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SyFy's 'Ascension' Takes 1960s Nuclear Spaceship Idea to the Stars
Space.com ^ | December 15, 2014 | Tariq Malik

Posted on 12/15/2014 5:01:23 PM PST by cripplecreek

click here to read article


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To: minnesota_bound

All astronauts should look as good
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7NGKyJOWqZg/UDEvrlC3EfI/AAAAAAAAAuU/KhIhU11YJtI/s1600/ufo_02.jpg


61 posted on 12/15/2014 8:08:06 PM PST by minnesota_bound
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To: cripplecreek

I love sci-fi and have been waiting for this. A half hour into it and so far, so good.


62 posted on 12/15/2014 8:09:58 PM PST by radu (May God watch over our troops and keep them safe)
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To: molson209

The launch was in 63 which was a little early for bell bottoms I believe.


63 posted on 12/15/2014 8:17:16 PM PST by cripplecreek (You can't half ass conservatism.)
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To: cripplecreek

John Ringo and his Tyler Vernon character, fighting the maple syrup wars, is what this article reminds me of :)

If you like conservative/libertarian scifi, you need to checkout “Live Free or Die” by John Ringo. Warning: if you are like me, you’ll probably buy the rest of the series!


64 posted on 12/15/2014 8:19:18 PM PST by Aqua225 (Realist)
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To: tcrlaf

Makes me feel better about me whining about the gravity issue.


65 posted on 12/15/2014 9:06:24 PM PST by GraceG (Protect the Border from Illegal Aliens, Don't Protect Illegal Alien Boarders...)
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To: cripplecreek

Seeing it now. So far a murder and a separate sex scene all in about the first 8 minutes.... Switching off and watching Top Gear and Hogan’s Heroes....


66 posted on 12/15/2014 9:07:31 PM PST by minnesota_bound
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To: cripplecreek

I used a similar plot device in a role playing game where in 1963, the US launched a FTL starship with warp drive developed from captured alien technology from Roswell and prior UFO crashes. I was also going to put in escaped Nazis aboard a starship of similar ilk, along with their Hannebu ships, that they launched in 1944/45 but did not get that far, along with a similar Soviet program.


67 posted on 12/15/2014 11:56:18 PM PST by Nowhere Man (Mom I miss you! (8-20-1938 to 11-18-2013) Cancer sucks)
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To: cripplecreek

Sounds like a show I want to see!!


68 posted on 12/16/2014 5:08:52 AM PST by stylecouncilor
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To: cripplecreek

Capricorn 1

I thought of that movie about the family who hunkered down in a fallout shelter for several decades.

Blast from the Past, with Brendan Fraser.

This bunch is going to need some serious reacclimation when they find out they have been duped.

Ep 1 was watchable. Looking forward to Ep 2 this evening.


69 posted on 12/16/2014 6:35:23 AM PST by TomGuy
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To: who_would_fardels_bear
"Escape from Earth" lost me when they figured they could launch an Anti-Matter drive powered ship from the surface of the Earth without incident.

Needless to say, there was engine failure when the first pulse om AM didn't fire correctly and the computer sent another, thereby overloading the engine and causing a massive AM explosion ... I suppose an AM engine was used to mollify the greenies in the audience.

Stupid idea - something one would expect from NG; more risky than an Orion and far more difficult to actually make as AM is still in the theoretical stage, while Orions could be built quickly today.

Orion ships are launched by conventional propulsion until well above Earth's atmosphere - only then does the ship begin using its tiny nuclear charges.

