Search Results : shuttle

Sperry Lifting Body Ad

aircraft, art, history, projects, rockets, spacecraft No Responses »

Jan 272019

A magazine ad from 1966 depicting a lifting body in space. The design seems reasonable 9sort of a cross between the M2and the HL-10) but could very well be a product not of engineers but of the art department. The angle is not the most informative, but it appears that this design has something of a squared-off nose. Note that the cockpit canopy is exposed, something that very few small lifting body designs had… for the simple reason that the windows would likely melt during re-entry, and that would defeat the purpose in making the thing recoverable. As vehicles get bigger, such as the space shuttle, the windows get further away from the nose and can be made survivable. But little designs like this? not very likely with 1960’s tech. Otherwise, though, it is an attractive illustration.

STD Season 2. Bonus: Orville

AARRRGH, art, blather, Gah., Meh., science fiction, youtube, ಠ_ಠ No Responses »

Jan 262019

So Star Trek: Discovery season 2 premiered a little over a week ago behind the CBS All Access paywall. It has been such a staggering success that they have made the first episode available for free on YouTube, and it was there that I watched it. I had heard from some reviewers that the producers had listened to the complaints about season 1 and tried to make season 2 better, more like an actual Star Trek show. And having watched it… they failed. It’s bad.

The writing is bad. Things happen without cause or consequence; people do inexplicable things. The episode starts off with a mangled version of the “Space: the final frontier” monologue that promptly goes wrong and turns into a myth from some African tribe 100,000 years ago (I have doubts that even with advanced technology that people in the 23rd century would have clue one what beliefs people had 100,000 years ago)… and that myth is just thrown out there and not referenced again. The writers think that “smartassery” is what the fans want in lieu of wit. And the writers threw in a bunch of what they seemed to think were jokes, presumably to help capture the “Orville” fanbase.

The acting is bad, in particular the horribly named “Jet Reno.” A character clearly thrown in in order to Seem Cool.

The action is bad and inexplicable. The little landing pods are straight out of a video game, and make as little sense. Why the frak do they spin around like that? If they are meant to head into dangerous environments, why are they one giant transparent and relatively fragile bubble?

The technology is bad, such as the small device set up on the shuttlebay floor that magically transforms into a *giant* device. Apparently it was folded up into a pocket dimension, a technology you’d think Starfleet would have made a bit more use of in later centuries. Or any use of.

Kid Spock sucks.

Everyone is a jerk.

Captain Pike actually looks like Jeffrey Hunters Captain Pike, but is entirely unlike him. OG Pike was serious to the point of morose, weighed down by the burdens of command. This one is a smirking wisecracker.

It is clear that the producers tried to make the premiere of season 2 more like Star Trek, but it’s a bad imitation.

“The Orville” has also recently premiered its second season and has five episodes under its belt so far. They, too, have retooled the show, though not nearly as much. “The Orville” has turned down the comedy; personally, I’m a bit disappointed by that. But “Orville” was always a mix of comedy and good sci-fi, and the sci-fi remains good. Just… not quite as funny.

STD is Star Trek for people who don’t like Star Trek. Orville is non-Star Trek for people who *do* like Star Trek. I have high hopes (but low expectations) that I’ll live long enough to once again see Star Trek for people who like Star Trek.

If you feel the need to watch the STD season 1 premiere episode, it’s HERE. It’s free, which seems a bit overpriced.

My pitch for “Space Force”

art, blather, humor, politics, science fiction No Responses »

Jan 172019

Rather than just complain uselessly about what a political disaster the new Netflix show “Space Force” is *probably* going to be, I decided to put a little thought into what it *could* be, if I had anything to say about it. So here are a few basics about what a Space Force comedy show *could* be. Feel free to make suggestions in the comments, and pass this along to Hollywood execs.

