Tag: Spaceflight

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Keep your eyes up (SpaceX Demo-2)

A year and a couple months ago, I wrote  about the SpaceX Demo-1 mission and why it was so important. That mission successfully sent an uncrewed Crew Dragon capsule to the ISS and returned it to Earth. Then, a little over a month later, a Crew Dragon exploded unexpectedly during a static fire test of its abort thrusters. This delayed a crewed mission, while SpaceX investigated the cause and made corresponding changes to the capsule. As is often and quite accurately said: space is hard.

But the wait is over. Wednesday afternoon (May 27, 2020), at 4:33 EDT, SpaceX will launch Demo-2 to the ISS. Aboard that capsule will be two astronauts, Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley, the first launched from US soil since the final shuttle launch (STS-135) in 2011.

Keep your eyes up. Times are weird right now, but we will get through this pandemic. And when we come out the other side, we will be well on the way to becoming the space-faring civilization that we are destined to be. Wednesday’s launch is a big step on the path. I urge you to watch the launch, if for no other reason than as a reminder that history is bigger than the mess we’re in right now.

Image: SpaceX

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The perennial question: Moon or Mars?

We don’t need to go to the Moon in order to go to Mars. This doesn’t mean we shouldn’t go to the Moon. It’s just not a prerequisite.

I love this quote from John Grunsfeld, when asked about the radiation risk of a Mars trip: “How does that compare to the risk of blowing up on the launchpad or on ascent; getting hit by a meteor, asteroid, debris, some kind of space junk on the way there; burning up in the Mars atmosphere; burning up in the Earth’s atmosphere on the way back; or missing the Earth? You add up all those risks, and the [risk of radiation exposure] is kind of just another one.”

The Pros and Cons of a Lunar Pit Stop
The Pros and Cons of a Lunar Pit Stop

NASA definitely wants to go to Mars. But does it need the moon to get there?
The Atlantic The Atlantic
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Crew Dragon abort test tomorrow

SpaceX will conduct an inflight abort test of Crew Dragon tomorrow morning. As the Falcon 9 reaches max-Q, it will shut off its engines to simulate a worst case failure. This should trigger the Crew Dragon to separate from the rocket and fire its own Super Draco engines to get away from the failing rocket. Once clear, Crew Dragon will pop its parachutes and land gently in the Atlantic. This should be quite a show and is the last major milestone before an actual crewed launch.

SpaceX poised to take large step toward human space flight
SpaceX poised to take large step toward human space flight

SpaceX is ready to check off another box on the list of requirements that need to be completed before the company can send crewed missions to the International Space Station.
SpaceFlight Insider SpaceFlight Insider
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ISS as Mars transit testbed

Transit to Mars using current technology takes about six months. How might a crew react to that length of time in close quarters, moving ever farther from Earth? The ISS could provide a testbed and training facility for such a trip.

A Journey to Mars Starts on the Space Station
NASA wants to use the International Space Station as a facility for Mars-analog missions.
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Apollo 11 landing

In the final minutes of the Apollo 11 LM’s descent to the surface, Armstrong noticed that the intended landing site was too rocky and took manual control of the descent in order to find a better spot. The LM had never been flown in this manner, and Armstrong didn’t have time to discuss it with mission control.

We’ve all heard recordings of those final minutes of the LM descent. But we’ve never seen exactly what Armstrong saw until now. The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter team has reconstructed Armstrong’s view of the surface in those final minutes.

Pairing the audio recording with this footage is edge-of-the-seat exciting, as you imagine Armstrong coolly working the LM down while the voices at mission control have no idea of this extra drama under way at the time.