• Northern Gulf Coast As Seen From Orbit - At Night

    Updated: 2010-10-31 16:33:56
    Sunday , October 31, 2010 About On Orbit Advertise Here Contact Information Feedback Log Out Home Blogs Features Recent Posts Northern Gulf Coast As Seen From Orbit At Night Submitted by keithcowing on Sun , 10 31 2010 09:33. Earth From 220 miles above Earth , one of the Expedition 25 crew members onboard the International Space Station shot this night time image of the northern Gulf coast . Mobile Bay and the city of Mobile top left , beneath one of the solar panels of a docked Russian Soyuz spacecraft New Orleans and Houston are visible as the view moves southeastward . The Interstate Highway 20 cities of Jackson , Shreveport , Dallas and Fort Worth are also visible further inland . The view extends northward left to Little Rock and Oklahoma City . high res 2.0 M low res 84 K 2010

  • Shuttle Countdown Starts Today at 2:00 pm EDT

    Updated: 2010-10-31 15:26:34
    Home SpaceRef OnOrbit SpaceRef Canada Astrobiology GeneRef Newsletter Sign In This is not a NASA Website . You might learn something . It's YOUR space agency . Get involved . Take it back . Make it work for YOU . Important Disclaimer nasawatch spaceref.com Voice 1.703.787.6567 RSS Feed Twitter Advertising Archives Support Shuttle Countdown Starts Today at 2:00 pm EDT By Marc Boucher on October 31, 2010 11:26 AM No Comments Shuttle Countdown Begins Today for a Targeted Wednesday Afternoon Launch SpaceRef Steve Payne said we completed early this morning our flight pressurization of our on-orbit control systems tanks and main propulsion tanks , and all went well . That is behind us now . We resolved our remaining issues with our nitrogen quick disconnect poppet valve , turns out it was a

  • Discovery Launch Delayed Another 24 Hours

    Updated: 2010-10-30 15:19:00
    Space Shuttle Discovery now set for Wednesday Launch, SpaceRef "After meeting this morning to discuss the status of repairs to replace both shuttle and ground side couplings, NASA Managers decided to delay the launch another 24 hours to allow engineers to complete testing and to allow for repressurization of helium tanks. "

  • From the 'X File' Dept: NASA Footage of Mystery Objects Leaving Earth

    Updated: 2010-10-30 07:00:00
    NASA mystery footage. If this is space debris, why is it leaving the planet instead of circling it? What do you think?

  • China's Space Station (Update)

    Updated: 2010-10-30 04:46:20
    Home SpaceRef OnOrbit SpaceRef Canada Astrobiology GeneRef Newsletter Sign In This is not a NASA Website . You might learn something . It's YOUR space agency . Get involved . Take it back . Make it work for YOU . Important Disclaimer nasawatch spaceref.com Voice 1.703.787.6567 RSS Feed Twitter Advertising Archives Support China's Space Station Update By Keith Cowing on October 30, 2010 12:46 AM 15 Comments China to launch manned space lab around 2020 : report Reuters China said on Wednesday it would launch a space lab to be manned for long stretches within about 10 years , a move it believes would bring it closer to the United States and Russia as powers capable of reaching the moon . The official Xinhua news agency , quoting an unidentified space official , said a trial space lab would be

  • Nile Delta at Night As Seen From Orbit

    Updated: 2010-10-30 04:20:20
    Sunday , October 31, 2010 About On Orbit Advertise Here Contact Information Feedback Log Out Home Blogs Features Recent Posts Nile Delta at Night As Seen From Orbit Submitted by keithcowing on Fri , 10 29 2010 20:20. Earth From 220 miles above Earth , one of the Expedition 25 crew members on the International Space Station took this night time photo featuring the bright lights of Cairo and Alexandria , Egypt on the Mediterranean coast . The Nile River and its delta stand out clearly as well . On the horizon , the airglow of the atmosphere is seen across the Mediterranean . The Sinai Peninsula , at right , is outlined with lights highlighting the Gulf of Suez and Gulf of Aqaba . high res 2.2 M low res 79 K 2010 SpaceRef Interactive . Inc Terms of Service User Login Username : Password :

  • Nile Delta at Night As Seen From Orbit

    Updated: 2010-10-30 03:23:49
    Nile Delta at Night As Seen From Orbit "From 220 miles above Earth, one of the Expedition 25 crew members on the International Space Station took this night time photo featuring the bright lights of Cairo and Alexandria, Egypt on the Mediterranean coast. The Nile River and its delta stand out clearly as well. On the horizon, the airglow of the atmosphere is seen across the Mediterranean. The Sinai Peninsula, at right, is outlined with lights highlighting the Gulf of Suez and Gulf of Aqaba."

