Mars Spectacular

It has been quite awhile since a posting, and I have much I am going to post, but I'll just start with this one simple Public Service Announcement!


So, I received an email from my mother a few days ago, with the subject "Mars". It seems she received it from a cousin, who from a co-worker, and so on and so forth. A chain message. Well, with the title "Mars", how could I not check it out. It simply contained a Powerpoint presentation and many replies of "Is this true?" and "Neat if true!" from many of the people responding. Here is the presentation, in its multicolored glory:

Check it out, guess no one will get much sleep in August.
Mars The Red Planet is about to be spectacular!

-This month and next, Earth is catching up with Mars in an  encounter that will culminate in the closest approach between the two planets in recorded  history.

-The next time Mars may come this close is in 2287.

-Due to the way Jupiter's gravity tugs on Mars and perturbs its orbit, astronomers can only be certain that Mars has not come this close to Earth in the Last 5,000 years, but it may be as long as 60,000 years before it happens again. 

-The encounter will culminate on August 27th whenMars comes to within 34,649,589 miles of Earth and will be (next to the moon) the brightest object in the night sky. It will attain a magnitude of -2.9 and will appear 25.11 arc seconds wide.

-At a modest 75-power magnification

Mars will look as large as the full moon to the naked eye.

Mars will be easy to spot. At the
beginning of August it will rise in the east at 10p.m.
              and reach its azimuth at about 3 a.m.

    By the end of August when the two planets are
    closest, Mars will rise at nightfall and reach its
  highest point in the sky at 12:30a.m. That's pretty
convenient to see something that no human being has
  seen in recorded history. So, mark your calendar at
           the beginning of August to see Mars grow
     progressively brighter and brighter throughout the
                                  month. 

Share this with your Children and Grandchildren!


No one alive today will ever see this again


Wow! So Mars will be so close to the Earth that it will be as big as the moon in the sky?! Amazing! Well, it would be quite a sight...if only it were true.

Alas, this is a very popular myth that has been around since 2001, and resurfaces around this time every year. It's hard to blame people for getting sucked in by this. I would say a large majority of people in this country do not understand actual gravitation physics, much less orbital mechanics. Without these, the idea of seeing Mars the size of the Moon might not seem like a big stretch of the imagination. I mean, who's to say that just for a short time, Mars can come close enough to provide such a sight? I plan to be the naysayer here.

Mars, like the Earth, is in an orbit around the sun. Although it is usually thought that planets orbit in circular orbits, this is not exactly true. They actually orbit in elliptical paths around the sun, a bit egg shaped, but much more subtle. Because of such orbits, there are times when the planet is close to the sun and times when it is then farther away. As seen in the picture of the inner planets, the left side of the orbits are closer to the sun (and each other) than the right side. This is one reason for seasons, along with the tilt of the Earth.




What does this have to do with Mars being the size of the Moon? It's all about distances. When Mars is a the smallest part of its orbit (far left on the picture) and the Earth is at the most distant (far right), the two planets are close to 400 Million miles away; but when they are both at the smallest parts of their orbits and lined up, they can be as close as 59 million miles away. Much closer, but still quite the distance. This is also the closest the two planets can get. Period. And what does Mars look like to the naked eye at it's closest distance? A small, red-ish dot.

Here you can see the Moon, Venus, and Mars.

Mars is the smallest dot in the top right.

So, what would it take to get Mars the size of our Moon in the night sky? Well, Mars is roughly twice the size of the Moon, so it would need to be roughly twice as far away from Earth as the Moon. Our Moon is 240,000 miles away, so that would mean Mars would need to be 476,000 miles away...MUCH closer than its closest 59 Million miles mark. This would obviously mean either Mars, or the Earth and the Moon are out of their orbits around the sun. That simple fact alone would spell doom for the runaway planet, especially Earth, but assuming it is only Mars out of orbit, the gravitational effects alone between the two planets would cause chaos on Earth. Things that I believe a new Steven Spielberg movie will be looking into. Boom. Product placement.


