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Category Archives: Space Flight

Feb. 1, 1961: U.S. sends chimp into space

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Published: Saturday, February 1, 2014, 12:01 a.m.

The Herald ran this story upon his return:

"Ham, the amiable space chimp, arrived home by plane today some 25 hours after pioneering a jolting rocket trip a bit out of this world.

He is due for thorough check-ups to learn if there are any danger signals against man going into space. Ham, the largest animal to make a sub-orbital flight, touched down at 1:11 p.m. aboard a C131 Air Force plane which brought him here from Grand Bahama Island.

He was fished from the sea Tuesday after his rocket ride carrying home 155 miles high and 420 miles downrange into the south Atlantic.

Ham came home to a bright, lovely day.

The pilot reported Ham is 'happy, he looks very happy.' "

It was a grin biologist Jane Goodall would later interpret as "the most extreme fear" and a historic flight that would raise questions of cruelty but, back then, people were asking only what it meant for the future of space travel.

Here's what the story said:

"1. It indicates manned space flight is feasible. An American astronaut is scheduled this spring to duplicate Ham's daring flight.

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Feb. 1, 1961: U.S. sends chimp into space

Half A Million Pieces Of Debris Are Orbiting Earth — Here’s How We’re Going To Clean Them Up

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ESA

Debris lost in space.

A dramatic illustration of the dangers of space debris is given in the film Gravity. It may have taken someartistic license with scienceto craft a good story, but its main premise is plausible. What Gravity showed was the worst case scenario, known as the Kessler syndrome, where a collision between two objects generates a cloud of smaller debris, which triggers a chain reaction of further catastrophic collisions, thereby rapidly increasing the amount of debris. This could make the low Earth orbit unusable for spacecrafts.

Most of those are useless fragments of once-useful objects, which were created by explosions, collisions or missile tests. For instance, an accidental collision between the Iridium-33 and Kosmos-2251 satellites in 2009 caused them to shatter into 2,200 (recorded) fragments. Smaller space debris is much harder to track, but NASA estimates that up to 500,000 objects larger than 1cm, and 135 million particles over 1mm in size may now be orbiting the Earth.

NASA

Catalogued objects in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) larger than 10 cm.

Space debris is becoming a serious issue, and many space agencies have started working on solutions. One approach being taken by JAXA, Japans space agency, is to use a magnetically charged 700m-wide net made from aluminium and steel wires. If used at the right height it will attract floating space debris to it. When enough has been caught, the system can be ordered to fall out of its orbit back to Earth. During that process the debris, along with the net, will burn up as it enters Earths dense atmosphere. JAXA will be doing a test launch of the system next month.

The other approach is to remove existing inactive satellites from orbit. A prime target for this experiment would be the European ENVISAT satellite which stopped functioning in 2012 and now drifts uncontrolled in orbit. At an altitude of 800km and with mass of more than 8,000kg, the ENVISAT satellite would take more than 150 years to deorbit that is, drop out of its orbit naturally.

Throughout that time the satellite would be at risk of colliding with other objects and generating further debris. A more sustainable solution is to remove future satellites from orbit after they have served their purpose, thereby mitigating the growth of the amount of space debris. This is why international guidelines have been proposed which will restrict post-mission deorbiting time to 25 years for all new satellites.

Most satellites designed today take will take longer to deorbit, and new technical solutions are necessary to meet the guidelines. This is where Surrey Space Centre (SSC) working with the European Space Agency (ESA) have developed aGossamer Sail for Satellite Deorbiting. The idea is to attach a large and very light, or gossamer, sail to a satellite, which can be deployed after its mission is over.

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Half A Million Pieces Of Debris Are Orbiting Earth — Here's How We're Going To Clean Them Up

Huntsville looks at the past and future of space exploration

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DeKalb Co. Sheriff's Office reports major drug bust DeKalb Co. Sheriff's Office reports major drug bust

Updated: Friday, January 31 2014 8:40 PM EST2014-02-01 01:40:14 GMT

Updated: Friday, January 31 2014 8:39 PM EST2014-02-01 01:39:16 GMT

Updated: Friday, January 31 2014 8:29 PM EST2014-02-01 01:29:42 GMT

Updated: Friday, January 31 2014 7:05 PM EST2014-02-01 00:05:04 GMT

Updated: Friday, January 31 2014 6:59 PM EST2014-01-31 23:59:06 GMT

Many people in Huntsville spent some time looking back, and forward, in space exploration.

