Archive for the 'Space' Category
U.S. Air Force Launches Second X-37B Autonomous Spacecraft
March 7th, 2011Via: Cnet: A second mysterious, robotic space plane was launched into orbit by the U.S. Air Force today, after the first craft safely returned to Earth late last year following a secretive months-long mission and speculation about its potential military or intelligence uses. The second Boeing-built X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle, or OTV, left Cape Canaveral, […]
NASA SCIENTIST CLAIMS TO HAVE FOUND FOSSILIZED REMAINS OF EXTRATERRESTRIAL BACTERIA IN FRESHLY FRACTURED METEORITES
March 5th, 2011Via: Journal of Cosmology: Journal of Cosmology, 2011, Vol 13, JournalofCosmology.com March, 2011 Fossils of Cyanobacteria in CI1 Carbonaceous Meteorites Richard B. Hoover, Ph.D. NASA/Marshall Space Flight Center Synopsis Dr. Hoover has discovered evidence of microfossils similar to Cyanobacteria, in freshly fractured slices of the interior surfaces of the Alais, Ivuna, and Orgueil CI1 carbonaceous […]
50 Billion Planets Just in Milky Way Galaxy
March 5th, 2011Via: Space.com: Our galaxy could be home to a whopping 50 billion planets, say scientists working on NASA’s Kepler planet-hunting telescope. While Kepler hasn’t found nearly that many planets — to date it’s counted 1,235 candidate planets — that cosmic tally is researchers’ best guess, extrapolated from preliminary data. The Kepler spacecraft, which launched in […]
Strange NRO Mission Patches
March 4th, 2011I’ve seen a lot of weird military patches, but I think that this one might take the cake. It’s related to the NRO satellite that was launched back in January, USA-224, also known as NRO Launch 49 (NRO L-49). The Latin means something like, “First Heavy from the West,” or “First Heavy from the Sunset.” […]
Air Force’s Second X-37B Space Plane Nears Launch
February 1st, 2011Via: Space Flight Now: Two months after a sister ship successfully concluded a demo flight, the U.S. military’s second robotic X-37B space plane is in Florida preparing for blastoff March 4 on another secret mission, according to an Air Force official. The 29-foot-long, 14-foot-wide space plane is being readied for flight in a processing facility […]
Largest Ever West Coast Rocket Launch Carried National Reconnaissance Office Satellite Into Space
January 21st, 2011Update: Some Guesses Mentioned on CNN Just to clarify what’s being said below: It’s not a KH-11, which hasn’t been produced since 1990. See the Wikipedia page for “KH-12”: “KH-12” is an unofficial designation of the successor to the KH-11 KENNAN (“Crystal”) spy satellite. A system with the official designation KH-12 does not exist because […]
China Matches U.S. Space Launches for First Time
December 27th, 2010Via: Wired: Outwardly, it looked like just another big space launch — and those happen about once a week, from spaceports all around the world. But Friday’s blast-off of a rocket, carrying a Chinese GPS-style navigation satellite, from the Xi Chang Satellite Launch Center was different. It set a record for successful Chinese launches in […]
X-37B Returns to Earth After Seven Months in Orbit; Mission and Capabilities Remain Classified
December 3rd, 2010Via: AP: The U.S. Air Force’s secrecy-shrouded X-37B unmanned spaceplane returned to Earth early Friday after more than seven months in orbit on a classified mission, officials said. The winged craft autonomously landed at at Vandenberg Air Force Base on the California coast 130 miles northwest of Los Angeles, Vandenburg spokesman Jeremy Eggers said. “It’s […]
U.S. Launches Giant Eavesdropping Satellite
November 23rd, 2010Via: AFP: The United States has placed in orbit a vast reconnaissance satellite reputed to be the largest eavesdropping device ever launched into space. The largest unmanned American launch vehicle, the Delta-4 Heavy rocket, roared into the the night sky in Cape Canaveral, Florida on Sunday carrying the mysterious satellite on a mission dubbed NROL-32. […]
Mystery Missile Launch Seen Off California Coast
November 9th, 2010Update: Thomas G. McInerney, Retired United States Air Force Lieutenant General: “That is a missile, it’s launched from a submarine… I am absolutely certain that that is not an aircraft.” The venue was Fox News, but I happen to agree with Thomas McInerney’s assessment. I’ve transcribed the salient points of what he said. My ears […]
