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.
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.
Comet Leonard looks to be the best of the year, and it's visible now
It's likely the brightest comet of 2021. You might be able to see it with binoculars before the next sunrise.
After several months of anticipation, the most promising comet for skywatchers this year is finally drawing closer and more visible.
At the beginning of 2021, researcher Greg Leonard discovered Comet C/2021 A1, now better known as Comet Leonard. At the time, it was heading in our direction from deep space, with the potential to be the brightest comet of the year.
No other superstar comets with the ability to outshine Leonard have emerged just yet, so it looks as if luminous Lenny will fulfill its potential in the coming month.
"There are chances to easily see this comet by naked eye, even if under less than optimal conditions," wrote astronomer Gianluca Masi with the Virtual Telescope Project, based in Italy.
Of course, comets are infamously fickle about their plans and can disintegrate to almost nothing at just about any time as they draw closer to the sun.
But if Leonard survives and lives up to astronomers' most optimistic predictions, the big space snowball will pass near Earth in December when it may be visible with binoculars or possibly even without them. From there it makes a close pass by the sun and heads back out to deep space in January.
A number of astrophotographers have already managed to snap some pretty impressive shots of Leonard sporting a green coma with spiffy extended tail.
It likely won't be possible to see Leonard without lenses until at least the middle of December, but you may be able to catch it with binoculars already. For the next few weeks, it's visible primarily in the early morning hours before sunrise. As the year starts to wind down, you should be able to spot it in evening skies.
To see what has at least a chance of being a once-in-a-lifetime cosmic event, I recommend putting your location into a tracking app or website like TheSkyLive to get the best times and which direction to look. For folks in North America like me, mark your calendars for Dec. 14, which is right after the comet passes by Earth and when it will become visible just above the horizon after sunset for many viewers.
While we can't say for sure just yet what kind of show Leonard will put on, we do know that this will be our only chance to see it close up: Its journey here from deep space is estimated to have taken about 35,000 years.
Anyone else watch the Neutron reveal? Thought it seemed pretty interesting. I like the idea of an enclosed 2nd stage. Kind of like just upscaling their kickstage units with massive tanks.
Saw a string of starlinks overhead tonight. It's pretty entertaining listening to people, who don't know what they are looking at, speculate on what they are seeing. [Reply]
After some two decades of development, the orbital observatory is set to at last reach space on December 22
The new James Webb Space Telescope is topped off and one step closer to taking flight.
Mission team members have finished fueling the James Webb Space Telescope at ahead of its planned Dec. 22 launch from the Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana, the European Space Agency announced Monday (Dec. 6). The fueling for Webb, which is an international collaborative effort between NASA, ESA and the Canadian Space Agency, took 10 days and was completed on Dec. 3, according to the ESA statement.
After a series of delays since the development of the scope first began in 1996, Webb is still on track to finally launch Dec. 22 atop an Arianespace Ariane 5 rocket from the Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana.
"Webb's propellant tanks were filled separately with [21 gallons] 79.5 l of dinitrogen tetroxide oxidizer and [42 gallons] 159 l hydrazine," the ESA wrote in the announcement, adding that the oxidizer "improves the burn efficiency of the hydrazine fuel."
[...]
Webb is destined for a location in space 930,000 miles (1.5 million kilometers) away known as L2, a Lagrange point or a stable gravitational location in space. Upon arrival, the telescope will spend six months in a "commissioning period" during which the team will ensure that it unfolded correctly and its instruments are working correctly. [Reply]
After some two decades of development, the orbital observatory is set to at last reach space on December 22
The new James Webb Space Telescope is topped off and one step closer to taking flight.
Mission team members have finished fueling the James Webb Space Telescope at ahead of its planned Dec. 22 launch from the Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana, the European Space Agency announced Monday (Dec. 6). The fueling for Webb, which is an international collaborative effort between NASA, ESA and the Canadian Space Agency, took 10 days and was completed on Dec. 3, according to the ESA statement.
After a series of delays since the development of the scope first began in 1996, Webb is still on track to finally launch Dec. 22 atop an Arianespace Ariane 5 rocket from the Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana.
"Webb's propellant tanks were filled separately with [21 gallons] 79.5 l of dinitrogen tetroxide oxidizer and [42 gallons] 159 l hydrazine," the ESA wrote in the announcement, adding that the oxidizer "improves the burn efficiency of the hydrazine fuel."
[...]
Webb is destined for a location in space 930,000 miles (1.5 million kilometers) away known as L2, a Lagrange point or a stable gravitational location in space. Upon arrival, the telescope will spend six months in a "commissioning period" during which the team will ensure that it unfolded correctly and its instruments are working correctly.
Getting closer to white-knuckle time! @esa says the James Webb Space Telescope has been moved to the building where it will be stacked on top of the Ariane 5 rocket. Launch is still scheduled for Dec. 22.https://t.co/Bm3rqDkAxDpic.twitter.com/9roiCyDrFs
After some two decades of development, the orbital observatory is set to at last reach space on December 22
The new James Webb Space Telescope is topped off and one step closer to taking flight.
Mission team members have finished fueling the James Webb Space Telescope at ahead of its planned Dec. 22 launch from the Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana, the European Space Agency announced Monday (Dec. 6). The fueling for Webb, which is an international collaborative effort between NASA, ESA and the Canadian Space Agency, took 10 days and was completed on Dec. 3, according to the ESA statement.
After a series of delays since the development of the scope first began in 1996, Webb is still on track to finally launch Dec. 22 atop an Arianespace Ariane 5 rocket from the Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana.
"Webb's propellant tanks were filled separately with [21 gallons] 79.5 l of dinitrogen tetroxide oxidizer and [42 gallons] 159 l hydrazine," the ESA wrote in the announcement, adding that the oxidizer "improves the burn efficiency of the hydrazine fuel."
[...]
Webb is destined for a location in space 930,000 miles (1.5 million kilometers) away known as L2, a Lagrange point or a stable gravitational location in space. Upon arrival, the telescope will spend six months in a "commissioning period" during which the team will ensure that it unfolded correctly and its instruments are working correctly.
It won't. They couldn't have designed a more complicated vehicle. It's an abomination of big-space funding. [Reply]
