The National Air and Space Museum is Open for Business

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): The “Destination Moon” exibition at the refurbished National Air and Space Museum. (Smithsonian Museum)

If you have been awaiting the refurbishing of the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum, then you will be happy to know that the museum reopened on October 14th. Only now you cannot simply stroll into the museum. Instead, you need to obtain a free timed-entry pass. Unfortunately, this seems to be the current system used by numerous museums to control traffic as well as capture all of your personal information so they can swamp you with junk mail and offers. Anyway…

Here are the a few of the new exhibits the museum is highlighting (go here for the full list):

  1. “Walking On Other Worlds”: Experience what it’s like in distant parts of our solar system in the “Walking on Other Worlds” interactive experience in the Kenneth C. Griffin Exploring the Planets Gallery. This immersive media exhibit presents visitors with a seven-minute “tour” of seven different worlds: Venus, Earth’s Moon, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn’s moon Titan, asteroid Ryugu, and comet 67P.
  2. Science Fiction Artifacts: New to display is a full-sized T-70 X-wing Starfighter “flown” by Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019). The screen-used vehicle is on long-term loan from Lucasfilm and is displayed hanging outside the planetarium. Star Trek is also represented in the new exhibitions. 
  3. ISS Cupola: In the One World Connected gallery, put yourself in the shoes of astronauts on the International Space Station (ISS) with the ISS Cupola interactive. Every 90 minutes, astronauts on board the ISS can see the Sun rise from the station’s Cupola, a European Space Agency-built observatory module. 

Given that NASA’s Artemis 1 mission is shooting for the Moon again, the timing is perfect. Of course, in December 2022 it will have been 50 years since the last human walk on the Moon’s surface, so we have a lot to celebrate as well as a lot of time to make up. Let’s hope a future update to the National Air and Space Museum includes models of spacecraft used to get humans to Mars.

And remember, you can also visit the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center outside the Washington Beltway that contains large planes, jets, and spacecraft that cannot fit in the DC museum, including the Space Shuttle Discovery. Last time I went there I could walk right in without using a timed-entry pass.

Image (Credit): Space Shuttle Discovery at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center. (Smithsonian Museum)

First Class Fun from the US Post Office

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Credit: U.S. Postal Service

While the U.S. currency remains pretty boring, at least U.S. postage stamps continually change and highlight various aspects of American society. Two of those themes are science fiction and space exploration, and you have a few options if you want to show your interest in these areas.

These stamps include:

  • Star Wars Droids (above);
  • Space Ranger Buzz Lightyear (below); and
  • James Webb Space Telescope (below).

I know, you hardly ever write letters and you have a bunch of those boring flag stamps. Well, this is your chance to show a little more color on that birthday or anniversary card. Save the flag stamps for the bills.

Be a kid again, if only for a few moments.

Credit: U.S. Postal Service
Credit: U.S. Postal Service

Moon World Resort: Why Leave Earth?

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): Artist’s rendition MOON Dubai, depicted close to the Palm Jumeriah and Burj Al Arab. (Moon World Resort)

It is quite the slogan to sell the Moon to the masses: “12 people have been there, 7 billion want to visit.” But this is not Elon Musk talking. This is a new real estate project aiming to bring the Moon to Earth in multiple locations in order to push shopping malls, spas, and condos. And maybe even conduct some space training, but I would not hold your breath (in your luxury pool).

On its Facebook page, Moon World Resort has a bold vision:

Moon World Resorts Inc. is proud to introduce the reinvention of the famed Las Vegas strip; unveiling MOON, the next giant leap for Hospitality, Entertainment, Technology and Attraction Tourism.

As a futuristic “building of global significance”, MOON will be heralded as an Architectural, Engineering and Design icon; delivering an additional 10 million annual tourists to Las Vegas, during its inaugural year!

So what is it exactly? Here are some details:

  • 735 feet (224 meters) high;
  • 5.5 million square feet (516 thousand square meters);
  • a lunar sphere 650 feet (198 meters) in diameter;
  • 4000 luxury hotel suites within the sphere;
  • various commercial endeavors, including a Convention Center, Event Center, Holistic Wellness Spa, Fitness Center, Arena, Beach Club, Night Club, Star Chef Restaurants, Boutique Plaza, E-Sports Center, Aquatic Center, Lagoon, Ballrooms, Meeting Space, Casino, Show Theater, Discovery Center, Amphitheater, Planetarium, Observatory and various Sports Facilities; and
  • a Lunar Colony attraction.

