NerdGrind - How-to Computer Help - Tutorials - Tech and Gadget News » space

NASA Coolant Tank Comes Back to Earth and Almost Bombs Australia

Nerd Grind — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 13:44:35 +0000

A retired coolant tank put into space by the ISS and NASA has unexpectedly reentered the Earth’s atmosphere off the coast of Australia. Luckily, the 1400lb tank came back over water and the atmosphere broke it into tiny pieces. No pieces larger than 15lbs are believed to have made it back intact.

NASA threw the tank overboard during a shuttle mission when it was deemed too volatile to bring back to Earth. Scientists believed the tank would find a way back into our atmosphere sometime in November so this comes as no surprise.

Gaming mogul Richard Garriott returns to earth

Nerd Grind — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 13:06:57 +0000

Ultima’s Lord British has safely returned to earth. The gaming mogul’s ten day trip into outer space has come to an end. While up there in the black, he participated in an interstellar toilet repair. Really. Not as glamorous as say, meeting alien life, but tons cooler than an earthly toilet repair. Joe the space plumber, perhaps?

At 7:34 Moscow Time (10:34 EST) the space tourist touched down in Kazakhstan. He has offered no comment about his trip to the press yet, but word on the street is that it was "totally awesome." Click the link for more on his arrival.

In other news, I can’t even afford closet space much less to go to outer space. What a cruel, cruel world!

Korea enters space race, reveals first orbit-capable rocket

Nerd Grind — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 12:59:00 +0000

South Korea has unveiled it’s first space launch vehicle, imaginatively named the KSLV-1. From an aesthetic standpoint, the thing is definitely a rocket. If you were to doodle a rocket in the binder of your eighth grade notebook, it’d probably look something like the KSLV-1.

The rocket, upon launch, is going to release Korea’s first satellite into the final frontier. The satellite will purportedly exist for "science and technology" reasons. Care to get any more vague guys?

The rocket will not be launching until April or June of next year due to a technical cooperation with Russia. It’s the cold war space race all over again. Awesome!

Nasa Rover Says “Take me to your leader”

Nerd Grind — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 15:12:56 +0000

Nasa has released a photo of the bottom of the aeroshell that will soon be roving all over Mars. It’s the largest aeroshell in the history of space exploration, which isn’t saying much considering the runner up is about the size of a breadbox. This one, though, whoa nelly. It measures in at over fifteen feet and is designed to literally float in the middle of the red planet’s atmosphere.

According to Steve Jolly, from Lockheed Martin, "the biggest challenge for the MSL aeroshell is its gigantic size. It’s almost double the size of our Mars Exploration Rovers’ [Spirit and Opportunity] aeroshells.When you are building a structure that big, there are many considerations we had to take into account, including the fact that this is a lifting capsule that is steerable."

It’ll fit right in on Mars, being as how it already looks like it’s from there. No word on if Val Kilmer will be piloting it.

Fish…..in….SPACE!

Nerd Grind — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 14:26:58 +0000

If your going to insist upon getting a gold fish, at least get it a cool looking place. Instead of a conventional bowl, how about a retro and cool "space" bowl?

Itâ€™s available from Wrapables for $21.95. Depressed goldfish not included.

Space Communists

Nerd Grind — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 16:51:04 +0000

And just when we thought the Red Menace was gone, here comes China plotting to overtake the Space Continuum.

China is planning to send a three man crew of "space communists" into space next year and they want to spend their time "learning the Party’s policies and exchanging opinions on the Party’s decisions."

MIT Wants to Lasso Asteroid

Nerd Grind — Wed, 26 Sep 2007 17:38:36 +0000

MIT researchers have come up with a way to ‘capture’ an asteroid so that astronauts can see it up close and personal.

Basically, they want to really lasso this sucker with a rope (I do not make these things up). No cowboy involved though. The rope would be launched from a "remote-controlled rocket."

Space Hotel in 2012

Nerd Grind — Sat, 11 Aug 2007 19:18:39 +0000

This may a bit too ambitious, but a company is actually shooting for a 2012 opening of the Galactic Suite, a hotel in space. For a mere $4 million for a three-day stay, you can start saving those benjamins now. Read It

Space suits go hollywood?

Nerd Grind — Tue, 31 Jul 2007 17:54:28 +0000

MIT’s Dava Newman has designed a space suit. The suit is called the Biosuit. This space was designed for Paris’ adventure into space. It’s like so hot… The suit is designed for optimum maneuvering and is fully functional…

In the 40 years that humans have been traveling into space, the suits they wear have changed very little. The bulky, gas-pressurized outfits give astronauts a bubble of protection, but their significant mass and the pressure itself severely limit mobility.

Traditional bulky spacesuits "do not afford the mobility and locomotion capability that astronauts need for partial gravity exploration missions. We really must design for greater mobility and enhanced human and robotic capability," Newman says.

"Newman, her colleague Jeff Hoffman, her students and a local design firm, Trotti and Associates, have been working on the project for about seven years. Their prototypes are not yet ready for space travel, but demonstrate what they’re trying to achieve–a lightweight, skintight suit that will allow astronauts to become truly mobile lunar and Mars explorers. Newman anticipates that the BioSuit could be ready by the time humans are ready to launch an expedition to Mars, possibly in about 10 years. Current spacesuits could not handle the challenges of such an exploratory mission, Newman says."

http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2007/biosuit-0716.html

The suit is still in design and it is suppose to be ready for the Mars missions. Paris still wants one for the next Academy Awards.

Tragic Blast in Virgin Galactic Rocket Test

Nerd Grind — Fri, 27 Jul 2007 16:06:07 +0000

A test for a new rocket for SpaceShipTwo, intended for Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic private space company, went tragically wrong when an explosion killed two people and injured four others. No word yet on why the explosion occurred at a remote pad at the Mojave Air and Space Port. Burt Rutan, owner and founder of the rocket’s manufacturer, Scaled Composite, was not at the site when the explosion occurred.

NerdGrind - How-to Computer Help - Tutorials - Tech and Gadget News » space

NASA Coolant Tank Comes Back to Earth and Almost Bombs Australia

Related posts:

Gaming mogul Richard Garriott returns to earth

Related posts:

Korea enters space race, reveals first orbit-capable rocket

Related posts:

Nasa Rover Says “Take me to your leader”

Related posts:

Fish…..in….SPACE!

Related posts:

Space Communists

Related posts:

MIT Wants to Lasso Asteroid

Related posts:

Space Hotel in 2012

Related posts:

Space suits go hollywood?

Related posts:

Tragic Blast in Virgin Galactic Rocket Test

Related posts: