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August 12, 2021 Archives
Thursday, August 12, 2021
TRACKING WITH CLOSEUPS: Radiation Roulette: Solar Flares and Deep Space Missions
On August 4, 1972, an intense solar flare disabled spacecraft, interrupted radio communications on Earth, disrupted electrical power grid systems, and caused an intense aurora display. This was about mid-way between the Apollo 16 and 17 manned lunar missions. If the radiation from the flare had arrived while a crew was on the Moon, they would likely have received a lethal dose of radiation. If human spaceflight beyond the protection of Earth's magnetic field (which largely shields crews in low Earth orbit) becomes more common, protection against inevitable solar flares during missions will have to be provided.
Posted at
11:02
CONTEXT: Earth and Moon from Moon and Earth
Earth & Moon from Moon & Earth
— Universal-Sci (@universal_sci) August 10, 2021
(Credit: Dr James O'Donoghue - @physicsJ) pic.twitter.com/sLeJsNyDiV
Posted at
10:02
CONTINUITY: SpaceX: Starbase Launch Site Tour with Elon Musk
From atop the orbital launch mount, Elon Musk speaks eloquently of the urgency grounded in realising the next step of the human endowment before inertia, entropy, incompetence, coercive government and bureaucratic suffocation, resource exhaustion and societal bankruptcy close the window on achieving it.
Posted at
09:44
THE HAPPENING WORLD: Indian Space Research Organization Indian Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle F10 Launch Failure
An Indian Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle tumbled out of control five minutes after liftoff Wednesday when an upper stage engine didn't ignite, dooming an Earth-imaging spacecraft and ending a streak of 16 straight successful Indian space launches. https://t.co/952LblExWU pic.twitter.com/DKQICqF3BN
— Spaceflight Now (@SpaceflightNow) August 12, 2021
I have cued the launch video to start ninety seconds before launch. Things go all Kerbal at 37:09 into the video, the point where the cryogenic upper stage separates and is supposed to ignite. The animation shows it firing, but telemetry shows it tumbling and following a ballistic trajectory, indicating the engine did not start. There follows a Soviet-style long silence, with people staring at consoles clearly indicating the failure. Near the end is the announcement “Performance anomaly observed in the cryogenic stage. Mission will not be accomplished fully”. This is a polite way to say, “Oops. The rocket and payload are tumbling toward burning up in the atmosphere, with debris falling into the Andaman Sea”.
Jeb, check your staging!
Posted at
09:06