t/Space and Scaled Composites Test New Launch Technique

Which one of you is going to invest in t/Space first?
It seems this little company nobody has ever heard of teamed up with Burt Rutan's Scaled Composites crew to create a new launch technique.
Like SpaceShipOne and White Knight it requires a lift plane, but the actual spacecraft will be a single rocket, carrying a crew of four plus cargo, it doesn't need wings and will launch behind the carrier airplane. That's a big plus, and tilting the craft to vertical for ignition is done without the need for wings, so there's more room for cargo.
The thing I found most interesting was this: In forty years of design trials nobody else had thought of using a little metal arm and parachute to tilt the rocket vertically. But these guys did and they went from brainstorming phase to actual drop testing in just 135 days.
Simply amazing.

NASA Space Shuttle: End of One Era, Beginning of Another

Story Musgrave once remarked that he would have much preferred traveling to space aboard a Mercury or Apollo spacecraft, but the shuttle was the only thing available.
It's never been safe to fly that thing; an albatross of mechanical engineering if ever there was one, it was a risky business to lift-off, fly and return. But that was hardly a secret to anyone.
I once heard there was a 70 percent chance of a serious accident of some kind every launch. That seems very unlikely given its many successes, but still, something is inherently wrong with the design.
I think it was too much, too soon.
What business did we have trying to build a real spaceship so soon after learning to fly in space? That's what the shuttle is if ever there was one; a true spaceship just like in the movies. It has wings, a cargo bay and a crew of seven. It's a trekkie's dream come true.
Too bad we didn't have the super-strong composite materials and powerful engines it has always needed.
There is value in its parts and NASA officials keep promising to use its boosters for quick-launches of smaller manned capsules. That has yet to materialize but Mike Griffin is promising to make something happen. I just hope it's sooner rather than later.
It will be sad to see the shuttle only in historical films and museums, but it's long past its prime, if it ever had one.
And no matter how much the shuttle did accomplish, if it weren't for the bravery of our astronaut crew, those like Musgrave who risked so much despite what their gut was telling them and those who gave their lives--Challenger and Columbia crews-- even it would not have been enough to keep our space dreams alive.

Commercial Airline Pilots: Minorities Need Not Apply

With a few notable exceptions, almost all the commercial airline pilots in this country are white men, about 40 or so, and coming from wealthy families.
I just returned from a short trip to San Antonio. I arrived more than two hours early for a flight that would take longer to board than to fly. We arrived in Houston where our flight changed gates three times, each time without notice, and each time eventually confirmed by an impolite airline agent who made us (I spoke with many passengers who felt just the same) feel as if we were somehow to blame by being at the gate which used to be the correct gate but was no longer.
And it REALLY pisses me off that all the damn pilots are rich white guys. I didn't see a single minority among the dozens of uniformed pilots that passed me by in the airport.
Granted it's a high-stress, very important position, you are responsible for the lives of dozens of people during your trip.
But so what? Keep in mind, the guy who is making your cheeseburger at McDonald's also has the fate of many people, quite literally, in his hands. Has he washed them recently? Has he prepared the product correctly? Stored it correctly? People die from improperly prepared fast food. In fact, they die from improperly prepared home-cooked meals as well.
In any case, the point is this: Being a pilot is a fantastic opportunity for anyone--EVERYONE should be able to achieve it. Not just a chosen few.
I find it very hard to believe there are no women and no minorities of either sex interested in becoming pilots. It's just a matter of giving them the opportunities.
And another thing: Let's start charging flights based on weight. If I travel alone, with only a small bag, why should I pay as much as the person with four over-stuffed bags who weighs 235 pounds?
And a final thing: No more government subsidies of ANY kind. If they can't make a profit with the system they have, then it's time for them to step aside and let a new generation provide mass transit by air. It's sickening to think of what could be done with the BILLIONS of dollars we are paying fat-cat airline executives to pad their bank accounts and make air travel a living hell for everyone.
I can tolerate strip searches and body cavity searches and whatever kind of search you'd like to perform on me in the name of national security.
But by God I can't stand the airline's lunacy anymore. Something needs to be done.
Now.
Have any ideas?

Neil Armstrong in Weird Litigation

I don't know which is worse, that a great American icon is involved in litigation to retrieve his hair clippings or that some weirdo has a hair collection insured for a million dollars.

Russians Launch International Orbital Space Lab on 16-Day Mission

Using a rocket based on the same design used to lift Yuri Gagarin into Space, the Russians this week successfully launched the Foton-M2 microgravity research capsule, chock-full of experiments from scientists around the world, but mostly Europe.
During the 16-day mission a new solid state system for creating breathable oxygen from water will be tested. If successful it will replace the Elektron system which recently failed aboard the International Space Station.
The 1,200 pound payload is mostly a do-over from a failed launched of a Foton-M1 in October 2002 and will test everything from the effects of re-entry on new composite materials to how single-celled water organisms react to Space.
This is the 11th time the European Space Agency has participated in a Foton launch and further launches, beginning with Foton-M3 in 2006 are already planned.

Chinese to Create Mutant Space Seeds!

You heard me, the Chinese intend to send a satellite into orbit with a special lab that will expose the unprotected seeds to magnetic fields, radiation, high vacuum and micro-gravity, to create mutant defects.
They hope the mutant seeds will then be used to create high-yield crops here on earth.
That second sentence makes the whole thing a lot less scary, doesn't it? It's not the first time it's been done. NASA does it quite regularly. A Colorado company called Aeroponics International has done it. They've even done it in Indianola, Ia.
Just sounds scarier to put it in a headline and add an exclamation point, I guess.

International Space Station: What Are They Doing Up There Anyway?

With a crew of only two, Commander Sergei Krikalev and Flight Engineer John Phillips, I can't help wondering what can be accomplished aboard the International Space Station. As it turns out, plenty.
Also quite surprisingly, the crew is living comfortably despite being without their Elektron oxygen-generation system (machine to make oxygen). They apparently have enough alternate oxygen sources to last into next year if they can't be re-supplied sooner or fix the machine.
At $1 billion+ it's still worth every penny.