Yeah man. I was on the beach about 20 miles south when it lifted off.
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I was in Viet Nam didn't get to see it for awhile,,Got a radio message the We had men on the moon..Later that night the skies were clear and looked at the moon in a different way,,Sotrta like a Forrest Gump moment
Sad how little manned spaceflight has progressed since.
"In the vast library of socialist books, there’s not a single volume on how to create wealth, only how to take and “redistribute” it.” - David Horowitz
Spot on F4U..I remembered how everyone was glued to the TV from the first manned launch,including me and,John Glen's flight but after a few they just watched it on the 6 O'clock news The passion was gone and the money soon after
I was in Viet Nam didn't get to see it for awhile,,Got a radio message the We had men on the moon..Later that night the skies were clear and looked at the moon in a different way,,Sotrta like a Forrest Gump moment
I was there from December of 1968 to Dec of 1969, so we were in country at least during the same event. I remember the news, but it was pretty secondary to the experience at hand. I barely remember any of it now.
Cheers
Artillery adds dignity to what would otherwise be a vulgar brawl.
Sad how little manned spaceflight has progressed since.
I strongly disagree.
First, we sent people to the moon nine times. We brought back something like 800 pounds of moon rock/dust/etc. At that point there's not much more to gain sending people there.
Second: Going to Mars would be the logical next step, but before you do that you need to seriously gain some knowledge and experience with having people in space for months at a time. To do that you need an orbiting space station. To really build said station you need a Space Shuttle. Then you spend YEARS in that phase. Which has been (and is still being) done.
Around the end of that phase you start working on your actual rockets/spacecraft that will be used for that manned Mars mission. Which has been (and is still being) done.
Going to the moon is peanuts compared to going to Mars. It's probably an even bigger difference than comparing a trip across town in a Model T versus cross country in an airliner.
Granted we probably could have achieved it faster if more money had been thrown at it, but going to the moon was a literal national priority at the time. Mars, not so much.
But ironically with all that said I think sending people to Mars in THIS century is a waste of money.
We're on the cusp of an age of unlocking technological knowledge at a rate the world has never seen, so in my opinion it's better to wait for the inevitable newer tech - because it's coming. Materials, computers, all of it's about to explode like nothing seen in all of history.
Sad how little manned spaceflight has progressed since.
I strongly disagree.
First, we sent people to the moon nine times. We brought back something like 800 pounds of moon rock/dust/etc. At that point there's not much more to gain sending people there.
So if early European explorers had visited North America nine times they would have learned all there is to know about the continent?
The moon's surface is roughly comparable to Asia, we've only explored 6 small areas, all very close to the equator and all on the near side, we've not sent humans to the far side nor the polar regions. There is much more to be learned by further lunar exploration.
"In the vast library of socialist books, there’s not a single volume on how to create wealth, only how to take and “redistribute” it.” - David Horowitz
Sad how little manned spaceflight has progressed since.
I strongly disagree.
First, we sent people to the moon nine times. We brought back something like 800 pounds of moon rock/dust/etc. At that point there's not much more to gain sending people there.
So if early European explorers had visited North America nine times they would have learned all there is to know about the continent?
The moon's surface is roughly comparable to Asia, we've only explored 6 small areas, all very close to the equator and all on the near side, we've not sent humans to the far side nor the polar regions. There is much more to be learned by further lunar exploration.
The surface of the earth has diversity and variances orders of magnitude (MANY) beyond the surface of the moon. You could travel the whole moon and not find much new information. That's not to say I'm some anti-science person, it'd be GREAT if we could go and learn more there. But reality is what it is, and your analogy is, with no offense, extremely weak.
Hasn't the moon been considered a dead rock with not much to offer besides records of a long past history ? On the other hand, there has been much talk about using the moon as a launch pad for space exploration, avoiding the earth's gravity pull right from lift off.
Wonder what happened to that theory !
Cheers, Slug
"Major Burns isn't saying much of anything, Sir. I think he's formulating the answer..." - Radar - M*A*S*H
there has been much talk about using the moon as a launch pad for space exploration, avoiding the earth's gravity pull right from lift off.
