#Rocket propulsion systems

[techninja]

Hydrogen Rockets: The Key to Sustainable Space Exploration

Introduction to Hydrogen Rocket Engine

In the realm of space exploration, the quest for efficient propulsion systems has led to the development and utilization of hydrogen rocket engines. These engines harness the power of hydrogen, the most abundant element in the universe, to propel spacecraft into the cosmos with remarkable efficiency and power.

History of Hydrogen Rocket Engine Development

The concept of using hydrogen as a propellant dates back to the early days of rocketry. However, it wasn't until the mid-20th century that significant advancements were made in the development of hydrogen rocket engines. Pioneering work by scientists and engineers paved the way for the modern hydrogen propulsion systems we see today.

How Hydrogen Rocket Engines Work

Fuel Combustion Process

Hydrogen rocket engines operate on the principle of combustion. Liquid hydrogen is combined with liquid oxygen in a combustion chamber, where it undergoes a controlled explosion. This rapid combustion generates intense heat and pressure, producing a powerful stream of hot gases.

Thrust Generation

The expulsion of these hot gases through a nozzle at the rear of the rocket creates thrust according to Newton's third law of motion. This thrust propels the rocket forward, overcoming the forces of gravity and atmospheric resistance.

Advantages of Hydrogen Rocket Engines

Hydrogen rocket engines offer several key advantages over conventional propulsion systems:

High Efficiency: Hydrogen boasts one of the highest specific impulse values among rocket propellants, making it extremely efficient in terms of thrust per unit of propellant mass.

Clean Combustion: The combustion of hydrogen with oxygen produces water vapor as a byproduct, resulting in cleaner emissions compared to traditional rocket fuels.

Abundant Resource: Hydrogen is abundant in the universe, making it a sustainable and readily available resource for space exploration endeavors.

Challenges and Limitations

Despite its many advantages, hydrogen rocket technology also faces significant challenges and limitations.

Cryogenic Storage

One of the primary challenges associated with hydrogen rocket engines is the need for cryogenic storage. Liquid hydrogen must be kept at extremely low temperatures to remain in a liquid state, requiring specialized storage and handling systems.

Cost and Infrastructure

The infrastructure required to produce, store, and transport liquid hydrogen adds to the overall cost of hydrogen rocket technology. Additionally, the development of hydrogen propulsion systems necessitates substantial investments in research and development.

Applications of Hydrogen Rocket Engines

Hydrogen rocket engines find a wide range of applications in space exploration and satellite deployment missions.

Space Exploration

Hydrogen-powered rockets enable spacecraft to travel vast distances across the solar system, facilitating missions to explore distant planets, moons, and celestial bodies.

Satellite Deployment

The high efficiency and reliability of hydrogen rocket engines make them ideal for launching satellites into orbit around the Earth and beyond.

Comparison with Traditional Rocket Engines

Compared to traditional rocket engines fueled by kerosene or solid propellants, hydrogen rocket engines offer superior performance and environmental benefits. They deliver higher specific impulse and produce cleaner emissions, contributing to a more sustainable approach to space exploration.

Environmental Impact and Sustainability

The environmental impact of hydrogen rocket engines is relatively minimal compared to conventional propulsion systems. The use of hydrogen as a fuel results in cleaner combustion and reduced greenhouse gas emissions, aligning with efforts to mitigate the environmental footprint of space exploration activities.

Future Prospects and Developments

As technology advances and our understanding of hydrogen propulsion deepens, the future holds great promise for hydrogen rocket engines. Ongoing research and development efforts aim to enhance efficiency, reduce costs, and overcome existing limitations, paving the way for new frontiers in space exploration.

Conclusion

Hydrogen rocket engines represent a cornerstone of modern space exploration, offering unparalleled efficiency, reliability, and environmental sustainability. While challenges remain, ongoing advancements in technology and infrastructure continue to expand the horizons of human spaceflight and scientific discovery.

FAQs

Are hydrogen rocket engines more powerful than traditional rocket engines? Hydrogen rocket engines typically offer higher specific impulse values, making them more efficient in terms of thrust per unit of propellant mass.

What are the main challenges associated with hydrogen rocket technology? Cryogenic storage and infrastructure costs are among the primary challenges facing hydrogen rocket technology.

What are the environmental benefits of hydrogen rocket engines? Hydrogen combustion produces cleaner emissions compared to traditional rocket fuels, contributing to reduced environmental impact.

What are the primary applications of hydrogen rocket engines? Hydrogen rocket engines are used in space exploration missions and satellite deployment operations.

What does the future hold for hydrogen rocket technology? Ongoing research and development efforts aim to improve efficiency, reduce costs, and expand the capabilities of hydrogen rocket engines.

[lonestarflight]

Worker installing the Aerojet AJ10-137 (Service Module Engine) on an Apollo Service Module at North American's Downey facility.

