Rockets, Simulators, Space Models

Videos: Big rockets look even bigger when put in “everyday places”

Here are two new videos that can give one a much better sense of just how big the big rockets that are launching, and in some cases landing, today really are:

Bonus: Enjoy more of The Everyday Astronaut‘s soundtrack to the video at top:

====

 

Activism, Space Science, Space Systems

Video: PlanetVac tested on Masten Space’s Xodiac rocket

I’ve previously posted about the PlanetVac system for gathering a sample of the surface of celestial bodies. It was developed by Honeybee Robotics and supported financially by the Planetary Society. Here is a video report on a recent test using Masten Space Systems‘s Xodiac vertical takeoff and landing reusable rocket.

From the caption:

Taking samples of other worlds is an important step towards discovery, but it is an expensive and complex process. Honeybee Robotics and The Planetary Society
teamed up to solve this problem. This is PlanetVac.

Learn more: http://www.planetary.org/planetvac/

After a few prototypes, PlanetVac is ready to be tested in Mojave, CA on a Xodiac rocket made by Masten Space Systems. NASA selected PlanetVac to fly on a Xodiac rocket as part of its Flight Opportunities program. If this PlanetVac Xodiac test is successful, it will significantly increase its chance of being selected on a real space mission.

PlanetVac Xodiac was supported by Planetary Society members. Over 800 people joined the team by donating. Thank you to the 887 donors from 35 countries who supported PlanetVac Xodiac in 2018. Special thanks to Pendleton Ward and Dustin Roberts who provided generous matching funds to inspire the community in support of the project.

====

Space Arts, Space Science, Space Systems

Voyager mission posters and infographics

The two Voyager spacecraft were launched in 1977 and successfully visited the gas giant planets of our solar system before heading out into interstellar space. The nuclear powered vehicles are still operating and sending data back to earth.

Check out these posters and infographics from NASA JPL in celebration of the Voyager missions.

The Grand Tour – JPL Travel Poster: NASA’s Voyager mission took advantage of a once-every-175-year alignment of the outer planets for a grand tour of the solar system. The twin spacecraft revealed details about Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune – using each planet’s gravity to send them on to the next destination. Voyager set the stage for such ambitious orbiter missions as Galileo to Jupiter and Cassini to Saturn. Today both Voyager spacecraft continue to return valuable science from the far reaches of our solar system.
The Voyagers Rock On: Thanks to the twin Voyager spacecraft, music is truly universal: Each carries a Golden Record with sights, sounds and songs from Earth as it sails on through the Milky Way. Recalling the classic rock era of the late 1970s when the Voyagers launched, this poster is an homage to the mission’s greatest hits. Some of the most extraordinary discoveries of the probes’ first 40 years include the volcanoes on Jupiter’s moon Io, the hazy nitrogen atmosphere of Saturn’s moon Titan and the cold geysers on Neptune’s moon Triton. Voyager 1 is also the first spacecraft to deliver a portrait of our planets from beyond Neptune, depicting Earth as a ‘pale blue dot,’ and, as of Aug. 25, 2012, to enter interstellar space. Voyager 2 is expected to enter interstellar space in the coming years. Even after 40 years, the Voyagers’ hits just keep on coming.
The Voyagers: Reaching for the Stars: The twin Voyager spacecraft, which launched in 1977, are our ambassadors to the rest of the Milky Way, destined to continue orbiting the center of our galaxy for billions of years after they stop communicating with Earth. On Aug. 25, 2012, Voyager 1 became the first human-made object to enter interstellar space, and Voyager 2 is expected to cross over in the next few years. At age 40, the Voyagers are the farthest and longest-operating spacecraft and still have plenty more to discover. This poster captures the spirit of exploration, the vastness of space and the wonder that has fueled this ambitious journey to the outer planets and beyond.

Infographics:

Voyager Mission Timeline

a

JPL Mission Paths: See how many NASA/JPL past & present missions flew around the universe.

====

 

Activism, Space Policy, SpaceCasts

The Space Show this week – June.18.2018

The guests and topics of discussion on The Space Show this week:

1. Monday, June 18, 2018; 2-3:30 pm PDT (4-5:30 pm CDT, 5-6:30 pm EDT): Mark Sundahl, Atty, returns to discuss commercial space law, property rights, etc.

2. Wednesday, June 13, 2018: Hotel Mars. See Upcoming Show Menu and the website newsletter for details. Hotel Mars is pre-recorded by John Batchelor. It is archived on The Space Show site after John posts it on his website.

3. Thursday, June 21, 2018: 7-8:30 pm PDT; 9-10:30 pm CDT; 10-11:30 pm EDT: We welcome back Dr. Haym Benarova for this special program.

4. Friday, June 22 2018; 9:30 am -11 am PDT, (12:30 -2 pm EDT; 11:30 am -1 pm CDT): We welcome back Dr. John Brandenburg for his latest science fiction book, Morningstar Rising UFO Armageddon.

5. Sunday, June 24, 2018: 12-1:30 pm PDT; 2-3:30 pm CDT; 3-4:30 pm EDT. Dennis Wingo returns to do a special interview with me about commercial and NewSpace history.

See also:
* The Space Show on Vimeo – webinar videos
* The Space Show’s Blog – summaries of interviews.
* The Space Show Classroom Blog – tutorial programs

The Space Show is a project of the One Giant Leap Foundation.

The Space Show - David Livingston
David Livingston
Rocketry, Space Models

Video: BPS.space flies Falcon Heavy scale model rocket

I recently posted about Joe Barnard adding thrust vector control and other advanced features to model rockets.  The goal is to model not just the appearance of large rockets but how they take off and fly as well. This weekend, he successfully flew for the first time a model he built of the SpaceX Falcon Heavy, which involved separation of the two side cores and the in-flight firing start-up of the center core.

The side boosters executed a 20 degree roll program with a rate of 30dps, beginning at T+0.9. Initial pitch-over of the vehicle at launch was due to thrust inconsistencies between booster motors. Because of a low level coordinate transformation error in its flight software, the center core flew with poor stability, correcting roughly 20 degrees off axis for both pitch and yaw. Photos from the flight can be found here: https://bps.space/gallery/

Find out more about Barnard’s projects and rocket hardware at BPS.space.

====

 

Everyone can participate in space