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Llamadance
> Teenager of the Year <
United Kingdom
2543 Posts |
 Posted - 07/12/2005 : 23:22:41
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Later on today (13/7) the space shuttle Discovery takes off in the first shuttle mission since the Columbia disaster 2 years ago. The success of this mission has huge implications for the Shuttle's future (which is limited anyway I think) and for NASA itself.
I can still remember the first Shuttle launch, and watching it in my modern studies class at school. It was exciting then, and I still find it absorbing.
Do you find the launches exciting? Is space exploration essential? Should we be ploughing the money into problems on earth rather than the bottomless money pit that is NASA? Is private finance the way forward? What about space tourism - would you go if you could afford it?
There's more info here:
http://www.nasa.gov/returntoflight/main/index.html
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danjersey
> Teenager of the Year <
USA
2813 Posts |
Posted - 07/12/2005 : 23:30:25
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| i think that NASA's goals are a bit sandbox like in away. i give them credit for there bravery and effort but i just don't see the progress. we need to race across this night, put some distance between earth and astronaught and make contact quick. we could do with some perspective. |
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Llamadance
> Teenager of the Year <
United Kingdom
2543 Posts |
Posted - 07/12/2005 : 23:32:12
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Do you mean we need a clear goal, rather than "lets just try and understand the univese a bit more guys"?
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danjersey
> Teenager of the Year <
USA
2813 Posts |
Posted - 07/12/2005 : 23:36:29
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| no, i'm in a hurry, i want news from space, like: "we have passed through the black hole and are now reporting from the other side" i want distance. |
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Llamadance
> Teenager of the Year <
United Kingdom
2543 Posts |
Posted - 07/12/2005 : 23:59:15
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ah, rather than this plain old solar system, you want pictures of Sirius A,B & C. You want encounters with new life, new civilizations ;). You want colonization of far flung planets with three moons and 20 year winters.
Yeah, me too. I think we'll need a significant breakthrough to enable deep space travel to get that though.
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danjersey
> Teenager of the Year <
USA
2813 Posts |
Posted - 07/13/2005 : 00:25:14
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| i'm not sure we have to even leave the planet, we may be capable in our own minds to see where and when we are existing without sight or gravity. |
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Homers_pet_monkey
= Official forum monkey =
United Kingdom
17125 Posts |
Posted - 07/13/2005 : 06:28:09
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Well we may as well continue throwing money at it so that we can find another planet to destroy.
Don't believe the type!
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zub_the_goat
= Cult of Ray =
United Kingdom
639 Posts |
Posted - 07/13/2005 : 07:34:28
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| i saw a space shutle launch once, its amazing looking at the moon and knowing man has walked on it, i guess its less exiting when robots do it, because its all on screens and there is so much enormity it makes it hard to connect personally with whats going on as far as im concerened |
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tobafett
* Dog in the Sand *
USA
1713 Posts |
Posted - 07/13/2005 : 09:41:16
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did you really see a launch zub? which one and when? i saw one back in 98...it was AMAZING!!! we were close and was just something to behold.
space exploration is a noble effort and well worth the time and money (which is NOT alot--money wise). the nasa budget, according to the 'net, has been shrinking since the 80s and they still continue to do amazing things. esa (the euro. space agency) is very active and it looks like the chinese may be exploring more and more (only the third autonomous country to launch a human into space).
danjersey--until the propulsion system is there to breach the ENORMOUS distances 'tween here and there, it is going to be a slow slow slow process...
homers--right on! when we're finished with this one, we'd better have somewhere else to move, huh? :)
i'll be in front of a tv somewhere watching this shuttle launch today. it's exciting when you think about how commonplace it is for folks to leave our planet (do you know how many people have flown in space to date?--it's a tiny tiny tiny almost non-existent percentage of any country's population) and fall around it for awhile...and the fact that folks have been living and working aboard the space station continually for almost six years! it's amazing!
