MR

Thought this was kind of cool:

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/upshot/two- ... 13669.html



Thirty years ago, the first space shuttle launched into the stratosphere. Chris Bray and his father Kenneth watched -- and took a picture. Then last Friday, the shuttle Atlantis took its final trip. Again, the Bray men were there. And again, the two snapped a photo to capture the moment.

The first shot shows 13-year-old Chris with then 39-year-old dad looking through binoculars at the space shuttle Columbia's first launch on April 12, 1981, from the Kennedy Space Center.

The second snap comes three decades later and recreates the same moment at the last shuttle voyage. The young son is now an adult. His father is now gray-haired.

I wonder when they first saw it if they ever thought they would be there together at the end of the space shuttle era also? The sky wasn't the limit back then or so it seemed but then the real world got in the way of things and modern science couldn't keep up with where our imaginations thought we would be in the early days of the new century.

Back then, I envisioned us having a man on Mars or even Ganymede at this point. I obviously got ahead of myself back in those days with my visions of the future and where we would be progressing to in my lifetime.

Don wrote:Back then, I envisioned us having a man on Mars or even Ganymede at this point. I obviously got ahead of myself back in those days with my visions of the future and where we would be progressing to in my lifetime.

No, I agree.....it seems any further development into space has been very slow.

I read astrophysics, and quantum mechanics books - as well as fall asleep listening to audiobooks on the same topics. 'Prometheus' was started in 2005-06....and that entails nuclear powered rockets for deep space travel. 'Orion' is the next project for NASA. They are also looking into something called 'Solar Sails', that would use solar energy to power a spacecraft....and yet another idea is to build 'thousands' of laser emitters on the moon to power another kind of spacecraft....

S2M wrote:I read astrophysics, and quantum mechanics books - as well as fall asleep listening to audiobooks on the same topics. 'Prometheus' was started in 2005-06....and that entails nuclear powered rockets for deep space travel. 'Orion' is the next project for NASA. They are also looking into something called 'Solar Sails', that would use solar energy to power a spacecraft....and yet another idea is to build 'thousands' of laser emitters on the moon to power another kind of spacecraft....

Thought you didn't believe they'd really gotten to the moon

Arianddu wrote:

S2M wrote:I read astrophysics, and quantum mechanics books - as well as fall asleep listening to audiobooks on the same topics. 'Prometheus' was started in 2005-06....and that entails nuclear powered rockets for deep space travel. 'Orion' is the next project for NASA. They are also looking into something called 'Solar Sails', that would use solar energy to power a spacecraft....and yet another idea is to build 'thousands' of laser emitters on the moon to power another kind of spacecraft....

Thought you didn't believe they'd really gotten to the moon

I don't...but that doesn't negate my interest in such topics. We never went to the moon. Just accept it. And we are still 400-500 years from any inter-stellar travel as well. Unless there's money to be made - you ain't seeing shit. It's also going to be privately funded, FOR profit. You want to go to the moon? Fork over a cool million...

S2M wrote:

Arianddu wrote:

S2M wrote:I read astrophysics, and quantum mechanics books - as well as fall asleep listening to audiobooks on the same topics. 'Prometheus' was started in 2005-06....and that entails nuclear powered rockets for deep space travel. 'Orion' is the next project for NASA. They are also looking into something called 'Solar Sails', that would use solar energy to power a spacecraft....and yet another idea is to build 'thousands' of laser emitters on the moon to power another kind of spacecraft....

Thought you didn't believe they'd really gotten to the moon

I don't...but that doesn't negate my interest in such topics. We never went to the moon. Just accept it. And we are still 400-500 years from any inter-stellar travel as well. Unless there's money to be made - you ain't seeing shit. It's also going to be privately funded, FOR profit. You want to go to the moon? Fork over a cool million...

Were you too young to remember the astronauts running around on the moon? Even built a rover to drive around. I think those guys are still up there.

