| Excursions - NASA Tour |
The brightest night of my life - the start of the Artemis 1
11/17/2022 by Ralf Heckel
Fotos Cosmas blog Rovernauts Launchreports Raumfahrt Concret Werner-Heisenberg-School
The 8 buses at the boarding area are already waiting with their engines running. The line is still short. Those who still have a badge from the last attempt can queue up straight away, others still have to go to the NASA office on the side. Next to us is ESA astronaut Thomas Pesquet. He flew twice to the ISS with Soyuz and SpaceX's Dragon and spent 396 days in space. Everything goes smoothly. It is already dark and still quite warm at 27 deg C.
2 buses in black pull up. They are the VIP buses. They were prepared especially for this day. One has the Artemis logo on it, the other has the rocket printed on it. We are the only ones who dare to get in front of these buses today and take extensive photos. One of them appears the day after on the front page of the Leipzig Times. A better team photo could not be taken in the dark of that night. I've tried a lot, even with a manual wrist-held portable flash, long exposure bursts, and a number of lenses. Nothing came into focus because either someone walked through the picture or Jesco yawned. Bill Ingalls was missing here…
In batches, the queue moves in the direction of the busses. It's a long line behind us now, reaching across the parking lot. We get the bus 346 and after an extensive counting of all guests with a report to the control center, the night begins. You can't see anything because the windows of the buses are darkened for the day trips in bright sunshine. The light is left on inside for this.
The grandstand at Banana Creek and the parking lot are still empty. The countdown shows T -3:08 hours. We go to the same places as 10 weeks ago and I set up the cameras. The students are busy with their cell phones and our Instagram managers are busy making videos.
The SLS rocket is brightly lit on the horizon, quiet and slightly steaming. It is already filled. That's a good sign. Only 3% hydrogen is missing. The flame blazes again behind the launch tower, flaring off the boiling gases at a safe distance. In contrast to the first attempt, all visitors are now relaxed at this sight. A large screen shows the processes on site and moderators explain what is to come. Live broadcasts to all partners from Houston to Bremen show the size of the project.
Then the shock, a leak! The RED TEAM drives with 2 cars directly in front of the steaming and fully fueled rocket. 3 people get out, 2 engineers and a security guard. The engines appear huge and underneath the three of them walk around in white clothes and helmets, climb into the launch tower. What I wouldn't give to be there now, under the steaming and hissing monster that 's about to fly to the moon. One spark and it's all gone. To this day I didn't know that people were allowed to get so close at such a moment. Apparently they are doing their job well. Then the fixed bolt reports a "GO" again. Breathe easy!
During the last half hour, the countdown remains at -10 minutes. Now the flight director queries all the individual departments and demands a GO. Any answer that is a GO will be applauded and cheered by the audience in our grandstand. One place didn't seem sure about. There was no answer 3 times, until finally the GO could be clearly heard. Big cheers. The restlessness in the audience increases with the excitement.
Everyone here is now aware that they are witnessing a new story. They will later be divided into a before and an after. Many do not yet know what is really behind this first start, which tests are now to follow and what they will influence in the future. Only those in the know here know that this rocket will one day put together an entire space station in lunar orbit and thus form the gateway for permanent bases on the moon.
T -15 seconds, "Free for ELS"
T -10 seconds , "Here we go !”
T -7 seconds, counting backwards and everyone counts , including little Jesco
T -4 seconds, the 4 main engines ignite and go up with a cloud
T -1 second, the main engines run at maximum power
T 0 spark shoots through the Solid Rocket Boosters from above and ignites them,
Now there's no turning back! A shock wave shakes the ground and makes the water rough in Banana Creek.
With a great flash, huge blazing white flames erupt from the two boosters, giving instant boost. Several retaining bolts between the rocket and the launch pad tear through and the rocket lifts off. "We have a liftoff !”
