Space Exploration megathread

[DaFace]

Since a number of cool things are happening in space exploration these days, we'll widen the scope of this thread a smidge. Conversation about all things space exploration are welcome, whether it be from NASA, SpaceX, ULA, Blue Origin, or anyone else. Chances are most of the discussion will still be about SpaceX since they love to make things public and fun, but nothing's off limits. I'll eventually get around to modifying the OP to include resources for other companies too, but in the meantime, feel free to post any cool stuff you run across.

Lists of Upcoming Missions

Spoiler!

General lists:
https://nextspaceflight.com/
http://spaceflightnow.com/launch-schedule/

SpaceX specific list:
https://spacexnow.com/upcoming.php

How to Watch a Live Launch

Spoiler!

SpaceX:
https://www.spacex.com/launches/

ULA:
https://www.youtube.com/user/UnitedLaunchAlliance

RocketLab:
https://www.youtube.com/user/RocketLabNZ

NASATV will also cover some launches (primarily ISS resupply missions):
https://www.youtube.com/user/NASAtelevision

Where to Learn More

Spoiler!

Some cool pics...

https://www.flickr.com/photos/spacex/
https://www.instagram.com/spacex/?hl=en

Twitter feed is usually interesing...

https://twitter.com/SpaceX
https://twitter.com/elonmusk

The SpaceX sub is a great source of info...

https://www.reddit.com/r/spacex
https://www.reddit.com/r/spacex/wiki/index

And for a more forum-style discussion board...

http://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php#c17

And there are plenty of YouTube channels with great content...

• Joe Scott - Lost of "future" discussion. Some about rockets and space. Much that goes beyond.
• Scott Manley - Super smart dude (engineer) who reviews a lot of major events in space exploration.
• Frazer Cain (Universe Today) - Podcast-style videos that go in-depth into space topics.
• Tim Dodd (Everyday Astronaut) - A "random dude" who got really into space (particularly SpaceX). He's a great resource for simple explanations of this stuff, as well as live hosting launches.
• USLaunchReport - Lost of videos of the more mundane stuff (e.g., booster recovery operations). Not a ton of commentary.
• NASASpaceFlight - Live hosting of most launches including a ton of video of Starlink operations.

Glossary

Spoiler!

Space discussions tend to get a little bogged down in jargon, so here's a list of terms you might encounter. (Others, please let me know of others that should be added.)

• ASDS - Autonomous Spaceport Droneship - The "barges" that they sometimes land rockets on.
• Dragon - The cone-shaped capsule that sits at the top of the rocket for ISS-bound launches that holds the cargo (or, in the future, humans).
• F9 - Falcon 9, the name of the rocket itself.
• FH - Falcon Heavy, the three-booster version.
• GTO - Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit, a type of orbit that will eventually result in the satellite orbiting the earth as it turns so that it seems to be in the same spot from the ground (such as DirecTV or Dish satellites). These types of launches are particularly challenging because they require a lot of power to get them into the right orbit, leaving very little fuel left for landing.
• HIF - Horizontal Integration Facility - the building near the launch pad where they put all of the pieces of the rocket together before rolling it out to the pad.
• ISS - The International Space Station
• JRTI - Just Read The Instructions, the name of the "barge" that they land on for west-coast launches.
• LEO - Low Earth Orbit, a fairly low orbit shared by many satellites and ISS. These launches usually require less power to achieve the proper orbit, so the first stage can often be landed back on land rather than on a drone ship.
• LZ1 - Landing Zone 1, basically a big open slab of concrete at Cape Canaveral where the first stage will attempt to land (for some launches).
• NET - No Earlier Than, basically the date they're hoping to launch, but rocket launches have a tendency of getting delayed.
• OCISLY - Of Course I Still Love You, the name of the "barge" that they land on for east-coast launches.
• RTLS - Return to Landing Site, a mission where the first stage comes back and lands at LZ1.
• Starship - SpaceX's next-generation rocket (and spacecraft) that will hopefully one day take us to Mars. Starship is the "second stage" that will carry cargo or people, but also refers to the whole system. (It's confusing, but think of it like the Space Shuttle, which was both the shuttle itself and the entire launch system.)
• Super Heavy - The giant booster that will carry Starship to space.

