Space:The Final Frontier...

[vh_chick]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/space/200703...pottedonsaturn

Cool!

[ZeoBandit]

Very cool!

[Van Squalen]

This is a bigger deal than is being reported.

[perticelli]

This is a bigger deal than is being reported.

In what way? Is it possible a geometric shape such as that hexagon is possible strictly by laws of nature that we know of, or is there another angle you were considering?

[chefcraig]

Nah, it's merely the air filler valve, like the one on a basketball's bladder.

[vh resurrection]

Cool article!

I was watching a documentary about the Cassini spacecraft over the weekend (until the baby started crying). I never knew that you can't "land on Saturn." Apparently it is not actually solid.
I missed the interesting part about Titan though. Experts think it is kind of like the Earth except it rains methane instead of water and minute differences like that.

[ZeoBandit]

We need to start an offical NASA or Space thread. Too many cool things going on space to ignore!

[perticelli]

im a space junkie, id love that idea

Actually, Jupiter and saturn are considered "gas giants", as planets go.
We tried to land a probe on Jupiter, knowing it would never make it but would collect great data on the way..and it did.
I'd love to get some kind of close visual of the great red spot..either from above, the side or below, to see what its effect is on the planet.I almost am tempted to believe it is some kind of lifeform..

[perticelli]

here is a thread to discuss Space, and all that goes with it.

Here is a link to Space.com as well

http://www.space.com/

[jimmy812]

Sure, we're able to see things like this but we can't find Osama...



...sorry 'bout that unnecessary outburst.

[vh_chick]

Hey, can the mods move this to the new Space thread?

[chefcraig]

Actually, the "final" frontier simply must be "the clear, finite and resolute understanding of women and their inherant idiosyncratic mysteries, by any man".

"Space" is child's play, by way of comparison.

[ZeoBandit]

My first contribution:

NASA developing new space duds
POSTED: 12:25 p.m. EDT, March 23, 2007
Story Highlights
• NASA working to replace the bulky spacesuits it currently uses
• Engineers want to make the next spacesuit smaller and lighter
• New suit should be ready in time for Orion's maiden voyage in 2014
Adjust font size:
HOUSTON, Texas (AP) -- Astronaut apparel has evolved over the decades from 1960s-era aluminum foil-style outfits to the bulky, 275-pound whites now used on jaunts outside the space station.

NASA engineers at Houston's Johnson Space Center are hard at work on updating the look even further.

While it is too early in the design process to know what the new suits will look like, the space agency is hoping for something both high-tech and low-maintenance.

"Finding the right balance is always going to be a challenge," said veteran astronaut Jeff Williams, who has donned both the complex American suit and the spare Russian suit. "It's trade-offs."

The U.S. suits are easier to work in for long periods of time, but their complexity requires more maintenance. The one-size-fits-all Russian suits are used a few times and thrown away, but they're also not as flexible.

Developing the new suits is easier than in the Apollo spacecraft era of the late 1960s to early 1970s, when designers had to rely on slide rules and drafting tables. The suits are designed and re-designed on computer screens before any hardware is used.

"There's a lot more capable tools and technology to get the job done -- a lot more knowledge, as well -- so we can capitalize on them," said Joe Kosmo, who participated in the design, development and testing of suits from the Mercury, Gemini, Apollo, Skylab and shuttle eras.

At the top of the list is making the next spacesuit smaller and lighter. Engineers are hoping to halve the 200-pound weight of the suit and life support backpack lugged around by Apollo astronauts.

NASA plans to use new, lightweight composite materials and take advantage of smaller electronics to shrink the life support backpacks. NASA also wants the astronauts to be able to move around easily.

Terry Hill, who is developing the new spacesuit, recalled the robotic hops of the Apollo astronauts broadcasting from the moon.

"Mostly, that was because of mobility -- they just didn't have it," he said.

NASA wants to make the new spacesuit usable for launch, at the space station and on the moon and Mars. Shuttle astronauts don bright orange suits for launch and re-entry and carry on the white spacewalking suits.

Hill envisions swapping out the top part of the suit to fit the mission's needs. He hopes this feature will save money and cargo weight, because astronauts will not have to load up on several suits.

Some of the must-have features of a spacesuit are the ability to withstand extreme hot and cold temperatures, to shield radiation, and function on very low power because the spacesuit's oxygen-rich atmosphere can quickly turn sparks into fires.

Hill will not discuss the pricetag on the new suits because a production contract has yet to be awarded. "Nothing's cheap," Hill said.

NASA plans to award a contract in a year or so, produce the first prototypes by 2010 and certify the suit by 2012 in time for the new spaceship Orion's maiden voyage by 2014.

For Williams, who lived on the space station for six months last year, the space agency needs to dedicate the time and resources to get the suit right so the nation can enjoy the investment on going back to the moon and onto Mars.

"In the end," Williams said, "we'll be relying on these suits to go and do our exploration."

[Van Squalen]

im a space junkie, id love that idea

Actually, Jupiter and saturn are considered "gas giants", as planets go.
We tried to land a probe on Jupiter, knowing it would never make it but would collect great data on the way..and it did.
I'd love to get some kind of close visual of the great red spot..either from above, the side or below, to see what its effect is on the planet.I almost am tempted to believe it is some kind of lifeform..

There's a second red spot, ya know.

And Saturn may have an frozen methane-nitrogen core.

The most interesting parts of our solar system once we touch down there in extensive exploration are without doubt going to be Mars and the moons around Jupiter and Saturn, and probably the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter as well.

[chefcraig]

The most interesting parts of our solar system once we touch down there in extensive exploration are without doubt going to be Mars and the moons around Jupiter and Saturn, and probably the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter as well.

I still would like a believeable explanation for the "face" on Mars and why it was never followed up upon.

And no, I do not subscribe to those "newspapers" available at the supermarket check-out.