Billionaire pulls out of reality telly show that was supposed to find him a date to take aboard Musk's space loveboat

There's some bad news for Moon lovers but good news for Sun fanciers in this week's roundup of all the news that's fit to run about outer space. Sorry wannabe Lunar Lovers, that whole Moon dating thing is (thankfully) off Citing "mixed feelings" about the whole thing, billionaire astro-wannabe Yusaku Maezawa has withdrawn from …

[Chris G]

Exhaustive questioning

I am curious as to what the exhaust of the Skyrora consists of once the 600Kg of processed plastic waste has burnt. I know they are recycling potential landfill but there's recycling and recycling without further pollution.

Anyway aside from that it's a good thing to see Skyrora advancing steadily and achieving their goals.

[Sorry that handle is already taken.]

Re: Exhaustive questioning

It's likely a mix of various molecules and radicals containing C, H and O typical of other hydrocarbon fuels. As far as I can tell the Ecosene feedstock is hydrocarbon only (i.e. no Nitrogen or Halogen containing plastics).

[Wellyboot]

Re: Exhaustive questioning

The fossil oil^* managed to have a brief period as a plastic compound before being burnt.

Dig up oil > process into plastic > wait until no longer needed > process into fuel > burn

There's no environmental difference between this chain of events and the normal one for kerosene. Landfill is a much better place for oil derived plastic than burning it as fuel, processing it into other plastics is better than both, and not using oil based plastic is the best solution.

^*All oil refs above are for fossil derived oil. Bio-fuel is carbon neutral but my personal belief is that growing food for humans is a far better use of farmland.

[iron]

Re: Exhaustive questioning

Well yes but burning plastics as fuel is better than dumping them in a landfill then burning some Kerosene. Requiring a perfect, all or nothing solution will never get anything done.

[Sorry that handle is already taken.]

Re: Exhaustive questioning

Petroleum has a lot of important economic uses, but we're just burning it all. If (in the process of transitioning away from burning things) we can burn other things, we might be able relieve the pressure on petroleum supplies. I think that would be positive.

[dajames]

Re: Exhaustive questioning

we might be able relieve the pressure on petroleum supplies. I think that would be positive.

Petroleum supplies no longer seem to be a problem. The world has tons of petroleum (especially once fracking and oil shale exploitation are taken into account) but if we use more than a small proportion of that as fuel we get the greenhouse ecotastrophe.

Methinks that it's a bigger problem that if we don't recycle plastics as fuel, while we're looking for cleaner energy sources, we're going to run out of space for landfil!

[Mark 85]

Musk's sky blanket

Is this an evil or not so evil plan to reduce global warming by blocking the sun? I'll get my coat. It's the one with sunglasses in the pocket in case blocking the sun isn't in the plan.

[Pascal Monett]

"there was a part of me that still had mixed feelings"

Oh really ? Do tell : was it the part where you were going to publicly choose a very young woman to have sex with, or was it the part where you were going to be filmed having sex with her ?

[Wellyboot]

Re: "there was a part of me that still had mixed feelings"

Filming can't be the issue. Hang your helmet on the camera and turn the music up.

Maybe he just wanted an up to date little black book with no intention of ever riding the rocket?

[Loyal Commenter]

Re: "there was a part of me that still had mixed feelings"

In space no-one can hear you ream.

Sorry.

[davenewman]

Re: "there was a part of me that still had mixed feelings"

It was his wife that objected.

[Paul Kinsler]

there can be no Buck and Becky Rogers.

Well, of course not - it should rather be Buck Rogers and Wilma Deering

[ThatOne]

View of the Sun's polar regions

Are they covered in snow?...

[Spherical Cow]

Re: View of the Sun's polar regions

Yes, but only at night.