Space Launch System: The "Shutturn V" ?

NASA has announced their latest plan for a heavy launch vehicle - capable of manned missions into space - called the "Space Launch System (SLS)".

That isn't a particularly imaginative name.

YouTube commenter linghun dubbed it the "Shutturn V", which is actually quite appropriate, since the SLS is both technological and visually a hybrid of the Space Shuttle and Saturn V vehicles.

Here, check out NASA's video...



The SLS is a multistage, non-reusable vehicle that can launch both cargo-only and human-rated missions, much like the Saturn V.

The core stage uses an arrangement of five engines (Saturn V), which will consist of five RS-25 engines (Space Shuttle), while the upper stage uses a modernized version of the J-2 engine (Saturn V).

The first stage fuel tank will have the same diameter as the external tank of the Space Shuttle, and likely manufactured using similar methods. Two solid-fuel rocket boosters are attached, one on each side (Space Shuttle).

Visually, it either looks like a short Saturn V flanked with extra boosters, or a tall Space Shuttle external tank but without the Shuttle orbiter itself.

Appearances aside, expert observers seem to be unimpressed with the SLS programme and are already predicting its demise, calling it more of a job-creation exercise that may cost more than a completely new launch system, due to the re-hiring of the expensive legacy workforce.

To me, the SLS appears to have a much safer layout than the recently cancelled Ares I which perched human passengers on top of a solid-fuel first stage that cannot be throttled down or even shut down after ignition.

Of course the longevity of this new initiative is difficult to predict in this gloomy economic climate, and in light of less costly alternatives such as the SpaceX Falcon Heavy system, which is further along in development and has better scalability by using essentially the same engines and fuel tank components throughout.

Nevertheless, the SLS vehicle can initially lift 70 tonnes of payload into low-Earth orbit, up to a maximum of 129 tonnes in later configurations (more than Saturn V's 118 tonnes!). Even at 70 tonnes it would already be the heaviest lift launch vehicle in the world, compared to other launch systems currently in service.

Maximum lift capacity to LEO:
Delta IV-H (USA) ~ 23 tonnes
Proton M (Russia) ~ 21.6 tonnes
Ariane 5 (EU) ~ 21 tonnes
H-IIB (Japan) ~ 19 tonnes
Atlas V (USA) ~ 18.5 tonnes

If all goes according to plan, the first flight (unmanned) of the SLS is slated to be in December 2017.


Would you like to know more?
- NASA’s Space Launch System Unveiled: Analysis (Popular Mechanics)

Space Shuttle Rolls Into History

A quiet night landing of the space shuttle Atlantis, returning from the STS-135 mission, marked the end of the US space shuttle programme.





NASA's Constellation Program, which was projected to develop a replacement rocket for the space shuttle, was cancelled last year.

While the government is not currently working on a shuttle replacement, potential private sector candidates include the Falcon 9-Dragon vehicle from SpaceX, which has been successful in test launches so far, but is still in early development.

Thus for the foreseeable future the USA will no longer have any human-rated launch vehicle.

Without manned spacecraft, US astronauts will now have to rely solely on the Russian Soyuz to access the International Space Station.


Would you like to know more?

About the past future of spaceship design:
- Counterintuitive Science: Fast Speed, Fat Shape

Planes And Trains

I've been travelling a bit in the past year, and thus I have accumulated so many hundreds of photos and videos that I'm not sure where to start.

Stay tuned for a more substantial series of blog entries soon, but for now, here are some videos about the transportation I took during a short trip to Kuala Lumpur a couple of months ago.

Enjoy!

Flying from Singapore to KL



Taking the KLIA Ekspres



Taking the Aerotrain at KLIA



Return flight to Singapore

Ash By Any Other Name Would NOT Smell As Sulphurous

The Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland must surely count as one of the most unpronounceable volcano names in the world.

Nonetheless, the effects of its latest eruption can be easily communicated.

