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Breaking News => Space News and Current Space Weather Conditions => Topic started by: zorgon on February 08, 2018, 04:21:53 pm

Title: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: zorgon on February 08, 2018, 04:21:53 pm
Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car

Okay time to have a look at STARMAN and his car....

First:  WHY a car?  Well the rocket was a test rocket that was sent up and needed a ballast weight (usually they use a concrete block) and the rocket landed successfully out at sea  an historical first.  Why the car? Elon says:

"Usually, the top of a test rocket would just feature something to simulate the weight of an actual payload, such as a block of concrete. But Mr Musk said that including a car would be much more fun and not boring – "anything boring is terrible, especially companies, so we decided to send something unusual, something that made us feel," he said."

Okay so he is rich, it's his money and really no difference than using a concrete block.  And the rocket didn't explode this time and did land on a platform at sea successfully.

We have all been screaming NASA= Need Another Space Agency  and we need to see the private sector get on this

So below is the landing...  But I have questions :P  Something doesn't look right about those photos   

WHO took the photos?  In the image below you can clearly see both sides of the car  NO CAMERA... no "selfie stick"   So  HOW did they get the other picture from the side view? (see next post)

(https://static.independent.co.uk/s3fs-public/styles/story_medium/public/thumbnails/image/2018/02/08/11/starmanpic.jpg)

http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/spacex-launch-elon-musk-car-instagram-picture-photo-earth-space-asteroid-a8200366.html
Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: zorgon on February 08, 2018, 04:24:40 pm
So here is the side view... as we saw above there are no cameras on the car on that side So WHO took the photo? I know NASA has floating sphere cameras but I don't see how one of those could be used here as its not in a stationary orbit and heading for the asteroid belt

(http://static.automarket.ro/img/auto_resized/db/article/082/615/882070l-1280x1280-b-f7a8effb.jpg)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lEr9cPpuAx8
Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: zorgon on February 08, 2018, 04:27:58 pm
And yes NASA does have a floating ball camera :P It gets reported as a UFO a lot when people deliberately blur the images :P  It's called SPRINT AERCAM  and is responsible for a LOT of NASA "UFO's"

(https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/68/AERCam_Sprint_Columbia.jpg)

(https://c1.staticflickr.com/6/5498/9449348921_78b59d6273_c.jpg)
Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: zorgon on February 08, 2018, 04:28:40 pm
I don't think it's "LIVE"  :P

WATCH LIVE: "Starman" - Join SpaceX Live Views From Space #Tesla | CAR IN SPACE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2p55BmwmJM
Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: zorgon on February 08, 2018, 04:55:55 pm
Quote

When Will SpaceX Lose Connection with Starman?
The Tesla Roadster just launched aboard a Falcon Heavy rocket on its maiden voyage on Feb. 6, 2018.
Credit: SpaceX
A mannequin called "Starman" was the star of yesterday's (Feb. 6) spectacular maiden launch of the SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket. The spacesuited "dummy" — named after a famous David Bowie song – sat at the wheel of a Tesla Roadster, as SpaceX transmitted spectacular views of the nearby Earth.

Late last night, Eastern Time (Feb. 7), Starman's rocket finished an engine "burn" that pushed the car out of Earth's orbit and on a trajectory that will bring the vehicle through the asteroid belt, according to a tweet by SpaceX founder Elon Musk.

How long will Starman stay in touch with Earth? SpaceX has been coy about how the video and communications were relayed back to Earth — the company didn't answer a query from Inverse — but we can make some guesses based on general knowledge. The answer depends on how much power the spacecraft has available, and whether the antennas Starman communicates with are strong enough to receive the signal. [Radiation Will Tear Elon Musk's Rocket Car to Bits in a Year]

Quote
Spacecraft usually communicate using radio waves, according to NASA. Antennas on the ground receive these signals. Then, the radio waves get processed to gain information from the spacecraft: scientific data (such as pictures), the spacecraft's location in space and how healthy the craft is (based on readings from its instruments).

Spacecraft need a source of power to send a signal. Most Earth-orbiting satellites use solar power because it's so abundant around our planet. Spacecraft located farther out in the solar system, however, don't have as much sunlight available — the sun is too far away. The NASA New Horizons probe that flew past Pluto in 2015, for example, used plutonium to power its instruments. The European Rosetta mission's Philae lander on Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko used batteries during its short life. (It was supposed to use solar power as well, but it landed in a shady spot and couldn't get enough light from the sun.)

