The ISS (International Space Station) passed over Quezon City, Philippines from 17:58 to 18:04 of Nov. 30, 2009. Despite the cloud cover, I was able to get my first photo of the ISS flyby during its maximum altitude (88 degrees alt, Southwest direction).  Its brightness was almost the same with that of Venus.

Photo details: Canon EOS 450D, f/7.1, ISO 100, 15 seconds exposure, leveled in GIMP

Image credit: Guy Laliberte/Cirque du Soleil

Sergai Krikalyov, veteran cosmonaut and vice-president of the Russian space corporation Energia, has stated that there is no longer room on the ISS for visiting tourists since the space station crew doubled to six earlier this year. There is no word yet as to whether this is the official position of the Russian space agency Roscosmos. Guy Laliberte, founder of the Cirque du Soleil and the latest ’spaceflight participant’ at the ISS, arrived back on Earth last month.

[Haz clic para ampliar]

Desde la Estación Espacial Internacional, el Sol, una Tierra creciente y el largo brazo de un panel solar están a la vista por fuera de una ventana, esto durante la visita del trasnbordador espacial “Atlantis”.

Observatorio.org

Shuttle Mission STS-129 came to a completion with Space Shuttle Atlantis landing in Florida on Friday. Atlantis launched on November, 16 and flew nearly 4,500,000 miles.

As the remaining missions for the shuttle fleet wind down, NASA used STS-129 to deliver a slew of replacement parts, and backup devices to the International Space Station, and completed 3 spacewalks.

Space shuttle Atlantis lands on runway 33 at NASA Kennedy Space Center’s Shuttle Landing Facility concluding the STS-129 mission.
Photo credit: NASA Jack Pfaller

The landing also saw the return of astronaut Nicole Stott. After 91 days in space after serving as Expedition 20/21 flight engineer, her return marks the last time an I.S.S. crew member will be transferred to or from the space station.

The STS-129 crew in front of Atlantis, dressed in their launch-and-entry suits prior to launch. From left are Mission Specialists Leland Melvin and Randy Bresnik; Pilot Barry E. Wilmore; Commander Charles O. Hobaugh; and Mission Specialists Mike Foreman and Robert L. Satcher Jr.
Image credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

This is the final shuttle flight of 2009 with the next launch to be STS-130 as Space Shuttle Endeavour heads to I.S.S. in February.

Space shuttle Atlantis and its crew of seven astronauts ended an 11-day journey of nearly 4.5 million miles with a 9:44 a.m. EST landing Friday at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata, received an award from Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama on Wednesday.


Astronaut Koichi Wakata (left) receives an award from Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama (right) on Wednesday. Wakata is the first Japanese astronaut to serve on an I.S.S. crew and the first Japanese astronaut to stay in space for a prolonged period of time.
Credit: JAXA

Wakata received the award for being the first Japanese astronaut to stay in space for a prolonged period of time. He was on the International Space Station for 4 ½ months before returning to Earth on July, 31.

Wakata’s first journey to space was during the STS-72 mission of Space Shuttle Endeavour, launched on January 11, 1996. His work on I.S.S. began in October of 2000 as a Mission Specialist on the STS-92 mission of Space Shuttle Discovery to I.S.S. This assembly work prepared I.S.S. for its first resident crew.


File photo of Wakata from March, 2007.
Credit: NASA

His most recent trip to I.S.S. began as a Flight Engineer on the STS-119 mission of Space Shuttle Discovery in March of 2009. While on I.S.S, Wakata served as Flight Engineer 2 on crews Expedition 18, Expedition 19, and Expedition 20. He became the first Japanese astronaut of an I.S.S. crew. He returned home in July aboard the STS-127 mission of Space Shuttle Endeavor.

Wakata demonstrating a “flying carpet” during his stay on I.S.S.

Nov. 30 is your last chance to get a glimpse of the International Space Station (ISS) as it flies around the Earth this year. You don’t even need a telescope to view it. Weather permitting, it should be visible to the naked eye throughout the US and Canada. The largest man-made object in space will appear as a bright light in the sky, and is much brighter than an average satellite orbiting the planet. On a good night, the station rivals the planet Venus in brightness and can appear up to 25 times brighter than Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky. On Monday, it won’t be quite that bright, but at a magnitude of -2.0, it will still still stand out amongst Venus and the brightest stars.

If you want to get a glimpse before it’s gone, check out SpaceWeather.com to get viewing times for your location. Simply enter your zip code and then look for ISS. SpaceWeather.com also tracks other satellites, the space shuttles, and Hubble Telescope. In fact, Atlantis flew over during the Thanksgiving holiday and was also visible to the naked eye. If you’ve never seen a space shuttle glide across the sky at night, it’s a neat sight. You can bookmark SpaceWeather.com and the next time the shuttle undocks from the ISS you can find out when (or if) it will be viewable from your location. Pretty cool, huh?