Here's what a real Orion mission might look like in our system:
Mars, Phobos, Demos Mission Launch: 2/28/1969.
Land Mars (Lander 1) 6/27/1969;
Mars Assent (Lander 1) 7/26/1969;
Land (Lander 2) Phobos 7/20/1969;
Phobos Assent (Lander 2) 7/26/1969;
Demos Flyby 7/28/1969;
Earth Return 4/04/1970.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSK_mymJvkM

Unlike other variations of ship propulsion, Orions can be built any size, but the bigger the ship, the better the ship works. A ship built for a crew of thousands would work better than one built for a crew of hundreds. Massive amounts of water aboard provide shielding from radiation, steering propulsion, unlimited and unrestricted usage of water for crew. Since I haven't seen "Ascension" (and the trailer does not show the aft end of the ship) I cannot say if it is a true Orion, or some Syfy variant. Looks more like a human interest show, rather than a true mission to explore or even 'save' humanity and as such has little credibility.

70 posted on 12/16/2014 6:43:15 AM PST by PIF (They came for me and mine ... now it is your turn ...)
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To: TomGuy

Major plot twist as the end of episode 1. I’m guessing there are more to come.


71 posted on 12/16/2014 7:00:32 AM PST by cripplecreek (You can't half ass conservatism.)
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To: PIF

The somewhat recent ‘escape Earth’ movies and tv series cause me to conclude: they must be liberals.

Libs like to infiltrate a new area and eventually turn in into a crap-hole resembling the crap-hole they moved from.

Typical lib modus operandi.


72 posted on 12/16/2014 7:01:23 AM PST by TomGuy
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To: TomGuy

“Libs like to infiltrate a new area and eventually turn in into a crap-hole resembling the crap-hole they moved from.”

Tell me about it ... every nice place I have lived has been brought to ruin by these types. Mostly trust fund babies ... some double trusters too - they seem to fumble over which account to use when paying bills.


73 posted on 12/16/2014 7:13:10 AM PST by PIF (They came for me and mine ... now it is your turn ...)
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To: cripplecreek
"Hmmmm..is Ben crazy for not getting tired of looking at Tricia....hmmmm.....just have to ponder that...."

74 posted on 12/16/2014 7:37:17 AM PST by BenLurkin (This is not a statement of fact. It is either opinion or satire; or both.)
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To: rbg81

Very good movie based on a very good book.

“Waste anything except time.”


75 posted on 12/16/2014 7:40:25 AM PST by BenLurkin (This is not a statement of fact. It is either opinion or satire; or both.)
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To: Lurker
As soon as the Saints start destroying the Bears we will switch over.

About midway through the second quarter.

76 posted on 12/16/2014 7:41:07 AM PST by BenLurkin (This is not a statement of fact. It is either opinion or satire; or both.)
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To: BenLurkin

Yep.


77 posted on 12/16/2014 8:51:30 AM PST by Lurker (Violence is rarely the answer. But when it is it is the only answer.)
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To: molson209

“Would the drew be stuck in the 60’s, bell bottoms and long hair?”

No, I don’t think so. First, they “left” in 1963, before such extreme fashions became popular; second, the ship would have been in touch with Earth (albeit, with the controllers in the project, who are manipulating them for their own purposes), and so the crew would be aware of political and social changes back home.


78 posted on 12/16/2014 2:15:52 PM PST by VietVet (I am old enough to know who I am and what I believe, and I 'm not inclined to apologize for any of)
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To: cripplecreek

Well, the movie isn’t bad except for the sex stuff. A sop to the girls maybe. In any case, the whole going to te stars thing is a fake. And that’s too bad. Mostly seems to be a whodonit with a mystery plot thown in for good measure. Nothing Scifi here, just down to earth make believe.


79 posted on 12/16/2014 4:24:11 PM PST by PIF (They came for me and mine ... now it is your turn ...)
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To: VietVet

They were only going to Alpha Centauri so at 50 years in the communication lag would only be about 2 years. In fact the captain mentioned putting in a call to earth but his response wouldn’t come for over 4 years.

As far as “the project is concerned” I think we’ll see another big twist tonight. I sure didn’t see it coming last night but did begin to suspect that something was amiss.


80 posted on 12/16/2014 4:31:30 PM PST by cripplecreek (You can't half ass conservatism.)
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