  • On The Train to Crazy Town With Fox

    Updated: 2010-10-29 22:48:00
    Home SpaceRef OnOrbit SpaceRef Canada Astrobiology GeneRef Newsletter Sign In This is not a NASA Website . You might learn something . It's YOUR space agency . Get involved . Take it back . Make it work for YOU . Important Disclaimer nasawatch spaceref.com Voice 1.703.787.6567 RSS Feed Twitter Advertising Archives Support On The Train to Crazy Town With Fox By Keith Cowing on October 29, 2010 6:48 PM 14 Comments Is NASA Covering Up the 100-Year Starship Fox News NASA official may have made a 35-million-mile slip of the tongue . The director of NASA's Ames Research Center in California casually let slip mention of the 100-Year Starship recently , a new program funded by the super-secret government agency , DARPA . Keith's Note : Once again Fox attempts to understand space exploration but

  • JSC Seeks More Input on Microgravity Services Contract

    Updated: 2010-10-29 18:36:08
    Home SpaceRef OnOrbit SpaceRef Canada Astrobiology GeneRef Newsletter Sign In This is not a NASA Website . You might learn something . It's YOUR space agency . Get involved . Take it back . Make it work for YOU . Important Disclaimer nasawatch spaceref.com Voice 1.703.787.6567 RSS Feed Twitter Advertising Archives Support JSC Seeks More Input on Microgravity Services Contract By Keith Cowing on October 29, 2010 2:36 PM 1 Comment NASA Solicitation : Aircraft Maintenacne Operational Support and Microgravty Services Market Research Questionnaire Johnson Space Center's JSC Flight Crew Operation Directorate FCOD anticipates procuring services under an Aircraft Maintenance and Operational Support AMOS and or Microgravity Services MS contract . As part of the Government's continuous information

  • STS-133 Launch Delayed

    Updated: 2010-10-29 13:00:58
    Home SpaceRef OnOrbit SpaceRef Canada Astrobiology GeneRef Newsletter Sign In This is not a NASA Website . You might learn something . It's YOUR space agency . Get involved . Take it back . Make it work for YOU . Important Disclaimer nasawatch spaceref.com Voice 1.703.787.6567 RSS Feed Twitter Advertising Archives Support STS-133 Launch Delayed By Keith Cowing on October 29, 2010 9:00 AM No Comments Keith's note : NASA has delayed space shuttle Discovery's launch countdown by a day to repair air leaks in the right hand Orbital Maneuvering System Pod . The earliest launch attempt will be on 2 November . There will be a press conference today at 10:00 am EDT to discuss this issue . Watch NASA TV Updates Update from Marc at KSC : Space Shuttle Discovery Leak Delays Launch to Tuesday ,

  • Chilean Mine Rescuers To Be Honored at White House

    Updated: 2010-10-28 22:16:45
    Home SpaceRef OnOrbit SpaceRef Canada Astrobiology GeneRef Newsletter Sign In This is not a NASA Website . You might learn something . It's YOUR space agency . Get involved . Take it back . Make it work for YOU . Important Disclaimer nasawatch spaceref.com Voice 1.703.787.6567 RSS Feed Twitter Advertising Archives Support Chilean Mine Rescuers To Be Honored at White House By Keith Cowing on October 28, 2010 6:16 PM 4 Comments Obama welcomes Chilean mine rescue heroes President Obama will meet with some of the Americans involved in the rescue of 33 miners earlier this month . The rescuers were recruited from NASA and several U.S . businesses . Keith's 9:00 am EDT note : Hmm NASA people at the White House . Curiously there is no mention whatsoever at NASA.gov . Nothing on NASA TV . No media

  • Human Spaceflight Briefs

    Updated: 2010-10-28 20:45:52
    Quite a few things going on in the human spaceflight world, so will just post a few briefs: Of course top on the agenda is that space shuttle Discovery is scheduled to lift-off on its last flight ever, for the STS-133 mission. Launch is scheduled for Monday, Nov. 1 at 4:40 p.m. EDT from Launch [...]