Check out this satellite photo by NASA:















Iceland is outlined on the upper left of the photo, spewing what looks like atmospheric diarrhoea towards northern Europe on the lower right.

Volcanic ash clouds gradually spread over Europe causing numerous cancelled airline flights in... SINGAPORE?!??

That's right.

About 6,000 travellers at the Changi Airport have been affected by flight disruptions in Europe, many of them stranded at the transit lounges due to insufficient hotel rooms.

According to the Straits Times, about one in two travellers at Changi are transiting through Singapore to destinations in Europe or North America.

Also in that news report - an affected traveller Mr. Ken Jones said: "I am resigned to what is happening. It is nobody's fault, I guess, but of course I am annoyed and frustrated."

Understandably he is annoyed, but Mr. Jones may also add "relieved" to his mixture of emotions if he only knew what happens when a jet aeroplane flies through a plume of volcanic ash at 900 klicks an hour.

On the 24th of June 1982, passengers and crew of British Airways Flight 9 had the terrifying experience of just how that feels like:



Ah, the imprecision of the English language - volcanic "ash" sounds harmless enough, but it is not the same sort of "ash" that you get from burning paper or cigarettes.

Volcanic "ash" is actually made up of tiny, irregular pieces of rock and glass.

Oh my.


Would you like to know more?

More satellite photos of the Icelandic eruption:
- NASA Observes Ash Plume of Icelandic Volcano (NASA)

News of passengers stuck in Singapore:
- Stranded in Singapore (Straits Times)

Full video of the British Airways Flight 9 incident:
- Air Crash Investigation - British Airways Flight 9 (Google videos)

Another imprecision of the English language:
- Seven Years Of Science (Fresh Brainz)

Singapore Airshow 2010 Gallery

Just came back from Changi Beach with some photos of the flight display this year.

Unlike last time, this afternoon the weather was excellent with blue skies and puffy white clouds.

One of the star attractions, the F-111, flew during trade days, but it seems to be grounded due to technical problems so there were only four jet aircraft in the air today.

Also, there were no aerobatic teams participating this year, so the display was pretty short.

F-16



















Pulling Gs while descending. Note the plume of condensation over the wings.



















Barrel roll, trailing a cockscrew-shaped stream of smoke.













Making a near pass.

A-10













From a distance, the A-10 doesn't look menacing at all. It resembles a UAV...













Also, despite the fact that it is a fearsome tank-killer, its quiet engines and relatively slower speed compared to the other jets makes it appear rather sedate.



















Pulling a tight turn and showing the business end of the machine - the 30mm Avenger cannon, visible as a dark bump on the aircraft's nose.

T-50



















In contrast to the A-10, the nifty Korean built T-50 jet trainer is both loud and speedy.













I think the Singapore Air Force is deciding between the Korean T-50 and the Italian M-346 for its new generation of advanced trainers.













Here it comes again for one more pass, just as the portside smoke generator runs out of smoke.

M-346













Fast and agile, the M-346 is also a superb trainer. It's not as fast as the T-50, but it uses two engines, a redundancy which is a good safety feature in a trainer aircraft.













Trailing streams of condensation from its wingtips as it pulls a tight turn to complete the performance.

Would you like to know more?
- Singapore Airshow 2008 Gallery

You Don't Need A Rocket...

... to take photos from space (more accurately the stratosphere).



















Guess how they did it?



I think this is a superb idea for a student project.

It's not very expensive and is a lot of fun, especially if we can have live telemetry and low-res video transmission in addition to the fixed camera.

Moreover, if the weather is clear, 30 km is almost high enough to capture a photo of the entire Singapore using a 28mm wide-angle lens, so it is possible to take a "satellite" photo without actually using satellites.

Though I think the biggest challenge with such a project is getting the clearance to avoid commercial flights.

Wonder if I should pitch this idea to the Science Centre people?


Would you like to know more?

