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| | | :: Friday, May 28, 2004 :: |
Robot Dancing!
  What everyone needs for their computer: Dave and Anime Dave icons! Make your own at this site.
Space Monkey Mafia
 On this date in 1959, space monkeys Able and Baker become the first living creatures to travel into space and return safely to Earth, on a fifteen minute suborbital flight in the nose cone of a Jupiter missile. Able died later as a result of surgery to remove the electrodes implanted in his body for the flight, while Miss Baker lived for many years afterwards (I got to see her as a child) and is now buried in front of the U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, where tribute-payers oft leave bananas atop her memorial.
Unofficial Spaceflight?
 Per HobbySpace:
... John Carmack (of Armadillo Aerospace) posted a note on the aRocket forum that he expects that before Scaled tries an official X PRIZE flight, they will "will fly a single passenger without ballast for the other two first, which will give them the "first commercial astronaut" glory, and let them know if they actually have the performance to add the extra 400 pounds for the X-Prize flights after that."...
If this were the case, Scaled would presumably be exempt from the 60 day advance notice requirement to publicly announce any upcoming attempts at winning the prize for such a flight. The 60-day requirement means that such prime dates as the Fourth of July or the July 20 Apollo 11 anniversary are already out of the question for a prize attempt, but such dates could presumably still be used for a non-prize flight. Scaled has thus far prefered to make no previous announcements of upcoming flights, and this would also allow them, if they were so included, to make their first spaceflight with no previous announcement.
Space Walkin' Bill
 Per James Oberg:
After the malfunctions of two of the three U.S. spacesuits aboard the international space station, a critical spacewalk to repair a broken stabilization system must now be made next month using Russian spacesuits. But the Russian willingness to step in and bail out NASA’s spacewalk comes at a price, outlined in documents obtained by MSNBC.com.
Writers Are Doing It For Themselves
 The Hitchiker's Guide movie blog has posted the screenwriter's interview with himself.
Staring At The Sun
 I wrote a while back questioning why Venus' upcoming transit of the Sun is such a big deal if you can't see it. Science@NASA has an answer--'cause it was relevant 236 years ago. Well, almost.
| | | :: Thursday, May 27, 2004 :: |
This Week At NE
 This week at NASAexplores, I've got one article about Project Prometheus, NASA's nuclear-spacecraft-power initiative (which will be used for the JIMO mission I talk about below), and another article about the T-38 trainer jet which the astronaut corps uses for flying around the country.
Godspeed, Han Solo on ISS
 Per collectSPACE (and taken from other sites):
Harrison Ford will be going back into outer space for Godspeed, an upcoming SF thriller under the guidance of James Cameron's Lightstorm Entertainment, Variety reported. ... Godspeed takes place on an international space station, where a life-threatening situation develops that could kill all the inhabitants on board, Variety reported. The film is scheduled to begin production in the fall.
...All These Worlds...
 NASA has released more design requirements for the Project-Prometheus-powered JIMO mission to the Jovian system, which was delayed following the announcement of the Vision for Space Exploration. We've got a long time to wait, but this is probably the unmanned mission that I find most cool.
On This Date In History...
 I graduated from Huntsville High School.
Also, in 1999, Discovery launched on the STS-96 mission, the first to dock with the International Space Station.
To Worlds Beyond
 Here's what Marshall Space Flight Center Director Dave King has to say about the Vision for Space Exploration:
... Now we will resume our journey beyond Earth, and in the years to come will take greater strides than ever before. Now we embark on a journey of discovery to distant worlds - one that promises to increase our knowledge, ignite our imaginations and make our spirits soar.
| | | :: Wednesday, May 26, 2004 :: |
New Poll
 I've set up a new poll, just to satisfy my own curiousity.
Apollo 13 and The Right Stuff won my poll for favorite realistic space movie with 44 percent of the vote each, and Marooned took the remaining votes. Space Camp and Space Cowboys claimed a grand total of no votes.
Also, I made a few changes to the sidebar, adding some lagniappe links, but moving them out of the way.
Mac Lover
 The Mac Is A Harsh Mistress:
Microsoft, ladies and gentlemen, is a cheap whore. She lives on the fringes of the law, but there’s no getting rid of her because she fulfils a certain need in our society. People want what she is selling. ...
