Oh, you didn’t know? Humans truly entered the digital age in 2002. That’s when “worldwide digital storage capacity overtook total analog capacity.” It’s also the year Triple H won the Royal Rumble, but that’s hardly relevant. → Read More
We reported about the plans last year and again just a few months ago, and now they are getting more concrete: Japan seems to be finally ready to send robots to explore the moon. An advisory panel launched by the Japanese government has spent one year preparing a report that proposes a lunar exploration program that will cost no less than $2.3 billion. → Read More
I love seeing the shots that NASA has been releasing from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter! The latest is from the Apollo 16 site, and they really timed this one right. The LRO was passing over the site exactly at noon (local time of course) so there’s a minimum amount of shadowing, and a maximum amount of contrast → Read More
This image is proof that opening up space travel to private industry will speed up colonization and tourism. Apparently there’s already flights on the moon. That or a plane just so happened to get in the frame of a 500mm telephoto lens. [via reddit] → Read More
Well, well. It looks like the Moon bombing went well as NASA just released a whole lot of data supporting the initial findings that there’s water on the Moon. Read NASA’s take and view a whole lot of line graphs I don’t understand at NASA.gov. Next up, moonQuest DSV. → Read More
Just a few minutes ago at 7:13:19 AM EDT, NASA crashed a probe into the Moon at 5,600 MPH with the hope of finding water. BOOM!
NASA broadcasted the entire thing live on its TV station and online, but if you missed our previous post and just learned about the event, you probably didn’t catch it. However, the NASA geeks are currently analyzing the LCROSS data and will hopefully announces their… → Read More
That was quick. NASA just released some data last week recorded by the LRO that indicated water might be present and suddenly an Indian probe actually found some. India’s first Moon probe , Chandrayaan-1, is equipped with sensors to detect the electromagnetic signature of water. Furthermore, these sensors cannot penetrate very deep and the data indicates that the water is actually on ore… → Read More
The LRO has already provided us with a lot of fascinating high-res photos of the Moon’s surface. But photos are just the start.
The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter also has more instruments aboard and one of them, the Diviner Lunar Radiometer developed and operated by the California Institute of Technology Jet Propulsion Laboratory, is sending back some wild info about the Moon’s surface… → Read More
Hopefully John Hodgman was correct in calling Obama the first nerd president. If not, humans might not reach the Moon anytime soon because we all know a jock wouldn’t fund a science project. The current target is 2020 and the development is already underway of the vehicles needed to get people there. But there is one small issue: Money. NASA needs lots of money. → Read More
Eventually man will go back to the Moon and will need a way to travel in style. Goodyear and NASA has just unveiled the tire that will help with that. The Apollo astronauts used basic lunar rovers to explore a small part of the Moon’s surface, but the current NASA plan is to sightsee a whole lot more. Because of the added distance, the original wire-type tire used in the 70′s will not work. The… → Read More
This game is probably a lot more complex than your standard claw game, but it doesn’t look it. I’m sure it uses some fancy pants calibration and high-tech wizardry. Hell, it probably has more computing power than the actual Lunar Lander did way back in 1969. But you know what, as long as it entertains our kids while teaching them a bit of history, it doesn’t matter. It’s a… → Read More
Slate.com did a wonderful job creating this video that clearly demonstrates how the TV media would cover the Moon landing if it happened today. You know the routen. First they would cut to a panel of “experts” and then cut to live cams. And of course, there would be reaction from Twitter. The only thing left out is Glenn Beck crying. → Read More
What a great way to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Moon landing by owning an $800 pen. The Fisher Space pen is of course legendary for it’s ability to write in space, but this one packs a little something special. The top of the pen features a bit of thermal insulation used on the Columbia Command Module that’s engraved with a picture of the Moon landing. That’s eff’n cool, but I don’t know… → Read More
This is the very first photo that shows an astronaut’s face while on the Moon as their faces are hidden behind a visor in every other picture. This one is actually a single frame from a video that was being shot from the Lunar Lander and has been converted from film to high-def by Spacecraft Films for Andrew Chailkin’s new book, Voices from the Moon. → Read More
It was exactly 40 years ago today that Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin first walked on the Moon. We’ve gathered a collection of videos and new reports that tell the story as well today as they did those years ago. Enjoy. → Read More
