Category Archives: Space

“John always had the right stuff“

New York Times: John Glenn, American Hero of the Space Age, Dies at 95.

“John Glenn, a freckle-faced son of Ohio who was hailed as a national hero and a symbol of the space age as the first American to orbit Earth, then became a national political figure for 24 years in the Senate, died on Thursday in Columbus, Ohio. He was 95.
[…]
Finally, 36 years after his Mercury flight, in the last months of his final Senate term, he got his wish for a return to orbit. […] At 77, he became the oldest person to go into space.”

NASA has a lot of material and further links on their John Glenn page.

Deutsche Welle: Former US astronaut and senator John Glenn dead aged 95. “John Glenn, the first US astronaut to orbit Earth and a former Ohio senator, has died at 95. Hailed as “the ultimate hometown hero,” he served as a senator for 24 years and later became the oldest man in space.”

Die Zeit: Astronautenlegende John Glenn – ein Pfadfinder im Weltraum. “Was für ein Leben: John Glenn umkreiste vor 50 Jahren nicht nur als erster US-Amerikaner die Erde. Er wollte Präsident werden und flog mit 77 ein zweites Mal ins All.” Von Hellmuth Vensky, 20. Februar 2012.

Schiaparelli Mars lander hit the planet hard — and possibly exploded.

NPR the two-way: Schiaparelli Mars Lander May Have Exploded On Impact, European Agency Says.

“”Estimates are that Schiaparelli dropped from a height of between 2 and 4 kilometers, therefore impacting at a considerable speed, greater than 300 km/h [186 mph]. The relatively large size of the feature would then arise from disturbed surface material. It is also possible that the lander exploded on impact, as its thruster propellant tanks were likely still full.””

The Martian

I don’t often have the time to read a book in one sitting, but being home with a cold yesterday I managed to read The Martian by Andy Weir. I was hooked after the first few pages in the morning and finished the book on the same day in the evening.

Of course now I have to watch the movie starring Matt Damon, but today I also did some research on the book and the author.

YouTube: Adam Savage Interviews ‘The Martian’ Author Andy Weir – The Talking Room (55 minutes).

The New York Times: ‘The Martian’ by Andy Weir.

“‘‘The Martian’’ is the most prescient science fiction movie I have seen in some years. I don’t say this lightly. And as is the case with many in my field, my own awakening to the very existence of science was spurred by science fiction — a 1953 film called ‘‘Spaceways,” which I saw at a very young age, living on a U.S. military base near St. John’s, Newfoundland in Canada.”

Sylvester “Jim” Gates is a physics and mathematics professor and director of the Center for String and Particle Theory at the University of Maryland. He serves on President Obama’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.

NPR All Things Considered: Sandstorms, Explosions, Potatoes, Oh My: ‘Martian’ Takes Its Science Seriously.

“The Martian is the brainchild of author Andy Weir, who wrote the blockbuster novel that inspired the film. As Weir tells it, he’d always longed for some science fiction with greater emphasis on the science.”

The author, Andy Weir, has done two Reddit Ask Me Anythings: 3 February, 2014 and 28 January, 2015.