mxleader on 1/9/2022 at 04:44
Quote Posted by Tocky
I appreciate all the warm responses. I could argue with MXleader about all we have learned including tech like MRI and such from the missions but why? You either understand all we have gotten out of the space program or not. Compare it to what we get out of war and the tons of money we put into that.
I don't have a problem with the space program in general but I just don't see what going back to the moon is going to do for anyone. I mean I would totally get a kick out of watching a rocket launch in person. I guess after thinking about it the chance to inspect all the stuff left behind decade ago could prove invaluable for long term space travel. Maybe a semi-permanent station on the moon would provide useful data for living on a round thing with gravity different from earth ... Baby steps to living on Mars maybe. But I have my doubts about gaining any additional useful data from moon material.
demagogue on 1/9/2022 at 04:57
Quote Posted by mxleader
Baby steps to living on Mars maybe.
This is exactly the purpose of these missions, as a preparation for the Mars missions.
Edit: I should clarify. I think they're stepping stones to crewed missions to Mars in the 2030s/40s, not actual permanent Mars bases just yet.
Briareos H on 1/9/2022 at 06:19
Aren't they considering harvesting water ice on the moon? Not having to pass Earth's atmosphere to refuel would probably save a lot of effort.
Nicker on 1/9/2022 at 06:36
Subsurface moon base is a maybe. Life on Mars? Maybe in a couple of centuries.
Robots are the key to space. So many wasted kilos hoisting meat puppets into hostile territory.
Especially since the fantasy seems to be escaping the shit show we made of home.
Tocky on 1/9/2022 at 19:49
They are considering assembling the rocket to Mars and launching it from there, and yes, separating the oxygen and hydrogen could fuel it.
We woke early, likely extra early, as we had lost an hour on the way from central standard to eastern. I wasn't interested in the lighthouse right then, only getting a room near New Smyrna Beach because I had spent so much time plotting to get to Playalinda beach (which is only around three miles from the launch pad) from there. At the Florida visitors center came our first hint of trouble. The folks there said they thought it was closed for the launch. Surely not. Once we got to New Smyrna we heard that it was a nude beach so watch for floppy old bits waggling about. The Islander resort had no available rooms after our cancellation, as I figured, so we went searching. One hotel over was the Best Western also right on the beach. We literally got the last room. The couple behind us had to go elsewhere.
But since we had to wait for the room to be cleaned, I wanted a dry run for the next day and a steak. Everything was just as I had searched it on google maps, so I knew every turn. The road was not labeled except for a sign reading Canaveral National Seashore. Perfect. Less chance of there being a lot of people there tomorrow. On the way we stopped to help a tortoise cross the road. One six times the size of the ones from my area. I couldn't wait to check the beach out and take some pics of Artemis on the pad. A police cruiser was parked across the road and a disgusted man was gesturing angrily as he turned to go back the way he had come. Why couldn't we pass? The officer had no idea. On the way back we had to stop as another fellow helped a tortoise across the road. It looked like the same tortoise.
Nothing to do but find another close location. Maybe NASA could tell us something so we went to Kennedy Space Center just as it was closing. No going in but there was an information booth and gift shop open. The information lady said that there were no tickets for the stands left but perhaps we could see it along the causeway with the rest of the hundred thousand. Why not Playalinda? There is a five mile cordon in case of a blast radius. I made a joke about taking my chances and she let me know they took that very seriously and I would go to jail.
So we scouted locations. People were everywhere. Campers alongside the roads. Some local entrepreneurs had made a sign and were charging $40 bucks for a spot along the road bank at the inlet and people were paying it. The state owns that. I imagine those guys quietly folded those signs and slipped away when police passed by. We settled on A Max Brewer Parkway at the causeway bridge. There is a spot at the beginning of it that has a clear view and what's a few thousand more feet just to get trapped in the crowd? Across the way was a Sand Point Park aptly named with plenty of parking. The new plan was in place. We would still outsmart the crowds. Nothing could go wrong.
More later.
Cipheron on 1/9/2022 at 20:15
Man, so glad you ended up going Tocky, that was deflating hearing about the medical emergency.
So the delay with the weather was lucky I guess?
Tocky on 2/9/2022 at 03:56
Not so fast there, Cipheron.
That evening we settled in our room and gathered all the half empty bags of chips and Chex mix from the ride down to take down to the beach to feed the gulls. They were ecstatic. What was one or two within eyesight became twenty or thirty at the rustle of a bag. Sand Pipers and blackbirds came to see the ruckus. They happily fought over the feast on the sand.
Then I made the mistake of tossing them in the air. The gulls caught on real quick and began snatching them out of the air as they hovered in the ocean breeze. I had seen them follow our boat on the way to Ship Island on our early vacations catching popcorn thrown off the stern. Only they kept flying over my head. I tried to get them to hover more to my left but I was being swarmed. They were really good at catching them right after I threw too. Then came poop on my forearm. Knowing what came next had us dumping the bags and dragging our chairs into the surf.