Date: March 28, 1966

SDASM Archives Casson_0023, Casson_0024

[starkiller1701-a]

This is Ethan Peck visiting JPL to take a look at the Europa Clipper, a spacecraft that will be launched in October towards the Jovian moon in hopes of exploring that strange new world!

Just look at how happy and nerdy he looks at JPL. Props to whoever invited him, because it's only logical to invite Mr. Spock to JPL. And props to Ethan for supporting science and exploration! I love this man 🖖🥹

[movie-robotnik-positivity]

Fourth option: Tails fixed the car (after all, he was able to identify what some of Knuckles' throne was made out of)

Tails fixes the car in record time but gets carried away and adds a bunch of crazy (and possibly illegal) upgrades.

[techtoio]

Breakthroughs in Space Technology: What’s on the Horizon?

Introduction

Space technology has always captured our imagination, pushing the boundaries of what is possible. As we venture further into the cosmos, remarkable breakthroughs are paving the way for new discoveries and advancements. In this article, TechtoIO delves into the exciting world of space technology, highlighting the latest innovations and what’s on the horizon for space exploration. Read to continue link

[nasa]

Setting Sail to Travel Through Space: 5 Things to Know about our New Mission

Our Advanced Composite Solar Sail System will launch aboard Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket from the company’s Launch Complex 1 in Māhia, New Zealand no earlier than April 23, at 6 p.m. EDT. This mission will demonstrate the use of innovative materials and structures to deploy a next-generation solar sail from a CubeSat in low Earth orbit.

Here are five things to know about this upcoming mission:

1. Sailing on Sunshine

Solar sails use the pressure of sunlight for propulsion much like sailboats harness the wind, eliminating the need for rocket fuel after the spacecraft has launched. If all goes according to plan, this technology demonstration will help us test how the solar sail shape and design work in different orbits.

2. Small Package, Big Impact

The Advanced Composite Solar Sail System spacecraft is a CubeSat the size of a microwave, but when the package inside is fully unfurled, it will measure about 860 square feet (80 square meters) which is about the size of six parking spots. Once fully deployed, it will be the biggest, functional solar sail system – capable of controlled propulsion maneuvers – to be tested in space.

3. Second NASA Solar Sail in Space

If successful, the Advanced Composite Solar Sail System will be  the second NASA solar sail to deploy in space, and not only will it be much larger, but this system will also test navigation capabilities to change the spacecraft’s orbit. This will help us gather data for future missions with even larger sails.

4. BOOM: Stronger, Lighter Booms

Just like a sailboat mast supports its cloth sails, a solar sail has support beams called booms that provide structure. The Advanced Composite Solar Sail System mission’s primary objective is to deploy a new type of boom. These booms are made from flexible polymer and carbon fiber materials that are stiffer and 75% lighter than previous boom designs. They can also be flattened and rolled like a tape measure. Two booms spanning the diagonal of the square (23 feet or about 7 meters in length) could be rolled up and fit into the palm of your hand!

5. It’s a bird...it’s a plane...it’s our solar sail!

About one to two months after launch, the Advanced Composite Solar Sail System spacecraft will deploy its booms and unfurl its solar sail. Because of its large size and reflective material, the spacecraft may be visible from Earth with the naked eye if the lighting conditions and orientation are just right!

To learn more about this mission that will inform future space travel and expand our understanding of our Sun and solar system, visit https://www.nasa.gov/mission/acs3/.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space!

[wonders-of-the-cosmos]

Mariner program

The Mariner program was conducted by the American space agency NASA to explore other planets. Between 1962 and late 1973, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) designed and built 10 robotic interplanetary probes named Mariner to explore the inner Solar System - visiting the planets Venus, Mars and Mercury for the first time, and returning to Venus and Mars for additional close observations.

The program included a number of interplanetary firsts, including the first planetary flyby, the planetary orbiter, and the first gravity assist maneuver. Of the 10 vehicles in the Mariner series, seven were successful, forming the starting point for many subsequent NASA/JPL space probe programs. 

The name of the Mariner program was decided in "May 1960-at the suggestion of Edgar M. Cortright" to have the "planetary mission probes ... patterned after nautical terms, to convey 'the impression of travel to great distances and remote lands.'" That "decision was the basis for naming Mariner, Ranger, Surveyor, and Viking probes."

Each spacecraft was to carry solar panels that would be pointed toward the Sun and a dish antenna that would be pointed at Earth. Each would also carry a host of scientific instruments. Some of the instruments, such as cameras, would need to be pointed at the target body it was studying. Other instruments were non-directional and studied phenomena such as magnetic fields and charged particles. JPL engineers proposed to make the Mariners "three-axis-stabilized," meaning that unlike other space probes they would not spin.