Apple is a lover.
The Greats
 I considered stealing this meme from BeaucoupKevin, as I have several others in the past, but then realized that his was so much better than anything I was going to do, and made the sensible decision to just link to it instead. Also, I don't know if it really qualifies as a meme. To be honest, I don't even know what that word means, I just know it when I see it. Unless, as in this case, I don't.
Prize Winning Models
 OK, this is cool. Model rocket kit manufacturer Estes is preparing to release model rockets based on X Prize contenders, and will be producing die-cast models of them as well. Just what the Dave space room needs!
Of course, if you just have to have some X Prize gear now and can't wait for the really cool stuff, the Cafepress X Prize shop is now open.
Summer Space Showdown
Per UPI's Frank Sietzen:
A political showdown is looming this summer and fall over NASA's fiscal year 2005 budget request, which contains $866 million in new funding.
Some $136 million of the proposed boost is earmarked to start President George W. Bush's new space exploration proposals. Neither house of Congress has acted on the plan yet, and though work has started on a bill to authorize both multi-year funding and a rationale for space exploration, most Hill staffers involved in the issue expect the authorization legislation to be left behind in the congressional rush to adjourn for the fall campaign.
| | | :: Tuesday, May 25, 2004 :: |
Coming Soon...
Smashing Review
 Hulk Hands--You Know They're The One!
Smells Like Jewel Spirit
 "Fat girl... fat girl... she hates you... 'cause she's weird crazy Jewel."
Witnesses said Jewel went on a tirade of insults from poking fun at fat people to others with no teeth. ... Jewel was on stage for about an hour and played only four to five songs. Halfway through the show, Dion said Jewel began to talk about Zoloft and Paxil for about 10 minutes.
Also Today In History
 The first manned crew of Skylab was launched on May 25, 1973, having been delayed until 11 days after the launch of the workshop to allow time for solutions to be found to the problems which occurred during the SL-1 launch. The crew was led by Charles "Pete" Conrad, who had previously flown two successful Gemini missions and was the commander of Apollo 12, scientist-astronaut flight surgeon Joe Kerwin, and Paul Weitz - all United States Navy pilots.
It would be the job of the first crew to prove that the Skylab program of living and working in space was not only feasible, but manageable. Before that could be done, however, a more pressing task awaited them--completing the task of saving the crippled station.
When they reached Skylab, the three astronauts found that one of the workshop's solar panels was completely gone and the other was only partially deployed, held down by a strap which was a remnant of the destroyed micrometeoroid shield. The crew tried to free the panel by performing a "standup" extravehicular activity from the command module's hatch but met with a frustrating lack of success. Then they were unable to hard dock with Skylab. Without a successful docking, the crew would have to return home, abandoning Skylab as a complete failure. However, the resourceful crew tried another technique, never practiced but mentioned once in training. They suited up, depressurized the CSM once again and removed the "probe" which normally guides the CSM into the "drogue" for docking. After removal, then Conrad drove the latching mechanism straight into the drogue and 11 of the 12 latches correctly actuated! The 12th was performed manually and the Skylab repairs were ready to begin.
By the time this was accomplished, the crew had put in an arduous 22 hour day. The following day, having spent the night in the docked command module, they entered the overheated Skylab, finding it uncomfortably hot. They pushed the "parasol" through the scientific airlock and it unfurled outside the station. Almost immediately, temperatures inside the station started dropping. The internal temperatures stabilized and the astronauts began the work they had come to do.
NASA officials believed that overcoming Skylab's adversities demonstrated the benefits of having humans in space. The mission also highlighted the importance of making allowances for unforeseen problems and being prepared for in-flight troubleshooting.
Today In History
 On this date in 1961, only 19 days after Alan Shepard became the first American in space, President John F. Kennedy issued a bold challenge to Congress, building on the nation's 15 minutes of spaceflight experience: to land a man on the Moon in less than 9 years, and return him safely home.
Mr. Speaker, Mr. Vice President, my copartners in Government, gentlemen-and ladies:
The Constitution imposes upon me the obligation to "from time to time give to the Congress information of the State of the Union." While this has traditionally been interpreted as an annual affair, this tradition has been broken in extraordinary times.
