ASSOCIATED PRESSA burst of sunshine in the spring could be just the wake-up call for Europe's comet lander.Scientists raised hopes Monday that as the Philae lander nears the sun its solar panel-powered battery will recharge, and the first spacecraft ...
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| How Esa scientists believe Philae has landed on the comet – on its side. Photograph: European Space Agency/Reuters |
by Zen GardnerWe’re undergoing an amazing transformation. Absolutely diametrically opposed to the constant, gradual attempt by elitists to shut down humanity via eons of engineered subjugation, we’re being consciously and vibrationally liberated by the very nature of the Universe in spite of all their efforts.It’s not readily apparent to most, but it’s very clearly there.It’s subtle and yet obvious at the same time. Knowledge of this change or shift in conscio [...]
Have you ever seen some energy out of the corner of your eye and when you looked, nothing was there? More and more people are talking about seeing shadow people and are wondering who they are and what their purpose is. Who are shadow people? Shadow people are commonly reported as being seen through peripheral vision and while you may feel something was there, the shadow person is either gone or quickly moving away from you by the time you turn your head. Parallel dimensional beings I [...]
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Posted by allisonrae on May 1, 2012
What would life be without contrast?
Day and night. Happy, sad. Youth, age.
Yin and yang.
Beginning. End.
Darkness.
Light.
Epiphany.
Solar and lunar cycles dove...
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a message from Gillian MacBeth-Louthan
Tuesday, 18 October, 2011
The opulence, the prosperity, the role of Creator-ship that you so seek is within the cellular structure of your being. It is not housed in a thoug...
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10 July 2011
Message 57
Shadow Shapes
The physical reality in which you are embodied has much beauty and wonder. It offers the opportunities to express gratitude and appreciation. From our perspective your physical ...
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Crashed spaceship pilot unaware co-pilot unlocked brake
Pilot Peter Siebold told the National Transportation Safety Board that he was not aware co-pilot Mike Alsbury had pulled a brake-unlocking lever before the rocket designed one day to fly tourists to the edge of space was done accelerating. Seconds later, SpaceShipTwo began to disintegrate over Southern California.
Protocol for the flight was to announce the unlocking, an agency spokesman said.
It is not clear if Siebold didn’t hear Alsbury or the co-pilot never indicated he was taking the action. The safety board plans to analyze flight audio next week, spokesman Eric Weiss said.
Virgin Galactic and said it could not comment on the investigation and referred questions to the NTSB. Siebold has not spoken publicly.
Pilots and co-pilots typically agree in advance before making important decisions, said Michael Lopez-Alegria, a former space shuttle astronaut who now consults on commercial space flight. One method is a “challenge and response” system in which one voices an intended action and the other confirms it before the action is taken.
Lopez-Alegria said he did not know whether the unlocking of SpaceShipTwo’s brakes was considered critical enough to require agreement, but “you would never take that action on your own.” He noted that in the cockpit of a commercial airliner, the pilot and co-pilot call out and confirm an action as routine as raising the wheels after takeoff.
The Oct. 31 crash about 120 miles north of downtown Los Angeles killed Alsbury, injured Siebold and cast a shadow over the immediate future of space tourism. It could take a year for the NTSB to determine the cause, though Virgin Galactic CEO George Whitesides said last week the company wants to resume test flights as early as next summer with a replacement craft.
The eventual goal is to launch spaceships carrying six passengers from a spaceport in New Mexico. For their $250,000 ticket, passengers would get a fleeting feeling of weightlessness and a spectacular view of Earth from about 62 miles up.
Pilot Siebold was hospitalized after the crash, but when he spoke to investigators Friday he had been discharged.
He told them that he was flung from the vehicle when it disintegrated. He said he unbuckled from his seat at some point during his fall that began miles above Earth, and his parachute deployed automatically.
Investigators have not revealed the exact altitude of the breakup, but previous SpaceShipTwo test flights peaked at about 10 miles, much lower than the height expected for commercial flights.
Co-pilot Alsbury could be seen on inflight video unlocking the system before the vehicle had reached Mach 1.0, Hart has said. The feathers aren’t supposed to be unlocked until the craft reaches Mach 1.4, or more than 1,000 mph. At that point, it would have reached an altitude where the thinner air would not have provided so much violent resistance.
Even after Alsbury unlocked them, the feathers were not supposed to move. For that to happen, the crew would pull a second lever. The crew didn’t take the second step, but the system engaged anyway. Two or three seconds later, the craft began to break apart.
The NTSB has said the feathers could have deployed because of aerodynamic forces on the craft. The agency said Wednesday that it is looking at those forces and reviewing safety documentation and the feather system’s design.
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Associated Press writers Brian Melley and John Antczak contributed to this report.