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You're missing the point - you're not making money, and releasing audio recordings can't be an enjoyable activity. So why bother putting so much effort into it?

I love comic cons and attending panels. I went to Silicon Valley Comic Con, WorldCon 76, ToyXpo 2018. I'm going to Heroes & Villains 2018 in December. I'm planning to go to SpaceFest 2019 in Arizona for the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11 and my 50th birthday. After I established my audience on YouTube, I will qualify for media passes to these events.

A 50 year old man with no retirement savings

That statement has two lies. I'll let you figure out which is which.

an inherently unstable career

I'm 4.5 years into a five-year contract and the five-year extension is on deck. As the recruiter told me when I accepted the job, government IT is a life long commitment.

surely has better things to do with his time?

I'm doing what I enjoy doing. You don't make 70 videos in ten months unless you enjoy writing scripts, putting yourself out there and putting up with bullshit trolls.

It seems like you all are forgetting all the trouble NASA went to protect Apollo astronauts against catastrophic pad failures.

These structures were built into the pad to try to allow astronauts to escape the Saturn V in the event of a not-so-catastrophic-but-close-to-it pad failure.

And the infamous slide wire (which, IMHO, should not have been disassembled, it should have been referbered and opened up to the public for a fee....)

NASA was VERY worried about pre launch Rapid Unscheduled Dissassembies. That none ever happened is testimony to procedure, training and engineering.

This?

specifically, when a side solar panel is not installed, the C3038 Octopus harness must be connected.

It's not like this news is new anyways. It took me about a whole minute to find these.

It's not like I should expect much better.

Then perhaps one of the dozen or so prototypes scattered around in museums would serve the purpose rather than this 8000 lb 21 ft x 15 ft behemoth? This one didn't look anything like the real rovers, it was a test unit for a direction that wasn't taken.

Here are the locations of the existing prototypes, I am sure the Smithsonian would allow some people to take measurements if needed to make a new one:
http://www.collectspace.com/ub...

http://www.collectspace.com/ub...

There appear to be many of them around, the Smithsonian Air and Space museum has one, and ironically Marshall in Huntsville, Alabama has one.

Here is an article that was linked on slashdot http://www.collectspace.com/ne... and at the bottom it says "Outside of lunar meteorites and a few ounces of the moon returned by Soviet robotic probes, all other moon rocks are considered the property of the United States. As such, according to the NASA Office of the Inspector General, those found in possession of samples can be prosecuted for theft of government property, for which there is no statute of limitations." which is in violation of the Outer space treaty wonder if they know lol

WHICH one?

Yeah, you figure in an earth to LEO vehicle that we'd be talking about a J2, or one of the LEM engines? Of course he's referring to the F1 engines.

Perhaps I need to explain here my dowmoddingest friends.

The J2 engine was not designed to be run at ground level. It's thrust nozzle was designed to run at altitude, with it's 27.5:1 expansion area ratio That's wide, and not efficient at sea level. In contrast, the F1 has a 16 to 1 ratio. Much more suited to lower altitude work. It's all related to the external pressure the rocket faces. Here's a pretty good explanation.

http://www.aerospaceweb.org/qu...

Anyone look at the ill fated Spacex launch? before it self disassembled, it was operating in an area beyond it's most efficient operation. You could see the much wider expansion of th exhaust.

Ideally, a rocket motor would adjust the throat to exhaust ratio for best efficiency, but that would be too expensive. Probably very heavy, and possibly complicated.

The J2 is designed to be restarted also.

There were some other engines on the Saturn V rockets also. The Aux Propulsion System or APS, provided roll control while using the J-2 engines. The APS used a single SE 7-1 engine, and three TR-204. engines. They were hypergolic engines. Here's a nice descriptive page: http://www.collectspace.com/ub...

So while the fellow who asaked the original question gets downmodded to 1, the caffeine fueled maniac who thinks he knows all about Rocket engines, is modded up to three. I'm catching a couple downmods to 0.

Anyone want to accept the challenge of explaning why anyone who obviously didn't know a lot about the Saturn would be referring to the J2 or APS engines - obvious specialty engines, and the rager who missed four of the engines on the Saturn V is modded as insightful?

Or does missing over half the engines on a rocket while acting like an expert qualify one as insighful on slashdot these days?

