Posted by
CmdrTaco
on from the thats-just-bizarre dept.
cbull writes "USA Today has an article about practice for the attempts to capture the Genesis capsule. Helicopter stunt pilots will have 5 chances to capture the 400-lb. capsule. Military pilots were unavailable, due to the 6-year commitment required."
Some kind of Genesis device? KHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAN!
-- "Destroy science and religion. Science would re-emerge exactly the same; but not religion." - Penn Jillette, paraphrased
Hmm... sounds tricky
by
petra13
·
· Score: 5, Funny
The stunt pilots say their biggest challenge will be flying at 40 mph nearly a mile over the Utah desert without any visual reference points to judge distance or speed as they close in with hook and cable on the capsule, which will be descending 400 feet a minute at a forward speed of 20 mph.
So will the capsule get bonus points if it takes out one of the helicopters without the pilots seeing it first?
Re:Hmm... sounds tricky
by
MikeMacK
·
· Score: 5, Funny
Because of that, the pilots rate the difficulty of the maneuver at an 8 or 9 on a scale to 10.
So, what the hell rates a 10?
Re:Hmm... sounds tricky
by
sigxcpu
·
· Score: 4, Funny
trying to do it while being shot at.
-- As of Postgres v6.2, time travel is no longer supported.
Re:Hmm... sounds tricky
by
erick99
·
· Score: 5, Funny
I don't know about bonus points but I wouldn't want the pressure of trying to catch this thing while half the world watches:
The civilian pilots have replicated the retrieval without fumbles in dozens of practice runs, but are terrified of flubbing it live on NASA television with a worldwide feed.
Hell, I'll be watching! How often do you get to see a helicopter try to catch space puke?
Cheers,
Erick
-- http://www.busyweather.com/
I've got the training!
by
twenty-exty-six
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· Score: 5, Funny
Where do I sign up. I've spent months working on an intense helicopter simulator, fine-tuning my skills to perfection.
Why did the pilots have to commit for 6 years? Does it seriously take that long to learn how to catch a falling space probe with a hook dangling from a chopper?
Amateurs.
Re:Bad joke thread
by
rjstanford
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· Score: 4, Funny
Please don't overdo your bad jokes about the following topics
But the massive overuse of sad Star Trek lines is perfectly acceptable to you? Odd choice there...
-- You're special forces then? That's great! I just love your olympics!
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Some kind of Genesis device? KHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAN!
"Destroy science and religion. Science would re-emerge exactly the same; but not religion." - Penn Jillette, paraphrased
So will the capsule get bonus points if it takes out one of the helicopters without the pilots seeing it first?
Where do I sign up. I've spent months working on an intense helicopter simulator, fine-tuning my skills to perfection.
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Why did the pilots have to commit for 6 years? Does it seriously take that long to learn how to catch a falling space probe with a hook dangling from a chopper?
Amateurs.
Please don't overdo your bad jokes about the following topics
But the massive overuse of sad Star Trek lines is perfectly acceptable to you? Odd choice there...
You're special forces then? That's great! I just love your olympics!