Space Exploration / Space Flight: Manned

[Trevp666]

Hang on a moment.....
That isn't the Earth....
When you zoom in......

 

[Kondoru]

I was going to say this is the shot we have been waiting for for decades.

But you kind of spoiled it.

 

[ChasFink]

It's okay.The shot was blurry anyway. Someone must have moved.

 

[Trevp666]

Every Saturday, Marcus House produces a 20 minute round-up of all the 'space exploration' activity of the past week.
This weeks episode is a cracker.

 

[Trevp666]

Artemis/Orion has set a new record.
"On Monday, it moved some 430,000km (270,000 miles) beyond the Earth - the furthest any spacecraft designed to carry humans has travelled."
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-63788247

 

[Trevp666]

Live video feed from Orion.

 

[Trevp666]

As I write, the Artemis/Orion capsule is hurtling towards earth for a splashdown in about half an hour (due around 1740 GMT).

The spaceship, which has been on a three-week journey around the Moon, is targeting a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean off California.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-63907649

 

[Kondoru]

And a textbook splashdown!

 

[Swifty]

After decades of careful conservation (not restoration), Neil Armstrong's Apollo 11 moon landing suit went on display three years ago as The Smithsonian Air and Space Museum ..

https://airandspace.si.edu/research/projects/armstrong-suit?editorial_series[2400]=2400&page=0

 

[Trevp666]

British astronaut Tim Peake retires.

Tim Peake retires from European astronaut corps.
UK spaceman Tim Peake is stepping down permanently from his role as a European astronaut.
He's going to take up a full-time ambassadorial position for science and space instead - work he's been doing since 2019.
The former British Army Air Corps helicopter pilot was selected as a European Space Agency (Esa) astronaut in 2009.
He flew to the space station for a six-month tour in 2015/2016.
"Being an Esa astronaut has been the most extraordinary experience," Tim Peake said.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-64346185

 

[Herr Cloaca]

On 24 April 1967, cosmonaut Vladimir Komarov became the first man to die in space. The Soviet Union mourned the loss of a hero when it heard the Soyuz 1 mission was a failure. Some say Komarov knew he was taking part in a doomed operation, but what really happened?

https://www.bbc.com/reel/video/p0dm6362/vladimir-komarov-the-cosmonaut-who-fell-to-earth

 

[maximus otter]

British astronaut Tim Peake retires.

Excellent! Perhaps he’ll shut up now.

He's going to take up a full-time ambassadorial position for science and space instead…

Oh Jesus! He bangs on more about having been in space than Howard Bloody Wolowitz!

maximus otter

 

[Trevp666]

To be fair, Tim Peake is better than that bleedin Chris Hadfield who did the singing in the ISS.
(Get back to work, Chris - it cost a fortune to send you up there and you shouldn't be wasting your time wobbling on some old David Bowie song.)
https://sservi.nasa.gov/articles/as...d version of David,Credit: CSA/Chris Hadfield.

 

[Trevp666]

I couldn't find a 'Space Nuclear Power' thread, and it's probably a bit too niche to start a thread of it's own anyway.

Rolls Royce have unveiled their plans for a Nuclear Reactor to power space missions, like the upcoming trips to Mars (if they ever actually manage to get one off the ground!)
Also, I think they should bung a Spirit of Ecstasy on top of it.

Rolls-Royce shows off new reactor to power Mars missions as UK poised to lead space race
Rolls Royce has unveiled a new image of an early-stage nuclear reactor design that could help power humanity's missions to Mars and beyond. The British technology pioneer is working with the UK Space Agency to explore the game-changing potential of nuclear-powered propulsion in spaceflight. Many experts have hailed this prospect as harnessing the energy released from splitting an atom could be used to power astronaut bases on the moon or Mars, or even decrease travel times in space. As part of their efforts with the UKSA, Rolls Royce unveiled their new micro-reactor design, which they can withstand extreme conditions.
etc

full article at link
https://www.express.co.uk/news/scie...-nuclear-reactor-design-power-mars-mission-uk

 

[Swifty]

Reconstructing The Columbia Space Shuttle Disaster - Learning Lessons From The Largest Crash Site​

 

[Trevp666]

Good news.
And bad news.

"Three months after NASA's new moonship returned to Earth, the U.S. space agency is calling the Artemis I mission a success and gearing up for the next launch as early as November 2024."

"But as engineers pore over terabytes of data from that maiden voyage, they've uncovered crucial hardware problems that will warrant further scrutiny before they can safely put humans into orbit on the next launch. Those issues include significant damage to the mobile launcher — the Space Launch System rocket's platform — and the Orion spacecraft's protective heat shield."

https://mashable.com/article/nasa-artemis-orion-moon-mission-launch

 

[Trevp666]

Spacesuit for return to the Moon unveiled
A new generation of spacesuit for humanity's return trip to the Moon has been unveiled by Nasa.
(...) Nasa hopes to have the updated suit ready for the Artemis III mission to the Moon in 2025.
The existing spacesuits worn by US space travellers have not been fully redesigned since 1981.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-64965767

IMO the dark colour is a bad idea. It'll get way too hot. Also, it won't be as visible on cameras.

 

[Coal]

IMO the dark colour is a bad idea. It'll get way too hot. Also, it won't be as visible on cameras.

It's OK they'll turn up the studio lighting.