[Donger]

Originally Posted by DaFace

People everywhere say this, but yeah, weather is variable.

I once heard that in Des Moines. I chuckled.

[DaFace]

Originally Posted by BigRedChief

Not even 5 minutes, I think they clear cloud cover in less than 2 minutes.

That's a bit much. They can't launch with lightning in the area within 30 minutes, and lost of the weather rules go out 10 miles from the pad.

[BigRedChief]

Originally Posted by Hog's Gone Fishin

They say that everywhere. Sheesh!

Never heard it till down here that I remember. Missouri weather isnt anything like the changing weather down here. The weather around Orlando creates new "weather" all the time. Most of the afternoon storms we get are from there, not some storm passing through till it dissipates.



Same crap storms they are talking about now heading over there from Orlando but will probably dissipate before it gets there.

[DaneMcCloud]

Originally Posted by DaFace

People everywhere say this, but yeah, weather is variable.

Except SoCal

[BigRedChief]

Originally Posted by DaFace

That's a bit much. They can't launch with lightning in the area within 30 minutes, and lost of the weather rules go out 10 miles from the pad.

I was discussing clearing cloud cover not getting permission to launch.

[BleedingRed]

Originally Posted by DaneMcCloud

Except SoCal

I dn how SoCal weather is so perfect year round. ****ing would love that shit in Houston.

[eDave]

https://www.wjhg.com/templates/2015_Fullscreen_Radar

[Pants]

Originally Posted by BigRedChief

Never heard it till down here that I remember. Missouri weather isnt anything like the changing weather down here. The weather around Orlando creates new "weather" all the time. Most of the afternoon storms we get are from there, not some storm passing through till it dissipates.



Same crap storms they are talking about now heading over there from Orlando but will probably dissipate before it gets there.

Florida?

When was the last time the temperature in FL went from high 60's one day to low 30's the next?

[DaFace]

The hatch is closed. The crew is settled in. #LaunchAmerica is on. pic.twitter.com/qZTR3QAQjM

— NASA (@NASA) May 27, 2020

[dlphg9]

Originally Posted by BigRedChief

Never heard it till down here that I remember. Missouri weather isnt anything like the changing weather down here. The weather around Orlando creates new "weather" all the time. Most of the afternoon storms we get are from there, not some storm passing through till it dissipates.



Same crap storms they are talking about now heading over there from Orlando but will probably dissipate before it gets there.

I bet this has never happened in Florida

http://climate.missouri.edu/news/arc/nov2009.php

One Crazy November Day
Pat Guinan
State Climatologist
Commercial Agriculture/University of Missouri Extension
For many climate enthusiasts, November 11, 1911, is a date that generates much interest in regard to the extreme weather conditions that were experienced that day in Missouri and surrounding states. During sunrise, on 11/11/11, temperatures were unseasonably warm and had already climbed into the lower 70’s across mid-Missouri. A southerly breeze had increased to 25-30 mph by noon as the mercury climbed into the lower 80’s. By early afternoon, record high temperatures were broken in several locations including Kansas City, Springfield, Hannibal, Columbia and St. Louis.

Many people were outside enjoying the warm conditions including several hunters who had walked miles from home wearing only lightweight clothing. Unknown to many early that afternoon was that an arctic cold front had entered northwestern Missouri and was diving southeastward. Eyewitness reports that day describe the arctic boundary as a rapidly moving dark boiling mass of clouds accompanied by lightning, thunder, rain, hail that eventually turned to sleet and snow. Some of the hunters, unaware of the impending cold blast, were caught out in the elements and perished.

