October.30.2004
Space News
News briefs ... Titan begins
to reveal itself: Cassini
radar peers through Titan clouds - spacetoday.net - Oct.29.04
...
... More on space politics:
Bush,
Kerry differ on space: Moon program tussles with broader research
goals - Florida Today - Oct.28.04
October.29.2004
Space News
News briefs ... Titan looks
really interesting: Saturn
moon geologically alive, probe shows: Cassini radar sees Titan's
'cat,' other detailed features - MSNBC - Oct.28.04 ...
... While Mars continues
to amaze: Researchers
detect methane on Mars - Univ. of Michigan - Oct.28.04.
October.28.2004
Space News
News briefs ... SpaceDev,
a new generation space startup, continues to show progress in
growing its business: SpaceDev
awarded Phase II of $43 million MDA contract: Successful Completion
of First Task Order; Second Task Order Exceeds $8 million -
SpaceDev - Oct.26.04...
... Meanwhile, satellite
radio is growing its business into new areas as well: Delphi,
XM Unveil Handheld Satellite Radio Receiver - Washington Post
- Oct.27.04 ...
... NASA's first, and possibly
last, artist in residence debuts her space inspired music: Radical
Populist: After a year with NASA, Laurie Anderson touches down
in Miami - Miami New Times.com - Oct.28.04
October.26.2004
Space News
A Vision for Space... Joe
Lennox began collecting space memorabilia in 1962 when he was
just 9 years old and now has over 40,000 newspaper/magazine
clippings on every US human spaceflight and "over 700 personal
letters from astronauts, NASA managers and officials, government
leaders, contractors, media people and other space luminaries."
In addition he has space related lots of "patches, pens,
buttons, checklists, pieces of hardware and countless other
mementos."
He planned to pursue a career in aeronautics but a serious
eye problem derailed his plans. Tthis did not derail his interest
in space, though, and in the book Vision
For Space : The Winding Journey Through Life and The Space Program
As Seen By An Ordinary Joe by Joe Lennox - iUniverse Publishing
he reviews the history of spaceflight from the perspective of
an "ordinary Joe".
You can read a sample
chapter at iUniverse Online Books. The book is available
at Amazon.com
(HS affiliate link.)
Titan art contest... The
Planetary Society
is sponsoring an art contest to "celebrate Huygens Encounter
with Saturn's Moon Titan". Huygens
Art Contest - The Planetary Society - Oct.25.04. Artists
should submit work that suggests what what the space probe will
reveal when the Huygens
probe parachutes to the surface of Titan.
The contest offers two prizes, one for youth, ages 10-17 and
the over for adults, ages 18 and older. Entries are due by November
28, 2004. The Grand Prize is a trip to Darmstadt, Germany to
be on site at ESA's Space Operations Centre for the descent
of the Huygens probe! The
Planetary Society's Huygens Art Contest - Rules
News briefs... Dennis
Wingo answers questions about his book Moonrush:
Interview:
Dennis Wingo, Author of Moonrush - Universe Today ...
... On Mars there may be
underground caverns available for Life
in a Lava Tube - Astrobiology Magazine - Oct.25.04 ...
... A policy statement
on NASA - Space
and Aeronautics for the 21st Century - is posted on the
John Kerry website. (Via
Space Politics: A Kerry space policy statement.)
The SpaceShow
this week:
Tuesday October 26, 2004: 7-8:15pm Pacific Time - the Space
Show features John Spencer, author of “Space Tourism: Do you
Want To Go.” He "is a space architect, the founder and
president of Red Planet Ventures, Inc., a well-known and respected
architect and designer, as well as an exceptional space advocate
and leader in the entrepreneurial space community...."
Sunday October 31, 2004, 12:00-1:30 PM Pacific Time - the
Space Show features "Dr. Sam Dinkin, columnist with The
Space Review. Dr. Dinkin is the Chief Economist at Optimal
Auctions, Founder of SpaceShot, Inc., and on the Advisory
Board of the Colony Fund. At the Space Review, he has striven
to become the most controversial space columnist writing about
property rights, humans vs. robotic exploration, Moon vs.
