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Old 29-01-2011, 14:32
Mandark
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One possibility is "Space Race" by Deborah Cadbury.

Lots of copies available very cheaply on abeBooks.
Plus the DVD of the well made BBC docudrama on the Space Race.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Space-Race-D...6311204&sr=1-1
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Old 29-01-2011, 19:05
TelevisionUser
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If I was looking for a book about Russia and the space race, are there any titles that anyone
would care to recommend?
That's easy, balthasar. The very best book I have ever come across in the subject is Brian Harvey's The New Russian Space Programme which covers the beginning of the Soviet work under the great Sergei Korolev, whom I respect*, to the N1 moon shots, the space probes to the planets, Salyut space stations, Mir space station and the now-defunct Buran space shuttle. The books also covers the personal rivalries and the Soviet space bureaucracy with the competing rocket design bureaus.

I cannot commend this book highly enough - it is awesome! It can be bought here http://www.amazon.co.uk/New-Russian-.../dp/0471960144.

*unlike the Nazi war criminal von Braun
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Old 29-01-2011, 20:06
emails
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A thread to discuss all things space related..

I'll get the ball rolling.

In exactly two hours NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft will pass 124 miles from the surface of Mercury, the first visit to the planet since 1975.. Follow the mision with latest images etc here: http://messenger.jhuapl.edu/ and http://messenger.jhuapl.edu/gallery/sciencePhotos/
nice thread,i just got E4s jurney to the edge of the universe on dvd
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Old 03-02-2011, 19:54
BeethovensPiano
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Surprised no one has mentioned this yet:

http://planetary.org/blog/article/00002900/

More than a thousand exoplanets including one 6-planet system
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Old 04-02-2011, 08:57
Assa2
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Surprised no one has mentioned this yet:

http://planetary.org/blog/article/00002900/

More than a thousand exoplanets including one 6-planet system
Pretty amazing and just shows how far the science has come in 10 years. All from just 4 months of data and a tiny patch of sky as well. Just imagine what will be discovered in the next few years!!!

The great thing about the method of detection is that as all these are transitting their stars we can detect their atmospheres' directly and analyse their composition.
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Old 04-02-2011, 10:12
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Pretty amazing and just shows how far the science has come in 10 years. All from just 4 months of data and a tiny patch of sky as well. Just imagine what will be discovered in the next few years!!!

The great thing about the method of detection is that as all these are transitting their stars we can detect their atmospheres' directly and analyse their composition.
It is amazing how far we have come in the last few years. I would wager it won't be long until we find a planet that is earth like.
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Old 04-02-2011, 16:36
balthasar
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Many thanks for the help with the book request.
I found that while Nasa was well documented, it seemed hard to find details about the Soviet
space programme.
When I watched a programme about about the subject it left more questions than answers.
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Old 05-02-2011, 09:22
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Its exactly 40 years ago today since Apollo 14 landed on the moon, it was the return to the lunar surface after the near catostrophe of Apollo 13 and of course included the first and only golf shot on the moon!. Even though I was only a young kid I remember it like it happened yesterday.

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/ap.../apollo14.html
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Old 05-02-2011, 11:39
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There are a couple of astronomy related stories that are worth reporting and here they are:

Genesis Galaxy found
A small, very far away galaxy has turned out to be the earliest know galaxy in the universe. It's small (15% of our Milky Way Galaxy) and it's was formed less than 500 million years after the creation of the universe in the Big Bang.

It's so far away and so red-shifted http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Redshift that it's almost out of the range of the Hubble Space Telescope to detect it. When it is launched, the James Webb Space Telescope http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Webb_Space_Telescope (unlike the Hubble Space Telescope) will be able to look into the infrared spectrum so it might be able to eventually detect galaxies that are even older than the Genesis Galaxy. More on this story here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-12289840

New multiple-planet solar system detected
The Kepler Space Telescope http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kepler_space_telescope has found a new planetary system which contains six planets ranging between two and four-and-a-half times the diameter Earth, and between two and 13 times the mass of Earth.

Five of the six planets orbit the sun-like star closer than Mercury orbits our Sun so they are going to be hot and inhospitable. The sixth planet orbits in the equivalent space between Mercury and Venus in our own Solar System. More here:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-12333766
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kepler_11
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kepler_...ote-Lissauer-1

Whilist this new discovery has no direct implications for life in this particular instance, it does indicate that solar system formation is widespread in this galaxy. I am glad that NASA are not hyping this discovery out of all proportion like they've done with previous planetary discoveries.
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Old 06-02-2011, 17:01
afcbfan
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There may be a nice naked-eye comet on the way; Elenin: http://www.skyandtelescope.com/commu...112431829.html
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Old 15-02-2011, 04:58
afcbfan
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Staying up late to watch Stardust visit Tempel 1.