Rick wrote:

S2M wrote:

Arianddu wrote:

S2M wrote:I read astrophysics, and quantum mechanics books - as well as fall asleep listening to audiobooks on the same topics. 'Prometheus' was started in 2005-06....and that entails nuclear powered rockets for deep space travel. 'Orion' is the next project for NASA. They are also looking into something called 'Solar Sails', that would use solar energy to power a spacecraft....and yet another idea is to build 'thousands' of laser emitters on the moon to power another kind of spacecraft....

Thought you didn't believe they'd really gotten to the moon

I don't...but that doesn't negate my interest in such topics. We never went to the moon. Just accept it. And we are still 400-500 years from any inter-stellar travel as well. Unless there's money to be made - you ain't seeing shit. It's also going to be privately funded, FOR profit. You want to go to the moon? Fork over a cool million...

Were you too young to remember the astronauts running around on the moon? Even built a rover to drive around. I think those guys are still up there.

Yep, they're checking out that Transformers ship that crashed there before Apollo 11

Saw the last shuttle launch standing right on the beach just north of Canaveral. The sound was incredible to hear.

I was walking down the street in Glendale (CA) years ago and BOOM!, the shop window in front of me look like it wobbled. What caused it (as I found out later) was the shuttle coming in for a landing at Edwards AFB. The sonic boom was what shook the window. Imagine, an object the size of a couple of buses 100 miles away causing that window to shake as entered the atmosphere. Pretty cool.

Don wrote:I was walking down the street in Glendale (CA) years ago and BOOM!, the shop window in front of me look like it wobbled. What caused it (as I found out later) was the shuttle coming in for a landing at Edwards AFB. The sonic boom was what shook the window. Imagine, an object the size of a couple of buses 100 miles away causing that window to shake as entered the atmosphere. Pretty cool.

I have been woken up scared with my windows rattling, here in Orlando, from what sounds like a bomb going off, a few times over the years, until I remember "oh yeah the space shuttle is landing". I hope we get to hear our last sonic boom here! I will actually miss that! I'm going to miss everything. So sad the program is ending.

The space shuttle program was nothing but a conversation piece and novelty for the residents of Florida....it has accomplished very little in regards to space travel....ever wonder how 1960s technology was able to supposedly land on the moon, and then make it back to earth...but in the 40-45 years since - we haven't ventured outside our own orbit?

Not to derail this thread, but I just had a memory come back that I hadn't thought of in twenty years. One time (I think I was in my teens) my friends and I were at a house party in some chick's apartment. If I remember correctly we didn't like her for some reason. At some point my buddies Max, Pete and I went out on the patio. It's one of those 2nd floor concrete patios that can fit 3 or 4 people. Just beyond the sliding glass door and the closed curtain are all the party guests. Pete turns to Max and I and says, "I'm gonna take a shit right here on the patio." Back in those days that would not be something out of the ordinary for Pete to do (if you knew Pete now, you'd understand). So Max and I get all excited and start encouraging Pete to do it. "come on dude, I can see thru the curtain. No one's coming." but Pete was afraid that Max will tell everyone that he did it so he says, no way. Max is now pleading with Pete to do it and he swears he would never throw Pete under the bus when HE is the one encouraging Pete to do it. "why would I do that? I'm not a dick." that sounded reasonable to me. So Pete drops his jeans and unloads a 6" tight but loose, firm but wet brown bear. This thing is gorgeous! All 3 of us are laughing uncontrollably. Pete is just starting to pull his pants up when Max throws the sliding glass door open, pulls back the curtain and yells, "PETE JUST TOOK A SHIT ON THE PATIO!!!" I couldn't believe it. Pete doesn't even have his pants on yet, the smoking gun is on the floor, and people we don't even know are walking toward us to investigate. Pete is struggling with his belt and I'm thinking this is going to go bad. Pete gets himself situated but he still has a big problem at his feet. Just before the partiers arrive at the patio and I mean ONE second before they pull the curtain back, Pete reaches down, grabs the bear and fires it into the neighbors yard. Then he shoves his shitty hand in his pocket, narrowly escaping total disaster. One of the funniest moments of my life.

and it looks like the son is still wearing the same t-shirt.