Smath74 All American 93277 Posts user info edit post |
Launch planned for this Thursday morning, at 7:05 am EST. (launch window of 2 hours and 39 minutes) The weather forecast is giving a 60% chance of favorable conditions for launch.
This is NASA's first manned craft capable of taking people to orbit since the Space Shuttle. This mission is an unmanned test flight - manned flights won't come until the Early 2020's. It will ride on top of the nation's current largest rocket (Delta IV Heavy) for this mission only, and will ride on NASA's SLS (which is currently being built) for all of it's other missions.
Orion will travel farther out from Earth than any human capable craft has done since 1972!
Here's a handy dandy infographic describing the launch:
12/2/2014 12:22:37 PM |
Krallum 56A0D3 15294 Posts user info edit post |
Hope we can figure this space shit out before ISIS kills us all
I'm Krallum and I approved this message. 12/2/2014 12:37:25 PM |
Exiled Eyes up here ^^ 5918 Posts user info edit post |
I mean...is it just me or has it taken us about 40 years to get back to the same design we started with? 12/2/2014 2:24:53 PM |
dustm All American 14296 Posts user info edit post |
Just think... after that thing re-enters, somebody has to fill out thermal protection system (TPS) reports 12/2/2014 2:52:42 PM |
Cherokee All American 8264 Posts user info edit post |
^^i suppose it works haha 12/2/2014 7:50:34 PM |
Smath74 All American 93277 Posts user info edit post |
Form follows function... the capsule shape makes much more sense for a craft hitting the atmosphere at the speeds it would coming from the moon and beyond. 12/2/2014 8:10:39 PM |
Wraith All American 27245 Posts user info edit post |
Quote : | "I mean...is it just me or has it taken us about 40 years to get back to the same design we started with?" |
When designing spacecraft you have to take the mission into account before you do anything. The Apollo crew module's mission was leave LEO and head to the moon and come back. The only payloads it (and the service module) was delivering were humans, lunar rovers, and stuff like that. The Shuttle was designed to stay in orbit around the earth and deliver cargo into space (to build the ISS). It was hauling all sorts of satellites and ISS nodes up there as well as people. If all we had to do was send people into space then we would have stayed with a crew module design. On top of that, the amount of technology that was developed during the design and use of the space shuttle was tremendous for the space industry.12/2/2014 10:13:08 PM |
eyewall41 All American 2259 Posts user info edit post |
I am just happy to see we are finally moving back to exploring deep space. I hope I am still around to see the Mars mission when it occurs. 12/3/2014 10:45:34 AM |
moron All American 34036 Posts user info edit post |
Isn't this capsule bigger than Apollo era capsules too? 12/3/2014 10:48:21 AM |
wolfdawg4 All American 5866 Posts user info edit post |
Yes. Orion has about 50% more volume than Apollo and can hold 4-6 astronauts.
[Edited on December 3, 2014 at 11:01 AM. Reason : .] 12/3/2014 10:58:39 AM |
Smath74 All American 93277 Posts user info edit post |
12/3/2014 12:03:34 PM |
Smath74 All American 93277 Posts user info edit post |
What is it with damn boats in the safety range? 12/4/2014 6:55:12 AM |
Master_Yoda All American 3626 Posts user info edit post |
^ beat me to it. This is 2 launches now lately with boats screwing stuff up. 12/4/2014 7:04:41 AM |
Smath74 All American 93277 Posts user info edit post |
new launch time 7:17 12/4/2014 7:06:34 AM |
Nighthawk All American 19618 Posts user info edit post |
7:17 is new launch time. Guess they anticipate boat will clear range at that time? 12/4/2014 7:06:47 AM |
Smath74 All American 93277 Posts user info edit post |
Orion on internal power!! 12/4/2014 7:08:30 AM |
Smath74 All American 93277 Posts user info edit post |
Go for launch! 12/4/2014 7:11:22 AM |
Nighthawk All American 19618 Posts user info edit post |
Looks like shit is about to get real here. 12/4/2014 7:11:30 AM |
Nighthawk All American 19618 Posts user info edit post |
Fucking winds too high. 12/4/2014 7:14:06 AM |
Smath74 All American 93277 Posts user info edit post |
they are NASA... can't they do something about the winds? 12/4/2014 7:17:27 AM |
Nighthawk All American 19618 Posts user info edit post |
The least they could do is geo-engineer some nice weather. Get some more chemtrails up there or something! 12/4/2014 7:22:05 AM |
beatsunc All American 10740 Posts user info edit post |
^chemtrail budget was slashed by sequestration 12/4/2014 7:24:17 AM |
Nighthawk All American 19618 Posts user info edit post |
Now we are on extended hold. Fun. 12/4/2014 7:29:48 AM |
Smath74 All American 93277 Posts user info edit post |
astronomy lesson plan today: watch launch. 12/4/2014 7:29:51 AM |
Smath74 All American 93277 Posts user info edit post |
7:55 new launch time! 12/4/2014 7:48:03 AM |
Smath74 All American 93277 Posts user info edit post |
internal power! 12/4/2014 7:48:50 AM |
Nighthawk All American 19618 Posts user info edit post |
Countdown is on. And now its off again.