There has been a good deal of focus on the Moon lately. First, the LRO sent back high-res photos of the surface, which was followed by the 40th anniversary of Apollo 11 and the release of restored video footage from the Moon. Then the LRO produced the first photos of the equipment left behind from the Apollo missions and Walter Cronkite, the trusted voice who informed America about the events… → Read More
As soon as the new Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter sent back the first high-res photos of the moon a few days ago, I was eager to see the Apollo landing sites. It’s not that I didn’t believe that man walked on the moon 40 years ago, but rather out of simple nerd curiosity. Well, NASA made good on its promise and just released images showing the landing sites of Apollo 11, 14, 15, 16, and… → Read More
Lowry Digital in Burbank has been restoring old Apollo footage for a while now and NASA just released a small sample of the work. Now, the restoration doesn’t do wonders to the 40 year old stock, but it’s at least better than nothing. Maybe now we can make out that damn coke can more clearly as it bounces across the “Moon surface.” (kidding) More footage will be released… → Read More
NASA is gearing up for a trip back to the moon and the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter is one of the first steps. This satellite will orbit the moon at only 50 km and send back high resolution, 3D images of the lunar surface to map out potential landing sites . And yes, it will be able to get clear photos of the Apollo gear left behind, which will no doubt send conspiracy idiots scrambling for more… → Read More
Great success! North Korea has successfully launched a satellite into a near earth orbit and it is now circling the earth at about 1 mile below sea level. That’s right: North Korea’s Taepodong-2, the much-feared long-range missile that had even the Obama camp worried, broke up over Japan at about 11:37am and then fell into the water at 11:48am on Sunday. The launch is described as a complete… → Read More
The Japanese government said Friday the nation should do everything it can to send a robot to the moon by 2020 followed by a human astronaut 10 years later in order to explore the moon’s natural resources. Japan, a country famously poor in natural resources, has a space development strategy task force in place that’s ready to execute the plans and is headed by the Prime Minister. → Read More
Some strange science news for you now. You know how you can “buy” stars, even though such purchases aren’t recognized by any legitimate scientific organization? Well, Chelsea Football Club owner Roman Abromovich—he’s a tremendously wealthy Russian, for those of who don’t know who he is—just did one better. He bought [Spanish] his girlfriend 100 acres of land on… → Read More
Some good ol’ fashioned science news for you this dreary morning. Congrats are due to India, which launched its first moon mission a few hours ago. It’s an unmanned flight, so don’t expect to see video of Indian astronauts playing golf or cricket up there or anything. There will, however, be an Indian flag placed up there by the unmanned rover-dealie. The Chandrayaan-1… → Read More
I’m all in favor of far-reaching, ambitious projects like the colonization of Mars and stuff, but covering the Moon with mirrors to increase the chances of aliens seeing us? I’m more than a little skeptical. Aside from the very idea being totally insane, it’s a ridiculous notion that it would help aliens find us. Any alien race that has the power to contact or visit us almost… → Read More
Funerals are expensive. To my family and friends; I’d rather my funeral have an open bar, a band, and a gigantic velvet painting of me than an open casket and a bunch of people crying. I’d also consider the possibility of you sending my ashes to the moon in a bullet-like canister (see above photo). Granted it wouldn’t be all my ashes, just a small quantity of my ashes. Maybe like… → Read More
[photopress:jedimoon.jpg,full,center] Flickr’d A bunch of Welsh Jedi—no comment—have bought a plot of land on the moon for the purpose of training new members of their Galactic Church. The land, purchased from “an official moon real estate seller” (me, actually) has already been incorporated into a micronation, sorta like Sealand, which ThePirateBay tried to buy a… → Read More
Ten teams have been announced as contenders to a chunk of Google’s coveted $30 million Lunar X PRIZE. The stipulations of the competition include, most importantly, that a team’s robotic craft must be privately funded and able to land on the moon and travel at least 500 meters while sending video, images, and data back to Earth. Bonus points for any team that makes it to the dark side… → Read More
Came across this unique watch on BoingBoing. Only 99 of these watches were made and are named after 17th century astronomer Johannes Kepler. He’s the dude who came up with the formulas for the Laws of Planetary Motion. Big stuff. Johannes’ timepiece doesn’t come cheap though. It’s more than $100,000 per watch, but the design is magnificent. Check out how the watch works: A… → Read More
If your apartment is anything like our apartment, meaning small, cramped, and with token “windows,” then you might benefit from this “Healing Moon” by Brando. We’re not sure if it actually heals anything, but it does make a half-way decent artificial moon, if that’s your thing, mimicking the 12-phases on cue via an IR remote. The real point of this thing is lost… → Read More
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