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But otherwise everything is still calm. Slowly, the colossus rises with the weight of a 2,800-ton battleship. That's a third of the weight of the Eiffel Tower. The light is getting brighter and blinding. White clouds are spreading at high speed on the right and left of the ground. More than a million liters of cooling water are currently evaporating here. As the rocket exits the launch tower, they swing the main engines away from it. When leaving the tower, the course maneuver begins. But there is no sign of any of this. Onlookers yelled and screamed incessantly, some holding their phones in front of their faces as the rocket picked up speed. It dazzles like a sun and others shield their eyes with their hands.
With a rumble rooaar and a gust of wind, the sound wave from the ignition rolls over us all, 15 seconds later. EARTHQUAKE! At this moment, the rocket has already reached a height of about 10 times its length and it is getting faster and faster. The roar was stifled by the sound that thundered down on us. The gases escape from the engines at hypersonic speed, constantly breaking the sound barrier. This incessant rattling goes through marrow and leg. It becomes deafening and is a sound like hundreds of rapid-firing cannons. The whole body vibrates and the grandstand shakes. The riveted aluminum of this construction rattles at all ends.
The rocket is now very high. It illuminates the whole of Cape Canaveral as bright as day. You has nearly to close your eyes. The day after, residents of Cocoa , 30 km away, tell me that they have never seen such a bright launch. Their window panes had never shook in such a way.
The steam vapor clouds from the 1 million liters of water are still wafting down on the launch site. It's getting dark there now. Only the afterglow of the hot exhaust gases from the SRB 's can be seen in the middle. The aluminum ash that still burned our skin 16 years ago when one of these clouds was carried towards the audience by the wind is glowing yellow and red. This cloud now swirls mystically around the lightning rod, while the surroundings are again shrouded in black and a black column of black smoke, which is slowly becoming longer, points out of it into the sky. At the end, a bright flame flickers like a sparkler. She also emits rays when you squint.
In the meantime, from our position, the Artemis seems to have reached the top. It hangs like a lamp on a huge slender stand of smoke illuminating the entire region. Even the damp air grows light, lighter than the black column of smoke beneath it. But the light grows pale and casts long, sharp shadows. The thunder dies down. The rocket is now just a flickering short dash, seemingly arcing downward, heading straight for the crescent moon lingering below. He is lying on his stomach and seems to want to catch her like an open-topped bowl.
Calmness slowly sets in. Artemis 1 has largely left the atmosphere. It's getting dark fast. Spellbound, everyone looks after the blazing point of light. The comments on the loudspeakers can be understood again. "T + 2 min, SRB- separation " A clapping goes through the group while the point of light in the sky splits into 3 smaller points. The two solid rocket boosters have separated and are moving away from the center. This one is just very weak. These are the 4 main engines that already provided the thrust for the Space Shuttle and now accelerate the emptying rocket to maximum thrust. This is now followed by 6 minutes of quiet but steadily increasing acceleration and loading up to 3G. The structure of the emptying tanks in the main engine block now groans with strain. The spaceship "Orion" sits at the top of the tube. If the astronaut Helga in there wasn't a dummy, she would now have long cheeks and be happy. This is where the formula from physics lessons materializes: F=m*a (force equals mass by acceleration). The mass decreases with rapidly emptying tanks and with the same full load thrust the acceleration increases congruently.
The atmosphere in the stands dissolves into appreciative and astonished tones. All lights are off so we can track the slowly receding spot. He flies past the moon to the left and heads down towards the horizon. Not much happens with the comments. The big screen is off to enjoy the moment. Now clap again. The main stage has been successfully separated. The dot goes out. Now the cruise engines of block 3 ignite. But that is only one engine and this flame can no longer be seen.
Our students still can't believe it. Sakurako has her hands on her face and looks through her spread fingers as if she wants to stay in the old days for a while. "Wow", " Amazing ", "Awesome" are the words I hear more and more now. The lighting is switched on again.
Welcome new world! The 2nd lunar age has begun and we were the only ones of our countries and ages to be there. Up to Artemis 2, we will carry this experience and its message to schools around the world with these 6 students as part of several world trips and help shape the multinational Artemis-Generation.