Atterrissage parfait de la navette Atlantis

Floride, vendredi 27 novembre 2009 à 9:44 locales (15:34 heure française)

Le Commandant Hobaugh pose Atlantis au Centre Spatial Kennedy, Image Credit: NASA / Jim Grossmann

Après 11 jours dans l’espace, 171 orbites  et un voyage de 4.5 millions de miles, la navette Atlantis achève sa mission STS-129, son avant-dernière mission,  et touche le sol dans un nuage de fumée dégagée par les pneus du train d’atterrissage principal  sur la piste 33 du Centre Spatial Kennedy en Floride.
Le temps superbe a permis un atterrissage parfait dont on peut voir la vidéo HQ plus bas dans cette page.

Lors de cette dernière mission de l’année, le Cdt Hobaugh et son équipage (Commander Charlie Hobaugh, le pilote Barry Wilmore, les Spécialistes Randy Bresnik, Mike Foreman, Leland Melvin, Robert Satcher)  ont permis à Atlantis de livrer 14 tonnes de matériel à la Station Spatiale Internationale, dont deux gros containers ExPress contenant des pièces détachées et des instruments destinés à la maintenance de la Station après que les navettes soient mises à la retraite l’année prochaine. Trois sorties dans l’espace (EVA) ont été nécessaires par les Missions Spécialistes pour réaliser ces tâches.

Au cours de ce 31ème vol vers la Station Internationale, la navette Atlantis a également rapporté sur Terre des équipements défectueux du système de recyclage d’eau de la station.  Cinq derniers vols vers l’ISS sont encore prévus l’année prochaine. Le prochain vol de navette est prévu pour février 2010 : il s’agira cette fois-ci  d’Endeavour qui transportera de nouveaux éléments pour achever la construction de l’ISS qui est actuellement avancée à 89 %.

La navette a également ramené sur Terre l’astronaute américaine Nicole Stott, qui a passé 91 jours dans l’espace depuis son arrivée avec Discovery lancée le 28 août dernier.
Aussitôt touché le sol Nicole est partie rejoindre son conjoint et son fils de 7 ans.
Son collègue Randolph Bresnik, lui, disait être impatient de prendre sa fillette dans ses bras pour la première fois, puisque celle-ci est née durant son séjour dans l’espace.

Space shuttle Atlantis and its crew of seven astronauts ended an 11-day journey of nearly 4.5 million miles with a 9:44 a.m. EST landing Friday at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

The mission, designated STS-129, included three spacewalks and the installation of two platforms to the International Space Station’s truss, or backbone. The platforms hold large spare parts to sustain station operations after the shuttles are retired. The shuttle crew delivered about 30,000 pounds of replacement parts for systems that provide power to the station, keep it from overheating, and maintain a proper orientation in space.

Be the first to know on Manin’s Blog

Tonight I was able to catch some images of the ISS, though it was not nearly as stunning as the Fly over of the ISS and Shuttle Atlantis it was worth imaging! As any other night I have an ISS pass I prepare my self ahead of time and leave about 15min before the pass. Though as I waked on the Golf Course this time I had enough with the normal spot where I still get car lights shining in my face (and Camera Lens) so this time I went a bit further out on the Golf Course. I ended up standing on the Green of some hole which was really great flat, nice clear horizon, and no crazy car lights!

I’ve seen literally  hundreds of ISS passes in my lifetime and amazingly the best have been in the past 3 days! My favorite and most memorable would have been November 25ths passing of both the ISS and Shuttle Atlantis, then tonights amazingly bright passing!

ISS over the Light Polluted Houses

As the ISS appeared above the horizon it was hard for me to really assure myself that it was the ISS, but by the time it was about 30 degrees above the Horizon I was certain it was the ISS.

ISS Nearing Vega

The Space Station got brighter and brighter as it got higher in the sky, though that is normal for all passings. This time something was different the brightness was increasing slowly and I thought it would be a lousy flyby.

ISS and the Summer Tirangle

Though I was proven wrong the ISS only got brighter and brighter as it went past the Moon and Jupiter. Eventually as I thought it would start fading it in fact got brighter! At maximum brightness I was able to even record it on video with my Phone!

ISS & Jupiter

ISS at Maximum Brightness

Though as all other passes they must eventually fade away and end, and this one did, but not fast. The ISS was visible all the way down the Horizon! This truly was one of the best flybys ever!