Is Planet IX, a huge object four times the mass of Jupiter, lurking out in the Oort Cloud? Could be. I know how DSers love a Daily Mail link, so here you go: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencete...ar-system.html
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Old 15-02-2011, 21:23
afcbfan
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Europe's supply craft to the ISS is due to launch at 22.13; the ATV is the heaviest payload ever launched by a European Rocket. Failure to launch will mean delay to Shuttle mission STS-133, due to launch in nine days.

You can watch the launch on NASA TV.
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Old 15-02-2011, 22:14
geordiejackie
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There may be a nice naked-eye comet on the way; Elenin: http://www.skyandtelescope.com/commu...112431829.html
hmmm 2012
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Old 15-02-2011, 22:16
late8
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Europe's supply craft to the ISS is due to launch at 22.13; the ATV is the heaviest payload ever launched by a European Rocket. Failure to launch will mean delay to Shuttle mission STS-133, due to launch in nine days.

You can watch the launch on NASA TV.
no launch tonight- there has been a error in the fuelling data or something.

Launch tomorrow.
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Old 16-02-2011, 21:30
afcbfan
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Today's launch attempt will be in 20 minutes.
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Old 16-02-2011, 21:37
malaikah
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Evening!

With the recent unusual solar flare that was released yesterday, does anyone know more about local i.e. UK sightings of the Aurora Borealis ? I remember someone posted a link for some kind of sky map representing the earth's magnetic field linked to how far south the northern lights could be seen. Does that ring any bells for anyone?
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Old 16-02-2011, 21:41
afcbfan
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The spaceweather site has the current auroral oval. Click on Europe to get an idea of where it is at the moment: http://www.spaceweather.com/
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Old 17-02-2011, 20:42
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Today's launch attempt will be in 20 minutes.
...and that successful launch can be seen here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-12476510. Interestingly, that 20-tonne payload means that Ariane would be perfectly capable of sending an Apollo/Orion crewed conical capsule into space and up to the International Space Station.

There has already been a move by Astrium (they who make the Ariane 5) and ATK to jointly http://aerospaceblog.wordpress.com/2...2-competition/ come up with a launcher and capsule to put people into Earth orbit. The only other two serious competitors would appear to be Space X http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_x and Orbital Sciences http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orbital...es_Corporation.
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Old 18-02-2011, 09:32
Scrolllock
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...and that successful launch can be seen here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-12476510. Interestingly, that 20-tonne payload means that Ariane would be perfectly capable of sending an Apollo/Orion crewed conical capsule into space and up to the International Space Station.

There has already been a move by Astrium (they who make the Ariane 5) and ATK to jointly http://aerospaceblog.wordpress.com/2...2-competition/ come up with a launcher and capsule to put people into Earth orbit. The only other two serious competitors would appear to be Space X http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_x and Orbital Sciences http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orbital...es_Corporation.
You actually think America is going to give up its space exploration leadership and business in any significant way to a foreign entity?

EADS is already having a tough enough job trying to sell air tankers to their Air Force, which they never should been allowed to bid on anyway.
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Old 21-02-2011, 11:54
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Europe's supply craft to the ISS is due to launch at 22.13; the ATV is the heaviest payload ever launched by a European Rocket. Failure to launch will mean delay to Shuttle mission STS-133, due to launch in nine days.

You can watch the launch on NASA TV.
I bloody well hope that STS-133 isn't delayed because I had a bit of a rush of blood last Friday and I booked a trip to Florida so I can watch it

Managed to get on a bus tour to Kennedy on Thursday so I'll be watching it from the Visitors Center (Centre!) or the Causeway, I haven't decided yet.

Let you know how I get on when I get back next week.

USA here I come
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Old 21-02-2011, 16:31
afcbfan
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Wow, enjoy!

Weather forecast is 80% go at the moment, so hope it holds for you
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Old 24-02-2011, 13:28
HenryGarten
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Europe's supply craft to the ISS is due to launch at 22.13; the ATV is the heaviest payload ever launched by a European Rocket. Failure to launch will mean delay to Shuttle mission STS-133, due to launch in nine days.

You can watch the launch on NASA TV.
Craft approaching the ISS now. Due to dock in a few hours. See here.

Shuttle Discovery due to launch at 9.50pm BST today.
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Old 24-02-2011, 15:25
pmbond
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Showing the docking now on the Nasa tv website channel. Less than 100m to go. Should be 4pm GMT now.
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Old 24-02-2011, 19:34
tiger2000
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Preparation nad countdown to Discovery's lauch now on NASA TV and Ustream TV.

http://www.ustream.tv/nasajpl2
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Old 24-02-2011, 19:45
BeethovensPiano
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I missed the ISS pass...damn
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