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Questions tagged [space-art]

use of space exploration or space-access technology for primarily artistic purposes

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Original Mariner 4 data values

Scott Manley recently did a video where he shows how the first image of Mars from up close was done with pastels while the impatient engineers waited for the image processing department to finish ...
dotancohen's user avatar
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4 votes
0 answers
100 views

New(?) flag of Baikonur

While watching a video of deployment of Soyuz spacecraft, I noticed a flag next to the launchpad, with sign 'Baikonur' and a graphic of Earth and several stars; one I didn't see anywhere else: ...
SF.'s user avatar
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4 votes
2 answers
242 views

Which "Rockwell van" ran incredibly rough for the first two minutes? (call to the radio program Car Talk)

A caller to the long-running NPR radio talk show Car Talk described a problem with their Rockwell van. While it started fine, it ran "incredibly rough" for the first two minutes. Is it ...
uhoh's user avatar
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3 votes
1 answer
743 views

Who designed the cool-looking Orbita Molniya tracking station at Khabarovsk? What does it look like inside?

Wikipedia's Orbita (TV system) says: Orbita (Russian: орбита) is a Soviet-Russian system of broadcasting and delivering TV signals via satellites. It is considered to be the first national network of ...
uhoh's user avatar
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15 votes
1 answer
3k views

Cartoon-like characters on the side of the Tianwen-1 Mars lander?

Scott Manley's excellent new video China's Mars Rover Zhurong Has Completed Its Primary Mission, Reaches New Milestone is chock-full of space-sleuthing goodies and interesting information about the ...
uhoh's user avatar
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3 votes
0 answers
106 views

Does the beeping satellite shown at the end of NASA Goddard videos represent any spacecraft in particular?

Just as an example, the end of the NASA Goddard video NASA’s OSIRIS-REx: Mission to Bennu has a double-beeping satellite at the end, which performs a flyby of the camera. It's shiny and spherical and ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 149k
0 votes
1 answer
161 views

Could folks in space see giant projections of art on mountains like this one? Was this one seen or recorded?

Could folks in space, either space station astronauts in LEO or even future space tourists in suborbital arcs be able to see large projections like this on the sides of mountains? Did ISS astronauts ...
uhoh's user avatar
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2 votes
1 answer
159 views

Origin, artist, and original purpose of this unusual NASA image from 1996 or earlier? (possibly related to Clementine)

Two astronomy questions below relate to Clementine and poking around I found Ice on the Bone Dry Moon which was Written by Paul D. Spudis, Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston, TX, Deputy Leader of ...
uhoh's user avatar
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2 votes
2 answers
346 views

Can we engrave on the Moon by focusing laser from the Earth?

I would like to know if it is possible to make an engraving or burning moon's surface by focusing high energy laser beam from earth?
user0193's user avatar
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1 vote
0 answers
112 views

How did Scott Horowitz "hoist" the Mars Society's flag up STS-105's "mast"?

The medium.com's Retired NASA Astronaut Joins Crew That’s Building 21st Century Transportation Network says: At NASA, (Scott J. Horowitz) was responsible for selecting SpaceX — the company run by ...
uhoh's user avatar
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16 votes
1 answer
2k views

Who proposed detonating gunpowder on the moon to prove a rocket reached it?

I remember reading a about some rocket pioneer who had proposed that if a rocket were launched to the moon, one way to prove that it had reached the moon would be to detonate a large quantity of ...
Anssssss's user avatar
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27 votes
5 answers
6k views

Would Earth fireworks work on the Moon or on Mars?

Fireworks have had a very long history and have evolved into highly engineered devices with simultaneously excellent performance and reliability. Even small tweaks require research, testing, and are ...
uhoh's user avatar
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7 votes
1 answer
853 views

Which rocket was shown resupplying the ISS in Designated Survivor?

In the TV show Designated Survivor season 2 episode 12 (S2E12) The Final Frontier at 07:47 the following US rocket is shown launching a resupply mission to the ISS. The rocket detonates during launch. ...
Daniel Vestøl's user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
221 views

How much do on-demand, artificial meteor showers cost these days?

On-demand, artificial meteor showers are discussed in Artificial Shooting Stars - how could this possibly work (economically/technologically)? Why would a box full of 1cm balls released into LEO be ...
uhoh's user avatar
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8 votes
1 answer
1k views

What is the blue and purple glitter dinosaur above NASA astronaut Robert Behnken in this video?

The NASA video Expedition 63 Inflight with New York Times, Fox News, and USA Today - July 7, 2020 includes NASA astronaut Dr. Robert Behnken, and above can be seen a blue and purple glitter covered ...
uhoh's user avatar
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7 votes
1 answer
3k views

Are there any photo(s) of International Space Station (ISS) captured from above its altitude? [duplicate]

Are there any attempts made to capture an image of the whole ISS in one take? Or is it not currently practically possible? If Soyuz, SpaceX Dragon, etc. have cameras installed on them, images can be ...
learner's user avatar
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5 votes
1 answer
481 views

What is this font used in Apollo / early Shuttle NASA documents? (possibly OT)

Seeking the name of a font used in Apollo NASA documentation and some early shuttle documents as well. Examples: from SSME Pocket Data Book From Apollo 12 / SA 507 Flight Manual Recognizing this ...
Organic Marble's user avatar
3 votes
2 answers
443 views

Does this image of 91-core OTRAG "asparagus-staging" show a real launch, or is it "space-art"?

