New Cyanotype Blueprints

 aircraft, art, awesomeness, cyanotype blueprints, drawings, history, new products, news, projects, rockets, spacecraft  3 Responses »
Mar 122015
 

I have a batch of new large format cyanotype blueprints coming along (the files for the transparencies are at the print shop now). Weather permitting, I should start producing these in a week or so… but the question is: how many to print up? I’m not yet taking orders, but I am trying to gauge interest. So if you see something here you think you’ll want, please let me know via either comment or email. Remember that as well as the cost of the prints there will also be postage… $10 in the US, $18 elsewhere, regardless of how many prints are ordered.

2707-200 Supersonic Transport, 48 inches by 22: $50

2707-200 cutaway 48x22

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B-36D, 61 inches by 22: $60

B-36d 61x11

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Shuttle diagrams, set A: 41 inches by 11 (two sheets): $50

shuttle setA 41x11

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Shuttle diagrams, set B: 41 inches by 11 (five sheets): $125

shuttle setB 41x11

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Trident SLBM: 49X11, $25

trident 49x11

 Posted by at 9:34 pm

SLS QM-1 Static Test

 awesomeness, news, rockets, spacecraft, youtube  11 Responses »
Mar 112015
 

There were a *lot* of people at today’s test, far more than I expected after the rather paltry number from the last test in 2011. I had three cameras… a point-n-click for zoomed-in video, the Nikon for telephoto stills and the cell phone for wide-angle video. Like a damn chucklehead I managed to screw up the cellphone video… when the time came to start recording, I hit the frackin’ *off* button. D’oh. So the wide-field video starts something like 10 seconds into the test rather than several seconds before. Gah.

Anyway, here’s the P-n-C video:

There seemed to be a second or two’s delay on ignition, or the countdown clock (dutifully recited by a group of nearby children)  was a little fast.

 Posted by at 3:01 pm

“Wanderers” sans Sagan

 art, awesomeness, Hmm..., rockets, science, science fiction, spacecraft, youtube  4 Responses »
Mar 072015
 

I went to watch “Wanderers” again on my good laptop and found it wasn’t there, so I downloaded another copy… and found that the Sagan narration has been removed. Personally I thought the narration was just perfect, but a narration-less version is good too. Fortunately I found a copy of the original I’d downloaded, so now I have both versions.

I have no idea why Sagan was removed. Anyway, here’s the new narrationless version. if you haven’t watched it… you really gotta. “Wanderers” is the greatest Hollywood space movie that Hollywood never bothered to make. Just short of four minutes, it’s more worth the price of a ticket than any movie I can think of with *maybe* the exception of “2001.”

And here’s the original that someone else uploaded to YouTube, with the narration intact:

 

 

 Posted by at 11:27 am

Go!

 art, awesomeness, history, rockets, spacecraft, youtube  4 Responses »
Mar 062015
 

This is actually kinda brilliant… “Go!” by the band Public Service Broadcasting:

 

Holy crap… music that is actually “space-positive.” The sad thing is that they have to reach so far back to get audio this awesome.

 Posted by at 9:54 am

QM-1 Open House

 news, photography, rockets, Utah  5 Responses »
Mar 062015
 

Next week, March 11, ATK will do a static test fire of the QM-1 rocket motor. This is a five-segment derivative of the 4-segment Shuttle RSRM solid rocket booster. This past evening (March 5) ATK held an open house for the local community to come and take a close up look at the motor, and to get information about environmental concerns about the test (there are none, but there was someone who went bonkers a few years back…). I attended and took a number of photos of the motor and other stuff. This was one of those cases where it would have been better to get *more distance* from the subject; but you make do with what ya got.

I’ve made a bunch of these available at full resolution to APR Patreon patrons.

Dsc_0243 Dsc_0306 Dsc_0234 Dsc_0280

 Posted by at 9:00 am

Historical oddity

 history, Hmm..., rockets, spacecraft  12 Responses »
Mar 042015
 

In looking through some aerospace artifacts that were auctioned off (or at least attempted to be auctioned off) back in 2004, one was a memo written by Werner von Braun while he was director of NASA-MSFC in March 1964. You’d expect there to be a bagrillion of these sort of things, mostly pretty bland stuff  like scheduling appointments and the like. But this one… something seems to have happened that I’d like to know more about.

