On September 30, 2011 at 11:08am, Derek Deville's Qu8k (pronounced "Quake")
launched from the Black Rock Desert in Nevada to an altitude of 121,000' before returning safely to earth. Above 99% of the atmosphere the sky turns black in the middle of the day and the curvature of the earth is clearly visible. Direct video links inside.
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posted by lazaruslong
on Oct 10, 2011 -
25 comments
Apollo 11 Saturn V Launch — This clip is raw from Camera E-8 on the launch umbilical tower/mobile launch program of Apollo 11, July 16, 1969. This is an HD transfer from the 16mm original. The camera is running at 500 fps, making the total clip of over 8 minutes represent just 30 seconds of actual time.
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posted by netbros
on Apr 23, 2010 -
88 comments
Assemble a rocket from main engine to payload fairing.
Rocket Science 101 shows the basic parts of the launch vehicle, how they are configured, and how they work together to launch a NASA spacecraft. More Friday Flash Fun.
posted by netbros
on May 30, 2008 -
8 comments
Decades of dumping chemical arms leave a risky legacy The Army now admits that it secretly dumped 64 million pounds of nerve and mustard agents into the sea, along with 400,000 chemical-filled bombs, land mines and rockets and more than 500 tons of radioactive waste - either tossed overboard or packed into the holds of scuttled vessels.
These weapons of mass destruction virtually ring the country, concealed off at least 11 states - six on the East Coast, two on the Gulf Coast, California, Hawaii and Alaska. Few, if any, state officials have been informed of their existence.
posted by notmtwain
on Nov 4, 2005 -
33 comments
NASCAR? F1? Pah! Now we're talking
Rocket Racing!! Apparently not content to sit idle, the founder of the
Ansari Space X-prize , Peter Diamandis, has launched a rocket racing league. While this sounds pretty amazing in itself, here's the real clincher: it's scheduled to start its first race in
September 2006.
According to the press release: the RRL will see Grand Prix-style races between rocket planes, flown by top pilots through a "3D trackway" just 5,000ft (1,500m) above the ground.
Pictures here (make sure to click the concept links on the same page).
BBC Story here.
posted by Mave_80
on Oct 4, 2005 -
22 comments
Fantastic Plastic "A celebration of science, engineering, daring and imagination, what follows is a chronicle of Man's highest aspirations as expressed through his flying machines, both real and imagined."
posted by anastasiav
on Jan 19, 2004 -
5 comments
Pssst... got some luvverly bits of rocket here, guv'nor. Bring darn a plane like nobody's business. Yours for $90,000. Nah, 'cos I like you, I'll do you a deal: $85,000.
Black market missiles, anybody? [apologies for the Cockney accent]
posted by humuhumu
on Aug 13, 2003 -
23 comments
Maybe they should have let Lance Bass on this one. A Soyuz rocket explodes 29 seconds after takeoff, killing one and injuring eight from the blast. Although it was not carrying any material destined for the International Space Station, launch delays caused by the investigation into the explosion might hurt the IIS project in the long run.
posted by LuxFX
on Oct 16, 2002 -
18 comments
