I grew up in Colombia Missouri, which is not far from a typical, small mid-western town named Marshfield. Have you heard of Marshfield, Missouri? Until recently, the town was just a humble speck on my Missouri highway map. As soon as I was old enough to leave the state on my own, I moved to New York to discover something….anything. After all, though astronomically impossible, it does seem as if the world revolves around New York City. If one is hungry for an up-close and personal view of renowned feats of art and science or looking for a hub of energy and opportunity to test out grand (or just plain crazy) ideas, New York City is the right place to be. Now that I am here, I am pursing my current passion for journalism and space. Every month I review a new book and write a few articles; this month, I researched the history of the telescope. Lo and behold: Edwin Hubble, for whom the Hubble Space Telescope was named, was born in Marshfield, Missouri—a short drive from my supposedly unremarkable hometown. It’s not a place of options and opportunities like New York, but nearly everyone has a backyard and a fantastic view of the sky. The Alanis Morrisset-esque irony of leaving home to write about space from my cramped Brooklyn apartment (which boasts no backyard and pulsates with light pollution) is starting to sink in…

For those that do not follow telescope history, Edwin Hubble was the first man to demonstrate the existence of galaxies other than the Milky Way. He also discovered that the degree of observable redshift from a galaxy increases in proportion to the distance of that galaxy from the Milky Way (this established that the universe is expanding, and is know as Hubble’s law). It is appropriate that the grand telescope created through collaboration between the ESA and NASA was named after the man whose insight gave shape to our portrait of the universe.

The Hubble Space Telescope has provided us with some of the most detailed images of the most distant objects within our scope of the universe. Not surprisingly, this has lead to a number of major breakthroughs in astrophysics by providing scientists with accurate data that can determine the rate at which the universe is expanding. To most of the population, such discoveries are no more than facts that are out of reach. In this case however, the technology developed for the Hubble has brought forth more than awe-inspiring insights to unreachable universes for it has also provided practical uses on Earth that save lives on a daily basis.

For example, not long after the billion-plus dollar Hubble Space Telescope was launched in April 1990, it began producing out-of-focus pictures: one of the main mirrors was the wrong shape. This was bad for the budget, but great news for breasts. Luckily, a team at the Space Telescope Science Institute came up with a new image processing system by using computer algorithms that filled in the gaps that were making the Hubble’s images appear blurry. This same process is now applied to routine mammograms and is especially useful for identifying early signs of breast cancer.

A few years after this discovery, astronauts visited Hubble to install a high-resolution digital detector in order provide even clearer resolution of small, dark objects that astronomers were keen to study. Once again, this proved to be a boon for breast cancer patients. This technology is now used for relatively inexpensive, nominally invasive procedure for breast biopsies. There is something funny about a gigantic, phallic-looking object in the sky that has some difficulty in its mission but somehow manages to save breasts worldwide. My male colleagues are sure that this is proof that if there is a God, or a Creator of some sort, then he is surely a man.

There has been quite a hubbub about the decision to service the Hubble again. After all, it is expensive and it has already outlived its 15 year life-expectancy. But despite the budget squeeze, an astronomical number of women have outlived their own life expectancy as breast cancer patients, and they even have breasts left to squeeze. So I am delighted that we have found room to milk the budget for the sake of pictures of galaxies beyond the Milky Way, and I can’t wait to see what the astronauts come up with when they visit the Hubble on May 12, 2009. And next time I go back to Missouri, I perhaps I’ll start a new business selling “Honk for Hubble” bumper stickers at the local hospital giftshops.

Coney Island's Astroland was recently closed down to make room for developer Thor Equities' commercial vision for the boardwalk area, but one relic will remain: the 14,000 pound, 71 ft. long virtual reality ride to the moon which is currently in storage (believe it or not, it used to be on top of a hot dog stand). It will soon be on display as a tribute, or rather a "blast from the past" to the days of roller coasters and cotton candy. The 26-seat rocket was installed by the park's founder, Dewey Albert, in 1962 and was donated to the city by Carol and Jerry Albert, who owned and managed Astroland after Dewey passed away.

Photos are from the Astroland Archives/Coney Island History Project

That's right: you can give your loved on a little boost to the heavens, thanks to Celestis Inc., a Texas-based aerospace company. I have to admit, the idea did make me chuckle a bit when I first stumbled upon Celestis' site...but it is a very unique way to go down (or up). And the company looks impressive: they've been around for 30 years and were the first private company to launch into outer space (1982).

Past (or maybe I should say “passed”) clients include Timothy Leary and James Doohan. Notable clients that are scheduled for an upcoming trip are Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry and his wife Majel Barrett Roddenberry, who will be launched together in 2012. Off they go to the final frontier!…it does seem appropriate. But how long will they stay in orbit? This depends on the altitude of the primary satellite (a memorial spacecraft is a “secondary payload” aboard a mission). The orbital life span for Celestis satellites range from two years to several hundred years. After the launch you’ll be able to reference the estimated orbit time for the mission on the dedicated flight web page, and you can even track the satellite in real-time!

So, how does it work?
A few grams of the deceased person’s remains are placed in a capsule (the exact amount depends on the service selected). Next, they are positioned inside Celestis spacecraft, which is attached to a rocket and launched into space.

“Each spacecraft stays permanently attached to a rocket stage that orbits Earth until the spacecraft harmlessly re-enters and is completely consumed by Earth’s atmosphere — blazing like a shooting star in final tribute to the passengers aboard,” states the website poetically.

You’ll also receive a video of the launch so you can relive the experience, if you like.

Dr. Eugene Shoemaker near the sight of the Manson (Iowa). Photo from USGS website

Celestis also boasts the first lunar burial (1999). In a press release titled “Lunar Surface Can Now Provide a Final Resting Place for All Mankind” the company announced their partnership with Odyssey Moon Limited and Astrobotic Technology, Inc. to launch cremated remains to the surface of the Moon. The release states that “The Luna Service reaches out to Earth’s nearest neighbor for a uniquely compelling location to remember a special life.”

In 1999 Celestis worked with NASA, which requested the company’s assistance in placing Dr. Eugene Shoemaker’s remains on board NASA’s Lunar Prospector mission. Ultimately, some of Dr. Shoemaker 's remains were “intentionally impacted into the Moon’s south pole.”

Virgin Galactic had 10 tickets up for grabs for their future astronauts, and yours truly is one of the lucky recipients of one of them! I feel like I've just bitten into a Willie Wonka bar and found a golden ticket. I'll take lots of photos for TalkingScience Space Cadets, of course.

The launch is scheduled for Feb. 12 at 7:32am, and the astronauts (Commander Lee Archambault, Pilot Tony Antonelli, and Mission Specialists Joseph Acaba, John Phillips, Steve Swanson, Richard Arnold and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Koichi Wakata) will stay on the International Space Station for 14 days. There's a lot to do before then, of course--the two-day Flight Readiness Review started this morning. Here's the scoop, straight from NASA:

Wed. Jan. 21, 2009, 11:09 AM

After climbing into their orange flight suits -- the same ones they'll wear on launch day -- the crew was driven to Kennedy's Launch Pad 39A.