More Photos:

ISS all the Way to the Horizon!

The Sunset

(View Large size of the each image by clicking the image)

Hello folks!

Sorry for the delay in posts, its been a busy time.

I hopped over to Kingston, Ontario @ the Royal Military College for the 2009 Canadian Space Summit. Many meetings ran that weekend – including one I organized called the Canadian Space Leaders Roundtable (CSLR 2009). This was a meeting of the leadership of Canadian space awareness groups. (Full list to be published soon).

I was also fortunate to present at the Canadian Space Summit during the Education session on the Iris – Image Reversal In Space experiment on behalf of 50 students from 14 nations.

After this I dashed off to Toronto to meet some family and friends I hadn’t seen for almost a year since my last visit. Back to Calgary, and I had a gift waiting for me – in addition to the first snowfall! Check this out – the actual patches from International Space Station Expeditions 20 & 21, along with a t-shirt from my space shirt collection

NASA Astronaut Nicole Stott returned today to Earth on the Space Shuttle at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, USA after 4 months on the ISS. Welcome Home, Nicole!

Dr. Robert Thirsk and his Increment 19 crewmates will be returning by Soyuz capsule December 1st, officially concluding Dr. Thirsk’s 6-month stay and the formal in-orbit activity of the Iris – Image Reversal In Space experiment.

Desde que la Estación Espacial Internacional está en funcionamiento varios han sido los afortunados que, tras pagar ingentes cantidades de dinero, han podido pegarse unas pequeñas vacaciones en dichas instalaciones. Pues bien, ahora se ha conocido que por el momento, el “turisteo espacial” a la ISS es inviable.   —–>>>  

Las razones son puramente logísticas. A principios de este año la tripulación permanente de la ISS se duplicó a seis personas y a partir del próximo los transbordadores de EE.UU serán retirados. Debido al aumento de tripulación dos naves Soyuz están permanentemente acopladas a la estación para ser utilizar en caso de emergencia, quedando una tercera Soyuz (donde sólo entran tres pasajeros) como único vehículo para realizar las rotaciones de la tripulación. Este nuevo panorama deja a los turistas espaciales en un segundo plano, todos los recursos serán destinados a los astronautas.

La medida tiene su parte buena y su parte menos buena. Por un lado se pierde una fuente interesante de ingresos (los civiles que han viajado a la ISS lo hicieron tras pagar mucho mucho dinero) pero por el otro tenemos que el duplicar la tripulación permanente permitirá que otras naciones puedan enviar a sus astronautas a la estación.

Naveta spaţială americană Atlantis, având la bord şapte astronauţi, s-a desprins de Staţia Spaţială Internaţională (ISS) şi s-a înscris pe traiectoria de revenire pe Pământ, au anunţat experţii NASA. Naveta Atlantis este aşteptată să aterizeze la baza din Cape Canaveral din statul american Florida vineri, la ora 14.44 GMT. Următoarea misiune a unei navete americane este prevăzută pentru februarie 2010.

În timpul acestei misiuni de 11 zile, astronauţii au efectuat trei ieşiri în spaţiu pentru a instala diverse echipamente necesare pentru a completa instalarea ISS. Unul dintre astronauţi, Randy Bresnik, va face cunoştinţă la întoarcerea pe Pământ cu cea de-a doua lui fiică, născută în timpul acestei misiuni spaţiale. Cele trei ieşiri pe orbită au permis în special instalarea unei antene de schimb pe ISS, a două antene pe laboratorul european Columbus, dintre care una va servi la identificarea automată a traficului maritim, iar cea de-a doua va fi folosită de sistemul de radio amator al staţiei, dar şi a unui rezervor de oxigen la presiune înaltă, ataşat la compartimentul de presurizare al modulului Quest.

Atlantis o va aduce pe Terra pe astronauta Nicole Stott, care a sosit la bordul staţiei în luna august şi a făcut parte din echipajul permanent al ISS, al cărui număr de membri a ajuns la şase, din luna mai, dublu faţă de capacitatea de găzduire din anii precedenţi. Astăzi, astronautul belgian Frank De Winne, de la Agenţia Spaţială Europeană (ESA), a predat comanda ISS americanului Jeff Williams, aflat la bord din luna octombrie. Frank De Winne, cosmonautul rus Roman Romanenko şi astronautul canadian Robert Thirsk vor părăsi ISS, la bordul unui vehicul rusesc Soyuz, pe 1 decembrie, după ce au petrecut 188 de zile în spaţiu.

