Category Archives: Space

Business, Economics, Political Commentary, Science And Society, Space, Space Science, Technology and Society

The NASA IG

August 28, 2019 Rand Simberg 3 Comments

It will be interesting to see how they respond. Culberson isn’t there any more. I’m not sure that Shelby will care, as long as the money continues to flow to Huntsville.

[Update early afternoon]

Here’s the story from Space News.

Business, Space, Technology and Society

Dorian

August 28, 2019 Rand Simberg 8 Comments

https://twitter.com/RyanMaue/status/1166728107761569792

With the current track, the Cape is in the bulls eye. If it hits as a Cat 5, it could (finally) take out the VAB, which is only designed for a Cat 3. It might be a sign from God about SLS.

[Update a few minutes later]

I have to confess to being relieved, for the first time in a decade and a half, to not owning any property in Florida in hurricane season. Before we sold the house earlier this year, we did upgrade the siding, doors, and added a new window for impact, but the new owners will still have to decide if and how to shutter the old windows.

Business, Space, Technology and Society

StarHopper

August 27, 2019 Rand Simberg 37 Comments

SpaceX’s live feed has started.

[Update a few minutes later]

A 57-second flight, that ascended, translated, and landed right on the bulls eye. Best water-tower flight ever.

[Update a few minutes later]

An early report from Bob Zimmerman, with pictures.

[Wednesday-morning update]

More from Bob: What Starhopper achieved.

[Update a few minutes later]

Here is Mary’s (@BocaChicaGal) video.

Here is Bill Harwood’s story.

[Afternoon update]

A drone’s-eye view.

Starhopper flight test drone footage pic.twitter.com/ilvALgrpCo
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) August 28, 2019

Business, Economics, Space, Technology and Society

A Next-Gen “Space Station”

August 27, 2019 Rand Simberg 14 Comments

This seems a tad ambitious. But it would be pretty cool.

Law, Media Criticism, Space, Technology and Society

Crime In Spaaaaaaace

August 24, 2019 Rand Simberg 14 Comments

This is a dumb story. The first crime in space should have to involve doing something that could only be done in space. She could have done this from anywhere; she just happened to have been in space when she did it.

I will say that I did not know (or care) that Anne McClain was a lesbian.

Business, Economics, Media Criticism, Political Commentary, Science And Society, Space, Technology and Society

Lunar Prizes

August 23, 2019 Rand Simberg 1 Comment

Casey Dreier thinks they’re a bad idea.

My comments:

I agree with much of this, though I do think that Scott has always mischaracterized SLS as a useful national capability. My biggest problem with it is phrase "space exploration." It's pretty clear that getting back to the moon has never been a national priority, and isn't today.
— SafeNotAnOption (@SafeNotAnOption) August 23, 2019

Until we decide why we're going back to the moon, we can't come up with a sensible idea of how to do it. If we do a prize, it shouldn't be to just get back, but to set up a demonstrably economically sustainable infrastructure, not for "exploration," but for lunar development.
— SafeNotAnOption (@SafeNotAnOption) August 23, 2019

That is, the prize should be for (e.g.) maintaining a base at Shackleton of at least two dozen people for five years. That's the only way to avoid another flags and footprints event (and it's something that cannot be done with anything resembling NASA's current plans).
— SafeNotAnOption (@SafeNotAnOption) August 23, 2019

So let the Shelbys of the world continue to massively waste taxpayer money as the danegeld to allow us to offer a much smaller amount, risk free, to do something useful (since clearly getting back to the moon is not and has never been nationally critical).
— SafeNotAnOption (@SafeNotAnOption) August 23, 2019

[Late-morning update]

Bridenstine: NASA is considering all options, including prizes.

Business, Economics, Space, Technology and Society

The Coming Age Of In-Space Transportation

August 21, 2019 Rand Simberg 2 Comments

My former Rockwell colleague (and current business associate) Dallas Bienhoff has a survey of all the planned new on-orbit systems, including a brief description of my planned intraorbital infrastructure.