Category Archives: Space

Artemis on the way to the moon

Posted on November 16, 2022 | Comments Off on Artemis on the way to the moon

“The sky turned from dark to light as the Space Launch System blasted with 8.8 million pounds of thrust taking off at 1:47 a.m. from KSC’s Launch Pad 39-B to become the most powerful rocket to ever successfully launch into space.

“For once I might be speechless,” said NASA launch director Charlie Blackwell-Thompson to her team. “This is your moment. … You are part of a first. We are all part of something incredibly special, the first launch of Artemis, the first step of returning our country to the moon and onto Mars. … The harder the climb, the better the view. We showed the Space Coast tonight what a beautiful view it is.”

Via Orlando Sentinel

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Starship at Starbase

Posted on October 13, 2022 | Comments Off on Starship at Starbase

In South Texas, near Brownsville, don’t you know.

“SpaceX has stacked a Starship vehicle on the launch pad at its Starbase facility in South Texas for the first time since March.

“A Starship upper-stage prototype known as Ship 24 was stacked atop the Booster 7 Super Heavy first stage at the orbital launch pad at Starbase on Tuesday (Oct. 11) for the first time, according to a tweet (opens in new tab) from SpaceX early on Wednesday (Oct. 12).

“Ship 24 was stacked onto Booster 7 using SpaceX’s “chopsticks” system on the Starbase launch tower, forming the full 395-foot-tall (120 meters) Starship system.”

Starship is part of the SpaceX-NASA return of astronauts to the moon.

Via Space.com

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Mind-bending

Posted on June 3, 2022 | 2 comments

A mind-bending timelapse video with the sky stabilized with a star-tracker shows the Earth spinning through space.

This Astrophotographer Makes the World Turn and the Sky Stand Still

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Posted in Science/Engineering, Space

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Dune

Posted on February 23, 2022 | Comments Off on Dune

The latest attempt on Apple TV to make a movie of the famous science fiction novels is an helluva effort. Part One of several, apparently. The CGI, alone, is worth watching, especially the ornithopters. But the actors are good, too. Try it. You won’t be disappointed.

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Posted in Flickers, Space

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Interstellar love

Posted on January 11, 2022 | Comments Off on Interstellar love

A killer flicker, despite being almost eight years old, which probably helped make Uvalde boy Matthew David McConaughey the star he became. It seems to be a science fiction tale (with really good graphics) but actually is fully about the oldest and best of human emotions: love.

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Webb telescope readied

Posted on January 6, 2022 | Comments Off on Webb telescope readied

Radio-computer commands to the telescope, about 600,000 miles from earth, are readying it for exploration of the universe.

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Webb is on its way

Posted on December 26, 2021 | Comments Off on Webb is on its way

Launched on Christmas Day morning, the Webb telescope has got about six weeks of travel to get to L2, the second Lagrange point, which is 1.5 million kilometers away. (LaGrange points are where Earth’s gravity doesn’t affect objects in orbit.) With a bigger mirror than Hubble and in a much higher orbit, Webb will be able to peer much farther back in time (history) perhaps even to see the first galaxies. Will primarily look at the universe in the infrared wavelength versus Hubble’s optical and ultraviolet wavelengths. Should be interesting.

MORE: Webb deployment sequences, some auto, some by ground command.

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