These are extraordinary times. And we face an extraordinary challenge. Our strength as well as our convictions have imposed upon this nation the role of leader in freedom's cause.
No role in history could be more difficult or more important. We stand for freedom.
...
Finally, if we are to win the battle that is now going on around the world between freedom and tyranny, the dramatic achievements in space which occurred in recent weeks should have made clear to us all, as did the Sputnik in 1957, the impact of this adventure on the minds of men everywhere, who are attempting to make a determination of which road they should take. Since early in my term, our efforts in space have been under review. With the advice of the Vice President, who is Chairman of the National Space Council, we have examined where we are strong and where we are not, where we may succeed and where we may not. Now it is time to take longer strides--time for a great new American enterprise--time for this nation to take a clearly leading role in space achievement, which in many ways may hold the key to our future on earth.
I believe we possess all the resources and talents necessary. But the facts of the matter are that we have never made the national decisions or marshalled the national resources required for such leadership. We have never specified long-range goals on an urgent time schedule, or managed our resources and our time so as to insure their fulfillment.
Recognizing the head start obtained by the Soviets with their large rocket engines, which gives them many months of leadtime, and recognizing the likelihood that they will exploit this lead for some time to come in still more impressive successes, we nevertheless are required to make new efforts on our own. For while we cannot guarantee that we shall one day be first, we can guarantee that any failure to make this effort will make us last. We take an additional risk by making it in full view of the world, but as shown by the feat of astronaut Shepard, this very risk enhances our stature when we are successful. But this is not merely a race. Space is open to us now; and our eagerness to share its meaning is not governed by the efforts of others. We go into space because whatever mankind must undertake, free men must fully share.
I therefore ask the Congress, above and beyond the increases I have earlier requested for space activities, to provide the funds which are needed to meet the following national goals:
First, I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to the earth. No single space project in this period will be more impressive to mankind, or more important for the long-range exploration of space; and none will be so difficult or expensive to accomplish. We propose to accelerate the development of the appropriate lunar space craft. We propose to develop alternate liquid and solid fuel boosters, much larger than any now being developed, until certain which is superior. We propose additional funds for other engine development and for unmanned explorations--explorations which are particularly important for one purpose which this nation will never overlook: the survival of the man who first makes this daring flight. But in a very real sense, it will not be one man going to the moon--if we make this judgment affirmatively, it will be an entire nation. For all of us must work to put him there.
Secondly, an additional 23 million dollars, together with 7 million dollars already available, will accelerate development of the Rover nuclear rocket. This gives promise of some day providing a means for even more exciting and ambitious exploration of space, perhaps beyond the moon, perhaps to the very end of the solar system itself.
Third, an additional 50 million dollars will make the most of our present leadership, by accelerating the use of space satellites for world-wide communications.
Fourth, an additional 75 million dollars--of which 53 million dollars is for the Weather Bureau--will help give us at the earliest possible time a satellite system for world-wide weather observation.
Let it be clear--and this is a judgment which the Members of the Congress must finally make--let it be clear that I am asking the Congress and the country to accept a firm commitment to a new course of action, a course which will last for many years and carry very heavy costs: 531 million dollars in fiscal '62--an estimated seven to nine billion dollars additional over the next five years. If we are to go only half way, or reduce our sights in the face of difficulty, in my judgment it would be better not to go at all.
Now this is a choice which this country must make, and I am confident that under the leadership of the Space Committees of the Congress, and the Appropriating Committees, that you will consider the matter carefully.
It is a most important decision that we make as a nation. But all of you have lived through the last four years and have seen the significance of space and the adventures in space, and no one can predict with certainty what the ultimate meaning will be of mastery of space.
I believe we should go to the moon. But I think every citizen of this country as well as the Members of the Congress should consider the matter carefully in making their judgment, to which we have given attention over many weeks and months, because it is a heavy burden, and there is no sense in agreeing or desiring that the United States take an affirmative position in outer space, unless we are prepared to do the work and bear the burdens to make it successful. If we are not, we should decide today and this year.
This decision demands a major national commitment of scientific and technical manpower, materiel and facilities, and the possibility of their diversion from other important activities where they are already thinly spread. It means a degree of dedication, organization and discipline which have not always characterized our research and development efforts. It means we cannot afford undue work stoppages, inflated costs of material or talent, wasteful interagency rivalries, or a high turnover of key personnel.
