Feb 112021
 

It has been officially decided to go with 1/288 scale for the IXS Enterprise, making the model somewhat larger. Progress continues; the pylons have some more detail, the warp rings have been split into three inner segments, four outer segments, with a wall thickness of about an eighth inch and a hollow within, allowing lighting for those so ambitious.

 Posted by at 12:56 am
Feb 102021
 

My first book contract had the due date for the manuscript in July, 2020. But guess what, a pandemic came along and shoved that back a full year. So I got a *second* contract, with a due date in January 2021. But guess what… pandemic pushed it to March. That book is *almost*  done, but I’ve taken a bit of a break from it to work feverishly on a completely different project: a CAD model of the “IXS Enterprise.” This is a notional spacecraft designed by artist Mark Rademaker to illustrate what a spacecraft based on an Alcubierre Warp Drive might look like; NASA has used various renderings of this vehicle quite often for that purpose.

The CAD model, which is being produced with the assistance and approval of Mr. Rademaker and Dr. Harold White of NASA, will be used to 3D print master parts for a 1/350 scale resin model kit to be released by Fantastic Plastic. As originally designed the IXS Enterprise had a length of 62.3 meters (which is being changed due to recent updates in the design) and the overall diameter is 41.3 meters. The model will thus be 17.8 cm/7 inches long by 11.8 cm/4.64 inches in diameter. This will put it in scale with the Polar Lights NCC-1701 Enterprise kit and the Moebius XD-1 USS Discovery kit, along with a whole bunch of ships.

UPDATE: there has been discussion about the scale of the model… chances are fair that it will get bumped up to 1/288 scale from 1/350. That would make it 8.5 inches long by 5.6 inches diameter.

The project to convert the  original CAD model into a printable kit is proceeding at a good pace.

 Posted by at 2:18 am
Feb 032021
 

Scott Manley analyses the crash of SN9:

Problem, crudely, was that one of the two Raptor engines meant to  ignite for the landing maneuver doesn’t ignite. *Why* that happened is as yet unclear, but it looks like the engine (specifically the turbopump) was falling apart. The end result is that it seemed it hit the ground at about 120 mph, resulting in RUD (Rapid Unscheduled Disassembly). Ouch.

 

This remarkable slo-mo footage of the thing coming down is not to be missed:

It’s beautiful in a way. The fact that nobody was on board, and the fact that it wasn’t an example of taxpayer funded blaot, makes the loss non-tragic. Of course, if you work at SpaceX, your mileage may vary.

 Posted by at 7:51 am
Feb 022021
 

So SpaceX launched Starship #9 today. Grat launch. Great flight. Great descent. A bit of an overcorrection from bellyflop to tail-first. End result; Well, poop.

 

 

 

 Posted by at 2:10 pm
Jan 312021
 

Two pieces of (presumably McDonnell Aircraft) artwork depicting the Mercury capsule:

These were procured from eBay thanks to the contributions of Patrons and subscribers. They have been made available at 300 DPI to all $4/month patrons/subscribers in the 2021-02 APR Extras folder at Dropbox, and at 600 dpi directly to all patrons/subscribers at more than $10/month. If you would like to help fund the acquisition and preservation of such things, along with getting high quality scans for yourself, please consider signing on either for the APR Patreon or the APR Monthly Historical Documents Program.




 Posted by at 10:12 pm
Jan 292021
 

SpaceX has been trying to launch Starship serial number 9 for a few days now, with the efforts being held up by FAA regulatory approval. This is of course bad… the only thing worse for a world-changing advance in technology than getting the engineering wrong is to have either incompetent or malignant government bureaucrats involved.

Still… while SN9 is awaiting launch, SN10 has been moved to the pad. Behold:

Someday – probably not during this Presidential Administration, but perhaps during the administration of President Cruz, with NASA overseen by VP Shapiro – we might see whole rows of these things lined up ready to go, some sitting on Superheavies to lob large payloads into orbit, some sitting by themselves for long range suborbital flights or even, just barely, SSTO quick reaction flights. Some will be in NASA colors, some in USSF markings; there will be FedEx and UPS vehicles for intercontinental package transport and for transport to LEO, GEO and the Lunar bases. Maybe even one in Space Force One colors to take the President to visit American bases, cities and industrial exploitation facilities on the Moon and Lagrange points.

Sigh…

 

 

 Posted by at 4:58 pm
Jan 292021
 

Books that I can confidently state should be owned (because I own them):

Space Resources and Space Settlements

Space Settlements: A Design Study

The High Frontier: Human Colonies In Space

The Starflight Handbook: A Pioneer’s Guide to Interstellar Travel

Colonies in Space: A Comprehensive and Factual Account of the Prospects for Human Colonization of Space


– – – – – – – – – – –

Books that look promising, but that I don’t have firsthand experience with:

Mining the Sky: Untold Riches From The Asteroids, Comets, And Planets

Space 2.0: How Private Spaceflight, a Resurgent NASA, and International Partners are Creating a New Space Age

Space Settlements 

MARS COLONIES: Plans for Settling the Red Planet

And then… there’s this:

Designing and Building Space Colonies: A Blueprint for the Future

Looks good. But then comes the authors bio: “Martin’s interest in the Paranormal, Spirituality, and much more goes back to his childhood. He has had many paranormal experiences and has been a student of Eastern Philosophies and Meditation for 35 years. Seeking Enlightenment; he knows that we are already all Enlightened. We just have to realize this deeply. His books are expressions of his creativity to help others understand what he has internalized through study, experience, and membership in different societies.” Ummmm……

 Posted by at 3:58 pm
Jan 282021
 

SpaceX is politically troublesome for certain groups. You’ve got your SLS fans, terrified that Starship/Superheavy will make the SLS and all its pork go away. You’ve got people terrified of the idea of capitalism, American exceptionalism, western civilization spreading out to the planets. You’ve got your crackpots who dislike western science and engineering rigor, thinking that such things are tools of the cishet white patriarchy or some such foolishness. Take your pick of villains, they’re opposed to SpaceX. As evidence, behold:

Justice Department investigating Elon Musk’s SpaceX following complaint of hiring discrimination

Who are SpaceX being accused of discriminating against? Non-US citizens. A US company that makes rockets and launches Defense Department payloads would rather employ Americans? How is this even remotely controversial?

“The charge alleges that on or about March 10, 2020, during the Charging Party’s interview for the position of Technology Strategy Associate, SpaceX made inquiries about his citizenship status and ultimately failed to hire him for the position because he is not a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident,” DOJ attorney Lisa Sandoval wrote in a court document filed Thursday.

Ina  rational world, this would be laughable. How is it even possible that non-citizens can demand employment at *any* US company, much less one vital to the continued existence of the United States as a going concern?

UPDATE: Elon lays it out. Several years ago.

 

 Posted by at 11:59 pm