Hourly wind reports from the Columbia weather service office reported a southerly wind gusting to near 40 mph at 2 p.m. shifting to northerly winds gusting to over 40 mph about an hour later. The temperature in Columbia reacted to the wind shift and dropped from a toasty 82° at 2 p.m. to a cold, rainy and windy 38°F one hour later; an incredible 44° temperature drop in 60 minutes! One hour later the temperature was 30° in Columbia and the rain had changed to sleet with a wind chill of 16°. By midnight it was a frigid 13°, which set a record low for the day. In one day the temperature fell a whopping 69°, a record that still stands today for Columbia.

On November 11, 1911, many locations in Missouri established a record in terms of the largest daily temperature swing and this remarkable occurrence remains unprecedented today. Generally, for Missouri, the temperature drop was 50° in less than 3 hours and 65-70° in 18 hours. Maximum and minimum temperatures for some Missouri locations on 11/11/11 include Kansas City, 76°/11°; Springfield, 80°/13°; Columbia, 82°/13°; Hannibal, 82°/16°; and St. Louis, 78°/18°.


I find it hard to believe you cant remember anyone talking about how often the weather changes in Missouri.

[dlphg9]

Originally Posted by Pants

Florida?

When was the last time the temperature in FL went from high 60's one day to low 30's the next?

Read the article I posted. Highs in the 80s and lows in the 10s in one day.

[Pants]

Originally Posted by dlphg9

I bet this has never happened in Florida

http://climate.missouri.edu/news/arc/nov2009.php

One Crazy November Day
Pat Guinan
State Climatologist
Commercial Agriculture/University of Missouri Extension
For many climate enthusiasts, November 11, 1911, is a date that generates much interest in regard to the extreme weather conditions that were experienced that day in Missouri and surrounding states. During sunrise, on 11/11/11, temperatures were unseasonably warm and had already climbed into the lower 70’s across mid-Missouri. A southerly breeze had increased to 25-30 mph by noon as the mercury climbed into the lower 80’s. By early afternoon, record high temperatures were broken in several locations including Kansas City, Springfield, Hannibal, Columbia and St. Louis.

Many people were outside enjoying the warm conditions including several hunters who had walked miles from home wearing only lightweight clothing. Unknown to many early that afternoon was that an arctic cold front had entered northwestern Missouri and was diving southeastward. Eyewitness reports that day describe the arctic boundary as a rapidly moving dark boiling mass of clouds accompanied by lightning, thunder, rain, hail that eventually turned to sleet and snow. Some of the hunters, unaware of the impending cold blast, were caught out in the elements and perished.

Hourly wind reports from the Columbia weather service office reported a southerly wind gusting to near 40 mph at 2 p.m. shifting to northerly winds gusting to over 40 mph about an hour later. The temperature in Columbia reacted to the wind shift and dropped from a toasty 82° at 2 p.m. to a cold, rainy and windy 38°F one hour later; an incredible 44° temperature drop in 60 minutes! One hour later the temperature was 30° in Columbia and the rain had changed to sleet with a wind chill of 16°. By midnight it was a frigid 13°, which set a record low for the day. In one day the temperature fell a whopping 69°, a record that still stands today for Columbia.

On November 11, 1911, many locations in Missouri established a record in terms of the largest daily temperature swing and this remarkable occurrence remains unprecedented today. Generally, for Missouri, the temperature drop was 50° in less than 3 hours and 65-70° in 18 hours. Maximum and minimum temperatures for some Missouri locations on 11/11/11 include Kansas City, 76°/11°; Springfield, 80°/13°; Columbia, 82°/13°; Hannibal, 82°/16°; and St. Louis, 78°/18°.


I find it hard to believe you cant remember anyone talking about how often the weather changes in Missouri.

Yup.

BUT IT RAINS IN FLORIDA AND THEN STOPS!

Anyway, sorry for the short derail.

[BleedingRed]

1 hour till go tie how is the forcast?

[DaFace]

Originally Posted by BleedingRed

1 hour till go tie how is the forcast?

Range is red right now (no go), but they're still hoping it will clear. My guess is we're going down to T-10 minutes at least to see if they can hit a gap.

[DaFace]

T-1 hr