  • Apparently, Earth-Sized Planets Are Common

    Updated: 2010-10-28 18:29:18
    , Home SpaceRef OnOrbit SpaceRef Canada Astrobiology GeneRef Newsletter Sign In This is not a NASA Website . You might learn something . It's YOUR space agency . Get involved . Take it back . Make it work for YOU . Important Disclaimer nasawatch spaceref.com Voice 1.703.787.6567 RSS Feed Twitter Advertising Archives Support Apparently , Earth-Sized Planets Are Common By Keith Cowing on October 28, 2010 2:29 PM 5 Comments NASA Survey Suggests Earth-Sized Planets Are Common Nearly one in four stars similar to the sun may host planets as small as Earth , according to a new study funded by NASA and the University of California . The study is the most extensive and sensitive planetary census of its kind . Astronomers used the W.M . Keck Observatory in Hawaii for five years to search 166

  • RTGs and Congress

    Updated: 2010-10-28 18:15:34
    Home SpaceRef OnOrbit SpaceRef Canada Astrobiology GeneRef Newsletter Sign In This is not a NASA Website . You might learn something . It's YOUR space agency . Get involved . Take it back . Make it work for YOU . Important Disclaimer nasawatch spaceref.com Voice 1.703.787.6567 RSS Feed Twitter Advertising Archives Support RTGs and Congress By Keith Cowing on October 28, 2010 2:15 PM 5 Comments AAS email : Plutonium 238 Production : An Ongoing Issue for Washington It is not often that a 30M issue in an appropriations bill gets a lot of attention . In fact , it is not uncommon to hear Senate staff state that they have 100M round off errors , but recent language in Congressional legislation appropriating funds of this magnitude can have a direct , negative impact on the long-term success of

  • Stacked Shuttle Solid Rocket Boosters On the Move

    Updated: 2010-10-28 17:05:49
    Two solid rocket boosters perched on top of mobile launcher platform are being moved by crawler-transporter at Kennedy Space Center on October 27, 2010 from the Vehicle Assembly Building's (VAB) High Bay 1 to High Bay 3. Credit: Ken Kremer read more

  • Auctioning Off NASA Patents

    Updated: 2010-10-28 16:28:59
    Home SpaceRef OnOrbit SpaceRef Canada Astrobiology GeneRef Newsletter Sign In This is not a NASA Website . You might learn something . It's YOUR space agency . Get involved . Take it back . Make it work for YOU . Important Disclaimer nasawatch spaceref.com Voice 1.703.787.6567 RSS Feed Twitter Advertising Archives Support Auctioning Off NASA Patents By Keith Cowing on October 28, 2010 12:28 PM 3 Comments NASA Goddard to Auction off Patents for Automated Software Code Generation NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center is auctioning an exclusive license to five patents for automated software development on November 11, 2010. The patents encompass a new method for automatically creating software code which is verifiably equivalent to user requirements specified in natural language , graphic

  • Surface Water Found On Mars?

    Updated: 2010-10-28 16:24:34
    Home SpaceRef OnOrbit SpaceRef Canada Astrobiology GeneRef Newsletter Sign In This is not a NASA Website . You might learn something . It's YOUR space agency . Get involved . Take it back . Make it work for YOU . Important Disclaimer nasawatch spaceref.com Voice 1.703.787.6567 RSS Feed Twitter Advertising Archives Support Surface Water Found On Mars By Keith Cowing on October 28, 2010 12:24 PM 8 Comments NASA's Mars Rover Spirit Finds Evidence of Subsurface Water The ground where NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit became stuck last year holds evidence that water , perhaps as snow melt , trickled into the subsurface fairly recently and on a continuing basis . Researchers took advantage of Spirit's months at Troy last year to examine in great detail soil layers the wheels had exposed , and

  • SRB's On The Move. Last Time We See This?

    Updated: 2010-10-28 16:15:21
    . Home SpaceRef OnOrbit SpaceRef Canada Astrobiology GeneRef Newsletter Sign In This is not a NASA Website . You might learn something . It's YOUR space agency . Get involved . Take it back . Make it work for YOU . Important Disclaimer nasawatch spaceref.com Voice 1.703.787.6567 RSS Feed Twitter Advertising Archives Support SRB's On The Move . Last Time We See This By Keith Cowing on October 28, 2010 12:15 PM No Comments Stacked Shuttle Solid Rocket Boosters On the Move at KSC Ken Kremer The twin Solid Rocket Boosters SRB's that will power Shuttle Endeavour for her final flight to orbit in February took a rare road trip outside the iconic Vehicle Assembly Building VAB at the Kennedy Space Center today , Wednesday , October 27. I witnessed the beautiful move first hand from just a few