Once the spacecraft sends its information, an antenna on the ground has to receive that signal. For faraway missions, this is quite a challenge, because the signal is extremely faint. The two farthest-traveling spacecraft to communicate with Earthlings: NASA's Voyager 1(which passed into interstellar space in 2012) and Voyager 2, which is far out in the solar system. To hear from these spacecraft, NASA uses a network of huge antennas called the Deep Space Network. The antennas are located in California, Spain and Australia, and the largest ones are 230 feet (70 meters) in diameter, according to NASA.

So how long will Starman keep communicating as he flies to the asteroid belt? It's hard to say. The transmitter needs to have enough power, and the antennas SpaceX uses need to be able to communicate with Starman. Until SpaceX releases more information, we will have to wait. [What Is the Point of Elon Musk's Big Rocket?]

Nevertheless, Starman's view of Earth was impressive enough to keep space-exploration fans happy for a while. SpaceX broadcast a live view of Starman, using different videos to flip around the spacecraft, for more than 4 hours after the launch. As Bowie once sang, look at this caveman go.

Original article on Live Science.

https://www.livescience.com/61687-spacex-lose-connection-with-starman.html
Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: space otter on February 08, 2018, 09:04:48 pm


who took the photo?..hubby asked that same question
 this article say space X


https://www.cnbc.com/2018/02/08/elon-musk-shares-the-epic-last-photo-of-starman-in-the-red-tesla-he-shot-into-space.html

lots of pics  here are several captions



Quote
>  To make the rocket launch more entertaining, Musk put his own cherry red Tesla Roadster in the rocket to be released into space. And SpaceX, for a limited time, was able to provide a live video feed of the Tesla floating through space.

>  You can watch the live feed of the Tesla Roadster floating through space in the SpaceX video below.

>  Courtesy SpaceX



Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: spacemaverick on February 08, 2018, 11:41:42 pm
I was watching the launch from the South part of the county using my astronomy binoculars.  What a sight!  Even saw the left and right boosters jettison.  A friend of mine works for SpaceX and said the landing of the boosters was almost simultaneous.  The programming for the booster landing left a small margin so the onboard radars would not become confused with each other as explained by Mr. Musk.  27 screaming engines...wow.

This may the largest rocket now with 5 million pounds of thrust but, Saturn V was 7.5 million pounds of thrust and built by engineers using slide rules with equations by hand.  He had some cameras on the booster that was to give the Tesla the final boost and a couple on the Tesla if I heard correctly. 
Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: zorgon on February 09, 2018, 01:40:27 am
I think the car is still attached to the second stage booster and the camera's are on that.  And the car can rotate on that pedestal

(https://response.jp/imgs/p/Fy2StOQW6cvCvzPSvU6fgoRNGkG1QkNERUZH/1257513.jpg)

(https://media.indiatimes.in/media/facebook/2017/Dec/elon_musks_tesla_roadster_on_falcon_heavy_1514186121_800x420.jpg)

(http://lvdneng.rosselcdn.net/sites/default/files/dpistyles_v2/ena_16_9_extra_big/2018/02/01/node_309168/37362270/public/2018/02/01/B9714614375Z.1_20180201144256_000%2BGQ6AK5HBN.2-0.jpg?itok=WKLpfptd)
Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: dreb13 on February 09, 2018, 08:12:59 am

who took the photo?..hubby asked that same question
 this article say space X



There are two arms that have cameras mounted to them.  One is out in front of the hood and the other is out to the side of the drivers side door.  You can see them in these 3 Instagram posts: 

https://www.instagram.com/p/BezcvpzAgYI/?utm_source=ig_embed

If you watch the 4 hour Starman video you'll see the arms from time to time when they are in sunlight.

Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: Somamech on February 09, 2018, 10:13:36 am
They are still streaming live in 1080p

I wonder how long they can maintain that bitrate once it reaches the BELT for you dark matter fans !
Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: Irene on February 09, 2018, 12:28:25 pm
Just what we need, more garbage in space. It's a pretty car, no doubt about that, but we should be launching only those things which have a useful purpose in orbit.
Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: zorgon on February 09, 2018, 02:06:31 pm
Elon Musk’s Tesla Roadster imaged and filmed! – 8 Feb. 2018
BY GIANLUCA MASI ·


Here it is an image of the Tesla Roadster on its way around the Sun. It will move between 147 and 260 millions of km from our star.