Wonder what happened to that theory !
Cheers, Slug
Well, you don't. In interplanetary scales the moon is still well within the Earth's gravity - after all, it's the Earth that holds the moon in orbit, and the moon isn't exactly a lightweight object.
That theory is more of a "staging" thing. Like many rockets - rather than have one big huge fuel tank carried all the way you break it up into stages. Big huge first stage, burn off fuel, ditch that heavy tank, ignite second stage on much lighter craft.....
Adding a second launch point from another gravity source (the moon) isn't going to make sense from a purely energetic standpoint. Where it COULD make sense is if you have some kind of BASE on the moon. It's still going to be more energetically expensive, but sometimes it's just easier to pay for fuel.......
I think the moon would be useful as a sort of proving ground for Mars mission/colony technology. It's subject to far colder and far hotter temps than Mars is, it gets hit with higher radiation levels than Mars does, and in case of an emergency it's only 3 days away from LEO. Plus, being composed of part of earth it has the same elements and minerals so habitats & equipment for both lunar and Martian settlements could be built there, along with boosters and fuel to send them on their way to Mars. It may not require less fuel, but it won't require more, either.
Phil
“The biggest problem people have is they don’t think they’re supposed to have problems.” - Hayes Barnard
We should colonize the moon, then we can store our radioactive and chemical waste there. Just hope there's no major meltdown explosion that blows the moon out of orbit into far outer space.
The rusty wire that holds the cork that keeps the anger in Gives way and suddenly it’s day again The sun is in the east Even though the day is done Two suns in the sunset, hmph Could be the human race is run
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Originally Posted by MarkG
We should colonize the moon, then we can store our radioactive and chemical waste there. Just hope there's no major meltdown explosion that blows the moon out of orbit into far outer space.
Let's just hope that those horrid early 70's clothing and hair fashions don't make a comeback.
“Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you.”
Oh, it's gonna happen, you just wait and see. Also, everyone is going to be slim and trim again.
The rusty wire that holds the cork that keeps the anger in Gives way and suddenly it’s day again The sun is in the east Even though the day is done Two suns in the sunset, hmph Could be the human race is run
there has been much talk about using the moon as a launch pad for space exploration, avoiding the earth's gravity pull right from lift off.
Wonder what happened to that theory !
Cheers, Slug
Well, you don't. In interplanetary scales the moon is still well within the Earth's gravity - after all, it's the Earth that holds the moon in orbit, and the moon isn't exactly a lightweight object.
Escape velocity from earth is over 11 km/s. Escape velocity from the moon is less than 2.5 km/s. That is a huge difference.
Launching a partially fueled deep space exploration vessel (destined for Mars, Venus, asteroid etc.) and refueling in lunar orbit before going on greatly reduces the amount of fuel needed to launch from earth, making the vessel smaller / cheaper.
But establishing a lunar fuel processing depot (using lunar polar ice, converted to oxygen and hydrogen) only makes sense if you have a robust deep space exploration program.
"In the vast library of socialist books, there’s not a single volume on how to create wealth, only how to take and “redistribute” it.” - David Horowitz
Joined: Apr 2001 Posts: 121,383PanzerMeyer
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I find it pretty funny that a show that came out in 1975 (Space: 1999) was predicting that humanity would have these large complex colonies on the moon in just 24 years.
“Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you.”
I find it pretty funny that a show that came out in 1975 (Space: 1999) was predicting that humanity would have these large complex colonies on the moon in just 24 years.
We could/would have if we hadn't just given up on doing more than dangling our tootsies in the water after having swam across the Atlantic.
Phil
“The biggest problem people have is they don’t think they’re supposed to have problems.” - Hayes Barnard
I find it pretty funny that a show that came out in 1975 (Space: 1999) was predicting that humanity would have these large complex colonies on the moon in just 24 years.
It was an alternate universe where we went to the moon in the 1700's. At least that is my story and I am sticking to it.
