Space News thread

[Takeovers]

I understand that the re-entry will be an accelerated one to simulate an extra orbit return.

True but still a lot slower than Apollo reentries after coming back from the moon. Not a good test.

To me, the whole craft seems a waste of time.
With advances in materials and robotics/AI there is no need to send manned missions anywhere just yet. Not at least until we find a far cheaper way of escaping the gravity well and can afford large scale space infrastructure.

SpaceX is planning to reduce launch cost per kg by a factor of 50 to 100 by the end of this decade. Will take a little more time though, probably.

I am a great fan of manned spaceflight. There is a lot robotics cannot do yet and won't be able to do for a long time.

I'll watch though, 'cause if that Delta IV goes off, it's gonna make a hell of a bang.

Slim chance. The Delta is excessivley expensive but reliable too. But you will see spectacular flames when the hydrogen released before launch ignites. The Delta is famous for being engulfed in flames at launch for most of its height.

[Necron99]

UPDATE

I fooked up, launch time is 7 pm thai time.

[palexxxx]

Better website for video of launch here

Orion spaceship launch at Nasa's Kennedy Space Centre: live - Telegraph

[harrybarracuda]

New launch time: 19:17 Thailand. Thunderbirds are go.

OK new odds:

4/6 Launches OK; 7/4 Blows the shit up.

[harrybarracuda]

7/2 it blows over.

[harrybarracuda]

They're making a right pigs arse of streaming it.

[harrybarracuda]

What sort of complete cock drives a boat right into the launch path?

Twat.

[palexxxx]

^ maybe a protester.

[harrybarracuda]

This is getting a bit tedious.

[harrybarracuda]

Jesus wept even the Indians did it better.

[palexxxx]

I want my money back.

[harrybarracuda]

I went for a pint. Has it taken off yet?

[Takeovers]

I went for a pint. Has it taken off yet?

They will try again tomorrow.

[harrybarracuda]

I went for a pint. Has it taken off yet?

They will try again tomorrow.

They went for a pint too then.

[withnallstoke]

Man has already walked on Mars - 35 years ago.


A former NASA employee has claimed that she saw two astronauts walking on Mars during her time at the space agency years ago, it has been reported.
The woman, who gave her name only as Jackie, said that she and some of her colleagues were monitoring images sent back by the Viking Lander 35 years ago when they saw the shocking footage, the Daily Star reported.
Jackie told US radio station Coast To Coast that she saw two men in space suits and they were walking to the Viking Explorer.
Conspiracy theorists believe there was a secret 1970s space programme but NASA has dismissed her claims.



Ex- NASA employee claims to have seen two astronauts walking on Mars 35 years ago | Latest News & Updates at Daily News & Analysis

[palexxxx]

Haha, that's funny.

On one hand, the conspiracy theorists say that the Americans never got to the moon, that it was all an elaborate hoax ......

now they're saying that instead, they've been to Mars and not told anyone about it.

[Takeovers]

The Orion flight was successfully launched and concluded with a perfect landing today. Congratulations from me even though I am not convinced it was a usefull exercise.

[BaitongBoy]

Man has already walked on Mars

It's not like you to spell "wanked" incorrectly, withnall...

[Takeovers]

I'm more excited about New Horizons that wakes up on December 6th. It's already taken a long range shot of its eventual destination, Pluto. When it was launched, Pluto was still a planet!

New Horizons has responded to the wake up call. The next weeks will be used to check out all the instruments for the Pluto flyby.

[harrybarracuda]

Pluto calling: NASA awakens New Horizons spaceship from lengthy slumber
Mission switches from hibernation to active mode
By Kelly Fiveash, 7 Dec 2014

Antenna: Maintains links with Nasa scientists
Pepssi: Measures particles escaping from Pluto's atmosphere
Swap: Measures interaction of Pluto with solar wind
Lorri: Powerful telescope and digital camera fortified against cold
SDC: Detects dust grains from collisions in Kuiper Belt
Ralph: Makes maps of Pluto, moons and Kuiper Belt Objects
Alice: Probes composition and structure of Pluto's atmosphere
Rex: Measures atmospheric pressure and temperature

Mission Guide

NASA has woken up its New Horizons spacecraft as it closes in on dwarf planet Pluto, nearly nine years after the mission to explore the system began.