New objectives and new money cannot solve these problems. They could in fact, aggravate them further--unless every scientist, every engineer, every serviceman, every technician, contractor, and civil servant gives his personal pledge that this nation will move forward, with the full speed of freedom, in the exciting adventure of space.
GO To Orbit Sooner
 Space tourist Greg Olsen may be making his flight to ISS sooner than planned, according to Cosmic Log. Initial announcements were that Olsen would likely fly in April 2005, but there's now discussion that an ESA astronaut might be bumped from the October 2004 Soyuz flight in favor of Olsen for financial reasons.
Space Armadillo
 I've posted quite a bit lately about SpaceShipOne and its progress toward winning the X Prize, but here's a story about one of the other contenders. Armadillo Aerospace is preparing to begin flight tests of its Black Armadillo spacecraft.
Universal Measurements
 How big is everything? Well, scientists have measured the entire universe, and it turns out the universe is at least 156 billion light-years wide. Which means that in some 13.7 billion years the universe has been around, the stuff at the edge has become some 78 billion light years from where it started. Meaning that it's an average of well over 5 light years per year from where it started. So if light travels, by definition, one light year per year, and the stuff of the universe travels five, then... it's... moving... faster than light? But...
But, you see, silly, it's not, 'cause the universe is expanding.
I'd explain better, but at this point it starts involving science. Or at least so they pretend.
Orlan EVA
Due to problems with the American EMU spacesuits on ISS, the Expedition 9 crew will use Russian Orlan suits for an EVA next month to replace a failed electronics box on the Station's exterior. The change will mean exiting the Station through a different airlock and translating further to the worksite.
| | | :: Monday, May 24, 2004 :: |
Old School
 Per O'Reilly:
The Atari 2600 homebrew community is the largest among groups who develop original games for classic video game consoles.
Notorious KITT
 Per Ananova:
Ice-T is to produce David Hasselhoff's first hip-hop album.
The pair are neighbours in Los Angeles and are said to have struck up a close friendship.
Hasselhoff has had some success as a singer, releasing seven albums. He's also said to be very popular in Germany.
Ice-T, who was one of the first real hip-hop stars in the late 1980s, said: "The man is a legend. And we are going to show a whole new side of him."
The rapper is said to be convinced that the 51-year-old for Knight Rider and Baywatch actor can take on the biggest names in rap, reports The Sun.
Ministry Of Space
 British scientists are urging their government to reconsider its ban on human spaceflight. Only one person has ever flown into space as a British citizen, and that was without government involvement. Others, such as Expedition 8 commander Mike Foale, have become U.S. citizens in order to become NASA astronauts.
Spaceport California
The Mojave Airport is anticipated to soon become certified as the first inland nonfederal spaceport, able to serve private spaceflight.
Bad Dog!
 Despite its failure, the European Beagle 2 Mars lander has been painted by some as a success, to the fact that it actually made it to Mars for incredibly low cost, and plans have even been discussed for future Beagle-based Mars missions, possibly to feature a multitude of landers to be dropped on the planet. That may change, though, with the results of an ESA investigation which found that the Beagle mission was a failure waiting to happen.
Stories About Supernothing
 Look, on the Web! It's the newest Adventure of Seinfeld and Superman.
Smith Burns Atlanta
 Per Newsaskew:
Don't expect Kevin Smith to visit Atlanta anytime soon. The director is still steaming over how some folks in the Georgia capital criticized his movie "Jersey Girl." "When I was there, I did a radio show where the crew was all kiss-***y, and then slammed the flick when I left town. So lame," Smith wrote on his Web site. "Their excuse was that they can't get confrontational with guests, lest publicists refuse to bring cool guests in anymore. How corporate and safe is that? Particularly for the typical zoo-crew that insists they're cutting edge and counter-culture?" Smith was so irate about one Atlanta review that he called the critic a name we can't repeat here, but it has to do with someone in the world's oldest profession smoking crack. "So right about now, I've got about as much love for Atlanta as it's [sic] patron saint, Ted Turner, has for his ex-wife, Jane Fonda."