The highlight of the day is a simulated launch countdown, which includes climbing into Discovery's flight deck aided by NASA's Closeout Crew. The members of the Closeout Crew help the astronauts strap into the space shuttle's crew module and take care of any other last-minute needs that may arise.

The spacecraft's hatch will be closed briefly for leak checks and then opened again while the astronauts perform all of their countdown procedures -- much like launch day, only the boosters and engines won't ignite.

Later, the astronauts will fly their T-38 jets back to NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston.

This "unconference" was was unbelievably cool. Scientists really do get a bad rap for being geeky, and one could understandably fear that a meeting of science online groupies might wind up being a gathering of socially inept researchers who have an odd twitch, resemble Frankenstein a bit, and blog from dark corners of their labs because no one will talk to them at a bar. Not so!

The crowd was as diverse as it was interesting: a group of high schoolers with exceptional vocabularies came with their biology teacher, Miss Baker, to educate some of the older folks; there were flocks of Europeans having intense conversations over the incredibly tasty espresso with a rocket-fuel kick, and plenty of twenty-something science YouTube filmmakers and rockstars who are cruising through grad school. A friendly, fun crowd indeed. I even saw a Brazilian guy do a salsa move out of the corner of my eye…

This was also my first experience being on a panel with scientists (if you haven’t noticed yet, I’m not a scientist, my background is in English and French literature). The unconference format allowed us to play …we flipped the lights on and off, slammed doors, walked around the room pinching people as if we were insects. In sum: we terrorized our audience– and it was premeditated (we planned it on a Skype call). Our panel figured that hosting an “Adventure Blogging” session was reason enough for a little ruckus.

Although everyone I spoke with at the conference had something interesting to say, I had the opportunity to talk with three people whom I believe will be of particular interest to Space Cadet readers:

Karen James is working on the Beagle Project, which aims to rebuild the ship that carried Charles Darwin around the world. But this is no old school kind of thing: Karen and her colleagues teamed up with astronaut Mike Barratt, who will be talking to the Beagle crew from the International Space Station. And yours truly also plans to call the Beagle from the Virgin Galactic. If you were wearing a diaper, trapped in a small space, and could only make one phone call (these are the likely circumstances of space tourism at present), who better to call than a bunch of pirates?

Vanessa Woods blogs about bonobos in the Congo and has written a number of witty books. The one I can’t wait to read is It’s True! Space Turns You Into Spaghetti

I also had the good fortune to get stuck in the bathroom line next to Sheril Kirshenbaum– there are good things about long lines in the women’s bathroom, after all! She’s fine tuning the final draft of her book, which is going to be a fantastic read. Keep on the look-out for Unscientific America: How Scientific Illiteracy Threatens our Future. I particularly like to read Sheril’s blog since she always seems to have an interesting angle. As her bio says, she is a marine biologist, freelance writer, and author…and sometimes she’s a classicist, radio jock, or congressional staffer. And in an interview with Virginia Hughes Sheril says that she wants to be an astronaut!

How do officials justify taking tax money and making a run for the moon?
Despite the seeming incongruity between human destitution and adventures in space, there is an ethical case for throwing money towards the skies.

The US, Russia, China, and India have experienced well-publicized successes with their space programs. So while most people know what their money does for space programs, few realize what the space programs do for the inhabitants of Earth. Indeed, when human beings consider space exploration, they usually think about a full or crescent moon, shining stars, the milky way, astronauts floating around and catching M&M's; all things and places that are beyond the reach of those millions of earth-bound taxpayers,who are financing these cosmic missions. Sure, a successful mission to space fills a nation's people with a sense of pride, but is it also practical? Yes. Many of the technologies that first-world nations rely on for fast and accurate communication, medical tools, and crime prevention and detection were borne from our willingness to fund space programs. From these technologies, many other global markets have emerged, creating jobs around the world. Any government that overlooks the cost benefits of literally shooting towards the stars is seriously short-sighted when it comes to maintaining an existence on this planet.

Let's take NASA as an example. Unfortunately, some people have died working on the various space missions but millions more have been saved thanks to their space satellite technology. The images from NASA's Earth Observatory are used to predict drought, flooding, volcanic activities, and other natural disasters all over the world. Ant it's a free on-line resource that anyone can access. This type of technology also keeps tabs on criminal activities on an international level. As a case in point, the Amazon plays a huge role in regulating Earth's climate, and when loggers illegally cut down trees, it affects us all. Satellite technologies allow officials to pinpoint when and where deforestation is occurring so that they can try to put a stop to it. On a smaller scale, Video Image Stabilization and Registration (VISAR) was created by NASA scientists at the request of the FBI after the 1996 Olympic bombing in Atlanta. The scientists, David Hathaway and Paul Meyer, employed the skills they learned while studying the Sun and Earth's weather and used some of NASA's technologies to create a software program that "washes" videos of static and blurry movement. This technology provides FBI officials with the information to determine who did what at the scene of the crime.

Space technologies are not only used to fight crime and natural disasters; on a daily basis, most of us tap into devices created by virtue of NASA’s research. A few examples include Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Radio, the GPS systems we use to help us figure out how to get from one place to the next, and a host of technologies behind modern Internet services and cell phone capabilities. Few people would be willing to give these items up, even for a tax break.

Perhaps most importantly, space technologies have been priceless in the development of numerous medical tools and techniques, including digital mammography, orthodontic springs, and nanomaterials. Among other advances, the study of astronauts in microgravity unearthed new understandings about osteoporosis, which then resulted in new (and better) treatments.

Space research is expensive. However, in  the US we still spend less on life-saving space programs than we do on alcohol. In fact, according to the USDA, Americans spent US $154 billion on alcohol in 2006. Any current space program is comparatively cheaper, certainly safer, and absolutely more profitable for economies around the world. In short, the technologies that spring from space exploration have resulted in numerous emerging markets in a variety of fields. These markets save lives, predict disasters, and allow us to communicate with one another. In so doing, they provide millions of jobs for people who, in turn, will pay their governments the billions needed in tax revenue to keep space exploration going, even in the hard times.

So far, it looks like Obama's commitment to re-establish the White House Space Council is right on course. Its mission is perhaps summed up best by a quote from Scott Pace, Executive Director of the Space Policy Institute at George Washington University: "The...question is not 'What will Obama do for space,' but 'How can space contribute to the priorities of an Obama administration?'"

Operations in the space industry aren't cheap, but like time, its financing should be looked at in terms of relativity. In the past half-decade, NASA has spent just under $600 billion, and in less than a decade, U.S. taxpayers have spent much more than this amount on the war in Afghanistan and Iraq. Virtually everyone, from Republican hockey-moms to Democratic party leaders, would prefer to see the United States go to Mars rather than the Middle East. It's cheaper, and soldiers of the sky would likely experience a better survival rate than our soldiers on the ground.

