulled away from the orbital maneuvering system pod on the rear of the shuttle.
...
Flight controllers continue efforts to bring the computers back up to full operation. For now, the station’s control moment gyroscopes are handling attitude control, with the shuttle’s propulsion system providing backup.
Used tags: eva, international_space_station, nasa, space, space_shuttle, sts_117
Thursday, 14 June 2007
Space Chimps
Per The Hollywood Reporter:ndy Samberg, Jeff Daniels, Kenan Thompson, Stanley Tucci and Patrick Warburton will voice characters in the CG-animated comedy "Space Chimps," a Vanguard Animation and Starz Media production for 20th Century Fox.
...
Samberg will play Ham III, the ne'er-do-well grandson of the first chimp astronaut sent into space (loosely based on NASA's real-life space chimp Ham). Seeking to capitalize on the Ham family name, a senator (Tucci) recruits Ham III to travel through a black hole to a planet where he and his simian colleagues (Hines, Warburton) help rid the local aliens of an evil leader (Daniels). Chenoweth will play a helpful alien, and Thompson will play Ham III's mentor.
...
Eurythmics' Dave Stewart will compose the score, with additional music and sound design composed by the performance artists Blue Man Group.
...
The film is scheduled for release next year.
Used tags: monkeys, movies, space
Happy Flag Day
Used tags: nasa, photography, space
McSweeney's In Trouble
A public service announcement lifted verbatim from Nik Dirga's blog, Spatula Forum:McSweeney's is in trouble. Facing severe financial troubles due to their distributor going bankrupt, one of the finest niche magazine and book publishers going could use some help. They're doing a gigantic sale on their web site with tons of swell books, zines and more at rock-bottom prices. (I just picked up a nice bundle of 10 of their The Believer magazines for like $15.) Go do some shopping, if you please, and support one of the more distinctive voices left out there in this age of Wal-Marts and Starbucks.
STS-117 Update
Per NASA:Astronauts Patrick Forrester and Steve Swanson continued work to activate the International Space Station’s Starboard 3 and 4 (S3/S4) truss segment during STS-117’s second spacewalk. The 7-hour, 16-minute excursion wrapped up at 9:44 p.m. EDT Wednesday.
...
The spacewalking duo first assisted with the retraction of the starboard solar array on the Port 6 (P6) truss.
...
13 of the P6’s 31.5 array bays were retracted Wednesday, and the crew will send commands Thursday to retract the remaining bays. Before moving on to SARJ, Forrester and Swanson “fluffed” the array to allow easier retraction on Thursday.
...
The retraction of the P6 array clears the line of sight for the S3/S4 arrays to track the sun and sets the stage for the P6’s relocation by a future shuttle crew from atop the station to the end of the Port 5 truss.
...
Two more spacewalks are scheduled for STS-117. The next is set for Friday.
...
Russian flight controllers will be working overnight to resolve a problem with the Russian segment computers that provide backup attitude control and orbital altitude adjustments. For now, the station’s control moment gyroscopes are handling attitude control, with the shuttle’s propulsion providing backup.
Used tags: international_space_station, nasa, roskosmos, space, space_shuttle, sts_117
Who Didn't See That Coming?
I have nothing clever this week to say about the fact that the new Hatbag strip is now online. Just go check it out. It's good stuff. Thanks!And, since apparently a bunch of ATW readers don't follow the weekly Hatbag link, I thought a brief explanation might be in order -- Hatbag is a weekly webcomic Lain and I create; following two old college buddies as they adjust to sort-of grown-up life. If you read ATW, take a few extra seconds to go read Hatbag. Please? Please?
Wednesday, 13 June 2007
KVP
Man, this contest would seem like it was specially tailored for the ATW crowd, if the prizes could be awarded for not actually doing anything.CBS Interactive is launching an official Star Trek fan fic contest, with Apple hardware as prizes. The theme of the contest is Kirk Vs. Picard.
Unfortunately, I'm not entirely sure exactly what we're supposed to do.
However, I really think that we should all team up and win this.
And, uh, let me keep the iPhone.
Used tags: apple, iphone, star_trek, writing
STS-117 Update
Per NASA:Astronauts Pat Forrester and Steve Swanson will conduct STS-117’s second spacewalk today. The objectives of the excursion are to continue preparing the newly installed Starboard 3 and 4 (S3/S4) truss segment for operation and to assist with the retraction of the starboard solar array on the Port 6 (P6) truss.
The spacewalk is scheduled to begin at 2:03 p.m. EDT and to last 6.5 hours.
Retraction of the P6 array began at 6:47 a.m. Once the P6 arrays are furled, the stage is set for a future shuttle crew to relocate the P6 from atop the space station to the end of the Port 5 truss. Forrester and Swanson will assist in the retraction if needed during the early stages of the spacewalk.
