Astronomy Picture of the Day 9-24-02

NASA ^ | 9-24-02 | Robert Nemiroff and Jerry Bonnell

[petuniasevan]

Astronomy Picture of the Day

Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.

2002 September 24

To Fly Free in Space
Credit: STS 41-B Crew, NASA

Explanation: What would it be like to fly free over the seas and clouds of Earth? The first to experience such an "untethered space walk" were NASA astronauts Bruce McCandless and Robert Stewart during Space Shuttle mission 41-B in 1984. McCandless, pictured above, used a Manned Maneuvering Unit (MMU) to move in and around the cargo bay of the space shuttle. The MMU works by shooting jets of nitrogen and has since been used to help deploy and retrieve satellites. On Earth, an MMU weighs over 140 kilograms, but, like everything, is weightless in space. The MMU was replaced in 2001 with the SAFER backpack propulsion unit.

[petuniasevan]

Astronomy Fun Fact:

The first shuttle mission was the launch of Columbia on April 12, 1981.
Gee, has it really been over 21 years? I was still in high school!

Here's a --LINK-- to the press release images of that historic first shuttle flight.

[petuniasevan]

[sleavelessinseattle]

Nobody has as much courage as those space walkers! A micrometeorite would go through them like...they weren't
even THERE...A moment of silence for ALL USA Test Pilots...
They don't always walk away from the mistakes of engineers they never knew...for ALL mankind...

[BossyRoofer]

Wow, we humans are going to have quite the adventure in space! Good job APOD!

[MeekOneGOP]

Excellent, thanks !

[RightWhale]

Good news, though. NASA, ESA, and DoD are all planning missions to the moon, including setting up a permanent manned science base. A sample return mission to the supposed water-bearing craters will be among the first. Possible fuel [hydrogen] for deep space missions is the reason.

[mikrofon]

That is good news .... long overdue!

[sleavelessinseattle]

LOL!!! BANG ZOOM!!! GREAT POST!!!HA!

[mikrofon]

LOL -- thanks!

"One of these days, Alice ..."

[MeekOneGOP]

How sweet it is !!