So, in the end, we'll just have to leave it to the movie to see a planet the size of our Moon in the night sky. Hope I enlightened someone with this.

Falcon in Flight

The Falcon flew today, but luckily, this time it doesn't involved a crazy balloon and a cross county police chase. Even though this launch was also somewhat of a publicity stunt, it makes sense. Space Exploration Technologies, known widely as SpaceX, successfully launched their Falcon 9 rocket today, topped with a dummy version of their Dragon capsule. This launch is significant in the fact that the Falcon 9 rocket is their primary vehicle that would be used to supply the International Space Station and possibly eventually fly NASA astronauts (or private astronauts) to orbit.

SpaceX is one of the few new commercial space flight companies that are developing space faring vehicles for public use. (Some of the other companies being Virgin Galactic, XCOR Aerospace, Bigelow Aerospace, and Orbital Sciences Corporation). It is also the leading private company in spaceflight. NASA awarded SpaceX (and Orbital Sciences Corporation) contracts for resupplying the ISS once the shuttle fleet is retired and while a new NASA space vehicle is developed. SpaceX plans for three space launch vehicles. The Falcon 1, the Falcon 9, and the Falcon 9 Heavy.

The Falcon 1 first test launched in the fall of 2008, and carried it's first commercial payload on July 13, 2009. It is a smaller sized rocket with an emphasis on reliability. It can launch a 1010kg payload into Low Earth Orbit (LEO) for $10.9M (According to estimates, the Space Shuttle can launch the same payload for $44.4M). It is a two stage, liquid oxygen and rocket grade kerosene fueled vehicle with a launch thrust of 115,000 lbf (for comparison, the shuttle launches with 5,600,000 lbf).

The Falcon 9 Heavy, not yet developed, will be a version of the Falcon 9 with extra boosters on the side. It will be able to carry a payload of around 32,000lbs to LEO.

The Falcon 9, launched today, is larger sized version of the Falcon 1. It uses the same fuel mixture and is also a two stage rocket. It is a bit over twice the size of the Falcon 1. It launches to LEO but also to Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GEO, the orbit where GPS satellites sit, rotating at the same speed of the Earth, so they are always in the same place). Launch costs to LEO average at $48.6M for between 8,560kg to 10,450kg. Launch cost to GEO average the same, but for payloads around 4,600kg. (According to estimates, the Space Shuttle can launch the same LEO payload average around $418.2M. It can not launch directly to GEO). Falcon 9 has a launch thrust of 1,110,000 lbf in space.

The launch today seemed to go as planned. Although the first launch attempt was aborted at T-2 seconds to liftoff, this was reported to be a feature, not a bug; a safety measure to help ensure there is nothing wrong with the rocket at launch. The vehicle did liftoff the second time around, with the vehicle payload making it to orbit. The only reported mistake so far came when the recovery ships arrived to recover the first stage of the rocket. Apparently, the parachute to slow the decent did not deploy, and it hit hard on the water breaking into pieces. This is the reason for test launches, and the problem is sure to be corrected.

Tweetup Adventure Part 2

So now (finally), part 2 of the NASA tweetup day.

After the visit to the mission control building, the group split into two groups. Our badges we were given were color coded. I was in the blue group, with the other group being the green group. This split was so we could tour more 'tight spaced' buildings without disturbing any of the work force. Mostly for the Vehicle Mockup Building, or Building 9, as the tour we got there involved walking on the floor where work and training take place. A tour no normal tourist would get.

Our group first headed to the Neutral Buoyancy Lab, or the NBL. (NASA, if you haven't noticed already, really loves to use acronyms). The name of the building is Sonny Carter Training Facility, named after astronaut Sonny Carter who died in a plane crash. This is that place you see in Armageddon and other movies with the big pool. It is the place where astronauts train for spacewalks that an upcoming mission requires. If someone has to go out and change a battery on the ISS, they they first spend many, many hours training in this huge pool on what they will do. The astronauts, in their suits, are perfectly balanced in the water, so they essentially are weightless. It is a process that pretty much all astronauts must go through before they can fly to space.