Used tags: international_space_station, nasa, space, space_shuttle, sts_117
Surf Safari
I've had concerns about PC Safari.First of all, I just don't see it really claiming a huge portion of the browswer market share. If you're a PC user, unlike other Apple software on PC, there's no reason to get it. You need QuickTime to watch QuickTime content. You need iTunes to use an iPod, or to buy from iTS, etc. Safari basically just does the same stuff as other browsers. So why get it? If it's better, that would be a reason, but perhaps not enough of a reason to be compelling. IE is pretty entrenched in the PC world, and I suspect that has more to do with defaults than superiority. And since Steve said Apple's doing this to gain marketshare for Safari, if it doesn't, it's seen as a failure. And that's not good.
Second, I've never found Safari to be the most compelling piece of Apple software. It's one of only two pieces of Apple software that I preferentially use alternatives to (the other being that I use Microsoft Word). So if one of the goals of porting Safari to the PC is to demonstrate the superiority of the Mac platform, it's about the worst piece of software you could pick for that goal. When they say, "I don't see what the big deal about Safari is, I'd rather use something else," it supports the same opinion about the Mac.
Third, to be perfectly honest, it scares me a little. I've not bought into the whole idea that Apple's going to get out of the hardware business. From the switch to Intel chips to the name change away from "Computer," there's been a chorus pointing to these as signs of a coming sea change from Apple being the Mac company to being a consumer electronics company. Personally, while it's obvious that there's a broadening of focus, I don't buy that means that Apple's getting out of the computer business. But in a world where Macintoshes are Wintel boxes, and multiple iApps run on Dells, one can see where they're coming from.
But then last night, I had a thought. What if this isn't really about browsers at all. What if it's not about Safari marketshare, or about using Safari to encourage switchers?
The dynamics of the computer world have shifted dramatically recently. Apple's enemy is no longer Microsoft. With Boot Camp and Parallels, Apple can embrace Microsoft to compete with its real competitors: Dell, HP, etc.
And Microsoft's enemy is no longer Apple. They've got bigger concerns; trying to stay ahead of a rapidly changing software game, competing against companies with an entirely different approach to software.
Like ... wait for it ... Google.
It's no secret that Apple and Google are tight right now. Best of friends.
Google's on the iPhone, Google's on the Apple board, Google's on the Apple TV, Google's working to make sure its efforts are at least compatible with Mac, etc.
And Apple's just as dedicated to the relationship, developing software such that it plays nice with Google. See Google Maps on the iPhone, YouTube on the Apple TV. To the best of my knowledge, Google's the only third party with an iPhone presence. And the only third party with content on the Apple TV.
Common sense dictates, though, that there's a limit to that. Google isn't going to show favoritism to Apple to its own detriment. They're not going to create something really cool for Apple that 90 percent of computer users can't access, no matter how much Apple is willing to bend its usual rules to work with Google.
But suppose there were a way Google and Apple could work together on something that could be used on any computer. Suppose there were a way for a piece of Apple software built to accomodate ultra-cool Google content could be cross-platform.
That could be a pretty powerful combination, huh?
Something to think about.
Used tags: apple, computers, google, iphone, macintosh, microsoft
I'm A Steve Jobs
In case you haven't gone back and watched the video of the most anticlimactic Stevenote to date, the funny John Hodgman bit is now on YouTube.
Used tags: apple, funny, macintosh, youtube
Tuesday, 12 June 2007
STS-117 Update
Per NASA:The STS-117 astronauts continue efforts today to activate the International Space Station’s newest component, the Starboard 3 and 4 (S3/S4) truss segment. They will assist in the full deployment of the truss’ solar arrays.
The S3/S4 was attached to the station Monday afternoon prior to a spacewalk conducted by STS-117 Mission Specialists Jim Reilly and John “Danny” Olivas. The spacewalkers began activating the new truss.
Overnight, flight controllers performed the initial deployment of the 115-foot long arrays to set the stage for today’s full deployment, which is slated to begin about 11:43 a.m. EDT.
...
Mission Specialists Steve Swanson and Pat Forrester will continue the activation of the S3/S4 and assist in the retraction of the starboard solar array on the Port 6 (P6) truss. Wednesday’s spacewalk is scheduled to begin at 2:03 p.m.
...
During a post-mission management briefing Monday, John Shannon, chair of the Mission Management Team, announced NASA will extend the mission two extra days and add a fourth spacewalk. The team extended the mission by two days and added a fourth EVA to provide time to repair the raised thermal blanket on the Orbital Maneuvering System pod.
Used tags: international_space_station, nasa, space, space_shuttle, sts_117
City Stages
In case you were asking yourself,"Where, this weekend, could I go to listen to both Poison and Ratt?" the answer is the Birmingham City Stages festival. Oh, and there will be a lot of other people there as well.
