The Official Space and Astronomy Thread v. Well, this is weird.

[MrBoom_shack-a-lack]

It's amazing yea but what's sad is that it's only these really big discoveries that get some attention and as you said they come up every month with new discoveries but most of those are often just ignored or get in the limelight for other news. And the fact that about 90% of the earths population will never fully understand discoveries like these (including me sadly) or they don't really care. We're too obtained with our daily life, career and everything that we don't have time anymore or we don't care too look up at the sky and ask those questions that we all share and have in common.

Sry for my rant. 

[kári]

What makes this find even more amazing to me is the fact that I can't even comprehend how we as humans...with very rudimentary and limited technology (universally speaking) can even find and measure such a thing. When they come out every other month saying they've found such and such planet, or measured the nitrogen on a planet orbiting a star 14 million light years away....how they heck is that possible? It's amazing actually.

Finding out what kind of atoms and/or molecules are on a star far away is actually very easy.... If you really want to know I can try to explain it to you as best as I can

[hefdaddy42]

And it's deep, too.

[AngelBack]

And it's deep, too.

Are you referencing Richard Pryor ?  If so, 

[MrBoom_shack-a-lack]

1 billion pixel mosaic of the Milky Way center region:

https://sguisard.astrosurf.com/Pagim/GC.html

Pretty cool!

[wasteland]

1 billion pixel mosaic of the Milky Way center region:

https://sguisard.astrosurf.com/Pagim/GC.html

Pretty cool!

One of my top 5 astronomy pictures ever!

Anyway, thanks for making this thread official. I will be a regular here, as I have loved astronomy/astrophysics since early childhood, and I am currently studying it for an university exam!

[Ben_Jamin]

These astronomical events are what interest me

[MrBoom_shack-a-lack]

1 billion pixel mosaic of the Milky Way center region:

https://sguisard.astrosurf.com/Pagim/GC.html

Pretty cool!

One of my top 5 astronomy pictures ever!

Anyway, thanks for making this thread official. I will be a regular here, as I have loved astronomy/astrophysics since early childhood, and I am currently studying it for an university exam!

[MrBoom_shack-a-lack]

"A new asteroid-mining company launches Tuesday with the goal of helping humanity expand across the solar system by tapping the vast riches of space rocks."

https://www.space.com/19368-asteroid-mining-deep-space-industries.html

"The MicroGravity Foundry is the first 3D printer that creates high-density, high-strength metal components even in zero gravity," company co-founder and MicroGravity Foundry inventor Stephen Covey said in a statement. "Other metal 3D printers sinter powdered metal, which requires a gravity field and leaves a porous structure, or they use low-melting point metals with less strength."

[Chino]

I made a thread about this a while, didn't get a single response. I forgot this thread existed.

SpaceX's Grasshopper test video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zz-NYeH-CEY

[MrBoom_shack-a-lack]

That is cool! "Closed loop thrust vector" don't know exactly what that is? I enjoy the enthusiasm all this private companies have and it seems like a new project/company pops up every week although alot may not succeed with their plans, it's still awesome that there are driven people how wants to push the technology forward instead of expect that NASA will do everything. Those small steps can be equally important than big budget space missions.

[Chino]

The point of that is to be able to recycle a 52 million dollar rocket. Instead of ruining one by having it crash in the ocean, you could deliver a payload to space and have the boosters land back on launch the launch pad. The more launches you get out of one rocket, the more money you save. They only cost $300k to refill vs. needing a whole new rocket plus fuel.

[MrBoom_shack-a-lack]

Thanks!  I knew about their plans for the project but i was interested in that piece of technology called "Closed loop thrust vector" but i guess i will not fully understand it anyway! 

[Chino]

Thanks!  I knew about their plans for the project but i was interested in that piece of technology called "Closed loop thrust vector" but i guess i will not fully understand it anyway! 

I think the closed loop has something to do with the engine's programming. Instead of just firing on or shutting off, it is constantly reassessing (looping in the code) what it's doing. That's how they compensate for the tilt of the rocket and it guide it back to the pad.

[MrBoom_shack-a-lack]

Thanks!  I knew about their plans for the project but i was interested in that piece of technology called "Closed loop thrust vector" but i guess i will not fully understand it anyway! 

I think the closed loop has something to do with the engine's programming. Instead of just firing on or shutting off, it is constantly reassessing (looping in the code) what it's doing. That's how they compensate for the tilt of the rocket and it guide it back to the pad.