The setting: Top Secret facility “USSF Base Mt. Mysterious,” somewhere in the Sierras of California. Mt. Mysterious is the newest USSF facility, basically a “think tank” for the Force. Responsible for coming up with plans, strategies and new technologies. Total number of personnel at the base is, so far, only a few dozen. The nearest town to Mt. Mysterious is the small mountain town/tourist trap of Nowheresville, filled with the stock-standard assortment of eccentric small-town types such as ranchers, B&B owners, coffee shop proprietors, marijuana growers and dispensers, etc.

Regular cast:

Colonel Jim Bland (Steve Carrell): Just transferred from the USAF to the USSF and newly-installed base commander of Mt. Mysterious. A-political, but also a-competant. Has a proven track record of failing upwards; wherever he goes, every facility or project he was involved with is shuttered shortly after. Thinks the USSF is an exciting opportunity, but is forever getting bad ideas and bad advice. Cheerful and upbeat; gullible with the IQ of a turnip.

Gregory Laurie (Freddie Highmore): Main viewpoint character. Standard “Aspergers=mental superpowers” type, brought to Mt. Mysterious just before Colonel Bland. Not officially a member of the USSF, but he hacked his way into the base computers, analyzed some of the top secret plans on file, found errors and then sent in corrections. Was given the choice between working at the base and a deep dark prison-hole; jumped at the chance to work for the USSF. Good with computers and whatever else the plot needs.

Ida Dunner (Laura Prepon): Secretary to Colonel Bland. Competent and devoted to the cause of the USSF. Often “loses” orders to and from Colonel Bland, with the result that the base prospers. Secretly reports to General Bateson, while still being somewhat fond of the hapless Bland. Has an arsenal of firearms at home, loves to hunt.

Dr. Emmett L. Rotwang (Tim Allen): Mt. Mysterious chief engineer. Eccentric mad-scientist type responsible for numerous advanced weapons and propulsion projects. Most of the projects are seemingly insane…. and most of them work. Constantly fighting a battle against budget cuts. Dreams of planting the US flag on Mars and claiming the Moon. Has a prototype warp drive under construction in his basement.

Captain Han Ford (Anthony Ingruber): Mt. Mysterious chief pilot. Can and does fly everything, from the seemingly civilian helicopter used to shuttle into the nearby town of Nowheresville, to the bases single F-35B to the prototype spaceplane they keep meaning to launch one of these days. Spends a lot of free time at Dr. Rotwang’s house helping him with his projects.

Sargent Thor Manwell (Chris Pratt): In charge of maintenance and construction at the base. Poplar among base female personnel. Often goes hunting with Ms. Dunner.

Agent Tasha Vasquez (Michelle Rodriguez): OSI agent based at Mt. Mysterious, tasked with keeping an eye on both the staff and potential spies, cyber or otherwise. Also responsible for bringing Gregory to the base. Grim, skeptical and suspicious.

Recurring Characters:

Senator Pantsy Nelosi (Tina Fey), sits on the Senate Defense Appropriations Committee. Opposed to the existence of the USSF, has aspirations of higher office. A recurring antagonist on the show, is largely responsible for the placement of Colonel Bland. A large faction of her campaign funds are funneled in from China. The question is, does she know?

Moonbeam Causehead (Lena Dunham): Social activist in Nowheresville. Protests everything. Runs the local Socialist Feminist Collective Bookstore which never seems to sell any actual books.

Flower (Kate Upton): Another social activist in Nowheresville, a common feature at the Socialist Feminist Collectivist Bookstore and at any and all protest rallies. Airheaded, bubbly and cheerful, always ready to help… and actually an FBI agent who despises social justice warriors and is keeping tabs on the network of spies and saboteurs that seems to be growing in the Mt. Mysterious region. Clandestinely reports to Agent Vasquez.

General Morgan Bateson (Kelsey Grammer): USSF Chief of Staff. Gruff, arrogant but also hyper-competant and driven to make sure that the USSF succeeds. Dislikes Senator Nelosi intensely. Plans on turning the USSF into a force of warships that will lead the American conquest of the entire solar system.

