Whats the point?

[SYNACK]

It will be epic there are many applications for this in medical, aeronautical and materials tech. Atmospheric jumping has been floating around is Star Trek for ages. Imagine if the Astronauts in the damaged shuttle had been able to push it into a higher orbit and just jump out. How about escape from the ISS if the escape pod was damaged. Sure this assumes a world where people are still at least trying for space but thanks to corporate endeavours the embers will keep going, perhaps enough to make some progress.

Sure it's cool that they have a giant nuclear powered RC car on Mars but how much cooler would it be if there were people there too. Think of the mass and acceleration limits that humans impose, if you know they can just jump out at the far end to drop in to the previously constructed base it saves tonnes of fuel and hassel. Sure the Martian atmosphere is a bit thin for parachutes but for the limited mass of a human it may well do, if not little rocket hoists like the curiosity ones may work and again be much more efficient. The heavy and more robust stuff like base hardware could be dropped at much higher G loads saving huge amounts of mass and fuel.

Long story short, it could be very useful.

[SYNACK]

Looks like it has been delayed for weather, next launch time is about an hour from now.

[sonofsanta]

Beaten to it!

It's only a half hour delay from the plan so hopefully nothing too significant.

[SYNACK]

Beaten to it!

It's only a half hour delay from the plan so hopefully nothing too significant.

I think it's just wind at the proposed landing site that this the issue according to the news here yay 2:30am jump

[sonofsanta]

I think it's just wind at the proposed landing site that this the issue according to the news here yay 2:30am jump

Pushed back to 1400 GMT now (1500 UK time). That's the launch time as well, the jump itself will be 2-2½ hours later.

So do I work late to see it, or dare to try and leave on time and hope traffic is kind to see it at home...

[SYNACK]

Pushed back to 1400 GMT now (1500 UK time). That's the launch time as well, the jump itself will be 2-2½ hours later.

So do I work late to see it, or dare to try and leave on time and hope traffic is kind to see it at home...

Poo, Should I stay up or go to sleep and wake up early to watch it. I'll probably end up watching it on youtube or the news. Silly wind, or should I say 'foul wind' .

[Earthling]

Personally, I think it's great, can't wait to see the footage.

Just one thing bothers me.

Why Roswell?

I mean, I know it's the New Mexico desert and he's not liable to land on anything or anyone, but .....why Roswell?

Why not White Sands or Area 51.........why Roswell, with all it's (alleged) history of stuff falling from space?

Just asking.......

[X-13]

why Roswell, with all it's (alleged) history of stuff falling from space?

That's probably the exact reason they're doing it there.

[SYNACK]

Personally, I think it's great, can't wait to see the footage.

Just one thing bothers me.

Why Roswell?

I mean, I know it's the New Mexico desert and he's not liable to land on anything or anyone, but .....why Roswell?

Why not White Sands or Area 51.........why Roswell, with all it's (alleged) history of stuff falling from space?

Just asking.......

Epic theme continuation, really what makes it more appealing to the media, illegal alien lands in Roswell. Stuff like that sells and pleasing the populous of IQ<90 and keeping the funding rolling in.

[Earthling]

Maybe he's really an E.T. and really, he's trying to go home and the parachute is a fail-safe in case the intergalactic worm-hole-portal-star-trek-beam-me-up-scotty thing doesn't work or open.

Or if it does open, but his return ticket's expired. I mean, where I live, you can't even get back from London on the train if your ticket's out of date.

Just saying......

[Earthling]

<SNIP> Stuff like that sells and pleasing the populous of IQ<90 and keeping the funding rolling in.

The 'populous with IQ<90' probably won't even notice until he's been on the Jeremy Kyle show.

[X-13]

Maybe he's really an E.T. and really, he's trying to go home and the parachute is a fail-safe in case the intergalactic worm-hole-portal-star-trek-beam-me-up-scotty thing doesn't work or open.

Or if it does open, but his return ticket's expired. I mean, where I live, you can't even get back from London on the train if your ticket's out of date.

Just saying......

I think you dropped something.

[SYNACK]

The 'populous with IQ<90' probably won't even notice until he's been on the Jeremy Kyle show.

True but the OMG!!!, I 'arrived' in Roswell would be a golden ticket onto that show

[Miscbrah]

Stuff like that sells and pleasing the populous of IQ<90

I read that about the Roswell landing site and thought "Oh cool!"

[Earthling]

I think you dropped something.

No.

Firefly's re-running on the Horror Channel and I always end up like this when it's on.

Apropos of nothing, since I read my first sci-fi book, at about 10 years old, (can't remember the title, it was a collection of short stories by A.E. van Vogt), I've always felt incredibly cheated that I was born too early for real space exploration....colonizing new planets, discovering new life-forms, encountering alien cultures.

And then, of course, as is our human way, laser-blasting them to a crisp.