Scrutable

Martin_B wrote: ↑

Wed Feb 03, 2021 11:39 pm

JQH wrote: ↑

Wed Feb 03, 2021 1:05 pm

Still not a starship unless it goes to Alpha Centauri or further [/pedantry]

When was the last time you saw a Ford Fiesta host a party, or a Ford Focus concentrate on anything?

How do you think I broke my flap?

Gfamily wrote: ↑

Wed Mar 03, 2021 11:31 pm

Grumble wrote: ↑

Wed Mar 03, 2021 11:29 pm

Awesome, just watched it launch, hover and land! Weird fire going on for a bit after landing, but it looks intact and upright.

Spoke too soon there

Well I was wondering why it appeared to be on fire. Something wasn’t quite right. I was impressed by the landing though, they’re definitely progressing

I'm beginning to think that the exploding rockets are a publicity stunt to cover up the fact that SpaceX aren't doing their engineering homework, and to make it seem like a harder problem than it is, to discourage competitors and make their prices seem more reasonable.

NASA awards a $2.9 billion Moon lander contract to SpaceX, a major vote of confidence for Starship. SpaceX was the only winner because it was the cheapest bid and Congress had been fairly stingy with its funding allocation. (Rather amusingly, NASA noted that one of the competing designs had a substantial negative mass allocation). Scott Manley video.

Pishwish wrote: ↑

Sun Apr 18, 2021 12:07 am

Congress had been fairly stingy with its funding allocation

Alternatively, NASA had been fairly unrealistic about its future funding needs, and when it finally admitted that it would need more than it had previously said, Congress gave it some of the extra, but not all.

NASA's FY2020 budget request projected that in FY2021 it would be asking for $21.2 billion. A year later when NASA actually made its FY2021 budget request, it asked for $25.2 billion. Congress gave it $23.3 billion.

In 2019, NASA requested $21 billion for FY 2020 and similar for the next few years. In response to the administration's directive to land people on the Moon in 2024, an an amended NASA request was submitted.

This budget includes $1 billion to enable NASA to begin supporting the development of
commercial human lunar landing systems three years earlier than previously envisioned to bring humans to the Moon’s
surface by 2024

So I think it is unreasonable to cite pre-directive budget projections.

(The amended request for FY2020 was $1 billion for the HLS, Congress allocated $600 million. The President's budget request for FY2021 was $3.37 billion, Congress allocated $860 million.)
If lunar starship ever happens, I would be surprised if the landing takes place before the end of the decade, let alone 2024.

NASA is required by law to provide four years of forward budget projections along with each year's budget request. It's been years since it took that requirement seriously. Congress has been asking for years for a multiyear cost estimate for Artemis (and even just for Orion and SLS post EFT-2, before there was an Artemis). So has GAO. NASA has never provided a real one.

Producing a budget request takes more than a year of work at NASA and OMB. It's lame to suddenly realize that you need an amendment a few months after it comes out, to pay for something you've known for years that you need to do. Budget amendments are supposed to be for things that are new or unexpected, not just because you couldn't get your act together to do it right the first time.

The big request for HLS in FY2021 wasn't funded with a corresponding increase in the agency total. About half of it (going from memory) was paid for by proposing to eliminate NASA's STEM education programs, WFIRST (as it was then), a couple of Earth Science missions, and some other stuff. Nobody believed that would really happen.

Basically, the White House told NASA to make a plan leading to a 2024 Moon landing, but nobody at either NASA or OMB ever developed a serious plan for how to pay for that. They put their head in the sand about that for a while, and then when it was too late to keep ignoring it, they put out a nonserious plan, so that when Congress didn't go along (as everyone knew they wouldn't) it would be Congress's fault, not NASA's.

With NASA selecting SpaceX for the moon mission, where does that leave the SLS?

Grumble wrote: ↑

Sun Apr 18, 2021 6:18 pm

With NASA selecting SpaceX for the moon mission, where does that leave the SLS?