Nole Sezob (Johnny Galecki): Genius owner and director of Blue Harvest Inc. A self-made billionaire and tech innovator, now working on his own private space program. Has a secret agreement with the USSF to carry out clandestine launches as well as put some of Dr. Rotwangs inventions into production… and into orbit. Outgoing and friendly; harbors a hatred of Communists and their lackeys.

Mr. Nupit (Alec Baldwin): Advisor to Senator Nelosi. Forever taking calls from Russia. Regularly visits Nowheresville and the Socialist Feminist Collective Bookstore. Asks many questions, leaves behind spy cameras.

The President (Arnold Schwarzenegger): Publicly supports the USSF. But privately…?

The staff at Mt. Mysterious work to make the USSF successful, to counter threats from Russia, China and especially the dastardly Canadians, and to avoid the bumbling orders of Colonel Bland. Over the first season there is a growing suspicion that Senator Nelosi is more than just a political opponent.

SPS Launchers: A Collection

art, awesomeness, history, Hmm..., models, projects, rockets, US Launch Vehicle Projects No Responses »

Dec 272018

Continuing to rough out some Heavy Lift Launch Vehicle CAD models. Instead of lumping them all together I’m breaking them into “genres,” partially because my computer is starting to balk at the the size of the full collection. Below is the “Solar Power Satellite Launchers” collection. Included, from left to right, Rockwell Star Raker, Boeing TSTO, Boeing “Big Onion” SSTO, Saturn V, NASA Personnel Launch System ( a Shuttle derived design), Boeing Space Freighter, NASA-JSC HLLV. There are a few more designs that could probably be added to this collection. Suggestions?

As previously indicated, there is a good chance of a 1/288 scale model of some of the designs such as the Saturn V and the Star Raker. But *all* of them? Probably not in that scale. What seems reasonable is something akin to the old Monogram “missile collection” kits, with all of the HLLVs in something like 1/500 or 1/700 scale. A similar collection of Nova/Post-Saturn boosters is possible.

The Space Freighter would be substantially impressive in 1/288… but really rather enormous.

Neutral Particle Beam weapon mockup

history, Hmm..., models, projects, spacecraft, weapons No Responses »

Nov 212018

A while back a 1987 press image was posted on ebay showing a McDonnell-Douglas full scale mockup of a Neutral Particle Beam weapon system. This would have been an experimental system, not an operational weapon; details on full-scale NPB weapons are *very* hard to come by, but the smallest NPB weapon system that I’ve seen anything remotely resembling hard data on would have required a non-trivial number of Shuttle-derived heavy lift launch vehicles to put into orbit a piece at a time. Some references – extremely vague ones – have even made mention of dimensions for the full-scale weapons being measured in kilometers.

The purpose of this system would likely have been to simply show that a neutral particle beam could be reliably generated and directed at an orbiting target some decent distance away. While it would likely be very unhealthy to be int he way of such a beam, it’s weapons potential would doubtless have been low… thus the need for vastly scaled-up operational versions.

US Fighter, Transport, Launcher, Recon & Research Projects

aircraft, awesomeness, books, drawings, history, new products, nukes, projects, rockets, spacecraft, US Fighter Projects, US Launch Vehicle Projects, US Research & Recon Projects, US Transport Projects No Responses »

Nov 072018

Now available… four new issues in the US Aerospace Projects line.

