Dragon arrives at space station in historic 1st
Monday 28th of May 2012 05:46:20 PM
Posted by admin / Under Space Observatory
| CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — The privately bankrolled Dragon capsule arrived at the International Space Station for a historic docking Friday, captured by astronauts wielding a giant robot arm. It succeeded in making the first commercial delivery into the cosmos. U.S. astronaut Donald Pettit used the space station's 58-foot robot arm to snare the gleaming white Dragon after a few hours of extra checks and maneuvers. The two vessels came together while sailing above Australia. "Looks like we've got us a dragon by the tail," Pettit announced from 250 miles up once he locked onto Dragon's docking mechanism. "You've made... |
Neil Armstrong breaks his silence to give accountants moon exclusive
Monday 28th of May 2012 05:46:20 PM
Posted by admin / Under Space Observatory
| As the first person to walk on the moon, he is a man whose name will be remembered for generations to come. But one of the other well-known things about Neil Armstrong is that he hardly ever gives interviews. It was therefore something of a coup for Alex Malley, chief executive of Certified Practicing Accountants of Australia, to secure almost an hour of Armstrong’s time to discuss the astronaut’s trip to the moon. In the illuminating conversation posted online on the CPA Australia website, Armstrong revealed how he thought his mission, Apollo 11, only had a 50% chance of landing... |
Can Sci-Fi Relaunch the Space Program?
Monday 28th of May 2012 05:46:20 PM
Posted by admin / Under Space Observatory
| Filmmakers have tackled space travel from the first days of film – which is to say, before there was space travel. The most famous image from silent movies is Méliès’s “Man in the Moon” with a rocket in his eye. Early films adapted H.G. Wells, Jules Verne, and the adventures of Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers. By the time humanity reached orbit (Sputnik in 1957, cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin in 1961, and astronaut John Glenn in 1962) popcorn-munching crowds had already flocked to theaters for “Destination Moon” (1950) and “Forbidden Planet” (1956). |
Commercial space race gets crowded behind SpaceX
Monday 28th of May 2012 05:46:20 PM
Posted by admin / Under Space Observatory
| WASHINGTON (AP) — A privately built space capsule that's zipping its way to the International Space Station has also launched something else: A new for-profit space race. The capsule called Dragon was due to arrive near the space station for tests early Thursday and dock on Friday with its load of supplies. Space Exploration Technologies Corp. — run by PayPal co-founder Elon Musk — was hired by NASA to deliver cargo and eventually astronauts to the orbital outpost. |
SPACE TAXIS: NEXT STOP MARS?
Monday 28th of May 2012 05:46:20 PM
Posted by admin / Under Space Observatory
| Privately owned Space Exploration Technologies is poised to make a test run to the International Space Station early Tuesday, but visiting the orbital outpost is just the beginning of the company's grand plan to give humanity a toehold on Mars. "Our goal is to revolutionize space transport, so we'll be doing every kind of space transport, except for suborbital. We'll launch satellites of all shapes and sizes, service the space station with cargo and crew, and then the long-term objective is to develop a space transport system that will enable humanity to become a multi-planet species," company founder and chief... |
SpaceX Falcon 9 Launch Live Thread (05/22/2012) 03:44 EDT)
Monday 28th of May 2012 05:46:20 PM
Posted by admin / Under Space Observatory
| Good luck again.. I'm sure they will make it.. |
SpaceX Falcon 9 Launch Live Thread (05/19/2012) 04:55 EDT) First Commercial Rocket into Space!
