Archive for ‘Space’

Falcon 9 is almost ready to fly

By Keith, 3 March, 2010, No Comment

It has to be a sad time for the folks at the Kennedy Space Center… just today they were rolling Discovery out to the launch pad for the next space shuttle flight, one of only four remaining. Many of the folks on the space coast will lose their jobs, since President Obama has canceled NASA’s follow-up to the shuttle program, and to add insult to injury they actually rolled Discovery right past the nearly complete launch pad for the now-canceled Moon program. (That begs the question, do they tear it down now or wait until it’s finished? Does that count as a “saved” job?)

It’s not all bad news though, the completely unproven commercial rocket that the entire United States manned spaceflight program is resting on was turned on for it’s first countdown rehearsal:

Friday’s countdown wet dress rehearsal was “the smoothest test we have conducted to date,” said Tim Buzza, the Falcon 9 launch director.

The booster has spent the last week at Complex 40 after being assembled inside a hangar at the pad’s southern perimeter. Stormy weather and high winds earlier this week pushed the countdown rehearsal to Friday.

After powering up the 15-story rocket, the launch team verified all systems were functioning, performed engine purge checks and cleared workers from the launch pad.

There are a couple more hurdles that the Falcon 9 still has to clear before they’ll be ready for launch, including the Air Force approving the self-destruct system… something you definitely want to have working, especially on a rocket that has never flown before.

Most of me is rooting for SpaceX… I’ve been a big fan of theirs for a long time, and the future of space exploration will depend more on people like Elon Musk than big government agencies like NASA.

Still, handing over the keys of the entire manned spaceflight program to a commercial company that hasn’t even flown the darned rocket yet was an incredibly stupid move… and it would really serve President Obama right if the darned thing blew up on the pad the first time out.

Aw who am I kidding? I just want to see it fly.

Which should happen some time between now and May.

What’s the over/under on successful flights before Congress passes a crippling “Putting people into space tax”?

The truth is out there?

By Keith, 27 February, 2010, No Comment

(h/t to Clayton Morris)

So clearly President Obama has canceled NASA’s new Moon program to hide the existence of our alien overlords. You can’t hide the truth. Roswell… Roswell!!

Geeky Space Picture of the Day: Atlantis

By Keith, 16 November, 2009, No Comment

Space shuttle Atlantis with its crew of six astronauts lifts off from Launch Pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

(Embiggened version)

The next time we see Atlantis launch, it’ll be the last time. After today’s launch there are only 5 more left in the shuttle program. Assuming that it isn’t extended by President Obama to close the gap between the shuttle and Orion. Of course since Obama has taken so long to make a decision on Afghanistan, I don’t think we can expect him to make a decision on NASA’s future until the shuttle program is already gone… which may actually force his hand as far as funding NASA’s future plans.

Geeky Space Picture Of The Day: I Can See My House From Here

By Keith, 13 November, 2009, No Comment

A comet-chasing spacecraft swinging by Earth this week has snapped magnificent new images of our home planet. The new photos come from the European Space Agency’s Rosetta spacecraft, which will make its closest approach by Earth Friday at 2:45 a.m. EST (0745 GMT), during its third and final flyby past the planet. The Rosetta spacecraft’s OSIRIS narrow-angle camera captured three images of Earth with an orange, green and blue filter, and from a distance of about 393,330 miles (633,000 km). The resulting illuminated crescent is a combination of the trio.

Apollo 17 – “…our the flag was still there”

By Keith, 30 October, 2009, No Comment

The Lunar Reconnassance Orbiter, currently orbiting the Moon just 50 km off the surface, has taken more shots of the Apollo 17 landing site… and has seen the actual U.S. flag!

(Here is a wider shot of the landing site)

So far all of the landing sites that the LRO has photographed have had tracks around them, and this one has the flag right where it should be. I’d say that lunar landing conspiracy theorists can officially suck it.

h/t to Phil Plait.

Coincidentally, here is Eugene Cernan the Apollo 17 commander and the last man to walk on the Moon on Fox News reacting the NASA’s Ares I-X test flight:

Geeky Space Picture of The Day: Ares I-X Launch

By Keith, 29 October, 2009, No Comment

(High Resolution Version)

Ares I-X Roars Off the Pad

With more than 12 times the thrust produced by a Boeing 747 jet aircraft, the Constellation Program’s Ares I-X test rocket roars off Launch Pad 39B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. At left is space shuttle Atlantis, poised on Launch Pad 39A for liftoff in November.

Also, here’s video of the launch, just in case you missed it on Wednesday:

Geeky Space Picture of the Day: Dueling Rockets

By Keith, 26 October, 2009, No Comment