Regardless of the doomsday news, politics, and markets we need to appreciate the progress we are making in space exploration. Finally, we are thawing out the decades-old freeze on space exploration.
I mean, come on, who isn’t interested in the stars, planets, and other out of this world phenomena? Our imaginations run wild.. Which is a good thing! We need more imagination in this world.
There’s even some space exploration Bromance going on. Jeff Bezos, the founder and CEO of Amazon and Blue Origin exchanged Tweets with Musk.
Interstellar Visitor: ‘Oumuamua’
This past year, we discovered the large, oblong mysterious asteroid space rock that was hurtling towards us at impressive speed. Most theorize it is simply cosmic debris, but others wonder if it was an alien spacecraft.
What’s especially interesting, is that the surface layer is covered with a dark-red carbon residue that has built up over billions of years. Meaning there is something inside… perhaps layers of ice that are shielded from light and unable to boil or evaporate.
Oumuamua was hurtling towards Earth at 18 miles/second, but is now on the trajectory away from earth, back out into the stars.
Compared to other asteroids, it has an unusual shape, it is more compressed and long - compared to a spherical asteroid rock.
SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy
SpaceX and its operations gets a bad rep, because they have had their setbacks. Well of course they have, they’re one of the few companies in the World that is taking on innovative, groundbreaking projects in space flight and exploration. Founded in 2002, their ultimate goal is to enable people to live on other planets. That’s awesome.
It is the most powerful rocket in the world “by a factor of two.” It’s heavy alright.. Weighing in at 141,000 lbs!
Tuesday, February 6th SpaceX, founded and run by Elon Musk, launched the Falcon Heavy rocket into space.
Musk said - "I think it's going to open up a sense of possibility," Musk said of his freshly demonstrated 23-story launcher. "We want a new space race. Space races are exciting."
Space races are exciting! People should be fascinated with the vast, unknown and unexplored cosmos. I know I am.
The Falcon Heavy’s mission is important because it can launch twice the payload as any other rocket in the world. Elon Musk states that the Falcon Heavy can “launch things directly to Pluto and beyond, without stops.”
Ok SpaceX.. We see you!
In Swoops Jeff Bezos with Blue Origin
Jeff Bezos isn’t the only billionaire in the game. Bezos capitalized on the Amazon Marketplace and amassed a net worth over $120 Billion, surpassing Bill Gates in a little over 2 decades.
Bezos continues to diversify his investments in a multitude of industries.. And Space Exploration is one of them. Jeff Bezos founded Blue Origin in 2000 and their goal is to build reusable rocket engines for space.
Jeff Bezos has been a little more quiet about Blue Origin, but you watch, when he’s ready to make his move - he will. He is the king of strategy and long term goals, but hey, a little competition never hurt anyone.
Blue Origin has already flown a manned space capsule, with a dummy called Mannequin Skywalker haha.
Now, Blue Origin has its eyes set on a new project. The Glenn Rocket. The Glenn Rocket will be taller than the Falcon Heavy, but SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy has 30% more thrust than Blue Origin’s largest rocket.
Jeff Bezos commented "Our vision is millions of people living and working in space, and New Glenn is a very important step. It won't be the last of course," he wrote. "Up next on our drawing board: New Armstrong. But that's a story for the future."
So.. be Excited!
What better way to unite the world than space travel? As humans, in this day in age - with technology as our catalyst , I believe our destiny is to explore the stars and universe we call home.
Thanks for stopping by!
Sources:
http://www.businessinsider.com/blue-origin-vs-spacex-falcon-heavy-vs-new-glenn-2016-9
https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2018/01/31/we-just-entered-into-golden-age-space-exploration-why-all-pessimism-glenn-reynolds-column/1078300001/
http://www.spacex.com/about
https://www.blueorigin.com/