Many folks would like to see us back on the Moon and developing its resources.

Saturday, June 26, 2004

A Field Trip to the Moon: "NEEP602 Course Notes (Fall 1996)
Resources from Space

A FIELD TRIP TO THE MOON
Harrison H. Schmitt

Summary
The last Apollo mission to the moon, Apollo 17, left Earth on December 7, 1972 to land near the southeastern edge of Mare Serenitatis in the Valley of Taurus-Littrow. For 75 hours, Gene Cernan and the author lived and worked in the valley, performing extensive geological studies of the volcanic rocks that partially fill the valley, the boulders that rolled into the valley from the surrounding mountains, and the meteor impact generated soils that cover the valley floor and walls. Successful exploration of Taurus-Littrow capped a six mission investigation of the materials and history of the moon. At the conclusion of these studies, science had gained a first order understanding of the evolution of the moon as a planet. Humankind had gained knowledge of new resources in the soils of the moon that may help solve many energy problems on Earth and help initiate the exploration and settlement of Mars. "
My Seven @ National Geographic Magazine: "On December 14, 1972, Harrison H. Schmitt finished 22 hours of rock and dust sampling. No human has landed on the moon since. Read about Schmitt's experience on the final Apollo mission in his own words."
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Friday, June 25, 2004

KEYE: SpaceShipOne Makes History: "SpaceShipOne Makes History

Private Spacecraft Soars Into Space

Jun 21, 2004 3:10 pm US/Central
MOJAVE, Calif. (CBS) A rocket plane soared out of Earth's atmosphere Monday in history's first privately financed manned spaceflight.

SpaceShipOne pilot Mike Melvill was aiming to fly 62 miles high. The exact altitude was to be confirmed by radar later.

The ship touched down to applause and cheers at 8:15, about 90 minutes after the flight began.

For a few minutes after SpaceShipOne began its descent, it was unclear whether Melvill had reached his goal. But the mission announcer finally said the mission had been successful as the craft prepared to land at Mojave Airport, accompanied by three chase planes."
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CBS News | SpaceShipOne Rockets Into History | June 22, 2004�04:02:43: "

SpaceShipOne Rockets Into History

MOJAVE, Calif., June 22, 2004
(CBS) A privately-built rocket plane soared into space Monday, boosting a 63-year-old test pilot on a thrilling, at times scary ride out of Earth's discernible atmosphere and into history as the first non government-sponsored astronaut."
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Crew Selection: "Crew Selection and Space Psychology
Because the nature of space flight will change in the future due to extended journeys and larger numbers of people in space stations, new factors will influence crew selection and training. These include: the inclusion of women and professionals from different disciplines and nations. Because of the lengthening of space missions, behavioral and social scientists must plan carefully as the consequences of poor social planning in space missions can be as severe as those of poor engineering. "
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Display Topics:
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"Diamandis, 38, can tell you where and when the cosmos imprinted his imagination: grade school, late in the Apollo era. More and more routinely, crews rocketed to the moon and walked, hopped, golfed, and dune-buggied across its surface. For most kids watching it all on TV, the thrill quickly softened into nostalgia. But not for Diamandis: 'I was in fifth grade, and it hit me that the space frontier was my purpose in life.' While studying biology at MIT in 1980, he cofounded Students for the Exploration and Development of Space and modeled himself on members of the astronaut corps. "
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NASA - NASA Transformation Structure Released: "Glenn Mahone/Bob Jacobs
Headquarters, Washington
(Phone: 202/358-1898/1600)

June 24, 2004
RELEASE : 04-203


NASA Transformation Structure Released

The following is a list of the Transformed Structure of NASA senior leadership. The purpose of the new organization structure is to develop clear and straightforward lines of responsibility. The new transformation chart is available on NASA's Internet homepage. "
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SEE WEB SITE FOR FULL LIST - LRK -

Tuesday, June 22, 2004

NASA - NASA TV Schedule:
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"June 23, Wednesday
1 p.m. - NASA News Briefing on 'Cassini at Phoebe' - JPL (Interactive Media Briefing)

June 24, Thursday
11 a.m. - NASA Update with Sean O'Keefe - HQ (Interactive Employee Event)

June 25, Friday
1 p.m. - MER Mission Briefing - JPL (Interactive Media Briefing)
4:30 p.m. - Expedition 9 EVA Coverage (EVA begins approximately 5:25 p.m.) - JSC (Mission Coverage)"
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Watch NASA TV Live

Monday, June 21, 2004

Space tourists paying now for spots on short flights - Jun. 21, 2004: "Buck Rogers bucks

For $102,000, you too can go on a privately financed trip to space -- once the kinks are worked out.
June 21, 2004: 1:26 PM EDT
By Chris Isidore, CNN/Money senior writer

NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - London investment banker Per Wimmer had lots of interest in Monday's first privately financed manned space flight -- $102,000 worth, to be exact.