This pool is massive. It has the truss section of the ISS running the length of the pool, with room left over for a mockup of the shuttle bay. It is forty feet deep and holds 6 million gallons of water. Up to six astronauts can train at a time in the pool, with each astronaut having four divers along with them. Two to help move the air hoes and the astronaut (its difficult to move underwater.....), one helps the astronaut with picking stuff up or moving his arms into the correct position, while the fourth watches the astronauts face at all times in case of any emergency. We were lucky enough to be given our tour by the Operation Manager of the facility.

Our next stop, the second to last, was Building 9, as mentioned earlier. Inside this huge building are full scale mockups of space craft and stations that are commonly used in orbit. Such as a full scale replica of the ISS and all its modules. There is a full scale shuttle mockup as well as a Russian Soyuz spacecraft. Two flight deck mockups of the shuttle also exists. One for liftoff and landing training, and one for orbit training.  One of the coolest things that I got to see happened during our tour. The large doors on the far side of the building opened up, and inside came a vehicle of some kind. Turned out to be one of the new lunar rover prototypes coming in from testing! We soon were able to walk down there and see it up close. Very cool indeed! To bad these probably will never see real action.

The final stop was rocket park. After being to Huntsville and KSC, this wasn't much of a 'rocket park' as it consisted of three rockets, but hey, I've never seen one of them before, so it was worth it. Plus, the Saturn V there is probably the only 'real' one in existence. Real, as in it is made up of parts from the Saturn Vs intended for Apollo 19 and 20 that were cancelled. The other two rockets were Mercury Redstone rocket, and a Fat Albert I think it was called? Can't really remember the name, but is was indeed a short and fat rocket used out at White Sands, NM to test the escape systems on the Apollo capsule, which it did successfully.

Well, that pretty much wraps up the trip. I know there are many, many small details I left out the might can been seen in my pictures. I do my best story telling in person instead of by typing or writing, so me telling you this all in person would give much more detail, as well as being much more efficient than my terrible writing. The best part to me personally happened after the event at the post-tweetup gathering, but that's a story for another time. Maybe around a year or so, it will be worth telling.

But on to new stuff now. I really enjoyed this trip, and can't thank NASA enough for this opportunity of a lifetime. I am extremely grateful, and hope to one day actually be working there!

Tweetup Adventure Part 1

Since I've been back home, I've been both too busy and too lazy to post. Sad, isn't it? I don't know why I waited so long , because the more people I can tell about my trip, the happier I become! It is almost difficult to describe in words how awesome my NASA tweetup trip was. But, I'll try my best to! Oh, and his is going to be a long post, so hope you have some time if you want to read.

The story could start with the drive out. A roughly 10 hour trip one way. Honestly, it wasn't that bad of a drive; I guess the fact that I like to drive helped that fact. I did pass a wreck in Jackson, MS, but it was at an intersection and was probably due to someone being stupid. However, around Lake Charles, LA, I ran into a frozen hell. Literally. It was a random, lone hail storm that had developed only there. Very difficult to see in front of me, but others weren't as lucky as me driving through. I passed a (at the time) three car crash, all rear ending the first. I don't know, but I bet other cars pilled in as well. It was rough, but my drives always end up interesting in some way.

Finally arrived in Houston. Or, the Seabrook area to be more precise. It was actually a nice little town. Although, it definitely shows its age. Older buildings with for sell signs or run down buildings in some places. Makes me wonder how interesting this place would have been back in it's prime, probably late 60's early 70's. But I digress. The hotel was nicer than I anticipated for a one bedroom. It had a small couch, chair, and coffee table included. Very comfortable! I then went to Villa Carpi, a very upscale seeming Italian restaurant near my hotel for the Pre-Tweetup gathering. This was my first indication of the people here with me. Another college kid from Kentucky, a electrical/computer engineer from the UK, and even a poker card dealer from a casino in LA. People from Detroit, Utah, and even India. Very cool! I think my favorite part of the night happened here. We all discussed space and NASA for 3-4 hours! This would never happen for me around here. Not that people here are ignorant, but just don't have that same passion for it as I do. It was amazing to have a group of like minded people to discuss this topic for an extended time!

