Do you really think it's a wall of speeding air, without quite gentle (especially for a very small object) transition?... (plus, think: dainty balloons survive it routinely - in fact, the story mentions one)
A balloon has some fundamental limitations, a...ceiling. To which your average helium balloon is quite close and overcoming it requires pretty high tech. Once you get the hang of proper handling (ever more difficult with higher tech), what limits you is the (lack of) atmosphere and slight manufacturing faults of the balloon.
That said - yes, it's fun. Yes, we don't need to see it reported all the time.
I agree with general spirit of your post - however, "ridiculous amount" for data plans is not really the case.
For example I get 4GB for $17, prepaid (without any contract), valid for 2 months (and if I recharge before that time, unused data credit is kept) - I wouldn't call it ridiculous, and contract rates are still lower.
That model isn't somehow coupled to large area served / hence preferable for such scenario. Russia operates very much in the "European" model, while having larger area (generally much, much lower population density - lower than the average for the whole surface of the planet in fact - which tends to complicate telecommunication services; it still manages to have higher mobile phone penetration)
Regarding side not - what happens is you set your phone to ask before switching to other network / force it to use particular one (handy when actually on the "wrong" side of the border but close enough). And anyway, roaming charges are getting smaller.
...and in the process wrecking havoc with civilian transmissions / getting jammed by them? (and I guess that also explains why CIS quickly standardized on "European" cellular frequencies?)
Furthermore: they sold better than the existing MP3 players of the day in few specific places (highly visible and vocal, but...). Which actually didn't change later.
I was just addressing the mentioned "issue" - but yes, exciting times (*) ahead, with many new discoveries almost certainly awaiting. My personal favorite at this point is Sedna, and not only because the timing (relative to its orbit) of the discovery hints at many such bodies - there's also some slight possibility it formed in another star system.
(*)Also because IMHO, if we will ever reach the stars, gradual spreading towards and across our Oort cloud (and eventually, after thousands of years, some groups hitching a ride in the clouds of passing star) seems like the way to go (though embryo colonization also looks practical)
The definition is not about vacuuming the neighborhood - bodies there (including Pluto) are completely dominated by the gravity of Neptune, that's what this is about.
Why is it that people assume that an organization of that scale is only capable of doing one thing at a time, and that there cannot be multiple concurrent projects directed at multiple priorities?
Looking through the prism of their own limitations. A way to generally distrust "the scientists" too.
Ares V was probably not the best idea though - yes, its goals and performance commemorable; but they would also mean quite rare launches, limiting bang-for-buck, to say the least. Probably better to focus on something medium-sized, pushing it ever closer towards mass production and usage - and if more throw weight is required, plan for modularity (something like from Angara 1.1 to Angara 7)... and if that's not enough, two or three launches + orbital docking. Even on Earth we built ocean-going ships in segments now.
PS. I wonder, perhaps similarly overoptimistic goals contributed to the undoing of Superconducting Supercollider? (SS? Did the same person chose the name for USB SuperSpeed?...;p (Schutzstaffel))
This other option necessitating much higher delta-v (arrival at the Moon, structure which needs to survive touchdown and operation in gravity) plus permanently blocked from large portion of the sky by the Moon itself (location at one of the peaks of eternal light near the poles would be likely, for power). L2 isn't that unstable - and if something goes wrong it's easier to get there than to the surface of the Moon. Long term doesn't matter too much, eventually you have a space weathered junk anyway.
Though if those few satellites will fly in formation, as an interferometer... (yes, not what the parent meant / such formation telescopes, likely much more expensive than JWST, are coming...at some point)
Sure, buying one big screen TV (just like building one JWST) won't really make a negative difference about utilization of resources and where they are directed, but...
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Do you really think it's a wall of speeding air, without quite gentle (especially for a very small object) transition?... (plus, think: dainty balloons survive it routinely - in fact, the story mentions one)
A balloon has some fundamental limitations, a...ceiling. To which your average helium balloon is quite close and overcoming it requires pretty high tech. Once you get the hang of proper handling (ever more difficult with higher tech), what limits you is the (lack of) atmosphere and slight manufacturing faults of the balloon.
That said - yes, it's fun. Yes, we don't need to see it reported all the time.
Huh? Nobody here cares which phone you actually use with the sim.
A bit similarly to how you can, in fact, breathe inside a speeding bullet-train or an airplane. Speed relative to the ground isn't everything...