Mariner 1 and Mariner 2

Mariner 1 and Mariner 2 were two deep-space probes making up NASA's Mariner-R project. The primary goal of the project was to develop and launch two spacecraft sequentially to the near vicinity of Venus, receive communications from the spacecraft and to perform radiometric temperature measurements of the planet. A secondary objective was to make interplanetary magnetic field and/or particle measurements on the way to, and in the vicinity of, Venus.

Animation of Mariner 2's trajectory from August 27, 1962, to December 31, 1962. Mariner 2 · Venus · Earth.

Mariners 3 and 4

Sisterships Mariner 3 and Mariner 4 were Mars flyby missions.

Mariner 3 was launched on November 5, 1964, but the shroud encasing the spacecraft atop its rocket failed to open properly and Mariner 3 did not get to Mars.

Mariner 4, launched on November 28, 1964, was the first successful flyby of the planet Mars and gave the first glimpse of Mars at close range

This archival image is an enhanced contrast version of the first Mars photograph released on July 15, 1965. This is man's first close-up photograph of another planet -- a photographic representation of digital data radioed from Mars by the Mariner 4 spacecraft. Data was either sent to Earth immediately for acquisition or stored on an onboard tape recorder for later transmission.

The pictures, played back from a small tape recorder over a long period, showed lunar-type impact craters (just beginning to be photographed at close range from the Moon), some of them touched with frost in the chill Martian evening. 

Mariner 5

The Mariner 5 spacecraft was launched to Venus on June 14, 1967, and arrived in the vicinity of the planet in October 1967. It carried a complement of experiments to probe Venus' atmosphere with radio waves, scan its brightness in ultraviolet light, and sample the solar particles and magnetic field fluctuations above the planet.

Mariners 6 and 7

Mariners 6 and 7 were identical teammates in a two-spacecraft mission to Mars. Mariner 6 was launched on February 24, 1969, followed by Mariner 7 on March 21, 1969. They flew over the equator and southern hemisphere of the planet Mars.

Mariners 8 and 9

Mariner 8 and Mariner 9 were identical sister craft designed to map the Martian surface simultaneously, but Mariner 8 was lost in a launch vehicle failure. Mariner 9 was launched in May 1971 and became the first artificial satellite of Mars. 

Mariner 10

The Mariner 10 spacecraft launched on November 3, 1973, and was the first to use a gravity assist trajectory, accelerating as it entered the gravitational influence of Venus, then being flung by the planet's gravity onto a slightly different course to reach Mercury. It was also the first spacecraft to encounter two planets at close range, and for 33 years the only spacecraft to photograph Mercury in closeup.

Venus in real colors, processed from clear and blue filtered Mariner 10 images

Mariner 10's photograph of Venus in ultraviolet light (photo color-enhanced to simulate Venus's natural color as the human eye would see it)

This mosaic shows the planet Mercury as seen by Mariner 10 as it sped away from the planet on March 29, 1974.

source x, x | images x

[jpitha]

Humans Solve Problems With Explosions

Frank and Mel'iarr are sitting together in the common area of the Starbase, chatting. They have been fast friends ever since they were paired together on the Starbase Fire Brigade. Mel was fascinated about humans, and Frank was willing to indulge him when he asked questions... most of the time.

Mel'iarr puts down his tea. "Frank, the Humans have been in space a long time right?"

Frank nods and sips his cocoa. "That's what they tell us in school."

"So that means you've probably tried just about every method of propulsion in space, yeah?"

"Actually, yes! This was one of my favorite topics as a kid. I must have absorbed everything I could find about it."

"Oh, so you could talk to me about your historical propulsion systems! Do you mind if we talk about them?"

Frank looks at his friend, surprised. "I'd love to, but why?"

"To settle a bet." Mel'iarr picks up his chamomile tea and glances at it. With a flick of his ears - like a shrug - he tosses his tea back, finishing it. "You didn't jump to thrusters immediately and I know humans can be really inventive, so I assume you had some unusual ideas you tried out."

"Hmm. Okay, how about the Nuclear Salt Water Rocket?"

Mel'iarr chokes on his tea. Frank jumps up and pats his back. Mel holds up a hand and sputters. "The what?"

"Oh yeah, it's a great one! Take nuclear fuel, dissolve it in water, and then concentrate it to just under criticality - that's the point where fission takes place - and then squirt it into a chamber where it can achieve criticality and bam! Fission. Now, shoot that now superheated steam and heat from the reaction out the back, and you're making thrust."

Unconsciously, Mel'iarr leans back in his chair. "But, that's just sounds like a nuclear bomb that-"

"-That's going off all the time out the back yeah. Worked really well." As he talks, Frank becomes more animated. He's gesturing and his eyes are shining. Mel'iarr's tail flicks worriedly. "It was tough to get the pipes lined up correctly to not cause an early criticality incident, but we figured that out - mostly - before we started using them. Only a few blew up, but when they did, hoo boy. You could see it practically everywhere in the system."