Mars exploration, and suborbital business strategy. At Optimal
Auctions he has advised buyers and sellers in auctions that
have over $85 billion in cost of goods sold, only recently
surpassed by eBay...."
October.25.2004
Space News
The election and space...
Taylor Dinerman says this election could determine whether we
head to the stars or not: The
US election and the future of the solar system - The Space Review
- Oct.25.04...
... If Bush is elected,
the question becomes how best to do that: Implementing
the vision by Sam Dinkin - The Space Review - Oct.25.04
...
... If Kerry is elected,
the only certainty is that the Shuttle program will be dropped
as soon as possible: Draft
Paper Provides Insight Into NASA Space Policy Options by Keith
Cowing/NASA Watch - SpaceRef - Oct.24.04.
News briefs... Congratulations
to the Brazilians for a successful rocket launch: Brazil
launches rocket into space - BBC - Oct.24.04...
... Students
in Florida plan to build their own two stage suborbital launcher:
Florida
students aim for space - The Spacearium - Oct.19.04...
... From this video,
it appears that cat throwing could become a popular Zero-G sport
(via Boing
Boing)...
... Learn physics for flying at Cockpit
Physics- Physics Instruction for the Twenty-First Century -
US Air Force...
... Satellite answers TV's
call for help: FCC
Investigating TV's Trigger of Satellite Search System - Space
News/Space.com - Oct.25.04 (It probably wanted to be rescued
from all those political commercials!)
SciTech news briefs... A
neural network created from living neurons: Uf
Scientist: 'Brain' In A Dish Acts As Autopilot, Living Computer
- UF News - Oct.21.04 *
Is
That a Pilot in Your Pocket? - Wired - Oct.23.04 ...
... Ultra
hi-res displays (30-40 megapixels) may be more practical
and cheaper than expected: New
display 'as clear as a glossy magazine' - New Scientist - Oct.25.04
October.24.2004
Space News
Space activists gatherings...
Two space advocacy meetings will take place this month. The
Students for the
Development of Space (SEDS) is sponsoring a conference at
MIT: SpaceVision2004
Conference @ MIT on November 11th-14th. More info here:
SEDS-USA
Revives its National Student Space Conference - SpaceRef - Oct.22.04.
Also, the Huntsville
Alabama L5 Society chapter of the National
Space Society will host Exploring
and Privateering Space Conference in Huntsville on Nov.12-14.
They call it "a public gathering of space leaders and enthusiasts."
Hearing Titan... A microphone
on the doomed Mars Polar Lander never had a chance to send us
sounds from another world but maybe the microphone on the Huygens
probe will have better luck: The
Sounds of Titan - SpaceRef - Oct.22.04.
SciTech: supersonic bizjets...
On October 11th the Wall Street Journal had a surprising article
about a couple of serious projects to develop supersonic business
jets. One of the projects plans to use sonic
boom suppression techniques so that it could legally
fly supersonic over land. The article required a subscription,
however, so I didn't link to it.
Now it's nice to see that AvWeek has posted an article on the
projects: Two
Groups Vie To Develop Supersonic Business Jets - Aviation Week
- Oct.18.04 (Tip via HS reader
A. Janes). It will be interesting to see if one or both of these
projects actually develop a practical vehicle.
October.22.2004
Space News
Space election ... Alan
Boyle is running a sci-fi short story contest at his Cosmic
Log web site. The theme of the stories for the "Red,
White and Bluetopia" contest should express "positive
sci-fi visions of the future, based on the policies of your
favorite candidate." He later expanded this to include
"none-of-the-above" for polices that don't align with
either party.
Here are links to the stories and instructions on how to cast
a ballot for your choice of the best vision:
ESA Student satellite...
The European Space Agency is sponsoring a satellite assembled
from modules built by students from the ESA member states:
Built
via the internet, student satellite coming to life at ESA-ESTEC
- ESA Portal - Oct.19.04.
See the S.S.E.T.I.
- Student Space Exploration & Technology Initiative
for more info and you can monitor progress via their
WebCam.
