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SpaceShipOne Flight Not as Perfect as it Seemed
ArbiterOne writes "SpaceShipOne's flight wasn't as perfect as it seemed, according to Burt Rutan and New Scientist. Apparently, at one point in the descent, the pilot completely lost attitude control. According to him, "If that had happened earlier, I would never have made it and you all would be looking sad right now." Could this pose some problems for the X-Prize contender?"
And these so-called "experts" still lose control of their attitude. Surely they would have come to grips with their emotional problems before leaving.
If so, sign me up to participate in attitude control (but install the unit in my wife).
Besides, isn't that usually a "nut behind the wheel" or PEBKAC kinda issue?
"Could this pose some problems for the X-Prize contender?"
Of course it could, bubblehead. Getting into space is HARD.
must have been obstructed by the M&M's flying around.
F#$@ing X prize!! Damn this m*******ing piece of flying s#@$! No way there going to drag me back into this tin can next week! I WILL HUNT YO... oh look, shiny wings!!!
Sig? What sig?
"Captain, we've lost attitude control."
"Well fix the f*cking thing!"
One of my favorite t-shirts has a picture of an Artifical Horizon showing a plane in an inverted dive with the words "Bad Attitude".
Yeah, developing spacecraft is a lengthy process, just look at NASA. But they'll get it right. I mean, it's not rocket science.
Wax-Museum Fire Results In Hundreds Of New Danny DeVito Statues
The poll indicates 62% of the /. crowd would happily fly in that ship on monday. It would be interesting to repeat the poll now and see if it is still this high.
Perhaps some would change, but I'd still have been willing. Admittedly, that's more emotion than anything else, since I don't have any skills that would have been useful in such a flight, but damn, given a chance to go into space, even on an experimental craft . . .
Speaking of which, where are they holding the signups for being ballast on the X-Prize flights? I at least have the skill of sitting around and being massful ;)
The full quote it:
"Any landing which you can walk away from is a good landing.
Any landing after which you can use the plane again is a great landing."
Or, if you work for American Airlines:
"Any landing after which our customers, or their surviving kin, don't sue us is a good landing."
--
I Hit the Karma Cap, and All I Got Was This Lousy
To finish the old saw, if I barely edge closer to the stake than you in horseshoes I still get a point.
/sorry already
Degaussing scares the bad magnetism out of the monitor and fills it with good karma.
I want to know what poor guy gets stuck cleaning the M&Ms out of the cockpit. I'm sure they all melted in the desert heat once the spacecraft sat on the runway for a few minutes. This isn't exactly the best way to treat a cockpit full of fancy electronics, to bathe them in blobs of sugary fat.
n.
I don't see why he had such a problem. It isn't exactly rocket scien...
Oh wait. Nevermind.
Why on earth did you marry someone called Barely?
Oh, you mean nose-uppy and nose-downy?
Apparently, at one point in the descent, the pilot completely lost attitude control.
Hey, losing control of one's attitude in such a situation isn't such a suprise. At least he didn't lose bowel control or bladder control. Of course, maybe he did. Something like that wouldn't typically be reported. I know I would have in such a situation.
and yes, I know that the attitude control they're talking about is the orientation of the craft in flight
But why is the rum gone?
I thank you on behalf of all the people who did not get the joke.
He could have just as easily hid the issues and blamed the time to fix the problem on...[somebody else]
If he did that, his name would not be 'Bert Rutan'. it would be 'NASA'.
In Soviet Russia, Chuck Norris will still kick your ass.
But it was the sublime view that affected him the most. "The sky was jet black, with light blue along the horizon - it was really an awesome sight," he said. "You really do get the feeling that you've touched the face of God."
What does God need with a starship?
Yeah, I remember doing that on Asteroids.
"Still" is a very strong word. It implies an assumption that people are allowed to change their votes. (HINT: Some of us do not live in Florida; therefore, we are not used to voting more than once in the same poll/election.)
Anyway, yesterday when I looked there were about 32000 votes, and the numbers were split 60/40. Today there are about 47000 votes, and the numbers are split 62/37. That means in the past day, 10500/15000 (or about 70%) have voted yes.
p.s. I only voted once. On Sunday I voted 'yes' after quickly estimating a 10-20% chance of catastophe.
You just reminded me of this message, stenciled on the block that mounts the space shuttles to their 747 transports: "PLACE ORBITER HERE... BLACK SIDE DOWN"
The estimate of 5% is correct for a 747 configured similar to this model. Boeing gives you just the stock price. The customizations needed for each one before it is used (seat fabric color, exterior paint scheme, sound system, extra windows, flashy rims, etc.) add up quickly.
My favourite is "flight plan? What flight plan? Nobody else flies this route!"
here is a preview:
Entry 1 - ok light the rocket, lets get this baby up into space - (switch) - holy crap! this crazy thing is going sideways! must hold it steady!, geeze I almost bought the farm! ok lets keep going.
Entry 2 - holding, steady, climbing to space, all is going well - BANG!! - holy crap! wtf was that!! am I still alive?! misson control, I just shit my pants.
Entry 3 - man - I almost made it, well I think might have gone far enuff, get ready to shut down rocket - fzzzzzz - wtf?, it just shut itself off - that can't be good. christ! now I have no attitude control at all! I am going to float all the way to the Sun and freaking MELT!!!, oh, man, got it back - my god I am stupid for doing this.
Entry 4 - this is cool - I'm in space!! where are those m&m's I'm hungry?, - rip - damnit! little bitches are floating around the damn cabin!
Entry 5 - ready to go home, up flaps, - whoooooosh!! holy fuck I am dropping like a rock!, I hate badminton!!!
Entry 6 - OMFG its sound like I'm in the center of a freaking HURICANE!, I am soooooo gonna die! hold together you piece of sh i i i i i i i i t t t t t t!
Entry 7 - OMG I see the runway!, I swear on my mothers children I will never do anything like this again, please just let me land this can!
Entry 8 - mission complete
Why on earth did you marry someone called Barely?
Oh, you've probably met her -- Barely Legal.
Is it too late to change my answer to no?
You are checking your backups, aren't you?
Maybe her last name was Clad?
You can have it fast, accurate, or pretty. Pick any 2.
"Now, let me get this straight, Mike. Exactly how many uncommanded 90-degree rolls would it take for you to start thinking it might be time to shut down the motor?"
;-)
Oh, probably four - at least then I'm back in the same position I was before
You are in a twisty maze of processor lines, all alike.
There is a lot of hype here.