Space and Science BS Thread

https://www.nbcnews.com/science/spa...ys-he-can-t-wait-rocket-space-sunday-n1273113

Branson beats Bezos. Everyone loses.

 

I love this channel.

https://youtu.be/G-WO-z-QuWI

 

So much great stuff ... and so much "oh god oh god we're all going to die". Their video on The Great Filter did not necessarily leave me in a happy place.

 

Pourquoi?

 

I think this is why, "Tickets initially cost $250,000, but the price is expected to go up"

 

Still cheap at the price. But not really a concern of mine anyway. When somebody else can offer it for less it will be less. For now it’s a space setter gimmick but it becomes “real” when they can offer destinations and that won’t happen until there are near shore launch facilities from major cities or service from international airports.

 

So Branson is on the record saying he’ll be an astronaut after the flight.

What do you folks think? Just flying into space = astronaut?

What about a new designation?
Vacanaut
Touronaut

Doesn’t seem right to use the same term as professional astronauts who train for years, decades throughout their careers.

 

I'm torn. On one hand I completely agree but if they're not, that would imply the eight X15 pilots that went above the karman line were not.

 

The eight were trained to fly themselves.

They’re professional astronauts.

 

The X-15 pilots were designated astronauts (they may not have been initially but are considered now).

U2 pilots want to be considered astronauts because their missions are around 70K feet and they even wear full space suits because of the extreme altitudes they fly. So far, no dice.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Astronaut_Badge

To earn an astronaut badge, a U.S. Air Force or U.S. Navy and Marine Corps officer must complete all required training and participate in a space flight more than 50 miles (80 kilometers) above the Earth.[3][4][5] The U.S. Army has awarded the badge to officers that have orbited the Earth. In the 1960s, the United States Department of Defense awarded astronaut badges to military and civilian pilots who flew aircraft higher than 50 miles (80 kilometres).[6] Seven USAF and NASA pilots qualified for the astronaut badge by flying the suborbitalX-15 rocket spaceplane.[6] American test pilots Michael Melvill and Brian Binnie were each awarded a commercial astronaut badge by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) when they flew sub-orbital missions aboard the Scaled CompositesSpaceShipOne rocket spaceplane.[6] All other men and women awarded the astronaut badge earned it travelling to space in non-winged rockets, the X-15, or the Space Shuttle.

 

Branson. Commercial Wings?

 

Stickers.

 

If the lack of breathable atmosphere were the bar then everyone who ever flew above 35,000 ft would qualify. I agree that U2 pilots aren’t astronauts. 70,000 ft is high but still 13+ miles is nowhere close to 50 miles.

 

I'm not going to rob anyone of that title. If he makes it past the karman line, he's an astronaut in my books. I'll even give him props. While I think his method is odd/crazy/stupid, it works. He created a new way to get to space. And while YES, I am aware he didn't engineer it himself, without him it would not have been made. No Karman line though, no astronaut title, only the title of "failure"

 

Passenger does not equal Astronaut

 

It equals Touristnaught

 

With the exception of the space shuttle pilots then, there are no astronauts... Most capsules now are fully automated, making the people inside just passengers.

 

If they train full time as a Mission or Payload Specialist, then IMHO they're astronauts. Add any advance training for space operations (robotic arm, spacewalks...) (of course they got to get over the Karman..)

Same goes for people training to intervene in case the automated systems go funky i.e. the flight crew of Inspiration 4.

 

Then, why don't we use Spaceman/woman/person/it?