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Carl
- A 'Fifth' Catholic -
Ireland
11546 Posts |
Posted - 07/13/2005 : 10:43:33
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| You two have seen shuttle launches? How cool is that!! I hope they run into aliens on this mission! It COULD happen!! Don't laugh! :D |
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Llamadance
> Teenager of the Year <
United Kingdom
2543 Posts |
Posted - 07/13/2005 : 12:48:00
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zub and tobafett, that's fantastic that you got to see shuttle launches. I imagine it would be an amazing sight.
Homers - you old cynic you. You're right though, as soon as we set up a base on the moon, we'll start mining it. I guess the only hope is that by the time we colonize another planet we'll have learned enough lessons not to repeat our mistakes.
It could be that the only hope for mankind is to colonize. If I had the cash, I'd be a space tourist in a heartbeat.
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TRANSMARINE
* Dog in the Sand *
USA
2002 Posts |
Posted - 07/13/2005 : 12:51:36
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Shuttle launch was cancelled today do to faulty fuel sensor. Also, a metal and rubber casing has fallen off of the cockpit exterior (!) damaging two tiles! Jesus, this thing is falling apart just sitting on the launch pad! I think it's time to retire these near-30 year old shuttles and draw up some new designs.
I was alone...in my BIG BED
-bRIAN |
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mosleyk
= Cult of Ray =
USA
607 Posts |
Posted - 07/13/2005 : 12:53:49
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You completely beat me to the post. Just read it on CNN.
This shuttle must of gone through tons of inspections before today, and I can't believe they just found this.
Well....at least they didn't blast off. |
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TRANSMARINE
* Dog in the Sand *
USA
2002 Posts |
Posted - 07/13/2005 : 13:02:35
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quote:
Originally posted by mosleyk
Well....at least they didn't blast off.
Would have been one helluva fireworks show! Little late for the 4th of July.
I was alone...in my BIG BED
-bRIAN |
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Llamadance
> Teenager of the Year <
United Kingdom
2543 Posts |
Posted - 07/13/2005 : 13:11:01
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Cheers guys. I guess they have to be ultra-cautious, but you would have thought this would have been spotted beforehand. The astronauts were all strapped in as well.
They have to launch before the end of July, or postpone until September.
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No power in the 'verse can stop me
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mosleyk
= Cult of Ray =
USA
607 Posts |
Posted - 07/13/2005 : 13:12:54
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| The last thing they want is another disaster...I bet they postpone until September. |
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Llamadance
> Teenager of the Year <
United Kingdom
2543 Posts |
Posted - 07/13/2005 : 13:15:32
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yeah, if anything disastrous went wrong with Discovery, that would be the end of the space shuttle. It would also be very difficult to get funds to develop/build a replacement I'd imagine.
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mosleyk
= Cult of Ray =
USA
607 Posts |
Posted - 07/13/2005 : 13:19:42
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| It is strange....I still remember sitting in my 8th grade classroom and watching the Challenger turn into a ball of fire, and all of us speechless. |
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TRANSMARINE
* Dog in the Sand *
USA
2002 Posts |
Posted - 07/13/2005 : 13:44:47
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Me too. I was in 9th grade...it was second period, 8:40AM approx, when the school principal announced it over the speaker system. It was so shocking, I remember all I could do was laugh. I didn't think it was funniest in the least, but that was my initial reaction of shock. (I had the same reaction when our mom ran over our dog one year.) The nation was glued to the tv for days...it seemed to be the biggest disaster in our country since Kennedy was assasinated. (Although Michael Cimino's HEAVEN'S GATE comes in at a close second.)
When the Columbia fried on re-entry a couple years back, it was just as odd because it wasn't odd. That disaster was a great measuring tool by helping us see just how cynical and jaded America had become in 16 years. We've faced so much tragedy in such a small amount of time (September 11th, George W. Bush, Corey Haim's E! True Hollywood Story ) that it nearly takes more than exploding spacecraft to even phase us.
Anyhow, I feel somewhat bad for stating earlier likening Discovery to a potential firework extravaganza. I'm glad they didn't launch, and chances are had it launched with these minor problems, everything probably would have been fine anyhow. BUT...they need to retire these shuttles. It's becoming the "will it or wont it?" question regarding it's fate now, and as far as I'm concerned, that's fall-out thinking spurred on by the spirit-draining conditioning of reality television.