About this project:
- View of Earth from the OZONE layer in the Stratosphere (Project Pegasus)

About an earlier successful attempt in Spain:
- Teens capture images of space with £56 camera and balloon (Telegraph)
- Scenes from 30,000 meters above (Boston.com)

RSAF Open House 2008

I went to the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) Open House yesterday - mainly to visit my brother who is on duty there, but also get a bunch of nice photos for you guys.

Although I have been to this open house event before, this year is special because it is the Air Force's 40th anniversary.

Singapore may be a small and young country, but we have a nifty Air Force with its own proud traditions.














When I arrived a huge crowd was lining up outside the gates.

It was only about 10 am but the sun was already blasting at us with full force.

Man, it was unbearably hot. Unfortunately the line seemed to be moving very slowly. In fact, I missed most of the aerial display while waiting in line.











The main reason for this is because all visitors had to go through a security check, one by one, before entering the airbase. Well, it's prudent to be more careful.













Fortunately I did catch the flight of the Apache attack helicopter. I didn't take any other aerial photo, so if you want to see photos of fighters in flight you can check out one of my earlier posts.

I put up this photo of the Apache because it reminds me of the time when I was growing up. At that time, the Air Force only had second-hand F-5 Tiger fighters, A-4 Skyhawk attack planes and some old Hawker Hunter fighters left by the British.

As a schoolkid, I always felt that we lacked close support vehicles for our Army. Singapore is a small island and thus a slower, low-flying attack plane would bridge the gap between helicopters and high-flying fighter interceptors.

So when the Air Force announced that they were going to buy new F-16s to replace some of our older fighters during the 1980s, I wasn't convinced that we needed more fighters. I thought that we should buy some inexpensive Pucarás instead.

Many years later, when they decided to buy Apaches, I felt vindicated because it seems that at least the Air Force was aware of this gap.

The Apache is indeed a superb low-flying attack vehicle - but will it own a Pucará in a one-to-one dickfight?

That question... I'll leave it for the schoolkids of today.













No Fresh Brainz article is really complete without a random quip about certain parts of the human anatomy.

So here's a flaccid-looking wind sock for you.

It looks like it has gone south, but the wind is actually coming from the south.















And now for the exhibition itself.

Since this is an Artisun post, I won't bore you with the aeroplane-geek small talk.

Pretty photos at 12 o'clock!












Fighter planes are always crowd-pullers. Here are some members of the public eager to check out the "office" of a fighter pilot.

They've put up many fighters for static display this year.















Black Knights "Number 1".

Only an outstanding pilot with incredible skills and experience can earn the privilege of flying the Number 1 plane in the aerobatic team.

Like they say in the movie Top Gun - the "Best of the Best".















As for that other pilot who gets to fly Number 666 - he is simply badass.

'nuff said.















Just in case you've associated fighter pilots with bronzed bodies and beach volleyball, here's the business end of their flying machines to remind you of the seriousness of their profession.

Apparently pilots still accord their peers special respect if they manage to down their adversaries the old-fashioned way using guns, rather than missiles.

Or so I heard in a Dogfight documentary in the History channel.

Using missiles feels so... cheating.















The Air Force isn't only about fighter pilots and their sleek jets. Here's an E-2C "eye in the sky" that tells them what's going on and what to do next.

Although it carries a huge radar on its back, this photo is a tribute to the "Mark 1 Eyeballs" of its hardworking crew.



















Transport planes tend to be sidelined at airshows, but this "Charlie One Thirty" appears especially shiny on this occasion.

It reminds us that impressive-looking hardware is only part of the equation for an effective Air Force. Support and maintenance aren't particularly glamorous but are indispensable to the success of the whole team.















Here's something else that's shiny - a mysterious reflector drum on the back of an Apache chopper. Not every Apache has one.

I don't know what it is but it's really eye-catching. Maybe it's for Disco.