Finally move to Wednesday. After showing up at 8 to sign in and get our badges (and free bagels!), we all received a small 'thank you for attending' from the Deputy Administrator of the center. Following that, Talat Hussian, Co-Lead of RF Systems for the ISS, gave us a rundown of the Ku-Band transmitter currently being installed on the ISS on this shuttle mission. Very cool to get an insiders look at the construction of the International Space Station. Finally, Astronaut Jeff Williams graced us with is presence, haha. He described very well what it was like to live on the space station, fly on the shuttle, and the Russian Soyuz capsule. Which he compared the latter to "being in a car crash". Not something I would want American's to ride in for the next 5 years *cough cough*Constellation*cough cough*.

We then went to Building 30. AKA, mission control. This is where all the publicized history is made. Most everything that involves space flight leads here at some point or another. The building contains three control rooms, named Red, White, and Blue. Very fitting. One is the ISS Control Center, one is the Shuttle Control Center, and the final is the old control center used during the Apollo missions. First we visited the Shuttle Control Center, and were greeted by Flight Director Ed Van Chise. We got the first person account of life as a flight controller from him while watching the flight directors do their job as a space walk was going on on the ISS and the big screen in the room. It was a very special thing to see this in action first hand. Simply awe inspiring.



Afterwards we walked to the old Apollo Control Center. On the FLOOR. A very rare event indeed. As a matter of fact, we probably ruined the tour for the group behind the glass where normal tourist have to stay. We could touch the consoles, play with the phones, sit at the flight director's chair. It took me a few days to really grasp this, but I stood, and sat, right where the controllers celebrated as Neil Armstrong declared on July 20, 1969, "The Eagle has landed." Where Gene Kranz and his controllers brought back Jim Lovell, Fred Haises, and Jack Swigert from the Apollo 13 disaster. I stood where American and Human history took place. Gives me chills just thinking about it, and will for years to come. I'll never forget that room.


You know, this is really only half my trip, and I've said so much! I'll just make this a two part series and finish the other part tomorrow. I'll spend the rest of tonight adding pictures. Check the pictures page at the top of this page to see what I took from the NASA tweetup STS-132 JSC. Or Click Here.

Atlantis Launch

The Space Shuttle Atlantis lifted off today at 2:20:09pm eastern time the STS-132 mission taking parts and batteries to the International Space Station. This is the final flight of the shuttle Atlantis, and one of the three last flights of the amazing space shuttle program (The final two being the shuttles Discovery and Endeavor, in that order). I always watch a launch on TV, crank up the sound, and just imagine feeling the power from the engines hit me. I get chill bumps seeing it happen, knowing that we have the ability as humans to leave our planet and explore the cosmos. Guess reasons like this would explain why I want to work for NASA. I want to be a part of something I consider immensely important to civilization.


But enough about me. Here are links to pictures of the launch of Atlantis from those down there involved in the Tweetup, giving us pictures from perspectives we otherwise would not see! Thanks guys!

Individual Photos:
http://twitpic.com/1nrbks
http://twitpic.com/1nr00d
http://twitpic.com/1noq14
http://twitpic.com/1n70ke
http://twitpic.com/1nsaek
http://twitpic.com/1nsqy0

Photo Sets:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/herrea/sets/72157624060564112/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/41820931@N08/sets/72157624061480978/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nasahqphoto/sets/72157623928473897/

Bonus Photos! Stephen Colbert was at Johnson Space Center filming for The Colbert Report! Can't wait to see that episode!
http://twitpic.com/1ns9c1
http://twitpic.com/1nq5e2

KSC Tweetup

I spent most of the day either driving or moving furniture, so I've only been able to read about the NASA Tweetup at Kennedy Space Center for the last 30 minutes or so. And so far...I'm crazy jealous! Oh how amazing and awesome it would be to see all of that up close. I mean, there is what, 3 flights left, including this one? AND it is the final flight of Atlantis (my third favorite shuttle. Yes, I have favorites when it comes to the space shuttles). What a special opportunity these people have had the privilege to experience. And, thanks to NASA, twitter, and modern technology, I get to see (second hand of course) the first hand experience, which, apart from being there, I'm fine with! Thanks to all these people who are willing to share this event with the world, or at least those who know about it, haha. I really like this idea, and think NASA should do more with it. It is a GREAT way to get that love and passion back into our space program. Great job to everyone that attended, thanks for the pictures, and look forward to doing my part at Johnson!

