Solar Sail Space Craft

A very interesting article in Space.com reminded me of an episode of Star Trek:Deep Space Nine in which Capt. Sisko decides to build a Bajoran lightship in order to prove that the ancient Bajoran culture had been able to travel through space into the Cardassian system long before Cardassians and way before humans for that matter.From the DS9 episode:A Bajoran lightship was a type of early space going vessel that utilized solar sail-powered space flight. These vessels were used by the Bajorans as early as the "16th century" at a time prior to the Fall of their "Bajoran First Republic." Bajorans first traveled from Bajor to Cardassia and established First_contact between the two worlds. For many years the Cardassians disputed this claim, referring to it as a "Bajoran Fairy tale because they refused to admit that the Bajorans had achieved interstellar flight before they had.From Space.com:Solar sails that use sunlight pressure instead of fuel to fly through space have long been touted by space exploration advocates, but the novel space travel method could also be tapped to settle an unproven theory by famed scientist Albert Einstein.A gossamer solar sail would be a prime platform for an experiment that would test the so-called frame-dragging hypothesis in Einstein's General Theory of Relativity, said Roman Kezerashvili, a professor of physics at New York City College of Technology. He presented the experiment concept during the International Symposium on Solar Sailing held here July 21 at the college.Solar sails are reflective arrays just one-fifth the thickness of saran wrap, but can have an area comparable to half the size of a football field. They harness the pressure generated by the sun's light just as a cloth sail catches the wind, propelling a spacecraft as if it was a sailing ship.It is fun to see science fiction and science come together like this and if you have the chance to watch this episode of Star Trek it is worth your time!

Would You Live in a Sanctuary District?

I have discussed in many posts that the economic depression we are in is not being fully or truthfully reported in the mainstream press and if you want the truth you have to rely on bloggers and independent media. I also found a great website that lists all of the jobs being cut on a daily basis, DailyJobCuts.com. I cannot stress enough to my friends and family that we are in a depression and just open your eyes and look around at all the closed stores, friends who are unemployed, and the dramatic rise in crime.
The two episodes in Star Trek: Deep Space 9 entitled Past Tense parts one and two, in which Sisko, Bashir, and Dax get beamed back in time to the year 2024 is an excellent example of what could happen to people when too many are unemployed. Capt. Sisko and Dr. Bashir get picked up by the police and placed in what was called a Sanctuary District for those who have no home, no work, or are mentally ill. These people are walled in, have ID papers, and are not allowed to leave but are going to receive help in finding work, which of course does not happen. Sound familiar? There are so many unemployed in the USA what will happen when there are no more social nets like unemployment insurance? The Federeal Reserve cannot keep printing money forever, and soon hyperinflation will come and food will be expensive or some are saying it could be a deflationary spiral which in any case would be a lot of pain and suffering for people. The writers of these two episodes had great insight into what could happen if too many people were without work and how the government would handle it: put them out of sight, in over crowded conditions, supply very little food, while those on the outside who do have jobs need to work with the government and follow all of their rules and ignore those in the Districts. Wow, this is a great story and a scary one at that. What is going to happen to all of the unemployed, will they get "put away" somewhere?

Total Solar Eclipse 11th July 2010

It looks like the total solar eclipse will be a great show with just one hitch: you need to be in the right spot to see it!! According to Space.com:
The total solar eclipse Sunday may only be visible to a lucky cadre of die-hard skywatchers spread across the southern Pacific Ocean, but that hasn't dampened spirits at remote spots like Easter Island – where tourists and scientists have flocked to catch the celestial show.The best seats on Earth for the total solar eclipse are on Easter Island and other islands and atolls along a southern Pacific Ocean path that stretches from a spot just north of New Zealand to the tip of South America. Thousands of tourists are expected at Easter Island alone, drawn by both the looming cosmic show and the island's mysterious history. Oh well, maybe I will catch another eclipse one day in the future, but to those who get to view the event I say, enjoy and may this solar eclipse give luck to the Spaniards against the Dutch in the World Cup Finals because they may just need it this Sunday!

520 Day Mission to Mars

520 days is the amount of time that six astronauts will be in a simulated trip to Mars, however, the simulated ship will be wood paneled, no windows, and have "artificial" gravity, so to speak. From the article:

Living in five modules divided between areas for work and rest, the crew will first simulate a 250-day outbound flight to Mars, followed by a landing. Then, during a 30-day Mars surface stage, three of them will move to the Mars lander simulator, don space suits and walk around in a specially designed sandpit that is standing in for the Red Planet. Finally, there is the 240-day return trip to Earth.

So far that sounds good and like a true simulated trip.
Although they are supposed to be simulating a space mission in a mock-up spaceship, one has to say it doesn't look very spaceship-like in any of the five modules. All have pine walls, pine furniture and pine bookcases, making it look more like a Swedish sauna than an interplanetary craft.As for the bedrooms, think student accommodation. As a whole, it looks like a holiday cottage with no windows.OK, why could they not get some props that have been auctioned off lately or consult with some science fiction movie and television producers for some serious looking space craft? They could make it steel grey metal, make it small and cramped, put in some small windows with a film of the stars and change them appropriately as they travel closer to Mars.It's bound to be stressful. Although they know each other well and have been psychologically profiled not to have obvious clashes, this is no 10-day space-shuttle flight, during which a crew can put up with personal problems. If they are not careful, simmering resentment, jealousy, inappropriate competition and even mutiny could wreck the mission. Previous experience of such isolation suggests people get heartily sick of other people's stories after a few months, and soon afterwards run out of stimulating conversation. Then the tensions ramp up.That is a very valid study, in the movies or tv, the crew is always like a "family", except on Stargate Universe which is a more realistic look at how people interact with each other under extreme pressure.

All in all it sounds very interesting and those astronauts who make it to the end will get paid.

Here is a link to the article.

Corey Allen Passes

I was reading in Trek Today that actor/director Corey Allen died on the 27th of June this year. He directed some very interesting episodes of Star Trek: TNG and Star Trek: DS9, for example, in The Next Generation, he directed Final Mission which was a nice send off as a regular cast member on the show for the actor Wil Wheaton.
The Deep Space Nine episode I liked that Allen directed is entitled Paradise, but I think Corey Allen is best remembered for his role in Rebel Without a Cause and that knife fight with James Dean at the Griffith Park Observatory in Los Angeles. From the article:

As an actor in Rebel Without A Cause, Allen played bully “Buzz” Gunderson, who challenged James Dean to a “chicken run” car race which ended in death for Buzz. RIP.
Here is the article in TrekToday.

NASA Delays End of Space Shuttle Program

NASA, according to Space.com, has decided to fly the last space shuttle mission into next year 2011. From the article:

Space shuttle program managers officially decided Thursday to delay the launch of NASA's next space shuttle mission to Nov. 1 and push back the last scheduled flight to late February 2011.
NASA is retiring its space shuttle fleet after 30 years of service to make way for future programs aimed at sending astronauts to visit an asteroid by 2025, then target missions to Mars.
Once the space shuttles retire for good, NASA will rely on Russia's Soyuz spacecraft to ferry astronauts to and from the space station until American commercial spaceships become available.
So, we have until next year to watch the space shuttle and I hope the last flight will be celebrated because most people have either forgotten about it or do not realize that the program is ending. It will be a sad day, but hopefully new ships will be built in the private sector as long as the governments do not put up too much red tape and make it difficult for private companies to fly in space.