Another good sign for our capitalistic society is that there is certainly no lack of enthusiasm in the space industry. New markets are opening up due to the emergence of private companies, such as Virgin Galactic and XCOR. The private sector is attracting plenty of financing and there appears to be a robust market in this domain, despite the general market downturn.

Whilst the global economy is looking grave, the future of NASA's missions in zero-gravity will at least be in the hands of a politician who is fully in support of the space industry's continued exploration. The tides of both policy and funding can, and likely will—change when the new President takes office. Last year, Science Debate 2008 put the presidential candidates on-the spot with the following question:

The study of Earth from space can yield important information about climate change; focus on the cosmos can advance our understanding of the universe; and manned space travel can help us inspire new generations of youth to go into science. Can we afford all of them? How would you prioritize space in your administration?

Lucky for NASA, President-elect Barack Obama was loud and clear about his support:

As president, I will establish a robust and balanced civilian space program. Under my administration, NASA not only will inspire the world with both human and robotic space exploration, but also will again lead in confronting the challenges we face here on Earth, including global climate change, energy independence, and aeronautics research. In achieving this vision, I will reach out to include international partners and to engage the private sector to amplify NASA's reach. I believe that a revitalized NASA can help America maintain its innovation edge and contribute to American economic growth.

If this is true, then perhaps NASA can be a part of the solution, rather than a part of the economy's problem. Time will tell of course, but at least Obama's intentions are in line with the space industry—that's half the battle. Here are the more specific details of Obama's plan:

Between 1958 and 1973, the National Aeronautics and Space Council oversaw the entire space arena for four presidents; the Council was briefly revived from 1989 to 1992. I will re-establish this Council reporting to the president. It will oversee and coordinate civilian, military, commercial, and national security space activities. It will solicit public participation, engage the international community, and work toward a 21st century vision of space that constantly pushes the envelope on new technologies as it pursues a balanced national portfolio that expands our reach into the heavens and improves life here on Earth.

All of this sounds good, of course, but the reality at present is that NASA's budgets are being cut and missions are being delayed. Noting that history does tend to repeat itself, Dr. Edward Belbruno, a celestial mathematician who formed an influential theory on chaos with regards to the weak stability boundaries in space, offers a skeptical, and perhaps more realistic perspective. In his opinion, the current state of the economy is comparative to the market circumstances at the close of the unpopular Vietnam War. During that period, Belbruno explains, "The space program was hugely successful with the Apollo Moon landings…When Nixon ended the Vietnam War, he also ended the Apollo program. Why? Because the U.S. economy was in shambles due to the war… then we elected a much more liberal president, Jimmy Carter, who inherited a weak economy and an oil embargo."

Belbruno goes on to point out that Carter could not cope with the economy's downward spiral, noting that it did not fully rebound until the 1990's. And he thinks that our situation today, while similar, is perhaps even worse since the war in Iraq is on-going, and because there are more players, such as Japan and China, in the field. Globalization seems to have complicated an already-complex problem. Belbruno doubts that the stock market can handle the enormous volume of money exchange at such a fast pace. And what does this mean for the space industry? "The conclusion seems pretty clear," says Belbruno, "If the economy continues to drop at the current rate, projects like the proposed lunar base, proposed by the Bush administration, are likely to be cut since it would cost on the order of 100 billion dollars. Also, the new rockets to replace the shuttle may not be developed—the Orion V and Ares V. This may actually enhance space science and lesser-priced robotic projects. What this implies is that it may be desired to keep the space shuttle longer than proposed. The lunar base may be cancelled and the proposed goal of sending people to Mars, by the Bush administration, may be pushed off indefinitely. One may see a spiral down of the US space program. The current Obama administration… reminds me of the Carter administration, which may not be able to deal effectively with these issues."

Ultimately, time will tell whether the new administration will be able to launch the economy, and space programs, on an upward path-- or if we'll continue to regress…a blast from the past administrations' space-cadet maneuvers.

As many of you already know, a replica of the HMS Beagle is currently under construction in Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire. It will look like Darwin's Beagle on the outside, but will be filled with the latest-and-greatest modern gadgets on the inside: diesel auxiliary engines, radars, and satellite communication devices-- to name a few things. The Beagle Project team consists not only of a bunch of adventurous, tech savvy science geeks, though, they're also savvy seafaring socialites shooting for the stars. After all, when it comes to a long voyage, it's important to keep good company...so they've partnered up with NASA. It is indeed good to have friends in high places!

Below is a recent e-interview with Karen James, the Beagle Project's Director of Science, regarding a few details of the Beagle Project and their new partnership with NASA:

How long will the Beagle take in retracing Darwin's voyage?

First we plan to do a couple of 'shakedown' voyages: first from Milford Haven in Wales along the south coast of England to Woolwich in London (where the 'original' Beagle was built), stopping along the way in port cities to promote science/Darwin, especially Plymouth (from whence the Beagle departed in 1831 with a 22 year old Charles Darwin aboard), then second perhaps across the Atlantic for a similar cruise along the eastern seaboard of the US. Then we'll repeat the 1831-1836 circumnavigation, which we expect to take approximately 2 years, though it might take longer if we add more ports of call that weren't on the original voyage.

Do you have specific educational partners, or will footage of the Beagle from the International Space Station simply be streamed for anyone to use?
...Will it be on NASA's Web site, yours, or perhaps both?

We don't have any named educational partners yet, but we will be looking for links with national curricula around the world, but especially along the voyage route. For example, we'd really like to help promote environmental education of youngsters in the Galapagos, taking them on a tour of the natural heritage of their archipelago (most children in Galapagos have never been off of the island they were born on to see the rest of the archipelago (a luxury only affordable by rich tourists)).

With regard to ISS/Beagle footage the aim is to make that freely available, as is all of the content on NASA's site. We haven't worked out yet how the web portal(s) will be organized but we have some ideas we are working on.

Will you stream footage of the Beagle from the ISS every day throughout the voyage?

The ISS will pass overhead every 90 minutes and the plan is that the imagery will be downloaded for use by the Beagle (and there will also be communication/feedback between the Beagle and the ISS on what to focus on) and yes, we hope it will be made available 'live' as it is downloaded, but exactly what format that will take hasn't been discussed yet. There are quite a few options.

I read in your press release that scientists on the Beagle will be collecting plankton for study, and I understand that astronauts are conducting some experiments with animals on the International Space Station too...will the astronauts and the scientists on the Beagle be researching the same species at any point?

Probably not - it's mostly about relating ISS earth observations - imagery - with time-matched biological sampling of surface ocean waters, and there is also a lot of scope for land-based work - obviously not from the ship but as part of the overall Beagle Project - after all, Darwin spent most of his time on the voyage trekking on land while the Beagle was in port or even traveling by land between ports.

Will any of the astronauts join you on the Beagle voyage after returning from ISS?

