That’s right Ladies and Gentlemen, the weekly Carnival of Space, which has twice (#18 & #31) stopped by Out of the Cradle, is rapidly approaching it’s 52nd week, making for its first anniversary. It just keeps getting bigger and better, with more and more space writers joining in!
This week it’s over at AstroEngine, and there’s quite a line-up of articles, including the third part of “Of a Garden on the Moon” from here at OotC. Next week it will be at CoS Central, Universe Today, which also hosts the archives.
[Whoops! My bad - it’s at the site of its genesis, “Why Homeschool”]
It has been an incredible first year, and provides a nice perspective on the growth in independent space content that the internet is uniquely configured to deliver. It has also provided a greater sense of community for people to feel comfortable writing about space and sharing their thoughts. So be a part of the community and send a link to your space-related writing to carnivalofspace@gmail.com. And if you want to really be cool, send an e-mail to Fraser over at info@universetoday.com and tell him you’d like to host a Carnival of Space for a week. The world will be a better place for it.
or: The quest for answers continues
In our quest to answer the question of whether plants can grow in Lunar regolith, the main obstacle to a definitive answer seems to be that we are limited in our research by the availability of actual Moon dirt to work with. This time around we’re going to look through NASA’s Lunar e-Library to see if we can find anything of interest, and also do a little speculating on what some of the possibilities might be for Lunar agriculture (cynthiculture?).
READ MORE…
“Jupiter Moon: Ghost in the Machine”
Image Entertainment
2008
15:53:00
Publisher’s Web Site
Best of the Moon 2008 - High Frontier Fiction
Librarian’s Note: Only one more DVD left to go in the series, set for release in July. Surprisingly entertaining and not bad sci-fi either for what is effectively a soap opera, just set at a college on a space ship in orbit around a moon of Jupiter. No aliens, black holes, warp drives or other fantasy stuff, just real problems, both human and natural.
or: Let’s consult the most comprehensive text to date.
Henninger et al’s “Lunar Base Agriculture: Soils for Lunar Plant Growth”, published in 1989 by the American Society of Agronomy, the Crop Science Society of America, and the Soil Science Society of America, weighing in at 255 pages. I’m not qualified enough to determine if there were factual errors hidden in the text, but no typographical errors were noted.
READ MORE…
David, Leonard
“Lunar Science Community Needs Rebuilding, Researchers Say”
Space.com
04/11/2008
On-line Text
Librarian’s Note: I was at both the LPSC and LEAG conferences referenced in the article, and I will note that there have been more younger folks at these sorts of things than there used to be a few years ago. The article suggests remobilizing existing planetary scientists to focus on our Moon. A while back I suggested the formation of a Lunar Academy program at the university, perhaps post-grad level, using the NASA Academy and ISU model, to provide young minds with a well-rounded understanding of our Moon and the role that she plays in the life of Earth from scientific, commercial, and security perspectives. (watching for asteroids and other space threats type security, not nukes on the Moon type security - the Moon is for everyone, and to protect everyone)
Goff, Jon
“Space Access 2008 Propellant Depot Panel”
Additional Thoughts on the SA ‘08 Propellant Depot Panel
03/31/08 & 04/04/08
Selenian Boondocks
Librarian’s Note: I get to guest blog over at the Selenian Boondocks, and both Jon and I are of the mindset that if we’re going to be going out into space, then we should do it in a stepwise manner that builds on tested capabilities for each step further out. The archives over at SB, including the comments, are well worth a visit for some of the best writing around on the creation of a cislunar infrastructure architecture that unlocks commercial opportunities, supplies security peace-of-mind, and is a platform for much more capable science.
Propellant depots are the kind of technology that enables more robust utilization of space. They have been a topic of conversation at SB for a while now, and my particular contribution was in regards to inflatable storage tanks (not a new idea), and using straps and electric motors as a means of forcing the propellant from the collapsable tank (in lieu of a pump), sort of like a bota bag. For this contribution, they are sometimes referred to at the blog as “Murphy Bags”.
“Moonlight Mile Vol. 2: A Gambler’s Moon”
The story of Goro and Lostman continues on their quest to attain new peaks of achievement. After the H-III blows up in Japan, Goro ends up at Star City in Russia on the crew of the shuttle Gagarin. The Gagarin is a bit beat up after a bad launch (well worth the view), and Goro puts the odds of a successful launch at 50/50. Good enough for him. He also meets a girl who may be his equal, and who dances to keep him safe as he launches to the station.
What a work site! Once the first step was established they’ve continued to add to the station, making it quite impressive. Ongoing preparations for the Moon mean that Goro is frequently on EVA, and gets to have a little excitement that takes him even closer to the Moon (more than once). Space is a new frontier for humanity, and the dangers are constant. Even being there is a gamble.
READ MORE…
or: How are we going to grow plants in sterile rock dust?
One of the key questions for early Lunar selenologists was whether or not the regolith of the Moon could support life. The results were pretty conclusively no, as most of the elements that we consider important for life such as carbon and nitrogen are scarce to be found. This would seem to make the Moon a pretty rotten place to try to grow plants, but there’s a strong likelihood that the Moon could turn out to be a fantastic place to grow the plants of Earth.
READ MORE…
Stooke, Philip J.
“The International Atlas of Lunar Exploration”
Cambridge University Press
2007
ISBN13: 978-0-521-81930-5
Publisher’s Web Site
Author’s Web Site
Out of the Cradle Review
Librarian’s Note: Great googly moogly! What a book! I’m just sitting here paging through it and I’ve never seen so much Moon data presented so well. I’m not sure whether to treat it as an encyclopedic almanac of Moon missions or an amply-illustrated historical walk through each of the missions that went to the Moon, why they went and what they were looking for, and some that didn’t make it. It’s a field map for future Lunar Indiana Joneses, racing to recover the historical artifacts for museums before private and corporate interests pillage them for themselves. This one is a must for any self respecting Moon reference library, and the author did a comprehensive job on the material. My ‘Aspergers’ is tweaking hard on this one, though I honestly won’t be able to do a review for a while (especially since I had to invest a fair bit of moolah even with the LPSC discount). What’s great is how easy it will be to cross reference to other resources, like some of the Lunar & Planetary Institute (LPI) stuff over in the Selenography section. This is a terrific historical document.
Gater, Will
“Britain’s Moon shot”
BBC Sky at Night #35
04/2008
Publisher’s Web Site
NASA Orbital Debris Program Office
Orbital Debris Quarterly Newsletter
Vol. 12, #2
04/2008
Publisher’s Web Site
On-Line Text (pdf)
Space Access Society
Space Access 2008
Phoenix, AZ
03/27 - 03/29/2008
Librarian’s Note: Not a fancy website, these are guys who are working on making sure we have frequent and regular access to low-Earth orbit outside of NASA. They’re focused on rockets, not pretty graphics.
Blog Coverage
Henry Cate’s Agenda (I think he covered most every single thing!)
Thursday
Rocket Pilot Session
Friday
Session One: Hobbyspace.com
Session Two: Hobbyspace.com / Space Prizes
Session Three: Hobbyspace.com / Transterrestrial Musings
Session Four: Hobbyspace.com / Transterrestrial Musings / Space Politics
Session Five: Hobbyspace.com / Selenian Boondocks
Saturday
Session One: Hobbyspace.com / Transterrestrial Musings
Session Two: Hobbyspace.com
Session Three: Hobbyspace.com
Session Four: Hobbyspace.com / Transterrestrial Musings
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