Mel'iarr ears flatten. "Wow. Um, okay. That was a bit more... intense than I figured. Do you have another one that's less..." He thought for a moment. "Insane?"

Frank looks off into the middle distance. "Oh! I know one! It's an old one, but I always liked imaging using it. It's so old that it predates us leaving Earth entirely. An Orion Engine."

Mel'iarr relaxes. "That doesn't sound so-"

Franks gesturing nearly knocks over his cocoa. "I love this one, it's so simple and elegant. You just make hundreds and hundreds of small nuclear bombs, shoot them out the back one at a time, detonate them, and ride the pressure wave forward and repeat!"

Mel'iarr's fur poofs out angrily and his ears flick forward. "No. You're lying. You're just making that up."

"I'm not! Look!" Frank takes a moment to search on his pad, and brings up an archive video to show Mel.

While they're talking, Mel'iarr's other human friend, James walks by. James and Mel'iarr work together in Environmental Processing. With the Starbase's low population, Frank knows him too, but they're not especially good friends. Mel'iarr gestures to the human. "James! You have to help me!"

James looks down and the small, worried K'laxi. "Of course Mel, what is it? What's wrong?"

"Pen'men said that I couldn't find a problem that humans don't solve with explosions. I was speaking with Frank - from the Fire Brigade - and he started describing old human space propulsion systems that make me think that humans solve every problem with explosions."

James raised an eyebrow. "I mean space propulsion is by definition explosion based. That's a wild place to start, Mel. But okay, we can think of something." As they're thinking, Kerry walks by. She works in the infirmary and plays pickleball with James. "Kerry! Give me a problem that we don't solve with an explosion."

"Uh, a fire." Kerry offers.

Mel'iarr shakes his head sadly. "No, you've used explosions to blast oxidizer away from a fire, putting it out."

Kerry blinks, impressed. "Woah, neat! Hmm. cooking?"

Mel'iarr's ears droop. "There's a ancestors cursed grain that explodes when you cook it!"

"Oh popcorn, right." James sits down next to Frank and Mel and gestures for Kerry to join them.

"Oh! I've got one. Negotiation! Frank crosses his arms and looks satisfied.

Mel'iarr gives him a look. "I thought of that. What about intimidating the other side with an explosive based show of force?"

"Damn! I thought I had it there. Okay okay...." Frank picks up his cocoa, long gone cold, and takes a sip.

James casts his head around the room. "What about welding?"

"Welding?"

"Yeah, that's done with heat and electricity, but not explosions."

"I'm sorry James, I couldn't help overhearing." The Starbase AI cuts in "But humans have welded with explosions. It's a known method in welding two dissimilar metals in extreme environments."

Frank sits up and looks over at the Starbase interface screen. "Woah, really? That's so cool!"

"Frank, focus please." Mel'iarr says. "We're looking for non-explosive solutions."

"What about medical issues?" Kerry says. "There can't be a lot of call for explosions there."

Frank nods. "Hmm, now we might be onto something. What do you think Starbase?"

"Searching."

A moment goes by and Mel'iarr allows himself a moment's hope that he has finally found a solution that doesn't involve explosions.

"Results found. Mel'iarr, the humans use Nitroglycerin - an explosive - to treat heart disease."

All of Mel'iarr's fur poofs out in surprise. "THEY DO WHAT?"

"It helps prevent chest pains as a result of heart disease according to my records."

Kerry holds up her hands. "Wait. Wait wait wait. If we're counting nitroglycerins then we have to count electricity which can be generated by explosions."

"How in the name of my Ancestors do you generate electricity from explosions? Mel'iarr slumps back into his chair, defeated.

"We don't as much now, but electricity is generated from spinning a magnetic field, right? We had reciprocating engines that worked off of the explosion of refined hydrocarbons for hundreds of years."

James looks at Mel and narrows his eyes. "How did you do it at first Mel? You can't tell me you never developed reciprocating engines."

Mel'iarr Looks up at James. "No, we did, but they're different, they use temperature differential. Starbase, what's the human word for them?"

"Stirling engines, Mel'iarr. Humans did develop them, but they decided that the exploding way was preferable."

Mel'iarr puts his head in his hands. "I don't know what's worse! That you have an exploding solution to every problem or that you both think they're all really neat!

"I can't help it Mel'iarr, explosions are cool." James looks kindly at his friend.

Kerry agrees. "It's probably why it's used as a solution so often."

After the evening meal on that same day, Mel'iarr walks over to Pen'men while she's on her shift in Traffic Control, and silently hands her some currency.

Pen'men looks up from her console and stares at Mel'iarr.

Mel'iarr shakes his head. "You were right. They solve every problem with explosions."

"Told you."

[spacetimewithstuartgary]

Can Life Exist on an Icy Moon? NASA’s Europa Clipper Aims to Find Out

With a spacecraft launching soon, the mission will try to answer the question of whether there are ingredients suitable for life in the ocean below Europa’s icy crust.