Aceasta a fost a cincea şi, totodată, ultima misiune din acest an pentru o navetă spaţială americană. Această misiune, al cărei nume de cod este STS-129, a avut ca scop livrarea la bordul avanpostului orbital a 12 tone de materiale şi piese de schimb, care au fost depozitate pe două platforme exterioare. Ele vor fi utilizate ulterior pentru a asigura buna funcţionare a ISS, după ce cele trei navete spaţiale americane vor fi scoase din circulaţie.

Printre materialele şi echipamentele transportate de Atlantis se află două giroscoape, notează Mediafax. Ele sunt necesare pentru stabilitatea staţiei, şi două rezervoare de azot, indispensabile pentru sistemul de climatizare. Asamblarea ISS fiind aproape terminată, agenţia spaţială americană doreşte să trimită cât mai multe materiale şi piese de schimb la bordul ISS în timpul acestor ultime zboruri ale navetelor americane. După misiunea Atlantis, NASA va mai avea la dispoziţie doar şase zboruri înainte de retragerea din circulaţie a flotei sale spaţiale, eveniment prevăzut pentru septembrie 2010, care marchează sfârşitul acestui program spaţial şi, totodată, data la care asamblarea ISS va fi finalizată.

Navetele spaţiale americane rămân în continuare singurele vehicule spaţiale capabile să transporte echipamente extrem de grele şi foarte voluminoase, indispensabile operaţiunilor de întreţinere a ISS, care va rămâne operaţională până în 2020. Totuşi, NASA ar putea decide prelungirea termenului de funcţionare a navetelor până în 2011, pentru a reduce perioada în care SUA va depinde de capsulele ruseşti Soyuz pentru transportarea astronauţilor americani pe ISS, până la intrarea în funcţiune a capsulelor americane Orion, prevăzută pentru 2015.

Însă soarta programului spaţial ce implică folosirea capsulelor Orion, denumit Constellation, este incertă. Casa Albă îl reexaminează, pe baza unor opţiuni propuse de o comisie de experţi independenţi, înfiinţată de preşedintele Barack Obama la începutul mandatului său prezidenţial.

Această comisie, care şi-a publicat raportul în urmă cu câteva săptămâni, a ajuns la concluzia că programul Constellation, lansat de fostul preşedinte american George W. Bush în 2004, dispune de o finanţare insuficientă pentru a-şi atinge obiectivele principale – trimiterea unor astronauţi americani pe Lună în jurul anului 2020, urmată de o misiune spaţială către planeta Marte, cu echipaj uman la bord. ISS este un proiect spaţial în valoare de 100 de miliarde de dolari, finanţat în principal de Statele Unite şi la realizarea căruia participă 16 ţări.

Sursa: Jurnalul National

(Mail Online) – It is only on recent missions that images of this quality of image were released almost as soon as they had happened. They are testament to the rapid advances in technology available to both the public and space scientists. …

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1231118/Space-Shuttle-Atlantis-The-amazing-images-Space-Shuttles-seven-day-stint-International-Space-Station.html

diariodaproducao on novembro 26th, 2009

ARISS é a sigla internacional de Radioamadores na Estação Espacial Internacional (Amateur Radio on International Space Station), um programa voluntariado que inspira alunos, a nível mundial, a seguirem as carreiras em ciência, tecnologia, engenharia e matemática através de comunicações de rádio amador. O ponto mais interessante desse programa é a oportunidade de comunicação de escolas em qualquer lugar do Brasil, com a Estação Espacial Internacional (ISS) e sua tripulação em órbita. Os alunos podem aprender sobre a vida a bordo da ISS e sobre a exploração da terra através do espaço, com atividades ligadas a ciência e matemática. O Projeto ARISS proporciona oportunidade a comunidade escolar (alunos, professores, famílias e moradores locais) de se conscientizar dos benefícios substanciais dos voos espaciais tripulados, as explorações espaciais e as suas descobertas. Como valor agregado, há também a oportunidade de se aprender sobre tecnologia em geral e rádio amador.

ISS & Shuttle Atlantis

I have a simple routine that I go through every day on my computer. When I have time I come, sit down and check all of my networking sites, then check e-mail, then check to see if any of the remote scopes are online and having issues. After that is done I go and check www.Spaceweather.com look at new images and see whats new! Well I was lucky on Tuesday, November 24th I noticed a small new post saying that “Shuttle Atlantis will be undocking from the the Space Station Wednesday morning.” and this is when I got excited. Earlier I checked for ISS passings on Heavens-above and I had one one Wednesday night!

Naturally I tweeted the info along with links so other might be lucky enough to see ISS and the Shuttle!

