• From: Indiana, USA
  • Registered: 2009-11-23
  • Posts: 2,747
  • User Karma: 516

Re: Space Nerds

Cool. It would still take a lifetime to reach it, so visiting it would require building a spaceship capable of supporting a whole colony of people, but at least it's doable.

I read a few days ago about organic compounds found on Mars, and it suddenly occurs to me that the WORST thing that could happen is if we found good evidence of life. Here's why....

We know there aren't any jackalopes on Mars, so the BEST we could hope for is some crummy microbes. Those are probably not going to be all that different from Earthican microbes: cell walls, chemical strings that act like DNA, organelles that process chemicals. Yes that would be cool, but look what it would stop us from doing.

Terraforming Mars.

If there is no indiginous life on Mars, we could start dumping all manner of organic gunk there and just see what sticks. Bacteria, lichen, mushrooms, moss, algae, extremophiles of all sorts, whole barges full of landfill and sewage, whatever. Whatever takes hold, we throw more of that at it along with some basic plants that can live in it. Then we're on our way to colonies.

But if there is even the least evidence of indiginous life, all that is off.

Warning: I'm probably rewriting this post as you read it.

Zarban's House of Commentaries

Zarban's Website

Thumbs up Thumbs down

177 Reply by Lamer

  • Lamer
  • Moderator
  • Offline
  • Registered: 2012-05-07
  • Posts: 643
  • User Karma: 121

Re: Space Nerds

Zarban wrote:

Terraforming Mars.

If there is no indiginous life on Mars, we could start dumping all manner of organic gunk there and just see what sticks. Bacteria, lichen, mushrooms, moss, algae, extremophiles of all sorts, whole barges full of landfill and sewage, whatever. Whatever takes hold, we throw more of that at it along with some basic plants that can live in it. Then we're on our way to colonies.

That's not going to work unless you can get Mars' core working again and bring the magnetic field back. Otherwise our Sun will make sure everyone is going to have a bad day.

Thumbs up Thumbs down

178 Reply by Dave

  • Dave
  • Dave
  • Australian Correspondent
  • Offline
  • From: Melbourne, Australia
  • Registered: 2009-12-01
  • Posts: 1,594
  • User Karma: 341

Re: Space Nerds

Somewhere someone is pitching that script, with Michael Bay's name on it.

Thumbs up Thumbs down

179 Reply by Lamer

  • Lamer
  • Moderator
  • Offline
  • Registered: 2012-05-07
  • Posts: 643
  • User Karma: 121

Re: Space Nerds

Dave wrote:

Somewhere someone is pitching that script, with Michael Bay's name on it.

The Core 2: Mars

Thumbs up Thumbs down

180 Reply by Eddie

  • Eddie
  • Laser Fists
  • Offline
  • From: Van Nuys, CA
  • Registered: 2009-11-23
  • Posts: 1,657
  • User Karma: 455

Re: Space Nerds

The final book of SOng of Ice and Fire will reveal that Westeros is actually a poorly terraformed Mars.

SHYAMALAN!

Eddie Doty

Thumbs up Thumbs down

  • From: Kent, England
  • Registered: 2010-02-09
  • Posts: 1,327
  • User Karma: 146

Re: Space Nerds

Eddie wrote:

The final book of SOng of Ice and Fire will reveal that Westeros is actually a poorly terraformed Mars.

SHYAMALAN!

http://modernsophist.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/dope-exploding-head.jpg

Imagination will often carry us to worlds that never were. But without it we go nowhere. - Carl Sagan

Thumbs up Thumbs down

  • From: Indiana, USA
  • Registered: 2009-11-23
  • Posts: 2,747
  • User Karma: 516

Re: Space Nerds

Lamer wrote:
Zarban wrote:

Terraforming Mars.

That's not going to work unless you can get Mars' core working again and bring the magnetic field back. Otherwise our Sun will make sure everyone is going to have a bad day.

I believe a Dutch researcher named Verhoeven presented a medium-scale solution in a speculative paper in 1990 that was later expanded upon by Professors Shore and Baldwin in 1996.

They don't call it the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and SCIENCES for nothing.

http://cps-static.rovicorp.com/2/Open/Starz/Bio-Dome/_derived_jpg_q90_310x470_m0/BioDome-Still1.jpg

Last edited by Zarban (2012-12-19 21:12:23)

Warning: I'm probably rewriting this post as you read it.