[Edited on December 4, 2014 at 7:52 AM. Reason : Fuck this cocktease shit.] 12/4/2014 7:51:37 AM |
Smath74 All American 93277 Posts user info edit post |
damn you wind 12/4/2014 7:55:24 AM |
Smath74 All American 93277 Posts user info edit post |
i've been waiting for over 2 years for this launch... i guess i can wait a few hours. 12/4/2014 7:59:18 AM |
Byrn Stuff backpacker 19058 Posts user info edit post |
Orion is a tease. 12/4/2014 8:15:40 AM |
Smath74 All American 93277 Posts user info edit post |
8:26! 12/4/2014 8:16:06 AM |
Smath74 All American 93277 Posts user info edit post |
Internal power! (again) 12/4/2014 8:18:50 AM |
Smath74 All American 93277 Posts user info edit post |
ugh my fucking stream died!! 12/4/2014 8:23:54 AM |
Smath74 All American 93277 Posts user info edit post |
ugh hold. 12/4/2014 8:24:59 AM |
Nighthawk All American 19618 Posts user info edit post |
Yea WTF happened to the stream? Mine rolled back like 30 seconds. 12/4/2014 8:25:40 AM |
Smath74 All American 93277 Posts user info edit post |
now that more people are awake i'm sure it's getting slammed. 12/4/2014 8:26:54 AM |
lion4russell All American 1588 Posts user info edit post |
fucking launch damn it 12/4/2014 8:33:06 AM |
Smath74 All American 93277 Posts user info edit post |
just over an hour left in today's launch window. (defined so that there will be daylight during launch and landing.) 12/4/2014 8:39:17 AM |
Wraith All American 27245 Posts user info edit post |
Welcome to the wonderful world of Day of Launch wind placarding. 12/4/2014 8:56:57 AM |
Byrn Stuff backpacker 19058 Posts user info edit post |
That's cool that they have UAV to watch the splashdown site. 12/4/2014 9:13:33 AM |
Wraith All American 27245 Posts user info edit post |
If anyone wants a copy of the mission patch for whatever reason:
[Edited on December 4, 2014 at 9:22 AM. Reason : ] 12/4/2014 9:20:22 AM |
Smath74 All American 93277 Posts user info edit post |
if they make another attempt today, they are going to disable the auto-shut off due to wind and do it manually. 12/4/2014 9:28:52 AM |
Smath74 All American 93277 Posts user info edit post |
14 minutes to launch. 12/4/2014 9:30:13 AM |
Wraith All American 27245 Posts user info edit post |
Recommending scrub 12/4/2014 9:35:00 AM |
bbehe Burn it all down. 18402 Posts user info edit post |
Booooo 12/4/2014 9:35:23 AM |
Smath74 All American 93277 Posts user info edit post |
12/4/2014 9:35:54 AM |
Smath74 All American 93277 Posts user info edit post |
The good news is that we get to do it all again tomorrow! 12/4/2014 9:40:59 AM |
wdprice3 BinaryBuffonary 45912 Posts user info edit post |
faulty valve? seems like shit is always faulty on these missions. also, I think we're going to have to figure out how to beat a little wind if we're truly thinking of deep space/planatary/etc. explorartion.
C'MON MAN!
[Edited on December 4, 2014 at 9:43 AM. Reason : ,] 12/4/2014 9:41:45 AM |
Byrn Stuff backpacker 19058 Posts user info edit post |
I don't think it's a matter of beating the wind; it's a matter of having as few variable factors (e.g. wind gusts) as possible when launching an expensive and potentially dangerous rocket. 12/4/2014 9:47:11 AM |
wdprice3 BinaryBuffonary 45912 Posts user info edit post |
And I'm saying the process and technology needs to be advanced to where such a variable is negligible except in extreme cases. 12/4/2014 9:50:13 AM |