I was alone...in my BIG BED
-bRIAN |
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tobafett
* Dog in the Sand *
USA
1713 Posts |
Posted - 07/13/2005 : 19:19:58
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fyi...
liftoff resched. for Sat. 16 July at 240 EST. (gmt -5 for you UKers and Euros...)
will launch no sooner than that time...
there were concerns about the weather for today's launch--had it looked bad, they would have resched. for tomorrow, thursday. let's hope they light that candle on Sat!
by the way, Transmarine--the fact that the destruction of Columbia did shake up America surprised me. These people knew the risks, climbed aboard a helluva big bomb, rode around the planet doing science stuff (which we got most of the results from, by the way), and died on re-entry. More space explosions/implosions, lethal impacts, etc will occur as long as space travel goes on...fact of the game. it's a rule...go with it. we learn from those lessons and move on to greater heights, etc...
there, off my soap box.
go discovery! on saturday!!
[edit] thanks Transmarine...fixed that big error! |
Edited by - tobafett on 07/14/2005 16:25:33 |
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TRANSMARINE
* Dog in the Sand *
USA
2002 Posts |
Posted - 07/14/2005 : 08:15:35
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quote:
Originally posted by tobafett
--the fact that the destruction of Discovery did shake up America surprised me...More space explosions/implosions, lethal impacts, etc will occur as long as space travel goes on...fact of the game. it's a rule...go with it. we learn from those lessons and move on to greater heights, etc...
Wassup, Toba?
Just wanted to clear up that it was Columbia that perished last time, not Discovery. And I agree that mishaps will and should occur...it's a learning process of progression...so let's progress! My qualms are that these mishaps are happening practically during countdown. These vehicles are outdated and becoming unstable. Let's decommision these things and evolve.
I was alone...in my BIG BED
-bRIAN |
Edited by - TRANSMARINE on 07/14/2005 13:06:12 |
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TRANSMARINE
* Dog in the Sand *
USA
2002 Posts |
Posted - 07/21/2005 : 12:46:47
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Shuttle has been officially scheduled to launch Tuesday, July 26 at 10:39 AM. They still have not been able to isolate the problem of the faulty fuel sensor. Scientists at NASA have concluded that there is nothing more that can be investigated, so they are going to start the countdown early Tuesday morning. If the warning light acts up again, they are going to ignore it and continue with the launch. I'm glad I'm not on that flight.
I was alone...in my BIG BED
-bRIAN |
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Homers_pet_monkey
= Official forum monkey =
United Kingdom
17125 Posts |
Posted - 07/25/2005 : 09:19:22
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quote:
Originally posted by tobafett
homers--right on! when we're finished with this one, we'd better have somewhere else to move, huh? :)
You can see where they get the inspiration for these alien invasion films from can't you?
Don't believe the type!
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tobafett
* Dog in the Sand *
USA
1713 Posts |
Posted - 07/28/2005 : 19:21:43
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| IT'S UP THERE!!! YEA!!! |
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Carl
- A 'Fifth' Catholic -
Ireland
11546 Posts |
Posted - 07/28/2005 : 19:34:47
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| Indeed. Happy trails. Safe home, now! |
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Cult_Of_Frank
= Black Noise Maker =
Canada
11690 Posts |
Posted - 08/01/2005 : 04:22:04
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What we need is for one of the following:
a) Military action in space.
b) Colonization in space.
Obviously I favour b, but without some sort of activity going on in space, people will continue to see NASA's research and experimentation as fruitless/sandbox, and it will be underfunded. Set up a colony on the moon or Mars, however, and suddenly there is demand for faster transport, more effecient fuels, private spacecraft, etc. Military action I don't even want to imagine in space, but sadly this has been a driving force for technology, particularly in the last century. I think it's an obsolete way of thinking, though, many of the great discoveries were from curious people trying to understand or explain things as opposed to blowing things up.
Anyway, let's get some more stuff going on in space. Then the demand will be from more than just a curiosity standpoint...
