SpaceX Launches Today

Ok, so like everybody is talking about how awesome SpaceX is right now. I certainly won't be the first, nor the last, nor the most eloquent. But there is good reason to celebrate today, for today marks the beginning of a new era. You see, they launched their Falcon 9/Dragon combo into orbit. Flawlessly.

Dragons Breath Fatality - SpaceX Wins

Not only that, but this marks the start of a two week mission vetting the Dragon spacecraft. For the next three days it will engage in a series of tests before actually docking with the ISS. It will stay attached for ten days, giving the crew time to unload the cargo and load up Dragon for the return journey. Oh yeah, did I mention that Dragon is the only resupply vehicle that can bring stuff back down? 

So yeah, today was pretty big. I would say just go ask a SpaceX employee, but there probably isn't on near you. Instead, listen in on the wild cheers (at 12:44 a.m. no less) in the webcast of the launch. Those people are going freaking nuts! You have to check it out at 56:30 and especially at 58:30. No private company has launched, orbited, and retrieved a space capsule. No one except SpaceX. They are now in the middle of the mission that will make them first in a new era of commercial space activity. The sky is no longer the limit, thanks to SpaceX.

SpaceX Launches Today

The Beginning of an Evil Scheme

Who wants space platinum? Well, I do. And I'm sure that there's a number of people who would like to have access to space resources like gold, water, and iridium for far more practical purposes. I just want a hunk of metal from space. Not a bit of metal launched into space, I want metal from space. Technically, all metal is from space and indeed is still in space, but dammit it's not the same!

Sorry. I just loves me some space. But happily, there are a passel of people getting together to make it easier for people to have access to rare materials not found on Earth that are necessary for our current and future technology, shiny things, and water (which can also be air and rocket fuel). Which is pretty sweet, and may well pay off in the end. A small asteroid could potentially contain billions of dollars worth of material, not even counting the water. Or the popplers!*

But how feasible, really, is such a crazy thing as mining an asteroid? Well, maybe not that crazy. First, did I mention the popplers? I mean billions? Second, it's not impossible. Now, in general, when someone says something like that you can start planning your shopping list in your head while helpfully nodding along. But in this case, there is no particular reason why we can't mine asteroids. It's just that we haven't done it yet. True, the technology isn't created yet that can do such a thing. Neither has transportation technology like on Star Trek. But for the latter, that's more a problem of basic physics and our lack of understanding of physics. But space mining? Well, we went to the Moon, Mars, and Venus. We've been to asteroids and other moons. So we already have pre-existing rocket technology that can get us to the destination. We've had telescopes for like what, a hundred years or something. And we can strip mine like anything.

Sounds nice and easy. But it ain't. First off, the tech doesn't exist. Even counting what I just said in the previous paragraph, it is going to take a lot of new hardware, a lot of new ways of thinking, in order to get a functioning space mining business off the ground. That's not to say it can't be done, especially seeing who's involved. But it will be difficult. Also, it will be expensive. Like, ridiculously expensive. Like, buy an island, blow it up, replace it with larger island, type of expensive. The people involved are billionaires, so they have that sort of cash. But they also ain't stupid. They are expecting this to work.

But what is going to work? Truthfully, I doubt that this particular venture will ever truly see fruition as envisioned. I don't doubt that we will one day see a congressional hearing on the appropriate way to levy space stuff. But that day is not today. However, I am quite excited by some of the other potential things going on with this. First off, they have to find the rocks. Which will require cheap and durable space telescopes, riding on the wings of dragons breath, or some similar poetic way to describe a rocket**. They will also have to actually go to and scout potential targets in order to determine their composition and suitability for mining. In other words, they will do what our collective governments should be doing: Identifying, studying and mitigating potentially life threatening asteroids.

This is my ultimate hope for the project. I want this to be the catalyst that not only raises awareness of such threats, but to also spur on governments to deal with them. Frankly, we are in an era when we can prevent our own demise, so long as we take the actions necessary to do so.

Oh, and here's some other stuff about this topic:
Space.com
SpaceRef
Bad Astronomy
Alan Boyle
Other Alan Boyle


* You didn't think chicken nuggets grew on trees did you?
** No, 'Giant Dong' is not poetic. This is a giant dong, and this is a rocket. Know the difference.

The Beginning of an Evil Scheme

Space Beer Adventure - In Space!