Used tags: birmingham, music
Monday, 11 June 2007
Puddles On Mars
The picture above? That's Mars.
The blue stuff in the picture? Well, that's a good question.
According to physicist Ron Levin, that's a picture taken by the Opportunity rover showing liquid water on Mars.
And, you know, that is what it looks like.
I would be really interested in seeing the original image on a NASA server, but there's no link or picture number. The color calibration also seems interesting, a little less red than one might expect Mars to look.
I'll very interested to hear more about this.
Space Race '08
Another installment in my series of posts about space-related comments by presidential candidates, this time on a potential candidate:Republicans
Newt Gingrich
"...he said he would ... offer a $20 billion reward for the first private company that successfully completes a Mars mission. 'Somebody would be there and back about 40 percent of the way into the NASA process.'" -- Boston.com, 9 June 2007
It joins the previous entries:
Republicans
Rudy Giuliani
"He said he supported continuing to aggressively pursue space exploration." -- The Tallahassee Democrat, 5 April 2007
Democrats
Bill Richardson
"He did say that he sees space as 'a bona fide area of economic growth and opportunity'..." -- Space Politics, 4 June 2007
STS-117 Update
Two big stories going on right now.The STS-117 Mission Managment Team is leaning towards having the crew repair the pulled-up thermal blanket on the OMS pod during a spacewalk.
This afternoon, the S3/S4 truss will be attached to the station.
Used tags: international_space_station, nasa, space, space_shuttle, sts_117
WWDC Today!
Apparently, some guy named Steve is supposed to make some sort of announcement today.Live updates will be available at the usual places, including MacNN.
I'm too lazy to make real predictions this time.
We'll definitely see some Leopard stuff.
Joe's probably right about there being some new software. New iLife and iWork are possibililties, but if they have new Leopard-dependent features, as some have speculated, then they can't be released until Leopard's out, and if that's the case, Steve may not say too much about them.
I would not be surprised by a little more iPhone info.
New iMacs remain a possibility, in my opinion. I would be surprised by a traditional MacBook-esque brushed metal look. Colored metal is a possibility, but I'm having trouble picturing it.
I'd put new Mac Pros at about 1:2 odds. I haven't heard much along those lines, but it's about time, so I wouldn't be surprised.
I'm betting nothing about the Apple TV, MacBook or MacBook Pro. Going out on a limb, there, I know. Probably not anything about the Mac mini.
I'd been hoping for a new iPod announcement, but I don't know that it's going to happen.
A la Tutor, I'm hoping for something unexpected. But that's par for the course.
Again, won't be surprised at some sort of iTunes Store announcement, but will be surprised if it's Earth-shaking.
Used tags: apple, computers, iphone, ipod, macintosh
Dave Association: Day Nineteen
There's just a few boxes left, so here are even easier clues to wrap it up.
1) ••••••••• is connected to Apple, iMac and computers, and should be fairly easy. Richie guessed Microsoft, but for the right answer you'll have to think differently about it.
2) ••••• •••••• is a Star Trek character who is also connected to Babylon 5. If someone guesses this, that would be the best. If they do it soon, that would be bester.
3) •••••••••••• is a spacecraft named Enterprise with no connection to NASA. At the moment, it's still a virgin to spaceflight, but a lot of people are rootin' for it.
4) •••••••••• ••••••••• is a spacecraft, that, despite not being a Star Trek spacecraft, does have a connection to Deep Space Nine. And if you still can't get it, I'll have to give moore clues.
5) ••••••••• is a blog that has a connection to Batman, but not to comic books. It doesn't actually provide local information for Batman, but it certainly should.
6) ••• is a comic book with connections to Superman and Batman. Hopefully someone's initial guess here will be right.
7) •••• •••• went to the moon and Skylab. That should be easy, but it looks like I'm gonna have to paint you a picture.
In case you missed the beginning, this is a word association inspired by Funny Farm (but much less technically impressive) and based on topics covered by this blog. Boxes linked by lines are words that have some association. Each dot in the box represents one letter or number. As boxes are filled in, more boxes that they link to will be revealed.
Why I Sing The Blues
I would have posted this article anyway, just for the information it has about the new B.B. King museum being built in Indianola, Miss.Upon reading it, however, I discovered it's actually a pretty decent glimpse into my past life, with quite a bit of information about my old boss, Jim Abbott, and the paper where I used to work, The Enterprise-Tocsin. Granted, most of the evets it talks about were well before I got there, but it still captures some of the flavor of my life and work during the five years I spent in Indianola.