Monday 28th of May 2012 05:46:20 PM
Posted by admin / Under Space Observatory
| Best of luck to SpaceX. |
From Astronaut-Hero To Space-Trucker: The Human Spin on Space Commercialization
Monday 28th of May 2012 05:46:20 PM
Posted by admin / Under Space Observatory
| The cast of “Alien,” in Ridley Scott’s 1979 sci-fi blockbuster, may actually be more akin to future space-farers than our citizen heroes from NASA’s Apollo era. After all, the film presents a view of space travel that is based as much on economics as wanderlust and this is arguably as it should be. How can anyone forget the hangdog eyes of Harry Dean Stanton, who so clearly is out that far in space solely for the cash? The crew of the Nostromo, the film’s ore-carrying cargo vessel under threat from a ravenous extraterrestrial, inherently understands that sometimes great profit only... |
Private Space Taxi Builders Ponder Future Beyond NASA
Monday 28th of May 2012 05:46:20 PM
Posted by admin / Under Space Observatory
| The private spaceflight company SpaceX is poised to launch a robotic capsule toward the International Space Station Saturday (May 19) on a test flight that, if successful, could be a watershed moment for the commercial space industry. But while SpaceX has a NASA contract to provide cargo deliveries to the space station, the company and other private spaceship developers are looking to a future beyond NASA funding. The Hawthorne, Calif.-based SpaceX is one of several aerospace firms who are competing for NASA funding under the third and final phase of NASA's commercial crew development program. Proposals for this stage of... |
SpaceX's 1st Private Capsule Launch to Space Station: How It Will Work
Monday 28th of May 2012 05:46:20 PM
Posted by admin / Under Space Observatory
| On May 19, if all goes well, the private spaceflight company SpaceX will launch the first commercial spaceship ever to visit the International Space Station. But the mission will be like no other U.S. flight to the orbiting laboratory. SpaceX's unmanned Dragon capsule is due to deliver food, supplies and science experiments to the outpost as a test mission for NASA. The space agency awarded the company a $1.6 billion contract for eight robotic resupply flights to fill the delivery needs left over by the space shuttle fleet's retirement last year. |
The Constellation Empire Strikes Back (Congressional space pork)
Monday 28th of May 2012 05:46:20 PM
Posted by admin / Under Space Observatory
| Constellation, the Bush administration’s plan to return to the moon, was canceled a couple years ago. But not all of Constellation was canceled. The Orion crew module, designed to go to lunar orbit and back, survives, with plans to test fly on a Delta IV rocket in a couple years, and Congress, eager to preserve the Space Shuttle jobs base, demanded that NASA reinstitute a new heavy-lift launch vehicle to replace the canceled Ares V with the Space Launch System. So at this point, despite the cancellation, Constellation continues to waste money, except for the Ares I, the new crew... |
NASA Modifies Launch Service Contract To Add Falcon 9 Rocket
Monday 28th of May 2012 05:46:20 PM
Posted by admin / Under Space Observatory
| CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- NASA has announced a modification of its NASA Launch Services (NLS) II contract with Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) of Hawthorne, Calif., to add an additional configuration of the Falcon 9 rocket to its fleet. The SpaceX Falcon 9 v1.1 launch service will be available to the agency's Launch Services Program to use for future missions in accordance with the on-ramp provision of NLS II. |
Private Sector Edges Deeper in Space
Monday 28th of May 2012 05:46:20 PM
Posted by admin / Under Space Observatory
| It sounds like a routine event for NASA: At 4:55 a.m. on Saturday, a rocket is scheduled to lift off from Cape Canaveral, Fla., and carry cargo — but no people — to the International Space Station. But if all goes as planned, that morning will mark something transformative for the space industry: a victory for capitalism in what has been for decades a government-run enterprise. The capsule, built by Space Exploration Technologies Corporation — SpaceX, for short — would be the first commercial spacecraft to make it to the space station, and many observers view its launching as the... |
Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin shares a few details about outer space plans
Monday 28th of May 2012 05:46:20 PM
Posted by admin / Under Space Observatory
| Blue Origin, the secretive Kent company developing a new space launch system, briefly lifted the curtain on its plans earlier this month ... and then snapped that curtain back down. In an interview published in Aviation Week and Space Technology, Brett Alexander, Blue Origin director of business development and strategy, gave some new details about the company’s plans. |
With shuttle's end, space firms seek new direction
Monday 28th of May 2012 05:46:20 PM
Posted by admin / Under Space Observatory
| Updated 4/29/2012By Stephen Singer The Associated PressHARTFORD, Conn. Less than a year after NASA ended its shuttle program, players in America's space business are casting around for new direction.United Technologies Corp. is the most recent company to announce it will sharply scale back its role in space exploration. It's selling Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne, a manufacturer of rocket engines and liquid-propulsion systems...[snip] Greg Hayes, chief financial officer at United Technologies, rapped U.S. space policy when he announced the decision in mid-March to sell Rocketdyne."Growth will be limited at Rocketdyne," Hayes told investor analysts. "It's still a very good business. It's... |
As SpaceX awaits launch of cargo capsule, crew capsule gets test sit
Monday 28th of May 2012 05:46:20 PM
Posted by admin / Under Space Observatory
| NASA has signed off on the astronaut layout of SpaceX’s planned seven-passenger crew capsule after some NASA engineers and astronauts cozied into one in the SpaceX showroom and pronounced it fit. Officially, NASA declared that SpaceX’s plans passed another milestone, the seventh of 10, by demonstrating that the layout will allow astronauts to maneuver effectively in the vehicle. Several veteran space shuttle astronauts and NASA engineers conducted the evaluation during a pair of two-day-long reviews. |
NASA's Spitzer Sees The Light of Alien "Super Earth"
Monday 28th of May 2012 05:46:20 PM
Posted by admin / Under Space Observatory
WASHINGTON, May 8, 2012 -- /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope has detected light emanating from a "super-Earth" planet beyond our solar system for the first time. While the planet is not habitable, the detection is a historic step toward the eventual search for signs of life on other planets.
