Almost all of the "sparkly things" are oxygen snow. Yeah, bits of liquid oxygen that have formed into solid flakes. That happens when they vent the tanks a bit. There WAS one rectangle of something shiny that drifted away after the capsule separated, and I'd bet engineers are scrambling to identify that.
Coming up on the RocketLab launch from New Zealand... LINK T-9 minutes.
Are you talking about that object that looked like a door or a panel that showed up next to the second stage when it separated?
Deck lid. Hopefully they don't lose their Samsonite luggage.
Better than the hood popping open at 1800 mph, I'd say.
Don't be the darkness.
America will perish while those who should be standing guard are satisfying their lusts.
I love the smell of burning dimocrat money in the morning just after an election.
Almost all of the "sparkly things" are oxygen snow. Yeah, bits of liquid oxygen that have formed into solid flakes. That happens when they vent the tanks a bit. There WAS one rectangle of something shiny that drifted away after the capsule separated, and I'd bet engineers are scrambling to identify that.
Coming up on the RocketLab launch from New Zealand... LINK T-9 minutes.
Probably just a bungie strap off the ladder rack. I see them everywhere.
Know fat, know flavor. No fat, no flavor.
I tried going vegan, but then realized it was a big missed steak.
Video just posted by Ellie In Space, a very good space reporter. She's at the KSC Press Site where I used to work.
Folks, THIS is why I say everybody should go see at least one launch. Check out her reactions. I saw that same response over and over again by first-time launch viewers.
Dragon successfully docked with the Space Station earlier today hugs and welcomes all 'round. Now comes the crew handoff, cargo shifting, and then the return of the Crew 9 capsule with two Crew 9 astronauts and the two Boeing. That is now projected to be this Wednesday, weather and other factors permitting.
It's been decades, but I clearly recall Walter Cronkite's reactions when he was on site to witness his first launch. Essentially, he said, "one simply cannot come up with the adjectives to convey such a spectacular event." That's extremely rare for one with his years of experience and all that he'd witnessed.
I've not done a launch yet. My one experience I can't adequately describe is working the flight deck of a carrier simultaneously launching and recovering jets. Wind, heat, cold, noise, afterburners, blast shields, cables, sparks, blown tires, tractors, planes, elevators up and down, day and night, and crews all working the deck. A locale where one must be fully alert for every moment.
One of the NASA astronauts trapped on the International Space Station said he believes Elon Musk’s claim that the Biden administration rejected the SpaceX CEO’s offer to help bring the team home.
Barry “Butch” Wilmore made the comment Tuesday during an in-orbit press conference with fellow castaway Sunita Williams nine months after their Boeing Starliner capsule malfunctioned and left the pair stuck on the ISS.
One questioner asked about Musk’s recent claim that former President Joe Biden had intentionally stalled their rescue for “political reasons.”
In an earlier question, Wilmore denied that politics had anything to do with the team’s delayed departure, but he seemed to shift his stance when answering the later question.
“I can only say that Mr. Musk, what he says, is absolutely factual … I believe him,” he said.
SpaceX launched a Crew Dragon capsule to rescue the pair last September, but after it docked at the space station, NASA opted to stall its return.
Musk, who donated $288 million to Donald Trump’s presidential campaign, told Fox News’ Sean Hannity that working with him to bring the astronauts back would have made Trump “look good” and that Biden “didn’t want the publicity” so close to the presidential election.
I particularly remember one large ego TV reporter covering his first Space Shuttle launch from the NASA Press Site (three miles from Pad 39A). He was describing the liftoff in his best "FM baritone" when at about plus six seconds, the first wave of noise hit. And his commentary abruptly halted in mid-sentence. He stood there slack-jawed and bug-eyed as the Press Grandstand shook and the rumbling, crackling roar just kept growing and growing.
At its peak, the noise from a Space Shuttle launch can be felt in your liver, as the sound waves blast into you. No joke. The U of Florida records it as a false earthquake. Yes, the ground moves.
And that was at "only" 7.5 million pounds of thrust. SpaceX's new rocket produces more than 14 million.