Revisionist Future History
 On Sept. 14, Lucas will be releasing his first film, THX 1138, to DVD. But, this being Lucas, it's going, of course, to be "The Director's Cut" of the film. Apparently Lucas' original vision included using CGI effects that didn't exist yet, but the studio wouldn't let him.
Lucas has got to be just a few years away from a doddering retirement of "editing" all his old family photos with scissors and crayons to recreate his life the way he thinks it should be.
| | | :: Friday, May 21, 2004 :: |
One Civic Duty For Man
 Per The Cincinnati Post:
The commander of Apollo 11 became just one of 12 Thursday.
Indian Hill resident Neil Armstrong, who became the first man on the moon during his historic 1969 space flight and lunar landing, was empanelled Friday to serve as one of 12 jurors to decide if Frederick Davis is guilty of theft.
The Big Question
Can Episode III be saved?
RTF Update
 Per The New York Times:
The difficulty of developing an in-flight inspection and repair system may force NASA to consider alternative approaches if it wants to resume flying the space shuttle next spring, an oversight group said Wednesday. ...
Among the possible alternatives:
Since all planned shuttle missions are to the International Space Station, alternatives to boom inspection include having astronauts making spacewalks for close-up looks at the shuttle and readying the station to serve as a lifeboat for the crew of a damaged shuttle that cannot be repaired.
In other words, it sounds like Loss Of Vehicle is being considered as an acceptable alternative. To be sure, thermal-protection-related LOV has occured only once in 113 flights, so it's not something that's likely to happen again in the future. Accepting this as an alternative is probably based somewhat on the assumption that it's probably safe to fly a few missions without a repair technique, since the odds are way against you needing it. And, if you do, you have a contingency that prevents loss of crew. Still, it's interesting to see that we've reached a point in the program where LOV is considered an acceptable possibility. And, that's not all bad--it means the agency is reaching the point of throwing its cap over the wall for moving beyond the Shuttle program.
In The House
If I'm reading this correctly, the Senate is recommending that the House approve NASA's budget request including funding for the Vision.
Addendum: Per Florida Today:
Congress is poised to give NASA all the money it asked for in 2005, including funding to start work on human missions to the moon and Mars. ...
Indeed, a deal reached earlier this week by House and Senate negotiators would give NASA the entire $16.2 billion that President Bush requested.
The committee that worked out the budget compromise wrote a report endorsing the Bush space plan, saying the budget gives "sufficient funding to initiate the process."
Futures Past
 For those who like their OS a little retro, different sites have posted online Flash versions of Macintosh System 6 and System 7 (in varying degrees of French and German, respectively).
Memento Mori
 Per NASA:
The first pieces of Space Shuttle Columbia debris loaned to a non-governmental agency for testing and research are on their way from NASA's Kennedy Space Center (KSC), Fla., to The Aerospace Corporation in El Segundo, Calif.
Pulpit Fiction
 Thought Lain might be interested in this:
"There's a wild one-shot coming out in August called Tales from the Bully Pulpit, that I'm really looking forward to," Image's B. Clay Moore told Newsarama. "It's pretty off the wall, to say the least. Basically, it's Teddy Roosevelt and the ghost of Thomas Edison with a time machine, defending the universe."
Creator and writer Benito Cereno described the book to Moore, who in turn shared this bit of info with Newsarama. "Tales from the Bully Pulpit is a hearkening back to a time in which your job could be "explorer," science didn't have to be about anything specific, and people were still excited at the concept of the unknown. It's about two such explorers, one an adventuring hero and policeman of the world, the other an inventor and innovator -- both of whom just happen to be people you've heard of: Theodore Roosevelt and Thomas Edison. Tales from the Bully Pulpit is an exploration of what would happen if two such daring and inquisitive men had the capability to explore everything. Literally everything. In a souped-up version of a stolen time machine, the two adventurers travel where their whims carry them; in this case, that happens to be the future, and traveling to the future takes them to Mars. Once there, Teddy and Edison discover that not all is well on the red planet, so they take it upon themselves to help. Amid strange creatures and even stranger foes, the two ultimately face the darker side of time travel."
| | | :: Thursday, May 20, 2004 :: |
Death Or Serious Injury Can Occur
From Engrish.com:
Mississippi News
Sheesh
Daily Hatbag
 So, here ya go.
Have You Heard About This One?
A hoax, but interesting. Anybody have the full scoop yet?