The cities targeted for this “shoot for the moon” project include one in North America (USA, with Las Vegas already named in the press release), South America (Brazil), Europe (Spain), MENA (UAE) and three in the Asia Pacific Region (China, Japan, India).

All the project needs now is investors to drop about $5 billion on this idea. Until this idea becomes a reality, you can spend your hard earned money on pretend Star Wars adventures in Florida. I guess it’s better than sending tourists to the International Space Station where they will only get in the way.

You can always find a customer for this stuff, and Las Vegas does seem like a logical place to start. Water is already in short supply in the Las Vegas desert, as it is on the Moon. Hence, this may be the perfect time to test lunar water recycling ideas with or without the lunar sphere.

Television: The Upcoming Star Wars Series Andor

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Credit: Disney +

Enough about Star Trek. It’s time to talk about Star Wars.

On September 21, Disney+ (the second Death Star of online content after the demise of Netflix) will be releasing its next Star Wars series called Andor. It’s a prequel to the movie Rogue One, starring Diego Luna as Cassian Andor five years before the events of the film. We learn more about how he went from a thief to a rebel against the evil Empire lead by Darth Vader and friends.

The trailer for Andor looks intriguing, with plenty of off planet action, something the series The Book of Boba Fett really needed. My favorite to Star Wars series to date is still The Mandalorian, with Obi-Wan Kenobi a distant second. I am just glad they are not making an Endor series. I had enough of teddy bears taking down the Empire.

I will let Disney+ give you the plot for the show:

In Andor, audiences meet Cassian Andor five years before the attack on the Empire takes place. The prequel series will cover the five-year period in two 12-episode seasons, focusing on Cassian Andor’s journey towards discovering his full power. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story showed a loyal and ruthless Andor who spoke of his long-standing fight against the Empire — one that began when he was just six years old. This narrative left a lasting impression on Diego Luna, making it easy for him to sign on for this series. Referring to Andor’s statements in Rogue One, Luna wanted to know what it all meant, saying, “Why would a six-year-old give up his childhood to join a fight? When he talks about a dark past and doing terrible things for the Rebellion, what is he referring to? I think that story matters. There’s a lot of material there for us to play with, and I was excited to go into this journey and give these answers.” The series concentrates on Andor’s progression, looking back into his childhood, the fighter spirit that was always inside of him, and what he faced in his homeland that ultimately brings him to the Rebellion’s front lines. Luna explained that he wanted to tell this story to show “what needs to happen for a revolutionary to emerge.”

I have high hopes for this series compared to the last two. While HBO and Prime are battling it out over dragons versus elves, I am tuning into the Star Trek versus Star Wars battle. Luckily, there is something for everyone.

TV: Obi-Wan Kenobi

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Credit: Disney+

While Star Trek is generally a better fit for an astronomy site, I did not want to ignore the release this week of Disney+’s Obi-Wan Kenobi. As with the other similar releases in the last few years, including The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett, Disney is mining the Star Wars stories for new angles. Of course, Paramount has also been doing the same with Star Trek.

Disney has been spending quite a bit of time on the planet of Tatooine in all three new series, be it bounty hunting in The Mandalorian, taking over Jabba the Hutt’s old business in The Book of Boba Fett, and now Obi-Wan watching over young Luke Skywalker’s formative years in Obi-Wan Kenobi. I hope you don’t mind sand. Here is a preview of what you can expect with this latest series.

So far I have enjoyed The Mandalorian and suffered through The Book of Boba Fett. Too often Star Wars seems to be mostly a vehicle to sell toys (think of Baby Yoda), and yet the creators kept it fun in The Mandalorian. Adding Amy Sedaris to the mix of characters was brilliant.

Maybe The Mandalorian worked because the main character said so little and Baby Yoda said basically nothing. I know Mr. Lucas is gone, but dialogue has not been the strongest part of the Star Wars universe. We can only hope the creators have finally learned how to use the talents of Ewan McGregor and Hayden Christensen in the latest series.

And yes, there’s more. Stay tuned for the next Star Wars series, Andor, coming out on August 31st. Season two of this new series is already in the works. It takes place 28 years after the film Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith and five years before the events of the film Rogue One. I think this one will stay away from Tatooine, thankfully. Diego Luna will be playing the role of Cassian Andor. Here is a teaser for Andor.

Credit: Disney+