Patrick Chiles's Blog, page 23
October 18, 2012
Does MCT = Falcon XX?
A commenter in the last post on SpaceX’s “MCT” announcement included a link to this graphic: Thanks Adros47! And…DA-YUM. Those things are monsters. I dug a little more and found the full article from 2010 at Spaceref here. It includes an embedded link to another piece at Aviation Week, but the link seems to have [...]
That’s A Big Rocket
A commenter in the last post on SpaceX’s “MCT” announcement included a link to this graphic: Thanks Adros47! And…DA-YUM. Those things are monsters. I dug a little more and found the full article from 2010 at Spaceref here. It includes an embedded link to another piece at Aviation Week, but the link seems to have [...]
October 16, 2012
More Spacey Goodness
Blue Origin, the Other Private Space Company Founded By An Internet Bazillionaire™, made news today as well: NASA Commercial Crew Partner Blue Origin Completes Rocket Engine Thrust Chamber Test NASA’s Commercial Crew Program (CCP) partner Blue Origin has successfully fired the thrust chamber assembly for its new 100,000 pound thrust BE-3 liquid oxygen, liquid hydrogen [...]
What’s SpaceX Up To?
As if manned space capsules and reusable boosters weren’t enough…but what is “MCT”? Some tantalizing bits from Flight Global: Musk said the new rocket, which he calls MCT, will be “several times” as powerful as the 1 Merlin series, and won’t use Merlin’s RP-1 fuel. Beyond adding that it will have “a very big core [...]
October 14, 2012
Party Crasher
A “Once in a Civilization” comet will be paying us a visit next New Year’s Eve. From Scientific American: Why is this comet expected to be so unique? Two reasons: Astronomers predict that the comet will pass just 1.16 million miles from the Sun as it swings around its perihelion, or closest approach. (This may [...]
Watch That First Step
Just found this YouTube live feed of Felix Baumgardner’s space jump. I’ll keep it up here for as long as people are interested. Looks like they’re letting the capsule go as far as the balloon will take it, right now approaching 125,000′. Pop some popcorn and enjoy the show: UPDATE:Holy crap, he did it!
October 12, 2012
Her Majesty’s Silent Service
How the attack sub HMS Conqueror pulled off one of the most audacious heists of the Cold War. Thirty years later, the story of Operation Barmaid can finally be told. “The British believed they were selected because they had more skilled submariners, and exercises do seem to bear this out. British submariners tend not to [...]
October 11, 2012
The Daily Awesome
Check out this stunning image gallery: Above: an enhanced view of Saturn’s moon Enceladus, which was apparently on the Federation’s short list for testing the Genesis Device. Think I’m kidding? See? Opposite angle. Trust me, I’m an amateur astronomer. Except for the above, these are from a new book called Planetfall, a collection of meticulously [...]
Your Tax Money at Work
Any problems with this? Nope, me neither. (H/T: Phil Plait’s Bad Astronomy)
October 9, 2012
Read Before You Sign
In other words, the first rule of military life is “never volunteer for anything.” This guy either didn’t get the memo, or didn’t care: The Man Who Volunteered for Auschwitz You read that right. Here’s a taste: The Polish resistance had been hearing horrific first- or second-hand accounts about the conditions inside Auschwitz. These early [...]