October.21.2004
Space News
Cosmonaut opera... Australian
composer David Chesworth and librettist Tony MacGregor have
created Cosmonaut - An Opera in Four Orbits, inspired
by the fate of Soviet cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev, who was in
orbit as the USSR fell apart. The work made its debut at the
Melbourne
International Arts Festival - 7 to 23 October 2004:
Cosmonaut - an opera
in four orbits
Festival Enews Issue #20 - 20 October 2004
Cosmonaut is a new Australian opera by Melbourne based
composer David Chesworth inspired by the fate of Soviet cosmonaut
Sergei Krikalev, who was in orbit as the USSR fell apart.
Not only is the setting for this work interesting, but the
music itself will appeal to an audience not necessarily associating
themselves as opera goers. Chesworth’s score is typically
rich in content and eclectic in instrumental approach, especially
in the daring and unusual use of pedal steel guitar normally
reserved exclusively for quality country music.
Following is a note from the Composer David Chesworth about
this inventive new work.
Cosmonaut is based on recent historical events that were,
at the time, well documented in the media. I remember waking
to hear live radio reports from ABC reporter Monica Attard
as she witnessed the noisy crowds in Moscow during the attempted
military coup in 1991. This was a time of gripping radio reportage.
In Australia we were listening to variety of vocalising crowds
from around the world: the sounds of protesting in Moscow
and Berlin, rioting in India and celebrating in Australia.
These transmissions of the human voice were powerful expressions
of the radical shifts in the political temperatures of the
time.
In my approach to creating a sound score for Cosmonaut, it
was appealing to situate the composition in the mediated world
of transmissions and broadcasts, where audio and images arrive
into our own territory from elsewhere: packaged, encoded and
compressed. The sonic qualities of these recordings play on
us in ways that song and musical gesture do not. The broadcasts
illustrate mediated realities that, through the act of recording
and transmission, have become altered in form, losing certain
details and picking up new resonances. For me, perhaps the
single, most powerful space transmission is that of a solitary
voice: a radio transmission of Yuri Gagarin singing and whistling
during the first manned space flight. If you listen carefully,
you will hear his voice in Cosmonaut.
It is worth acknowledging that the ephemeral ‘unworldliness’
of outer space is the true home of electronic music. In composing
Cosmonaut, it was impossible to avoid references to other
compositions exploring musical ideas of outer space; from
ethereal contemplations on the harmony of the spheres to the
rich sonic possibilities of Louis & Bebe Barron’s extraordinary
score for the film Forbidden Planet. There was also an abundance
of scientific patterns and ratios to draw upon: mathematical
formulas, algorithmic concepts and macro- and micro-worlds
that attempt to describe how the cosmos works.
In composing with these rather heterogenous musical elements,
I have employed a variety of idiosyncratic musical structures,
translating contemporary realities into musical embodiments
of people’s relationships to the world. I have tried to articulate
a dialogue between past and future, shaped within the unruly
world of the imagination, utilising various combinations of
order and chaos, form and formlessness, and static and performative
elements.
Further to this, I was interested in delaying the final stages
of composition until all the creative personnel were on board.
It was then that I could finally resolve the composition,
in conjunction with the contributions of designers, choreographers,
the Director and, importantly, the performers.
Melbourne
International Arts Festival - 7 to 23 October 2004
A short clip of the music begins this interview
(realaudio) with composer David Chesworth and librettist Tony
MacGregor on the The
Music Show - October 16, 2004 (starts at 39 minutes into
the show).
More info at
News briefs....Haven't
heard much about space
burial launches for quite awhile but apparently Celestis
is still in business: Space
Memorial Service Puts Ashes into Orbit - AP/Space.com - Oct.20.04
...
... I came across this
interesting set of reviews of space opera books: The
Spectrum of Space Opera - The Agony Column - Oct.3.02 - Commentary
by Rick Kleffel ...
... Satellite comsats are
taken for granted but this article gives an idea of how crucial
they are to the UK's, and to the whole world's, communications
infrastructure: Dishes
keeping the UK connected - BBC - Oct.15.04 ...
... The new biography of
astronaut Story
Musgrave's is reviewed in Astronaut's
bio different from usual histories - Florida Today - Oct.13.04
...
