Space Ship One Test Flight

talk random
1

http://www.space.com/missionlaunches/SS1_press_040621.html

SpaceShipOne has made a successfull flight, well partially successfull. This is very exciting, we may be able to take space flights ourselves soon. The pilot received the first pair of commercial astronaut wings.

2

this is so great.

I tell you if I had the 200K on hand to do this I so would.

3

i wouldn’t say “we may be able…”, after all the costs for a flight still limit this opportunity to a holiday exitement for the few who already have anything a material mind could wish for…

4

There’s also Virgin Galactic (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/3693518.stm) - it looks like space tourism will take off in a big way in the next decade or so :slight_smile:

5

I am pretty sure that virgin galactic is space ship1.

I read the guy going for the x-prize has already partnered.

6

I don’t know…they can’t even gurantee the safe return of their astronauts what makes you guys think that tourists will be safe?

7

I have to agree there, I’d still be WAY more comfortable with the Russians than with the the private companies, but at least their on the way. :alien2:

8

Id trust the newer space ship one that was built within the last couple of years versus that degenerate shuttle fleet. You couldnt pay me to get in one of those duct taped covered trash bins.

9

good story I heard about during the space race

NASA discovered that because of the lack of gravity a normal pen wouldn’t work in space. So they spent dollars and dollars researching, testing, engineering, retesting, redesigning pen after pen until finally after 4 years and 10 million dollars they had a pen that was waterproof, shockproof, work in zero gravity and is pretty much indestructuble. They sell it to the public now and it is still used in NASA missions.

The Russians used a pencil…

I’ll take that seat comrade :wink:

10

Exactly! The Russians have a common sense approach to space tech (too bad we can’t share technologies), but the US does make some pretty cool stuff.

11

it is too bad we don’t share technologies in the space race. China just recently started their space race. You know they’d make one cool, efficent rocket :thumb:

12

:lol:
seriously?!? :smiley:

13

Yuppppppppppp, watch out rednecks! :stuck_out_tongue:

14

Exactly! The Russians have a common sense approach to space tech (too bad we can’t share technologies)

I would think we must share at least some technologies. Or are we just crazy gluing the seperate pieces of the International Space Station together?

15

You know that space station is cool. I wish I could visit it, think they have a Starbucks?

16

well they did it.

Space ship one won the x-prize today

http://www.cnn.com/2004/TECH/space/10/04/spaceshipone.attempt.cnn/index.html

17

I take it 70 miles above is in orbit :h:

18

This is like living in the of the Wright Brothers or when the car or train was invented. Such a ground breaking time. It will start with the wealthy taking flights for fun and end up when someone builds an industry in space where working people are flying to and from job sites.

19

Most amateur astronomers will have seen at one time or another an artificial satellite travelling across the night sky with the naked eye. Several dozen satellites are easily visible to the naked eye & several hundred are bright enough to be seen in binoculars. Almost all of these satellites are in low earth orbit (LEO), at altitudes between 100 & 1500km above the earth’s surface. There are many thousands of satellites in higher altitude orbits, but few observers actively observe these objects often beleiving that these objects are too faint to be easily observable with a small telescope or binoculars. However, there are dozens of satellites in high altitude orbits ranging up to 36,000km altitude that are potential visible to observers using small telescopes ( smaller than 6" diameter), binoculars & even the naked eye.

100KM=62.1 Miles :beam:

20

It’ll be just like taking the bus! :stuck_out_tongue:

the BIG bus…