RSA In ESA?
 Nature has more information on the discussions that Rosaviakosmos might join the European Space Agency, including a better explanation of the rationale for giving RSA an associate membership.
Three Months On The Moon
NASA is eyeing the possibility of 90-(Earth) day missions to the Moon as part of the Vision. The story also mentions the possibility of "short-term" missions that would involve a 7-day stay, which would still be longer than any of the Apollo missions.
RTF Update
Per Space.com:
NASA is still struggling to develop a means to inspect and repair any space shuttle gashes in orbit--a hurdle that could prevent flights from resuming next spring, an oversight panel said Wednesday.
The biggest challenge involves a 15-meter (50-foot) inspection boom that has been under development for months.
Richard Covey, a former astronaut in charge of the return-to-flight task force, said the schedule for solving the problem is tight, and launches may have to be postponed, unless an alternative to the boom is found.
Per Universe Today:
NASA has been working for the past several months to implement the changes requested by the Columbia Accident Investigation Board. The Stafford-Covey Task Group released their second interim report today, which tracks the status of the Return to Flight effort. Three of the fifteen recommendations have been completed, and they expect to wrap up several more by the summer. One of the most difficult tasks so far has been to eliminate falling debris during launch--it was a piece of foam that fell off the fuel tank that critically damaged Columbia - engineers are worried that the only way to test if the problem has been fixed is by actually launching the shuttle.
Mystery Japanese In Space!
 The next space tourist has been announced. Er, kind of. Space Adventures has announced that a well-known Japanese personality will be visiting ISS at some point in the future, but hasn't disclosed the identity of the tourist. Instead, they've made lots of silly comments, like "Together we will make history by sending the first Japanese explorer to space," something astronauts Takao Doi, Chiaki Mukai, Mamoru Mohri, Soichi Noguchi and Koichi Wakata would probably take exception to.
Jim Henson's Boba Fett Babies
 Per AICN:
Yep, there is a Star Wars TV show on the way. Yep, it takes place between Episode 3 and 4. Yep, the character and story arcs are starting to come together. Hehe... fanboys are gonna love this! Playing one of the series' villans we love to hate is none other than... wait for it... Boba Fett! Expect young Boba (but not nearly as young as in Ep. 2) to feature in the series significantly. And you wondered why Lucas spent so much time focusing on that kid in Attack of the Clones and made sure that you knew that he knew that the Jedi/Republic was responsible for his Dad's death. Now you know.
Part of Lucas' ongoing efforts to find the elements of the original Star Wars trilogy still considered cool and to retroactively suck the cool out of them. Sheesh.
Ad Astra
 I just bought and read Warren Ellis' Orbiter graphic novel, which came out in paperback last week. For the past year, I had decided I wasn't willing to pay the hardcover price (though apparently I could have bought it on Amazon for about what I paid for the softcover), and also, post-Columbia, wasn't sure that I really wanted to read what sounded like a space disaster comic. That said, having read it, I was really glad I did. It had some interesting things to say, and depicted a depressing future in which we could all-too-easily end up (though ultimately, it's a story of redemption, rather than loss).
This Week At NE
 This week at NASAexplores, I have an article about how implementing space laser technology on your car can help fight pollution, and Maggie has a story about keeping astronauts from getting too sleepy.
| | | :: Tuesday, May 18, 2004 :: |
Super Funky
 One thing you can say for Hatbag is that, even at our worse, we never got this desperate.
Hot Amateur Action
 I've had a suggestion to blog this.
Daily Hatbag
So, here ya go.
Someone Give Alanis A Potato
 Per MSNBC:
Avril Lavigne has explained why the lyrics to her songs were also so angry: she was eating too many carbs.
Robot Holocaust Update
 Oh, crap! It's official: Robots are now superior to humans. Might as well go find you a place up against the wall.
Next Stop: Space
Cosmic Log reports that the next flight of SpaceShipOne will be the big one--reaching for the 100 kilometer high edge of space. The X Prize Foundation has said that it will give 60-day notice of any attempt at the prize, meaning that a speculated-upon July 4 flight is not going to happen. It also means that a July 20 flight would have to be announced by the end of the week.
