So, good job to the team of people who have labored on this thing. I just remain baffled by what the thing is actually gonna *do.* Without Paul Allen, SpaceX, or their own dedicated launcher, it just seems like a plane without a purpose.
Apr 132019
Apr 132019
Latest Ajax renders. There will be a few parts cast in clear: the canopy, obviously, along with the “lights” on the underside of the nose. The model isn’t being made *specifically* for lighting, but it’d be pretty spiffy with lights. It will also have a basic set of details for the bridge.
Apr 112019
UPDATE: Launched, both boosters *and* the core successfully recovered, payload in correct initial orbit.
Suck it, flattards!
Apr 112019
Israeli Lunar Spacecraft Loses Main Engine, Crashes on Surface of the Moon
It had successfully entered Lunar orbit, and had successfully de-orbited and was heading to the surface, when it “lost” the main engine around ten kilometers up.
While this is indeed unfortunate… if yer gonna crash, being able to say “I crashed ON THE MOON” certainly has a certain ring to it.
Apr 102019
— James Nyberg (@corpsmanup239) April 10, 2019
Apr 102019
Constructing the wings of the Ajax turned out to be a bit of a chore, and they’re not done yet…
Based on the previously described walkway-based scaling system, the current plan is to produce the Ajax at 1/200 scale… a little over 14 inches long.
Apr 092019
With people like this in charge, how did the US ever accomplish anything?
Astronauts on the Moon in 2024? US Can’t Do It Alone, NASA Chief Says
I’m on record being skeptical of the US getting men back onto the moon by 2024. But not because we’d need to hook up with a bunch of foreign powers to do it… but because the sluggish nature of people like this.
Make it a contest that pays real winnings to make real progress and cuts through the red tape. We’d get there *early.*
Apr 092019
Giggity:
SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy rocket set for first commercial launch. Here’s how to watch it live online.
It will, with luck, orbit the Saudi Arabsat 6A communications satellite. It was originally meant to launch today, but weather put things off a day. The SpaceX YouTube channel will carry the launch live sometime between 6:35Pm and 8:30 PM Eastern time: Sometime Thursday. Wednesday launch scrubbed due to winds.
https://www.youtube.com/user/spacexchannel/
Following booster separation, Falcon Heavy’s two side boosters will attempt to land at SpaceX’s Landing Zones 1 and 2 (LZ-1 and LZ-2) at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. Falcon Heavy’s center core will attempt to land on the “Of Course I Still Love You” droneship, which will be stationed in the Atlantic Ocean.
Apr 082019
I’ve gotten as far as roughing out the walkway and railing. Does the human figure look properly scaled here? There is some play in this, as there were several models of the Ajax that differ in important respects, and a full scale set which differed even more.
Any dissenting opinions?
Apr 072019
Progress on the next model for Fantastic Plastic…