 "Join the Cult of Frank / And you'll be enlightened" |
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Monsieur
* Dog in the Sand *
France
1688 Posts |
Posted - 08/01/2005 : 04:37:28
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After colonization of space there will be some space wars...
I will show you fear in a handful of dust |
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Homers_pet_monkey
= Official forum monkey =
United Kingdom
17125 Posts |
Posted - 08/01/2005 : 06:37:40
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You mean Star Wars.
Don't believe the type!
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Superabounder
* Dog in the Sand *
USA
1049 Posts |
Posted - 08/01/2005 : 20:11:14
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We watched the launch at work-about 10 of us, and it was just as fascinating as watching the first one with my dad. I especially liked the new cameras they had, especially the one on the fuel tank looking backward. Pretty interesting seeing the shuttle detach and drift away from the camera. Also, seeing the shuttle accelerate to 17,500 mph in like 10 minutes was awesome. It amazes me that there were so many trouble-free launches and re-entries with the exception of the Challenger and Columbia disasters.
Columbia blew up over Dallas where I live, and everyone heard the rumbling explosion on the ground, but I had just walked into a basketball gym one minute before it came over us and missed it. My mom thought a branch had fallen on her roof until she realized that it was the shuttle as CNN started wondering why the shuttle hadn't reached Florida.
Another interesting sight was driving to work in the pre-dawn hours as the shuttle came over Texas on it's way to an early morning landing about 10 years ago and seeing the glowing reddish trail in the sky as I drove down the highway and realized what it was.
How loud were the launches that you guys saw? I would love to see one in person, though doesn't seem like there will be too many, if any more chances.
Pretty interesting that they are going to do a spacewalk repair to cut off the fabric sticking out between some of the tiles on the belly of the shuttle.
All of the true things I am about to tell you are shameless lies |
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tobafett
* Dog in the Sand *
USA
1713 Posts |
Posted - 08/01/2005 : 21:07:21
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Loud, supe. LOUD.
you feel it deep deep down...a wall of noise that shakes the specially-fitted glass in the nearby building ten feet behind me (glass that is engineered to shake in its frame). you can feel the heat on your face...much warmer than the florida sun on your neck or the pervasive humidity.
we're back in the van 10 minutes after the candle is lit. revelling in the miracle of forced air conditioning in automobiles.
it's a wonderful and inspiring sight...go if you can. you will not forget it.
oh, and something like 400 people stopped by the nasa booth at the airshow i attended last week to watch the launch...it was really rad. they cheered multiple times (T-9 minutes, main engine start, liftoff, srb sep, main tank sep). it was electric in there!
hopefully they can get the filler prob. worked out and get home safely. |
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Ziggy
* Dog in the Sand *
United Kingdom
2491 Posts |
Posted - 08/02/2005 : 01:17:48
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| The Shuttle replacements should be equally impressive... they're using the same kit, boosters, fuel tank and everything. |
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Joey Joe Jo Jr. Chabadoo
* Dog in the Sand *
1091 Posts |
Posted - 08/02/2005 : 02:37:28
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Earth is a space shuttle.
**** |
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Llamadance
> Teenager of the Year <
United Kingdom
2543 Posts |
Posted - 08/03/2005 : 02:18:26
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Amazingly enough, the spacewalk for the repairs to the Shuttle is streaming live here:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/4740651.stm#
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No power in the 'verse can stop me
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tobafett
* Dog in the Sand *
USA
1713 Posts |
Posted - 08/07/2005 : 21:53:52
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| landing in a few hours... |
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Llamadance
> Teenager of the Year <
United Kingdom
2543 Posts |
Posted - 08/07/2005 : 23:55:29
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yeah, due to land in about an hour. The BBC have a live feed again. I guess NASA do too. Fingers crossed.
Haha, just on the news, their wake up call to prepare for the descent was "Come On Eileen"
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No power in the 'verse can stop me
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tobafett
* Dog in the Sand *
USA
1713 Posts |
Posted - 08/08/2005 : 04:42:32
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| we'll try again Tues. |
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The Shuttle and Space Exploration
