Lunar News Network

New Space Age Cup

Revolutionary new cup design means to no more drinking from straws in a weightless environment:

Saving Lunar Images

What an extraordinary story this is, a tale of long forgotten photos of the moon, as well as obsolete media, and the dedicated fans who worked to bring off an amazing restoration project years in the making.

India Orbits Moon

The Indian spacecraft Chandrayaan 1 has achieved lunar orbit according to this BBC News report:

The mission will compile a 3D atlas of the lunar surface and map the distribution of elements and minerals. [...] The Indian experiments include a 30kg probe that will be released from the mothership to slam into the lunar surface. The Moon Impact Probe (MIP) will record video footage on the way down and measure the composition of the Moon's tenuous atmosphere. It will also drop the Indian flag on the surface of the Moon.

I don't think it counts though unless the flag is right side up and unfurled. I'm kidding, this is a great accomplishment for India and it's a much better national investment than building nuclear missiles to aim at Pakistan.

Happy Election Day 2008

Happy Election Day to all the readers of Lunar News Network. I voted last month by mail, so now I'm just sitting back and waiting for the ballots to be counted. Since the polls have not closed there is time for one more election report, this one from the Orlando Sentinel:

The two men's policies, however, are more similar than they are different. Both say they will consider postponing the shuttle's retirement date and try to accelerate the development of its replacement, the troubled Ares 1 rocket that won't be ready for launch before 2015. Both also want to boost scientific research aboard the $100 billion international space station, and both question the Bush administration's decision to stop supporting the space station in 2016.

The report moves on from those points of agreement to note some of the more nuanced details of their respective space plans. I'm satisfied that both candidates have expressed support for NASA and the manned space program, whether the economic crisis and subsequent budget cuts will allow them to act on support that remains to be seen.