The Official Space Exploration Thread

[Angry Ewok]

Amazing space walk photos... I've always wanted to go up there with some Shirley Bassey blasting.

[DSJ™]

Spacewalker fixes shuttle blanket



John (Danny) Olivas is repairing the thermal blanket on Atlantis. Image credit: NASA TV.

[DSJ™]

That picture is just amazing.

Yeah, a very impressive pic. Click on the small pic below for a high res pic of that shot, worth getting it framed. 

[DSJ™]

Shuttle cleared to land next week

HOUSTON -- NASA astronaut Sunita Williams set a new spaceflight record early Saturday as she and her Atlantis shuttle crewmates continue their mission to the International Space Station (ISS).

At precisely 1:47 a.m. EDT (0547 GMT), Williams took the all-time title for the longest spaceflight by a female astronaut as she passed the 188-day, four-hour mark in Earth orbit.

Williams' spaceflight surpassed that of fellow NASA astronaut Shannon Lucid, who spent just over 188 days in orbit during a 1996 mission to Russia's Mir Space Station. By coincidence, Williams set the new record on the 44th anniversary of the launch of the first female spaceflyer Valentina Tereshkova, a cosmonaut launched by the former Soviet Union in 1963. Credit: Space.com



Astronaut Sunita Williams, an STS-117 mission specialist and former Expedition 15 flight engineer, poses for a photo with two Russian Orlan spacesuits in the Pirs docking compartment of the International Space Station. Credit: NASA.

[DSJ™]

Shuttle, space station 'slowly moving back' to normal



This view, taken by a camera mounted to the space shuttle Atlantis, shows STS-117 spacewalkers Patrick Forrester and Steven Swanson as they worked on the joint bridging the S3/4 trusses outside the International Space Station (ISS) on June 17, 2007. Credit: NASA TV.



STS-117 spacewalkers Steven Swanson and Patrick Forrester (partially visible at right) fly over a blue Earth while working on the new Starboard 3 (S3) truss outside the International Space Station on June 17, 2007. Credit: NASA TV.



Spacewalkers Patrick Forrester (left) and Steven Swanson work to free a massive joint that will allow new starboard solar arrays to rotate and track the Sun during a June 17, 2007 excursion outside the International Space Station. Credit: NASA TV.

Another high res clicky below.

[DSJ™]

Space station computers get final test



An ISS flare caused by sunlight reflecting off the solar panels of the space station was captured by amateur astronomer Mike Tyrell as it passed over England Tuesday night. Credit: Mike Tyrrell.



The STS-117 and Expedition 15 crewmembers gather for a group portrait during a joint crew press conference in the Destiny laboratory of the International Space Station while Space Shuttle Atlantis was docked with the station. Image credit: NASA.

STS-117, Expedition 15 Close Hatches; Atlantis to Undock Tuesday. The STS-117 crew bid farewell today to the Expedition 15 crew before the hatches closed at 6:51 p.m. EDT between Space Shuttle Atlantis and the International Space Station. Attention now turns to Atlantis’ undocking from the station 10:42 a.m. Tuesday.

Atlantis is scheduled to land at Kennedy Space Center, Fla., at 1:54 EDT Thursday.

[DSJ™]

Final inspection for space shuttle Atlantis



This view of the International Space Station, taken in December 2006 by STS-116 astronauts, shows how the station appeared prior to Atlantis' June 2007 STS-117 mission. Credit: NASA.



A camera aboard the space shuttle Atlantis returned this view of the International Space Station, backdropped by Earth, after the STS-117 crew undocked on June 19, 2007. Credit: NASA TV.



ISS Expedition 15 commander Fyodor Yurchikhin (left) shakes hands with Atlantis shuttle commander Rick Sturckow during a hatch closing ceremony on June 18, 2007 during NASA's STS-117 mission. Credit: AP PHOTO/NASA TV.



A camera mounted to the exterior of the International Space Station caught this view of the shuttle Atlantis after its June 19, 2007 undocking during NASA's STS-117 mission. Credit: NASA TV.

[DSJ™]

Atlantis crew awaits final inspection results

NASA Clears Space Shuttle Atlantis for Thursday Landing:

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- NASA mission managers cleared the space shuttle Atlantis and its seven-astronaut crew for a planned Thursday landing after resolving two final issues.

Atlantis and its STS-117 astronaut crew are due to land on a runway here at NASA's Kennedy Space Center (KSC) Thursday at 1:55 p.m. EDT (1755 GMT), though anticipated thunderstorms and thick clouds near the landing strip may preempt the orbiter's Earth return, mission managers said.



This view, taken by a camera aboard the space shuttle Atlantis, shows the International Space Station over the the orbiter's tail after the June 19, 2007 undocking of NASA's STS-117 mission. Credit: NASA TV.



A camera mounted to the exterior of the International Space Station caught this view of the shuttle Atlantis after its June 19, 2007 undocking during NASA's STS-117 mission. Credit: NASA TV.

[DSJ™]

Shuttle landing scrubbed for Thursday

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- NASA's shuttle Atlantis and its astronaut crew will have to wait at least one more day before returning to Earth after poor weather thwarted a planned Thursday landing.

Atlantis is now set to land Friday, with the first KSC opportunity at 2:18 p.m. EDT (1818 GMT).

[Darth_Anton]

I like it when the shuttle lands out this way (SoCal.) We always hear the sonic boom and feel the house shake, just a little.

[DSJ™]

California it was, must be sweet watching her come home & hearing the sonic boom.

Shuttle completes mission in California



Space shuttle Atlantis touches down at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. Credit: NASA TV.

Clicky on the high res pic below just taken before the drag chute deployed. Sweet! 

[Darth_Anton]

Aghhh, I missed the sonic boom. I had a house full of kids. They canceled everything out.

[DSJ™]

Teacher-astronaut heads for space

Completing the Mission After 21 Years

 



NASA's space shuttle Endeavour launches into space on Aug. 8, 2007 on the STS-118 construction mission to the International Space Station. Credit: NASA.

[DSJ™]

Shuttle crew tackles inspection

Here's something interesting to watch from filmmaker Ron Howard who brought us the amazing Apollo 13. This documentary film arrives in theater September 7th. 

In the Shadow of the Moon Site

In the Shadow of the Moon Trailer

Between 1968 and 1972, nine American spacecraft voyaged to the Moon, and 12 men walked upon its surface. IN THE SHADOW OF THE MOON brings together for the first, and possibly the last, time surviving crew members from every single Apollo mission that flew to the Moon along with visually stunning archival material re-mastered from the original NASA film footage. The result is an intimate epic that vividly communicates the daring, the danger, the pride, and the promise of this extraordinary era in history when the whole world literally looked up at America.

[DSJ™]

1 more thing to add, it's meteor shower time.

Perseid will prepare you for the bigger shooting-star show, Aurigid

Spectacular Meteor Shower Possible for 2007

Saturday I will out of town that night so hopefully the skies are clear, being away from the city lights it should be a good show. As for Sept, I'll be backpacking in the moutains & hopefully the weather will be good. The stars are much better in the mountains.