Meh, who cares about space travel when the real technological breakthroughs are in the robot sex doll industry. Sexy fembots going mainstream is going to be the biggest game changer in human history!
The rusty wire that holds the cork that keeps the anger in Gives way and suddenly it’s day again The sun is in the east Even though the day is done Two suns in the sunset, hmph Could be the human race is run
I love going to Goodwills and finding space travel books from the 70's and 80's, usually nice large hardcover books like you'd find in a public library.
Here's a quote from "Space" (1980, 1985) under "Exploring the Planets"...
"The first attempt at interplanetary travel will certainly be a flight to Mars. Blueprints already exist for an initial mission. The plan is to send a combined crew of 12 aboard two spacecraft. Using a trajectory designed to burn a minimum of fuel, the shortest journey time to Mars will be 270 days. On arrival, both ships will enter parking orbits around the planet, remaining there for about 80 days. During this time small landing craft will ferry crew members between mother ships and the surface.
Despite the fact that so far the United States Congress has made no funds available for the mission, NASA officials are hopeful that the first landings on Mars will be made early in the next century. There is some speculation that the Soviets are planning a manned Mars mission to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the October Revolution."
The rusty wire that holds the cork that keeps the anger in Gives way and suddenly it’s day again The sun is in the east Even though the day is done Two suns in the sunset, hmph Could be the human race is run
Joined: Apr 2001 Posts: 121,383PanzerMeyer
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PanzerMeyer
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Originally Posted by MarkG
There is some speculation that the Soviets are planning a manned Mars mission to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the October Revolution."
Heh. Russia wishes it had the money to splurge on something like that now!
“Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you.”
Despite the fact that so far the United States Congress has made no funds available for the mission, NASA officials are hopeful that the first landings on Mars will be made early in the next century. There is some speculation that the Soviets are planning a manned Mars mission to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the October Revolution."
SpaceX will be there to greet them when they arrive.
"In the vast library of socialist books, there’s not a single volume on how to create wealth, only how to take and “redistribute” it.” - David Horowitz
Once they get these sex robots right I'll never get any work done.
Hmm...has me thinking...
That 270 days to get to Mars is a mighty long time for a young and physically fit astronaut. I wonder if NASA is working on its own sex robots? They could serve as actual scientific worker robots but could also serve a more human purpose when needed.
The rusty wire that holds the cork that keeps the anger in Gives way and suddenly it’s day again The sun is in the east Even though the day is done Two suns in the sunset, hmph Could be the human race is run
Joined: Apr 2001 Posts: 121,383PanzerMeyer
Pro-Consul of Florida
PanzerMeyer
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Originally Posted by MarkG
That 270 days to get to Mars is a mighty long time for a young and physically fit astronaut. I wonder if NASA is working on its own sex robots? They could serve as actual scientific worker robots but could also serve a more human purpose when needed.
Most likely you'll be in cryosleep for most of the duration of the trip.
“Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you.”
That 270 days to get to Mars is a mighty long time for a young and physically fit astronaut. I wonder if NASA is working on its own sex robots? They could serve as actual scientific worker robots but could also serve a more human purpose when needed.
Most likely you'll be in cryosleep for most of the duration of the trip.
They might have cryosleep worked out by the time NASA is ready to make the trip to Mars. I don't think it will be ready by the time SpaceX goes, though...
I love going to Goodwills and finding space travel books from the 70's and 80's, usually nice large hardcover books like you'd find in a public library.
Here's a quote from "Space" (1980, 1985) under "Exploring the Planets"...
"The first attempt at interplanetary travel will certainly be a flight to Mars. Blueprints already exist for an initial mission. The plan is to send a combined crew of 12 aboard two spacecraft. Using a trajectory designed to burn a minimum of fuel, the shortest journey time to Mars will be 270 days. On arrival, both ships will enter parking orbits around the planet, remaining there for about 80 days. During this time small landing craft will ferry crew members between mother ships and the surface.
Despite the fact that so far the United States Congress has made no funds available for the mission, NASA officials are hopeful that the first landings on Mars will be made early in the next century. There is some speculation that the Soviets are planning a manned Mars mission to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the October Revolution."