The astronauts were paid their regular military salaries, plus hazardous duty pay. It was a pittance. In order to compensate these men more fully The United States Congress authorized, through legislation, that astronauts could keep spent NASA equipment as mementos. It was always one of the 'unwritten rules' at NASA during that era. It wasn't until years later that it was questioned by some bureaucrat and the legislation was needed to end and questions

So no theft or questionable loans were involved.

This page is more informative and has the damage photos: http://www.collectspace.com/news/news-060412a.html

Doesn't look too bad.

There are many ambiguities in the summary.

1. The bridge was over water, not a roadway.

2. This was neither caused by "New York traffic" nor did it disrupt (land) traffic.

3. The protective covering that was damaged was on the Enterprise, not the bridge.

4. You can view photos of the damage yourself.

Not only would it have "slipped under the radar", it was on the government books as "expended". According to official records it was left on the moon with no intention of ever recovering it. If this was an item that was supposed to be brought back to the earth as part of the mission, I would say that the government has a point, even if all they would have done with it is stick it in a box in a warehouse somewhere. However, until he tried to sell it, the government thought it was gone forever.

It wouldn't have "slipped under the radar". NASA must have known about this camera all along. When astronauts returned from the moon, they were kept in quarantine for 21 days. Apparently, the astronauts seal themselves in bio-hazard suits before getting out of the command module. He would have had to have kept the camera with him, or it would have had to have been separately quarantined/decontaminated and returned to him. Now, you can't hide a camera the size of a brick in a bio-hazard suit, nor could you hide it from the three doctors who were quarantined with you. One of the articles states that NASA made multiple requests that the camera be returned.

I can see NASA's point. If an object is earmarked for destruction and it gets diverted by the person or persons overseeing that destruction, then it is considered stolen merchandise. If I worked for a company that shredded hard drives, and a shipment of 320GB solid state drives came in to be shredded, and I took one or two home, I'd be charged with theft. Same principle here.

40 years ago, Mitchell was allowed to keep the camera. Today he is required to return it. There must have been something that triggered the change in policy.

http://www.collectspace.com/ubb/Forum30/HTML/000804.html

I promise it's not Goatse. Read the post there by Robert Pearlman. Here's his key conclusion:

I think it is clear that Suffredini wasn't stating the de-orbit of the ISS as a point of fact, but rather a point of history -- what the plan had been and now we are considering ways -- post-space shuttle -- to keep the ISS tended, in regards to both its crew and supplies.

But if you believe my conclusion is incorrect, Alan Ladwig, senior advisor to the NASA Administrator, speaking at this past weekend's Apollo/Saturn reunion at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center, said that it is both the current administration's and (assuming he is confirmed) Charlie Bolden's plan to fully utilize the space station. In fact, he spoke strongly against those who work for NASA who have criticized the ISS, reminding them that the American public has paid for its launch -- its now time to take full use of that investment.

Been there, done almost that...

No me, but:

Today, the European Space Agency hosted a unique sporting event. Supported by the World Flying Disc Federation and sanctioned by the Swedish Frisbee Sport Federation, STS-116 mission specialist Christer Fuglesang broke the world record in the flying disc sporting discipline MTA, Maximum Time Aloft.

ESA believes that this is the first ever sanctioned sports event that has taken place in space.

The rules of MTA are simple: A player shall attempt to throw the disc in such a fashion that the disc remains airborne for as long as possible, before catching the disc himself. The timing of the flight of the throw shall be measured from the instant is initially touched in the catching attempt.

In this specific competition, Christer was free to waive the recommendation in the rules that an additional disc be available in the event a disc was lost or becomes unsuitable for use.

Fuglesang's record-setting attempt at MTA had an air time between his toss and catching the disc of 20 seconds.

Until today, the MTA world record stood at 16.72 seconds and was set by Don Cain on May 26, 1984, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The sanction for the attempt to break it was formally announced by the Swedish Frisbee Sport Federation on December 10, 2006.