Finally I waited in line to visit the Flight Simulator Centre, where they train pilots using state-of-the-art computer technology.

Photo-taking isn't allowed at the centre, so I can't show you what's there. Suffice to say that pilots are trained in complex team manoeuvres using computer terminals, mini-domes and large domes where computer graphics, similar to a video game, is projected around them.

Unlike a game, however, their performance during virtual training is formally evaluated.

It isn't easy to be a fighter pilot.

As my A-Maths tuition teacher used to say:

"Better practice hard and do well for your Maths. Some of you think that you don't need to study because you want to become a fighter pilot. Let me give you some numbers. If 100 people apply for pilot training, guess how many actually become pilots? Two. OK? Two."

*writes the ratio on the white board*

"If 50 people apply for pilot training, how many will become pilots? Is it one? Sorry ah - it's none. Zero. None of them will become fighter pilots because not every batch will produce successful fighter pilots. OK? Understand why you need to study Maths? Now let's look at the next question in your assessment book..."

He always hit us with the harsh reality.

I still suck at Maths though...

Virgin, Blonde, Spaceship

On Monday, maverick American aircraft designer Burt Rutan and British über-business king Richard Branson unveiled their shiny new White Knight Two mothership.














This is the vehicle which will carry the first ever commercial passenger spacecraft, SpaceShipTwo, under its central wing section. The mothership is designed to lift SpaceShipTwo to its launch altitude of 50,000 feet.












The spacecraft will then be released, firing its own rocket engines and climbing to the height of 100 km - just above the internationally recognized boundary of space.

Some news agencies have reported that SpaceShipTwo will reach "low-Earth orbit" - which is not technically correct because the vehicle can only attain sub-orbital speeds of about 4,200 kilometres per hour.

In order to hit low Earth orbit at 100 km, a vehicle needs to reach speeds of about 28,000 km/h. Otherwise, the vehicle cannot make one complete orbit around the Earth.

Geeky details aside, I think that White Knight Two is an interesting design, though it has a more conventional appearance than the original White Knight.

I should also mention that White Knight Two is a marvel in its own right - the 43-metre wingspan four-turbofan vehicle is currently the largest all-carbon-composite aircraft in the world.

However, what really caught my eye is this spanking new Virgin Galactic logo emblazoned on its nose ...














Designed to be reminiscent of the art-deco era, the spacegirl looks very... blonde.

And she doesn't seem to be wearing much.

Totally unlike an old-timer's vision of what a spacegirl ought to look like...


















Who looks far more... brunette.

Virgin Galactic has such a sexy logo (contrast it with Virgin Atlantic or Virgin Blue) that it makes me really suspicious.

As you know, Singapore Airlines has officially banned passengers from engaging in "inappropriate activity" aboard their spacious new A380 superjumbos.

Luckily, that's not the end of the world.

Perhaps Richard Branson - a notable member of the Mile High Club himself - is contemplating a wee bit more than the amazing scenery and the thrill of weightlessness in his spaceships?

A new avenue for a truly out-of-this-world experience?

And a new club? The "62-Mile High Club" or maybe the "Zero-G Club"?

I think that an exciting era of space tourism has come.

Singapore Airshow 2008 Gallery

Last weekend, I went to Changi Beach to watch the aerial display of the Singapore Airshow 2008.

In previous years I used to buy tickets to view the exhibition, but the crowds are getting crazier every time. It's more enjoyable to "park" yourself on the beach with plenty of space to spare and watch the planes roar by.

The downside is that the aircraft do their more spectacular stunts near the exhibition site, so the angle from the beach is not so great for taking photos. To make things worse, the sky was overcast and hazy on both Saturday and Sunday, causing the photos to have dull colours.

Nonetheless, Fresh Brainz is happy to share with you some of my better photos on the airshow.














Here come the Black Knights! The F-16s from the Republic of Singapore Airforce display team sweep into view, heralding the start of the aerial display.

