Subtopic	Posts		Updated
	Archive through September 03, 2024	25		09/06 06:43pm
	Archive through September 10, 2024	25		09/12 10:33pm
	Archive through October 25, 2024	25		12/05 11:37am
	Archive through April 19, 2025	25		05/13 09:56pm
	Archive through October 05, 2025	25		10/15 09:00am

The orbiter photos are being withheld from the public. This is understandable in that the orbiter cameras were never intended to take this kind of photos so they take a ton of processing. Raw photos usually released quickly aren’t being released because NASA and the ESA do not want to have unprocessed photos sparking wild rumors of Alien starships. Predictably the screams of coverup have become shrill. Even when we get photos in another day or two a lot of people are going to scream conspiracy theories.

By Mike Erickson (Mike_Erickson) on Sunday, October 05, 2025 - 08:17 pm: Edit

It's just like when they faked the moon landings.

--Mike

By Jessica Orsini (Jessica_Orsini) on Tuesday, October 14, 2025 - 11:03 am: Edit

NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory just laid off 550 folks, pushing the Artemis series of missions even further into delay.

By Steve Cole (Stevecole) on Wednesday, October 15, 2025 - 06:04 am: Edit

NASA photo of the day stopped working 1 Oct.

I am going to risk a gator attack, and none of you will be allowed to follow my lead.

This whole argument comes down to a few billion to continue a subsidy program that was designed to take care of a short term crisis (Covid) with a short term subsidy that was scheduled to expire but one side wants to continue forever. That and half as many billions to give Medicaid to non-citizens who were never legally able to receive it but somehow were given by checks by government officials.

By Jessica Orsini (Jessica_Orsini) on Wednesday, October 15, 2025 - 09:00 am: Edit

There's a somewhat weedier issue at hand as well - that of rescissions - which doesn't get as much media play for the simple reason that it is quite weedy for Joe Average to follow. Obviously, I won't be discussing it here, but yeah.

By Steve Cole (Stevecole) on Wednesday, October 15, 2025 - 04:13 pm: Edit

You are lucky, Jessica. If I were doing it, I would put Dave Ramsey in charge of the budget and tell him "cut out the garbage and balance the budget; I locked up the entire Congress in Gitmo." You might be at pains to publicly defend some of the garbage that has become an institution. The big argument Dave and I would have is I would want to balance it in three years and he would say he could do it in three days. The problem is that cutting the budget by a third would send a fatal shock through the economy as a few hundred thousand bureaucrats found themselves on the unemployment line. Even the booming Cole-Fired Economy would not be able to absorb them into new actually product jobs in a week. Hence three years. We can discuss specific programs scheduled to die off line sometime when I'm not buried in F&E rules. (I just finished the WYN rules. Boy, what a hornet's nest. I'd rather fight Congress than the WYNs.)

By Nick Blank (Nickgb) on Wednesday, November 05, 2025 - 01:38 pm: Edit

Three Chinese astronauts were due to return from the Chinese space station after handing it over the the next crew, but their return is delayed over fears their return spacecraft has been hit by debris.

Very little has been revealed, but reports are that the Chinese are checking the spacecraft over to assess any damage and whether it is capable of bringing the 3 returning crew home safely.

By A David Merritt (Adm) on Wednesday, November 05, 2025 - 04:12 pm: Edit

Whatever our differences, hopefully they come home safe.

By Jessica Orsini (Jessica_Orsini) on Thursday, November 06, 2025 - 07:34 pm: Edit

NASA is launching a trans-lunar satellite to say sorry to the aliens.

They're calling it the Apollo G.

By Ted Fay (Catwhoeatsphoto) on Thursday, November 06, 2025 - 10:03 pm: Edit

Jessica Orsini. Report to the Booth!

By Burt Quaid (Burt) on Saturday, November 08, 2025 - 06:29 pm: Edit

Hahahahaha! I love it.

burt

By Jeff Wile (Jswile) on Saturday, November 08, 2025 - 10:33 pm: Edit

What setting?

Seems like the basic package (finger nails on chalkboard, cracking knuckles, listening to peewee herman’s unabridged life story of sexual abstinence etc…) might not be enough for Jessica Orsini.

We have a special edition of Tiny Tim’s proposal to miss vicki, on the tonight show back in 1982, played backwards and in3d (with out supplying the victim, subject, test sample the proper 3d glasses) available.

Some people will maintain that such a regimen is too cruel, but I suspect Orsini just might be able to handle it.

