Doug Messier wrote a long and prescient post last night.
I think this has to be the last straw for a nitrous hybrid engine. Several years too late, they have to move to a liquid if they’re to ever have a practical and safe vehicle.
Category Archives: Technology and Society
WhiteKnightTwo
Took off a few minutes ago in Mojave. Looks like a powered flight attempt, if the weather cooperates (there’s a front coming in, that’s supposed to bring us some much-needed Halloween rain this evening).
[Update a few minutes later]
Here’s the story from Alan Boyle.
[Update at 10:26]
Uh oh. RT @virgingalactic: #SpaceShipTwo has experienced an in-flight anomaly. Additional info and statement forthcoming.
— Rand Simberg (@Rand_Simberg) October 31, 2014
[Update a few minutes later]
Alan Stern just tweeted, after I asked if they had chutes, that they are (or were) on chute.
@AlanStern Hard to see how you avoid vehicle loss, if they're on chute. Don't think it can fly itself.
— Rand Simberg (@Simberg_Space) October 31, 2014
[Update a few minutes later]
Still no update, but as Charles Lurio just emailed, “Statement forthcoming” is always a bad sign.
[Update at 11 AM]
OK, some confusion about whether or not pilots bailed, but reports on police scanner of a downed aircraft, and Bakersfield reports sending Kern County fire equipment north of Mojave.
This is getting to be a spooky way to end what was already a bad week for commercial spaceflight. @virgingalactic
— Rand Simberg (@Rand_Simberg) October 31, 2014
[Update at 11:23]
One pilot reported dead, news conference at 2 PM PDT. They’re covering it at NASASpaceflight.
[Update a few minutes later]
Doug Messier is back in Internet range, and reporting that he saw it light, then stop, then relight, then got lost in clouds. Saw it blow up in the air, came down in pieces. Went to crash site with debris field, saw a body in a seat.
[Update, just before press conference in Mojave]
Streaming at NBC.
Longevity
Thoughts, from Trifecta.
But Bill Whittle gets it wrong. It’s NOT “Slow traffic keep right.” It’s “LEFT LANE FOR PASSING ONLY.”
There’s A Giant Spot On The Sun
…and it’s acting weird.
With modern technology, and a soft grid, another Carrington event would be a societal disaster.
Another Interstellar Review
This one has some spoilers.
“Wallops Island Is Burning”
Stephen Clark has an intense first-hand account over at Spaceflight Now.
The Eclipse Of Man
I just got a review copy of what appears to be an interesting new book
More Antares Coverage
Michael Belfiore has a piece at Popular Mechanics, quoting me, and over at The Atlantic is one by Michael Lemonick (I haven’t read the latter yet).
Krill Oil
Failure Is Always An Option
SciAm has a list of all the recent launch failures.
Note that for the past three and a half years, every single one (including last night’s) was built in Russia or the Ukraine. And the last two American ones (not counting last night’s) were both Orbital (separation problem on Taurus). Prior to that, the last American one was the Falcon 1 test program, which should really count, since it was in fact a test program. Orbital has no experience with liquid propulsion, which is why they outsourced it to Ukraine. That appears to have been a mistake.
[Update a while later]
Orbital’s stock is down 17% this morning.
[Update a while later, just before Atlas V launch]
Eric Berger’s thoughts on the implications. I agree that it’s not that big a deal, but I hope it accelerates and end to our reliance on Russian hardware.