Deep down, in an ocean beneath its ice shell, Jupiter’s moon Europa might be temperate and nutrient-rich, an ideal environment for some form of life — what scientists would call “habitable.” NASA’s Europa Clipper mission aims to find out.

NASA now is targeting launch no earlier than Monday, Oct. 14, on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Europa Clipper’s elongated, looping orbit around Jupiter will minimize the spacecraft’s exposure to intense radiation while allowing it to dive in for close passes by Europa. Using a formidable array of instruments for each of the mission’s 49 flybys, scientists will be able to “see” how thick the moon’s icy shell is and gain a deeper understanding of the vast ocean beneath. They’ll inventory material on the surface that might have come up from below, search for the fingerprints of organic compounds that form life’s building blocks, and sample any gases ejected from the moon for evidence of habitability.

Mission scientists will analyze the results, probing beneath the moon’s frozen shell for signs of a water world capable of supporting life.

“It’s important to us to paint a picture of what that alien ocean is like — the kind of chemistry or even biochemistry that could be happening there,” said Morgan Cable, an astrobiologist and member of the Europa Clipper science team at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, which manages the mission.

Ice Investigation

Central to that work is hunting for the types of salts, ices, and organic material that make up the key ingredients of a habitable world. That’s where an imager called MISE (Mapping Imaging Spectrometer for Europa) comes in. Operating in the infrared, the spacecraft’s MISE divides reflected light into various wavelengths to identify the corresponding atoms and molecules.

The mission will also try to locate potential hot spots near Europa’s surface, where plumes could bring deep ocean material closer to the surface, using an instrument called E-THEMIS (Europa Thermal Emission Imaging System), which also operates in the infrared.

Capturing sharply detailed pictures of Europa’s surface with both a narrow and a wide-image camera is the task of the EIS (Europa Imaging System). “The EIS imagers will give us incredibly high-resolution images to understand how Europa’s surface evolved and is continuing to change,” Cable said.

Gases and Grains

NASA’s Cassini mission spotted a giant plume of water vapor erupting from multiple jets near the south pole of Saturn’s ice-covered moon Enceladus. Europa may also emit misty plumes of water, pulled from its ocean or reservoirs in its shell. Europa Clipper’s instrument called Europa-UVS (Europa Ultraviolet Spectrograph) will search for plumes and can study any material that might be venting into space.

Whether or not Europa has plumes, the spacecraft carries two instruments to analyze the small amount of gas and dust particles ejected from the moon’s surface by impacts with micrometeorites and high-energy particles: MASPEX (MAss SPectrometer for Planetary EXploration/Europa) and SUDA (SUrface Dust Analyzer) will capture the tiny pieces of material ejected from the surface, turning them into charged particles to reveal their composition.

“The spacecraft will study gas and grains coming off Europa by sticking out its tongue and tasting those grains, breathing in those gases,” said Cable.

Inside and Out

The mission will look at Europa’s external and internal structure in various ways, too, because both have far-reaching implications for the moon’s habitability.

To gain insights into the ice shell’s thickness and the ocean’s existence, along with its depth and salinity, the mission will measure the moon’s induced magnetic field with the ECM (Europa Clipper Magnetometer) and combine that data with measurements of electrical currents from charged particles flowing around Europa — data provided by PIMS (Plasma Instrument for Magnetic Sounding).

In addition, scientists will look for details on everything from the presence of the ocean to the structure and topography of the ice using REASON (Radar for Europa Assessment and Sounding to Near-surface), which will peer up to 18 miles (29 kilometers) into the shell — itself a potentially habitable environment. Measuring the changes that Europa’s gravity causes in radio signals should help nail down ice thickness and ocean depth.

“Non-icy materials on the surface could get moved into deep interior pockets of briny water within the icy shell,” said Steve Vance, an astrobiologist and geophysicist who also is a member of the Europa Clipper science team at JPL. “Some might be large enough to be considered lakes, or at least ponds.”

Using the data gathered to inform extensive computer modeling of Europa’s interior structure also could reveal the ocean’s composition and allow estimates of its temperature profile, Vance said.

Whatever conditions are discovered, the findings will open a new chapter in the search for life beyond Earth. “It’s almost certain Europa Clipper will raise as many questions or more than it answers — a whole different class than the ones we’ve been thinking of for the last 25 years,” Vance said.

TOP IMAGE: This artist’s concept (not to scale) depicts what Europa’s internal structure could look like: an outer shell of ice, perhaps with plumes of material venting from beneath the surface; a deep, global layer of liquid water; and a rocky interior, potentially with hydrothermal vents on the seafloor. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

LOWER IMAGE: The puzzling surface of Jupiter’s icy moon Europa looms large in this reprocessed color view made from images taken by NASA’s Galileo spacecraft in the late 1990s. The images were assembled into a realistic color view of the surface that approximates how Europa would appear to the human eye. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/SETI Institute

[adastra-sf]

New metal-plasma rocket thruster

Looking for near-future tech to supply perpetual power for your story's space colony? This looks promising!