  • One More Thing That China is Very Good At

    Updated: 2010-10-28 15:35:05
    Home SpaceRef OnOrbit SpaceRef Canada Astrobiology GeneRef Newsletter Sign In This is not a NASA Website . You might learn something . It's YOUR space agency . Get involved . Take it back . Make it work for YOU . Important Disclaimer nasawatch spaceref.com Voice 1.703.787.6567 RSS Feed Twitter Advertising Archives Support One More Thing That China is Very Good At By Keith Cowing on October 28, 2010 11:35 AM No Comments Chinese Computer Trumps US One as World's Fastest CNBC A Chinese scientific research center has built the fastest supercomputer ever made , replacing the United States as maker of the swiftest machine , and giving China bragging rights as a technology superpower . The computer , known as Tianhe-1A , has 1.4 times the horsepower of the current top computer , which is at a

  • Contact Us Astronomy Magazine

    Updated: 2010-10-27 09:00:35
    CURRENT ISSUE THE MAGAZINE Current Issue Next Issue Back Issues Preview the Magazine Special Issues E-mail Newsletter About the Magazine Subscribe , Renew or Give a Gift Subscriber Benefits Trips Tours Advertise Advertiser Links Sweepstakes Press Room Contact Us COLUMNISTS Bob Berman Glenn Chaple Tony Hallas David H . Levy Stephen James O'Mera NEWS OBSERVING Astronomy News StarDome Plus Intro to the Sky Astronomy for Kids Urban Skies Astronomy Myths The Sky this Week The Sky this Month Star Atlas Ask Astro Astro Imaging Constellation Observing Glossary EQUIPMENT Products Reviews How To MULTIMEDIA Picture of the Day Reader Photo Gallery Videos Podcasts Wallpaper COMMUNITY Why Join Blog Astronomy Groups Astronomy Events Forums Astronomy Day Contests SHOP Subscribe Binders Back Issues

  • Astronomy.com News - Presented by Astronomy Magazine

    Updated: 2010-10-27 08:59:46
    The latest news and stories from Astronomy Magazine

  • Image of the Day: Saturn's Very Weird Moon, Hyperion

    Updated: 2010-10-27 07:14:00
    Saturn's weird moon, Hyperion, measures about 255 x 163 x 137 miles in diameter along its three axes. Because moons of this size usually have enough gravity to pull them into a spherical shape, astronomers suggest that it may be...

  • ISS Fires Its Rockets to Avoid Space Debris Collision

    Updated: 2010-10-27 07:11:00
    Moscow - The International Space Station (ISS) fired its rockets for three minutes Tuesday to change its position in order to avoid a possible collision with a piece of orbiting junk, officials said.The Itar-Tass agency cited Russian space centre officials...

  • More Posting Coming Soon

    Updated: 2010-10-25 16:25:58
    Apologies again for the light posting, but I think things are going to improve soon. I’ll hopefully be on payroll here at Altius soon, so blogging both on the ASM Blog and here on Selenian Boondocks will be higher priorities. I’ve got several technology blog ideas to discuss over here, and I have [...]

  • Astronaut Snoopy “Who Knows What Tomorrow Will Bring?” (mug)

    Updated: 2010-10-14 03:56:17
    Home Forums About Contact Web www.outofthecradle.net Lunar Library : Sections Main Apollo Big Rocks From Space BRfS Fact BRfS Fiction Cultura Lunaris Fun Games High Frontier HF Biologics HF EML-1 HF Facilities Infrastructure HF Fiction HF Navigation HF Resources HF Settlements Habitats La Luna La Lune Moon Fiction Moonbases Selenography Selenology Selenospheres Space Biz Space Law Youth Youth Apollo Youth Educator Materials Youth High Frontier Fact Youth High Frontier Fiction Youth Moon Fact Youth Moon Fiction Yueh OotC : Sections Main Book Reviews Civil Space Programs International Space Station Space Science Space Shuttle Vision for Space Exploration Commercial Space Lunar Orbital Suborbital EVA Interviews EVA FAQs JAT D EVA Reviews Humor Interviews Ken’s Lunar Library Apollo Big Rocks

  • Urdeneta City Philippines LDS Temple Announced

    Updated: 2010-10-08 19:26:02
    This isn’t space related, but I wanted to mention this anyway. After all, the “boondocks” in Selenian Boondocks is a reference to my time I spent in the Philippines as an LDS missionary (boondocks is an Americanized version of the Tagolog word “bundok” which means “mountain”). Last weekend, during General Conference, the LDS [...]