I have always wanted to go to space. Not only would it be awe inspiring, but you could also pull off some fun pranks. Like spinning your buddy around while they're in the middle of the room. Without gravity, and if you don't spin them towards a wall, they just whirl like a space dervish* until you're able to create a new viral video - "Vomit Spiral". It'll be hilarious.

Or it would be, if you didn't choose a friend who knew about the conservation of momentum and so flings their limbs out as soon as you spin them. Granted, this will still strand your friend and be mildly amusing. But you want that viral video, dammit, and that's never going to happen until your friend hurls! So you decide to jump towards your dizzy friend, momentarily forgetting that you won't come arcing gently down again, like on Earth. No, the only result of your foolhardy leap is to push your friend towards the space couch, where he will watch with much glee as you bounce of the walls like some screaming ping pong ball.

I think I may have an active imagination.

But I never imagined alcohol in space. I mean, I think you could have some nifty fountains in a space hotels space restaurant. I mean sure, it would help out with that spinning prank either way, you or your friend making the viral video. But as a general thing I wouldn't want people to have any more reason to have a queasy stomach than that already provided by being in microgravity.

Luckily, the recent news of 'space Scotch' is mostly about studying the effects of microgravity on maturation (of alcoholic ingredients such as malt and charred oak) and how certain chemicals and their aromas may be effected. So no space stills and space frat parties.

Except this one.

Now some of you may be wondering what the hell NASA is doing wasting money on stuff like this. Which would be perfectly reasonable if it weren't for the fact that this is not a NASA study. It's a private distillery named Ardbeg that contracted Houston based Nanoracks to get their experiment onto the ISS.

Ok, so there are these people who build racks and modules for experiments to go into space. They also team up with CASIS to get those experiments onto the ISS. This means that any given company (like a Scottish distillery) can send their in-company research up into space. And that, my friends, is a prime example of commercial utilization of space.

But wait, I can imagine some of you saying. The ISS is a governmental venture, not private. Doesn't that invalidate the idea that this is a commercial venture? That argument could be valid, but only if this was the pinnacle and extent of commercial enterprise in space. But it's not! There are a number of people that are making all sorts of stuff to facilitate private individuals and business getting into space.

There's Xcor and Masten for launches, a ton of cubesat makers such as Boeing as well as a site that sells all the stuff you need to build one at home! Heck, there's even a website devoted to the freaking hobby of space exploration. Admittedly, it's a somewhat expensive hobby that consists mostly of weather balloons and sounding rockets. But still! Youtube has tons of stuff all about what can be done with a weather balloon.

'O Canada! Our home and native land...'

So no, the commercial argument is not invalidated. The ISS is a way point to a grander future. NASA is mostly serving as a facilitator and encourager more than a permanent resource (Of course NASA will in all likelihood continue to play host to commercial experiments in the future, but more as one choice amongst a plethora of others) NASA is mostly providing the scaffolding for a burgeoning market, plus some seed money to get things started.

Space alcohol sounds kind of silly, not unlike some of my space daydreams. But a story like that is really just one more sign of what's to come. We are fast approaching, and in some ways are already at, the day when going to space is cheap, easy, and you don't have to be a government employee to catch a ride on a rocket.

*That's the worst kind of dervish!

Also, here's some links to other stuff:


CASIS
The Space Review

Space Beer Adventure - In Space!

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Spaceflight Now | Breaking News | NASA, Caltech mull over unique satellite donation:

'via Blog this'

I understand that we can't keep every mission going for as long as they retain at least some function. Not everything is a Voyager or Opportunity. Some missions have simply lost so much functionality that the cost of maintaining the mission with a full up NASA staff has become economically unviable. This is bound to occur, even at the best of times.

But a loss of some functions is not a complete loss, at least not always. It would be nice to have some way of continuing what scientific or observational functions a satellite may have after being decommissioned by NASA. I think it would be awesome if there was a way, some system, that allows companies and universities to buy or use defunct satellites. Hopefully, what's going on with the GALEX* satellite will set a precedent for creating such a system.

Now, there is one sorta downside to this. In good times, when the socio-politco-economic climate is such that we can engage in science with wanton abandon (or at least in carefully reasoned fits of wanton abandon), there won't be a lot of semi-functional satellites available. But they probably wouldn't be needed anyway, so that's fine. On the other hand, in bad times there will be more, and better functioning, satellites available simply because more satellites would get the official axe.

This has possibilities...

*Totally a name from Dr. Who, or oughta be.

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