Magdrive, a space-tech startup, has developed a new kind of plasma thruster that can use any metal, including iron, as a fuel source. Spacecraft using the new thruster could refuel on the hop by mining asteroids, providing near-infinite ranges if deployed.

The new Super Magdrive rocket uses metal ions to drive spacecraft forward. Solar power charges its capacitors, ionizing any metal as raw material for its tiny thruster bullets.

Best of all, Magdrive claims it generates thrust an order of magnitude higher than similarly sized electric propulsion systems currently used for long-range space thrusters (ion rockets), and was successfully tested in January 2023.

more info: X

Magdrive website: X

[continuous-spec]

Snippet from Chapter 6: Shepard and Garrus bicker over rifles in the Seratoma Saunas.

"Have you been to Thessia?" Shepard asked, pulling Garrus back to consciousness.

"Refueling station a system outside on my first tour," Garrus clipped as his eyes fluttered open.

"Right. That's still so weird to me, how y'all need to join and fight."

"Well, it's not like we're all fighting. There's research division, medical, manufacturing-"

"Somehow, I doubt you added to the great pursuit of knowledge in those fields. No offense."

Garrus scoffed and brought himself up on his forearms to look at her. The clay beads shifted with his movements, sounding like crashing water to stone. "I guess you wouldn't call drilling a hole in between a pirate's eyes from 500 meters away an academic pursuit, then, huh?"

Shepard lifted herself from the pool. The beads loudly moved with her and fell away from her. The orange residue of the clay beads haphazardly decorated her light blue uniform.

"No shit, 26th Armiger Legion?" Her eyes lit up with excitement.

Garrus tried not to laugh, imagining himself strapped into a jet propulsion system like the 26th, a group of infiltrators who literally rocketed themselves on the battlefield.

"Spirits, no, not those crazy flying bastards. I was just a marksman scout sniper."

"Damn, and here I was, just beginning to think you were interesting. What did you specialize in? Incisor? Viper? Widow?" Her voice bounced, almost vibrating like a turian as she listed off each rifle.

"You sure are asking a lot of questions for someone who's not that interested."

"I haven't held a rifle in four years. Humor me, please. Give me some shop talk."

"Mantis-" Garrus said with the word barely past his mandibles before Shepard interjected.

"Ugh! I hated that thing. One shot reload with shit recoil that couldn't even penetrate most armor. Now get me a Black Widow, and then we can talk."

"So you just wanted to make this about you?" Garrus said in an unamused tone. "Besides, if you actually know how to use the Mantis, the one shot is all you need."

"Whatever. I'll take my three with the Black Widow any day."

"I thought those ripped humans' arms off."

"Gene mods," she said with a flex of her arm. Her linear scars bowed with the movement. The blue glow of the sauna lights encompassed the pale skin of the hard muscle on her bicep. "The same reason I'm not blind and a foot taller."

"You could be shorter?"

"Six feet is quite tall for a human woman, thank you."

"It's all the same to me. I still have to crane my neck to talk down to you."

"You think you're so funny."

"I have my moments," Garrus said, his mandibles pressed into a smile.

"I wouldn't even give you that," Shepard said, returning his smile before submerging back into the clay beads.

Read the rest on Ao3

[lonestarflight]

Southeast view of Apollo 15 Lunar Module (LM-10) Falcon, with the Lunar Roving Vehicle (LRV), Apollo Lunar Surface Experiments Package (ALSEP) and Hill 305 in the background. Photographed during the second Extravehicular Activity (EVA 2) of the Apollo 15 mission.

Decreased clearance led to buckling of the extended descent engine nozzle on the landing of Apollo 15.

"In order to extend landing payload weight and lunar surface stay times, the last three Apollo Lunar Modules were upgraded by adding a 10-inch (25 cm) nozzle extension to the engine to increase thrust. The nozzle exhaust bell, like the original, was designed to crush if it hit the surface. It never had during the first three landings, but did buckle on the first Extended landing, Apollo 15."

-information from Wikipedia: link

Date: August 1, 1971

NASA ID: AS15-87-11839, AS15-87-11842, AS15-88-11882

[whirligig-girl]

I recently received a copy of the Cerritos Crew Handbook. This was obviously my favorite page, so here's a high resolution digital scan. (just kidding)

Image ID: A starfleet PADD tablet with a page showing basic facts about Mellanoid Slime Worms in the style of the species bio pages in the Star Trek: Lower Decks: Crew Handbook. It is heavily annotated with commentary from Mariner, Boimler, Tendi, and Eaurp Guz.

