09 May 2008
+ 0 - 0 | § ¶Space Law!
Per Space.com:
A student at the University of Mississippi will leap into the final frontier of the legal system Saturday when he receives the first-ever space law certificate in the United States.
Michael Dodge of Long Beach, Calif., earned the special distinction along with his law degree through the National Center for Remote Sensing, Air and Space Law at the university's law school.
"The professors and personnel here are the highest quality that can be found anywhere in the world, and I have learned from them the necessary skills I will need to effectively practice space law," Dodge said in a statement. "Ole Miss is, simply put, the space law expert, and anyone wishing practice in this field should get their legal education here."
Keywords: mississippi,ole_miss,space
+ 0 - 0 | § ¶End Of The Beginning
Per NASA:
STENNIS, Miss. -- NASA engineers Thursday successfully completed the first series of tests in the early development of the J-2X engine that will power the upper stages of the Ares I and Ares V rockets, key components of NASA's Constellation Program. Ares I will launch the Orion spacecraft that will take astronauts to the International Space Station and then to the moon by 2020. The Ares V will carry cargo and components into orbit for trips to the moon and later to Mars.
NASA conducted nine tests of heritage J-2 engine components from December to May as part of a series designed to verify heritage J-2 performance data and explore performance boundaries. Engineers at NASA's Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Miss., conducted the tests on a heritage J-2 "powerpack," which, in a fully assembled engine, pumps liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen into the engine's main combustion chamber to produce thrust. The test hardware consisted of J-2 components used from the Apollo program in the1960s through the X-33 program of the 1990s.
...
The main objectives of the series were to resolve differences in heritage turbopump performance data and recent component-level tests, and investigate vibration and pressure drops through the turbopump inlet ducts. Tests in the series ran for durations up to 400 seconds and at power levels up to 274,000 pounds of thrust.
After the data from the test series has been reviewed and objectives met, Stennis will begin readying the test stand for the next series of tests, said Gary Benton, the J-2X project manager at Stennis.
Keywords: ares,constellation,history,huntsville,mississippi,nasa,space
08 May 2008
+ 0 - 0 | § ¶One Of The Wonders
Per The Huntsville Times:
The Apollo Saturn V moon rocket, born and raised in Huntsville, Alabama, to lift men on their journeys to the moon nearly 40 years ago, is about to be named one of the "7 Wonders of America" by ABC-TV's "Good Morning America."
The honor is especially noteworthy in that the Saturn V may be one of the few man-made objects to make the list, said Larry Capps, CEO of the U.S. Space & Rocket Center, home to one of the three remaining.
...
ABC's Huntsville affiliate, WAAY-TV, said Wednesday that "Good Morning America" will broadcast live segments Monday from the Davidson Center for Space Exploration.
Very cool, and, on a personal note, may be mildly cooler for me, but we'll see.
Keywords: apollo,history,huntsville,nasa,outward_odyssey,saturn,skylab,space,ussrc
06 May 2008
+ 0 - 0 | § ¶Send Your Name to Space Again
OK, here's yet another opportunity to send your name into space. After last week's LRO opportunity, NASA has announced an opportunity to have your name
included on a DVD on the Kepler mission, which involves a space telescope that will be launched in February 2009 to look for Earth-like planets in other stellar systems.
Keywords: astronomy,nasa,planets,space
05 May 2008
+ 0 - 0 | § ¶STS-124 Update
Per NASA:
Space shuttle Discovery made the long, slow trek out to Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center. The 3.4-mile trek is one of the last major milestones leading up to the launch of Discovery on the STS-124 mission. Launch is targeted for May 31.
Carried by the slow-moving crawler-transporter, the shuttle assembly and mobile launcher platform began rolling out of the Vehicle Assembly Building at 11:47 p.m. EDT Friday night and was secured at the pad at 6:06 a.m. on Saturday.
The canister carrying the STS-124 payloads arrived at the launch pad April 29. Primary payloads are the tour-bus-sized Japanese Experiment Module-Pressurized Module and the lab's robotic arm system. The components will soon be installed in the orbiter's payload bay.
Keywords: international_space_station,launch_schedule,nasa,space,space_shuttle,sts_124
02 May 2008
+ 0 - 0 | § ¶Send Your Name To The Moon
Per NASA:
NASA invites people of all ages to join the lunar exploration journey with an opportunity to send their names to the moon aboard the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, or LRO, spacecraft.
