ETA:
Also, some parts of the Ranger probes were made from balsa wood.
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Apart from Boeing’s financial woes:
NASA and Boeing have yet to set a date for the spacecraft’s return. In an update issued on August 1, NASA noted that the planning for the spacecraft’s return was “expected to continue into next week.” This includes finalizing undocking procedures and “operational mitigations that could be used in flight, if needed.”
In its own update, Boeing reported that return-to-Earth preparations were under way, with teams working through simulations and the ISS crew inspecting the exterior of Starliner using the outpost’s Canadarm.
Meanwhile, a NASA spokesperson told Ars the US agency is “evaluating all options.” It’s said those possible options include using a SpaceX capsule to do what Starliner right now can’t – bring back its pair of pilots.
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nasa seems less sure about that now
https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/communities/aurora-dashboard-experimental
[…]
Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus launched atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 1502 UTC on August 4.
[…]
According to NASA, the spacecraft missed its first burn, the “Targeted Altitude Burn” or TB1, “due to a late entry to burn sequencing.” The burn was rescheduled for 50 minutes later “but aborted the maneuver shortly after the engine ignited due to a slightly low initial pressure state.”
[…]
The mission, which is to deliver 8,200 pounds (3.7 metric tons) of crew supplies, equipment, and science experiments to the orbiting laboratory, had already been delayed from August 3 due to weather concerns. The spacecraft is currently at a safe altitude with its solar arrays deployed.
[…]
The freighter is carrying some extras for the Starliner crew, currently having an extended stay on board the ISS while engineers continue to evaluate the performance of Boeing’s spacecraft. This includes clothing removed from the Starliner in favor of ISS spare parts.
It does not, however, include suits that might be worn by the Starliner crew on a Crew Dragon return mission.
Quite possibly a software issue.
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One of the most prolific annual meteor showers of the year, the Perseids, will peak next weekend, bringing up to 75 “shooting stars” per hour to the sky Sunday night and early Monday (Aug. 11 to Aug. 12).
Although bright meteors are expected, the display can be significantly affected by strong moonlight. But this year, the moon will set just as strong activity begins to occur from the Perseids, according to the American Meteor Society. The best time to look will be after 1 a.m. local time on Monday, Aug. 12. …
…you’ll need to be as far away from light pollution as possible to see an impressive number of shooting stars.
The Perseid meteor shower is known for its fast and bright meteors, according to NASA. The meteors appear to emanate from the constellation Perseus, which is how they get their name. This constellation will rise high in the northwestern sky in the Northern Hemisphere in the hours after midnight, when the most shooting stars are expected to be seen. Also visible in this region of the sky is the Andromeda Galaxy, above Perseus, and the Pleiades, above Mars and Jupiter. …
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During a brief solar substorm overnight between July 31 and Aug. 1, full-time aurora chaser Justin Anderson proved that “being in the right place at the right time” pays off big time when it comes to hunting the northern lights.
“While editing the photos indoors, I noticed our all-sky camera was recording STEVE. I rushed back outside and captured the photo over our shed.” Anderson told Space.com in an email.
Anderson’s impressive photo shows STEVE arching and twirling against a beautiful backdrop starring the Milky Way in all its glory. Anderson also caught the dynamic northern lights putting on a great show too.
Not everyone is fortunate enough to see STEVE, let alone catch it on camera. In fact, the strange phenomenon was only formally discovered between 2015 and 2016 by citizen scientists according to the first study published on STEVE in Science Advances in 2018. …
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Starliner latest: NASA outlines options to rescue Boeing pilots stuck on space station
[…]
In the event Starliner is deemed unsuitable for a crewed return – and this is still very much an ‘if’ at present – the plan would be to fly a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule to the station as expected – the mission dubbed Crew-9 – but with only two astronauts rather than four, and whatever equipment is needed. Boeing’s Wilmore and Williams would then become part of Crew-9 and return to Earth in the SpaceX pod in February 2025.
Starliner itself would make an uncrewed return. The NASA team explained that while the software loaded into the capsule was perfectly capable of an autonomous return – after all, that was how a previous uncrewed flight test worked – some parameters would need to be changed to reflect the lack of a crew.
In addition, some simulations and training on the ground would be needed to verify the changed procedures.
_[…]…
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https://petapixel.com/2024/08/08/cesiums-new-3d-map-of-the-moon-will-help-plan-future-nasa-missions/
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Well, what goes up must come down.
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Call Herr Felix Baumgartner!
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