NASA and Internet Archive, a non-profit digital library based in San
Francisco, made available the most comprehensive compilation ever of NASA's
vast collection of photographs, historic film and video Thursday. Located at
The NASA site combines for the first time 21 major
NASA imagery collections into a single, searchable online resource last
summer.
Internet Archive includes a variety of
videos and images ranging from a constellation
collision that happened 140 million years ago to the film
shorts from the 40s and 50s that Mystery Science Fiction Theater 3000 used
to mock. The site will also recommend a clip or an item of the day from the
various categories presented. These range from text to audio to one
collection on how to be a good teenager of the 1950s.
Recently in Astronomy Category
A Mojave-based company announced plans March 26 for a new rocket that will offer Mach 2 thrill rides to the edge of space. Test flights of the two-seat rocket ship Lynx from Xcor Aerospace are scheduled for 2010, according to The Associated Press. The announcement came two months after British billionaire Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic unveiled a model of SpaceShipTwo, a six-passenger vehicle that may begin flight tests this year.
But just how safe will space tourism be?
According to the AP story, the Lynx will have a pressurized cabin, but the pilot and passenger will wear helmets and pressure suits for safety. Passengers will need some kind of medical clearance and perhaps a day’s training in such things as operating the suits and evacuating the rocket. The Lynx will have an escape capability but no ejection seats.
Before you book your flight, however, you might want to learn more about the safety -- or lack thereof -- of space tourism.
You can learn such things as how the Federal Aviation Administration will require space tourists to agree to act as "participants," not "passengers," during flights, “since the expectations of safety will be lower on a space tour.” Citizens must also agree not to sue the government if there's a fatal accident.
Oh, and there is this: During a panel discussion concerning safety regulations for space tourism, a lawyer advising the FAA said: "We're going to kill some people." You can also find related links on the site to such topics as How Space Tourism Works, How Space Planes Will Work, and How Rocket Engines Work.
Have a good flight.
In recent weeks, NASA has reminded us that although we live in a big universe, location is everything. And asteroids and other space bodies make regular visits to the neighborhood. JPL and NASA offer information on what's happening in space with animation and videos. To find out about near-earth objects click here. Or check out this site for a universe of information about outer space.
If you’re fascinated by outer space and all those twinkling stars, you should enjoy Heavens Above. By using their sky charts you can identify constellations and track satellites overhead. They’ll even customize pages in real-time specifically for your location and time zone!