The Send Your Name to the Moon Web site enables everyone to participate in the lunar adventure and place their names in orbit around the moon for years to come. Participants can submit their information at http://lro.jhuapl.edu/NameToMoon/, print a certificate and have their name entered into a database. The database will be placed on a microchip that will be integrated onto the spacecraft. The deadline for submitting names is June 27, 2008.
Keywords: moon,space
16 April 2008
+ 1 - 1 | § ¶Weightloss Record
I have huge respect for astronaut Mike Foale, so, for that reason, I'm a bit sorry to see his U.S. record for total cumulative time in space, at 374 days, fall.
But since we're going to have to start pushing our duration limits if we're ever going to go anyway, I'm happy to see
Peggy Whitson beat Mike's record. (And Peggy also has a special place in my heart, being the only American in space the day I started working for NASA.)
Keywords: international_space_station,nasa,space
+ 0 - 2 | § ¶"Wish You Were Here"
Per collectSPACE:
The view of Earth from space has been captivating astronauts and cosmonauts since Yuri Gagarin exclaimed "I see Earth! It is so beautiful!" on his trailblazing flight in 1961. Since then millions of photographs have been sent back from orbit, capturing the magnificence of our home planet.
Now, for the first time in history, it can be your turn to focus the camera back at Earth.
In October 2008, Richard Garriott, son of U.S. astronaut Owen Garriott, will launch to the International Space Station on a week-long mission to conduct science experiments developed in partnership with his father and to test new Earth observation software that can help identify and take photos of targets as they enter and pass through the field of view of Earth-facing windows.
In collaboration with collectSPACE, the leading online resource for space history enthusiasts, and to benefit the Association of Space Explorers, a non-profit organization of over 300 flown astronauts and cosmonauts from 32 nations, Richard invites you to pick your place on Earth to photograph from space to present to you.
Keywords: altspace,garriott,international_space_station,roskosmos,skylab,soyuz,space
11 April 2008
+ 1 - 1 | § ¶Expedition 17 On Station
Since I've been lax on blogging lately, I haven't mentioned that there's now
a new crew aboard the International Space Station (commanded by the first second-generation cosmonaut).
Keywords: history,international_space_station,nasa,roskosmos,soyuz,space
06 April 2008
+ 1 - 0 | § ¶Homesteading Space
We are now available for pre-order on Amazon, albeit sans discount thus far.
We're also on Target.com.
Yeah, I'm a little excited. It's like it's a real book or something.
Keywords: books,collectspace,history,nasa,outward_odyssey,skylab,space,writing
03 April 2008
+ 0 - 1 | § ¶ATV Docks With ISS
Per NASA:
The Jules Verne, the first European Space Agency Automated Transfer Vehicle, docked to the aft port of the International Space Station's Zvezda Service Module at 10:45 a.m. EDT Thursday.
The unpiloted cargo spacecraft carries more than 7,500 pounds of equipment, supplies, water, fuel and gases for the station.
It also carries hopes and aspirations of the European Space Agency. The ATV and its advanced rendezvous system could play an important role in future space exploration.
The Jules Verne docked smoothly using its automated, laser guided rendezvous system. It was in many respects a repeat of the dry run on Monday. That practice approach brought the ATV to within 36 feet of the docking port.
Keywords: esa,international_space_station,nasa,space
02 April 2008
+ 0 - 3 | § ¶Squyres On Colbert
Keywords: funny,mars,nasa,space,television
04 January 2008
+ 1 - 1 | § ¶Editorial Note
So, yeah, in case you haven't noticed, the blog broke again.
As best as I can tell, it's because my CMS can't handle the number of entries I've put into it, which is nearing 5,000.
I'm not sure what the solution would be, save to just do like I did back in August 2004, and archive the blog to date and start afresh.
That, obviously, is going to be a lot of work. The question is, is it worth it?
Both blogging and commenting have kind of slacked off of late. I've been trying to do better, but with mixed results.
I guess what I need to know now is, is it worth the effort, and, if so, what would you want from a blank-sheet rebuild of ATW?
