GADLING TAKE FIVE: Week of October 6- 12

by Jamie Rhein on

Another week already? The weather shifts have me wondering what season we’re in exactly. It was 93 degrees in Columbus on Monday. Today it’s in the mid 50s and I’ve hauled out my jacket. Pumpkins started appearing at the local grocery stores and farmers markets a few weeks ago. At Gadling, you’ve probably noticed that Halloween posts are beginning to appear. Catherine, Kelly and Martha have their thumbs squarely on the Halloween what’s happening pulse. There’s more coming as the rest of us join in. Besides Halloween, there’s a lot more on our minds.

Have a great weekend whatever the weather is like where you are.

$30 Million Still Gets You to Space as a Tourist

by Jamie Rhein on

Today marks the 50th year anniversary of the day the space satellite Sputnik was launched into orbit by the Soviet Union. That day the space race was on.

These days, if you have the money to do it, it’s not uncommon to travel to space on a private venture. That’s what Richard Garriot is going to do next year. He’ll be the 6th private citizen to have this ultimate get-a-away experience.

Garriot’s heading to the International Space Station (ISS) under a deal made between the Federal Space Agency of Russia, and Space Adventures, a private American space tourism company. In a nutshell, a Russian rocket will take Garriot to the space station, the American company arranged for this to happen and Garriot is picking up the tab. This is to be a working vacation, though. While at (ISS) he’s going to be doing experiments for private research companies.

If the name Garriot sounds familiar, think Owen Garriot. Owen Garriot, is a retired NASA astronaut who spent time aboard Skylab and Spacelab-1 is his dad. Next year’s trip will be the first time an American astronaut’s kid has headed to space. The Russian’s beat the Americans on this account. Sergei Volkov, the son of Alexander Volkov, a cosmonaut, is a cosmonaut will welcome Garriot to ISS. You can read more details about Garriot’s upcoming trip on Space.com.

Google Wants a Moon Rover Bad: More Private Space Travel to Follow?

by Jamie Rhein on

Fly me to the moon. If it’s a robot you’re talking about, you’re on. Google has a grand plan. The company will pay 30 million dollars to the company that can make them a robotic moon rover, get it there, and get it to beam images and a video back to Earth so they can put it on their Web site. This endeavor is being run like a contest. Any private company in the world that can do this by the end of 2012 gets the dough. If there isn’t anyone who is successful by then, the contest is still on until 2014, but the prize money drops to $15 million.

If you have a private company that might be up to the task, here’s a little check list to help you keep track of the Google X Prize contest requirements. The moonrover must be able to:

  • survive a landing with cameras and high definition video in working order
  • trek at least 1,312 feet on the moon
  • take pictures of itself, plus panoramic shots and a real time video (close to real time)
  • beam those shots and video back to Earth so they can be posted and streamed on Google’s Web site.

These robot building races are not new. In a contest last year, robots raced across the Mojave Desert. William Whittaker who is at Carnegie Mellon University, was in charge of two of those robots and now has his eyes on Google’s carrot, and probably not so much for the money. It’s not that anyone will make a fortune if they are successful. Space missions are pricey. Getting the rover to the moon is a large part of the cost so financially it may be a wash, particularly if you don’t meet the 2012 deadline.

From what I read, it sounds like the challenge of saying, “We did it” might make this happen more than the money will. If it does, this might make commercial space travel closer to the rest of us. Since Google has paired with X Prize Foundation, the organization responsible for the first private spaceflight in 2004, I’d say we might be watching a moon rover do it’s thing on our computer screen one of these days. By 2012, I wonder what those computers will look like? Doesn’t 2012 sound like a long way away? It’s only 7 years. Gaad.

The Greatest and Most Unusual Travel Photo of All Time?

by Willy Volk on

I stumbled over this image just now, and it took my breath away.

Everything about the image is just so amazing: The poof-y shapes of the clouds in the background… The electric blue line that marks the boundary of the atmosphere… The absolute void of color that is space juxtaposed against the brilliant white space suit… The fact that you can see the photographer’s reflection in the mask of the astronaut… The slight, slo-mo wave the astronaut is giving, as if to say, “Tell my wife I love her very much, she knows…“

In my opinion, this may be the greatest travel photo of all time. I love it.

Be sure to check out the larger image here. And for other great travel photos — none of which were taken in space — be sure to browse through our Photos of the Day.

Win A Trip To Space!

by Willy Volk on

I’m gonna be honest: thinking about traveling to space doesn’t get me fired up. I mean, there’s nothing there to see or do or eat. There aren’t any people to talk to. I guess I could take some cool pictures, and learning how a spaceship works might be cool. But…I think I’ll stick to Earth.

If you have a different take on space travel than me — and you’re an “ordinary resident” in the UK — this might be your lucky day. New Scientist has teamed up with Audi to offer one winner an out-of-this-world experience: a sub-orbital flight that will take you 62 miles above the earth’s surface. The flight will be provided by Space Adventures, who have already sent private space explorers into orbit. (Your flight won’t take place until 2009, though.)

How do you win? Unfortunately for the dullards out there (but great for the smarty-pants among ye), winning this prize takes some imagination. New Scientist wants you to tell them what you believe is the world’s best patented invention — and why. You have only 250 words to explain yourself. (This post is 240 words long.) The judges will be looking for originality in both the choice of invention and the reasoning. Before you just whip off a submission, be mindful that entries are visible to everyone, which can make for some painful reading! All entries must be received by April 30, 2007. Good luck!