Random Writing

In the sky, the wind cold despite the sun. Same world but different side. Paper wall walked through, exposing a reality. Not good or bad, but there. No, it is good, would never undo, unwind the movie reel that ran the last six months. Haven’t touched the ground, nothing solid under my feet, and the fear of falling is very slowly melting away. Don’t trust my wings or the wind that supports them but won’t for a long time. Beyond being out of my element, it has changed completely. Judgment is still being learned, seeing mules as unicorns, mortals as wizards, and maybe eagles as crows.

Messier Marathon

The Messier Marathon was a success. Friday night the clouds came and went which made viewing sometimes a challenge. Mid Friday evening it clouded over, we gave up, and my friend was halfway packed when the skies cleared up again. From that point on we never bagged it due to clouds, opting to relax in the car until daylight or clear skies – which ever came first.

Early in the Friday evening viewing, we actually saw the zodiacal light! Very, very cool. A first for me. For more information on zodiacal light: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zodiacal_Light

Saturday night was beautiful but freezing with the wind and moisture in the air. My first marathon and couldn't have found any objects if it hadn't been for an experienced friend. We spied Saturn both nights and it looked great. It's always a bit of an awe-inspiring view. I used my binoculars to view Messier and other objects, and was surprised by the level of detail possible with them. I also looked through my friends and other individuals' telescopes - some which had amazing detail. Above photo is of a compilation of all 110 objects.

Messier marathon definition => Goal of a Messier marathon is to find as many Messier objects as possible during one night or weekend. The Messier catalogue was compiled by French astronomer Charles Messier during the late 18th centery and consists of 110 relatively bright deep sky objects (galaxies, nebulae, and star clusters).

Source and for more information: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Messier_marathon

Last night was the first night of college algebra class. It's an accelerated course spanning eight weeks of Mondays at nearly 4.5 hours each class. Definately a refresher but that makes it fun and enjoyable. Always nice to have something you enjoy and can feel a sense of mastery on – especially when life hasn't felt that way much lately. The refresher is needed and it looks like we'll have 2000 questions for homework each week (ok, more like 100).

Took a break at Scooters Coffeehouse for a late lunch and time to go back to work. Laters!

Alexandra - Space Camp

My astronaut girl, Alexandra, will be returning to space camp this summer, completing Levels 2 and 3 in July. There are four levels total and last year she completed Level 1. She's pretty excited and it's a cool thing she gets to do. I want her childhood. ;-) Below are descriptions of each Level.

Website of the Cosmosphere: http://www.cosmo.org


Level 2, Early July 2007 (Hutchinson, Kansas)

Full day of scuba training and underwater EVA exercises with certified dive instructors as your team prepares for critical space walks to support your ISS mission.
Demanding flight training with timed air trails in the Advanced Flight Simulator.
Advanced rotations in the centrifuge, monitoring physiological changes to blood pressure and heart rate while working on a set of problems in a high "g" environment.
Large rocket construction and launch.
Training inside an actual Soyuz simulator that was used by American astronauts to prepare them for their missions to Mir and the ISS.


Level 3, Late July 2007 (Hutchinson, Kansas & Houston, Texas)

Neutral Buoyancy Lab where astronauts trains for EVAs in the world's largest indoor pool.
Building 9 and the full-scale shuttle and ISS trainers.
Briefings from, and the chance to interact with, top NASA engineers and flight trainers.
Mission Control Center
Visit to Space Center Houston, the visitor center of Johnson Space Center.
Banquet dinner with NASA personnel and presentation from distinguished NASA guests.


Level 4, Late June 2008 (Cape Canaveral, Florida)

Behind-the-scenes look at Kennedy Space Center.
View of the spaceflight hardware and launch center for NASA.
Visit Rocket Garden
Visit Early Spaceflight
Visit Astronaut Hall of Fame
Visit SpaceHAB
Visit Cocoa Beach
Work at Florida Space Authority to build your own payloads for weather balloons. These are then launched over 100,000 feet the following day at Cape Canaveral Weather Station.