Space Aliens Would Think We Are Insane
Monday 28th of May 2012 05:46:20 PM
Posted by admin / Under Space Observatory
| Don Boys, Ph.D. Recently a global warming fanatic (who now uses the term, “climate change” since there is no proof of man-caused global warming) made a shocking statement: "Any rational being coming to our planet from outer space would say ‘There is a species here that has gone insane.'" Like most fanatics, he makes some gargantuan leaps in his thinking especially when he makes an assumption of space aliens even existing; then he presumes they are rational! After all, if humans are not rational, why would we expect make-believe aliens to be? Humans are not rational and I agree that... |
Mom Stumbles Onto Meteorite Worth About $20,000
Monday 28th of May 2012 05:46:20 PM
Posted by admin / Under Space Observatory
LOTUS (CBS13) – People from all over the world are in the tiny town of Lotus in El Dorado County looking for something that’s out of this world, but leave it to a stay-at-home mom walking her dog to find a precious meteorite. The rock Brenda Salveson found is 17 grams, equal to just over a tablespoon of sugar. But when it comes in the form of an asteroid, its weight has no boundaries. “I was lucky, blessed, good karma,” Brenda said. “It was sitting there at my toes like an Easter egg.” An egg? More like a diamond in...
Supermoon This Weekend!
Monday 28th of May 2012 05:46:20 PM
Posted by admin / Under Space Observatory
| This weekend will provide the full Moon’s closest approach of the year to Earth. On Saturday, May 5, 2012 the Moon could appear as much as 14% bigger and 30% brighter than other full Moons of 2012, according to some calculations. Will you notice it? Not if you haven’t really been paying attention, or have a reference point to compare it to other full Moons. And it certainly won’t have any adverse effects on Earth, as this closest approach happens every year — just a fact of orbital mechanics. But perhaps a great way to celebrate Cinco de Mayo is... |
Four white dwarf stars caught in the act of consuming 'earth-like' exoplanets
Monday 28th of May 2012 05:46:20 PM
Posted by admin / Under Space Observatory
| University of Warwick astrophysicists have pinpointed four white dwarf stars surrounded by dust from shattered planetary bodies which once bore striking similarities to the composition of the Earth. The scientists publish their results in a paper in the journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. White dwarfs are the final stage of life of stars like our Sun, the residual cores of material left behind after their available fuel for nuclear reactions has been exhausted. Using the Hubble Space Telescope to carry out the biggest survey to date of the chemical composition of the atmospheres of white dwarf stars,... |
SpaceX test fires rocket ahead of ISS cargo launch
Monday 28th of May 2012 05:46:20 PM
Posted by admin / Under Space Observatory
| SpaceX on Monday successfully test-fired its Falcon 9 rocket in a dress rehearsal for the May 7 launch of its Dragon spacecraft on a cargo-bearing mission to the International Space Station. The test, known as a static fire of the rocket's nine main engines, lasted just two seconds, but allowed engineers to "run through all countdown processes as though it were launch day," SpaceX said on its website. |
Obama’s Space Shuttle funeral dirge a show for all to see
Monday 28th of May 2012 05:46:20 PM
Posted by admin / Under Space Observatory
| Those lucky enough to still be here to look back at history post Barack Obama will recognize the last sight-piggyback funeral dirge of the once noble Space Shuttle as the Obama Regime’s defining moment. Were an artist to paint a picture of a small boy looking at up at his flying kite as the space shuttle passed over Manhattan yesterday, no portrait of the story of America’s deliberate ruin at the hands of a single politician could ever come closer to the truth. [BIG Snip of text] Few will remember that it was on the fullest moon of the year... |
Astronomers find new planet capable of supporting life
Monday 28th of May 2012 05:46:20 PM
Posted by admin / Under Space Observatory
Astronomers have discovered their "holy grail" - a planet capable of supporting life outside our solar system. The planet lies in what they describe as a 'habitable zone', neither too near its sun to dry out or too far away which freezes it. And the discovery could help answer the question of whether we are alone in the universe, which has been plagued astronomers and alien fanatics for years. Scientists found the planet, Gliese 667Cc, orbiting around a red dwarf star, 22 light years away from the earth. Red dwarf stars are the most common stars in the neighbourhood of...
New Private Space Plane Aims to Pick Up Where NASA's Shuttles Left Off
Monday 28th of May 2012 05:46:20 PM
Posted by admin / Under Space Observatory
| The new spaceship being built by private aerospace firm Sierra Nevada Corp. may look like a miniature space shuttle, but while the design takes cues from the past, company officials are hoping this vehicle shepherds in a new era of commercial human spaceflight. Sierra Nevada's Dream Chaser space plane is being developed to take astronauts to and from the International Space Station in low-Earth orbit. The company is aiming to begin full orbital flights in 2016. But the Dream Chaser design, which is reminiscent of NASA's space shuttle, is actually based on a concept vehicle, called HL-20, which was first... |
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