Space Archives - Peak Geek

SpaceX recently stuck another barge landing of their Falcon 9 rocket after launching another satellite into space. Kinda weird that this amazing technology is starting to feel routine! This landing though was a bit different…they captured this amazing photograph, with the sun nicely blocked by the rocket. Click on the image for a larger size. I’m anticipating their office printers running like crazy these days as all the employees print this out for their cubicle walls…

Perhaps the greatest problem astronauts face has been solved – Lavazza has designed an espresso machine which the Italian Space Agency intends to send up to the International Space Station! Astronauts can now enjoy a shot of espresso in the mornings, though due to the microgravity environment, they’ll be forced to sip it from a plastic bag rather than a ceramic cup. But hey, small price to pay for the ability to drink espresso while enjoying one of the most magnificent views in the solar system!

If Bigelow Aerospace manages to build their space hotel, I wonder how long it’ll be before Starbucks opens up their first orbital coffee shop?

(via Phys.org)

Cool…a comet’s orbit was recently (in cosmic terms) diverted, with its new trail crossing our orbit for the first time. The resulting dust trail may…or may not…produce a good meteor shower this Friday night! Midnight Pacific time should be the peak; look north. Click here for the details: Major meteor shower could delight N. America May 23-24.

NASA has finally installed an Earth-facing HD webcam on the ISS, and is streaming the video for all to enjoy…check it out below! If the image is black it means the ISS is on the dark side of Earth, gray means the feed is currently down. Flying discs in the image mean Martians are about to invade my favorite planet.

Live streaming video by Ustream

I’ve been following the story of the mystery rock on Mars with some interest. The aging rover Opportunity photographed the same area twelve days apart, and found that a new rock had appeared. It’s being compared to a jelly doughnut due to its size and dark center. So where did it come from? Possibly an meteorite impact, or (more likely) one of the rover’s wheels kicking it up out of place.

The appearance of the rock isn’t the only interesting thing about this though. For starters, it’s flipped upside down, exposing a side of the rock that the rover would otherwise never see. Further analysis has revealed even more surprises – the composition of this rock is unlike anything found on Mars so far. The darker center portion of the rock is high in sulfur, very high in magnesium, and has a lot more manganese than you’d expect, too.

No one knows what any of this means, but it’s pretty cool that a ten year old rover, originally expected to last three months, is still helping us learn more about the red planet.

Category: Space

Great picture from SpaceX

Espresso in Space

Major meteor shower Friday?

ISS Earth-cam

Mystery rock on Mars