... Keith Cowing asks some
interesting questions of astronauts on the ISS: Transcript
of a NASAWatch.com Interview with NASA Astronauts Fincke and
Chiao aboard the International Space Station - SpaceRef - Oct.19.04...
... I thought the funding
for the NASA
Institute for Advanced Concepts (NIAC) had been eliminated
but obviously not: NASA
researchers investigate way-out ideas: 'Crazy' projects look
decades into the future - Alan Boyle/MSNBC - Oct.21.04
SciTech briefs... More
about those neat microturbines: Miniature
jet engines could power cellphones - New Scientist - Oct.20.04
...
... Video conferencing
and videophoning over the Internet is growing steadily: Can
You See Me Now?: Thanks to voice-over-IP, videoconferencing--the
eternal technology of tomorrow--once again appears to be on
the verge of success. - Technology Review - Oct.21.04...
... Segway offers modular
mobility for your AI box: Rise
of the Robots: Segway Platform Gives Mechanoids Motion - Space.com
- Oct.20.04
October.19.2004
Space News
News briefs... The ARISS
- Amateur Radio on the International Space Station organization
has begun an innovative and unusual project to turn a surplus
space suit on the ISS into a free-flying satellite: ARISS
International Delegates Ponder "SuitSat" Possibilities
- ARRLWeb - Oct.19.04 (Via spacetoday.net)...
... Harrison Schmitt reports
on how the Moon, planets and asteroids can provide resources
for use in space and on earth: Mining
The Moon by Harrison Schmitt - Popular Mechanics - Oct. 2004
Cover Story
News briefs ... More from
Jeff Foust on the recent space policy debate in Washington:
The
great (well, ok) space debate - The Space Review - Oct.18.04
...
... Something else to worry
about: Unseen
comets may raise impact risk for Earthbreaking: Thousands of
dark objects could be hiding in our Solar System - news @ nature.com
- Oct.18.04. And yet another reason to have a robust and
able infrastructure IN space.
SciTech briefs... Now here's
a new idea: micro-turbines to run your PDA: Power
on a Chip: Batteries are heavy and inconvenient. Their successors
could be tiny jet engines that provide more than enough power
for cell phones and PDAs. - Technology Review - Technology Review
- Oct.18.04 ...
... Gee, maybe Reagan was
on to something after all: New
trees cancel out air pollution cuts - New Scientist - Oct.17.04
The SpaceShow
this week:
Tuesday October 19, 2004, 7-8:15 pm Pacific Time - Space
Show features the return of Jim Benson, Founding Chairman
and Chief Executive of SpaceDev,
a publicly traded space development and exploration company.
He "will be discussing new projects and the SpaceDev
participation in the X-Prize flights with SpaceShipOne."
Sunday October 24, 2004, 12:00-1:30 pm Pacific Time - the
Space Show features David A. Micheletti, President of the
Montana Aerospace
Development Association (MADA), which "is involved
in "several major aerospace/defense technology development
programs, including the MARIAH II Hypersonic Wind Tunnel Program
[...] is the nation’s only program developing a true-air hypersonic
wind tunnel."
The recent show with Dennis
Wingo is now on
line.
October.18.2004
Space News
Space software ... The
company lRITI (Reading
Information Technology Inc.) offers several impressive space
related programs. These include:
- Lunar
Map Pro was "designed and built on a (GIS) Geographic
Information System, providing pin-point navigational accuracy,
Lunar Map Pro offers high-resolution maps, designed to meet
the most demanding requirements of both armchair and observational
astronomers." See the Cloudy
Nights Review of Lunar Map Pro.
- Celestial
Explorer: Mars with 3D view, a "powerful GIS mapping
software features the latest NASA high-definition digital
maps combined with the most up-to-date geology data. Extraordinary
real-time and customizable 3D visualizations place you on
the surface of the planet."
News briefs... Laurie
Anderson debuts her work commissioned by NASA: Artistic
residency with NASA leads to 'End of the Moon' - Richmond TimesDispatch.com
- Oct.17.04 ...
... Lots of aerodynamics
tutorial info available with the Aerodynamics
Index at the Aviation
Intranet.