US Fighter Projects #3

Cover art was provided by Rob Parthoens, www.baroba.be

US Fighter Projects #03 is now available (see HERE for the entire series). Issue #3 includes:

Vought Advanced Interceptor AI-0604R: a dart-winged ejector ramjet-powered concept
Convair Nuclear Powered Interceptor Configuration I: a single0seat interceptor with a nuclear reactor
General Dynamics F-111X-7: A stretched F-111 for bomber escort and interception
Bell Ramjet Fighter: A subsonic small fighter from the end of WWII
Convair XP-92: A post-war delta-winged ramjet powered supersonic interceptor
Rockwell D736-4 Supersonic Penetrator: the wings could sweep back entirely within the fuselage
Lockheed CL-362-2: A high-altitude hypersonic rocketplane
NASA-Langley TBF-1: an unusual supercruiser

USFP #3 can be downloaded as a PDF file for only $4.25:

——–

US Launch Vehicle Projects #5

Cover art was provided by Rob Parthoens, www.baroba.be

US Launch Vehicle Projects #5 is now available (see HERE for the entire series). Issue #5 includes:

North American Aviation 600K SSTO: an early concept for cheap space launch
Boeing “Windjammer” SSTO: A horizontal takeoff design form the early 70s
JSC Winged Heavy Lift Launch Vehicle: A giant SPS launcher
NASA Nova “Saturn C-8”: an early Apollo booster
Lockheed Reusable Ten-Ton Orbital Carrier: A logistics system from the early 60s
Chrysler Hot Air Balloon S-IB: An unusual approach to booster recovery
MSC Orbiter 042A Titan IIIL6: A shuttle design with a delta-winged orbiter on an enlarged Titan
General Dynamics Model 202: a preliminary design for a Brilliant Pebbles launcher

USLP #5 can be downloaded as a PDF file for only $4.25:

——–

US Recon & Research Projects #3

Cover art was provided by Rob Parthoens, www.baroba.be

US Recon & Research Projects #3 is now available (see HERE for the entire series). Issue #3 includes:

Lockheed A-2: An early design leading to the SR-71
Boeing NuERA 747: A nuclear powered 747
General Dynamics SX-109 “Pathfinder”: a subscale SSTO demonstrator
Northrop N-165: A giant U-2 alternate
Convair M-125: A high altitude/speed single seat recon plane with toxic fuel
Bell AMST STOL Prototype: A heavily modified C-130
Convair Nuclear AEW: unmanned, nuclear powered VTOL fleet defense recon platform
Boeing Model 818-300: an early 60s battlefield surveillance platform

USRP #3 can be downloaded as a PDF file for only $4.25:

——–

US Transport Projects #8

Cover art was provided by Rob Parthoens, www.baroba.be

US Transport Projects #8 is now available (see HERE for the entire series). Issue #8 includes:

NACA SST: a 1947 concept
Boeing CX-HLS: Boeings design for what became the C-5
Bell Operational Medium STOL Transport: vectored thrust for short takeoff
Convair Limited War Amphibian: A concept for a single plan to meet both land and sea plane requirements
Bell Hypersonic Transport 1980-1990:A two-stage turboramjet/rocket concept
Lockheed Hybrid Wing Body 757PF-Sized Freighter: a recent design for an advanced transport
Lear Liner Model 40:a small airliner/large executive transport
Boeing Model 759-153A Resource Carrier: A big flying wing natural gas “tanker”

USTP #8 can be downloaded as a PDF file for only $4.25:

——–

New CAD diagram PDFs?

art, drawings, history, Hmm..., new products, projects No Responses »

Oct 222018

Two and a half years ago I released seven CAD diagrams as 18X24 “posters” in PDF format. There was a little bit of interest, but not enough to move the project to the top of my to-do list and, like many of my projects, it fell by the wayside. Still, it’s always possible that some of the CAD diagrams I’ve created for US Aerospace Projects and other efforts in the years since might be of interest. If so, and you’ve always wanted to see such-and-such a diagram made available, comment below.

Here are the original seven:

CAD 007: Northrop Low Altitude Penetrator

A 1/72 diagram of a 1979 design for a B-2 alternate configuration

Download for $3

———————————

CAD 006

A 1/96 scale diagram of the 1979 Rockwell D645-4a spanloader bomber.