Transcript below cut:

NAME: Mellanoid Slime Worm provisional Federation member. Boimler: I've brought on our Mellanoid officer, Ensign Eaurp Guz, and our resident expert on Mellanoid biology, D'vana Tendi. Guz: full Federation member now, actually.

GREETING: Mellanoid Slime Worms react poorly to friendly insults. At first their righteous indignation might seem like a positive response, but be fair warned! You are not befriending them.

Boimler: Wait, who wrote this? Mariner: Looks like the uh, Zaldan who made first contact with them in the 30s?

TABOOS: Eating in public, uncovered skin. Abducting their children as pets. They do not take kindly to any kind of romantic advances. Guz: ... Tendi: ... Mariner: Girl. IMPORTANT BIOLOGICAL FACTS: Mellanoid Slime Worms are composed of a single amorphous cell which can shapeshift into any number of revolting forms, but which do seem to be willing to take on a bipedal appearance when dealing with aliens. Mellanoid Slimes have no sex, no gender, and reproduce asexually. Not much is known about Mellanoids. Their biology, evolution, and habitat are still a mystery.

Guz, responding to "revolting forms": Wait what? We've always been mostly humanoid! And nonhumanoid forms aren't revolting! They're beautiful! Some of my best friends have nonstandard features. Mariner: no sex? Sick burn. Guz, responding to "no gender": I am a woman. Mellanoids are assigned agender at birth but a growing movement is recognizing that some of us do experience gender. Tendi, responding to the whole section: Mellanoid Slime Worms are comprised mostly of visceral slime with a gelatin skeleton made of skeletal gelatin. Their nervous system is highly redundant and spread throughout the body, with slightly darker regions corresponding to regions of higher nerve density. All sensory cells can feel all senses, so they experience touch, taste, sight, sound, and other senses in their whole bodies, but form sensory organs to concentrate those senses. The biomolecular composition is. Mariner: ok Ada Lovelace, we don't need the footnote to be THAT big. CULTURE: The Mellanoid Slime Worms posses a highly repressed culture, lacking entertainment, interpersonal interactions, and with individuals living in even the richest and most technologically advanced nations on their planet being confined to abject poverty. Their technology is rudimentary, with steam propulsion still in common use on land, and their spaceflight manifests as small capsules incapable of even safely making the journey to the nearest gas giant without assistance. Due to their revolting appearance and archaic technology, they are not worthy of further consideration.

Guz: We don't live in poverty! We just have movie theaters instead of televisions, public kitchens instead of restaurants and dining rooms, libraries instead of personal computers. And Advanced Steam locomotives are cool, ok! They were cheaper to run than diesel engines for many years. Guz: Don't even get me STARTED on the rockets of the time. Oh globs, the things we were able to do with only chemical rockets back in the 30s and 40s! Probe missions to Glerbuh and Rabbit, crewed missions to Omen and Oldsky... and that's before the latest warp drive prototypes. When I was in the astronaut corps, they were working on a warp-2 drive! And that's transwarp-2, so that's like 26% faster than the NX-Beta. Mellanoids pride ourselves in our space exploration, which is why even now we're in the Federation we still have our own space program.

Boimler: Huh. That's it? I thought there'd be more, you know, like, something about the history, maybe native animals, why the taboos are the way they are. But it's just something about steam trains and rocket ships? Guz: No actually I think they pretty much hit the stem bolt on the autoseal. I can't think of a reason a new recruit would need to know more about my species. Besides, Tendi's medical research is pretty thorough. Mariner: Hey I just tried to access the research. Why is it flagged as "Age-Locked"? What kind of "research" are you two doing anyway? Guz: Ohhhh... oh no. Tendi: Ok we can stop talking about this now! Boimler: Eh it's probably fine. I mean, why would a minor using a starfleet database need to know critical biological details about a mellanoid slime worm? What, is some, I dunno, Brikar kid gonna stroll up to Starfleet with a slime worm baby and not know how to take care of it? Mariner: Hah! A big stony alien kid taking care of a gooey lil worm? Like that'll ever happen.

[talonabraxas]

King Pakal As An Alien Ancient Astronaut

The enigmatic Tomb of Mayan King Pakal has attracted the interest of Ancient Astronaut Theorists like Zechariah and Erich von Daniken who suggest that the carved sarcophagus lid found in his tomb at Palenque depicts Pakal as an Anunnaki Ancient Astronaut.

King Pakal’s sarcophagus lid shows a man tilting backwards surrounded by glyphs and symbols that run along the edges of the lid representing important components of Mayan cosmology.

The mainstream consensus among Mayan experts is that the image on the Sarcophagus does not depict King Pakal as an Ancient Astronaut but instead, the image tells the story of King Pakal’s death and descent into the underworld.

However, an alternative explanation of the engraving of the lid of King Pakal’s sarcophagus was advanced by Ancient Astronaut Theorist Erich von Daniken in his book Chariots of the Gods where he claimed the lid depicted King Pakal riding on a rocketship.