It was nice there with the incoming waves on our feet. With a glass of wine it was relaxing to see what the sea would bring us. I picked up a clump of seaweed for a picture. As it was being taken something black wiggled out of it. We took a picture of that too. No idea what it was. Maybe I will post pics of this vacation in the thread I usually post them in. Anyway, it was romantic to watch the waves roll in and some fellow with a throw net cast it just to pull it in for his wife and son to see what he had captured. It made me think of my young family. I worried Rena would be worried about her mother now that things had slowed down so I squeezed her hand. If she was she didn't say. She squeezed back.
Back inside Rena had no trouble sleeping. I was too excited to sleep. We have often joked using the voice of that kid in the Disney commercial who says that but this time it was true. I watched the Apollo 13 movie on the set in the living area then went to bed to stare at the ceiling. I drifted off about 12 then woke at 2 AM. I had already showered that night and my clothes were all laid out so I put them on and took some things down to the car. At 3 AM we got our wakeup call and the alarm I had set because I didn't trust the young guy at the counter went off. We were out the door twenty minutes later. I noticed several empty spaces in the parking lot.
At the causeway there was already a steady flow of traffic. The park was nearly full of cars but I found a space. We made it to the place we had staked out earlier and set up our chairs and cooler. Everything worked out. We made friends with the young family next to us and the fellow from Ontario in back of us. People kept pouring in. I watched the chairs for the young family as they went to the park facilities and they the same for when we went. We came back with a wad of greasy bacon a vender was selling. I kept taking pictures of Artemis as the sky lightened. I accidentally dropped my camera and knocked the last section of lens cockeyed. I cursed SOB before I could stop myself. It had happened once before so I knew if I was careful I could pop it back straight. I did. The auto focus still worked.
I could see a cordon of coast guard boats keeping the civilian ones at bay. There was even a sailboat in the red sunrise and some guy who had paddled out in his kayak. It was picturesque. I bought an Artemis flag a hawker was selling. I couldn't wait to feel the thunder. The humidity was a stagnant weight. I kept looking at the clock on my phone. At around eight a rumor of trouble began to murmur. Someone said the presidents plane was overhead so I took a picture of it. I held on to hope though I noticed some packing up. Then Fox channel 35 out of Orlando began to film a family just down from us and we stayed to hear what was said. Trouble with the engine coolant system. We were background for that segment. I took pictures then too of the news crew. We left just ahead of most of the crowd but it was still a slow shuffle to get back on highway 1.
I thought I had tamped down my anger and disappointment. Just down the hall from our room at our hotel was the restaurant and we caught it with a few minutes to spare before it closed. Only there was nobody to seat us so we took an open table by the window. The waitress came along and was angered that we had not waited for her. "Oh well, protocol must be obeyed", I said loudly. It was then I realized how angry I was. I apologized and said I had had many a day as she must be having with this crowd. She too made nice and we found our humanity in the stress of the moment. Later she took a picture for us with the view of sea behind. I tipped large. I felt I needed to. The omelets were fantastic and she was just in a bad moment. She told us how to get to the lighthouse across the inlet. She even remembered us the next day and how we liked our breakfast and had the station set to a one that played lesser known songs from the seventies.
I never did catch the channel 35 segment with us in our large floppy straw hats. Maybe they used another one for the broadcast. I didn't exactly watch it all day. We had things to do.
More later.
Tocky on 2/9/2022 at 12:44
We spent the rest of that day going to the tallest lighthouse in Florida. It was a nice view but hot getting there and my legs were sore the next day. Some clever enterprising soul had written ICE CREAM atop a shop across the road. It worked. We went. Later we ate at a restaurant in a treetop but the food was awful. The haddock like sun dried fish sticks. The shrimp like breaded leftovers. We took it to the gulls and had more fun that way.
The next morning I woke early and got everything together for the grueling drive home. I will see the launch like the rest of you. I'm glad I went but I could not stay at a time like this. We did drop by that St. Simons lighthouse. A really nice area. I doubt we ever stop by again though. If we go for Artemis two or three it will be flying. It's too hard of a drive. I hope todays launch goes well. My hopes for us go with it.
The day after we got back my wife and sister in law were with their mom when they noticed she wasn't breathing. They had to perform CPR (Amy is a nurse) and call an ambulance. Something about laying down cuts her air off. She had died and was brought back by the CPR the ambulance crew said. She is back in the hospital now. I fear this is going to be a hard fight.
Tocky on 5/9/2022 at 14:08
This is a fairly comprehensive explanation of the building of Artemis 1 and the history of the various pieces. I like it because it includes the whys and functions of the parts and the tests being done as well.
[video=youtube_share;H93KDxYKeKU]https://youtu.be/H93KDxYKeKU[/video]
I know it's been a disappointment as far as taking off so far but it's a bit more understandable after this video. This isn't like the old solid rocket fuel Apollo first section, which was less complicated, but wouldn't be practical for a launch from the moon one day.