Wimmer has already paid Space Adventures, a sort of space travel agency, to reserve a seat on a future sub-orbital space flight similar to one made Monday by veteran test pilot Michael Melvill. "
NASA - Home: "


06.21.04 - Administrator Lauds Successful Flight
'We congratulate the SpaceShip One team and wish all those who may follow safe flights.'
+ Read More

06.21.04 - Lightning Safety Awareness Week Highlighted
NASA research is striving to improve our understanding of lightning and its role in weather and climate.
+ Read More

06.21.04 - Space Station Status Report: SS04-015
The crew will venture outside Thursday to replace a Remote Power Controller Module that houses a faulty circuit breaker.
+ Read More"
SpaceDev Technology Powers SpaceShipOne In History Making Flight to Create World's First Private Sector Astronaut: "SpaceDev Technology Powers SpaceShipOne In History Making Flight to Create World's First Private Sector Astronaut
POWAY, Calif. --(Business Wire)-- June 21, 2004 -- SpaceDev's (OTCBB: SPDV) proprietary hybrid rocket motor technology successfully powered SpaceShipOne on its fourth and most important history-making flight to space.

'SpaceDev is pleased to be a part of the Paul Allen/Scaled Composites team in the development of the first private manned space capability,' said founding chairman and CEO, Jim Benson. 'During the development of Scaled's SpaceShipOne, SpaceDev competed for and won the contract that included SpaceDev's hybrid rocket technology and the development and production of critical motor components. Also, we developed the system for casting our proprietary rubber fuel into Scaled's composite motor case.'"
Spaceflight Now | SpaceShipOne News | Mission Status Center: "

BY JUSTIN RAY

Follow the countdown and launch of SpaceShipOne by reloading this page for the very latest on the mission.

1537 GMT (11:37 a.m. EDT)

A post-flight press conference is expected in about 90 minutes.
1532 GMT (11:32 a.m. EDT)

He says he was weightless for three-to-three-and-a-half minutes. Altitude was over 300,000 feet.
1531 GMT (11:31 a.m. EDT)

'The flight was spectacular.'
1531 GMT (11:31 a.m. EDT)

'I feel great. I really do.'
1530 GMT (11:30 a.m. EDT)

'It was absolutely amazing!' Melvill tells reporters at the runway.
1528 GMT (11:28 a.m. EDT)

Mike Melvill has climbed out of SpaceShipOne! He is hugging the VIPs and celebrations continue.
1526 GMT (11:26 a.m. EDT)

Melvill has his hand out the porthole waving to the crowd and flashing a thumbs-up sign. The craft is being towed down the runway by a pickup truck.
1524 GMT (11:24 a.m. EDT)

Crews have begun to tow SpaceShipOne from the runway to the viewing spot for spectators and the press to see the craft up close following its voyage today.
1520 GMT (11:20 a.m. EDT)

To recap, the SpaceShipOne flew a safe, 24-minute free-flight today above Mojave, California. With its engine blasting the tiny craft skyward, SpaceShipOne rocketed to an unofficial altitude of 62 miles where the edge of space begins. Pilot Mike Melvill then brought the vehicle to a smooth touchdown on the same runway where the historic mission began.
1517 GMT (11:17 a.m. EDT)

SpaceShipOne will be towed to a viewing location shortly. A news conference is expected a little later today.
1516 GMT (11:16 a.m. EDT)

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Newsday.com - AP Science: "Timeline for SpaceShipOne

By The Associated Press

June 21, 2004, 7:56 AM EDT

Timeline for Monday's suborbital flight of SpaceShipOne:

9:30 a.m. EDT: White Knight carrier plane, with SpaceShipOne slung beneath it, takes off from Mojave, Calif., and begins one-hour climb to launch altitude of 50,000 feet.