(https://www.virtualtelescope.eu/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/TeslaRoadster_08feb2018-640x522.jpg)

https://www.virtualtelescope.eu/2018/02/08/elon-musks-tesla-roadster-imaged-8-feb-2018/
Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: zorgon on February 09, 2018, 02:08:04 pm
We are told that there are millions of satellites out there, tons of space debris, UFO of all kinds.. and stars :P Watch any NASA ISS video and there is all sorts of debris (or "UFO's") floating around... Yet in this car video... it is CLEAN.. Nothing... not one bit of space debris, not one satellite, not one space station, not one secret space craft, not one UFO... nothing, nada, zip. No stars not even one bright one... THAT is why it looks fake... it is way to CLEAN. I am NOT saying it didn't happen... just that the video looks fake
Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: zorgon on February 09, 2018, 02:12:55 pm
They are still streaming live in 1080p

I wonder how long they can maintain that bitrate once it reaches the BELT for you dark matter fans !

Good question :D

UFO SPOTTED :P

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FO5L6caKzao
Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: zorgon on February 09, 2018, 02:16:04 pm
And then there is THIS 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PrpGXfwyibI
Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: zorgon on February 09, 2018, 02:30:23 pm
Well it looks like Elon Musk agrees with us...

"...it looks so fake"

https://www.facebook.com/100007136400891/videos/2054013528179841/
Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: spacemaverick on February 09, 2018, 02:58:54 pm
We are told that there are millions of satellites out there, tons of space debris, UFO of all kinds.. and stars :P Watch any NASA ISS video and there is all sorts of debris (or "UFO's") floating around... Yet in this car video... it is CLEAN.. Nothing... not one bit of space debris, not one satellite, not one space station, not one secret space craft, not one UFO... nothing, nada, zip. No stars not even one bright one... THAT is why it looks fake... it is way to CLEAN. I am NOT saying it didn't happen... just that the video looks fake

Hate to burst your bubble on this one, but a friend of mine who works for SpaceX saw it placed on top of the launch vehicle.
Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: ArMaP on February 09, 2018, 03:40:10 pm
And then there is THIS 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PrpGXfwyibI
If the camera is fixed to the same support as the car it's obvious the car wouldn't move if there was any flaw in the image flow, we can jump several frames and the car will be in the same position.
Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: easynow on February 09, 2018, 04:25:28 pm
Haha ... and there's also this ...

(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DVoVSo8W4AIyjgH.jpg)

https://twitter.com/ufoofinterest/status/962089602717757445

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DVoHX7-WAAAv8iQ.jpg:large

 :D



Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: micjer on February 10, 2018, 07:33:11 am
If it were real, what is keeping the car from rotating and flipping around.  It stays in perfect view.

Also I don`t think the shadows are right.  For the sun to be illuminating the earth entirely, shouldn`t spaceman be totally illuminated also.  I feel there should be partial darkness on earth for the direction of the shadow on spaceman.

I am not saying it is not up there, just feel the photos are fake.
Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: Titan on February 10, 2018, 07:38:30 am
The cameras are in fixed locations and the car is on a mount.  The car will never move in relation to the camera.

What I'm curious about is why various components of the car were not quickly destroyed by the sun.
Space is cold but isn't direct sunlight in the vacuum of space still incredibly hot?
The car has no heat shielding so wouldn't the direct sunlight very quickly fade the paint and melt the synthetic materials that make up the interior?

Obviously I'm lacking knowledge here so my queries reflect that but I am curious how that works.
Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: Titan on February 10, 2018, 07:42:05 am
micjer, here's a picture of the thing the car and cameras are attached to

(http://static3.businessinsider.de/image/5a789384ec1ade6a5d6d0b88/elon-musk-plans-to-launch-a-tesla-roadster-to-mars-orbit-this-week--and-a-new-photo-shows-a-dummy-driver-called-starman.jpg)
Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: micjer on February 10, 2018, 07:51:23 am
Thanks.  That makes more sense. 
Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: ArMaP on February 10, 2018, 09:10:31 am
What I'm curious about is why various components of the car were not quickly destroyed by the sun.
Space is cold but isn't direct sunlight in the vacuum of space still incredibly hot?
The car has no heat shielding so wouldn't the direct sunlight very quickly fade the paint and melt the synthetic materials that make up the interior?
Good question.