This answer to Were there any non-state organizations to organize space flight and colonizations in the second half of the 20th century? mentions OTRAG and links to Astronautix's OTRAG page. The ...
uhoh's user avatar
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13 votes
1 answer
2k views

Have astronauts in space suits ever taken selfies? If so, how?

Have astronauts in space suits ever taken selfies? Were selfie sticks used? If not, how was this feat accomplished?
uhoh's user avatar
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-2 votes
1 answer
192 views

Do all US vice presidents get cool jackets?

The Ars Technica article Vice President may tell NASA to accelerate lunar landings starts with "We're tired of generating PowerPoint journeys that don't go anywhere." and explains that one ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 149k
3 votes
1 answer
199 views

How many non-crewed deep-space destinations have had intentional broadcasts of music from Earth?

@Ingolifs's answer to the question What was the last message to Opportunity today (13 Feb '19)? quotes ArsTechnica's Opportunity did not answer NASA’s final call, and it’s now lost to us: Late ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 149k
18 votes
1 answer
791 views

How did NASA's Deep Space Network encode and broadcast music to Opportunity?

@Ingolifs's answer to the question What was the last message to Opportunity today (13 Feb '19)? quotes ArsTechnica's Opportunity did not answer NASA’s final call, and it’s now lost to us: Late ...
uhoh's user avatar
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4 votes
1 answer
693 views

Who were the major manufacturers of the Apollo 11 rocket?

Organizing an exhibition around photographs from the 1969 launch and wanted to invite manufacturers.
Jeffrey Smith's user avatar
5 votes
2 answers
485 views

Was there once a semi-serious space-art project planning to use solar reflectors to put a spot of light on the crescent Moon?

Reading the question What are the effects of orbital reflectors and advertising on scientific observation and orbital debris? I am reminded of a story I read a while ago about an even in the past, ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 149k
2 votes
3 answers
451 views

Did New Horizons use its smaller medium-gain antenna for most/all downlinking of Pluto and Arrokoth flyby data?

Brian May's New Horizons video (below) was released at about the same time that the New Horizons spacecraft passed 2014 MU69 Arrokoth and includes a lot of technically meaningful graphics. One item ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 149k
5 votes
2 answers
650 views

Was New Horizons launched on a copper rocket?

Screenshots below are from Brian May's new music video Brian May - New Horizons (Ultima Thule Mix) [Official Music Video] The beginning shows the launch of a rocket. I can't tell for sure if this is ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 149k
-3 votes
1 answer
97 views

Has there ever been musical events or performances associated with deep-space spacecraft or their flyby maneuvers?

We've had several questions related to music being played (live, or recorded) in space: Music played in space (6 answers) How did Sergei Krikalev get (or build) the drum he is shown playing here? (no ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 149k
5 votes
1 answer
302 views

Is there really moon rock in this cathedral window? If so, how, and from where on the Moon?

This Tweet by NASA Space Flight Editor Ian Atkinson says: Some pictures from the Cathedral before the event starts, they have a table set up with artifacts from Apollo 8, including the flown flight ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 149k
2 votes
1 answer
141 views

What is the name of this space museum in Russian and does it have a website and/or virtual tour site?

Enjoying the information and links in this answer I wanted to ask if these are real antennas now on display, or space art? But once I started clicking google maps I found that this is full blown space ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 149k
23 votes
1 answer
6k views

What celestial body did NASA carve and why is it eating a spacecraft?

The Mashable.com article No one carves a Halloween pumpkin like NASA engineers shows several interesting examples. But this one I can't figure out. The caption reads only. Om nom nom. Question: ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 149k
1 vote
0 answers
181 views

Attitude of the upcoming "Orbital Reflector"; will it result in good visibility?

There's a new (passive solar) orbital reflector, called the Orbital Reflector. While Mayak (Маяк) was a crowdfunded project at Moscow State Mechanical Engineering University and the Humanity Star ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 149k
55 votes
3 answers
21k views

This image of the Space Shuttle is truly beautiful, but is it real?

I saw this image in the Infobae article La NASA probará un paracaídas para posar naves espaciales en Marte ("NASA will test a parachute to place spaceships on Mars"). The image looks plausible to me, ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 149k
11 votes
1 answer
700 views

Design of 1970s era orbital fuel depot

Multiple concept art examples for a 1970s orbital fuel depot from Marshall Space Flight Center show cylindrical tanks perpendicular to a central core. But then at one end of the central core are ...
Organic Marble's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
331 views

How does this spinach-growing Mars lander design work?