And reading the article, it does seem like a past life. It's hard to imagine two existences further removed from each other than my life then and my life now. To be sure, there's not a lot of regrets -- life now is a lot more agreeable. But there is a bit of guilt -- as much as I believe in the work I'm doing now, I suppose I feel like I was making sacrfices then that made the work more worthwhile.
Anyway, point being, the article is good stuff, and you shoudl read it.
Used tags: b.b._king, history, journalism, media, mississippi, music
Friday, 8 June 2007
Today In History
On this date in 1959, test pilot Scott Crossfield made the first unpowered test free flight of the X-15 rocket plane, arguably the first test flight of a U.S. manned spacecraft, coming a little over two months before the LJ-1 flight of a Mercury boilerplate on a Little Joe booster.
Used tags: history, mercury, nasa, space
Forward The Future
Per Space.com:There are only about 16 flights left before NASA's space shuttle fleet retires in 2010, but an ambitious plan is in place to have a replacement spacecraft ready by 2013.
This is two years earlier than NASA's previously stated goal of getting the next generation Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle and the Ares I and Ares V rockets ready by 2015.
"There is a two-thirds statistical likelihood of being successful in meeting that [2015] date, but our plan is much more aggressive than that," said Jeff Hanley, program manager for NASA's Constellation program. "We're trying to get the [initial operating capabilities] by as early as 2013."
Hanley said the year-old Constellation program is currently in the formulation phase and trying to secure parts for the new spacecraft. A test flight of an Ares I rocket could begin as early as 2009, with a piloted test to follow as soon as 2013, Hanley said.
Used tags: ares, constellation, nasa, orion, space
Dave Association: Day Eighteen
OK, let's wrap this up. Unless I'm missing anything, there are a dozen boxes remaining.
1) ••••••••• is connected to Apple, iMac and computers, and should be fairly easy.
2) ••••• •••••• is a Star Trek character who is also connected to Babylon 5.
3) •••••••••••• is a spacecraft named Enterprise with no connection to NASA.
4) ••••••• is a Star Trek spacecraft.
5) •••••••••• ••••••••• is a spacecraft, that, despite not being a Star Trek spacecraft, does have a connection to Deep Space Nine.
6) ••••••••• is a blog that has a connection to Batman, but not to comic books. (This one may be kinda difficult.)
7) ••• is a comic book with connections to Superman and Batman.
8) Batman and Thursday Next are ••••••••••.
9) ••••••• ••••• is an English author I like, as do other members of the ATW community.
10) Improv is a type of ••••••, the art of comics like Robin Williams
11) •••• •••• went to the moon and Skylab.
12) •••• ••••• is a NASA guy from Mississippi who flew the Saturn and Enterprise.
In case you missed the beginning, this is a word association inspired by Funny Farm (but much less technically impressive) and based on topics covered by this blog. Boxes linked by lines are words that have some association. Each dot in the box represents one letter or number. As boxes are filled in, more boxes that they link to will be revealed.
STS-117 Update
Weather is currently 80 percent Go. Fueling of the external tank has begun.Looks like we may fly today, folks.
For current information, check out Spaceflight Now's Mission Status Center or starting around 12:38 p.m. CDT, NASA's launch blog.
Used tags: launch_schedule, nasa, space, space_shuttle, sts_117
Thursday, 7 June 2007
Bullet The Black Sky
What happens if a meteorite or orbital debris hits the International Space Station?Not necessarily much of anything.
During a spacewalk yesterday to install debris shields on the station, cosmonauts found signs of previously past impacts: "We found a dent or a hole from a meteorite," Yurchikhin told mission controllers in Russia from his perch atop the station's Zarya control module. "It looks like a bullet hole. I want to say the size is about five to six millimeters."
The shields will further reduce the odds of meteorites or debris causing problems in the future.
Used tags: international_space_station, space
Dave Association: Day Seventeen
I was going to give clues today that would help unlock more boxes, but, upon review, I discovered that all boxes are now unlocked, it's just a matter of guessing the remaining words.
So, clues:
1) Some popular comic books include ••••••, •••••••• and ••••••-•••. Of those, •••••••• and ••••••-••• have a connection to newspapers.
2) •••• ••••••• is someone known for books and who has connections to Oxford and Ole Miss.
3) ••••• •••••••• is known for his improv stylings, and was in ••••••, which has a comic strip connection.
4) Skylab, the space shuttle, the Enterprise, and the Saturn and Ares are all ••••••••••. Well, the last two are more specifically launch vehicles, but they kinda fit in this category, too.
In case you missed the beginning, this is a word association inspired by Funny Farm (but much less technically impressive) and based on topics covered by this blog. Boxes linked by lines are words that have some association. Each dot in the box represents one letter or number. As boxes are filled in, more boxes that they link to will be revealed.
