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NASA Tests X-43A

Posted by michael on from the need-for-speed dept.

An anonymous reader writes "NASA TV has live coverage of the launch of the X-43A scram jet flight. Hopes are that the unmanned vehicle will reach speeds in excess of mach 7-10. The last flight a few years ago failed." Stephen Watts sends this link for X-43A background information.

20 of 263 comments (clear)

  1. Place your bet. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    So... Who wants to bet that it'll ignite the atmosphere? ;-)

    1. Re:Place your bet. by Drathus · · Score: 2, Funny

      I'm just trying to make out in the video feed the guy sitting on the back of the scram jet waving his cowboy hat. =P

  2. Nooooooooo!!! by pwroberts · · Score: 5, Funny

    Noooo, don't Slashdot it, you insensitive clods!

    I was getting a great feed of the boring pre-launch stuff for the last 2 hours, now y'all'll've gone and ruined it ;-(

    1. Re:Nooooooooo!!! by Gogo+Dodo · · Score: 4, Funny

      Use the Windows Media Player feed, nobody on /. will ever be using that. Or they won't admit it...

  3. Re:Audio? by Drathus · · Score: 2, Funny

    > I don't suppose they'll archive it?
    >
    > That would be nice.

    My guess is that would depend on how well the test goes. =P

  4. nonononono by nzhavok · · Score: 2, Funny

    We've been watching this feed for 90 minutes and now it will be slashdotted, insensitive bastards :(

    /me prays for nasa's bandwidth

    --

    He who defends everything, defends nothing. -- Fredrick The Great
  5. Bird's in the air by old_skul · · Score: 2, Funny

    They're getting ready to launch. Begin nailbiting. They're transferring to internal power now.

  6. Speed doesn't matter by elFarto+the+2nd · · Score: 5, Funny

    Even if its moving at mach 7...we can still slashdot it!

    Regards
    elFarto

  7. $185 million dollar project... by levram2 · · Score: 5, Funny

    ...and they can't show a readable countdown timer on the screen.

  8. Re:play by play by aarku · · Score: 3, Funny

    "...passing through mach 5"
    *Slashdotted* NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

  9. Only 7-10? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    I'll be really impressed when it goes to 11.

  10. Re:mach 5?!? by technoid_ · · Score: 4, Funny

    Thats one fast RV. I thought 110mph in a Winnebago was fast, but this beats that hand down.

    --
    Two wrongs don't make a right, but 3 lefts do - Lew of GO magazine
  11. We need to by iminplaya · · Score: 2, Funny

    give NASA credit for keeping their servers up during that. That, or not too many of you guys were watching. I sure wish they put a camera on the thing, though.

    --
    What?
  12. Re:Launch successful by Rick.C · · Score: 4, Funny
    Tests completed through Mach 5, it seems. I thought this would go to Mach 7?

    Well yeah, but that's with overclocking.

    --
    You were 80% angel, 10% demon. The rest was hard to explain. - Over The Rhine
    "Math in a song is good."-Linford
  13. Re:Mach Freakin' 5 by aarku · · Score: 2, Funny

    They said "passing through mach 5"... so who knows how fast this thing went. At least mach 5, maybe warp 9.

  14. Re:play by play by dj245 · · Score: 2, Funny
    "All stations we are a go for launch at this time..." "10 seconds launch on my mark" "5 4 3 2 1..."

    Buffering....

    Buffering.......

    Buffering..........

    )(*#$!!!

    --
    Even those who arrange and design shrubberies are under considerable economic stress at this period in history.
  15. Childhood Memories... by PetoskeyGuy · · Score: 4, Funny

    Circumfrence of Earth / Mach 5

    It would take about 6 and a half hours to get from here and back again.

    So in "Hare We Go" when Bugs Bunny threw the baseball around the world to show Christopher Columbus that the world is round, he threw the ball at about Mach 785 or so. Somehow he managed to put enough spin on it that it orbited the planet, the natives applied the stickers, AND he caught the ball.

  16. in fact it's so damn fast by the_twisted_pair · · Score: 1, Funny

    ..I've been round the globe once already and managed to post the same damn thing twice. Sorry.

  17. Re:Mach Freakin' 5 by Mr.+Piddle · · Score: 3, Funny


    I can't wait to installed the scramjet roof panel on my Civic!!!!!

    --
    Vote in November. You won't regret it.
  18. Re:Amusing terminology by Picass0 · · Score: 3, Funny

    Riiiight.

    Just like "Read The Friendly Manual".