(from: http://www.collectspace.com/ubb/Forum30/HTML/000476.html)

http://www.moonviews.com/archives/2009/03/newly_restored_picture_of_the.html

And a little bit more background on the LOIRP here: http://www.collectspace.com/news/news-111408a.html

I thought it was funny seeing all the tapes in the kitchen of an old McDonalds, with the tape drive in the lobby.

where the former director was convicted on 12 counts of stealing artifacts on loan from NASA and selling them for his own gain?

http://www.collectspace.com/news/news-110603a.html

http://history.nasa.gov/meatball.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NASA_logo

Although, the Star Trek emblem is far better looking, and has withstood the test of time (although trimming itself down)

However...

http://www.collectspace.com/news/news-082606a.html

That is one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind

You left out the "a". Not only did he intend to say it, he did say it, and it was lost in the poor voice transmission.

To the best of my understanding, Constellation is meant to be the umbrella program under which Orion, Ares, etc. fall under.

The intention appears to be that like Apollo, when Apollo Command Modules launched the crew, so will Orion and Orion Command Modules (the vehicles now-but-soon-to-be-formerly known as Crew Exploration Vehicles). At the same time, Constellation might be overseeing/ planning/ drafting other projects...

To the best of my understanding, Constellation is meant to be the umbrella program under which Orion, Ares, etc. fall under.

The intention appears to be that like Apollo, when Apollo Command Modules launched the crew, so will Orion and Orion Command Modules (the vehicles now-but-soon-to-be-formerly known as Crew Exploration Vehicles). At the same time, Constellation might be overseeing/ planning/ drafting other projects...

Does somebody @ NASA have a sense of humor? I heard 'Artemis' & the first thing I thought of was Superman II.
Far & Away, Terrence Stamp's Finest Performance!

Here are a couple of references -
http://collectspace.com/ubb/Forum35/HTML/000234.ht ml
http://www.funtrivia.com/en/Movies/Superman-II-104 17.html
(I had to check myself to make sure I wasn't crazy) You'll have to scroll down a bit in each link.

Why not get a watch that shows the correct time on Mars? This fellow made some watches for the JPL Mars Exploration Rover team and I think that he sells them to the public too.

Personally I hope someone buys one of these tickets and raffles it (with permission from Virgin Galactic of course). Then for the price of $20 we can all have a chance of going into space.

7 Up is currently running a sweepstakes for a suborbital space flight. I think it runs until the end of August:

http://www.softcoin.com/p/handler?target=general&a ction=getHome&sid=550
http://collectspace.com/ubb/Forum35/HTML/000126.ht ml

Look for unique promotional codes on specially marked ½-liter, 20oz., 2-liter bottles and inside specially-marked 12-pack wraps of 7 UP, Diet 7 UP, Cherry 7 UP, Sunkist Orange Soda, A&W Root Beer and Canada Dry Ginger Ale.

Register and enter your code for a chance to win $500 and the first free ticket to space or other space prizes from Diet 7 UP!

With each new code entered, you could win the following:

        * $500 and the chance to win the First Free Ticket to Space
        * A trip for 4 to Space Camp
        * A star in your name
        * Diet 7 UP 2 Liter Coupon

A note of caution: as Sy Liebergot says (the White EECOM on 13), says, you can't always trust the transcripts.

Kapton tape, which is essentially used as space duct tape, erodes in the presence of atomic oxygen. Atomic oxygen (just a single O, not the usual stable O2) is quite reactive, and will eat away many materials on the leading edge of spacecraft. Atomic oxygen is found more in the lower orbits (i.e. ISS and space shuttle) rather than the higer orbits (geosynchronous). Here are some pictures from the experiment.

(yep, I'm a former rocket scientist)

It doesn't have any fancy cameras or GPS devices or data storage features, but it meets my one requirement of a watch: if I get sucked into some kind of spacetime vortex and end up trapped on some prehistoric planet with two times Earth's gravity, the watch had better last me at least until I get eaten by a dinosaur.


I just wanted to point out that if said scenario comes to pass, you probably won't be able to synchronize with said atomic clock signal. Not to mention that the planet's "local" time might not be on a 24 hour cycle.

If the planet you happen to end up on is Mars, perhaps you can use a watch like the one described here

That's an interesting story, but you've been given a version with a strange spin on it. The moon rock was given by Nixon, not to the country but to a military dictator the US supported, Gen. Osvaldo Lopez Arellano. That dictator didn't recogize it as being valuable, and gave it to one of his colonels. There it sat, in private hands, until a US business man, Alan Rosen, started snooping around. He eventually found the owner, and bought the rock for $50,000. He was pretty surprised to find out when he took the rock in to be viewed by a potential buyer that it was to be confiscated. You can read about it in some detail here and here.