Space campers, local students, and the director of the Marshall Space Flight Center gathered at the US Space and Rocket Center Thursday morning to remember the astronauts killed in the Apollo, Challenger, and Columbia tragedies.

Organizers displayed a wreath and a candle lit in memory of the Apollo 1, Challenger, and Columbia crews. Students from the very schools named for those crews and those missions said they know that they are the future for human space flight.

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Huntsville looks at the past and future of space exploration

Best Space Music Videos Ever: A Rockin’ Chart Countdown

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Live, from Space!

Face it, space travel is cool. But space travel with a soundtrack? That just plain rocks.

Here's a look at some of our favorite space and space-themed music video from NASA and others through the years. Tip: Don't miss Chris Hadfield's amazing "Space Oddity" music video in here.

FIRST STOP: Best Venus Transit Moments

The rare astronomical event of Venus crossing the face of the sun on June 6, 2012, was caught by on video by NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in different wavelengths of light. The Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) took the images, which have 8x finer resolution than HDT. Video editors trimmed six hours of footage down to a quick 3 minutes, and added stirring music to the moving images. Watch the Video.

NEXT: Astronaut Plays Flute in Space

Astronaut Cady Coleman brought her flute aboard the International Space Station, where from 220 miles above the Earth, she played a tune about a seafaring vessel. The performance of Feb. 9, 2011, was recorded in an NPR interview. In addition to her own flute, she also brought instruments on loan from the Irish international folk superstars, The Chieftains, as well as Ian Anderson, flautist and lead singer of Jethro Tull. That long-running prog-rock band (of "Aqualung" fame) outstripped perhaps all of their contemporaries in spacy-ness when later Anderson and Coleman played an Earth-space duet during a Tull concert. Watch the Video.

NEXT: Moon Shadows

Ethereal music by Mark Peters accompanies videos of the annular eclipse that took place on May 20, 2012. NASA/JAXA (Hinode), ESA, Matt Hartman, Cory Pool and Alek O. Komarnitsky supplied the moving images. Watch the Video.

NEXT: Dance of Discovery

Ambient music by Jonn Serrie provides an atmospheric audio background for these images of space shuttle Discovery during mission STS-133, after the spacecraft undocked from the International Space Station. The flight marked the end of Discoverys life in space, and took place during Feb.-March 2011. Discoverys final flyaround of the ISS provided views of the Sahara Desert and the coasts of Africa and Europe. Watch the Video.

NEXT: Stars From Space Station

Music by London PM underscores captivating time-lapse imagery of stars as seen from the vantage point of the orbiting International Space Station. Auroras, airglow, lightning, clouds and electric lights also appear. Alex Rivest compiled the imagery. Star trails processed using StarStaX. Watch the Video.

NEXT: Rubber Chicken in Space

Internet celebrity Camilla Corona SDO flew to an altitude of 120,000 feet (about 36,500 meters) aboard a helium balloon with no protective gear other than a helmet and a knitted sweater, courtesy of the Members of the Earth to Sky student group at Bishop Union High School in Bishop, CA. Fortunately, Camilla suffered no ill effects, as she is a chicken made of rubber. Rock supergroup Chickenfoot appropriately supplied the music ("Up Next") for the video. The group includes members of Van Halen and Red Hot Chili Peppers. Watch the Video.

NEXT: Space Station Acrobatics

NASA astronaut Jeffrey Williams demonstrates flying and floating techniques of getting around the International Space Station in this music video featuring footage taken during the Expedition 13 mission in 2006. Watch the Video.

NEXT: Stunning Time-Lapse Video

Astrophotographer Randy Halverson created this time-lapse video of the night sky above the northern United States, entitled "Temporal Distortion. Bear McCreary, who composed the original score for the video, has written music for television shows "Battlestar Galactica," "The Walking Dead," and "Eureka." Stunning meteors, the cloudy Milky Way, and even rainbow-colored auroras shine in the video. Halverson said of the video, "It is the result of 20-30 second exposures edited together over many hours to produce the time-lapse. See the full story.