I agree with general spirit of your post - however, "ridiculous amount" for data plans is not really the case.
For example I get 4GB for $17, prepaid (without any contract), valid for 2 months (and if I recharge before that time, unused data credit is kept) - I wouldn't call it ridiculous, and contract rates are still lower.
Maybe not impossible, if some Japanese (who else?...) have their way.
But it's still "another month, another helium balloon story"...
Also: http://www.members.shaw.ca/sonde/
That model isn't somehow coupled to large area served / hence preferable for such scenario. Russia operates very much in the "European" model, while having larger area (generally much, much lower population density - lower than the average for the whole surface of the planet in fact - which tends to complicate telecommunication services; it still manages to have higher mobile phone penetration)
Regarding side not - what happens is you set your phone to ask before switching to other network / force it to use particular one (handy when actually on the "wrong" side of the border but close enough). And anyway, roaming charges are getting smaller.
The number quoted is mobile subscribers in China alone.
850 million mobile subscribers this year in China alone.
(and FYI, depending on the definition of "European population" used, it would leave between 120 and 20 million to the US...)
...and in the process wrecking havoc with civilian transmissions / getting jammed by them? (and I guess that also explains why CIS quickly standardized on "European" cellular frequencies?)
I feel what you're saying, but remember it's more a case of bad implementation when the GPS can't work offline... (free ones can too, like Ovi Maps)
That plus Opera Mini, and your data usage might be just small enough.
Furthermore: they sold better than the existing MP3 players of the day in few specific places (highly visible and vocal, but...). Which actually didn't change later.
I was just addressing the mentioned "issue" - but yes, exciting times (*) ahead, with many new discoveries almost certainly awaiting. My personal favorite at this point is Sedna, and not only because the timing (relative to its orbit) of the discovery hints at many such bodies - there's also some slight possibility it formed in another star system.
(*)Also because IMHO, if we will ever reach the stars, gradual spreading towards and across our Oort cloud (and eventually, after thousands of years, some groups hitching a ride in the clouds of passing star) seems like the way to go (though embryo colonization also looks practical)
At least we can be certain it will pass - I don't see any people lamenting that Ceres, Pallas, Juno and Vesta have lost their planetary status.
Status which they had, for half a century after their discovery. Similar to Pluto.
(for that matter, the same applies to the Sun - it was also classified as a planet at some point)
The definition is not about vacuuming the neighborhood - bodies there (including Pluto) are completely dominated by the gravity of Neptune, that's what this is about.
Naturally, just saying it's not a matter of "at some point" when it comes to "looking at the edge of the universe" (observable edge, presumably...)
Well, and there ought to be some CMBR on that googled photo.
Science is an area, to be frank, still in its infancy.
You can't be so frankly sure of that. OTOH...
Crash projects and collective dick-waving are not the best approach though - remind me again how is that Moon effort going along?
Well, we do look at CMBR already...
Why is it that people assume that an organization of that scale is only capable of doing one thing at a time, and that there cannot be multiple concurrent projects directed at multiple priorities?
Looking through the prism of their own limitations. A way to generally distrust "the scientists" too.
Ares V was probably not the best idea though - yes, its goals and performance commemorable; but they would also mean quite rare launches, limiting bang-for-buck, to say the least. Probably better to focus on something medium-sized, pushing it ever closer towards mass production and usage - and if more throw weight is required, plan for modularity (something like from Angara 1.1 to Angara 7)... and if that's not enough, two or three launches + orbital docking. Even on Earth we built ocean-going ships in segments now.
PS. I wonder, perhaps similarly overoptimistic goals contributed to the undoing of Superconducting Supercollider? (SS? Did the same person chose the name for USB SuperSpeed?... ;p (Schutzstaffel))
This other option necessitating much higher delta-v (arrival at the Moon, structure which needs to survive touchdown and operation in gravity) plus permanently blocked from large portion of the sky by the Moon itself (location at one of the peaks of eternal light near the poles would be likely, for power). L2 isn't that unstable - and if something goes wrong it's easier to get there than to the surface of the Moon. Long term doesn't matter too much, eventually you have a space weathered junk anyway.
Though if those few satellites will fly in formation, as an interferometer... (yes, not what the parent meant / such formation telescopes, likely much more expensive than JWST, are coming...at some point)
You chose a poor example.
Sure, buying one big screen TV (just like building one JWST) won't really make a negative difference about utilization of resources and where they are directed, but...