Dave wrote: > That is the right thing to do... I took my kids to a launch years > ago. It was an awesome experience to see the shuttle take off. > I worked at NASA Wallops Island (Eastern shore of Virginia) around 1972-73, and it was quite awesome. I got to assist in the blockhouse during a launch of a satellite (Meteoroid Technology Satellite D) on a Scout D rocket (3-stage, solid fuel). That was quite awesome. I also got to see a lot of exotic stuff being launched. I was about 1000 feet from an exametnet super-Loki datasonde, a 2-stage solid fuel rocket that reaches 100,000 feet in about 6 seconds. It develops 120 G's at launch, and literally disappears while you are looking right at it! That is used for ionospheric research. It coasts to 600,000 feet plus on inertia, then heads back down.
I also saw the reference test of a DOE program to gauge the effects of missile nose cones (MIRV reentry vehicles) coming down through heavy ice in cloud tops. The reference test was done in clear air, though. It was just a bright orange dot that swept across the sky. It went from launch to touchdown in the ocean in 19 seconds, covering 20 miles. I also got to ride in the little room just behind the center of a 60' dish used for data acquisition from satellites, etc. The place is all closed now with some kind of Navy research programs, so I couldn't give my kids a tour. Jon ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Sell apps to millions through the Intel(R) Atom(Tm) Developer Program Be part of this innovative community and reach millions of netbook users worldwide. Take advantage of special opportunities to increase revenue and speed time-to-market. Join now, and jumpstart your future. http://p.sf.net/sfu/intel-atom-d2d _______________________________________________ Emc-users mailing list Emc-users@lists.sourceforge.net https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/emc-users