We would dearly love to host them, in particular Mike Barratt (Expedition 19), who first suggested the link between NASA and the Beagle Project and who himself has a soft spot for sailing ships.

Are you going to wear a period costume while on the Beagle?

Ha ha! Definitely not!

In all seriousness, it is important that this is not a museum ship - she will be an active modern research vessel.

Will photographs be on display in any particular gallery or museum?

I hadn't thought of that - good idea!

Thanks Karen, and bon voyage!

To follow the Beagle's progress, check out their regularly updated blog.

Today, two plaques inscribed with the nearly 60-year-old United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights will be launched into space from Kennedy Space Center aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavor. The plaques, engraved in both French and English with the Declaration's 30 articles, are sealed in "space-proof" packaging and are booked for permanent orbit around Earth from ESA’s Columbus multidisciplinary space laboratory in the European module International Space Station.

The creation of the Declaration was a challenging 2-year task that began with a thick 400-page outline. Not surprisingly, Eleanor Roosevelt was heavily involved as she was the Chair of the Human Rights Commission during the organization’s infancy. Eleanor demanded:

Where, after all, do universal human rights begin? In small places, close to home [OK, space isn't close to home for most people, but even so, I'm sure she wouldn't disagree with today's symbolic launch...]– so close and so small that they cannot be seen on any maps of the world. Yet they are the world of the individual person; the neighbourhood he lives in; the school or college he attends; the factory, farm or office where he works. Such are the places where every man, woman and child seeks equal justice, equal opportunity, equal dignity without discrimination. Unless these rights have meaning there, they have little meaning anywhere. Without concerned citizen action to uphold them close to home, we shall look in vain for progress in the larger world.

It’s a coincidence that last night I attended an Eleanor Roosevelt Legacy Committee event: a discussion with Ruth Gruber, now in her 90’s, who showed a trailer of her up-coming film and recounted stories of her friendship with Eleanor — recalling in particular Eleanor’s dedication to refugees. Eleanor’s legacy certainly does continue (and there will soon be a documentary film debut about the life of Ruth Gruber, so those of you who were not at the meeting last night will be able to get the inside scoop from Ruth).

On Dec. 10, 1948 the 58 United Nations Member States officially adopted the Declaration. The pen may or may not be mightier than the sword…although the Declaration has not been able to preserve all the rights of all humans, it certainly made for a good start to a continuing battle for equality and justice for everyone.

Because the document is going to space, however, I do believe it should be edited to include non-humans. Surely the alien life forms that we are looking for ought to have a few rights, too?

The Astronaut Farmer should have never taken off: the movie is a dud. Billy Bob Thorton plays the lead character, Charles Farmer, who was once an astronaut-in-training but never left Earth...instead, he was forced to leave his prestigious position after a mental break-down when his father committed suicide.

Farmer is as stubborn as he is selfish: he resolves to go to space on his own rather than give up and let his dream fall flat (like his career did). He borrows over $500,000 to build a replica of the Mercury-Atlas in his backyard and doesn't bother to pay back the minimum amount due to the bank. When the town banker tells him that the bank will foreclose on his house, Farmer throws a brick through the bank's window and proceeds to launch, leaving his wife (a waitress) and three children behind. He crashes, of course, but because it's a Hollywood film Farmer miraculously lives.

In the meantime, Mrs. Farmer's father dies, leaving her with a plump inheritance of several hundred thousand dollars. Mrs. Farmer stuffs the money into a large brown paper bag and gives it to her husband, urging him to "follow his dreams." He takes the money and flies, of course, and this time his young daughter gives him a bag of lucky charms to take with him. It's a nice touch of product-placement foreshadowing so we know he'll make it. The scene of the rocket taking off is impressive: Farmer named it "Dreamer," in keeping with the cheesy nature of the film.

While Farmer nearly causes the devastation of his family in order to follow his "Dream" joy ride, Mrs. Farmer gets the short end of the stick. Seems like she ought to sail a ship named "Divorce." While I'm all in favor of following one's dreams, and while I would also like to be an astronaut one day, it seems to me that the movie lacked creativity and the plot was just plain awful. In fact, it was quite a challenge to watch the entire movie. It has more in common with the Challenger than the Mercury-Atlas.

Last week, the TalkingScience team trekked out to Staten Island to put on a Science Cabaret for students at I.S. 34. We were accompanied by a bee keeper, a biologist, a 3D artist from Hollywood, a few flamenco dancers, and our L'Oreal-UNESCO award-winning emcee ("Cindy the Scientist"). Cindy is a great story-teller, and while she was researching the history and science behind flamenco dancing, she came across some an interesting bit of information about the Rio Tinto, a river in Spain and a region that was once populated by flamenco-dancing miners.

Life near the Rio Tinto isn't easy...in fact, it's nearly non-existent when it comes to human life. The region is an isolated cavity that was abandoned hundreds of years ago. We're not sure exactly what happened there since Rio Tinto was once the oldest known mining community, rich with legends about the wealthy King Soloman and tales about how Phoenician merchants arrived to set the foundations for the Greeks, Romans, and Carthaginians who would later take over the area. It's hardly a boom-town today, though.

Humans couldn't possibly live sustainably in the region, but scientists believe that the conditions could be just right for a Martian since many of the region's attributes are similar to those found on Mars. The Rio Tinto is located on top of an ancient hydrothermal system formed by sulfide minerals. Mars also has an abundance of sulfur, as well as iron, and these are the ingredients needed to form sulfide minerals. Because Mars also has volcanoes and ground ice, the conditions for a hydrothermal systems could exist....and maybe life could exist too. Not human life, of course-- if we do discover life on Mars, it's more likely to be in the form of extremophile microbes (microbes that can exist in extreme conditions). These microorganisms have already been identified in the Rio Tinto, which has a pH of 2.3 (it's rare for living creatures to flourish in such acidic water).

In his article NASA Scientists to Drill for New, Exotic Life near Acidic Spanish River, author John Bluck notes that "scientists say evidence suggests the chemistry of the Rio Tinto and its biology may be a result of an underground biologically based chemical reactor fueled by organisms that do not need oxygen gas too survive." So...alien life forms that don't require oxygen or light? It sounds very science fiction to me, but you might need to head to the non-fiction area of the library to find out more about it soon. Once again, reality may prove itself stranger than fiction. I wonder if this new life form will be green or gooey, or have any super- powers? To be continued...

Ultimately, the adventures in outer space resulted in the astronauts' concern for Earth.
Alan Bean, the Apollo 12 Lunar Module Pilot notes: "We live in the Garden of Eden...I'll never complain about the weather again." Jim Lovell agrees, adding that "Just from the distance of the moon, you can hide the Earth behind your thumb, everything that you have ever known; your loved ones, your business, the problems of the Earth itself, all behind your thumb....so insignificant."

The movie closes with six-time astronaut John Young warning us that "There's a lot of things like urban pollution, and you can see that when you hit orbit now. You can see that big cities all have their own set of unique atmospheres. We ought to be looking out for our kids and our grandkids. What are we worried about? The price of a gallon of gasoline."

