Category:
Spaceflight, Astronautics, and Astronomy
Spaceflight, Astronautics, and Astronomy
Sending meteorites back home
Artist Katie Paterson is planning to send a meteorite back into space. I like this idea. The universe has been flinging rocks at the earth for billions of years, so it's high time we start flinging them back.Paterson writes that the meteorite has been "cast, melted, and then re-cast back into a new version of itself, retaining its original form." I'm not sure what the point of all that was, but it's art, so I'm not sure we're supposed to understand. I'm also not sure whether the meteorite will ever make it further than the International Space Station, or whether there are plans to fling it deeper into space. [wired.com]
Posted By: Alex - Sat Jul 27, 2013 -
Comments (0)
Category: Art, Spaceflight, Astronautics, and Astronomy
GI Joe in Space
After his old-school sedate debut in 1967 (first video), GI Joe's outer space adventures turned decidedly weird in the 1970s, thanks apparently to the influence of Stanley Kubrick.
Posted By: Paul - Wed May 15, 2013 -
Comments (8)
Category: Movies, Spaceflight, Astronautics, and Astronomy, Toys, 1960s, 1970s
Ready to Go to Mars?
If you have heard the latest buzz about going to Mars and are thinking about the trip, you should probably visit this website first.http://www.distancetomars.com/
You get to go 3 times the speed of light for most of the trip, and the earth is 100 pixels wide. When you finally arrive at Mars, only 53 pixels wide, you will have an appreciation for just how far away Mars really is.
This amazing website by David Paliwoda and Jesse Williams will give all of us some perspective on those who decide to go.
What would you take for the trip? (Remember, it may be a one-way ticket.)
Posted By: gdanea - Mon May 13, 2013 -
Comments (4)
Category: Spaceflight, Astronautics, and Astronomy
No Death Star For Defense Department
After an online petition to build a planet-destroying "Death Star", the U.S. government has decided against building the "Star Wars" weapon.
The government response even uses some Star Wars language, "This isn't the petition response you're looking for." You can check out the document here.
https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/response/isnt-petition-response-youre-looking
Here's the link to the Twitter response by Darth Vader, which begins with "A serious mistake, Mr. President" --
http://twitter.com/darthvader/statuses/289920155851563008
What could you build for $850 trillion? Or is it $850 quadrillion? Pretty soon you're talking about real money.
Posted By: gdanea - Mon Jan 14, 2013 -
Comments (3)
Category: Spaceflight, Astronautics, and Astronomy
This Is Kirk—Report
When the commander of the star-ship Enterprise requests a response from space -- he might not get it from his communicator.Just from Twitter.
When William Shatner tweeted Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield, inquiring if he was in space, he received the reply:
"Yes, Standard Orbit, Captain. And we're detecting signs of life on the surface," from the International Space Station.
Here's a picture of the two from a 2D encounter, which was also discussed.
Click here to read the invitation for Shatner to go to Canada for a live interaction.
http://todayentertainment.today.com/_news/2013/01/04/16348921-william-shatner-tweets-at-astronaut-who-replies-from-space?lite
Why can't they just beam him up?
Posted By: gdanea - Mon Jan 07, 2013 -
Comments (7)
Category: Spaceflight, Astronautics, and Astronomy
Follies of the Madmen #196
This is a particularly egregious cut and paste job, even for the pre-Photoshop era. Never mind the far-fetched association of lady astronauts and booze.
Posted By: Paul - Wed Dec 26, 2012 -
Comments (4)
Category: Business, Advertising, Products, Spaceflight, Astronautics, and Astronomy, Stereotypes and Cliches, 1960s, Alcohol
Life, The Universe and Everything
A mind-blowing four plus minutes!! At about :40 a series of circles puts us all into perspective as the longest zoom out ever shows our place in the universe.I feel pretty insignificant after all of that.
A quick zoom in at about 3:00 reverses the process, then examines the sub-atomic world -- but I'm not sure what the stuff at the end could be. Guesses or actual explanations are welcome.
Posted By: gdanea - Sat Dec 08, 2012 -
Comments (7)
Category: Spaceflight, Astronautics, and Astronomy
Jose Jimenez
Not a song, but still another entry in our fine old catalog of comedy that nowadays would have the PC-minded bearing down on you faster than a truck full of tortillas on Cinco de Mayo.
Posted By: Paul - Fri Nov 30, 2012 -
Comments (6)
Category: Humor, Racism, Spaceflight, Astronautics, and Astronomy, Stereotypes and Cliches, 1960s
Cookie Monster Crater on Mercury
Sesame Street is invading the solar system!! NASA's Messenger mission scientists posted a questions on the Goddard Space Flight Center Flickr page asking, "Anyone else think this looks like the Cookie Monster?"
First Big Bird in politics and now the Cookie Monster on Mercury!!
Is Elmo headed for the red planet?
Posted By: gdanea - Sun Oct 14, 2012 -
Comments (14)
Category: Spaceflight, Astronautics, and Astronomy
March 15: Space Bat Memorial Day
On March 15, 2009, the Space Shuttle Discovery launched from Kennedy Space Center without any issues, except one. From Wikipedia:During the countdown a bat was seen to be resting on the external tank. What was originally believed to be a fruit bat was revealed to have been a free-tailed bat that clung onto the fuel tank during the launch. NASA observers had believed the bat would fly off once the shuttle started to launch, but it did not, and it was probably shaken off and incinerated by the rocket exhaust. A bat doctor, analyzing pictures, believed the bat had a broken wing which made it unable to fly off.
Posted By: Alex - Thu Mar 15, 2012 -
Comments (5)
Category: Animals, Spaceflight, Astronautics, and Astronomy
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| Alex Boese Alex is the creator and curator of the Museum of Hoaxes. He's also the author of various weird, non-fiction, science-themed books such as Elephants on Acid and Psychedelic Apes. Paul Di Filippo Paul has been paid to put weird ideas into fictional form for over thirty years, in his career as a noted science fiction writer. He has recently begun blogging on many curious topics with three fellow writers at The Inferior 4+1. Contact Us |