Aerospace & Defense
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Spacecraft Power System Development Startup Amplified Space Pitches at Angel Capital Summit
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This week, spacecraft power system development startup Amplified Space‘s CEO Jerome Hittle pitched the company at the Rockies Venture Club Angel Capital Summit, as part of the Rockies Space Fund Aerospace Track. I’ve been working with Jerome and the team as a mentor and coach for the last couple of weeks, and was proud that…
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Rockies Space Fund Aerospace Panel Notes – Rockies Venture Club Angel Capital Summit
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The blog post discusses a panel on aerospace investing at the Rockies Venture Club Angel Capital Summit, focusing on the shift towards more commercial opportunities in aerospace, despite traditional perceptions of it being government-centric. Experts highlighted the importance of strategic partnerships, debunked misconceptions deterring investment, and emphasized the role of non-dilutive funding like SBIR. They…
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Starship IFT3 Lifts Off
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SpaceX’s latest Starship test marked another significant stride, despite not meeting all objectives. The launch showcased improvements with all 33 Raptor engines maintaining function, a successful stage separation, and the booster executing a flip maneuver. However, the booster’s landing ended explosively over the Gulf of Mexico. The second stage reached orbital speeds and performed a…
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Visiting the Baikonur Cosmodrome with Roscosmos
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Thanks to management at Roscosmos for providing incredibly access to me and team to the facilities at Baikonur Cosmodrome, and for hosting us during our short stay in June, 2019. The Legacy of Baikonur Cosmodrome: Gateway to the Cosmos At the heart of human space exploration lies the Baikonur Cosmodrome, a place of both historical…
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The NASA Handheld Universal Lunar Camera (HULC) will be a modded Nikon Z9
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NASA has partnered with Nikon to create the “Handheld Universal Lunar Camera” (HULC) for moon missions, based on the Nikon Z9. This mirrorless camera, with a possibly updated sensor, will withstand moon’s radiation. It’s a nod to Apollo’s Hasselblad cameras, which captured the groundbreaking lunar imagery of 1969.
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Private Pilot
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I got my private pilots license (PPL) flying a Cessna 172S. I primarily trained with Aspen Flying Club at Centennial Airport (KAPA), in addition to a number of training flights originating from Western Air Flight Academy at Rocky Mountain Metro Airport KBJC. My solo cross country training flights were from Centennial KAPA down to Pueblo…
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An incredible view: Apollo 11 Found Footage Todd Douglas Miller Documentary
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I’ve watched this one over and over again… the feel of this “found footage” is simply incredible, and its amazing to see the “slice of life” surrounding the Apollo 11 mission. Apollo 11 (2019) From director Todd Douglas Miller (Dinosaur 13) comes a cinematic event fifty years in the making. Crafted from a newly discovered…
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Investigating SPIDER Polarimeter Long Duration Balloon Payload
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One of the most interesting science facilities at McMurdo is the NASA Long Duration Balloon Facility. This site, on the ice shelf and well away from anything else is the assembly and launch area for extreme high altitude balloons, carrying a variety of science payloads. During my trip out there, I was fortunate enough to…
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Tracking Satellites in McMurdo at NASA’s Near Earth Network Ground Station
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One of the more interesting facilities at McMurdo station is NASA’s NEar Earth Network Ground Station. The facility is comprised of a server and management office in McMurdo proper, as well as a large satellite dish, covered with a radome, on the edge of Arrival Heights, just outside of town. From NASA: October 3, 2014…
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Orion – NASA’s Newest Spacecraft
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Love this explainer video – can’t wait for the first full launch! As the flight test of NASA’s Orion spacecraft nears, the agency released Wednesday a video — called “Trial By Fire” — detailing the spacecraft’s test and the critical systems engineers will evaluate during the Dec. 4 flight. Orion is in the final stages…
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An Astronaut at the South Pole: Dr. Scott Parazynski Visits The Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station
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Here at the south pole, we get lots of visitors – and many of them are extremely interesting. This past week I had the honor of meeting NASA Astronaut Scott E. Parazynski, MD. Dr. Parazynzki is now working as the Medical Director of the United States Antarctic Program. Having dinner with both Dr. Parazynzki as…
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The BLAST-Pol Balloon-Borne Submillimeter-Wave Telescope Launches From McMurdo Station, Antarctica