The Flying Car
 Per the BBC:
The levitating Skycar is the brainchild of Paul Moller, who has spent $200 million trying to get his invention airborne. The car needs 35 feet to take off, but thanks to its 770hp engine can climb at 6,400 feet a minute and reach speeds of 365mph.
"The head of NASA says that in 10 years, 25% of the American population will have access to the Skycar. And he also says that in 25 years 90% of people will be using them," Mr Moller told BBC News Online.
Ex-Plane
 Per NASA Watch:
Editor's note: From a NASA Watch reader: "NASA will no longer be funding the X-37 program. They had been financing the Approach and Landing Test Vehicle (ALTV) which is currently under construction in Palmdale. Apparently, the program is moving forward; a new customer is supposed to be announced in a months time."
For more about the X-37, here's an article I wrote last year.
There's A Little Black Spot On The Sun
 OK, since, like, everyone else in the entire freakin' world is posting about it, I might as well, too: Venus is going to transit the Sun on June 8. It's an overwhelming marvel, one of the biggest astronomical events of the year, the first time it's happened in like 122 years, but--it will probably be barely observable here, and even if it were, you can't look at it. So, yeah, there you go. If you miss it (which you will, since you can't see it), next show's in 2012 (but you won't be able to look at that one either).
Space Blitz
 Per Space.com:
The newly-formed Space Exploration Alliance (SEA) announced Monday that their organizations are taking their cause to Washington on July 11-13. ...
During SEA's Washington event, the "Moon-to-Mars Blitz", organizations will bring their members to Capitol Hill to visit as many congressional members and staff as possible with a single message: "Fund NASA’s requests for FY 2005 for starting the new Moon, Mars, and Beyond initiative."
The collaboration for the Moon-Mars Blitz is the opening shot illustrating the kind of campaigns that SEA members will be undertaking to help insure passage of the budget required to launch the new space initiative.
All The Way To LEO
 OK, can we please, please, please, please finally just shut up about how the U.S. is going to return to the Moon and find China waiting for us? This blog has been saying for a while it's not going to happen, and now, agreeing with us is China itself. The chief designer of the Chinese space program has announced that the country has no plans to send a man to the Moon. However, the nation does plan to construct a permanent manned space station in about 15 years.
Addendum: More is here and here.
Return Of The Jedi Spoiler
 That's right, a Return Of The Jedi spoiler. How do you spoil the end of a movie that came out 21 years ago. Oh, trust me, George Lucas can find a way. Anyway, AICN has info on a change that's been incorporated into the DVD version of the Star Wars trilogy. It's in a long post that talks about a bunch of stuff, so just scroll down 'til you see it (you won't even have to look that hard, it's pretty easy to find).
| | | :: Monday, May 17, 2004 :: |
City Stages 2004
 Birmingham's annual City Stages concerts will be June 18-20, and will feature Skynyrd, Loretta Lynn, Fountains Of Wayne, Ruben Studdard, and many, many more.
Daily Hatbag
I'll be glad when summer school starts, so I can go back to anniversary strips. In the meantime, here's one that's not.
Whoops
 Err.. it turns out that's not Bill Gates.
State Of The Union
 The AFL-CIO has established a Web site criticizing Bush's Moon-Mars plans, arguing that because many people have lost their jobs, and millions of others are underemployed or have no health insurance, this nation can't afford to pursue a program that would invest billions of federal dollars in high-paying technology jobs. Um... OK. I would be tempted to write them a letter, but, despite the fact that they give contact information for the White House in several places, they don't seem interested in telling how to get in touch with them. Perhaps if they are truly interested in the potential effect of this program on labor, they should talk to the labor representatives who spoke in support of the plan at the Atlanta meeting of the President's Commission.
Delay On The Way To Mars
While I agree with Keith Cowing that "National Keep It Sold" is, at best, an odd name for a space advocacy group, I wanted to share these remarks by Tom DeLay, which I thought were pretty decent.
Balance Of Power
Here's an interesting bit of space politics: Rosaviakosmos wants to join ESA, but the Europeans will only let them join as an associate member. Presumably, RSA will still maintain a higher level of independent identity than most other ESA members, but, even so, a combined ESA/RSA would be quite a formidable space power. Further, if it meant that RSA were to consider ESA interests as its own interests, it could very seriously alter the landscape for NASA.
I Smell A Lawsuit!