I don't think the paint would be much affected, as it's very reflective, but plastic is a different thing, although there are some kinds of plastic that can withstand high temperatures and even direct flame.
Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: space otter on February 11, 2018, 09:42:00 am

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/nasa-is-keeping-tabs-on-elon-musks-tesla-roadster/ar-BBIXHGc?li=BBnb7Kz

NASA is keeping tabs on Elon Musk's Tesla roadster
 CNN CNN
Jackie Wattles
18 hrs ago

parts of the article say:

> Astronomers aim to keep tabs on everything up in the night sky. A NASAdatabase includes our solar system's eight planets and their moons, more than 755,000 asteroids, 3,500 comets -- and, as of this week, one cherry red sports car that belonged to a Silicon Valley billionaire.

> "We need to have it in our artificial object catalog so that we don't confuse it with an asteroid discovery in the future," NASA spokesperson Dwayne Brown said in an email.

The roadster is now officially labeled a Near-Earth Object, which is a designation NASA gives to objects that can travel relatively close to our home planet. (Don't worry, the odds of the car colliding with Earth anytime soon are very, very small.)

> The Tesla now has it's own entry in Horizons, a database run by the Solar System Dynamics group at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

> The Tesla is listed as object -143205, "SpaceX Roadster (spacecraft) (Tesla)."
  To view a simulation of the Tesla's orbit (based on the data in
  Horizons), go to OrbitSimulator.com and search for "roadster."
http://orbitsimulator.com/gravitySimulatorCloud/simulations/1436303468965_orbitViewer.html

also

>  Behind the wheel is Starman, a mannequin dressed in a spacesuit. SpaceX also hid a few "Easter eggs" in the car.

"You might also catch a glimpse of a smaller passenger, which is a tiny little Hot Wheels roadster, carrying a tiny little Starman," Lauren Lyons, a SpaceX engineer, said during the mission's webcast.

Also on board the Tesla is a durable storage device, called an Arch, loaded with the text of Isaac Asimov's "Foundation" sci-fi trilogy. The names of over 6,000 SpaceX employees are also etched onto some hardware below the car.
Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: The Seeker on March 18, 2018, 07:37:37 pm
(http://www.thelivingmoon.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10004/27545226_10156080893942974_2246103784640757515_n.jpg)
Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: The Seeker on August 23, 2019, 06:33:01 pm
The Science Channel reported earlier this week that Starman and the roadster have completed one full orbit around the sun after 557 days in space...

any data out there to confirm this?
Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: ArMaP on August 24, 2019, 05:29:05 am
From what I have seen, those are the result of calculations made when it started its heliocentric orbit.

As it is too small to track visually and is not transmitting any radio signal they can only get a theoretical position.

As far as I understand it. :)
Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: spacemaverick on August 24, 2019, 07:55:14 am
http://www.youtube.com/spacex (http://www.youtube.com/spacex)

The last stage booster is still attached to it.  Just for information, here is SpaceX Youtube channel.  The booster attached gives it a much larger mass to track.  Each piece of hardware in space is tracked so space commands know where all things are located.  They have to have this when they launch other satellites into space, otherwise, things would be bumping into each other up there.  Look at the Youtube video about the Tesla and you will see booster still attached.
Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: spacemaverick on August 24, 2019, 08:03:46 am
As far as the question as to whether they launched it into space, my friend at SpaceX saw it placed at the top of the rocket and launched.  The greatest majority of their fabrication is made in-house which makes it easier regarding quality control for their space vehicles.  No waiting on subcontractors.  They are already working on a craft to go to Mars and flight to the moon.
Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: spacemaverick on August 24, 2019, 08:05:47 am
http://www.spacex.com/mars (http://www.spacex.com/mars)

Just a nugget about lunar starship mission.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=3&v=zu7WJD8vpAQ (http://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=3&v=zu7WJD8vpAQ)
Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: spacemaverick on August 24, 2019, 08:11:27 am
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6AcE7hBhpYU (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6AcE7hBhpYU)

Title: Re: Starman Heads to Space in a Tesla Car
Post by: ArMaP on August 24, 2019, 08:25:23 am
Each piece of hardware in space is tracked so space commands know where all things are located.  They have to have this when they launch other satellites into space, otherwise, things would be bumping into each other up there.
As far as I understand it, they have to do it in two different ways.

The easiest to track are the ones orbiting the Earth, as they are either visible or detectable by radar or other means, but the ones orbiting the Sun have to be treated like asteroids: they calculate their orbits and check on them when they are close enough.