There will also be a new young talent competition in Europe, which is politically more independent, more future-oriented and multinationally more balanced than anything we have been able to get to know and help shape so far.
Team Attempt 1-2 (September 2022):
Jesco Heckel (8), Primary School, Germany
Tara Heckel (13), Secondyry School, Germany
Arthur Sommer (17), Highschool, Germany
Cosma Heckel (15), Highschool, Germany
Sakurako Kuba (27), Embry Riddle University, Japan
Valeria Vazquez Zafra (24), Tesla, Mexico
Abaham Vega (21), Tec Cuernavaca, Mexico
Ian Doring (19), Tec Cuernavaca, Mexico
Jorge Emiliano Turner Escalante (20), Tec Cuernavaca, Mexico
Sebastian Cruz (22), Tec Cuernavaca, Mexico
Daniela Espinosa (20), Tec Cuernavaca, Mexico
Team Launch:
Jesco Heckel (8), Primary School, Germany
Sakurako Kuba (27), Embry Riddle University, Japan
Valencia Jaco (11), Secondyry School, USA
Valeria Vazquez Zafra (24), Tesla, Mexico
Arthur Sommer (17), Highschool, Germany
Cosma Heckel (15), Highschool, Germany
special thanks to:
Yvonne & Ralf Heckel (spaceeducation.de)
David Suarez, Tec Cuernavaca, Mexico
Prof. Dr.Jesco von Puttkamer (1933-2012)
Dr. Alotta Taylor (NASA-HQ)
Shera McNeill (NASA-HQ)
James Free (NASA)
Barbara Zelon (NASA)
William (Bill) Readdy (Discovery Partners)
thanks to our sponsors:
Space Hotel Leipzig
Beachside Hotel & Suits, Cocoa Beach
Motel 6, Cocoa Beach
Gregorys Steak & Seafood, Cocoa Beach
Weblinks:
more Fotos: https://www.flickr.com/photos/spaceeducation/collections/72157721010554041/
more videos: (playlist Artemis 1)
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/International.Space.Education.Institute/
Instagram: https://instagram.com/rovernauts?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
Rovernauts-Blog: https://www.facebook.com/rovernauts/
Student Space Blog: https://www.spaceeducation.de/en/student-reports/89-2022-artemis-1.html?layout=default
Press:
- Leipziger Volkszeitung
- Raumfahrt Concret
This educational travel and excursion was managed by International Space Education Institute Leipzig/Germany.
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Saturday, 19 November 2022 09:25 | Written by Ralf Heckel |
From “Return to Flight” to “Return to the Moon”
But it all goes back 20 years. Exactly 20 years ago in the autumn, Professor Dr. von Puttkamer said: "I'm in Leipzig right now and if you want, we can meet up." Freshly in love with Yvonne, we came to the Hotel Fürstenhof and listened to what the professor had to say. “We will soon be expanding the ISS and for that we need young people, because one day we want to go back to the moon. If you do well and stick to that goal, I promise you'll be there with a new generation of space explorers.” At the time, that sounded too fantastic to be true. Nevertheless, it should take 20 years until this promise should come true in return for solid youth work around the world. Step by step we implemented the professor's ideas until he opened doors at NASA in return. The first launch window opened three years later with an invitation to the shuttle launch at Cape Canaveral. "Return to Flight" was the name of the flight of the Discovery, which was the first space shuttle to resume flight operations after the Columbia disaster. Pilot Eileen Collins heralded the space age of women. Since then, the ISS space station has been expanded and 10 years ago the last of the proud swans flew. We saw 3 launches and one landing, mostly with students. We provided the first international team at the NASA Rover Challenge, won prizes and inspired thousands of students with complex trips around the world, from which hundreds of teams emerged. Everything always with the words of the professor: "You have to be trail blazers and take responsibility for what follows!" That's how it happened until the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11, with the 3rd world champion title. Our strongest participants are the girls. They sit in the front of the pilot's seat, not only in the Roverchallenge. But the female astronauts moved on board the ISS, the first woman on the moon is being discussed and “Helga”, an astronaut dummy from Germany, is now sitting in the Orion capsule. Astronaut Pamela Melroy , with whom we shared the same hotel in 2005, is now NASA's deputy administrator. That's why today more girls than boys are with me at Banana Creek, watching the rocket launch and listening to the instructions of the first flight director in history, Ms. Charlie Blackwell-Thompson.