They were moving so fast that their initial appearance was completely silent, followed by the robust roar of six engines when they flew overhead.

Quite impressive.



















Under better light conditions the smoke trails would appear white against a deep blue sky, but even in a hazy sky this formation looks magnificent.














A Black Knight pulls away, showing the underbelly of his aircraft. During the airshow we tend to see more of the underside of planes because it is more tolerable for a pilot to pull positive Gs than to pull negative Gs (which would force blood up into his head).

Negative Gs gives you the sensation that your eyes are going to pop out of their sockets and your brain is going to explode.

That's because your eyes are going to pop out of their sockets and your brain is going to explode.














Black Knight No. 5 flown by Lieutenant-Colonel Philip Chionh (better known as Zoe Tay's husband) makes a close pass for his solo manoeuvres.

On usual days he is sidelined by his celebrity wife, but on this occasion he is sidelined by his big, shiny jet.

Oh well, at least we can kinda see his helmet.














Pulling Gs! Condensation appears over the wings and behind wingtips as the pilot pulls up. Aviation magazines and websites love to take photos of aircraft with condensation over the wings.

It makes them look alive.

In fact, a veteran photographer on Airliners.net never takes photos of aeroplanes on the ground - he feels that they are not "aircraft" until they are in the air.














Pop the brakes! Aeroplanes also look alive when they deploy their flappy moving parts.














From the correct viewing angle these two jets are performing a mirror formation where one jet is right on top of the other.

From my "wrong" vantage point, they look a little too friendly to each other.

Keep your wingtips off my tailpipe!



















To conclude a crackin' good show, the Black Knights show their appreciation for the audience with a big heart in the sky.

Can you see LTC Philip Chionh?

Neither can I.














After the Black Knights' performance, it's time for solo military jets to strut their stuff.

First up is the F-18E Super Hornet, a new and improved version with distinctive angular intakes. It has a lower-pitched engine growl than the other military vehicles in the show.

Truth be told I'm not a fan of the F-18, despite its combat effectiveness and widespread popularity. The aesthetics of this design doesn't appeal to me.














Next, the Italian jet trainer Aermacchi M-346 zips through the sky, with its unique "TV antenna" pitot tube. It's a nifty machine but the soft whine of its engines is completely overshadowed by auditory impact of other high performance vehicles.

The public wants "WHAM! BAM! THANK YOU MA'AM!"














More attention grabbing is the Korean T-50 supersonic trainer, which looks like an anorexic version of the F-16 with F-18-styled intakes.

It has a boomy engine. Men like boomy, subwoofer-sounding things.














Finally, the venerable Fighting Falcon, still a popular fighter after all these years. Futuristic when it first appeared, it is now a mainstay of many small airforces throughout the world.














After the military jets exit stage left, there was a brief pause.

Then in the distance, a behemoth appeared.

Super Jumbo at 12 o'clock!














The Airbus A380 floats overhead with incredibly quiet engines while retracting its landing gears.

What a change to see something so big and graceful - it feels rather surreal, almost like a huge toy made out of styrofoam.














Slow it may be, but the Super Jumbo is no slouch in the manoeuvring department. Here the massive passenger jet rolls right to turn on a dime, revealing its registration number: F-WWOW.

Yes, this is the first A380 that ever flew, still working hard to help bring in the dough.














Pulling Gs!?!! Condensation trails appear over the wings, streaming above the giant Trent 900 engines.



















Rounding up the show is the team display by the Roulettes of the Royal Australian Airforce.

Here they come!














The use of turboprop aircraft in an aerobatic team has its pros and cons. The slower speed and tighter turn radius allows more spectacular manoeuvres, such as quick formation changes, but the lack of a boomy engine means that the public gets bored real fast.














Still, no matter whether they are jets or props, one move is always a crowd pleaser.

The head-on opposing pass that makes the planes look as if they are going hit each other.

A near-miss!

Or is it a near-hit?