Used tags: blog, game, macintosh
Also This Weekend
I won't be able to make it this year since I'm doing shows myself, but if anyone in the Mississippi area wants to see a good concert, Indianola will be hosting a music festival featuring, among others, a local artist you might have heard of -- B.B. King.The B.B. King Homecoming concert takes place Saturday in Fletcher Park.
Used tags: b.b._king, mississippi, music
Face2Face Weekend
In case anyone's interested, I'll be playing two improv shows Friday night in Decatur, at 7 and 8:30 p.m., and one show Saturday at 7 p.m. (There will be another show at 8:30, but without me.)Ticket information can be found on the Face2Face site. You can buy tickets for $6 online the day before the show (or $10 at the door).
Used tags: face2face, funny, improv
Six Words To Rule Them All
There's more new Hatbag this week than we've ever posted in one week before!Or, more accurately, there's more "new" Hatbag this week. New-ish Hatbag this week? Something.
Regardless, there is this week's new Hatbag, which is a completely original and fresh strip. Inspired by Hemingway, even!
And then there's a whole bunch of bonus stuff. I mean, a lot of bonus stuff. But that's all I'm saying. Go check it out!
And, since apparently a bunch of ATW readers don't follow the weekly Hatbag link, I thought a brief explanation might be in order -- Hatbag is a weekly webcomic Lain and I create; following two old college buddies as they adjust to sort-of grown-up life. If you read ATW, take a few extra seconds to go read Hatbag. Please? Please?
Used tags: comics, funny, hatbag
Wednesday, 6 June 2007
When History Doesn't Come Home
When The NYT wrote about this, I couldn't be left out:Per collectSPACE:
The spacesuit that Ed White wore 42 years ago this week during the first American spacewalk is on display at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC.
Within the same building, visitors can see the spacesuits that Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin wore during the first moonwalk.
Indeed, all 31 spacesuits worn by astronauts while either space- or moon-walking during the Gemini, Apollo and Skylab programs are now owned by the Smithsonian and are either on exhibit, on loan or being preserved for study by researchers and historians.
If you wanted however, to see a flown spacesuit worn on any of the prior 77 space shuttle extravehicular activities (EVAs, a.k.a. spacewalks) or any of the 53 EVAs made with American spacesuits out of the International Space Station, you would have to look somewhere else than in a museum.
There aren't any on exhibit today and if NASA's plans for the shuttle-era spacesuits hold true, there may be none remaining for the museums to preserve, let alone display.
Used tags: collectspace, history, international_space_station, nasa, skylab, space, space_shuttle
Dave Association: Day Sixteen
OK, since there were no new guesses yesterday, here are more heavy-handed clues.
1) •••••• and •••• are words that share the same relationship with "Apple" and "I, Robot" that "iPod" does, and also have a relationship with each other.
2) Enterprise is the name of a ••••• •••••••.
3) A five-letter word that has something to do with comic books is •••••.
4) Some popular comic books include ••••••, •••••••• and ••••••-•••.
In case you missed the beginning, this is a word association inspired by Funny Farm (but much less technically impressive) and based on topics covered by this blog. Boxes linked by lines are words that have some association. Each dot in the box represents one letter or number. As boxes are filled in, more boxes that they link to will be revealed.
STS-117 Update
The official countdown clock for STS-117 has started and, at this moment, is running.The S3/S4 truss segment carried on Atlantis will be the heaviest payload yet delivered to the International Space Station.
Used tags: international_space_station, launch_schedule, nasa, space, space_shuttle, sts_117
Going For Another Walk
Cosmonauts Fyodor Yurchikhin and Oleg Kotov will be performing their mission's second spacewalk today beginning around 9:30 a.m. CDT. Goals for the spacewalk include installing more debris shields, installing a science experiment and one that a lot of ATW readers can probably identify with -- hooking up an ethernet connection.
Used tags: international_space_station, space
Tuesday, 5 June 2007
Modern Technology
Since I recently had the "the shuttle's nothing but 30-year-old technology" discussion with someone, I thought I'd link to this story about new main engine computers on the shuttle:A main engine computer upgrade developed by NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., will fly on space shuttle Atlantis during the STS-117 mission, targeted for launch June 8. The upgrade is part of NASA's continuing efforts to improve space shuttle safety and reliability.It's a relatively minor upgrade, but the truth is, the shuttle is constantly getting minor upgrades like this, along with more substantial upgrades during the orbiters' major renovation periods. There is some old stuff on the shuttles, but there's a whole lot new, too.
The Advanced Health Management System, or AHMS, will provide new monitoring and insight into the performance of the two most critical components of the space shuttle main engine: the high-pressure fuel turbopump and the high-pressure oxidizer turbopump.
