Cool video of the Soyuz rocket burning up

Part of the Soyuz rocket that recently carried astronauts to the International Space Station burned up upopn re-entry last weekend. It was expected to do so, but the re-entry occurred over parts of Europe and was photographed by hundreds of people. Here is one of the best videos:

  

‪Booster Camera Video of Atlantis Launch‬‏

Cameras mounted on the two solid rocket boosters that helped propel space shuttle Atlantis into orbit on July 8 provide unique angles of the launch from the Kennedy Space Center and their subsequent water landing downrange in the Atlantic Ocean.

Skywatchers are in for a treat tonight!

Skywatchers, especially those in the Chicago area, are in for a treat tonight if the weather is clear. Early Monday, the space shuttle Discovery undocked from the International Space Station to prepare for its return to Earth. On Monday and Tuesday (and depending on where you live) you can see the two spaceships as they fly in tandem with each other. Tonight (Tuesday) will be the last night to see those two as Discovery is scheduled to land in Florida on Wednesday.

In the Chicago area, the best time to see the two spaceships will be at 6:20 p.m. local time. They will be in the north sky flying west to east. Discovery will be the fainter of the two (at a magnitude -1.1) and the space station will be brighter (at -3.4). The reason the ISS is brighter is because it is much bigger. 

They will reappear at 7:56 p.m., but will be in the lower southwest sky and will appear fainter.

It is suppose to rain this evening in the Chicago area, but I hope it hold off until later in the night.

This will be the last time to see Discovery as it is retiring after this flight. There are only two more shuttle flights scheduled -- Endeavour and Atlantis will each make their final flights this year.

You can check to see the location of the space shuttle or the ISS or any other satellite by going to Heavens Above and input your location.

Enjoy this NASA video taken Monday morning of Discovery performing the fly-around maneuver of the ISS.

 

 

It's A Wonderful Life

What a great movie and what a great ending! Great appearance of an accordion by Bert the cop (Ward Bond) at the end too!

Walter Payton Runs The "Wildcat"

Here's some video from the 1984 season showing Walter Payton running what we now refer to as the "Wildcat" formation. RB Payton lines up at the QB position and either runs out of the formation or drops back to pass. The drive, while promising, ends with an interception.

Obama vs. Palin

President Obama recently responded to Sarah Palin's criticism about his nuclear policy. “I really have no response,” he told ABC News. “Because last I checked, Sarah Palin’s not much of an expert on nuclear issues.”

A video has now surfaced (they always do!) in which Candidate Obama admitted in 2008 to not fully understanding America's nuclear policy.

Spacewalking astronauts seen with a backyard telescope

This is amazing! The spacewalk referred here took place in March 2009. Apparently someone with a telescope and a high quality camera was able to take images of the astronauts themselves.