  • Tech Patriots and Dana Rohrabacher

    Updated: 2010-10-08 19:07:58
    This isn’t the newest of news, but I’ve been pretty busy lately so I’m trying to catch up on the blogging. Anyhow, a few weeks back, I found out that there is a movement to try and help Dana Rohrbacher move up in the Republican leadership for the space technology committee he’s currently on. [...]

  • SSI Conference

    Updated: 2010-10-08 18:55:32
    For those of you who read Selenian Boondocks, but don’t read Hobbyspace (I’m sure there’s at least two of your out there), I wanted to mention the SSI Space Manufacturing Conference this month on the 29th-31st, at the NASA Ames Conference Center. It looks like I’ll be attending this year. SSI has been [...]

  • Sci/Space/Tech Enthusiasts: Earn $5 Today for Joining IDG's Tech Panel - Win an iPad - Influence the Future!

    Updated: 2010-10-07 20:29:24
    Earn a $5 sign-up bonus and a chance to win an iPad! Join an influential group of Business Decision Makers/Influencers, IT Professionals, Tech Enthusiasts and Gamers shaping the future of technology. Earn cash for every survey you take, drive the...

  • Sci/Space/Tech Enthusiasts: Earn $5 Today for Joining IDG's Tech Panel -Win an iPad -Influence the Future!

    Updated: 2010-10-07 20:29:20
    Earn a $5 sign-up bonus and a chance to win an iPad! Join an influential group of Business Decision Makers/Influencers, IT Professionals, Tech Enthusiasts and Gamers shaping the future of technology. Earn cash for every survey you take, drive the...

  • ASM Updates Blog and First Contract News

    Updated: 2010-10-07 07:13:55
    Hey guys, I finally got the update blog setup over on the Altius Space Machines site. The site still needs a lot of work, but I’ve always been one to try and put content over style. There’s a post there with the details I was promising about our first contract.

  • Wayne Hale’s New Blog

    Updated: 2010-09-24 17:56:44
    Just saw the news that Wayne Hale (of Space Shuttle operations fame) has a new blog up on wordpress.  Wayne’s blog posts while still at NASA were always informative, and I hope now that he’s out in the private sector, he’ll be able to continue that trend.  As I understand it, Wayne left NASA earlier [...]

  • “Space Adventure” (playset)

    Updated: 2010-09-24 00:36:14
    Home Forums About Contact Web www.outofthecradle.net Lunar Library : Sections Main Apollo Big Rocks From Space BRfS Fact BRfS Fiction Cultura Lunaris Fun Games High Frontier HF Biologics HF EML-1 HF Facilities Infrastructure HF Fiction HF Navigation HF Resources HF Settlements Habitats La Luna La Lune Moon Fiction Moonbases Selenography Selenology Selenospheres Space Biz Space Law Youth Youth Apollo Youth Educator Materials Youth High Frontier Fact Youth High Frontier Fiction Youth Moon Fact Youth Moon Fiction Yueh OotC : Sections Main Book Reviews Civil Space Programs International Space Station Space Science Space Shuttle Vision for Space Exploration Commercial Space Lunar Orbital Suborbital EVA Interviews EVA FAQs JAT D EVA Reviews Humor Interviews Ken’s Lunar Library Apollo Big Rocks

  • Imagine

    Updated: 2010-09-15 02:56:17
    [Before I try and end the speculation about what it is we're trying to accomplish at Altius, I wanted to give some thoughts about where I think things could go over the next 25-30 years. I think everyone who reads this probably has their own unique vision, but this is to give you an [...]

  • Transitions

    Updated: 2010-09-11 08:15:34
    While some of you may have known for a while, I think that Clark may have surprised a lot of readers when he pointed out the news that I was no longer a part of the Masten team. I am proud to have been one of the founding members of their team, and I still [...]

  • Continuing Light Blogging to Continue Continuing

    Updated: 2010-08-28 17:07:54
    Hey guys, I know this is pretty lame, but it’s going to be a bit longer before I have anything useful to put up. I do have a pretty cool technology idea I’ve gotten permission to write about, but we’re doing an SBIR proposal on it first. There’s a lot more afoot in [...]

Current Feed Items | Previous Months Items

Sep 2010 | Aug 2010 | Jul 2010 | Jun 2010 | May 2010 | Apr 2010