It's a Bird, It's a Plane, It's Origami...

Origami master wants to launch an paper airplane from space and learn from its trip back to Earth. Project leader Shinji Suzuki, a professor at Tokyo University's Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics, believes the origami flight from space could help us learn more about the design of vehicle re-entry and space probes for upper atmospheric exploration. More about an Origami Plane to Be Launched From Space.

Vintage Visions of the Future

TM cover, Russia 1953

I stumbled across this really fun and weird website recently. It's filled with all kinds of cool images. It has this one page dedicated entirely to rare Soviet space travel and fantasy art. Check it out... darkroastedblend.com

The future of space flight

TED Talks (video) Burt Rutan: Entrepreneurs are the future of space flight

Burt Rutan gives a talk at TED and how NASA has fallen behind the times and how entrepreneurs are the future of space flight. "Houston, we have a problem. We're entering a second generation of no progress." He calls for entrepreneurs to lead the next wave of space exploration, funding new crafts, new (manned) missions, and entirely new approaches to space exploration. Worth watching...

Shuttle Launch Countdown

NASA

It looks like NASA is getting real busy these days... cool!

The crew of the NASA space shuttle Endeavour is getting ready to launch on Tuesday, March 11, at 2:28 a.m. EDT, less than three weeks after the Feb. 20 landing of its sister ship Atlantis. The shuttle Endeavour is slated as a construction mission to the International Space Station. This is the agency’s second flight this year.

Endeavour’s seven-astronaut crew will be commanded by Dominic Gorie. Japanese astronaut Takao Doi will be joining the The Endeavour crew. The mission will deliver a segment of Japan’s Kibo laboratory and a Canadian-built robot. Endeavour astronauts will be installing the Japanese logistic module as well as an add-on to the lab’s robotic arm. The spaceflight will include five spacewalks.

NASA has six total missions planned for 2008.

Stay Tuned!

What a weekend!

Wow! There sure seems like there was a lot that was going on up there this past weekend and there's more to come.

First we hear about that school bus sized US spy satellite loaded with toxic fuel that will fall back to earth. Then we hear about the Pentagon's plans to shoot it down so that it won't crash in someone's backyard. The shuttle Atlantis is heading back from the International Space Station after successfully delivering its cargo and another crew mate to the station. Mars water is salty. And a total lunar eclipse will take place on Feb. 20th.

Some sci-fi writer could have a field day with all this material. Satellite explodes as the Space Shuttle jets quickly home while the International Space Station observes the fireworks from above, under a darkened full moon, and NASA has to figure out how to desalinize Mars!

So sit tight y'all, it's gonna be one heckuva week that's headed our way. God speed!

Would you believe it

Welcome to my small plot on the web. This blog gives me a chance to sit down once in a while and blab away about what I find interesting and enjoyable in life. I know, who cares about what some guy living out in the boondocks has to say about anything he finds important. Not much I suppose, but give me a chance. Anyway, it's the middle of February, about 15 degrees outside and I was a little bored and decided to launch a blog. Cheers!