801: Dr. Wernher von Braun Autograph

Dr. Wernher von Braun Autograph on a 3/11/64 pencil memo on a red/white printed “Office of Director – MSFC” note paper addressed to Dr. von Braun that reads: “There was no letter from Dr. Welsh. He requested this information from Dr. Stuhlinger on Jan. 16th at a luncheon meeting in Washington. He asked for a written reply”. Dr. von Braun has written an extensive reply in pencil on both sides of the notepaper. He has marked this “URGENT”. The reply reads, in part: “Frank – Attached letter (not included) is a rather disastrous critique of Max Hunter’s proposal (likewise attached) (not included). I’ve known Max for many years. He is a super ? with boundless imagination and little constraint. That’s why he left Douglas and became a member of the Professional Staff of the Nat. Space Council. He hoped to “get Washington into high gear”. I hate to antagonize him and turn him into an enemy of Marshall. But Welsh apparently wants a reply. Please explore ALL political aspects of this (incl. advice from key Washington men familiar with Nat. Space Council affairs) and get the best top-level advice as to how to react to Welsh’s inquiry. (I wish we didn’t have to comment on Max’s letter at all!!). Unless you are urged to do so, don’t mail reply until I’m back from my vacation. This thing is political dynamite. So it might as well smolder a little longer. PS. The trouble is, our appraisal is properly quite right.”. He has signed this with his characteristic “B” and the date “3-11”. Fascinating.

I’d sure like to know what this “disastrous” proposal from Max Hunter was. My hand-wavy guess is that it’d be something to do with nuclear propulsion, perhaps an evolvement of his RITA concept for a nuclear SSTO.

512836_1_l

 Posted by at 11:33 am

Dyna Soar Instrument Panel

 aircraft, APR, drawings, history, Hmm..., projects, rockets, spacecraft  No Responses »
Mar 042015
 

While the overall configuration of the Dyna Soar was set (and is well known) well before the program ended, the pilots instrument panel seemed to be in a constant state of flux. A number of mockup photos and diagrams of generally low resolution and/or poor reproduction quality. But a decade ago what appears to have been a decent-quality instrument panel layout was auctioned off:

858: DynaSoar Blueprints Diagrams Photos

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So… is there any chance that anyone reading along knows the buyer, or has access to this or a similar instrument panel layout diagram?

PS: if you are interested in the final Model 2050E Dyna Soar design, you could not do much better than to check this out.

 Posted by at 11:05 am

USBP13/ USLP01 updates/corrections

 AARRRGH, aircraft, art, books, drawings, Gah., new products, news, projects, rockets, spacecraft, US Bomber Projects, US Launch Vehicle Projects  4 Responses »
Mar 042015
 

I happened to notice that the last diagram in US Bomber Projects #13, showing that issues various designs all together at the same scale, was not the actual finalized diagram. So I’ve corrected it. At the same time, I added an equivalent diagram to US Launch Vehicles Projects #01, showing all the boosters to the same scale. If you have previously purchased one or both of these, the info in the email your received with the download instructions will still work if you’d like to download the revised versions.

And if you haven’t purchased these… well, here’s another chance!

 Posted by at 2:00 am

US Bomber Projects #13, US Launcher Projects #01

 aircraft, books, drawings, history, new products, news, projects, rockets, spacecraft, US Bomber Projects, US Launch Vehicle Projects  No Responses »
Mar 022015
 

Two new publications in the US Aerospace Projects series are now available.

Now available: US Bomber Projects #13. This issue includes:

  • Ryan Model 162: A VTOL strike/recon plane
  • Boeing Orbital Bomb: a nuclear-tipped re-entry glider
  • Northrop Atomic Wing: an asymetric nuclear powered design
  • Consolidated Vultee High Speed Flying Boat: an early post-war Skate design
  • Martin Model 189: a canard version of the B-26 Marauder
  • Boeing Model 464-046: A six-engined B-52 predecessor
  • Curtis F-87C: a night fighter with bomber abilities
  • Boeing Model 701-247: a supersonic antecedent of the B-59

usbp13ad

usbp13ad1

USBP #13 can be downloaded as a PDF file for only $4:

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Also available: US Launch Vehicle Projects #01. The premiere issue of this new series includes:

  • Pre-Saturn Phase III Vehicles: 1958 concpet for clustered Atlas boosters
  • Boeing “Big Onion”: an SSTO to launch SPS
  • Northrop TAV: an in-flight propellant transfer spaceplane
  • Martin Orbit Project: A 1946 concept for a hydrogen fueled SSTO
  • Saturn V derived HLLV for FLO: A brief Saturn V revival in the early 1990s
  • MSC Orbiter 020: An early Shuttle with straight wings and a single SRB
  • Hammerhead ET: a way for the Shuttle to transport outsized payloads
  • Loral Aquarius: A way to make space launch cheap

 

uslp 01ad

uslp01ad1

USLP #01 can be downloaded as a PDF file for only $4:

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 Posted by at 3:37 am

Gemini-Titan Display Model

 art, awesomeness, history, models, rockets, spacecraft  4 Responses »
Feb 262015
 

This very, very impressive-looking display model was auctioned off way back in 2008:

gemini-titan

I much prefer this sort of display to even the most detailed computer rendering printed out onto foam core.  Perhaps as 3D printing gets better & cheaper we’ll see a return to this sort of thing. Imagine if you could print off aluminum & plexi large-size models like this for a few bucks worth of raw materials and electricity…

 Posted by at 10:42 am
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