Zarban's House of Commentaries

Zarban's Website

Thumbs up Thumbs down

  • bullet3
  • bullet3
  • I Know Regular Expressions
  • Offline
  • Registered: 2010-06-23
  • Posts: 1,350
  • User Karma: 204

Re: Space Nerds

Lamer wrote:

http://news.sciencemag.org/sciencenow/2 … -year.html

Very interesting indeed. If we could get propulsion systems that can go at even 1/5th the speed of light, we could make the journey in 60 years. I suspect we'll have unmanned missions to Alpha Centauri well before this happens though, perhaps even in our life-times (though probably not).

Thumbs up Thumbs down

184 Reply by Lamer

  • Lamer
  • Moderator
  • Offline
  • Registered: 2012-05-07
  • Posts: 643
  • User Karma: 121

Re: Space Nerds

bullet3 wrote:
Lamer wrote:

http://news.sciencemag.org/sciencenow/2 … -year.html

Very interesting indeed. If we could get propulsion systems that can go at even 1/5th the speed of light, we could make the journey in 60 years. I suspect we'll have unmanned missions to Alpha Centauri well before this happens though, perhaps even in our life-times (though probably not).

http://io9.com/5963263/how-nasa-will-bu … warp-drive Start throwing cash at these guys and it may happen.

Last edited by Lamer (2012-12-20 06:16:14)

Thumbs up Thumbs down

185 Reply by Lamer

  • Lamer
  • Moderator
  • Offline
  • Registered: 2012-05-07
  • Posts: 643
  • User Karma: 121

Re: Space Nerds

Thumbs up Thumbs down

  • From: Van Dieman's Land
  • Registered: 2011-06-02
  • Posts: 1,358
  • User Karma: 233

Re: Space Nerds

Lamer wrote:

Wow - never seen a rocket land before.

not long to go now...

Thumbs up Thumbs down

187 Reply by Lamer

  • Lamer
  • Moderator
  • Offline
  • Registered: 2012-05-07
  • Posts: 643
  • User Karma: 121

Re: Space Nerds

http://www.atari.com/arcade/lunar_lander for those who think this is easy tongue

Thumbs up Thumbs down

  • From: State of Idaho
  • Registered: 2010-12-08
  • Posts: 2,367
  • User Karma: 289

Re: Space Nerds

Lamer wrote:

http://www.atari.com/arcade/lunar_lander for those who think this is easy tongue

I created a two mile crater...is that good?  tongue
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-07RFiMsBZwI/UCPc0bVXEaI/AAAAAAAAAuc/wV7gu2k8YNc/s1600/explode.gif

God loves you!

Thumbs up Thumbs down

189 Reply by Lamer

  • Lamer
  • Moderator
  • Offline
  • Registered: 2012-05-07
  • Posts: 643
  • User Karma: 121

Re: Space Nerds

http://rt.com/news/nasa-mona-lisa-laser-305/

Thumbs up Thumbs down

  • From: Montpellier, France
  • Registered: 2011-12-05
  • Posts: 1,141
  • User Karma: 497

Re: Space Nerds

So, a comet named PanSTARRS (actually, its full name is C/2011 L4 PanSTARRS) has appeared in our skies. It's barely visible to the naked eye, but with binoculars or a few seconds long shot with a camera, it should appear to you. You need to look for it low in the west right after sunset. Its peak is the 17th, after that it'll slowly disappear. I may try to shoot it this weekend.

http://www.cieletespace.fr/files/image_du_jour/IMG_32912S.jpg

Sébastien Fraud
Instagram |Facebook

Thumbs up +3 Thumbs down

  • From: Bristol. Again.
  • Registered: 2010-06-17
  • Posts: 1,202
  • User Karma: 343

Re: Space Nerds

I hope you get some good pics Saniss

Extended Edition - 146 - The Rise Of Skywalker
VFX Reel | Twitter | IMDB | Blog

Faldor's Website

Thumbs up Thumbs down

  • From: Kent, England
  • Registered: 2010-02-09
  • Posts: 1,327
  • User Karma: 146

Re: Space Nerds

I'm just performing a slight bit of necromancy with this thread because I've recently started watching a hard sci-fi anime series called Space Brothers, which I can't help but love and find inspiring.

It's about two brothers who love space who become astronauts. The younger one is already an astronaut at NASA and is on the mission to return to the moon, the older is a 31-year-old salary-man who rediscovers his dream and decides to try out at JAXA.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Brothers_%28manga%29

Here's a bit from one of the episodes.

It's my new favourite series, and rather wonderfully, it's a long running series (something like 40 episodes so far). Inspiring and funny. And you can tell it's made by space nerds (an obvious The Right Stuff reference in the above clip).