By Steve Cole (Stevecole) on Saturday, November 08, 2025 - 10:37 pm: Edit

I suggest Chicago singing: “Hard To Say I’m Sorry”

By Jeff Wile (Jswile) on Sunday, November 09, 2025 - 01:14 am: Edit

The city or the band?

By Steve Cole (Stevecole) on Sunday, November 09, 2025 - 01:56 am: Edit

The band.

By Jeff Wile (Jswile) on Sunday, November 09, 2025 - 08:06 am: Edit

To each their own…

My first college roommate, freshman year, was a enthusiast of Chicago Transit authority (CTA or generally known to the loyalists as “Chicago”)

For just over 9 months, we awoke to Chicago music at dawn (he worked in the cafeteria and had to report at 04:00 hours5 days a week) he prominently displayed a lot of the band’s albums covers on the dormitory wall above his bed, and generally wore tee shirts decorated with the bands graphic art imagery.

I ascribe much of my tolerance to the agonizer booth settings to the incessant din of my daily existence back then.

By Jessica Orsini (Jessica_Orsini) on Sunday, November 09, 2025 - 10:25 am: Edit

I have survived countless elementary holiday pageants, band recitals, and general cacophony, courtesy of it being my better half's employment. Tiny Tim played backwards would be downright melodic and relaxing by comparison. (And Chicago's "Hard to Say I'm Sorry" is just lovely.)

By Gregory S Flusche (Vandar) on Sunday, November 09, 2025 - 04:51 pm: Edit

May I suggest the Hallmark Channel. Over and over again

By Jessica Orsini (Jessica_Orsini) on Sunday, November 09, 2025 - 05:43 pm: Edit

Survived countless holidays with in-laws playing nothing but, Greg.

By Steve Cole (Stevecole) on Sunday, November 09, 2025 - 10:34 pm: Edit

Okay, how about this for the sound track...


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RmOB7MUMdjI

Ode to Greta Thunberg


Alternatively, we could give you round-the-clock Fox News or Prager University.

By Jeff Wile (Jswile) on Sunday, November 09, 2025 - 10:52 pm: Edit

Steve,

The job needing done is assigning an appropriate punishment for the 07:43 pm pun, giving Orsini positive reinforcement and a role model that exhibits bad behavior might well only encourage her.

Honestly, this is a task that Petrick excells at. The risk is, he just might take Jessica’s side.

By Steve Cole (Stevecole) on Sunday, November 09, 2025 - 10:59 pm: Edit

Okay, I will consider giving her 24 hour Tucker Carlson Podcast tapes.

By MarkSHoyle (Bolo) on Monday, November 10, 2025 - 12:11 am: Edit

Apparently, one of the Chinese spacecraft/satellites sent back some pics of the Apollo 11 lander left on the moon.....

By Jeff Wile (Jswile) on Monday, November 10, 2025 - 10:40 pm: Edit

Oh jeepers…

Steve, depending on which set of tapes you select, you might cause Jessica’s head to explode.

(Note: we have not actually caused anyones head to explode while in an agonizer booth, well, thats not actually true… Slirdarian Corporal’s head did crumple a little bit when we (ahem) accidentally depressurized the compartment (with him in it) a few years ago. But ADB’s cracker jack med techs did manage to put him back together again.)

By Jessica Orsini (Jessica_Orsini) on Tuesday, November 11, 2025 - 11:48 am: Edit

Sounds to me like some time well spent doing oppo research. Twenty-four hours of it may be a bit excessive, but I suspect that I'll survive.

By A David Merritt (Adm) on Tuesday, November 11, 2025 - 11:56 am: Edit

Slirdarian Corporal;

Hey, was that at me?

By Steve Cole (Stevecole) on Tuesday, November 11, 2025 - 02:24 pm: Edit

It's also a low-cost good will gesture, and a way to calibrate the cameras.

By Roger Rardain (Sky_Captain) on Saturday, November 29, 2025 - 11:02 pm: Edit

The successful launch of 3 new crewmembers to the ISS by Russia on 11/27 has apparently damaged the launch facility.
The launch pad was equipped with a service platform for accessing the Soyuz booster lower stages. It is rolled into a protective area prior to launch. Upon launch, it appears to have come loose and fallen into the flame trench.
The upshot is that since Russia only has this specific launch pad for Soyuz boosters - including MS spacecraft and Progress supply ships - they can't launch anything to the ISS until repairs are done.