Finally Wednesday night came, though I had an issue, we were planning on going to the movies for sometime. (and I really did not want to cancel, since it was my idea) So, I rushed to check movie times and hoped there was enough time for me to image the ISS/Shuttle flyby then leave for the movies, but sadly there was not! The ISS was at 6:51 (CST) while the Movies started at 7:30, and it takes nearly 30min to get to the theater!

So my hopes were low on getting to see the pass and I just tried to keep my mind off it! Though as time rolled by I remembered that the back roads to the theater were nice and Dark, and there might be a chance we could stop on the side of the road! Eventualy the time came to leave and I really rushed everyone in the car. As we were on the road I might have went a bit over the speed limit, but hey it was for an important reason We had only 2 or 3 minutes left until I finally found a dirt road on which we could pull over. This is when I rushed out of the car, pulled out my Dorid (Cellphone) and checked the skycharts one more time!

By the time I could get the phone in my pocket I say the ISS and trailing behind it Space Shuttle Atlantis! Never have I seen something so amazing trail through the sky. It was a crystal clear night and the stars looked amazing, but the ISS and Shuttle out shined them all (except the moon). They were amazing close to each other, and they appeared much closer then the stars (which they are) though it seemed as though I could just touch them!

I was astounded by these two dots so I grabbed my camera (which was in the car) sat on the ground and hoped to hold it still enough to get something. Now you can see in this Image I did not do to great of a job for holding it still but it still looked amazing! I was only hoping to capture something resembling what I saw, yet sadly I surely could not get anywhere close!

Here you can see the ISS trail being the brightest (mouse over image for labels) and Shuttle Atlantis behind, also visible are Vega, Altair, and Deneb, the three stars that make up the asterism, “The Summer Triangle”

Specs:
Date: 11/25/2009

Camera: Canon EOS 50D
F-stop: f/4
Exposure Time: 4s
ISO speed: ISO-800
Focal Length: 19mm

Processing: Compression and “watermarking” in Photoshop CS4

(Yes we did make it in time to the theaters and saw “2012″)

Totalmente integrado ao ARISS, o Diário da Produção (\O/) traz em primeira mão os próximos contatos entre astronautas a bordo da ISS (International Space Station) e as escolas na terra.

Hoje, dia 26 de novembro de 2009, estão programados três (03) contatos:

1) Estudantes da Escola primária Dumbleyung – farão contato com a tripulação da ISS através do programa educacional internacional ARISS utilizando uma estação de radioamador na Austrália VK4KHZ. O contato ARISS está programado para ocorrer às 11:51UTC. Os estudantes farão perguntas sobre a exploração espacial, sobre os aspectos da terra e da sua posição dentro do sistema solar.

2) Estudante do Instituto Don Bosco em Bruxelas, Bélgica – farão contato com a tripulação utilizando uma estação de radioamador ON4ISS. O contato ARISS ocorrerá às 12:49 UTC. Don Bosco é uma escola técnica industrial secundária com um registro de aproximadamente 750 estudantes e oferece cursos de carpintaria, eletricidade, mecânica, computação e eletrônica.

3) Estudante do escola Katholieke Centrumscholen Sint-Truiden, Bélgica – farão contato com a tripulação utilizando uma estação de radioamador ON4ISS. O contato ARISS ocorrerá às 14:24 UTC. Em função desse contato os estudantes elaboraram questões de astronomia e ciência em geral. O filho de Frank De Winne, um astronauta da Bélgica, é um dos estudantes dessa escola.

Aguarde que publicaremos aqui fotos e detalhes desses contatos!

ARISS é a sigla internacional de Radioamadores na Estação Espacial Internacional (Amateur Radio on International Space Station), um programa voluntariado que inspira alunos, a nível mundial, a seguirem as carreiras em ciência, tecnologia, engenharia e matemática através de comunicações de rádio amador. O ponto mais interessante desse programa é a oportunidade de comunicação de escolas em qualquer lugar do Brasil, com a Estação Espacial Internacional (ISS) e sua tripulação em órbita. Os alunos podem aprender sobre a vida a bordo da ISS e sobre a exploração da terra através do espaço, com atividades ligadas a ciência e matemática. O Projeto ARISS proporciona oportunidade a comunidade escolar (alunos, professores, famílias e moradores locais) de se conscientizar dos benefícios substanciais dos voos espaciais tripulados, as explorações espaciais e as suas descobertas. Como valor agregado, há também a oportunidade de se aprender sobre tecnologia em geral e rádio amador.

Detalhando um pouco mais o ARISS – é um grupo internacional de trabalho, composto por delegações de 9 países, incluindo vários países da Europa, bem como Japão, Rússia, Canadá e EUA. A organização é dirigida por voluntários das organizações nacionais de rádio amador da AMSAT e internacionais (Amateur Radio Satellite Corporation), com as organizações de cada país.