The moon landing is a great example of separate intersecting lines of evidence converging on the conclusion that we did indeed land on the moon. For the conspiracy theorists, no amount of evidence is going to convince them so we might as well be speaking another language. Still, I think interesting things can come out of the discussion. My favorite piece of evidence of the landing is the storage bag from the Apollo 15 mission. NASA astronauts threw it out, it ended up at auction, someone bought it and realized that it was saturated with moon dust (you can tell the dust is from the moon by comparing the ratios of certain isotopes). The isotopic ratios of certain elements in moon rocks is different than that of any rocks found on earth. The collector has since been selling sections at an enormous profit. see this link Now, I suppose they could have gone to the moon with an unmanned mission which landed, blasted off, returned with a bunch of rocks and dust which was subsequently distributed. At that point, why not just go there. Occam's Razor would say manned missions is a much more likely solution given the other evidence.

Even the Apollo samples that where presented to foreign heads of state where really on permanent loan to those countries. The US government has never given away or sold any lunar material, so any for sale is either fake or stolen.

An article explaining this all is available here.

Its even been discussed on /. before.

Now that being said, its very common in the art world for works of art - sometimes priceless ones at that - to be stolen and to disappear into private collections.

And I could fully understand if any one of these geeks took the rocks and stashed them away in their bedrooms. Hell, who wouldn't want a chunk of the moon in their bedroom?

But to try to sell on the 'Net?!??

I'm missing something here, but I guess its because was assuming they were bright.

You could also buy touchable lunar dust earlier this year...

One point on which I don't agree is the idea that we own it forever. Apparently there was some recent disagreement (perhaps discussed here on the dot?) that involved a moon rock that had changed hands a few times. The first change of hands (from the U.S. to a foreign dignitary) was legit, but one or more of the later transfers were not legit. I don't agree that the U.S. has a legitimate claim to it.

Should I happen to be so lucky to recall this particular dispute correctly, the issue was that the lunar rock in question had been gifted to a foreign dignitary, subsequently stolen, and was now in process of being resold.

Ah. Here's a reference to the lunar dispute. Seems the Feds want to reclaim a rock originally given to Honduras by President Nixon so that they may return it to the Honduran government. The person most recently in possession of the rock claimed to have bought it from a Honduran military officer who, in turn, claimed to have been given it as a gift some time ago. The Honduran gov't claims they never let it go willingly in the first place.

And here's a 1995 lunar rock dispute, wherein the Feds claimed a rock put up for sale was stolen in the mail some twenty-odd years back. No idea what the resolution was in that case.

Two things I note, here: (1) proposed sale of lunar material invites close scrutiny by the Feds; and (2) the Feds don't seem to be claiming ownership without end, but instead inspection and enforcement of transfer to and among individuals.

Makes me wonder whether such intervention on the part of the Federal Government is really out of line with handling of similar national treasures. (Yes, though given as goodwill trinkets to other nations, I do believe the expense and historical value of the materials in question qualify them as such.)

Christie's sold a lunar-dust stained patch, removed from moonwalker James Irwin's spacesuit for $310,000.

Millimeter size cuts of dust-stained scotch tape were sold earlier this year for $6,000.

More examples can be found here.

The rock, gifted to the country of Honduras in 1973, was smuggled back into the United States in 1995 -- the carrier never declared it at customs. The U.S. also prohibits stolen material from reentering the country and according to a law professor familiar with the Honduran legal system, the rock was illegimately obtained (for their part, the Honduran gov't is asking for the rock to be returned.)

You can read the latest on this case, here.

Quoting Thad Roberts:

"At NASA I have been assigned to the coolest department of all. Formally known as the Earth Science and Solar System Exploration Division (ESSSE) it is now know as the Astromaterials Research and Exploration Science Division (ARES). Most of the people in my building are Geologists, and that's how I got in here.

"There are so many potential adventures to be had in my building."

(More on this story here.)

Quoting Thad Roberts:

"At NASA I have been assigned to the coolest department of all. Formally known as the Earth Science and Solar System Exploration Division (ESSSE) it is now know as the Astromaterials Research and Exploration Science Division (ARES). Most of the people in my building are Geologists, and that's how I got in here.

"There are so many potential adventures to be had in my building."

(More on this story here.)