Thanks to Alexis Gambis for organizing this screening at Rockefeller University, and for founding the Imagine Science Film Festival, a 10 day spree of fabulous (and free) movies all over New York City from October 16-25.

While most news services are covering crashing banks, bitter op-eds about bailouts, and general financial crisis, I thought I would pass along news about a company that is going up, rather than down: the Virgin Galactic, of course! VG just sent out a press release announcing that they will partner with The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to explore the use of VG's vehicles to research climate change and other issues relevant to NOAA’s mission. The YouTube video that I posted above is a showcase of NOAA in Second Life for those who, like me, aren’t exactly sure what NOAA is all about.

NOAA's mission is to predict changes in Earth's environment, so the use of Virgin Galatic's ships would obviously be a great help in achieving that goal. VG would fly NOAA's equipment on the White Knight and VG carrier in order to collect data about CO2 and other greenhouses gases. The idea is to analyze the data so that solutions may be proposed, of course.

VG President Will Whitehorn says that "Virgin looks forward to working with the global science community using Space Ship Two and White Knight Two as a platform for a range of research and technology demonstration missions."

It's nice to know that future Virgin Galactic space tourists will be contributing to science-- this does help to justify the carbon footprint of space tourism...

]]> http://www.talkingscience.org/2008/09/virgin-galactic-announces-partnership-with-the-national-oceanic-and-atmospheric-administration/feed/ 0 http://www.talkingscience.org/2008/09/elon-musk-3-stikes-followed-by-a-big-home-run/ http://www.talkingscience.org/2008/09/elon-musk-3-stikes-followed-by-a-big-home-run/#comments Mon, 29 Sep 2008 19:30:05 +0000 Ann Marie http://talkingscience.org/blogs/?p=238 SpaceX

SpaceX, Stanford dropout Elon Musk's company, made it to orbit on Sunday night! This marks the first privately developed launch vehicle to reach earth orbit from the ground. A new kind of space race is really taking off... no longer between countries, it's now a race between capitalism's most successful entrepreneurs. Interestingly, Elon noted in his interview with Wired that he has signed up for a ride on the Virgin Galactic. I wonder if he has submitted his 30 second video pitch to "Virgle," as well...

Virgle

All kidding aside, it is quite a thrill. This was the fourth attempt for SpaceX. The first attempt failed due to a fuel line leak, the second rocket made it to space but was lost within 5 minutes, and here's the scoop about the third crash, from todays NY Times:

In the most recent flight, on Aug. 2, mission control lost contact with the craft shortly after the separation of the first stage. That third flight carried three small satellites for NASA and the Defense Department, as well as small amounts of the cremated remains of 200 people, including Gordon Cooper, one of the original seven Mercury astronauts, and James Doohan, who played the character Montgomery Scott on the original "Star Trek" television series.

Engineers identified the problem as a small amount of residual thrust from the first stage after the engine was cut off; the first stage rear-ended the second after separation. Mr. Musk said the company had fixed the problem by telling the rocket to wait a few more seconds after cut-off before jettisoning the first stage, a change that required rewriting a single line of computer code.

I'm glad that the fourth attempt worked out as planned....and I hope that my flight on the VG doesn't involve a computer code crisis . Fingers crossed!

One of the many challenges of traveling in space comes from the lack of atmospheric pressure and oxygen. Luckily, in 1935 the first pressure suit was made...but not for an astronaut, of course. It was made for balloonist Mark Ridge, who tried it out inside a high altitude chamber and inside a giant ice box in order to test the suit's capability to sustain low temperatures.

Later, this design was honed for use by Navy jet pilots. The B F Goodrich Company of Akron, Ohio made a full pressure suit that allowed aviator Wiley Post to make stratospheric flights without losing consciousness. It was a small suit for that man but suitable for giant leaps by mankind. Almost a quarter of a century later, on January 29, 1959, the first spacesuit conference was held. Bidders had approximately six months to come up with a feasible spacesuit design, and on July 22 B F Goodrich was awarded the NASA contract to design the Mercury space suit. The company modeled the space suit after their famous Navy Mark IV pressure suit.

The Mercury suits were not exactly fitted for fashion. Miles Alex, a self proclaimed "flaming fashion designer" in Chelsea, took a look at photos of those first space suits and nearly squealed. "Ohhhhh! Bravo for new fabrics and high tech design, but what a waste. Those boys are in the best physical condition of their lives. What a shame to hide their beautiful, steel abs behind puffy fat suits." (I didn’t have the heart to show him photos of the tire-like Apollo suits, which were even more bloated). Fashion aside, those suits were successful in keeping the astronauts with perfect bodies alive and healthy. Not zipping up the puffy "fat suit" would have been a fatal fashion faux pas. Without a space suit, astronauts risk being knocked unconscious from a lack of oxygen. If they would be lucky enough to ever wake up, (which is virtually impossible) they would probably suffer some significant discomfort as their bodily fluids would boil, and then freeze due to the lack of air pressure. Their organs would expand and their faces would morph into a different shape due to the extreme temperature changes. To be more precise, Pablo de Leon, head of the University of North Dakota space suit workshop and Argentinian Ansari X-PRIZE contender, points out: "Well, actually, their faces will not morph Total Recall style due to the changes of temperature, for sure they would look pretty ugly just from the pain." Also, regardless of the sun-block they might be wearing, they would be also exposed to all sorts of scary radiation. De Leone tries to offer comfort by emphasizing that "…just a few seconds of being exposed to the vacuum might be survivable with minor injuries, just like astronaut David Bowman in 2001 Space Odyssey." The minute-man would never make it though. Space Mathematician & Artist Ed Belbruno, notes, "Whatever little time they are exposed to space, it wouldn’t be a pretty sight."

The suit design for the Mercury may have been high tech for its time—and it certainly did serve its purpose—but the outfits were no walk in the park to wear. For those of us who hate wearing itchy, wool suits to the office in the winter, or think that striding in stilettos is perilous and nightmarish, imagine suiting up with neoprene-coated material, a layer of aluminized nylon, and a layer of rubber garments pressurized at five pounds per square inch. Granted, weight is of no real consequence in a weightless vacuum, but even so… Ultimately, the gear was uncomfortable and made the astronauts look a bit like aliens (if only they were green).

The Mercury spacesuits were meant for orbital flight; they were not designed for space walking. In 1965 Ed White flew with the crew of Gemini IV and became the first American to perform a space walk. He wore a swanky-looking David Clark G4C suit, which allowed for more mobility than the Mercury suit. The DC G4C suit consisted of two layers: a gas-tight bladder fitted to the body, covered by a layer of netting woven with Teflon and Dacron. These suits were made in white--not as an aesthetic choice for contrasting with the black atmosphere; nor for the color’s symbolic significances, such as dovish peace, the power of the white house, or associations with purity. The suit was manufactured in white solely for its function; it absorbs less heat than, say, a plush pastel pink or a manly navy blue.