ARISS é de âmbito internacional. As equipes coordenadas localmente com suas respectivas agência espacial (por exemplo, a ESA, a NASA, JAXA, CSA, e a agência espacial russa) se reunem com uma equipe internacional ARISS através de reuniões de trabalho em grupo (através de teleconferências e correio eletrônico) para alinhamento das atividades programadas ao redor do mundo.

Como não poderia ser diferente o Diário da Produção saiu na frente em contato com o Coordenador do Projeto no Brasil, o rádio amador e piloto Tadeu Fernandes, e está firmando uma parceria com o projeto. Esta parceria visa aumentar a divulgação do principal objetivo do projeto e tão pouco abordado nas escolas: a educação voltada a carreira profissional. Confira aqui no DP os próximos passos desta parceria. Caso você seja um diretor pedagógico ou responsável por uma instituição de ensino (pública ou particular) com atuação em qualquer segmento da educação e tenha interesse em conhecer e participar do projeto, mande um email para redacao@diariodaproducao.com.

Este projeto é totalmente gratuito para as escolas, bastando apenas a instituição sinalizar o interesse em ser uma escola participante.

(YouTube) – Ascent video highlights from ground, air, SRB and External tank assets during the launch of STS-129.  (w/ music)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cxUV9Q3d64Q

22 November 2009.  The bright sun greets the International Space Station in this scene from the Russian section of the orbital outpost, photographed by one of the STS-129 crew members.

22 November 2009.  The bright sun greets the International Space Station.

23 November  2009.  Construction and maintenance continue on the International Space Station. Astronaut Robert L. Satcher Jr.

Credit and more photos: NASA

Image credit: NASA

NASA are giving school children the chance to design an experiment to be performed by astronauts on-board the ISS. The experiment would be conducted in spring next year.

Earth's atmosphere seen by the ISS

The setting sun lights up the the neon blue line of Earth’s atmosphere in this photo taken by the crew of the International Space Station during the STS-129 shuttle mission.

Click for the full-size view.

The darkness of space above and a dark night on Earth below, this “thin blue line” is all that exists of the seemingly endless ocean of sky we see above us every day. I am always stunned by its fragility when seen from a distance.

This was NASA’s Image of the Day today, November 25.

Image: NASA

After an initial setback with his suit yesterday—a valve came off his drink bag but was easily re-affixed—alumnus Robert Satcher and one other astronaut set out on the International Space Station for their third and final spacewalk. The astronauts  have been on the space station since November 18th, with the mission of installing an enormous oxygen tank and setting up several experiments. Tomorrow the seven-person crew will wrap up work and depart the station. According to NASA, they are expected to land at Kennedy Space Center on Friday.

Scroll down to see images of Robert Satcher ’86, PhD ’93 as he prepared for and then began carrying out mission STS-129. All images courtesy of NASA.

Mission Specialist Robert L. Satcher Jr. is greeted by Mission Lead Mike Menard at the shuttle landing facility at Kennedy Space Center.

The STS-129 crew (Robert Satcher, far right).

Aboard Atlantis, Mike Foreman, top, and Robert Satcher are dressed in their launch-and-entry suits and strapped to their seats.

Atlantis launched at 2:28 p.m. EST Nov. 16.

A partial view of Atlantis' payload bay, back-dropped by Earth's horizon.

Robert Satcher used a digital still camera to take a self-portrait during the mission’s first spacewalk.

Robert Satcher and Randy Bresnik work outside of the International Space Station during the final spacewalk.

More coverage of alumni astronauts:

Shuttle Mission Twice Postponed for SEAL-Turned-Astronaut

MIT to the Rescue: Institute Astronauts Fix Hubble Troubles—Again

Alums Return to Space for Final Hubble Mission

Guess Which Blog is Read in Space

Obama Calls MIT Alums and Others in Space

Checking In with Our Out-of-This-World Alums

“The Augustine Commission for Dummies”

(Part 1. Part 2. Part 3. Part 4. Part 5. Wrap Up.)

Given the intent of the politicians to fight for the funding their districts currently receive from the Constellation Program (CxP – the current program developing the Ares I and Ares V rockets) as well as go begging for more, and given the budget constraints the NASA faces, it is instructive to see where this course will end up. In the Senate, Richard Shelby has announced his intention to fight for Constellation and will try to increase funding to the Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama. Senator Bill Nelson of Florida is fighting for Kennedy Space Center and all the jobs and funding there. In the House, Gabrielle Giffords of Arizona and Pete Olson of Texas have dug in their heels and reiterated their backing of the Constellation program (See Space News, 21 November 2009).

