Space stuff (NASA, UKSA, CSA, ESA, etc)

[strawman]

Space news that doesn't need its own thread.

"Take a right at saturn and aim for the pale blue dot..."
Cassini takes pictures of Earth from 900 million miles away:
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/cassini/whycassini/cassini20130722.html

You are the brightest blue dot in the center-right of the image. This is the actual size image the spacecraft took, so while there are higher resolutions available on the above linked webpage, they are blown up.

 

[Chad Sexington]

Man...

Man.

It just blows my mind. All of it.

 

[Gusto]

That's a GREAT photo.

 

[Espy]

Oh WOW.

 

[Cheesy1]

Duuuuuuude . . .

 

[sixpackshaker]

That literally made my head explode.

 

[Just Me]

I'm always awed by stuff like that. Really!

But nonetheless I can't resist: damn you NASA and your shiny new remakes ruining my childhood memories!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pale_Blue_Dot

 

[Ravenpoe]

NASA, always with the selfies.

 

[David]

At least they're not making a duck face.

 

[Ravenpoe]

At least they're not making a duck face.

They still got the high angle vanity shot, though.

 

[DarkAudit]

Dammit, my eyes were closed!

 

[bhamv3]

That literally made my head explode.

 

[FnordBear]

At least they're not making a duck face.

 

[Just Me]

At least they're not making a duck face.

Not the NASA guys, no!

 

[Chad Sexington]

Not the NASA guys, no!

I love that fact, but I think I love that fact presented by meme slightly more. What does that mean... Hm.

 

[evilmike]

Another picture from Cassini:
Two Moons Passing in the Night

 

[sixpackshaker]

That's no moon.

 

[evilmike]

A picture from the Hubble

I can' t help but think that we'll need to use the explosion created from overloading the impulse engines of a Constitution class starship to stop this thing.

 

[PatrThom]

A picture from the Hubble

I can' t help but think that we'll need to use the explosion created from overloading the impulse engines of a Constitution class starship to stop this thing.

Heh. I can hear the Irwin Allen-esque music.

--Patrick

 

[Emrys]

Another picture from Cassini:
Two Moons Passing in the Night

That's no moon! That's a space station.

 

[strawman]

Voyager 1, a spacecraft we launched in 1977, has traveled over 12 billion miles and NASA is officially stating that it has left our solar system, the heliosphere, and is now officially traveling between the stars.

CNN Video: http://www.cnn.com/video/data/2.0/v...lla-nasa-voyager-1-left-solar-system.cnn.html

It's only using a 22watt radio, so how do we know where it is, when even our most powerful visual telescopes can't see that far? Nasa uses many radio telescopes throughout the world as though they were a single huge telescope, and it shows up quite brightly compared to the quasars and other radio signals we search for in space:

http://www.nbcnews.com/science/pale...al-interstellar-space-photographed-8C11167660

Note that most amateur radios that transmit at 20 watts can't go more than a few hundred miles on a good day, and under exceptional circumstances (and within the right frequency) they might travel around the world. But when you task a bunch of antennas around the world together to focus on the same signal, you effectively build an antenna as big as the earth itself, and it's the effective antenna size that makes it possible.

 

[Shakey]

 

[Frank]

I'm sure this is also from Cassini, made from a composite of photos taken above Saturn.

Just cause.

 

[Charlie Don't Surf]

space FUCKING owns.

 

[evilmike]

(via nasa.gov)

 

[drifter]

This is pretty neat: receive text alerts when the ISS is about to be overhead.

 

[strawman]

http://www.sheldoncomics.com/archive/131218.html

 

[strawman]

A few days ago Rosetta woke up, having been lunched 10 years ago. It will now approach a comet, map it, then land an instrument on it in November.

 

[Chad Sexington]

A few days ago Rosetta woke up, having been lunched 10 years ago. It will now approach a comet, map it, then land an instrument on it in November.

I love this so much.

 

[Frank]

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/s...-explosion-spotted-in-galaxy-m82-9083909.html

So, over the next couple of weeks, you should be able to, with binoculars, see a super nova happening in a neighboring galaxy.

 

[strawman]

So apparently with little fanfare here in the US, at least, china has landed an unmanned ship on the moon, and launched a robotic rover. While the rover appears to be experiencing technical problems, this is no small feat.

I'd like to have hope his will spur us to increase our space exploration efforts, but I doubt it will move the politicians currently in control of the purse strings.

 

[ThatNickGuy]

So apparently with little fanfare here in the US, at least, china has landed an unmanned ship on the moon, and launched a robotic rover. While the rover appears to be experiencing technical problems, this is no small feat.

I'd like to have hope his will spur us to increase our space exploration efforts, but I doubt it will move the politicians currently in control of the purse strings.

"Is there oil on the moon? No? Fuck it. Not interested."

 

[Bubble181]

So apparently with little fanfare here in the US, at least, china has landed an unmanned ship on the moon, and launched a robotic rover. While the rover appears to be experiencing technical problems, this is no small feat.

I'd like to have hope his will spur us to increase our space exploration efforts, but I doubt it will move the politicians currently in control of the purse strings.

...Unless I'm mistaken, this happened in december. Are you seriously saying the US just didn't pay any attention at all? That's surprising.

 

[evilmike]

...Unless I'm mistaken, this happened in december. Are you seriously saying the US just didn't pay any attention at all? That's surprising.

I remember seeing coverage as it happened.

Heck, it even made the Daily Show, with Patrick Stewart providing a dramatic portrayal of the rover:

 

[Shakey]

Here is a pretty interesting article about NASA's assessment of what it would have taken to save Columbia had they known something was wrong.