Pretty good prediction on NASA's part. If they manage to do it around the 2030's as currently hoped, but the Orion capsule and SLS are pretty far along in development already.
If the gov't had turned the funds loose and let NASA & industry use them as they saw fit, we could be close to going the way the First Hundred did in Kim Stanley Robinson's "Red Mars."
Phil
“The biggest problem people have is they don’t think they’re supposed to have problems.” - Hayes Barnard
Pretty good prediction on NASA's part. If they manage to do it around the 2030's as currently hoped, but the Orion capsule and SLS are pretty far along in development already.
Originally Posted by NH2112
If the gov't had turned the funds loose and let NASA & industry use them as they saw fit, we could be close to going the way the First Hundred did in Kim Stanley Robinson's "Red Mars."
My prediction is SLS will never fly, more than once or twice anyway. It is now projected to cost $20 Billion before first flight, plus another 20 billion for Orion.
Falcon 9 Heavy and Dragon are almost ready to fly now and have cost only a fraction as much for equal capability.
Continuing to pour money into SLS / Orion just to keep workers working in a few select congressional districts is insanity.
"In the vast library of socialist books, there’s not a single volume on how to create wealth, only how to take and “redistribute” it.” - David Horowitz
Pretty good prediction on NASA's part. If they manage to do it around the 2030's as currently hoped, but the Orion capsule and SLS are pretty far along in development already.
Originally Posted by NH2112
If the gov't had turned the funds loose and let NASA & industry use them as they saw fit, we could be close to going the way the First Hundred did in Kim Stanley Robinson's "Red Mars."
My prediction is SLS will never fly, more than once or twice anyway. It is now projected to cost $20 Billion before first flight, plus another 20 billion for Orion.
Falcon 9 Heavy and Dragon are almost ready to fly now and have cost only a fraction as much for equal capability.
Continuing to pour money into SLS / Orion just to keep workers working in a few select congressional districts is insanity.
On some levels I agree with you - as I mentioned before I think we aimed for manned Mars missions too soon and would have been better off waiting for technology to evolve more. The rate at which tech is evolving is far crazier now than it was even just 15 years ago, and it's only accelerating. I think we're still able to do a lot more for the money with unmanned craft - not in terms of Mars itself (no "drone" is going to do the kind of research/experimentation a human crew could, at least not YET!), but throw that kind of money at multiple unmanned missions to multiple planets, moons, etc and I think we'd gain far more knowledge overall for the same money.
Columbus thought (even upon "discovering" the Americas - Leif Erikson had done so prior, and humanity itself had done so millennia prior) that he had hit Asia. He even insisted on it after knowing otherwise. The discovery of "new lands" didn't suit his agenda, or his financiers (at least at first).
It was pure serendipity.
He did not even know where he was going. Not to take anything away from the fact that in 1492 terms he was a GENIUS sailor - even in modern terms that man could and would school most people on this!
Going back to "topic" though - had he "waited for steamships"? He probably wouldn't be in the history books. But humanity at large would have still progressed, and someone else's name would be in those books.
The voyages of the Nina, Pinta, and Santa Maria were certainly no trifling matter. Big balls, and at least Columbus and more had to have some big brain behind such an endeavor (or total insanity!).
But spaceflight isn't done like that - it's not "Let's just DO IT GODDAMMIT!" (and neither was Columbus's voyages, but when you compare the two, yes there was more of that for sure!)
Forty eight years ago tonight I was standing on the front porch beside by father (who was then 10 years younger than I am now) looking up at the moon in awe of the fact that two Americans were standing on it's surface. I am still awed by that moment, all these years later.
"In the vast library of socialist books, there’s not a single volume on how to create wealth, only how to take and “redistribute” it.” - David Horowitz
Apollo 11 as seen from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter:
The "trail" leading off to the left toward the large crater are Neil Armstrong's footprints, etched in the lunar surface for hundreds of years.
"In the vast library of socialist books, there’s not a single volume on how to create wealth, only how to take and “redistribute” it.” - David Horowitz