The Launch of a Lego Space Shuttle

For any lover of space or science fiction, you will love this fantastic video!  The music and the whole idea of it was just impressive.  It's heartbreaking to know that we will no longer hear of our Space Shuttle or when the next launch date will be.  I never realized how much this would affect me, but the Space Shuttle program started and ended in my lifetime.  I was in 8th grade when the Space Challenger exploded and it was the greatest tragedy I had ever experienced.  Who knew that a toy could make me feel so much nostalgia.

In the following video Raul Oaida used a helium-filled weather balloon to launch a Lego Space Shuttle to an altitude of 114,000 feet. He explains why he did it and how much effort went into completing this project on his website.

YouTube Description: My name is Raul Oaida (from Romania) and this is my LEGO tribute to the end of the space shuttle era. Proving that although retired, this machine can still fly, albeit in toy form.

The launch took place from central Germany (easy flight clearance) and reached a max altitude of 35000m. A 1600g meteo balloon filled with helium was used alongside a GoPro Hero, Spot GPS and of course Lego Space Shuttle model 3367.

We launched it on the 31st of December 2011, the equipment was recovered via GPS tracking 240 km S-E from a remote area.

I wish to thank Steve Sammartino for the opportunity to do this project and the german airtraffic control for the understanding.

Final Images of the Space Shuttle Atlantis Flight Deck

Well, the stripping has started for the Space Shuttle Atlantis.  The shuttle will be stripped of it's interior to make it lighter for it's public display at The Kennedy Space Center.  On July 8, the Space Shuttle flew it's final mission which also concluded NASA's 30-year program.  At that time, I posted a video of the Space Shuttles' illustrious career. Feel free to check it out.

The lovely folks at collectSPACE were were able to take final images of the Space Shuttle's flight deck, airlock, bay, and a few with the engines out and wheels down.

According to collectSPACE, it is now being prepared for its public display at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida. Its insides being pulled out to ensure it is safe for exhibit, as well as significantly lighten it for its planned steep-angled display, Atlantis is scheduled to be powered down this week for the final time.

collectSPACE had the rare opportunity recently to tour Atlantis to photograph its preparation and capture its glass cockpit powered and lit for one of its last times.

The following photo gallery starts on Atlantis' flight deck, and then proceeds to its now mostly empty middeck, out into and above the 60-foot payload bay, and then around and under the winged spacecraft.

These photographs were taken inside Orbiter Processing Facility-2 (OPF-2) at the Kennedy Space Center, where access platforms envelop Atlantis.

 

Make sure to check out collectSPACE's website to see the entire gallery.

One Giant Leap For Mankind

On Friday I blogged about the last space shuttle mission that occurred on July 8th, and the lasting impact it has left on all of us. It was an era in space exploration that spanned over 3 decades.

Today, I bring you a video courtesy of NPR.  It covers the Columbia, Challenger, Discovery, Atlantis, and Endeavour Space Shuttles, which flew a little over 100 missions in it's illustrious career - it really is a sight to behold.

"Let's Light This Fire One More Time"

Sadly, yesterday's successful launched marked the last shuttle flight for the NASA program.  

In what spanned 3 decades, it is constant reminder of how much our country has achieved in such a short amount of time.  

I have lived through these 30 years, and the stories I will share with my nieces and nephews will be beyond measure.  We have seen, happiness, we have seen tragedy, but through it all, we stuck together as one nation.  God Bless the USA.

From the Associated Press:

"Let's light this fire one more time," Commander Christopher Ferguson said just before taking flight.

The shuttle was visible for 42 seconds before disappearing into the clouds.

It will be at least three years - possibly five or more - before astronauts are launched again from U.S. soil, and so this final journey of the shuttle era packed in crowds and roused emotions on a scale not seen since the Apollo moon shots. NASA has set of long-term goal of flying to an asteroid and eventually Mars.

"Take a deep breath. Enjoy a little time here with your families again. But we've got a lot of work to do. We've got another program that we've got to get under way," NASA Administrator Charles Bolden told the launch control team after Atlantis reached orbit. He added: "We know what we're doing. We know how to get there. We've just got to convince everybody else that we know what we're doing."

A Huge Shuttle Show Down - It's Texas vs. New York

Things are getting ugly between Houston, Texas lawmakers and their counterparts in New York City, New York.  The War of Words started Friday when Texas lawmakers introduced a bill that would strip New York City of the Space Shuttle Enterprise and give it to Houston, Texas.

New York city Congressman Charles Schumer released a snarly statement by saying, "When people from Paris, Beijing, Tokyo and Amsterdam start saying they want to go to Houston, maybe then they'll get a shuttle. I'd say to Texas, don't mess with New York,"  knowing full well Texas is famous for their quote, "Don't Mess With Texas," the slogan used during the 1990's to keep people from littering our Texas highways with trash, or garbage.

Texas Congressman Ted Poe then fired back, "whether Senator Schumer likes it or not, the Big Apple had nothing to do with NASA or the space shuttle program until Tuesday."  Which is true, New York never had anything to do with the space shuttle program, Houston has long been involved since the beginning of space exploration.

Seventeen congressmen and congresswomen wrote and signed the letter which reads in part, "We can find no logical explanation for this decision."

 

I'm really curious to see how far this issue will go.  Are we heading towards a huge Texas Showdown?  Because if it's one thing Republicans in Texas are good at, is sticking it to others.  So Democrat, Schumer better be prepared.

Space Shuttle Facts

Now that the space shuttle orbiter is retired, and the remaining ships are going to their "chosen" cities (cries foul), I thought I'd share this informative chart on our popular spaceship.  

Both Challenger and Columbia encountered terrible disasters which happened during my lifetime.  Challenger exploded in 1986 while flying up into space, and Columbia fell apart over Texas during re-entry in 2003.

Houston Shut Out

The news of the day was directed at our hometown of Houston all day yesterday.  Why, you ask?  Because our city, as diverse as it is, got snubbed, spit, kicked in the groin, told to eat shit, and die.  It may not have come out that way, but it sure felt like it.

Here is the fourth largest city in the country, who plays host to millions of visitors every year, many of who specifically come to visit the Johnson Space Center.  A city which has been at the forefront of space development and exploration for over 50 years, 

'In fact, the most famous and the most infamous words ever spoken in the vacuum of space by humans - "Houston, Tranquility base here. The Eagle has landed," and "Houston, we have a problem" - were directed at the JSC here in Houston.' - The Houston Chronicle

But the most important topic of the conversation, was the blame game that came immediately afterward.  And like with everything else, why not blame Obama.  Republicans and conservatives cried foul yesterday blaming Obama for the decision, when in fact it was Charles Bolden's decision.  While I feel that no one should have disregarded the rich history and contribution our city has made, our local planning committee was really late in fighting for one of the shuttles.  All the cities had three years to make their bid, Houston didn't join until last year, and even so, I feel we shouldn't have been snubbed.  But to blame Obama for this is ludicrous at best.  Let us not forget 20 other cities were snubbed as well.