10:30 a.m. EDT: SpaceShipOne drops from the carrier plane. Rocket motor ignites and burns for 80 seconds, then shuts down. SpaceShipOne coasts the rest of the way up to an altitude of 62 miles, then falls back into Earth's atmosphere and begins a 15- to 20-minute descent.

10:55 a.m. EDT: SpaceShipOne glides to a landing at Mojave Airport. "
SpaceShipOne pilot has logged time on the craft: "The pilot will be 62-year-old Mike Melvill, who is also vice president and general manager of Scaled Composites, the firm run by SpaceShipOne developer Burt Rutan.
Organizers of the launch delayed announcing the identity of the pilot until Sunday. In May, Melvill flew the same aircraft to an altitude of 40 miles.
At a press conference at Mojave Airport Sunday, Rutan and his financier, Paul G. Allen, announced Melvill would be the pilot. They said Melvill had more than 6,400 hours of flying time in more than 100 aircraft and helicopters.
A native of South Africa, Melvill moved to the United States from England in the 1970s. He is now a U.S. citizen. He and his wife, Sally, have one child and four grandchildren. "
Yahoo! News - BREAKING NEWS: SpaceShipOne is Airborne: "By Leonard David
Senior Space Writer, SPACE.com
Updated 10:00 a.m. ET. This story will be updated throughout the flight. Refresh browser for latest version.

MOJAVE, CALIFORNIA Tucked underneath its carrier aircraft, the privately-built SpaceShipOne departed from an airstrip here at about 9:47 a.m. ET prepared to trail blaze its way into history by attempting the first non-governmental flight to leave the Earth's atmosphere.
Early morning winds were brisker than some mornings but light enough for the mission to begin. The White Knight mothership roared off from the Mojave Airport in front of thousands of spectators, toting skyward the SpaceShipOne with pilot Mike Melvill onboard.
The pair of mated vehicles will take roughly one hour to reach 47,000 feet a few miles to the northeast from its takeoff point. At that altitude, and barring any technical difficulties, the White Knight will let loose SpaceShipOne."
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Friday, June 18, 2004

Aldridge Says NASA HQ Overhaul, Approval of Agency Budget Top Priorities: "Aldridge Says NASA HQ Overhaul, Approval of Agency Budget Top Priorities
By Brian Berger
Space News Staff Writer
And Lon Rains
Space News Editor
posted: 03:30 pm ET
16 June 2004

WASHINGTON -- In an echo of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board�s report last year, the commission appointed by U.S. President George Bush to recommend ways to implement his vision for getting NASA back to the moon and on the way to Mars missions, called today for significant changes in the way NASA is run.
Edward C. (Pete) Aldridge, chairman of the President�s Commission on Implementation of United States Space Exploration Policy, said the report released today is not a 'vote of no confidence' in NASA, but a blueprint for the changes the space agency must embrace if it is to take maximum advantage of the clearest presidential directive its been given in decades. "
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Earth Science: "Earth Science"

Many beautiful images - LRK -
My Seven @ National Geographic Magazine: "On December 14, 1972, Harrison H. Schmitt finished 22 hours of rock and dust sampling. No human has landed on the moon since. Read about Schmitt's experience on the final Apollo mission in his own words."
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Friday, June 04, 2004

Gemini 4
Gemini 4: "

Date: 3 June 1965 15:15 GMT. . Landing Date: 7 June 1965. Flight Time: 4.08 days. Flight Up: Gemini 4. Flight Back: Gemini 4. Call Sign: American Eagle / Little Eva. Backup Crew: Borman, Lovell, Location of Capsule: National Air and Space Museum (Smithsonian Institution), Washington, DC. Program: Gemini. Firsts: First American space walk. First American long-duration spaceflight. "
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Thursday, June 03, 2004

Historic Space Launch Attempt Scheduled For June 21: "First X Prize Attempt Set For June 21

It's Show Time for the X Prize
Mojave CA (SPX) Jun 03, 2004
A privately-developed rocket plane will launch into history on June 21 on a mission to become the world's first commercial manned space vehicle. Investor and philanthropist Paul G. Allen and aviation legend Burt Rutan have teamed to create the program, which will attempt the first non-governmental flight to leave the earth's atmosphere."
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Moon and Mars - Videos

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