Keywords: blog
28 December 2007
+ 2 - 3 | § ¶STS-122 Update
Per NASA, Jan. 10 is off the books:
The Space Shuttle Program met Thursday to assess the progress made to troubleshoot an issue with the engine cutoff sensor circuit that occurred during the recent launch attempts and tanking test. Instrumentation installed for the tanking test indicate that there are one or more intermittent open circuits in the area of the feed through connector on the external tank’s liquid hydrogen tank.
The external parts of the connector will be removed and replaced with others that have been strategically soldered to ensure pin-to-socket connectivity and allow continuous electrical flow from sensors inside the external tank to the shuttle's computers.
This work will take some time to properly accomplish and to certify the redesigned configuration before flight. While a launch on Jan. 10 is no longer achievable, no launch date has been discussed. The program will take time to assess progress of the work before setting a target launch date.
Keywords: international_space_station,launch_schedule,nasa,space,space_shuttle,sts_122
18 December 2007
+ 1 - 4 | § ¶Big Red Dot
When you're outside this evening, look to the east. That bright red dot is Mars, which tonight is the closest to Earth it will be until 2016, at only 55 million miles away. At this point, it's brighter than every star in the sky. And, of course, if you miss it tonight, it will remain unusually bright for weeks. (Well, technically, it will even if you don't miss it tonight, so don't feel an obligation to not look.)
Keywords: astronomy,mars,space
17 December 2007
+ 2 - 4 | § ¶Naming LSAM
The next major component of the architecture that will return humans to the moon now has a name. The Lunar Surface Access Module -- the lunar lander --
will be known as Altair. The name joins Ares, the next-generation rockets, and Orion, the new spacecraft.
Along with the name, collectSPACE.com revealed the project logo, created by Star Trek designer Mike Okuda, drawing inspiration from Michael Collin's Apollo 11 patch. I'm kind of partial to it -- I believe the Altair and Ares logos are my favorite of the four he's designed (which can be seen at the link above).
Also, in a bit of quid pro quo, this should somehow lead to Michael Collins getting to develop some sort of logo for the new Star Trek movie. (I wonder if each ship will have its own insignia, per TOS.)
Keywords: apollo,constellation,design,history,moon,nasa,space,star_trek,star_trek_xi
+ 1 - 5 | § ¶STS-122 Update
In case you haven't heard, the working date is now Jan. 10, so that the shuttle team at KSC will actually get a little bit of time off for Christmas. Of course, the emphasis there is on the fact that it's the working date, since a solution to the problem that led to the scrubs this month has yet to be identified.
The ATW countdown clock has been updated.
Keywords: international_space_station,launch_schedule,nasa,space,space_shuttle,sts_122
13 December 2007
+ 5 - 1 | § ¶Geminids Tonight
Per Space.com:
Many meteor showers tend to disappoint, but the annual Geminid shower is relatively reliable. And this year's version, which peaks tonight, is expected to be a great one.
Meteors could start showing up anytime after dark this evening, Dec. 13, low on the eastern horizon. A better display should begin after 10 p.m. or so, when the constellation Gemini, from which the meteors emanate, rises higher into the Eastern sky.
By 2 a.m. Friday, Dec. 14, Gemini is directly overhead, and meteors will streak outward in all directions like spokes on a wheel, weather permitting.
Forecasters predict one or two shooting stars per minute during the peak hours.
Keywords: astronomy,space
12 December 2007
+ 3 - 1 | § ¶Space Race '08
Another installment in my series of posts about space-related comments by presidential candidates:
Democrats
Dennis Kucinich
"She talked about an ambitious plan to retrofit American homes with wind turbines and solar panels. Mass transit systems are also desperately needed, she said.
