This weekend we celebrated our 24th Birthday! Since our launch on the Space Shuttle Columbia on July 23, 1999 (Eileen Collins commanding) we have been exploring the cosmos and bringing the high energy Universe into focus. Here's to 24 more years!

#Astrodon #Astronomy #ChandraXRay #NASA #Science #XRaysAreTheBestRays #SpaceShuttle #Astrophysics

But the next best thing is a 2-stage solution, and the experience with #Falcon (and also the #SpaceShuttle orbiter and also the development work from the #DeltaClipper / DC-X program) shows that if you could make that work, you might be able to reuse both pieces.

Early Space Shuttle designs also called for a liquid-fueled "fly-back booster". That design was abandoned for budget reasons. Leading to the fateful decision to use solid rocket boosters.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Shuttle_design_process

[...]

For someone working the work I aways quote from Theodore Roosevelt's "It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles". That being said WHO IS RUNNING THE #ClownCar at #SpaceX? !!!!!

I worked on the #SpaceShuttle Main Propulsion System and Space Shuttle Main engines for MANY years and I was ABSOLUTELY AGHAST at today's #Starship launch by @SpaceX

Specifically:
1) Launch without all engines running? WHY? I know you have redundancy but YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO LAUNCH UNTIL ALL OF THEM ARE UP & RUNNING TO GET A REAL TEST! Think #NASA is going to allow launch with even one engine out?
2) No water sound suppression system to speak of? The body flap of Columbia STS-1 was almost ripped off because of not enough sound suppression
3) No flame trench/solid concrete below? Kicks up all kinds of FOD that DAMAGES YOUR ROCKET!
4) Pogo is WELL understood, there were Pogo accumulators on the SSME "just in case"

Keep going like this and #SpaceX MIGHT make it to orbit in 4 or 5 launches.

Here are the eight astronauts who hailed from the state of #Iowa. Raja Chari is Iowa's most recent addition and currently training for NASA's crewed flights on Artemis and Orion. #NASA #Apollo #spaceshuttle #Artemis

https://medium.com/@terry88jones/nasas-lunar-landing-hoax-9f4dcd2d1aa8

#Apollo #BuzzAldren #Hoax #LunarLanding #Moon #NASA #Satellite #Space #SpaceShuttle #SpaceStation

Sorry #Millennials, but #GenX did have 'pivotal moments'. Many of the GenX had the opportunity to sit in a cafeteria or school gym & watch as NASA was set to make #history as they were sending #TeacherAstronaut #Civilian #ChristaMcaulliffe

Sadly #NASA did make history, just not the kind anyone wanted to see or #remember.

We watched as the #spaceshuttle #Challenger lifted off after about 60 seconds we saw it absolutely explode & disintegrate killing all 7 astronauts

#NeverForget

RT @Astro_Cady
Remembering #SpaceShuttle #Columbia & the #STS107 crew 20 years after the tragedy, #OTD 2/1/2003. Per aspera ad astra. We will always remember Kalpana, Rick, Laurel, Ilan, David, William & Michael.

https://www.nasa.gov/feature/20-years-ago-remembering-columbia-and-her-crew

(📷:@NASA)

Launchversary, STS-122!

Space Shuttle Antlantis STS-122 was launched to ISS, carrying Columbus Laboratory in 2008.

Oil painting on 10x15cm canvas.

#space #spaceart #rocket #SpaceShuttle #painting

@arstechnica Fascinating read, and brings back the heartbreak of Columbia’s loss. #nasa #NASAhistory #Space #SpaceShuttle #AlternateHistory

Octavia Butler* on the final crew of the Columbia

“The second book I can recall buying new was a book about the stars.” Oh my heart 💖

* From 10.45.

#space #scifi #SpaceShuttle

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/science/how-octavia-butler-remembered-the-fallen-columbia-astronauts-on-the-newshour

#OTD in 1986, also 40 years ago today, the #Challenger #SpaceShuttle exploded shortly after launch.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Shuttle_Challenger_disaster

#NASA #USA #UnitedStates #TechnologicalDisasters #MortonThiokol #Engineering

Tomorrow is an interesting day for me.

It's my #birthday.
It's #dataprotectionday
It's the day a O-ring seal failed on the #spaceshuttle

#privacy #nasa #safety

Tomorrow is an interesting day for me.

It's my #birthday.
It's #dataprotectionday
It's the day a O-ring seal failed on the #spaceshuttle

The Dream is Alive. An IMAX film narrated by Walter Cronkite about #NASA's #SpaceShuttle missions.

#STS #rocket #space #hypersonic #engineering

https://vimeo.com/541887307

@LM_Steve over at Birdsite shared a fragment of this video which I saw many moons ago at a planetarium.

It's an IMAX film called "Hail Columbia" and it's a tribute to #SpaceShuttle Columbia's maiden flight and the first STS mission

Click and VOLUME UP at 3' 48":
https://vimeo.com/16297892/recommended

It's a collage of launch and landing footage. For those of you old enough to remember when all Americans were united behind our space program under #NASA

#engineering #rocketlaunches #space 🇺🇸

From the archives today...it's my small collection of #spaceshuttle related newspapers.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CnMJE1JLk_c/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

RT @Astro_Cady
#OTD 1/3/1986: The Soviet #SpaceShuttle #Buran made its second analog test flight, reaching Maximum speed 520 kph. maximum altitude 3000 m. Time 36 minutes. Aboard were cosmonauts Rimantas Antanas-Antano Stankevicius and Igor Volk:

Die #Kaffeetasse "Astronaut" wird im #Weltraum komplett anders genutzt. Sie dient dort als Toilette.

#Spaceshuttle #Astronaut

https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astronautenurinal

Atlantis #SpaceShuttle on display at #KennedySpaceCenter

Space Shuttle Columbia Postcard
#nasa #b747 #space #postcard #Spaceshuttle