The plan, at least for now, is for astronauts to get to lunar orbit on an SLS-launched Orion. then transfer to SpaceX's HLS for the lunar landing and ascent.

bolo wrote: ↑

Sun Apr 18, 2021 6:26 pm

Grumble wrote: ↑

Sun Apr 18, 2021 6:18 pm

With NASA selecting SpaceX for the moon mission, where does that leave the SLS?

The plan, at least for now, is for astronauts to get to lunar orbit on an SLS-launched Orion. then transfer to SpaceX's HLS for the lunar landing and ascent.

Also, SLS is jokingly known as the Senate Launch System, and guess who was chairman of the relevant Senate committee in 2010 when Congress told NASA to build it? Bill Nelson, who Biden just nominated as NASA Administrator. It's in safe hands, whether you think that makes sense or not.

An interesting graphic about distances from Earth since 1961 to 2021
From Reddit

Spoiler:

So just got a Pixel phone and I ordered a very cheap octopus tripod (£3.89 !) - going camping this weekend on North Yorkshire coast - was going to try the astrophotography mode - Any thoughts ?

PeteB wrote: ↑

Thu Apr 29, 2021 9:16 am

So just got a Pixel phone and I ordered a very cheap octopus tripod (£3.89 !) - going camping this weekend on North Yorkshire coast - was going to try the astrophotography mode - Any thoughts ?

I've seen good results. The Moon is a few days after full, and will be rising at about midnight after which it is likely to wash out the Milky Way.
Speaking of which, the Milky Way is mostly low in the North and East in the evenings this time of year, so it may be better to try for higher 'constellation' shots such as the Plough or Leo.

Good luck - do share if you get anything decent

The orion nebula comes out even in night mode, I've found.

There's an app called astrocam on Android which gives you very detailed control of the camera, although not the automatic stacking of astrophotography mode.

It's maybe most useful for fixed focus for various shots.

Https://photos.app.goo.gl/C17jQGigd2J9d3k68

https://photos.app.goo.gl/DXt14yZfKP5DxWDAA

From Hinderwell camp site, seemed pretty good to me for a budget phone, it's pretty close to Middlesbrough and Redcar so I think still affected by light pollution

Sorry for the dumb question but am I right in saying that's the milky way ?

PeteB wrote: ↑

Mon May 03, 2021 5:38 pm

Sorry for the dumb question but am I right in saying that's the milky way ?

I'd say, yes, that looks very much the Milky Way just above the horizon to me .

Gfamily wrote: ↑

Mon May 03, 2021 7:54 pm

PeteB wrote: ↑

Mon May 03, 2021 5:38 pm

Sorry for the dumb question but am I right in saying that's the milky way ?

I'd say, yes, that looks very much the Milky Way just above the horizon to me .

Part of your image with Cygnus marked Stellarium software showing much the same area, but with a wider context

It's quite possible that there will be another 'hop' of the SpaceX Starship rocket on Tuesday 4th (not least because of the 'May the Fourth' publicity chances...)

I follow here

Thanks GFamily

China has been rather naughty/negligent about disposing of their rocket that took up part of their planned space station. It's bl..dy big and out of control. Seems nothing over 10 tonnes hashad an uncontrolled reentry since 1990 and China already has form on this as a smaller rocket was in similar circumstances and showered metal shards over the Ivory Coast.

Space X are apparently preparing for another 'hop' of their Starship some time today.

Possibly at about 22:15 UTC

Can be watched in various places - Here's one : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTA0GTgFn5E

Gfamily wrote: ↑

Wed May 05, 2021 9:32 pm

Space X are apparently preparing for another 'hop' of their Starship some time today.

Possibly at about 22:15 UTC

Can be watched in various places - Here's one : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTA0GTgFn5E

Nailed it! Shame about all the cloud though. Would have been nice to see more of the flight.

Grumble wrote: ↑

Wed May 05, 2021 11:14 pm

Gfamily wrote: ↑

Wed May 05, 2021 9:32 pm

Space X are apparently preparing for another 'hop' of their Starship some time today.

Possibly at about 22:15 UTC

Can be watched in various places - Here's one : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTA0GTgFn5E

Nailed it! Shame about all the cloud though. Would have been nice to see more of the flight.

Indeed. Impressive though - and sufficient mild peril to make it interesting at the end,