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) should be put to work on these projects, instead of sending people to the moon, Kucinich said." --
Space Politics, 10 December 2007
It joins the previous entries:
Republicans
Mike Huckabee
"Whether we ought to go to Mars is not a decision that I would want to make, but I would certainly want to make sure that we expand the space program, because every one of us who are sitting here tonight have our lives dramatically improved because there was a space program — whether it’s these screens that we see or the incredible electronics that we use, including the GPS systems that got many of you to this arena tonight. ... Or whether it’s the medical technologies that saved many of our lives or the lives or our families, it’s the direct result of the space program, and we need to put more money into science and technology and exploration." --
Space Politics, 29 November 2007
Rudy Giuliani
"He said he supported continuing to aggressively pursue space exploration." --
The Tallahassee Democrat, 5 April 2007
Tom Tancredo
"The question is a serious one and it deserves a serious answer, and that is this: Look, we’ve been — how many times up here, how many questions have dealt with the issue of deficit spending, the debt out of control? And yet, we have somebody saying, “But would you spend more money on going to Mars?" And the suggestion that we need to spend more money on space exploration. This is it, folks. That’s why we have such incredible problems with our debt, because everybody’s trying to be everything to all people. We can’t afford some things, and by the way, going to Mars is one of them.." --
Space Politics, 29 November 2007
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
Mitt Romney
"Regarding NASA's plans to return to the moon and Mars, he said he hadn't decided if that was the exact plan he'd pursue, 'but I have no reason to change that at this point.'" --
Florida Today, 7 August 2007
Democrats
Hillary Clinton
"But in a telephone interview afterward, she said that in the short term she would subordinate Bush administration proposals for human exploration of the Moon and Mars to restoring cuts in aeronautics research and space-based studies of climate change and other earth science issues.
Travel to the Moon or Mars 'excites people,' she said, 'but I am more focused on nearer-term goals I think are achievable.'"
--
The New York Times, 5 October 2007
“Democratic White House hopeful Sen. Hillary Clinton (N.Y.) has pledged to pursue 'a successful and speedy transition' from the soon-to-be retired U.S. space shuttle fleet to 'a next-generation space transportation system that can take us back to the Moon and beyond.'”
--
Space News, 14 November 2007
Barack Obama
"Barack Obama’s early education and K-12 plan package costs about $18 billion per year. He will maintain fiscal responsibility and prevent any increase in the deficit by offsetting cuts and revenue sources in other parts of the government. The early education plan will be paid for by delaying the NASA Constellation Program for five years, using purchase cards and the negotiating power of the government to reduce costs of standardized procurement, auctioning surplus federal property, and reducing the erroneous payments identified by the Government Accountability Office, and closing the CEO pay deductibility loophole. The rest of the plan will be funded using a small portion of the savings associated with fighting the war in Iraq.." --
Official Education Plan, 20 November 2007
“I’m inspired by the idea of going to Mars,” he replied, projecting friendly sincerity. “I’m also mindful of the budgetary constraints. So I won’t give you an answer right now.”
--
Space Politics, 10 October 2007
Bill Richardson
"He did say that he sees space as 'a bona fide area of economic growth and opportunity'..." --
Space Politics, 4 June 2007
John Edwards
"I am a strong supporter of our space program. It reflects the best of the American spirit of optimism, discovery and progress.
We need a balanced space and aeronautics program. We need to support solar system exploration as an important goal for our human and robotic programs, but only as one goal among several. And we need to invite other countries to share in a meaningful way in both the adventure and the cost of space exploration." --
A Blog Around The Clock, 9 July 2007
Various
Dodd said that “we’re doing okay” and left it at that. Biden professed his support for robotic programs, and when asked about human spaceflight, said, “With clear leadership we can do anything, good luck.” Kucinich said he would double spending “across the board on civilian projects and privatize where we can”, and gave a shout-out for NASA Glenn Research Center, in his district. Richardson said spaceflight was “important” and added that “we should also encourage private companies”, as he has been doing in New Mexico. --
Space Politics, 28 September 2007
Keywords: politics,space
+ 4 - 1 | § ¶STS-122 Update
Per Spaceflight Now:
Engineers are drawing up plans to load the shuttle Atlantis' external tank with supercold liquid hydrogen next week in a critical test to pinpoint the source of elusive, intermittent electrical problems in low-level fuel sensors that derailed two launch attempts.
Shuttle Program Manager Wayne Hale said today engineers will tap into the engine cutoff - ECO - sensor circuitry near a control unit in the shuttle's aft engine compartment to hook up test instrumentation that should help locate any bad wiring or connectors in the 100 feet or so of cabling between the box and the sensors at the base of the external tank.
The tanking test is tentatively planned for next Tuesday.