NEXT: The Beatles 'Back In The...ISS'?

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Best Space Music Videos Ever: A Rockin' Chart Countdown

Space Foundation Teacher Liaison Program Expands International Outreach

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COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (Jan. 30, 2014) -- The Space Foundation has selected 24 outstanding educators for its 2014 flight of Teacher Liaisons, including four educators in India and one in Australia. This expands the international reach of this elite program, and brings the total number of international Teacher Liaisons to six.

The educators were chosen for their active promotion of space and science education. The new Teacher Liaisons will serve as advocates for space-themed education, and will use Space Foundation-provided training and resources to further integrate space principles into the classroom.

The prestigious Space Foundation Teacher Liaison program has 300 active participants, including the 2014 flight. The teachers are selected by a panel comprising experienced Teacher Liaisons and representatives from the space industry and the military.

The 2014 Teacher Liaisons will be publicly recognized at the Space Foundation's 30th Space Symposium, which is being held May 19-22 at The Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs, Colo., USA. In addition to the recognition activities, Teacher Liaisons also participate in the Space Foundation's virtual distance delivery education programs.

The 2014 flight of Teacher Liaisons includes:

New South Wales, Australia Neil Bramsen, Mount Ousley Public School, Fairy Meadow

Maharashtra, India Megha Gupta, Vidya Valley School, Pune Monika Mishra, Vidya Valley School, Pune Arati Patil, Vidyanchal School, Pune Nalini Sengupta, Vidya Valley School, Pune

USA Colorado Amy DeLarm, Manitou Springs Elementary School, Manitou Springs Julie Devore, Skyview Middle School, Colorado Springs Becki Elms, Manitou Springs Elementary School, Manitou Springs Nancy Garman, Scott Elementary School, Colorado Springs Maureen Moore-Roth, STEM Ventures, Highlands Ranch Machin Norris, Highland Middle School, Ault Linda Retting, The Classical Academy-Central Campus, Colorado Springs Kristina Stem, Erie Elementary School, Erie

FloridaRossana Chiarella, Palm Springs North Elementary School, Hialeah Micheal P. Floyd Jr., James Buchanan Middle School, Tampa Barbara Gosney, St. Thomas Episcopal Parish School, Coral Gables Baretta Wilson, Stewart Middle Magnet School, Tampa

GeorgiaClare Swinford, Museum of Aviation Foundation National STEM Academy, Warner Robins

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Space Foundation Teacher Liaison Program Expands International Outreach

Star Citizen – The Best Space Sim Game 2014 | Space flight simulator Space Combat Wing commander – Video

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Star Citizen - The Best Space Sim Game 2014 | Space flight simulator Space Combat Wing commander
Just can #39;t wait for this game to be playable! All ready want to get out there and blow things up and Raid pirates or be a pirate! Make my own Empire! Shit i ...

By: MadB3haviour

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Star Citizen - The Best Space Sim Game 2014 | Space flight simulator Space Combat Wing commander - Video

NASA’s Space Launch System Sound Suppression Testing Ramps Up

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January 29, 2014

Image Caption: A 5-percent scale model of the Space Launch System (SLS) is ignited for five seconds to measure the effect acoustic noise and pressure have on the vehicle at liftoff. Credit: NASA/MSFC/David Olive

NASA

The first round of acoustic tests on a scale model of NASAs Space Launch System (SLS) is underway. The tests will allow engineers to verify the design of the sound suppression system being developed for the agencys new deep space rocket.

The testing, which began Jan. 16 at NASAs Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., will focus on how low- and high-frequency sound waves affect the rocket on the launch pad. This testing will provide critical data about how the powerful noise generated by the engines and boosters may affect the rocket and crew, especially during liftoff.

We can verify the launch environments the SLS vehicle was designed around and determine the effectiveness of the sound suppression systems, said Doug Counter, technical lead for the acoustic testing. Scale model testing on the space shuttle was very comparable to what actually happened to the vehicle at liftoff. Thats why we do the scale test.

During the tests, a 5-percent scale model of the SLS is ignited for five seconds at a time while microphones, located on the vehicle and similarly scaled mobile launcher, tower and exhaust duct, collect acoustic data. A thrust plate, side restraints and cables keep the model secure.