October.15.2004
Space News
News briefs ... A whole
new kind of space
radio hobby: Car
computer hobbyists hack XM Radio - CNET News.com - Oct.14.04
...
... Speaking of space broadcasting,
here is a non-technical introduction to digital satellite TV:
How
It Works: Satellite TV Spreads Its Signals Across the Landscape
- The New York Times - Oct.15.04...
... A new TV network dedicated
to science issues debuts: Science
Network. (Seems to be available only online for most people)...
... The WTN
X PRIZE program that will offer prizes to motivate research
in areas outside of space is getting lots of attention: Spawn
of X Prize on Horizon - Wired News - Oct.15.04 * X-Prize
for world's 'Holy Grails' - BBC - Oct.15.04 ...
... What a marvelous time to be a researcher in planetary science:
Mars
Reconsidered: New Data Raises Fresh Questions by Leonard David
- Space.com - Oct.15.04
Global
Warming Bombshell: A prime piece of evidence linking human activity
to climate change turns out to be an artifact of poor mathematics.
- Technology Review - Oct.15.04
Science brief: The hockey stick gets
wacked... Scientist Richard Muller is no ideologue
of the right wing (or of the left for that matter) so when he
questions one of the fundamental results in climate research
that ties CO2 buildup to increasing worldwide tempeatures, he
has to be taken seriously: Global
Warming Bombshell: A prime piece of evidence linking human activity
to climate change turns out to be an artifact of poor mathematics.
- Technology Review - Oct.15.04
See the second plot in Global-scale
temperature patterns and climate forcings over the past six
centuries: A comment - by McIntyre and McKitrick (pdf) .
The hockey stick (bottom) just becomes a stick (top) when the
analysis is done in the least biased manner.
News briefs ... A debate
on the space policy of the next administration took place yesterday
in DC. Read the reviews at: Debate
notes by Jeff Foust - Space Politics - Oct.14.04 and Debating
Space: A Tale of Two Policies - One Real, One TBD by Keith Cowing
- SpaceRef - Oct.14.04 ...
.,. Alan Boyle says there
is renewed interest in space and rocket related TV shows in
the wake of the X PRIZE success: Space
TV renewal - Alan Boyle/Cosmic Log - Oct.14.04....
.,. Apparently the Japanese
talent for undercutting the price tags of American vehicles
has not yet displayed itself in the high power rocketry market:
Rocket
targets 'luxury hobbyists' - CNN.com - Oct 5, 2004
October.14.2004
Space News
Space sci-fi musical...
The ESA and the Swiss space agency are sponsoring the musical
Space
Dream Saga II, whose web site says
is a
"fascinating space-age fairy tale suitable for the entire
family. The story unfolds in a musical filled with wonderful
songs, thrilling dance routines, fantastic costumes, a breathtaking
laser light show and all topped off with a mind-blowing surround-sound
system."
According to this article - Space
Dream Saga - ESA Portal - Germany - Oct.11.04 (try the Google
German-English translator) - over 620,000 people saw Space
Dream Saga I.
News briefs... A new crew
heads for the Space Station: Soyuz
launched to ISS - spacetoday.net - Oct.14.04...
... ZERO-G
seems to be finding riders of all ages (though one oldster thought
it should be something only for youngsters) : Thrill
Seekers Pay Big Bucks for Zero Gravity - FOXNews.com - Oct.13.04...
...In July I mentioned
a music video tribute to the Columbia crew called To Fly,
which won a Telly Award. Brad Sayles, who created the video,
came across my item about this and sent me a link to the site
of Fusion
Productions. The company produced the video and also has
made a number of space
related training and educational films and videos that are
distributed on DVDs, CD-ROMS and video tapes.
October.12.2004
Space News
News briefs ... Here are
links to several articles about space vehicle designer Max Faget,
who died on October 10th:
... Alan Boyle reports
that Lance Bass my yet find a way to the ISS: Celebrity
spaceflights - Alan Boyle/Cosmic Log - Oct.11.04
Opening space - step by step ... The
December issue of Analog:
Science Fiction and Fact Magazine (available now in October
for some reason) includes an interesting article in the science
fact section called Focusing Visions and Goals for Opening
Space written by astrophysicist Yoji Kondo and William Gaubatz,
who managed the DC-X
project.
