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A Grand Day Out For British Rocketman
Instine writes "Salford University, in the UK, is showing an article suggesting that Britain's biggest ever rocket has been unveiled, by an academic planning a space tourism offering by 2013. 'Nova 2 qualifies as the biggest rocket ever created and flown from the UK mainland,' says Steve Bennett, Head of Salford's Space Technology Laboratory
The current offering is said to amount to 20 minutes 'flight' and 3-4 mins floating. I'm not sure how much, but I'd pay for that."
Not necessarily. You can launch from anywhere, it just costs you more to accelerate (slightly less starting speed than at the equator) and possibly more to get into the orbit you want.
Russia's Plesetsk Cosmodrome is further north than most of the UK and they certainly launch lots of stuff from there - though they prefer Baikonur, its politically more difficult....
For every expert, there is an equal and opposite expert. - Arthur C. Clarke
More importantly, on the way up they forgot the parking brake, not to mention the crackers. If you have not seen the show, it is a beautiful thing to watch.
"She's a scientist and a lesbian. She's not going to let it slide." Orphan Black
At the risk of being overly pedantic the tube train usually refers to the London underground rail system. Salford is up-north (next to Manchester) and not on the underground. Apart from driving (M60) you could use the Manchester tram system, British Rail, the Manchester Ship canal, or various buses.
init 11 - for when you need that edge.
Nova 2 qualifies as the biggest rocket ever created and flown from the UK mainland
It's because Britain used to have a rocket program in the 50s and 60s. All the launches of the large rockets were done from Woomera in the Australian outback. The biggest of these was Blue Streak developed as an ICBM. There are some pictures here
Its only government money that goes to ESA. That has to be used for robotic/satellite missions. Boring sods that they are! If the private sector puts up the cash (Richard Branson for one) then anyone can have a go at manned flight.
But, being British, we're happier working in sheds and old WWII hangers with bits of old bathtub and wire. If our government tried to run a manned space program today, it would be the biggest waste of space, time and money in all human history.
If he's the Walrus then can I be a penguin please?
This is the same guy who ran Starchaser Industries, claimed all sorts of records and pissed off a lot of amateur rocket people in Britain. He crops up every couple of years with another "NEW AND EXCITING DEVELOPMENT IN ROCKETRY". Never produced anything.
It seems none of the mods has heard "Rocket Man" from Elton John... awesome post in response to the "scientific" analysis of chucking kids out the back of a rocket. Well done.
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NO, they are emphatically ***NOT*** the same people.
The Reliant Robin Space Shuttle was built by the UK Rocketmen, led by Damian Hall. Both groups are based near Manchester, UK Rocketmen in Stalybridge, Starchaser near Salford, but that's the only significant link.
I know this, because I spent a week in France last year getting drunk with Damian and a bunch of other miscellaneous rocketry nutters (including ex-Starchaser folks). Great fun :)
Yet another reason the wife and I would love to move there
Be prepared to be surveilled a lot, especially if you live near London. Don't try and speed, there are speed cameras everywhere. You have to pay for a TV licence to watch broadcast TV, put up with a very socialist authoritarian government... and those gun thingies you Slashdotters are always on about? Seriously illegal for virtually anyone to own over here. Carrying a knife in the street may also lead to a 4 year prison sentence.
== Jez ==
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Not same guys at all. The TG Relaint Robin was done by "The Rocket Men" which is Damian Hall and Colin Rowe. Nova, Nov2 2 is by Steve Bennett. As for counting I would ride in a vehicle desgined by Damian/Colin but would steer well clear of Steve Bennett.
You are walking down a public street and someone has you on CCTV. Wow, 1984 or what?
Well, the cameras are mostly in 30 mph zones where you shouldn't really be speeding anyway, plus they are clearly marked and it's easy to download their locations for the most part.
Yes, but you get watchable TV
the current government is not socialist by any non-American definition, somewhat authoritarian granted.
Big deal, we also get relatively few gun murders and the main gun owning population of farmers with shotguns has remained pretty much the same.
So? Don't carry a weapon around with you then. In Britain, going around tooled up has always left you liable for a murder charge if you ever use the weapon and kill someone in self defence, this goes for baseball bats, tyre levers or whatever.
To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it