I'll link to some pictures that really seem to capture the day for these people:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rllacey/4605118387/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rllacey/4605725534/
http://twitpic.com/1nkqsz
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nasahqphoto/4605256176/
http://twitpic.com/1nikz5
http://twitpic.com/1nijn5

I'll probably do many more tomorrow, as these where just the easiest to fine.

Not Very Scientific

I've been on a science trend here recently. Probably has something to do with me going to Houston for a NASA event and me reading a book titled Physics of the Impossible by Mchio Kaku. Personally, I love when I get into this train of thought. I love trying to wrap my mind around Light and its Space/Time properties. Wormholes and black holes. Multiple dimensions and parallel universes. I suppose this stems from my childhood attachment to Star Wars and other science fiction material. Wouldn't it be awesome if there were shields, light sabers, lasers, aliens, and starships like we see in these works? Most, if not all (in some form or fashion), are possible! This is why science thrills me, because of the doors it can open for us. I suppose that is why I like Mchio Kaku as well; the possibility of the "impossible" actually being possible is what drives our love for science. If kids in school knew just how cool the science could actually be, it would be a much more popular subject, as it was for me.

"Kids, open your books to Chapter 12: Star Trek and Teleportation"

Anyway, one thing I wanted to throw out there is my thoughts on NASA and its current direction. I love space, and I love NASA. I hope one day work for NASA. I'd give my all to it. But, I just cannot get behind the new plan at the moment. Let me say this from the start: I am not involved in any of what goes on at NASA, so I don't have the 'full story' on many things, so this is just my outside point of view.

First off, I don't understand the cancellation of the Constellation program, if only because another rocket has been promised to be developed. So maybe it was not going the the perfect direction and was over budget, but why throw that money away and start again? Scrap something or just tone it back a bit. I understand that some of it are being reused, such as the capsule, and they just tested the emergency escape rockets successfully, but why is that it. Just seems to me that it will take long and more money to start over than to finish what they started.


Second is the outsourcing of US astronaut flights to the International Space Station to commercial companies. This, I suppose, I've eventually get use to. I mean, it eventually has to happen. Space travel will one day be as common place as air travel, and the government doesn't run every flight. Companies own the planes and flights, and so one day space travel will follow suite. And I guess now is as good a time as ever, but it doesn't mean I have to like it. I guess I'm just a bit old school...even though I'm young. Point being, I do not like the idea of NASA giving up control of space to corporations. Maybe NASA will become the ATSB for space or something, so they still have some control.

Third, finally, and most importantly to me, is the new plan for human exploration of space. The new plan is to slowly work up our experience with long duration space flight until we are comfortable with going to Mars. Start with a lagrange point, then a local asteroid or two, then to a moon of Mars, then to Mars itself. Now, while I have absolutely no problems with going to Mars, as I'm ALL for that and want it to happen within my lifetime, if you notice, the moon was never mentioned in that plan. Apparently, "been there, done that" is a good enough excuse to not go back. Are you kidding me? There is so much potential on the moon! From mining, to a refuel point, to a place for humans to live not on Earth. Plus, technology is exponentially better now then when we first went in 1969; so much more could be done and learned a second time around. I just do not see enough justifications to skip the moon as a target for future human exploration.


Well, that was a rather long blog/rant, but I feel rather passionately about Humanities future in space. I think it is necessary for our race's advancement and survival. And I'm just a little bit jealous of those who witnessed that moment of the first man on the moon, haha!

Oh, and Happy Birthday to me!