They lay out a set of goals for space development, such as
a permanent presence on the Moon and the building of solar power
satellites, and then discuss the steps needed to achieve those
goals. The first step is the development of viable reusable
space transport for accessing low earth orbit. Then interplanetary
vehicles (used only in space) would provide transport to the
Moon, Mars, and the asteroids. They discuss how private commercial
companies and the government can work together to best achieve
these goals..
(Item via R. Boozer.)
The SpaceShow
this week:
Tuesday October 12, 2004 - The Space Show features Mike Lounge,
former Space Shuttle astronaut and Sr. VP with SpaceHab, now
the Director of Business Development leading Boeing’s efforts
on The Vision for Space Exploration..
Sunday October 17, 2004, 12:00-1:30 PM Pacific Time - the
Space Show "features Dennis
Wingo, author and CTO of Orbital Recovery Corporation.
Mr. Wingo is also President of Skycorp, Inc. He is a 22-year
veteran of the computer, academic, and space communities and
was an integral force in the use of commercial systems for
use in space and flew the first MacIntosh on the Space Shuttle
as experiment controller. Orbital Recovery Corporation is
developing a way to extend the life of satellites by up to
ten years or more and SkyCorp Inc. has developed a patented
approach to the development of highly capable spacecraft manufactured
on orbit on the Space Shuttle or International Space Station..."
October.9.2004
Space News
News briefs ... The ZERO-G
company starts flying passengers from the general public: Starting
today, fliers gain chance to float - Florida Today - Oct.9.04.
They have "sold about two dozen fully-booked flights"
so far but mostly to corporate groups....
... On his RocketForge
weblog, Michael Mealling is posting summaries of talks given
at this weekends Space
Frontier Conference....
... I've often wondered
if drugs developed for bone loss from diseases such as osteoporosis
would work for astronauts working in a microgravity environment.
Sounds like one such drug may be tested in space: Drug
may keep astronauts' bones strongbreaking science news headlines:
Annual injection could allow prolonged space missions. - news
@ nature.com - Oct.7.04 ...
... A rather exotically
dressed visitor at the recent SS1 launch was a fellow named
Stan
Kent. I've heard a rumor that he provided some funding for
the X PRIZE. Turns out that Mr. Kent was something of a rocket
prodigy: Rocket
Science Webwall. ...
... The National
Air and Space Museum has opened a gallery of aircraft and
spacecraft art: New
Art Exhibition Takes Flight at the Smithsonian’s National Air
and Space Museum - NASM - Sept.28.04 * Air
and space museum opens art gallery - Boston.com/AP - Oct.7.04
...
... The International
Association of Space Entrepreneurs has posted it's latest newsletter:
IASE
Quarterly Newsletter - Volume II, Number III
October.7.2004
Space News
Renting a Mars station... The
Mars
Desert Research Station (MDRS) in south central Utah was
developed by the Mars
Society to develop tools and techniques for Mars exploration
and settlement. It is currently used from December to May by
a series of teams that come for periods of a week or two to
test various technologies and methods in a realistic Mars habitat
simulation.
Peter Kokh is the new president of the Moon
Society and he is initiating a project in which the Moon
Society will rent the MDRS to carry out simulations of lunar
settlements: Renting
the Mars Desert Research Station for Moon Outpost Exercises
- Moon Society.
Kokh, by the way, has been the long time editor of the Moon
Miners Manifesto newsletter, which provides articles and
news on technologies, concepts and experiments for lunar exploration
and development.
Space tourism course...
Robert Goehlich wants me to remind you about his space tourism
class now starting at Keio University in Japan. You can attend
it via the web:
"...after the Ansari X Prize is won, there are many new
challenging tasks for space tourism. Why not join 'Space Tourism
II life-broadcasted Lecture' and share your ideas? It takes
you only about 5-10 minutes to setup your computer. You are
welcome to join as a passive online member (just watch occasionally
like 'TV style'), an active online member (communicate with
classroom and join 'Space Tourism Market Simulation' Game)
or online speaker (you like to give a presentation). Please
let me know your wish when you register. Login at: www.robert-goehlich.de."
