FMC 3.0

Over the weekend we took a family camping trip for the first time in years. It was nice to get back into a tent and into nature. The Element carried a whole boatload of stuff, thanks to my pulling out the rear seats. The weather was ok for the most part, though it poured Saturday morning for a half hour, but the sun did eventually come out. Since others in my family are already starting on Christmas lists, I figured i’d want to do the same. I haven’t been able to think of anything I wanted. Well, more like I couldn’t think of anything I wanted that someone else would be willing to pay for. I’m thinking maybe it’ll just be camping gear.

So Atlantis is stuck in orbit while they try to determine if random space debris caused any harm when it struck the wing. The running theory is that something floated out of the cargo bay when they did their checks to come down (engine tests, flight controls, ect.) and then came around to hit them on the next orbit. They’re gonna run their camera sweeps today, like they do when they first get to orbit, and see if they have a problem. Preliminary indications is that all is well, but NASA has learned the ‘better safe than sorry’ policy the hard way.

The first female space tourist, an Iranian-American, launched out of Khazakstan Monday with the replacement crew for the ISS. She’s only the first female to undergo that venture, and the first person of Iranian Descent ever in space. If I ever hit the powerball I’m gonna do three things: send Sydney to whatever college she wants, buy anyone in my family that wants one a house on water, and go into space. Of course, I’d rather do it in the Shuttle and not on Soyuz, but it’s a strange case where the journey isn’t as important as the destination. Oh there’ll be other stuff, but that’s the big three.

In other news, I’m looking forward to Florida. I can’t believe we fly out next week. Be nice to see the family and friends down there again.  I just have to do some clothes shopping - stuff that fits the list Exieso gave me when she said she was taking me clubbing. Or otherwise out on the town. This should be interesting.

I realize that this mission has been the butt of some jokes (hey, you try to grip a bolt in zero G with those thick gloves on, I bet you have a problem too) but they’re making amazing fast progress on the ISS. With a very long space walk, nearly 8 hours, the Atlantis astronauts got the new solar panels installed and operational. However, that’s not what’s been amazing me about this mission - its some of the photography that’s come back to Earth. I’m hoping the low res versions squeeze in to the layout - the linked versions are probably some of the most NSFD images i’ve put up here yet.

That’s Atlantis lining up to dock with the space station. See all that stuff in the cargo bay? That’s where they squeezed 18 tons of stuff to attach to the station. For a picture taken by a scientist, it has quite an artistic aspect to it. This could go down as one of my favorite pictures of an orbiter ever. If you look off to the sides of the delta wings, you’ll see stars in the background. Sure, there aren’t many, but look at how much sunlight is in the picture. I just like how this one picture shows off two things: first, how far our technology has come to allow us to construct habitats in orbit around our planet for the betterment of humankind, and it maintains the hint of how far we still have to go.

Oh, I bumped into another of NASA’s pics this week, one that’s just over 5 years old at this point. I realize I didn’t mention it on Monday, but then everyone else had it pretty well covered (except the president, or so I hear, I didn’t watch him, I did the smart thing and watched football.) Anyway, there was a picture taken of Manhattan from the ISS after the planes struck the twin towers (the linked image is also NSFD):

I realize that’s tiny, so click on it, trust me. It’s amazing to see how far the smoke trail leads, almost like a precursor to just how widespread the effects of the attack would be. There’s also some comfort in knowing that someone was watching from above. You can stop smiling Heather, I don’t mean god. I mean the astronauts that are on the next step of exploration, and getting us one step closer to getting off of this rock. Who wants to be down here with all the crazies?