As with the Mercury suit, which had to be improved upon for space walking, the David Clark G4C wasn't quite the right fit for a stroll on the moon either. Like Michael Jackson’s high-maintenance suit that was custom designed for the music video where he "moonwalked" on tables, an entire wardrobe of event-appropriate suits had to be designed for astronauts doing a "real" moon walk (one certainly cannot go on a moon walk in the same gear in which one lounges around the cabin eating freeze-dried space ice cream). On July 21, 1969, Neil Armstrong's "small step" on the moon was made possible, in part, by ILC Dover, a small company in Delaware that won the NASA contract to engineer his moon suit.
The moon suit weighed about 180 pounds (on Earth) and could be worn fairly comfortably for up to approximately 115 hours. It is comprised of many layers (a total of 11 in the cross-section, to be exact). Within the layers is a cooling and ventilation system, pressure garments, material to protect the wearer from micrometeoroids, headphones and earphones for communication. The outermost layer is made from Nomex material, and underneath are two layers of a Teflon-coated Beta cloth, a few layers of neoprene-coated nylon, and a couple final layers of Beta/ Kapton spacer laminate. For Neil, there were no shortages of impressive gadgets, of course: a liquid cooling underwear system, hoses attached to the back of the suit providing life support, gloves made of Chromel-R fabric on the outside with thermal insulation inside and blue silicone rubber fingertips to provide more sensitivity, and an in-suit drinking bag filled with water. With all this baggage, it’s no surprise that approximately 70 percent of the Apollo astronauts' energy was spent simply in wearing the suits, which also looked strikingly similar to the Michelin Man at your local garage. The reason for their tire-like design is due to a need for extra fabric to maintain a constant pressure, particularly around the joints (volume is lost when joints are bent because the suit folds, thereby reducing the internal volume and increasing the pressure). As one can imagine, this "tire factor" made moving around and actually getting things done extremely difficult. Looks aside, the suit was an impressive engineering feat, to say the least. And if ILC Dover could do it, why couldn't others?

The space race, which lasted from around 1957–1975, fueled entrepreneurial dreamers with a talent for engineering while capitalism, national pride, and free markets inspired the emergence of a number of innovative companies. All these creative forces were striving to create an out-of-this world design that would win a contract from NASA. A flurry of the space suit prototypes and related accessories were pitched during the third quarter of the twentieth century. Perhaps the most recognized design was the Life Magazine favorite, the 1960s Grumman Moon Suit. This get-up was made to accommodate lunar surface operations and allowed the astronaut to take his arms out of the flexible manipulators and into the pressurized "can" that enclosed his upper torso and head. The Republic Moon Suit was another Life Magazine favorite: this one was a hard suit made for extended lunar activities and is said to resemble a suit from Republic Pictures serials of the 1940s. De Leone explains that the The Republic Moon suit prototype actually got its name because it was built by Republic Aviation (a now defunct company). "It's unrelated to the Republic Commando Cody and Captain Marvel serials," he says.

Other prototypes featured a closed-cell foam suit (initially proposed by Macuh Laboratories), then the S-939, a full pressure suit that made for the x-20A Dyna-Soar program, followed by the S901/970, another full pressure suit, this time complete with a parachute harness, an automatic flotation system, a urine collection gadget, thermal protective fabrics, and integrated subsystems that came in 12 different sizes. Hamilton Standard, now the main NASA contractor for the Shuttle space suit, developed the Integrated Maneuvering Life Support System (IMLSS) for the USAF Manned Orbiting Laboratory (MOL) program. IMLSS allowed astronauts to use an umbilical connecting to the MOL, and even gave them the option of disconnecting to float independently from the station.
Unfortunately, MOL never went to space, so the IMLSS never made it past the lab. Even so, these prototypes were an important steps forward in space suit design, and they were used as a blueprints for later designs for the Shuttle EMU. Around 1969, the AX-1 (Ames Experimental) and AX-2 were developed by NASA-ARC. These were hard suits that featured avant-garde multiple bearing technology and resulted in the development of the AX-3, a 0.5 bar suit weighing only 23 kg. Naturally, the AX-3 eventually led to the AX-5, which was relatively easy to put on, offered more mobility, and could be tweaked to fit different body shapes without being entirely custom designed.

After the Soyuz 11 incident in which three unsuited cosmonauts died in a decompression accident, safety precautions became an even higher priority. In 1971, NASA began investigating a prototype for a Mechanical Counter Pressure suit (MCP), comprised of six layers of elastic material and a helmet that resembled a giant bubble. This prototype was not a conventional gas filled pressure suit, so it was easier and less taxing for astronauts to move around. It was also lighter (24 kg) and would not result in a horrifying-but-fast death if punctured. The theory behind this design is that human skin is almost a perfect pressure suit on its own because it has good water retention, virtually no gas permeability, and high tensile strength. Additional applied pressure is necessary in a vacuum, though, to equal the pressure of the breathing gas. Thus, an enhanced "second skin" was created with the use of Mechanical Counter Pressure (MCP) to mock a pressurized environment. Unlike the fully pressurized suits of the 60s, a tear in an MCP would not mean a loss of life supporting gas pressure--it would simply expose an area of the skin to reduced pressure and cause some bruising. The life support system was also much simpler and more effective: body cooling was accomplished normally, through sweat, which would evaporate through the porous second skin. For life support, astronauts simply carried a tank of oxygen with pressure regulators and a carbon dioxide scrubber.

Nothing is perfect, and there were a few pitfalls to the MCP design. In a vacuum, the body swells and blood pools—the pressure of the suit is what keeps the body in its normal shape. Nevertheless, it is difficult to maintain a constant pressure in concave crevices of the body, like armpits and genital areas. Luckily, little sacs of fluid could be inserted into concave areas in order to prevent arm pits from becoming arm bulges. Another, more minor issue, is that each suit had to be custom tailored for the astronaut that was to wear it, and although it wasn't as complicated as putting on the suits that resembled the Michelin Man, it wasn't quite like slipping into your old 80s spandex leotard either. There were eight different garments that had to be fitted absolutely perfectly: the slip layer, a helmet bladder to keep the helmet from rising, a second helmet bladder to help the first one, an arm balancing layer to even out the pressurization of the arms and legs, full body bobbinbet layers, girdles to increase pressure on the torso and thighs, gloves, and one pair of very cute booties for the astronaut's feet. Various forms MCP designs have been studied over the years, most recently in 2005 by MIT developers of the sleek, skin-tight bio-suit. None of these concepts were never tested in space yet, though.

There are about as many space suit design studies as stars in the skies. During the 90s, NASA refined designs and evaluated the use of a series of new suits, like the Mark III, that were heavier yet offered more mobility (astronauts could even do handstands and somersaults in these suits). Unfortunately, the Mark III was too heavy and the design was vetoed in favor of lighter-weight materials. Now, what it all boils down to is that modern Advanced Crew Escape Suits (ACES) are modeled after the suits of the 1970s, for the most part (retro never seems to go out of fashion). Of course, kinks have been worked out and there are some new perks, like detachable gloves and anti-g systems.