Engineers are running many of the evaluations with a system known as rainbirds, huge water nozzles on the mobile launcher at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. During launch, a peak flow rate of 450,000 gallons of water per minute will be released from five rainbirds just seconds before booster ignition. Water is the main component of the sound suppression system because it helps protect the launch vehicle and its payload from damage caused by acoustical energy. SLS with NASAs new Orion spacecraft on top will be launched from Kennedy on deep space missions to destinations such as an asteroid and Mars.

A series of acoustics tests also is taking place at the University of Texas at Austin. Engineers are evaluating the strong sounds and vibrations that occur during the ignition process for the RS-25 engines that will power SLS.

[ Watch The Video: Space Launch System Acoustic Testing ]

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NASA's Space Launch System Sound Suppression Testing Ramps Up

Marshall Team Members to Celebrate Completion of Flight Hardware for Orion’s First Mission

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What/Who: On Jan. 30, team members at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., will celebrate the completion of the adapter that will connect NASA's new Orion spacecraft to a Delta IV rocket for Orion's first mission in September. News media are invited to attend.

David Beaman, NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) Spacecraft Payload Integration manager; John Casper, Orion Special Assistant for Program Integration and former astronaut; and Larry Gagliano, Marshall's deputy project manager for the Orion Launch Abort System, will be available for interviews.

During Orion's first mission, called Exploration Flight Test-1, the spacecraft will travel to an altitude of approximately 3,600 miles above Earth's surface before re-entering the atmosphere traveling approximately 20,000 mph at temperatures above 4,000 degree Fahrenheit. The uncrewed flight will provide engineers with important data about Orion's heat shield and other elements, including the adapter's performance before it is flown in 2017 as part of the first SLS mission.

The completed adapter flight hardware will be shipped in mid-March from Marshall to United Launch Alliance's (ULA) facility in Decatur, Ala. ULA is constructing the Delta IV rocket for EFT-1. From there, it will travel by ship to Cape Canaveral in Florida ahead of Orion's mission.

Marshall team members have also fabricated over 100 pieces of Orion flight hardware, conducted several tests in Marshall labs of Orion's primary structure and Launch Abort System thermal protection material.

When: 1 p.m., Thursday, Jan. 30

NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, Building 4708

To attend: News media interested in attending should contact Kimberly Henry in Marshall's Public & Employee Communications Office at 256-544-0034 no later than 4 p.m. CST Wednesday, Jan. 29. Media interested in attending the employee event must report to the Redstone Arsenal Joint Visitor Control Center at Gate 9, Interstate 565 interchange at Rideout Road/Research Park Boulevard at 12:30pm.

Vehicles are subject to a security search at the gate. News media will need two photo identifications and proof of car insurance.

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Marshall Team Members to Celebrate Completion of Flight Hardware for Orion's First Mission

Space, the final frontier? Not for Chinese on Virgin Galactic

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By CNN Travel staff

updated 12:49 PM EST, Wed January 29, 2014

Sorry, thumbs down to a space flight if you're from the PRC.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

(CNN) -- Virgin Galactic, the space tourism company founded by British billionaire Richard Branson, has barred Chinese nationals from applying for spots on its first commercial flights.

Cashed-up People's Republic of China passport holders have reportedly been willing to pay the $260,000 fare for a spot on the inaugural Virgin Galactic space flight scheduled for later this year, but have been turned down in order to comply with United States anti-espionage laws, the South China Morning Post reports.

Rocket engines on the Virgin Galactic craft -- named SpaceShip Two and WhiteKnight Two -- are reportedly considered military grade technology under Cold War U.S. arms trafficking laws.

The legislation was designed to prevent foreign powers, such as China, from getting hold of U.S. military tech secrets.

"Both SpaceShipTwo and WhiteKnight Two are U.S. technology and are therefore subject to U.S. regulations," said Winnie Chan, a spokesperson for a Virgin Galactic accredited partner in Asia.

Chinese nationals with multiple passports or U.S. residency might be considered for a place on the space trips, Virgin Galactic said.

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Space, the final frontier? Not for Chinese on Virgin Galactic


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