15
votes
Could the SpaceShipOne fly again?
There is absolutely no reason to ever even conceive of flying it again. It was retired because it successfully did the sole task it was designed to do.
SpaceShipOne was unsafe1, barely met its ...
- 189k
11
votes
Accepted
California's rocket tax "by the mile", how would that work exactly?
The official draft
It appears that "milleage" is in fact understood as "altitude":
if a company can’t reveal the specifics of its mission due to confidentiality concerns — common with contracts ...
- 56k
9
votes
Could the SpaceShipOne fly again?
SpaceShipOne was retired so quickly because it was a prototype.
One of the key lessons-learned over the last seventy-plus years was that the waterfall model does not work when applied to creating ...
- 77.4k
9
votes
Would Jupiter look big?
No, you won't be able to tell immediately, and yes, it will look big.
First, I think it's extremely unlikely that a spacecraft could travel to Jupiter without knowing Jupiter's size.
However, maybe a ...
- 4,655
6
votes
Accepted
Why is the Space industry expected to flourish and grow in the near future?
Private companies have been trying to get into the launch business since the 80s (ORTRAG in Germany since the 70s), usually turning into a financial disaster for the investors. Several things have ...
- 4,287
6
votes
What kind of badge will tourists who performed a sub-orbital spaceflight receive?
We don't know yet.
The closest we have come is Beth Moses who flew as a "test passenger" in VSS Unity VF-01 and became the first non-pilot and the first woman to be awarded the FAA ...
- 20.7k
6
votes
Accepted
Are there other companies than Bigelow Aerospace planning to offer a space hotel?
Axiom Space, run by people with management and astronaut experience from the ISS, plans to have commercial customers in space by 2020. First with their module docked to the ISS, and when the ISS is ...
- 27k
6
votes
Accepted
Do the passengers in Virgin Galactic's VSS Unity spacecraft have a parachute or some other way to escape the spacecraft if needs be?
They do appear to be wearing parachutes, though they don't appear to have leg straps - could make it very uncomfortable in the unlikely event they have to be used. (They'd be left hanging from the ...
- 76
6
votes
Accepted
Resources for planning and schedule a launch-watching day-trip in Florida?
There are two options for viewing a launch from Cape Canaveral: Pay to enter Kennedy Space Center (KSC), or watch the launch for free from a public space. The above choice will dictate what ...
- 408
6
votes
Is Delta the same as SpaceShip III and if not, has SpaceShip III been de facto cancelled?
To answer the first part of your question, SpaceShip III is not the same as Delta class. As for the second part of your question, it appears that SpaceShip III has been effectively cancelled, based on ...
- 5,914
5
votes
Accepted
What are the options of a space enthusiast regarding visiting Plesetsk?
Mirny (site of Plesetsk Cosmodrome) is a closed town.
At the moment, tours are only for Russian schoolchildren.
- 7,913
5
votes
What animals would be best suited as pets or comfort animals for extended periods of spaceflight in microgravity?
Logistics sets some applicable limits:
Animals require food, produce waste. The larger the animals, the more resources required. In an environment where every gram is expensive, this means animals ...
5
votes
Shortest stay at the ISS once continuous operations and regular crew rotations began? How does Maezawa (planned) 12 days compare?
Tourists aka "Space Flight Participants":
Probably Dennis Tito; if full flight duration is counted, then a tie with Hazzaa al Mansoori
The source says "6 days aboard ISS" for Tito ...
- 189k
4
votes
Accepted
How can I calculate the weight a aero-spacecraft occupant experiences during sub-orbital but non-ballistic trajectories?
My interpretation of your question is this:
At 0 horizontal velocity, an aircraft needs to provide 100% of its weight in upward force to maintain its altitude.
At orbital velocity, with the surface ...
- 172k
4
votes
Accepted
Does the US government plan to issue "Astronaut Wings" for anyone passing 80 km forever?
Does the US government plan to issue “Astronaut Wings” for anyone passing 80 km forever?
No. From https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2021/07/22/us/faa-changes-astronaut-wings-scn/index.html (mirror):
FAA ...
- 1,284
4
votes
Accepted
Could you enter this building when it was over New York City?
Due to the nature of elliptical orbits, and given that perigee is in the south, the building will fly fast and low in the south and slow and high in the north.
Let's calculate it.
In an elliptical ...
- 821
3
votes
Accepted
How long will Blue Origin's New Shepard space tourist flights last?
Yes, it will only be a few minutes. (Source: blueorigin.com)
- 167
3
votes
Accepted
Why did Virgin Galactic choose N2O / HTPB as its fuel?
The Virgin Galactic design was originally based on Burt Rutan's SpaceShipOne design. Scaled Composites chose ("after a lengthy study") a N2O/HTPB hybrid motor for that vehicle because they felt it ...
- 189k
3
votes
What is the case for human presence on the Moon?
There are some reasons for returning humans to the Moon. They could further the exploration started by the Apollo crews and they could help with construction and maintenance of lunar installations. ...
- 10.4k
3
votes
Accepted
What expenses and risks might the state of California incur that might partially justify a new "rocket tax"?
SpaceX wanted a sensible tax because sooner or later space launches would get taxed, and they feared whatever monstrosity would the legislator came up with if left to their own devices. The nice part ...
- 56k
3
votes
What animals would be best suited as pets or comfort animals for extended periods of spaceflight in microgravity?
Cats, dogs, mice or rabbit as pets in zero gravity would be a problem, training them to use a zero gravity toilet would be at least very difficult if not impossible. Similar problems with eating and ...
- 49.5k
3
votes
What are Virgin Galactic Space Suits for? What do they do? What don't they do?
The suits don't serve as true space suits in any sense. SpaceX Crew Dragon suits are full-on pressure suits, designed to keep you safe in case the capsule springs a leak
So slim was the new SpaceX ...
- 8,160
3
votes
How bright would Earthlight be from the surface of the Moon? Can you read under the light of the Earth?
The OP links to the Forbes Mar 18, 2017 article Ask Ethan: How Bright Is The Earth As Seen From The Moon? and @PM2Ring comments
FWIW, Dr Ethan Siegel is a qualified astrophysicist and an excellent ...
- 151k
2
votes
Accepted
Could folks in space see giant projections of art on mountains like this one? Was this one seen or recorded?
Because mountains are very lumpy, the picture would be clear only if you viewed it from the ground in the general vicinity of the projector. If you see it from above in an aeroplane it would not be a ...
- 156
2
votes
Accepted
Has every passenger been an astronaut? Will they be in the future?
From Wikipedia:
Many private space travelers have objected to the term "space tourist", often pointing out that their role went beyond that of an observer, since they also carried out ...
- 131k
2
votes
Does SpaceX have any significant additional legal hurdles for flying private citizens around the moon?
Question being answered: "I'm more interested in international laws/treaties and U.S. spaceflight laws"
Thanks to called2voyage - https://www.congress.gov/114/plaws/publ90/PLAW-114publ90.pdf
The ...
- 245
2
votes
Is the night sky on Earth different from the night sky on the moon or Mars?
According to @RobJeffries' answer:
Even in favourable conditions, the optical depth of the Martian atmosphere is usally somewhere between 0.5 and 1 per airmass. (Petrova et al. 2012; Lemmon et al. ...
- 151k
2
votes
Is the night sky on Earth different from the night sky on the moon or Mars?
First of all, the distances in the solar system are absolutely tiny compared to the distances between stars. To the casual observer, the celestial sphere (by which I mean everything in the sky except ...
- 6,511
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