There is quite a lot of buzz about the next prototype: NASA recently awarded a $180+ million contract to Oceaneering International Inc. to design a new line of suits, called Constellation Space Suit Systems (CSS), which will allow an astronaut to roam the moon, climb ladders, and generally get around relatively unencumbered by the typical stiff, bulky old-school design. The new contract with Oceaneering doesn't mean that NASA is breaking up with it's retro-designers though; among others, the David Clark company the Harris Corporation will be collaborating with Oceaneering International on the design. Oceaneering, as the name suggests, has a long history invested in deep sea applications (mostly withregards to the oil and gas industry) and it is believed that they have a lot to bring to the table since deep water work involves the use of pressurized suits as well. We'll find out in six years, when, n 2011, the first suit is slated to be used by the crew of the new Orion spacecraft . And if all goes as planned there will be yet another line to take astronauts back to the moon in 2020. This time, NASA will leave the old fat suits at home with the Michelin Man, on Earth. "Finally, fashion starts to meet function," says Miles Alex, with an approving look in his eye as he takes a look at the new design by Oceaneering International. "Cat walks are going to be so passé...the future is sexy space walks. How long until you can trade space suits for birthday suits? I'm thinking Calvin Klein models for a better line of space underwear by 2025..."

One could say that she is a sort of neo-Renaissance artist. Beginning in the fifteenth-century, certain artists have become famous for incorporating elements from other intellectual fields into their work. For example, Paolo Uccello delighted in making complex paintings in which he sought to solve the problems of mathematical perspective. It is said that when his frustrated wife called him to bed, Uccello would reply, "Oh, what a sweet thing is this perspective!" Of course, everyone knows that the High Renaissance master Leonardo da Vinci probed the physical sciences. "Art," he wrote, "truly is a science." Especially during the 18th-century, artists such as Jacques-Louis David looked to philosophy for inspiration, as evidenced in his renowned painting, Death of Socrates (1787). The celebrated pointilist, Georges Seurat studied contemporary scientific advances in color theory during the 19th century to create what he termed “optical painting”. Klein brings this Renaissance tradition into the 21st century with artworks that promise more than simply a “pretty picture”.

As Klein's intellectual pursuits are richly varied, so too her artistic skills span a multitude of mediums: holograms, videos of insects framed under dollops of amber, charcoal portraits on vellum, and etchings on glass--to name a few. Despite the range of materials and disciplines, there are a few themes that remain constant, allowing the viewer to contemplate these core ideas from different perspectives.

The theme that is prominent in this particular exhibit is isolation and the human psyche. In My Amnesia, Klein depicts a woman floating peacefully above the skyscrapers of chaotic New York City, separated by a thin film of water that ripples above a video of the busy, bustling metropolis, complete with traffic jams. The woman's surroundings are utterly irrelevant to her. In her psychological condition, she may as well be in a vacuum. Across from this drawing are two renditions of astronauts floating in space, titled Solitary Figure, Single Light Source #1 and Solitary Figure, Single Light Source #2, respectively. The figures float alone, and seemingly fully aware that they are enveloped in vast amounts of dark space and very little matter. In sharp contrast to the eerily serene woman in My Amnesia who is experiencing a dimension of void within a hectic city , the astronauts incite the energy and excitement of space travel and exploration.

As I contemplated the representation of similar premises from the differing points of view as portrayed in My Amnesia and the Solitary Figure(s), I had a feeling of being tossed down the Rabbit Hole in Alice in Wonderland. The Mad Hatter came to mind with this greeting: “What’s the matter? I’ll tell you, it’s not a matter of being surrounded by matter, or not being surrounded by matter, as a matter of fact. It’s all about the state of mind. Personally, my mind is not stately, it’s mad. But nevermind. It’s mind over matter. The matter is all in your head, figuratively speaking. Figure it out by looking at the figures. Really, Go figure."

Klein later explained that she particularly enjoys drawing the human figure, so it is natural that she should gravitate towards drawing astronauts in space--this way, the focus is on the figure and there is no expectation of a detailed background—a black hole suits the literal practice and the metaphorical meaning . For it is left to the viewer to fill these spatial voids, which can be interesting. After all, I suppose we are all solitary figures, filling space with objects or ideas (imaginary or real) that stem from our knowledge, imagination, and memory…or lack thereof.

I certainly recommend arranging an appointment with Adrienne Klein at The Center for Holographic Arts--it is a gallery experience like no other. If you ask, Klein will even explain the science and logic behind her work…up to the point of your understanding. Klein has a deep knowledge of bringing together science and arts and is co-Director of Science & the Arts at the Graduate Center of The City University of New York (CUNY). If you're interested in more exhibitions and events, be sure to check out CUNY's Web site in addition to Klein's Radiant Logic.

It seems that prank callers are really upsetting the folks at the National UFO Reporting Center. Of course, if you're a juvenile prank caller, this will probably just make you want to prank them more. In any case, I thought I would pass along the warning notice posted on their site and propose that anyone scheming to prank call the UFO Center use better manners. Please, be a polite pranker.

NOTICE TO HOAX CALLERS

In the near future, we will post a statement here regarding the deluge of hoaxed calls and reports that we have been receiving recently over our Hotline. The volume of telephone calls NUFORC receives from rude, impudent, unbelievably foul-mouthed, young Americans has grown to an unacceptable level. Just today, April 27, for example, we received more than 25 obscene calls from youth, who seem to have nothing better to do with their cell phones than to shout triple-X rated filth over our Hotline.

If this condition continues, we are going to implement a plan that will allow them to understand just how inconvenient it can be to receive a large volume of unwanted calls. Within the next several days, we will provide more details here as to what we have in store for them, and how visitors to our site can help put a stop to this inconvenience.

For two years, we have saved all of the obscene messages from, and all of the telephone numbers of, those who have made obscene calls to our Center, and we are about to implement a program, which we think will make them reconsider whether they want to continue their rude behavior. Our objective will be 1) to deny them use of their telephones, and 2) to identify and contact their parents, in order to play for them some of the filth and stupidity their children are inflicting on others. We think that we can achieve both of those objectives.

Please check back to our website, from time to time, and we will let you know what you might be able to do to help. In the meantime, if you are a parent whose child has a cell telephone, we strongly urge you to supervise the child, and to consider requiring him/her to keep a written record of all telephone calls that are sent and received over that telephone.

Just one more note regarding anyone who takes the last paragraph of this notice seriously: asking your child to keep a written record of his/her telephone calls is not going to work. Just check your telephone bill instead.