@geoffc left a link in Chat to the extensive article in Nasa Spaceflight The Evolution of the Big Falcon Rocket. On the second page there is a bit of Mars vs Musk history: Musk’s ambitions of doing ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 149k
3 votes
1 answer
3k views

What do these patterns on Virgin Galactic's VSS Unity represent, and how are they applied?

The NPR news article Virgin Galactic Space Plane Reaches New Heights In Test Flight links to the Virgin Galactic YouTube video VSS Unity | Third Rocket Powered Flight which is quite beautiful to watch!...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 149k
1 vote
1 answer
405 views

What do these GPS-related emblems represent? Does one of them show "Marvin the Martian"?

The Wikipedia page linked in @OrganicMarble's answer about the Air Force Space and Missile Museum contains the image below, of a (now retired) GPS monitoring station. To the right of the station ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 149k
1 vote
2 answers
194 views

Puzzler; "who" are the members of this family of comet-visiting spacecraft?

In the video Once upon a time... Rosetta's grand finale (also in ESA Space Videos) mentioned in this answer there is a "family portrait" showing Rosetta along with previous comet-visiting spacecraft. ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 149k
3 votes
1 answer
450 views

Is this ISS artwork old but accurate? Was there a radiator that looked like this once?

Along with today's NPR.org news article NASA Needs Backup Plan To Maintain U.S. Presence At Space Station, Watchdog Says there is a big of ISS artwork of the ISS. The caption says: International ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 149k
0 votes
2 answers
358 views

What ESA video contains this "family portrait" of comet-visiting spacecraft?

I don't use (or condone) FaceBook, but nonetheless I stumbled upon this page from a search: https://www.facebook.com/ISEE3Reboot/photos/a.801544933207256.1073741827.800538433307906/1384594101569000/?...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 149k
3 votes
2 answers
988 views

Is the Hollywood "Enemy of the State" satellite at all based on a real satellite?

The page on the model maker Asylum FX's website shows some stills of a model used in the production of the movie Enemy of the State. We fabricated a 15ft long satellite model for motion control ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 149k
4 votes
1 answer
391 views

Who is the NASA Space artist of this circa 1978 satellite montage? Does a key listing each item exist?

The Ars Technica article As mega-constellations loom, US seeks to manage space debris problem uses this beautiful drawing of current and future spacecraft from a circa 1978 perspective. It's been used ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 149k
1 vote
1 answer
154 views

What might this "NS" mean in this speculation about this Mars rover's future prospects?

The Reddit xkcd 695: apparently CERN scientists couldn't handle the sad ending contains the following image. In the 2nd to last panel of the bottom added-on row, the text looks like it says Sorry ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 149k
17 votes
1 answer
2k views

Who is the artist of this image appearing in an article about a Russian space laser?

According to the Tech Times article Russia Constructing Powerful 'Space Laser' To Remove Some 500,000 Junk Items Orbiting The Earth: Russia is still making its mark in space and it is doing so by ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 149k
9 votes
1 answer
238 views

Why was the "Presidential Panorama of Mars" called presidential?

From The Astronomy Picture of the Day for 2000 May 14 : Explanation: Scroll right to unfold one of the great panoramas ever taken on the surface of Mars. For best viewing, click and hold the right ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 149k
5 votes
1 answer
882 views

What Soviet-era space-related film is this Nick Stevens tweet referring to?

@antzi's post in chat lead me to the Nick Stevens' Twitter account in which I found the following 9-Apr-2018 Tweet: Soviet film, dramatized version of #Korolev and #Gagarin with the ADU-1000 Pluton ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 149k
3 votes
1 answer
468 views

Do you recognize these space artists who made this (possibly) first "paint-by-numbers" image of Mars?

Update! I've just run across the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory video Five Ways Mariner 4 Changed Mars Exploration and it mentions this "paint by numbers" representation of "the first digital image of ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 149k
1 vote
1 answer
216 views

Is there any way to tell which NASA rover this "rover" might be modeled after?

In the OK Go! YouTube video linked below, there is a generic model of a planetary rover with a NASA logo on it. It has six wheels, (four on one articulated carriage) a vertical mast with a T-shape on ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 149k
1 vote
1 answer
342 views

Are these images from Planet Labs? Are the images publicly available?

While the narrator is very enthusiastic, I can't quite figure out if these are images from Planet Labs' Dove satellites, and if the general public can also access this data. In the NPR news article ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 149k
4 votes
2 answers
298 views

Was the Orbit Pavilion triggered by real communications events?

The October 2016 NASA JPL news article Art Turns Public Eyes (and Ears) Toward Space describes an artistic interpretation of the communications between a number of NASA Earth satellites and ground ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 149k
5 votes
2 answers
598 views

Identify this rocket and launch site from Gilligan's Island episode?

Since @geoffc has broken the "Gilligan's Island Barrier" with this answer I'd like to ask about the Space-themed episode 22 of Season 3 "Splashdown" which aired on February 20, 1967. What launch ...
uhoh's user avatar
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