When I have time to write (maybe tonight after the game) I’ll elaborate some. But here it is in a nutshell:

Woke up late. Got to Newark late. Newark. Bank. 95. Traffic. Traffic (damn DelDOT). Maryland. Baltimore. Hotel. Inner Harbor. ESPN Zone. The Aquarium. Constellation getting put back in moorings. The Science center (and IMAX) for $4. Hotel. Bed. Breakfast. Cute Russian Waitresses. ComicCon (That is a crap summary, but you’re gonna have to wait.) Some Football. Dinner. Serenity. Unleashed. Football. Passing out. Pack. Load up. Check out. 95. Delaware. Newark. Home. (Somewhere along the way Nighthawk rolled over 33k.) Football. BBQ. Manning-Bowl. Bed.

So I’m sure you’ve seen the news that Steve Irwin has gone on to the big wildlife preserve in the sky. Ok, yeah, it sucks that he died. But let’s be realistic here, who can say they were all that surprised? Granted, it is a freak accident that he got his heart pierced in the first place, but he was swimming with Sting Rays while on a break from filming a special called “Ocean’s Deadliest.” As I’ve said all day long, the countdown was ticking. You can only tempt Fate so long before Fate gives in.

Atlantis is scheduled to go up just after noon Wednesday. It’ll be an interesting launch, having been delayed by a tropical storm and lightning hitting the launch pad. NASA actually rolled Atlantis away from the pad, and then back to it. Usually it takes 8 days to prep a Shuttle once it reaches the pad, but the tight timetable to get to the ISS means they’re doing it in six. Why the rush? Atlantis has to be done with construction and undocked with the ISS by the 17th - the next Russian Soyuz mission blasts off from Khazakstan on the 18th. What’s Atlantis installing? Support trusses and Solar panels for the next round of additions. It’ll double the power capacity in preparation of the science labs that will go up next. Atlantis is fearing up 17 tons of stuff. This mission has been in the pipe for three and a half years - it was the next up with Columbia came down in 2003. Better late then never. It’ll be interesting to see how well things go this accelerated, considering the rush NASA will be in get all the pieces of the ISS up by 2010.

So since I’ve last posted, Nighthawk hit 30000 miles, had its $300 30000 mile checkup, and then hit 31K and 32K marks. I wanted to snap a picture of the odometer at 31337 miles, but I totally missed it.

In other news, the IAU demoted Pluto. I’m finding myself not really caring, since what you call it doesn’t really change what it is - a astral body that’s really freaking cold. And really, really far away.

While Ernesto made things awfully wet all up and down the east coast, it hasn’t pushed the Atlantis launch date back to far - only till next Wednesday. It’s finally flying the mission that was on deck when Columbia came down three years ago. It’s taking a load of stuff to the ISS, stuff that Discovery couldn’t take (Atlantis has a somewhat larger cargo area.)

The 2006-2007 Odyssey of the Mind problems and rules were published this week, officially kicking off the start of Odyssey season. It should be a good year, my problem has a most important word back in place after an absence last year - humorous. It should be a fun time once again, and this year we won’t have to fact check jungles. That, with some major rules changes this year, should make it an interesting year.

Stargate SG-1 wasn’t renewed by Sci-fi, so this is its last season. While I still think they have some fun stuff to do with their new characters, it has been a long, fun run. I know a lot of people were disappointed when Richard Dean Andersen left, but I like the incorporation of some of the Farscape crew. (The Farscape spoof on the 200th episode was priceless.) Besides, they added yet another hot female, always a win. Still, I’d rather they kick the Ori’s ass this year, and end on a high note, then to keep lingering on and falling into more and more mediocrity. Star Trek set the bar at 7 seasons, and Stargate raised it to 10. Now, if Atlantis makes it that far, it’ll really be a record. Oh yeah, that’s the fun part. Atlantis got renewed, so some of SG-1 will end up there, and we’ll never be real far away from the SCG.

While yes, I’m saddened by the cancellation of Stargate, at least Sci-fi softened the blow this time around. I won’t have to go on the long, long boycott like I did after what happened to Farscape. Besides, Eureka is kinda growing on me.

Oh, on the horizon is Comic Con in Baltimore next weekend - a whole weekend at the Inner Harbor and a Comic Book convention. Should be a good weekend, going to be an interesting getaway.