This latest improvement is to the controller, the on-engine computer that monitors and controls all main engine operations. The improvement allows an engine to shut down during launch if vibration levels exceed safe limits. AHMS consists of advanced digital signal processors, radiation-hardened memory and new software.
AHMS first flew on Discovery's STS-116 mission in December 2006 with a single controller on one engine, but in monitor-only mode, meaning AHMS collected and processed vibration data but could not shut down the engine. AHMS will operate in active mode - the ability to shut down an engine if an anomaly is detected - on a single engine during the upcoming STS-117 mission and is scheduled to fly in active mode on all three engines during the STS-118 mission later this year.
Used tags: nasa, space, space_shuttle, sts_117
Dave Association: Day Fifteen
There's been some momentum the last couple of days, so there's less need for the heavy-handed hints, so I'll just say that there's some easy stuff around comic books and Apple.
In case you missed the beginning, this is a word association inspired by Funny Farm (but much less technically impressive) and based on topics covered by this blog. Boxes linked by lines are words that have some association. Each dot in the box represents one letter or number. As boxes are filled in, more boxes that they link to will be revealed.
STS-117 Update
The crew has arrived at Kennedy Space Center in preparation for Friday's launch, and the official countdown begins today at 8 p.m. CDT.Current weather reports are predicting conditions will be 70 percent Go for a launch at 6:38 p.m. CDT Friday.
Used tags: launch_schedule, nasa, space, space_shuttle, sts_117
New Mac Book Pro
Hey, new MacBook Pros! (MacBooks Pro?)No big surprise; not only have there been rumors, but Steve said openly there would be new laptops with LED monitors.
And, while they're cool, they're not really groundbreaking nor anything I have to run out and buy right now.
Still, I'm very excited by the announcement.
While the MBPs aren't a surprise, their release a week before WWDC is. I'd figured that would be one of next week's announcements.
But now, just in the last month, we've had announcements of upgrades to the Apple TV, the MacBook and the MacBook Pro. So cross those off the list of products that will be addressed at WWDC. There's also been the official iPhone date announcement, but I certainly wouldn't rule out Steve next week revealing ways that the iPhone, which will be less than three weeks from release, is cooler than he previously led people to believe.
What else will he announce? Leopard's a gimme. Of current lines, that leaves the iMac, the Mac Pro, the Mac Mini and the iPod. And I'm betting the Mac Mini won't be the big announcement.
The iMac and the Mac Pro are both past due for redesigns, so either of those are a possibility. And, of course, my hopes have been up fro a while for new, cooler iPods.
And then, of course, there's the growing possibility of something completely new and unexpected.
Should be interesting.
Used tags: apple, computers, iphone, ipod, macintosh
Today In History
![Apple ][](http://images.apple.com/jp/prweb/photos/img/appleII.jpg)
Happy 30th birthday to the personal computer industry.
On this date in 1977, Apple released the Apple ][ computer. Versions of the machine would remain in production for the next 16 years.
Used tags: apple, computers, history
From The Earth To A Great Deal
If anyone's interested, Amazon is running a great deal today on the DVD box set of From the Earth to the Moon - The Signature Edition. Normally fifty-something bucks, you can get it today for $26, with free shipping.
Used tags: apollo, history, space, television
Monday, 4 June 2007
Space Race '08
Finally, another installment in the "What candidates are saying about space" series:Democrats
Bill Richardson
"He did say that he sees space as 'a bona fide area of economic growth and opportunity'..." -- Space Politics, 4 June 2007
It now joins my only previous entry:
Republicans
Rudy Giuliani
"He said he supported continuing to aggressively pursue space exploration." -- The Tallahassee Democrat, 5 April 2007
World's Largest Telescope Faces Shut Down
Per Space.com:Engineers will travel to this Puerto Rican coastal town in coming weeks to study whether to shut down the world's largest radio telescope, which was featured in the movie "Contact'' but now faces steep budget cuts, observatory officials said Thursday.
Opened in 1963, the Arecibo telescope, a 1,000-foot-wide dish set in a sinkhole amid forested hills, bounces radio waves off asteroids and charts their location, speed and course. It has recorded a number of scientific discoveries, including the first planets beyond the solar system and lakes of hydrocarbons on Saturn's moon Titan.
But fears that it could face extinction began late last year, when a panel commissioned by the National Science Foundation, a U.S. federal agency, called for deep budget cuts and said officials should consider eliminating it entirely at the end of the decade.
...
The Arecibo telescope appeared in "Contact,'' a 1997 Jodie Foster movie based on the Carl Sagan book about the search for extraterrestrial life. It also gained fame in the 1995 James Bond movie "Goldeneye,'' in which the telescope's platform, suspended like a giant steel spider 450 feet above the dish, figured in a climactic fight scene.