Imagination will often carry us to worlds that never were. But without it we go nowhere. - Carl Sagan

Thumbs up +1 Thumbs down

  • From: Red Deer, AB
  • Registered: 2009-11-23
  • Posts: 4,044
  • User Karma: 664

Re: Space Nerds

A collection of b/w images from vintage NASA. Seriously cool.

http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/ … acilities/

ZangrethorDigital.ca

BigDamnArtist's Website

Thumbs up Thumbs down

  • From: Kent, England
  • Registered: 2010-02-09
  • Posts: 1,327
  • User Karma: 146

Re: Space Nerds

Cor blimey!

You wait years for hard sci-fi to come along and then two come along the same year (the other being Gravity).

Imagination will often carry us to worlds that never were. But without it we go nowhere. - Carl Sagan

Thumbs up Thumbs down

195 Reply by BBQ

  • BBQ
  • BBQ
  • Member
  • Offline
  • Registered: 2010-10-03
  • Posts: 137
  • User Karma: 19

Re: Space Nerds

The Europa Report trailer does 2 things for me...

1. It makes me think it could be a really cool hard sci-fi picture.
2. It makes me worry that the "monster flick" aspect will ruin it.

Thumbs up Thumbs down

  • bullet3
  • bullet3
  • I Know Regular Expressions
  • Offline
  • Registered: 2010-06-23
  • Posts: 1,350
  • User Karma: 204

Re: Space Nerds

This is the movie SpaceX consulted on, for what its worth

Thumbs up Thumbs down

  • Teague
  • Teague
  • Administrator
  • Offline
  • Registered: 2009-11-07
  • Posts: 5,717
  • User Karma: 1,546

Re: Space Nerds

Nope. Nope nope nope. Is Sunshine. Won't get hurt again.

Run.

Teague Chrystie

I have a tendency to fix your typos.

Thumbs up Thumbs down

  • From: Kent, England
  • Registered: 2010-02-09
  • Posts: 1,327
  • User Karma: 146

Re: Space Nerds

Planetary Resources have set up a Kickstarter page for a space telescope called ARKYD.
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/145 … everyone-0

It'll be interesting to see how well this fares and whether it's a sign of things to come. Personally, I really like how I can contribute to an endeavour like this and only wish that I could do the same for NASA projects. Which  raises the question of whether it's feasible for NASA to seek extra funding outside of US taxation. Can they do that?

Imagination will often carry us to worlds that never were. But without it we go nowhere. - Carl Sagan

Thumbs up Thumbs down

  • From: Red Deer, AB
  • Registered: 2009-11-23
  • Posts: 4,044
  • User Karma: 664

Re: Space Nerds

Copied from Hank greens Tumblr:

"There are a lot of amazing technological innovations going into this pint-sized spacecraft. They want it to use the same optic to take pictures and transmit information to earth, which is pretty genius. They want to make literally hundreds of them to scatter around the solar system prospecting for high quality asteroids. They want them to be intelligent enough to decide for themselves which asteroids to study, and how to get from one asteroid to another.

But probably the weirdest thing I learned about the ARKYD 100 is that they designed it to be the size of carry-on luggage. Not as some engineering goal to keep it small, or a marketing goal to have a way to tell people how big it is when folded up, but because THEY WANTED A SIMPLE AND CHEAP WAY TO MOVE THEM FROM PLACE TO PLACE WHILE BEING ABLE TO KEEP AN EYE ON THEM!

They actually put them in the overhead bins on commercial flights instead of contracting specialized shipping!

According to Chris Voorhees, one of the coolest things he gets to do is take the prototypes through security at airports. To paraphrase what he said to me: “They just stare at it, and then you’re like, ‘Yeah…it’s a space telescope.’” 

Yeah."

http://edwardspoonhands.com/post/517495 … rkyd-space


Awesome, I love it.

ZangrethorDigital.ca

BigDamnArtist's Website

Thumbs up Thumbs down

  • From: Kent, England
  • Registered: 2010-02-09
  • Posts: 1,327
  • User Karma: 146

Re: Space Nerds

So yeah, China just launched another manned mission into orbit.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-22843318

The three crew will spend a couple of weeks in the Chinese Tiangong space lab. This will mean mastering docking of spacecraft, a key step in any space program. Good on them I say.

http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/68104000/jpg/_68104011_68104010.jpg

Is it me or are they standing rather close to that rocket?

Imagination will often carry us to worlds that never were. But without it we go nowhere. - Carl Sagan

Thumbs up Thumbs down