Scrubtastic end to 2018 as SpaceX, Blue Origin, Arianespace all opt for another day on Earth

It's been a packed week to round out the year for rocket fans still giddy from Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo sub-orbital jaunt. Rocket Lab – most definitely in business Small-sat specialists Rocket Lab celebrated a third successful launch of its Electron rocket at 06:33 UTC on Sunday from New Zealand's Māhia Peninsula, …

[Anonymous Coward]

Wow, that link about Jack Parson is kinda mind blowing. I had no idea.

[Mark 85]

"Kinda' mind blowing" is an understatement to say the least.

[Spherical Cow]

Crazy motherfucker!

(Literally)

[Gene Cash]

No pressure

US Vice President Mike Pence and Secretary of the Air Force Heather Wilson were there to watch the GPS-III launch.

Good to see SpaceX doesn't have "go fever" like NASA.

[Frumious Bandersnatch]

gotta feel for the

ground crew behind the Chinese launch of that micro drill payload in that secret satellite launch. Why? Because they are obviously missing out on the cultural subtext in the exchange they could have had as they enacted their mission. To wit:

This is not a drill!

This is a drill!

[Steve Cooper]

The chances of anything coming from Mars...

I'm still uncomfortable with a space company called UUULLLAAAA!!!

[Pen-y-gors]

Soyuz

Pity they're dumping the dodgy bit of Soyuz before re-entry. Think how much fun the 'nauts would have had as they (very briefly) listened to the sound of the wind whistling past the hole.

[phuzz]

Re: Soyuz

Soyuz crews have worn pressure suits since Soyuz 11, when a pressure equalisation valve opened prematurely and all the crew died. So as long as the tiny hole didn't cause any thermal problems, the crew would probably survive.

[Alister]

an "out of family" reading on first stage sensors had tripped the alarms.

Orphaned process?

[Yet Another Anonymous coward]

A whole family of warning levels:

Disreputable uncle

Favourite auntie

Her mother

Red-headed stepchild

[hellwig]

Small-sat specialists Rocket Lab

I think you meant space-based trash disposal company Rocket Lab. Small sats will be the end of space travel, thousands/millions of the things clogging up space.

In theory, you can rope-in a large satellite and steer it out into space or into the atmosphere (heard some Japanese, or was it Chinese?, company was looking into this). How are we gonna clean up all these tiny things?

[John Brown (no body)]

Re: Small-sat specialists Rocket Lab

"How are we gonna clean up all these tiny things?"

By putting them in orbits which will decay in very short time (maybe up to a few months or so) where they will then burn up on a pre-planned re-entry.