X PRIZES for other challenges...
Inspired by the success of the X
PRIZE, the WTN
X PRIZES program will use prizes as motivators for innovations
in other areas. The WTN
(World Technology Network) is an organization
that seeks to promote technological advancement.
A press briefing to answer further questions about the WTN
X PRIZE concept will be held in the Fairmont Hotel (San Francisco)
at 1:00pm on Thursday, October 7, 2004, during the WTN's 2004
World Technology Summit.
The SpaceShow
this week:
Tuesday October 5, 2004 - The Space Show featured Kevin Greene,
a well known and highly respected space activist, investor,
and proponent of space settlement and economic development
was the guest on this edition of The Space Show. ..."
This interview
is now available from the archive.
Sunday October 10, 2004, 12:00-1:30 PM Pacific Time - the
Space Show will present t "the taped interview with Dr.
Michael Duke, Director of the Center for Commercial Applications
of Combustion in Space at the Colorado School of Mines, a
NASA Space Commercialization Center. Dr. Duke has 40 years
in space science and lunar exploration. He has worked at Johnson
Space Center for 25 years as Lunar Sample Curator, Chief of
the Solar System Exploration Division, and Chief Scientist
for the JSC Human Exploration office. ..."
The complete recording of the SpaceShow broadcast of the
second SpaceShipOne X PRIZE flight on October 4th is now available
in the archve.
The broadcast for the first flight on September
29th is also available.
News briefs... Satellite
distribution of movies in digitized form looks to be a growing
market: Lions
Gate to use satellite distribution system: The Final Cut 'the
perfect picture to showcase groundbreaking innovation' - Vancouver
Sun - Oct.3.04...
... Tech moguls are funding
space development: Geeks
in space - CNET - Oct.6.04...
... ArianeSpace will offer
the chance for fifty countries to launch a nanosat: Arianespace
to launch 50 nanosatellites in historic mission - Arianespace
- Oct.6.04
October.2.2004
Space News
Space software... Udo Mark
offers his high-precision digital astronomical software clock
program called MAXCLOCK
as freeware....
... Freefall
is a satellite tracking program that is quite impressive
according to Keith Cowing. Full version on sale from XtremeMac.
News briefs... Check out
the web cams from the NASA
Haughton-Mars Project and the Arthur
C. Clarke Mars Greenhouse on Devon Island in the Canadian
Arctic...
... Amateurs in many areas
are making big innovations according to this article: Amateur
Revolution: From astronomy to computing, networks of amateurs
are displacing the pros and spawning some of the greatest innovations.
- Fast Company - Oct.04....
... Satellite radio continues
to rise in popularity and stock price: When
Models Explode [Commentary on XM & Sirius satellite radio]
- Fool.com - Oct.1.04 ...
... Searching for life
all over space: The
Genesis Project - The New York Times Magazine - Sept.26.04
Mars volunteers... The
Mars
Society is calling for volunteers for the Mars
Desert Research Station
Volunteers Needed For MDRS Crews: Hard Work,
No Pay, Eternal Glory
September 29, 2004
Call for Volunteers: The Mars Society is requesting volunteers
to participate as members of the crew of the Mars Desert Research
Station in southern Utah during extended simulations of human
Mars exploration operations. The upcoming Mars Desert Research
Station field season will begin in December 2004 and run through
April 2005.
Volunteers should state clearly what segment of MDRS field
season span they are available. Both volunteer investigators
who bring with them a proposed program of research of their
own compatible with the objectives of the MDRS and those simply
wishing to participate as members of the crew supporting the
investigations of others will be considered. Research proposals
which focus the effort of or require selection as a team of
up to the full six-person crew will also be considered.
The Mars Society will be issuing an additional call for volunteers
for the summer 2005 field season of the Flashline Mars Arctic
Research Station (FMARS) on Devon Island later. However those
volunteering for MDRS at this time may also volunteer for
FMARS 2005. FMARS crew selection is highly competitive, and
prior experience at MDRS, while not strictly required, is
considered to be an important credential for FMARS selection.