These are all results that you don't have to hide from, no matter how rocky this path was and no matter how many setbacks there were. They are the result of solid work that must not be messed with. And as with all successful endeavors, ours also have their envious people. But more on that later. I see this as a distinguishing feature and award from people who capitulate to the need to "take the difficult path". Our former host from 2005, then-astronaut and administrator of US manned space travel, Bill Ready, is still our advisor behind the scenes today. But now our small group of four is sitting in the Beachside Hotel in Cocoa Beach and writing down the experiences of yesterday. I'm trying it too.
Saturday, 19 November 2022 06:56 | Written by Ralf Heckel |
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University photos Cosmas blog Rovernauts Launchreports Raumfahrt Concret Werner-Heisenberg-School
Just in time for breakfast, we arrived at the room. A few minutes later, the hotel manager greeted us with her daughter. Valencia is 11 years old and also excited about space travel. That's why we agreed yesterday at check-in that we could take her with us today. As a thank you, her mother gave us a bigger room, because until now we lived in a quite small room. That is very nice of her.
She was running a little late due to a meeting and the crowded parking lots, but she finally came through the door. Now we were ready to go. Our guides were students Caroline and Madison. Both are studying for Homeland Security here. Caroline specifically in terrorism and children.
Amazed, we left the building and walked across campus to the College of Arts and Science, which is particularly eye-catching due to the round observatory on the roof. This building has the largest telescope in the southeastern U.S. with 1m diameter mirrors. Astronomy, applied mathematics, physics, and social studies are among the subjects taught there. While we unfortunately did not enter this building, it was apparent that many students attend these classes, as the skateboard racks in front of the entrance were fully occupied. Short explanation: Since the campus is flat and large, most students move around with the help of (electric) longboards or (e-)scooters. To secure these in front of the entrance, there are also skateboard racks instead of bike racks. The campus area was well filled, as was the Union Center, which became our next stop as a break had just begun. This building is located in the middle of campus and it looks like a futuristic spaceship on the outside as well as the inside. After the main entrance, you find yourself in a dining hall. In the middle of the hall you can look up to the glass roof. If you go up the stairs, you will find a study area with open but also private spaces for the students. On the third floor is a large library equipped with soundproof glass. This is already where our tour ended. We said goodbye to Madison and Caroline and sat down in the dining hall.
After lunch, we walked with Sakurako to the Aviation Maintenance Building, which is located next to the university's airfield. This belongs to the Daytona Beach International Airport, which we consider quite impressive. On the roof terrace, from which you can overlook the whole airfield with the regularly starting small Cessnas, but also large aircraft. Not far away, behind the airfield, we saw the Daytona International Speedway. There the worldwide known Nascar races are held. Suddenly, in a friendly voice in a familiar language, a "Hello you guys, you're from Germany too!" came up. It was a young exchange student from Stuttgart named Laurin. He is studying here, or rather also in Germany, to become a pilot. He has been here since August this year and seems to have had a lot of good experiences. We walked a little bit with him until it was time for our 2 p.m. Aviation Tour.
This also started at the Welcome Center, from where we took a short detour to the Student Union and finally entered the Aviation Maintenance Building. There we visited both floors of the building. The first floor was mainly occupied by teaching and material rooms. In addition to weather stations, there are also technical seminars for international students. We especially noticed the altitude trainer (hypoxia training), which every prospective pilot has to pass at least 4-5 times. On the second floor there were primarily seminars and simulators that dealt with aeronautical science. We walked past many rooms where lectures were being given and students were studying. We then stopped in a room full of screens where prospective air traffic controllers were training. Jamie introduced a few of them and explained that all the procedures shown on the screens are live and real. The students use them to practice their skills.