Download for $3

CAD 005

A 1/144 scale diagram of the Manned Spacecraft Center MSC Orbiter 020, a 1972 Space Shuttle concept with a single 260″ solid rocket booster.

Download for $3

CAD 004

A 1/350 scale diagram of the 1971 Boeing Resource Air Carrier (AKA RC-1, AKA “Brute Lifter”) designed as a flying oil tanker for the arctic.

Download for $3

CAD 003

A 1/72 scale diagram of the Martin-Marietta “Zenith Star” experimental space-based laser for the Strategic Defense Initiative.

Download for $3

CAD 002

A 1/24 diagram of the Lockheed “Harvey,” the initial concept for a low radar cross section strike platform that eventually became the F-117.

Download for $3

———————————

CAD 001

A 1/32 diagram of the North American Rockwell D-541-4 “Surprise Fighter” from 1973, an early stealth concept designed to sneak up on Soviet AWACS planes.

Download for $3

USGS and Asteroids

awesomeness, Hmm..., news, politics, spacecraft No Responses »

Sep 042018

The US Geological Survey Is Getting Serious About Space Resources and Mining

The director of the USGS is a former NASA scientist who flew on the Shuttle 3 times. This bodes well. Getting the USGS to begin characterizing the natural resources of the asteroids available for commercial exploitation is not only useful for the pure data of it, it also indicates that the US Federal Government is finally starting to accept that commercial exploitation of the heavens is not only probably inevitable, it’s also something that the US should be deeply involved with.

Of course, if the US or American corporations begin harvesting asteroids and collecting billions or even trillions of dollars worth of resources (anything from water to be used in space, to rare elements to be used in Earthly manufacturing to energy collection and transmission), then it’s a safe bet that other nations will try to get in on it. And when you have people competing for resources, you’ll have conflicts. It would thus be in Americas best interests to create a force capable of keeping the peace and enforcing the rule of law. A “space force,” if you will. And once that is created, a good use of that force would be to head out to the frontier and set up advance bases.

If Trump gets all this to happen, then all his idiot-child tweets are forgiven.

Back when CNN was a news network

AARRRGH, history, Hmm..., rockets, spacecraft, youtube No Responses »

Aug 202018

CNN’s live coverage of the Shuttle Challenger launch, January 28, 1986. Compare to modern coverage: here, the event plays out live… and without a constant running commentary of inane babble. A reporter at the time would have no useful information for several minutes; he would not be able to tell the viewers anything they would not be able to figure out themselves. Today… you would expect *someone* to be running his or her damnfool mouth nonstop, apparently living in terror of three seconds of “dead air.”

Similarly, later that night President Reagan gave a brief televised speech to the nation. The Great Communicator earned his accurate nickname, one that has not applied to any President since. Sure as hell doesn’t *now.”

Theoretically CNN is *still* a news network. But I have randomly flipped over to the channel from time to time, probably several times a day… and I cannot recall how long it has been that I’ve seen actual news coverage. These days, every time I go to CNN it’s nothing but talking heads complaining about Trump. These days I see the “news” part of CNN to be a vestigial organ from the past, much like the “music” in MTV.

STAR Clipper

APR, art, history, projects, rockets, spacecraft, US Launch Vehicle Projects No Responses »

Aug 032018

A piece of color art, scanned from a 35mm slide at NASA HQ some years back. The Lockheed STAR Clipper was an early concept for a reusable 1.5 STO launch vehicle, a predecessor to the Space Shuttle. The STAR Clipper was described and illustrated in unnecessarily *vast* degree in Aerospace Projects Review issue V3N2 and in US Launch Vehicle Projects #2.

The STAR Clipper was an interesting design which was popular and well known for a while, receiving lot of kinda-press… it, or shuttles very much like it in appearance, appeared in a lot of publicity art produced by Lockheed, NASA, the USAF and even other companies. For a while it was the Shuttle Stereotype.

Older Entries Newer Entries