On the basis of Erich von Daniken’s observations in Chariots Of The Gods, Ancient Astronaut Theorists state that King Pakal may have been part of the race of Alien Ancient Astonauts that built Civilization on Earth.

The leading criticism of Von Daniken’s explanation of King Pakal’s Sarcophagus as depicting an Ancient Astonaut criticises his suggestion that rocket power would be the method used by technologically superior Aliens to travel the Solar system.

The idea that Extraterrestrials would use rocket power to arrive on Earth seems anachronistic because this type of technology would be primitive to Aliens.

However, the use of rocket terminology does not in itself disprove Daniken’s argument that King Pakal was an Ancient Astronaut because the carvings on the lid could also be an advanced Reactor eg using antimatter or some other advanced form of Alien propulsion.

King Pakal: The Sumerian-Egyptian Connection

A deeper Ancient Astronaut Theory analysis of the lid of King Pakal’s Tomb based on the works of Zechariah Sitchin’s Earth Chronicles ultimately leads to the Anunnaki Gods of Ancient Egypt and Sumer who may have built an Alien Civilization on Earth.

Zecharia Sitchin’s Ancient Astronaut Theory analysis of King Pakal’s Tomb expanded beyond the self-contained mythology of one particular geographical area in determining the meaning of King Pakal’s sarcophagus lid.

[zkylearnstherope]

AvPhysics - An Analysis [Part 1]

[Part 1] - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4

Disclaimer: This will only be a surface-level analysis for Animation vs. Physics. If you expect something more in-depth, you have to wait for the physicists.

Let's get into it- shall we?

Obviously, TSC spawns from the e✖iT Euler's Identity made in the end of AvMath. For the sake of this analysis, let's call this one, TSC_0.

One minute upon arrival, TSC_0 didn't have any personal goal/objective, so he was just running around. This also demonstrates the accuracy of the UI Formula Thing (UFT) that shows up on the screen.

That is, until he found this ball, and then the others after it. Which we eventually realize, all came from The Singularity. Something or someone is trying to get his attention. He needs to reach the Singularity.

The first thing he realizes is, "Dang, this is gonna take a while".

Also, space is dark because there is no sun- specifically, no solar system.

Okay, new goal. We need to get faster. But how?

Side Note: Animation vs. Frequency? Animation vs. Color Theory? Animation vs. Sound Waves?

A Solar System (with its own star/sun) spawns in. He did not reach it, it spawned in. It literally did NOT exist prior to the flashlight.

He utilizes the space maneuver called the Gravity Assist. Also called the Slingshot Effect. It's where you use a planet's gravity, by moving around it (but not entering it) to gain significant speed.

Most sci-fi stories use this maneuver to save on propulsion and to change/correct the course of the spacecraft.

UFT shows that he got faster now, but it's still not enough.

So he does it again with two faster-orbiting planets. Gaining more speed in the process.

He was supposed to make impact with the sun here, although I'm not sure why he didn't. It's probably because a sun along with its own solar system moves through the galaxy. They don't stay in one place.

For example: Our Solar System orbits the Milky Way Galaxy for about 230 million years, which is also called a cosmic year.

And by moving around the sun but NOT hitting it, gave him even more speed.

Here's his speed upon exiting the solar system.

He eventually reached 1% of the speed of light. Yep, that whole almost-dying-in-the-sun process, is still not enough to get anywhere.

Magnets spawns in. Again, they did NOT exist prior to this.

"Hmm... we can use this," he says.

Step 1: Let's magnetize the crap out of this rocket.

Step 2: Enter the magnet gates.

Step 3: We get a magnetic linear accelerator, which utilizes the opposing magnetic fields to propel/launch objects at high speeds. Initially thought this was a particle accelerator, but turns out that's a whole different thing.

And now we reached 80% of the speed of light.

If you're still following me... good news, we have reached half of the video.

Cool graphics, 'cause why not.

Around this point, TSC_0 experiences Time Dilation. This is important for later.

This is because he has now left the galaxy.

More sci-fi stuff. Everything starts to look more red.

Red-looking black hole.

Something hits him on the head. How is this possible?

Oh no, my apple. Take note, that the apple glows red whenever gravity is messing with it.

Goodbye world, my apple needs me.

Aww... Turns out there is a photo limit per post.

Here's [Part 2].

[teaableu]

Do you know about… the booty heels?

You mean THESE BAD BOYS?

Yes I do I designed them :)

Allow me to explain the booties: Two often mimics Draxum as much as he can (horns, spikes, eyebrows, and, if he could, hair), so the boots were meant to make his legs seem caprine, hence the pointy and spiky! They have spring systems and jet propulsions in them that allow him to outrun cops enhance his speed and jumping range, and sometimes temporarily float (rocket boot feature)

But most importantly they make Two as tall as One