Boffins at the John Hopkins University applied physics lab (APL) in Laurel, Maryland, confirmed late last night that the switcheroo from hibernation to "active" mode had been successful.

"Moving at light speed, the radio signal from New Horizons – currently more than 2.9 billion miles from Earth, and just over 162 million miles from Pluto – needed four hours and 26 minutes to reach NASA’s Deep Space Network station in Canberra, Australia," the US space agency said.

The awakening of the New Horizons spaceship was a routine procedure, said the mission's project boss Glen Fountain at the APL. But he added that this particular wake-up call was symbolic, since it represented the start of "pre-encounter operations."

Since 19 January 2006, when New Horizons blasted off from Cape Canaveral on its one-way trip to Pluto, the craft has spent 1,873 days (roughly two-thirds of its flight time) in hibernation.

New Horizons principal investigator from Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, Colorado enthused:

"This is a watershed event that signals the end of New Horizons crossing of a vast ocean of space to the very frontier of our solar system, and the beginning of the mission’s primary objective: the exploration of Pluto and its many moons in 2015."


New Horizons, which is loaded with advanced imaging infrared and ultraviolet spectrometers, a compact multicolour camera, a high-resolution telescopic camera, two powerful particle spectrometers and a space-dust detector, will begin observing Pluto from the middle of next month.

Its closest approach to the dwarf planet is expected to take place on 14 July.

“For decades we thought Pluto was this odd little body on the planetary outskirts; now we know it’s really a gateway to an entire region of new worlds in the Kuiper Belt, and New Horizons is going to provide the first close-up look at them,” said APL project scientist Hal Weaver.

Pluto calling: NASA awakens New Horizons spaceship from lengthy slumber ? The Register

[Cujo]

Great thread. A big thanks to all the contributors.

[thailazer]

Curiosity has discovered organic matter on Mars - CNET

[Necron99]

Space X launches it's Dragon rocket tonight and will attempt to land the main stage on a floating platform.

India has successfully launched it's biggest rocket to date and tested the re entry of it's manned capsule prototype.

[OhOh]

© ЕРА/CNES
PARIS, December 18. /TASS/. Russian carrier rocket Soyuz-ST with O3b European communications satellites has successfully blasted off from the Guiana Space Center.
The Arianespace company responsible for launches from the launch pad in the Guiana Space Center said the liftoff occurred at 15:37 local time (18:37 UTC).

[Necron99]

SO SOMEONE has just emailed a wrench to the International Space Station. It’s the first case of 3D printing a specialist tool in space.
It’s also being touted significant ‘first step’ in the future of space exploration:
“My colleagues and I just 3D-printed a ratcheting socket wrench on the International Space Station by typing some commands on our computer in California,” manufacturer Made In Space Inc proudly broadcast to the world.
It would otherwise have taken months — if not years — and tens of thousands of dollars. Designing and building a handheld tool is relatively easy anywhere: But waiting for space and weight to become available on a scheduled supply launch is a killer
Put into perspective, the cost of sending just 1kg from the ground to the space station is somewhat more than $30,000 a kilo.

So when the suppliers of the ISS’s brand-spanking new 3D printer — delivered only in September — overheard one of the astronauts complaining that he didn’t have the right wrench, they emailed him one.
It wasn’t the firs thing they had printed. But it was the first highly specialised part to be designed on Earth to be transmitted for immediate use. It took just four-hours.
First they 3D modelled a ratcheting socket wrench, making a few refinements to suit the conditions. In all, the tool required 21 individual parts.

The digital handover took seconds: It was as simple as attaching a file to an email after all.
“On the ISS this type of technology translates to lower costs for experiments, faster design iteration, and a safer, better experience for the crew members, who can use it to replace broken parts or create new tools on demand,” the spokesman says. “But what I’m really excited about is the impact this could have on human space exploration beyond Earth orbit.