DocM Posted September 16, 2011 Share Posted September 16, 2011 Expect another investigation as to why the Soyuz comms were lost for a whole 15 minutes at a critical point in last nights return flight from the ISS. This is already spurring renewed calls to increase funding for NASA's Commercial Crew Development (CCDev) so Dragon, CST-100 & Dream Chaser can be accelerated. Disconery News.... MYSTERY COMMS BLACKOUT BLIGHTS RETURNING ISS TRIOThree of the International Space Station?s live-aboard staff returned to Earth Thursday night, leaving a skeleton crew in orbit until replacements arrive in mid-November. > An unexplained communications loss left flight controllers unable to speak with the crew during the last 15 minutes of their descent. The first indication that the capsule survived its fiery plunge through the atmosphere was a series of beeps signaling components of the Soyuz had been jettisoned as planned. Later, ground controllers picked up signals that the Soyuz?s parachutes had deployed, but it wasn?t until a Russian recovery aircraft established two-way radio communications with the crew that flight controllers knew all was well. > Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rigby Posted September 16, 2011 Share Posted September 16, 2011 I can't believe we're relying on Russian technology to get people to and from space now. May as well call up ACME and order some of those rockets that Wile E. Coyote always bought. They'd probably be more reliable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocM Posted September 17, 2011 Author Share Posted September 17, 2011 It's not just spacecraft. There have been many failures of tech left over from the Soviet days; airliners, ferries, trains, ships, etc., and it's causing a huge stink over there that's becoming a big political issue. They can't keep their new aeronautical & other engineers because their facilities are antiquated and funding short, so there's a brain-drain to boot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neoadorable Posted September 17, 2011 Share Posted September 17, 2011 come on Russia, you were a shining beacon of science and ingenuity for so long, now it's looking more like Singularity (for anyone who's played the game). i kid, but really, i expect more from our previously-Soviet brothers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoffrey B. Veteran Posted September 17, 2011 Veteran Share Posted September 17, 2011 Being in space is Very expensive and dangerous so lets just cut all of our funding and see how they do..... ********. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neoadorable Posted September 17, 2011 Share Posted September 17, 2011 i know you were being sarcastic there... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acnpt Posted September 17, 2011 Share Posted September 17, 2011 Not meaning to be heartless here, but it did a better job than Space Shuttle Columbia. :( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocM Posted September 18, 2011 Author Share Posted September 18, 2011 The shuttle disasters were more hubris caused, first in their initial design and later in ops that presumed 'nothing can go wrong, wrong, wron....' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rigby Posted September 18, 2011 Share Posted September 18, 2011 Not meaning to be heartless here, but it did a better job than Space Shuttle Columbia. :( 2 shuttles lost in 135 launches over 30 years isn't exactly bad (though any loss of life is terrible). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocM Posted September 18, 2011 Author Share Posted September 18, 2011 And they were lucky that there were only two. Several flights came back with significant heat shield damage due to foam shedding and other issues. You should have seen the faces on the Columbia review board when they saw a chunk of foam totally shred the leading edge segment of a shuttle wing after hearing weeks of testimony as to how it could't happen :p Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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