In 2004, for example, 6 out of 7 FMARS crew members had prior
MDRS experience.
Applications will be considered from anyone in good physical
condition between 18 and 65 years of age without regard to
race, creed, color, gender, or nation. Scientific, engineering,
practical mechanical, wilderness, and literary skills are
all considered a plus. Dedication to the cause of human Mars
exploration is an absolute must, as conditions are likely
to be tough and the job will be very trying. Those selected
will be required to participate in certain crew training exercises
and to act under crew discipline and strict mission protocols
during the simulations.
All of those selected will also be required to sign a liability
waiver. The Mars Society will pay travel and related expenses
from Salt Lake City, Utah during training and simulation,
but there will be no salary. Volunteers will need to pay their
own travel expenses to Salt Lake City. Applications including
resume, character references, and a brief letter explaining
why you wish to participate should be sent to Mars Society,
PO Box 273, Indian Hills, CO 80454. Total length of applications
should not exceed 3 pages. Please include 3 copies.
Submission deadline for the first round of MDRS selections
is October 31, 2004. Applications submitted after that date
will be considered for openings as they become available.
Further information about the MDRS and FMARS programs is available
at the Mars Society website at www.marssociety.org
and in the book, "Mars on Earth," by Robert Zubrin (Tarcher
Penguin 2003) available at amazon.com.
Astronaut Story Musgrave's biography
is being released this month. Story: The Way of Water
by Anne Lenehan tells how he overcame a very tough childhood
to become one of NASA's most space-traveled astronauts. From
the flyer:
Story Musgrave has an insatiable passion for life. From his
childhood on a dairy farm in western Massachusetts, to payload
commander on the Hubble Space Telescope rescue mission, share
Story’s incredible physical and spiritual journey as he relates
to the world, and the universe, around him.
Based on a thematic biographical style, this intimate portrait
of one of the world’s greatest thinkers, explorers and aviators
is revealed through the eyes of Story himself, his family,
friends and colleagues.
Story is an American hero, renaissance man and arguably, NASA’s
greatest unofficial spokesperson - certainly one of the few
with real vision and authenticity
Here's a review
posted at collectSpace, which also sells autographed
copies.
Singular thriller...I've
been informed about the book Singularity,
which has a plot built on the physics of micro-black holes:
Singularity is a Crichton-esque thriller with mass appeal
dealing with the 1908 Tunguska event and modern times. Scientists
and science fiction writers are taking note of DeSmedt’s Singularity.
Caltech astrophysicist and author of the national bestselling
Black Holes and Time Warps Kip Thorn said, “I very much enjoyed
Bill DeSmedt's Singularity. Bill got the vast majority of
the physics right, which is highly unusual — especially in
a book that is such a good read.” Kevin J. Anderson, New York
Times bestselling coauthor of Dune: The Battle Of Corrin,
says “Singularity juggles Clancy, Crichton, and The Da Vinci
Code. An innovative concept for an end-of-the-world thriller,
with convincing research and locomotive pacing."
Here's a review
and the publisher's
page.
October.1.2004
Space News
More commercial space progress...
Looks like Orbital
Recovery, the space tug firm founded by Walt Anderson, Dennis
Wingo, and others,
is close to its first major deal to use its tug to extend the
life of a satellite running out of station-keeping fuel: First
space tug deal 'on cards' - BBC - Sept.30.04.
The company is based in Britain and has several partners that
are major European aerospace players such as Arianespace and
Snecma. (See this pdf
fact sheet.)...
... Orbimage
emerged from bankruptcy just last December and now has won a
$500M government deal: ORBIMAGE
wins NextView contract - spacetoday.net - Sept.30.04
Space around the world...
The World
Space Week celebration is set for Oct.4-10. See the highlights,
which include events
in some 50 countries. Lance
Bass is serving again as Youth Spokesperson. Lance
Bass Brings Excitement of Spaceflight to School Children in
Los Angeles During World Space Week 2004 - Business Wire - Sept.29.04.
Big asteroid flies by ...
Toutatis came by but thankfully we didn't have a too close encounter:
See
Video of Huge Asteroid Flying Past Earth Today - Space.com -
Sept.29.04