In sum, the book is informative, but an utterly embarrassing read for anyone who no longer refers to sex as hanky panky. This book will also be irritating for those who have difficulty tolerating a large dose of feminist bitterness. In the Forward/Foreplay, Rick Tumlinson introduces the book by noting that “most of the tenants of fundamentalism, or today’s fanatic religions promoting sexual repression and social stigma were and are inventions of the male gender—not female. It is men who drive the social systems that force the covering of faces and bodies lest lustful thoughts occur (in men!)…the male hypocracy that has characterized our sexual dysfunction should be left on the savage savannahs of this world with the chest pounding apes who promulgated it…”

It is unfortunate that there are very few other books about sex in space. While this one does provide the necessary information, it’s not a turn on—but at least it can be finished quickly.

I did not have time to tour Brazil's National Institute for Space Research (INPE) as planned since my excursion into the Amazon to research the effects of global warming did not leave much in the way of free time to jet to other cities. However, boating down the Amazon with surgeons, cartographers, and environmental activists did allow me to see just how essential the satellite images of the Amazon are to people working on the ground level. INPE provides a Real Time Deforestation Monitoring System (DETER) to pinpoint deforestation in the the vast, dense Amazon– a region that covers around 5% of the Earth’s landmass. NASA’s Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) also aides in identifying exploitation of the forest by providing images of the Amazon up to four times a day. I’m working on an article at the moment and will have more information for you soon.

Ed is the kind of guy you call when your own life is just a little drab and you need some inspiration. It's impossible to predict what he'll say. I alway ask the same question: "Ed, what in the world are you doing?" and I've never gotten the same answer twice. The last three responses have gone something like this:

"I'm painting a 40 foot canvas of the universe. It's really cool. I have an art barn now."

"I'm heading to a book signing party. Did you read the new book that I wrote inbetween teaching classes on celestial mathmatics?"

"Just saved a space craft..."

Here’s the latest correspondence from Ed– this time he’s working on the Lunar X Prize (no surprise):

Hello Talia,

FYI – I am involved in a really cool Google Lunar X-Prize project – to land a small rover on the Moon, and have it crawl a number of feet, then send back a video of the Earth. Our project is called Lunar Trans. My role is to design a really low cost trajectory to reach the Moon and land on it. This transfer to the Moon is actually based on one I designed in 1990 to rescue a Japanese lunar mission and get the spacecraft Hiten there in 1991. It turns out to reduce the cost substantially to land on the Moon since it reduces the landing speed. Although it takes three months, instead of the classical three days, it uses about 15% less fuel to land. This means that you can reduce the mass of the spacecraft substantially, and use, as a result, a smaller launch vehicle from the Earth. This is where you can really save a lot of money. So, instead of perhaps spending say, 150 million dollars, we think we can reduce the cost in half.

This last week from February 6-9, I attended a meeting of our team in Denver, Colorado, and went to a small satellite company, Microsat, to discuss our mission concept. It was exciting to get together with a number of other engineers to discuss this concept. We feel that we have a winning plan – and time will tell. The person who leads our team, Michael Joyce, has another job of building and selling full size replicas of the robot in the TV show Lost in Space. I think that is very cool.

Ed

If everything goes according to the schedule, I will launch on the Virgin Galactic in late 2010, which gives my mother plenty of time to worry in advance. When I told her about my plan, she responded, "That sounds very adventurous. I don't want to discourage you....but....you know, this is a new technology, you...could...explode. And die."

“That’s true, but it’s OK. If I explode and die, I’ll have nothing to worry about. If I explode and live, it would be a messy life to deal with.” I could tell by the silence that this was not as comforting to my mother as it is to me. “How about we have a last supper before I go?” I ask.

“Wonderful!”

My mother is an art historian, so I knew that a little pre-death Da Vinci-esque dinner would somehow make her feel a bit better about the whole ordeal. Next, of course, was the subject of what to eat.

“Nothing too healthy,” I cautioned, “Absolutely zero fiber before my trip to zero gravity.” I had been browsing KidzWorld.com and Ubersite.com, and came across this alarming bit of info:

Frequency Actuated Rectal Tremor
If you could go into space without a suit and you let one rip, your fart would have enough pressure to push you forward.

An Ubersite commenter added:
If (an astronaut) farted in outer space it would blow them halfway across the galaxy…
only if there was a hole in the suit, which would therefore mean they’d have imploded before getting the offending gas out of their arses.

Ugh, that would really stink–in every sense of the word. I’m not sure what the credentials are of Ubersite contributers, but regardless, I am suddenly concerned more about the risk of flatulence than of the safety of the Virgin Galactic. I looked into the stats of the average, normally flatulent adult.

Valley Hospital writes:
The average adult produces one to three pints of intestinal gas a day and passes gas 14 to 23 times a day….gas expands at extreme altitudes.

Ultimately, mom and I settle on steak. Perhaps I’ll work on an astronaut friendly, fiber- free cook book in the meantime.

I met Eve Branson at a champagne reception just a few days ago; she was making merry near a table lined with the expected delicate flutes filled with champagne. I wasn’t sure who she was at first, but I was determined to introduce myself to this 80+ year old little lady who had managed to bypass the frivolity of skinny flutes and was making grand gestures with a gigantic goblet of whiskey on the rocks.

“Are you going up in the spaceship?” she asked me, with a twinkle in her eye.

We clanked our glasses together and I said that yes, I do plan on going into orbit on Richard’s ship.

“Well, dear, I’ll make you a nice cuppa tea before you go. I’m Richard’s mother, so of course I’m going up in the mother ship and I’ll tell you all about it when I return so you’ll know what to expect.”

I’m almost looking forward to having tea with Mrs. Branson more than I am to the Virgin Galactic flight. Mrs. Branson flew gliders back when most women were still in the passenger’s seat of their husband’s car. She is a full fledged pilot who trained with the Royal Air Force and did her part in WWII. But Mrs. Branson is hardly an old, festering war vet– she’s got a spring in her step that dates back to her days as a dancer and actress, and she seems to be the type who is in the habit of enjoying herself and everyone else.

“You must meet my husband, Ted, ” she said, bringing me over to a rosy-cheeked, jolly old fellow with a few wisps of white hair gracing his crown. He sat in a stately chair, watching the youngsters walk by (most of the party is in their 50’s, and Ted is nearing 90). I introduced myself and, as I stand almost 5 ft. 8 in my heels, Ted had to cock his head at an angle a bit higher than was comfortable to talk with me. “Oh, just sit on my lap please, it’s much easier!” I hesitated. “Don’t worry dear, you can’t break me,” he pats his knee and, feeling a bit like I was six years old and sitting on Santa’s lap again, I told him all about my dreams of becoming an astronaut and how much I am looking forward on taking a ride in Richard’s space ship.

One of speakers at Yuri's Night was Edward Belbruno, author of Fly Me To The Moon. For anyone who has a burning desire to be great at, well, everything, Dr. Belbruno is a man who will inspire. The founder of the first patent on a route to the moon, a boxer, a painter...the list goes on. Ed is full of magnificent stories-- and they're all true.

For more information, see

http://www.wildriverreview.com/3/3-spotlight_belbruno.php
http://www.edbelbruno.com/home.html