The telescope's budget will plummet from $10.5 million this year to $4 million by 2010, Barvainis said, with the savings going to construct a telescope 20 times more powerful, perhaps in Australia or South Africa.
Used tags: astronomy, movies, space
Dave Association: Day Fourteen
As far as hints for today, there should be some easy-ish stuff in the areas that have opened up on the left-hand side of the puzzle, and maybe somebody could get the box below First Contact, which would open up some new areas.
Beyond that, in addition to comic strips, comics can also be _____ _____.
And Oxford is in _______.
In case you missed the beginning, this is a word association inspired by Funny Farm (but much less technically impressive) and based on topics covered by this blog. Boxes linked by lines are words that have some association. Each dot in the box represents one letter or number. As boxes are filled in, more boxes that they link to will be revealed.
iPhone Gets A Date
So, yeah, June 29.Let me know if you hear any good info on the plan cost.
wdh
Friday, 1 June 2007
Dave Association: Day Thirteen
OK, I know someone was really close to getting some of these, so I'd been hoping some more answers would be posted. Hasn't happened, though, so here are some more heavy-handed hints.
- What was Tron about?
- What's a science fiction movie that shares the same relationship with the word "Contact" as the phrase "The Year We Make Contact"?
- Comic strips are also called ______.
- What's a five letter word that might have something to do with Daily Mississippian?
- Besides Oxford, where is Ole Miss?
- _____ is to star as Garrison is to star.
In case you missed the beginning, this is a word association inspired by Funny Farm (but much less technically impressive) and based on topics covered by this blog. Boxes linked by lines are words that have some association. Each dot in the box represents one letter or number. As boxes are filled in, more boxes that they link to will be revealed.
STS-117 Update
Per NASA:Following the Flight Readiness Review meetings on May 30 and 31 at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, NASA's senior managers have signed the Certification of Flight Readiness confirming that Space Shuttle Atlantis, her flight crew and payloads are fit to fly. Officials approved June 8 as the scheduled launch date for the STS-117 mission to the International Space Station.
"We had a very good review for the past day and a half," said Bill Gerstenmaier, associate administrator for Space Operations. Referring to the repairs on the external tank, Gerstenmaier said proudly, "I don't think I've ever seen an effort done better than was done by the external tank team…they did a phenomenal job to give us a flight-ready tank to go fly."
"We're good to go," said Wayne Hale, Space Shuttle Program manager. "We have no show stoppers ahead of us."
Used tags: launch_schedule, nasa, space, space_shuttle, sts_117
Friday, 29 June 2007
Today In History
On this date in 1995, Atlantis docked with Mir. (Read Entry)
STS-118 Update
Launch date moves to the left. (Read Entry)Thursday, 28 June 2007
Genesis II
Bigelow spacecraft is now in orbit. (Read Entry)
iFuture
Steve Jobs drops some hints. (Read Entry)
Phoning It In
The week's Hatbag strip is now online. (Read Entry)Wednesday, 27 June 2007
Regular Richie Feature
Recent search strings on ATW. (Read Entry)Tuesday, 26 June 2007
iSurrender
OK, I now officially want an iPhone. (Read Entry)
Reduced Hallows
Amazon offering good deal on Harry Potter 7 (Read Entry)
Another ITSS Review
Space Review shares thoughts on Outward Odyssey's first book. (Read Entry)Monday, 25 June 2007
KVP Update
Contest is now open for submissions. (Read Entry)
Good Character
Are you the main character in your life? (Read Entry)
Good Taste In Shoes
A picture from my travels. (Read Entry)Saturday, 23 June 2007
STS-118 Update
I've started my countdown clock. (Read Entry)
Hello
Greetings from the Nashville Apple store. (Read Entry)Friday, 22 June 2007
Today In History
In 1978, Pluto's moon Charon discovered. (Read Entry)
STS-117 Update
Landing is scheduled for today. (Read Entry)Thursday, 21 June 2007
Today In History
First spaceflight of SpaceShipOne (Read Entry)
Going And Going And Going
Spirit gets a spring cleaning. (Read Entry)
Cowboys & Aliens
Graphic novel will be adapted for movie. (Read Entry)
STS-117 Update
Landing is scheduled for today. (Read Entry)
Book 'Em, Guy!