Keywords: international_space_station,launch_schedule,nasa,space,space_shuttle,sts_122
11 December 2007
+ 1 - 4 | § ¶Return From Mars
Per NASA:
NASA and an international team are developing plans and seeking recommendations to launch the first Mars mission to bring soil samples back to Earth. The ability to study soil from Mars here on Earth will contribute significantly to answering questions about the possibility of life on the Red Planet. Returned samples also will increase understanding of the useful or harmful properties of Martian soil, which will support planning for the eventual human exploration of Mars.
A task force named the International Mars Architecture for Return of Samples, or IMARS, recently met in Washington to lay the foundation for an international collaboration to return samples from Mars. NASA hosted the meeting. IMARS meeting participants included representatives from more than half a dozen countries and NASA, the European Space Agency, or ESA, the Canadian Space Agency and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.
Keywords: mars,nasa,space
+ 3 - 1 | § ¶STS-122 Update
OK, I'm sure by now everyone who cares has heard that launch is now NET Jan. 2, but I didn't have a chance to blog it before now. I've also gone and updated the countdown clock, which spent my whole trip looking like Atlantis was in orbit (or, actually, Discovery, since I hadn't changed the OV in one line of code) since it was too much trouble to change then.
As much as I hate to admit it, I'm a bit glad they pushed it back to January. If it had flown yesterday right after I got back from Florida -- again -- I would have been sick. Happy, thrilled and proud for the program, of course, but sick, personally.
Keywords: international_space_station,launch_schedule,nasa,space,space_shuttle,sts_122
10 December 2007
+ 4 - 1 | § ¶My Lengthy Zero-G Flight Report
The short version: Yes, it was fun.
At the end my Zero-G flight this morning, between the last parabola and touchdown at the Orlando airport, I pulled out my iPhone and began taking notes to better preserve the experience. This is going to be a bit random, but the notes were sort of stream-of-consciousness.
First, I'm going to use the term Zero-G here. Get over it. At NASA, we don't like using that term, but I'm using here because, one, people know what that means; two, the company's name is Zero-G and they used the term, and, three, I still maintain that since a reduced gravity flight can recreate conditions from positive to negative G's, it has to cross zero at some point.
One thing that surprised me was how I felt after we pulled four zero-g parabolas in a row. Even during level flight, I felt more heavy than usual. Surprised at how quickly I adapted to weightlessness. In our book, Joe Kerwin includes a poem he wrote while on Skylab, along the lines of wondering if that's not our natural state. I identified with that in a new way during the flight.
On one of the parabolas, they handed out M&Ms. I got my hands on one, and overestimated myself. Way back in 2003, Expedition 5 space station science officer Peggy Whitson (who's currently commanding Expedition 16) visited Marshall with the STS-113 space shuttle crew that brought her back to Earth at the end of her stay. They commented on the fact that when she went up there, she was a rookie, looking to her crewmates for adaptation advice, but when they brought her back from her first flight, she was far and away the microgravity expert. As evidence, they showed a video of her eating M&Ms. Other astronauts were leaning forward to eat floating candies, while Peggy had a cloud of maybe a dozen of them a foot or two away from her face, and was just tapping them lightly and sending them flying into her mouth. I didn't think I was that good, but I did place my one M&M about four inches from my mouth, and tapped it toward me. Yeah, I missed.
I need to start a group on Facebook titled "I've used my iPhone in lunar gravity." If you meet that qualification, you're welcome to join, too. (OK, that was a bit smug. But it is a cool thing to be able to say.)
It was really hard to control my movement in zero-G. For the non-lay reader, translation was very difficult; attitude was a bit easier. A bit. I think, though, that I was just really bad at it.
While I'd looked forward to the whole flying like Superman thing, the thing I'd been looking forward to perhaps most was the serenity. A little over a year ago, I was riding the super-tall Goliath roller coaster at Six Flags, which gives you two or three seconds of free fall. While everyone else was screaming, I was at utter peace. I'd looked forward to experience that again on a larger and greater scale. On my last parabola, I tucked my knees against my chest, closed my eyes, and just floated. And got two or three seconds of serenity before bouncing against a wall. Particularly hard, really, considering I hadn't given myself any momentum. Talking about it with our "coach" afterwards, she said that some flights were just more "drifty" than others, and that ours was rather drifty. Which explains, in part, why I kept floating out of our area of the pla