Update: Weather is forecast to be worse as the week goes on, so NASA has bumped up the return of the Boeing crew to Tuesday. They will join the American and Russian who flew up in a Dragon capsule last September for the return. Splashdown off Florida is expected to be about 6 p.m. ET Tuesday. Live coverage will be provided.
One of the NASA astronauts trapped on the International Space Station said he believes Elon Musk’s claim that the Biden administration rejected the SpaceX CEO’s offer to help bring the team home.
Barry “Butch” Wilmore made the comment Tuesday during an in-orbit press conference with fellow castaway Sunita Williams nine months after their Boeing Starliner capsule malfunctioned and left the pair stuck on the ISS.
One questioner asked about Musk’s recent claim that former President Joe Biden had intentionally stalled their rescue for “political reasons.”
In an earlier question, Wilmore denied that politics had anything to do with the team’s delayed departure, but he seemed to shift his stance when answering the later question.
“I can only say that Mr. Musk, what he says, is absolutely factual … I believe him,” he said.
SpaceX launched a Crew Dragon capsule to rescue the pair last September, but after it docked at the space station, NASA opted to stall its return.
Musk, who donated $288 million to Donald Trump’s presidential campaign, told Fox News’ Sean Hannity that working with him to bring the astronauts back would have made Trump “look good” and that Biden “didn’t want the publicity” so close to the presidential election.
Wouldn’t doubt it one bit. Musk has so far proven to be a straight shooter and a No Bullschitt kind of man.
If Lying Hiden Biden opened his crooked mouth, you can bet your ass he was LYING!
"Allways speak the truth and you will never have to remember what you said before..." Sam Houston Texans, "We say Grace, We Say Mam, If You Don't Like it, We Don't Give a Damn!"
Update: Weather is forecast to be worse as the week goes on, so NASA has bumped up the return of the Boeing crew to Tuesday. They will join the American and Russian who flew up in a Dragon capsule last September for the return. Splashdown off Florida is expected to be about 6 p.m. ET Tuesday. Live coverage will be provided.
Thanks for the update! I can’t imagine how glad those folks will be to return to earth and home.
"Allways speak the truth and you will never have to remember what you said before..." Sam Houston Texans, "We say Grace, We Say Mam, If You Don't Like it, We Don't Give a Damn!"
The four astronauts boarded their Dragon spacecraft and departed the Space Station at 1 a.m. ET today. Splashdown off the Florida coast is expected about 6 p.m..
They don't drop like a bomb, you know. The departure is a very gradual thing, to avoid blasting the Station with rocket exhaust. The orbit is gradually lowered, which allows the capsule to speed ahead of the Station by many miles. Plus, the "Before Landing" checklist is pretty long.
The trip up isn't materially less. They use the lower orbit speed up in reverse to catch up to the station, and then it's a long slow process to match speeds, maneuver into position and then creep up to the docking port using tiny maneuvering rockets only.
The Russians do it in six hours, but NASA views that as somewhat foolhardy.
Orbital mechanics are quite counterintuitive. To speed up, you actually slow down first. Slowing down lowers your orbit, which puts you on a shorter course around the globe, which in turn brings you farther ahead. In the early Gemini flights, astronauts flew the craft like it was a jet and fired the rockets to catch up to their docking target. But that raised their orbit and thus slowed them down. They burned up almost all their fuel doing the exact opposite of what they thought they were doing.
They don't drop like a bomb, you know. The departure is a very gradual thing, to avoid blasting the Station with rocket exhaust. The orbit is gradually lowered, which allows the capsule to speed ahead of the Station by many miles. Plus, the "Before Landing" checklist is pretty long.
The trip up isn't materially less. They use the lower orbit speed up in reverse to catch up to the station, and then it's a long slow process to match speeds, maneuver into position and then creep up to the docking port using tiny maneuvering rockets only.
The Russians do it in six hours, but NASA views that as somewhat foolhardy.
Orbital mechanics are quite counterintuitive. To speed up, you actually slow down first. Slowing down lowers your orbit, which puts you on a shorter course around the globe, which in turn brings you farther ahead. In the early Gemini flights, astronauts flew the craft like it was a jet and fired the rockets to catch up to their docking target. But that raised their orbit and thus slowed them down. They burned up almost all their fuel doing the exact opposite of what they thought they were doing.
