Tag Archives: NASA

Luna USA Field Trip: the lunar lander – minimum viable product

Posted on May 25, 2012 by

We’ve already referred to the Lunar landing Module (LM in NASA parlance) as the greatest machine ever built. The chance to see a replica in Washington DC was very exciting. So imagine my amazement to discover that the machine is … Continue reading →

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Challenger 1986: NASA’s most explosive retrospective.

Posted on February 16, 2012 by

As I read this week’s Telegraph obituary of a great American rocket scientist, I was moved to thinking about how we deal with the whistleblowers and truth-tellers in an agile world. How can we strike a balance between encouraging transparency … Continue reading →

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A Photographic History of the Space Shuttle

Posted on July 25, 2011 by

As the last shuttle flight landed a few days ago it seems like a good time to post this magnificent set of photographs via the quirky site http://www.cracktwo.com - A couple to wet your appetite and a link to the full … Continue reading →

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The International Space Station and Endeavour

Posted on June 9, 2011 by

Ok, we may be a little obsessed … Can’t stop staring at these images of the Shuttle docked with the ISS; mesmerised. “The spaceship hung in the air much like a brick doesn’t.” – Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy

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Lessons from a Martian Mission

Posted on May 27, 2011 by

NASA has just announced the end of the Spirit Rover mission on Mars after no successful contacts since it’s last communication on the 22nd of March 2010. Not a bad effort for what was planned as a 3 month mission starting … Continue reading →

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Getting a job *should* be hard.

Posted on May 25, 2011 by

Today I gave a reference for a long time colleague and friend, most of the time the questions people ask when checking CV references are barely more sincere than the standard 4 questions real-estate agents ask when checking potential tenants. … Continue reading →

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Akin’s Laws of Spacecraft Design

Posted on April 1, 2011 by

Akins has collected a wonderful set of laws for Spacecraft Design, most of them are equally relevant for other engineering projects.  Just be glad that rule 40 doesn’t apply to your project. 1. Engineering is done with numbers. Analysis without … Continue reading →

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Why Luna Tractor?

Posted on March 9, 2011 by

While the Americans were busy landing men on the moon for a few days at a time and playing a little golf the Russian space agency was taking a different approach in their race to the moon.  They built and … Continue reading →

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