On the third and last floor, everything revolved around the weather. Right at the beginning there was a weather studio which was equipped with a green screen. This is where the university's own weather forecasts are recorded and shared internally. Many well-known weather presenters have already graduated from this university, as Jamie explained. As the walk continued, students were trained in weather forecasting, map reading, and reporting. In the process, we learned a thing or two as well. 14:40 we moved to Flight Operations across the hall. From here, students sign in for their flight lessons, are briefed, receive feedback, and enter the airfield. Also located here is the university's communications tower, which of course is also run by students.
With her arrival and an evening visit to the beach we let the day end. #rovernauts Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
Tuesday, 15 November 2022 22:33 | Written by Ralf Heckel |
Friday, 21 October 2022 22:14 | Written by Ralf Heckel |
we have opened the gate of the NASA Moonbuggy Race for international teams in 2007 together with Prof. Dr. Jesco von Puttkamer. At that time, the International Space Station ISS was still very young. Puttkamer was its director. Since then, it has shown that international cooperation is very important. NASA and NASA Headquarters recognized this, and therefore NASA competitions were opened to international teams since 2008 under the condition of cost neutrality. We are proud to have facilitated this development, proud that more than 100 teams have walked this path with us to date. Proud to have found a basis of cooperation and friendly competition with you and also US teams. Because the future only works together. Since then, the NASA Roverchallenge has been a guarantor for honesty, transparency and fairness for 10 years. We were the point of contact and trail blazer for every new international team and enriched the race with 2 new awards (International Team, Telemetry). NASA awarded us for this in 2017. Thank you In this decade we are going to the moon again and it is our generation that will realize it. That is why international cooperation and collaboration has become even more important, also to defend our democratic freedoms against climate change, right-wing populism and war.
Unfortunately, however, since 2017, HERC's new leadership has been unilaterally limiting precisely this cooperation, penalizing international teams and cooperation with U.S. teams. Also, the best international teams are rejected without transparent reasons without the possibility of a proper appeal with justification. This is what happened to our team since 2021. In the last decade we have achieved 3 first places, 4 other podium finishes and all other awards. We have and strive after the NASA Core Values to also be Trailblazer for teams from 30 other countries. We are happy to be on the road with you.
This refusal to compete is arbitrary and damages honest competition. Many of you can not explain why this is so. We have taken the trouble to refute all reasons for rejection of the jury on the basis of our proposal. Actually, you can't take such a jury seriously anymore. It works anything but scientifically. We have the opinion that such an action is not sustainable, it is even a crime against the future of all of us. Our space agencies and companies are working together on the SLS program, the Gateway and interstellar missions. How is this cooperation supposed to work when already we, the younger generation, are not allowed to do so. We have even more problems to solve in climate change than in space exploration. That's why we were invited by NASA Headquarters to be VIP guests at the first launch back to the moon. As you can see, the NASA Rover Challenge is not just NASA. Many international teams are afraid of repression (rejection, discrimination) by the current management of NASA Roverchallenge and its set of rules, which no longer comply with the international principles of education and promotion of young scientists. We know that this is not the implementation of the NASA core values, but a regional arbitrariness by an organizer who disregards the rules of international cooperation and transparency. Therefore, together with influential friends from the space community, we are now addressing NASA and also other space agencies on our planet with the goal of achieving a sustainable foundation of international collaboration, networking, promotion and cooperation for our generation. It will definitely turn into something big. If you would like to participate with your team, please read the attached letter to the US Consul General and let us know if you would like to participate. We are planning an international competition that is better. We want to move the future. We are going!
proposal: https://www.spaceeducation.de/container/pdf/2022/proposal-rovernauts2023.pdf |