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Although this happened at McMurdo and I didn’t get to see it personally, it’s still cool – a high altitude weather balloon launch in Antarctica. BLAST-Pol is a balloon-borne submillimeter-wave telescope designed to study star formation in our galaxy. It was launched on its 2012 long-duration stratospheric balloon flight by the crew of NASA’s Columbia…
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The South Pole Communications Office
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Communication is key – and at the south pole, communication is a vital link for the 160 or so of us who live here. In support of linking together all of the different groups of people, locations, and jobs, we have a central comms office, which handles everything. The comms situation here is complex, and…
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Learning About Space Suit Design With Astronaut Joseph Tanner
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This past week, my brother Jason and I were fortunate enough to be allowed to sit in on a guest lecture at the University of Colorado Engineering Center by NASA Astronaut Joe Tanner. Joe spoke to us about the ins and outs of spacesuit design, and shared a bunch of his personal stories. A pic…
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RedBull Stratos Stratospheric Jump – Felix Baumgartner
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Good luck to Felix Baumgartner as he embarks on the RedBull Stratos mission! Red Bull Stratos, a mission to the edge of space, will attempt to transcend human limits that have existed for 50 years. Supported by a team of experts Felix Baumgartner plans to ascend to 120,000 feet in a stratospheric balloon and make…
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Go To The Moon With The Apollo Astronauts in Documentary “For All Mankind”
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For All Mankind is a simply stunning documentary covering the Apollo missions to the Moon. Stunning on all fronts. Scored by Brian Eno. Enough said. This movie documents the Apollo missions perhaps the most definitively of any movie under two hours. Al Reinert watched all the footage shot during the missions–over 6,000,000 feet of it,…
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Infographic: Terraforming Mars
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With the Curiosity Rover set out on its mission on Mars, we’re one more step closer to sending humans there. Here’s an interesting infographic from Discovery and NASA going over a possible budget and timeline for terraforming the red planet to create a habitable environment. Very very interesting….
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MARS Curiosity Rover first Color 360 Panorama – Round the world with panoramas.dk
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Super cool interactive 360 Panorama from the Mars Curiosity Rover – looks like you could just step out onto the surface.. Interactive Panorama: JPL Image: From JPL:Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS This color panorama shows a 360-degree view of the landing site of NASA’s Curiosity rover, including the highest part of Mount Sharp visible to the rover.…
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RIP Neil Armstrong
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Neil Armstrong, an American hero died today. He will be missed. From the NY Times: Neil Armstrong, a quiet, self-described nerdy engineer who became a global hero when he made “one giant leap for mankind” with a small step on to the moon, died Saturday. He was 82.Multimedia Mr. Armstrong died after complications from cardiovascular…
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Infographic: Inside Huge Mars Rovers Sky Crane Landing
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Inside Huge Mars Rovers Sky Crane Landing Infographic | Mars Science Laboratory & Curiosity Rover Landing Plan | NASA Mars Missions & Rovers on Mars | Space.com.
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Curiosity Rover Successfully Lands On Mars!!
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Congratulations to the NASA/JPL-Caltech crew for successfully landing the Mars Science Laboratory’s Curiosity Rover on Mars! Here are the first images taken by Curiosity on the red planet.. NASA Administrator Charles Bolden’s statement: NASA is back on Mars – and getting ready for the next mission to the Red Planet! After an astounding 154 million…
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Photos: Curiosity Just Days Away From Mars
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Certainly my top photo set of the week – a complete photo album of the assembly and launch of the Mars Science Laboratory mission. Very cool. Good luck on touchdown on Mars in a few days! Curiosity Just Days Away From Mars – In Focus – The Atlantic.
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All 135 Space Shuttle Launches At Once Video
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Following up on my post about the Space Shuttle Launch explainer video “Ascent: Commemorating Shuttle“, here’s another one of all 135 Space Shuttle launches. Cool! Also notable: Launching Apollo 11 at 500fps
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Eugene Cernan on the Moon – Apollo 17
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This picture of Apollo 17 Commander Eugene Cernan, covered in lunar dust after walking on the moon is great. Chilling in a capsule parked on the moon, covered in regolith. Simply awesome. Found via Universe Today Here’s the pic of Cernan on the lunar surface, as posted on Astronomy Picture of the Day 2002-12-12, with…