All this is taking place against the backdrop of the Augustine Commission’s Final Report, which has made it clear that Ares I is over budget and underpowered. As Jeff Greason said at the Committee deliberations, if Santa Clause gave us Ares I and Ares V tomorrow, we would have to scrap them immediately because they would be too expensive to operate.

The Forum at NasaSpaceFlight has been for many years the authoritative site for information on all things NASA. It has been home to the rebel alliance of NASA and industry engineers that have advocated the in-line shuttle derived launch vehicle for the past four years.

The source of this concern was former Administrator Michael Griffin’s decision in 2005 to replace the dual-launch, in-line shuttle derived architecture recommended by NASA engineers, with his personal choice of a small Ares I and a very large Ares V. Instead of building one rocket using existing shuttle components as Congress had directed, he would build two brand new rockets. This decision came just two weeks before the scheduled release of the NASA document on the Constellation program.

Now, four years later in 2009, when the in-line shuttle derived launch vehicle should have been making its first flight, we are five or six years away from Ares I making its first flight. The Shuttle is scheduled for retirement next year and America will have to buy seats on the Russian Soyuz to get to the International Space Station. And the International Space Station is scheduled for de-commissioning in 2015 and would be de-orbited into the Pacific Ocean.

This reality gave birth to the Augustine Commission and its Final Report. We have covered in detail the findings of the Committee. Now we look to consider the possible outcomes.

Philip Metschan (writing as ‘Phoegh’), a long time contributor to the Forum at NasaSpaceFlight, has produced a marvelous interactive series of graphics available at directlauncher.com that illustrate the options identified by the Augustine Commission.

The Budget and Time Line for these options are given in the following table. Included are destinations beyond low Earth orbit (LEO) and the impact of each option on the existing workforce.

We can draw the following conclusions, which are illustrated in the Graphics mentioned earlier and shown below. We start with Option 1, the Program of Record (POR – Constellation) and the funding level provided in FY 2010:

• Option 1 – Ares I crew vehicle is ready a year after the ISS is de-orbited (2015) and Ares V is completed in 2028 with no funds to conduct exploration. There is no Moon in the picture.
• Option 2 – Scrap Ares I and substitute Commercial Crew Access to LEO. The money saved is used to keep the ISS operating until 2020. Ares V is completed in 2028 with no funds to conduct exploration. There is no Moon in the picture.
• Option 3 – Add $3 Billion per year to the existing program. Ares I crew vehicle is ready a year after the ISS is de-orbited (2015) and Ares V is completed in 2019. The Moon is reached in 2025, but no other destinations beyond LEO can be funded.
• Option 4 – Add $3 Billion per year to the existing program. Scrap Ares I and substitute Commercial Crew Access to LEO. The money saved is used to keep the ISS operating until 2020. Ares V is completed in 2023. The Moon is reached in 2030, but no other destinations beyond LEO can be funded.
• Option 4B – Add $3 Billion per year to the existing program. Extend the Shuttle to 2015. Scrap Ares I and substitute Commercial Crew Access to LEO. The money saved is used to keep the ISS operating until 2020. Ares V is completed in 2023. Develop the Propellant Depot by 2026. The Moon is reached in 2030.
• Option 5A – Add $3 Billion per year to the existing program. Scrap Ares I and substitute Commercial Crew Access to LEO. The money saved is used to keep the ISS operating until 2020. Scrap Ares V in favor of a smaller Ares V Lite, which is completed in 2023. Visit EML-1 or EML-2 in 2026. Visit a Near Earth Object (NEO) Sometime in the Future.
• Option 5B – Add $3 Billion per year to the existing program. Scrap Ares I and substitute Commercial Crew Access to LEO. The money saved is used to keep the ISS operating until 2020. Scrap Ares V in favor of a commercial heavy launch capability, which is completed in 2021. Develop the Propellant Depot by 2024. Visit a Near Earth Object (NEO) in 2026 and Phobos in 2028. Return to the Moon in 2029.
• Option 5C – Add $3 Billion per year to the existing program. Scrap Ares I and substitute Commercial Crew Access to LEO. The money saved is used to keep the ISS operating until 2020. Scrap Ares V in favor of a the Direct Team’s Jupiter 241, which is completed in 2022. Visit EML-1 or EML-2 in 2023. Develop the Propellant Depot by 2024. Visit a Near Earth Object (NEO) in 2027 and Phobos in 2029. Return to the Moon in 2030.

Those are the options explored by the Augustine Commission in their Final Report.