The week's Hatbag strip is now online. (Read Entry)Wednesday, 20 June 2007
eMusic
My half-hearted attempt to encourage you to join. (Read Entry)
Today In History
Cola Wars in Space (Read Entry)
STS-117 Update
Pictures of current ISS configuration are now available. (Read Entry)Tuesday, 19 June 2007
COTS Update
NASA signs agreements with three more companies. (Read Entry)
Trek XI Update
Casting is underway now. (Read Entry)
Stargate Sale
On Amazon's Gold Box page (Read Entry)
STS-117 Update
The time has come for the parting of ways. (Read Entry)
More Dave-Friend Book-Pimping
Former Indianola librarian Jeff Weddle has a book. (Read Entry)Monday, 18 June 2007
Making A Scene
MSNBC lists top 10 superhero movie scenes. (Read Entry)
Today In History
Sally Ride became first U.S. woman in space. (Read Entry)
Mach 10
Scramjet reaches 6,836 mph over Outback. (Read Entry)
STS-117 Update
Atlantis preparing for departure. (Read Entry)Sunday, 17 June 2007
Ratatouille Review
I got to see a sneak preview of Pixar's latest. (Read Entry)
Orbital Sandbox
Recent problems demonstrate worth of ISS. (Read Entry)
STS-117 Update
Final spacewalk is now underway. (Read Entry)Saturday, 16 June 2007
STS-117 Update
Progress on the computers, finally! (Read Entry)Friday, 15 June 2007
Purple Flight
Flight Director Phil Shaffer died yesterday. (Read Entry)
Bookstore Reaches Final Chapter
Independent seller Shaver's in Huntsville will close. (Read Entry)
STS-117 Update
Yep: Assembly work continues. (Read Entry)Thursday, 14 June 2007
Space Chimps
Space monkey movie coming next year. (Read Entry)
Happy Flag Day
The flag in NASA pictures. (Read Entry)
McSweeney's In Trouble
And having a huge sale. (Read Entry)
STS-117 Update
Assembly work continues on truss and arrays. (Read Entry)
Who Didn't See That Coming?
The week's Hatbag strip is now online. (Read Entry)Wednesday, 13 June 2007
KVP
CBS launches Trek fan-writing contest. (Read Entry)
STS-117 Update
Crew to retract P6 starboard arrays today. (Read Entry)
Surf Safari
What if it's not about Apple or Microsoft? (Read Entry)
I'm A Steve Jobs
Clip from WWDC is now on iTunes. (Read Entry)Tuesday, 12 June 2007
STS-117 Update
Assembly continues; mission extended. (Read Entry)
City Stages
Festival is this weekend in Birmingham. (Read Entry)Monday, 11 June 2007
Puddles On Mars
Scienists says rover pics show liquid water. (Read Entry)
Space Race '08
Gingrich makes space comment. (Read Entry)
STS-117 Update
MMT considers blanket repair; station assembly work begins. (Read Entry)
WWDC Today!
Stevenote will begin at noon CDT. (Read Entry)
Dave Association: Day Nineteen
Just a few boxes still remain. (Read Entry)
Why I Sing The Blues
Article about B.B. King museum features my old stomping grounds and boss. (Read Entry)Friday, 8 June 2007
Today In History
On this date in 1959, the first flight test of the X-15. (Read Entry)
Forward The Future
Could Orion fly in 2013? (Read Entry)
Dave Association: Day Eighteen
Let's Wrap This Thing Up (Read Entry)
STS-117 Update
Things are currently Go for launch tonight. (Read Entry)Thursday, 7 June 2007
Bullet The Black Sky
Spacewalkers find MMOD impacts on ISS. (Read Entry)
Dave Association: Day Seventeen
Another day, another update. (Read Entry)
Also This Weekend
B.B. King will be playing his annual homecoming concert Saturday. (Read Entry)
Face2Face Weekend
I'm doing a total of three shows Friday and Saturday. (Read Entry)
Six Words To Rule Them All
The week's Hatbag strip is now online. (Read Entry)Wednesday, 6 June 2007
When History Doesn't Come Home
Museums may miss out on current space suits. (Read Entry)
Dave Association: Day Sixteen
OK, here are some clues, then. (Read Entry)
STS-117 Update
The official countdown has begun. (Read Entry)
Going For Another Walk
Spacewalk will take place today. (Read Entry)Tuesday, 5 June 2007
Modern Technology
Shuttle engine control computers get an upgrade. (Read Entry)
Dave Association: Day Fifteen
Another day, another update (Read Entry)
STS-117 Update
Launch preparations are progressing. (Read Entry)
New Mac Book Pro
... Gives Hope For Next Week (Read Entry)
Today In History
June 5 marks the 30th anniversary of the Apple ][. (Read Entry)
From The Earth To A Great Deal
HBO miniseries is on sale today at Amazon. (Read Entry)Monday, 4 June 2007
Space Race '08
New comment from Richardson (Read Entry)
World's Largest Telescope Faces Shut Down
Budget cuts could mothball Arecibo. (Read Entry)
Dave Association: Day Fourteen
Here's the latest update. (Read Entry)
iPhone Gets A Date
New ads reveal June 29 release. (Read Entry)Friday, 1 June 2007
Dave Association: Day Thirteen
Finally getting back around to posting more clues. (Read Entry)