Yea that sounds about right. Kind of like how a gyroscope works and in a way like this?:

In astrodynamics orbital station-keeping is the orbital manoeuvres made by thruster burns that are needed to keep a spacecraft in a particular assigned orbit.

[Chino]

I believe so

[Azyiu]

I made a thread about this a while, didn't get a single response. I forgot this thread existed.

SpaceX's Grasshopper test video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zz-NYeH-CEY

Ok, I don't want to be a buzzkill, but didn't NASA already tried this concept back in the late 90's, with the failed Delta Clipper test? The rocket actually failed to land, crashed and exploded. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kk-gGtC7xZ4

[Chino]

I made a thread about this a while, didn't get a single response. I forgot this thread existed.

SpaceX's Grasshopper test video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zz-NYeH-CEY

Ok, I don't want to be a buzzkill, but didn't NASA already tried this concept back in the late 90's, with the failed Delta Clipper test? The rocket actually failed to land, crashed and exploded. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kk-gGtC7xZ4

So did the space shuttle.... twice. Technology has advance so much in those 15 years, I think it'd be foolish not to try again.

[Azyiu]

So did the space shuttle.... twice. Technology has advance so much in those 15 years, I think it'd be foolish not to try again.

True, and I am fine with that idea. Guess what I was really wanted to know is, how is this new gen of rocket better than the Delta Clipper idea? What made the NASA officials think (new or better technology? More payload?) this time around it is safer, and more reliable?

[Chino]

So did the space shuttle.... twice. Technology has advance so much in those 15 years, I think it'd be foolish not to try again.

True, and I am fine with that idea. Guess what I was really wanted to know is, how is this new gen of rocket better than the Delta Clipper idea? What made the NASA officials think (new or better technology? More payload?) this time around it is safer, and more reliable?

This time around it isn't NASA designing and building it. Everything is being done in house by SpaceX, the company who has now been hired by the government to deliver payloads to and from the ISS. The founder of the company, who is also the founder of Tesla Motors and Pay Pal, is a very ambitious man with the determination, the wallet, and the resources to make rockets like these a reality. Many of NASA's rockets were heavily reliant on technology and methods dating into the early 90s and late 80s in some cases... SpaceX is truly new from the ground up, using nothing but top of the line everything.

[Chino]

whoa...

https://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2013/jan/22/space-mining-gold-asteroids



"The asteroid mining firm Deep Space Industries, Inc. launched today with an ambitious plan to build an entire fleet of spacecraft by 2015 and deploy them to harvest resources from asteroids near the Earth."

[TioJorge]

Dead Space, here we come!!

[MrBoom_shack-a-lack]

That's sounds really cool yea! Btw i posted that a couple of days ago. 

[Azyiu]

Dead Space, here we come!!

Good one! 

[MrBoom_shack-a-lack]

A wonderful little documentary about the "overview effect" many astronauts feel after seeing the earth from space.

https://vimeo.com/55073825

This is a film i wished more people would see and reflect over the fact that you actually don't have to be an astrounat to understand that we all have more in common with each other than we may think no matter where you live on the planet. Cheesy but sadly most people ignore that simple fact.

[Unlegit]

I think the link was typed incorrectly.

[MrBoom_shack-a-lack]

I think the link was typed incorrectly.

Thanks! That site stoped working for some reason so i found another link. 

[MrBoom_shack-a-lack]

I just wanna recommend this site on YT:

SpaceRip

They have alot of cool videos about space and astronomy that is comprehensible for everyone.

[Unlegit]

Just watched a ton of their videos. Thanks for recommending this! 

[MrBoom_shack-a-lack]

Nice! 

[wasteland]

Are you already excited for comet ISON? I've recently found a very cool blog run by an astrophile/astronomer and exclusively dealing with the comet. They guy took the time to create a few images of what he thinks and hopes the comet would be like. Of course it's impossible to predict a comet's appearence, but those are educated guesses:

[Implode]

I can't wait!

[wasteland]

I'm sorry for Blob, but this one is completely ours. He had McNaught, or at least he might have had, if he managed to stick his nose in the great outdoors for the occasion 

[MrBoom_shack-a-lack]

Ohh that last picture is sweet! Haven't heard about this but it seems it's not gonna be visible until october 2013 - januarly 2014.

[BlobVanDam]

I'm sorry for Blob, but this one is completely ours. He had McNaught, or at least he might have had, if he managed to stick his nose in the great outdoors for the occasion 

You can keep it. I know which one I'd rather have.