Notice, however, that there is one more slide, Option 5D. This is the architecture that was presented to the Augustine Commission during their first public session on 17 June 2009 by the Direct Team. It provides for:

• Add $1 Billion per year to the existing program.
• Extend Shuttle until 2012.
• Scrap Ares I and develop the Jupiter Core (Jupiter 130) for carrying crew on Orion to LEO and ISS by 2014.
• Develop Commercial Crew Access to LEO to replace the Jupiter 130 by 2015. Use Jupiter 130 for ferrying the few large payloads needed by ISS.
• Continue ISS operations until 2020.
• Scrap Ares V in favor of the Upper Stage for the Jupiter Core (Jupiter 241 or Jupiter 246), which is completed in 2017.
• Visit EML-1 or EML-2 in 2018.
• Orbit the Moon in 2019.
• Visit a Near Earth Object (NEO) in 2022.
• Visit Phobos in 2025.
• Develop the Propellant Depot by 2028.

The key here is that the goal of expansion of human civilization into the Solar System is better served, is accomplished sooner, and costs less. Indeed, even without the additional $1 Billion per year, only the extension of the Shuttle operation need be eliminated.

Final Conclusions

• Options 1, 2 and 3, which are favored by the politicians with space flight facilities, get us nowhere and cost far too much.
• Options 4 and 4B get us to the Moon, but neither builds infrastructure for support of future exploration.
• Options 5A, 5B and 5C builds the skills and infrastructure for space exploration, but leave us a crew to LEO gap of five to six years.
• Option 5D builds the skills and infrastructure for space exploration, reduces the crew to LEO gap to one or two years, and gives the international community the ability to descend to the surface of the Moon and Mars.

Time is of the Essence

Finally, this note about the political realities. First, if a decision is delayed for four to six months while the politicians fight for every last bit of funding they want, the infrastructure on which the Jupiter program builds will be dismantled and Options 4B, 5C and 5D will be eliminated.

Second, Congress will likely decide that the Constellation program as currently envisioned is too costly for what will be developed and not worth throwing more money down the drain. Options 1, 2, 3, 4B and 5A will be eliminated.

Thus, only commercial crew and cargo capabilities will be funded. NASA will be reduced to research and contracting for services. The Marshall Space Flight Facility will have little purpose. And the politicians will lose most of the jobs and funding that their districts currently enjoy.

(Part 1. Part 2. Part 3. Part 4. Part 5. Wrap Up.)

There will be some very bright International Space Station (ISS) passes this week. The Station is especially bright since construction has made it larger, and the Space Shuttle will be attached to the ISS most of the week. The Station is also a lot lower (roughly 122 miles above the Earth) than it usually is (typically around 220 miles).

The data below is from Heavens Above, a site that tracks lots of satellites (not just the ISS), and is as of 22 Nov.

ISS – Visible Passes | Home | Info. | Orbit | Prev. | Next | Help |

Search period start: 00:00 Sunday, 22 November, 2009
Search period end: 00:00 Wednesday, 2 December, 2009
Observer’s location: Edmond, 35.6530°N, 97.4780°W
Local time zone: Central Standard Time (UTC – 6:00)
Orbit: 336 x 344 km, 51.6° (Epoch Nov 22)

Click on the date to get a star chart and other pass details.

Date Mag Starts Max. altitude Ends
Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.
23 Nov -1.0 18:07:48 10 N 18:08:41 11 NNE 18:08:57 11 NNE
24 Nov -2.0 18:28:42 10 NNW 18:30:52 25 NNE 18:30:52 25 NNE
25 Nov -3.2 18:50:30 10 NW 18:53:02 66 NW 18:53:02 66 NW
26 Nov -2.1 17:37:58 10 NNW 17:40:23 24 NE 17:42:47 10 E
26 Nov -0.8 19:13:06 10 W 19:15:20 21 SW 19:15:35 21 SW
27 Nov -3.5 17:59:41 10 NW 18:02:33 85 NE 18:05:24 10 SE
28 Nov -0.7 18:22:09 10 WNW 18:24:28 22 SW 18:26:46 10 S
30 Nov -0.5 17:31:05 10 WNW 17:33:29 24 SW 17:35:52 10 S

The key values in this table are magnitude (brightness), the first time, and the direction. Look for a very bright star that is moving (and doesn’t have red or green blinking lights). For magnitude, the smaller the number the brighter; -3.5 is far brighter than -0.8 (most stars are positive magnitude, and so are dimmer).

The pass on the 27 ought to be spectacular. -3.5 is the brightest value I think I have seen, and the 85 degree angle is virtually overhead (remember the horizon is 0 degrees and 90 is straight up). So that pass is horizon to horizon from the NW to the SE.

You can check updated pass information at http://www.heavens-above.com/. Go there, enter your location using the “From Database” link.