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
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· 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
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.
Re:Bigger Parachute
by
vandoravp
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· Score: 5, Informative
Another article in some other paper (sorry no link) said that they did not want to risk any kind of touch down since it was carrying actual samples. Any significant shock could damage the sample container which would lead to either a loss of particles or contamination-not good either way. They're just playing it safe and doing away with that kind of landing all together. Besides, it's damn cool.
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:6 year commitment?
by
jon787
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· Score: 5, Informative
Actually I sent these people some email after hearing a claim of this being a first (which isn't true, project Corona did mid-air recovery of returning space capsules) and they have a few people who did this during project Corona.
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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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Another article in some other paper (sorry no link) said that they did not want to risk any kind of touch down since it was carrying actual samples. Any significant shock could damage the sample container which would lead to either a loss of particles or contamination-not good either way. They're just playing it safe and doing away with that kind of landing all together. Besides, it's damn cool.
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.