 Man, Hatbag Productions should so sue this guy:
The Conversation turned out to be merely the same few panels repeated over and over again with nothing but the dialogue changed.
| | | :: Sunday, May 16, 2004 :: |
Chicks With Attitude
It's kind of like Lilith Fair Lite, except very, very... not. This would be kind of cool if my summer concert schedule weren't already full (if I can't work in Simon and Garfunkel in Nashville, this sure ain't happening).
| | | :: Friday, May 14, 2004 :: |
Daily Hatbag
I'm curious as to what percentage of the surviving online references to Hootie and the Blowfish are from Hatbag strips.
This Week At NE
 This week at NASAexplores, I've got an article about the X-15 program, and Maggie's got a piece about how things glow in the dark.
Today In History
At first, the launch of the Skylab space station appeared to go perfectly.
And, indeed, it had—for about a minute.
The workshop was launched atop the SA-513 booster on May 14, 1973, in what was to be the final flight of the mighty Saturn V. The powerful rocket which had sent men to the Moon took its bow in a two-stage configuration, since the station took the place of the S-IVB third stage.
Ten minutes after liftoff, Skylab was in orbit 271 miles above the Earth. Ground controllers watched as it began flawlessly moving through the checklist of tasks to be performed upon its arrival in space. The successful jettison of a radiator cover meant that refrigerators could be switched on. The payload shroud covering the docking adapter and Apollo Telescope Mount peeled away, and the ATM rotated into position perpendicular to the workshop. When it was in place, the mount’s four solar panels unfolded into their X shape.
The only significant anomaly, a report that the micrometeroid shield had deployed early, had not been reflected in further telemetry, and was dismissed as a false signal. Unfortunately, however, such was not the case.
During the launch of the Saturn V, the forward end of Skylab—the docking adapter, the airlock module, and the Apollo Telescope Mount were placed under a nosecone shroud, which served to make them more aerodynamic, but also protected them during launch. The workshop itself, being a modified booster stage, had no such covering. Items on the exterior of the workshop, including the main solar panels and the micrometeroid shield, were on the exterior of the rocket during flight. The solar wings were folded up against the body of the S-IVB, to be deployed in orbit.
About a minute into the launch, flight controllers noticed a strange sideways motion in the rocket, shortly before it reached Max Q, the point of maximum aerodynamic pressure on the vehicle. As the powerful booster sped through the atmosphere, the airflow tore loose the 0.025 inch-thick micrometeroid shield. As the shield came loose, it tore off one of the workshop’s solar panels, and wrapped around the other, preventing it from deploying.
Half an hour after launch, the Flight Director in Houston had been informed of anomalous signals from both the meteoroid shield and the solar panels. The full direness of the situation began becoming apparent about 41 minutes into the mission, the point at which the solar panels were supposed to deploy. Ground controllers waited for the station come into range of the Carnarvon, Australia tracking station so that it could report the status of the deployment. The telemetry signals were confusing, with some indications that the wings had been released but were not fully deployed and other indications that both wings were completely gone. The shortage of electric power on the station supported the latter. Commands were sent to Skylab for it to continue deploying the panels, but to no avail.
Further telemetry confirmed the worst—the station was badly crippled, in not one, but two ways that had the potential to end the Skylab mission before it had truly begun. While the micrometeroid shield was to serve to protect the workshop from impacts, despite its name, it actually performed a far more important role. The shield shaded the workshop, allowing the temperate inside to be kept at a comfortable level despite the exposure to direct sunlight. While research showed that the risk of damage from impact with a meteoroid or orbital debris was relatively slight, the dangers posed by overheating were far greater. Not only could the heat make things very uncomfortable for any human occupants and ruin scientific experiments, it would also cause equipment malfunctions which could render the station unusable.
More Info
Russian To The Moon
The Russian wire service RIA Novosty (5/13) reports Russia and the US are "pondering the possibility of creating a joint station on the Moon. Anatoli Perminov, head of the Russian Federal Space Agency, said he has discussed the question with Sean O'Keefe, head of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Perminov participates in the international aerospace exhibition ILA2004, going on near Berlin." Perninov said, "At our last meeting in Moscow, Sean O'Keefe asked us to join the lunar research and development programme. Building a joint lunar station is also possible."
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