Space Quote: The Return of the Space Shuttle

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): Sierra Space employees in front of the new Dream Chaser. (Sierra Nevada)

“I am reminded of a comment made by Steve Jobs that every once in a while, a revolutionary product comes along that changes everything. I think Dream Chaser is that product. This breakthrough shifts paradigms and redefines space travel. The Dream Chaser is not just a product; it’s a testament to human spirit, determination and the relentless pursuit of what lies beyond.”

-Statement by Sierra Space CEO Tom Vice in a company press release announcing the completion of the first Dream Chaser, said to be the “world’s sole commercial runway-capable spaceplane.” Its next stop is NASA’s Neil A. Armstrong Test Facility in Ohio for environmental testing. It is basically an advanced version of the earlier space shuttles that will be launched on a rocket and return by landing on a runway. NASA plans to use the spaceplane to bring cargo to the ISS. As with the initial space shuttle, the reusable craft makes a lot of sense and should help with overall costs. Of course, it is not clear why we had to go without a shuttle for 12 years.

Look What Lucy Found

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): A view of the newly discovered second asteroid behind asteroid Dinkinesh. (NASA/Goddard/SwRI/Johns Hopkins APL/NOIRLab)

NASA’s Lucy spacecraft encountered a surprise last Wednesday as it approached the target asteroid Dinkinesh, located in the asteroid belt. Instead of finding a single asteroid, it found a binary pair. Early data indicated that asteroid Dinkinesh is about 0.5 miles wide and its orbiting partner is only 0.15 miles wide.

Lucy did not have time to stick around, but it captured enough images during its fly by to keep astronomers busy for some time. The spacecraft was flying about 10,000 mph as it passed the pair.

Lucy’s primary mission is the Trojan asteroids (that is, asteroids that share Jupiter’s orbit around the Sun). And why are they of interest? NASA mission page tells us:

Planet formation and evolution models suggest that the Trojan asteroids are likely to be remnants of the same primordial material that formed the outer planets (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune), and thus serve as time capsules from the birth of our solar system over four billion years ago.

We may have many more surprises before Lucy finishes her 12-year mission.

A 3D Billboard Displaying NASA’s History

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): NASA’s 3D billboard display by Blunt Action at Kennedy Space Center. (NASA)

If you want to see something that is both fun and educational, check out the 30-foot 3D billboard display outside the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Merritt Island, Florida.

Created by Blunt Action, the billboard plays out the history of NASA’s space program from its origins with the Mercury missions all the way to the Artemis missions.

You can go to an article by Designboom to watch the space story play out, though I expect it is better in person.

However you decide to watch it, it is worth viewing.

Pic of the Week: Ghostly Apparitions

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): Constellation of Cepheus. (Bogdan Jarzyna)

I wanted to share one more image before we leave Halloween behind, this time from NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day.

Here is a description from NASA regarding the image above:

The jeweled expanse, filled with faint, starlight-reflecting clouds, drifts through the night in the royal constellation of Cepheus. Far from your own neighborhood on planet Earth, these ghostly apparitions lurk along the plane of the Milky Way at the edge of the Cepheus Flare molecular cloud complex some 1,200 light-years away. Over two light-years across and brighter than the other spooky chimeras, VdB 141 or Sh2-136 is also known as the Ghost Nebula, seen toward the bottom of the featured image. Within the reflection nebula are the telltale signs of dense cores collapsing in the early stages of star formation.

Television/Book Review: Beacon 23

Posted on by onespaceman2000

You probably already subscribe to half a dozen streaming platforms, but does it include MGM+ (formerly known as Epix)? If not, you will miss the November 12th premiere of a new eight-episode series called Beacon 23.

Here is the basic story from MGM+ (and here is the trailer):

Beacon 23 takes place in the farthest reaches of the Milky Way and follows Aster (Lena Headey), a government agent, and Halan (Stephan James), a stoic ex-military man, whose fates become entangled after they find themselves trapped together inside one of many Beacons that serve as a lighthouse for intergalactic travelers. Every Beacon is run by one highly trained human and a specialized Artificial Intelligence. Aster mysteriously finds her way to the lonely Beacon-keeper Halan, and a tense battle of wills unfolds. Halan begins to question whether Aster is friend or foe, as her ability to disguise her agenda and motives could make her a formidable opponent.

It looks intriguing. And the anticipation has been building since this project was announced more than two-and-a-half years ago (in the middle of Covid). Luckily, not even the writers strike killed this one.

It is based on the book of the same name, which had good reviews. Here are a few comments on the book:

—It’s a quick, easy read, especially since most of the events involve only one character. It’s quite good in its way, too, a bit like “The Martian” if the astronaut in that novel had just kind of hung out back in the Hab without working very hard on his survival. Our hero is flawed, hailed for an act that he views as cowardly, and in the end readers are left to wonder if he’s actually a hero or a fool. (The Oklahoman)

—It’s a book for adult readers, but I think younger readers would have a lot of fun with it. The voice is irresistible and it’s both funny and sad. In some ways it’s a cross between Andy Weir’s The Martian and David Bowie’s Space Oddity. Beacon 23 tells the story of a man whose job it is to stand sentry in what is effectively an interstellar lighthouse, making sure passing ships don’t crash into nearby asteroids. The main character’s name is never given, and the story is told in the first person so it could almost be anyone’s story. It’s very easy to relate to the narrator who is ex-military and living out his retirement all alone in the beacon with only his thoughts and the odd (often wry and hilarious) communications with NASA to keep him company. (Luna Station Quarterly)

—Beacon 23 is a loose combination of Dark Star and The Martian. At times I found the story very funny, particularly the dialogue with Rocky, as well as some interesting interchanges with NASA, imagined and real. There are also the inevitable technical issues to overcome when you are on your own and help is not an inconsiderable distance away. And to top it all the Operator of Beacon 23 is almost certainly suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, or in his own words “…just a little bit crazy.” (Book Lore)

I guess the key point in all of these is that the story reminds them of The Martian. All you need now is one more streaming platform. Or you can await broader distribution of the series. Whichever way you go, this one may be worth a second look.