Winner of the Graywolf Press Nonfiction Prize, a breathtaking elegy to the waning days of human spaceflight as we have known it In the 1960s, humans took their first steps away from Earth, and for a time our possibilities in space seemed endless. But in a time of austerity and in the wake of high-profile disasters like Challenger, that dream has ended. In early 2011, Margaret Lazarus Dean traveled to Cape Canaveral for NASA's last three space shuttle launches in order to bear witness to the end of an era. With Dean as our guide to Florida's Space Coast and to the history of NASA, Leaving Orbit takes the measure of what American spaceflight has achieved while reckoning with its earlier witnesses, such as Norman Mailer, Tom Wolfe, and Oriana Fallaci. Along the way, Dean meets NASA workers, astronauts, and space fans, gathering possible answers to the question: What does it mean that a spacefaring nation won't be going to space anymore?

Winner of the Graywolf Press Nonfiction Prize, a breathtaking elegy to the waning days of human spaceflight as we have known it In the 1960s, humans took their first steps away from Earth, and for a time our possibilities in space seemed endless. But in a time of austerity and in the wake of high-profile disasters like Challenger, that dream has ended. In early 2011, Margaret Lazarus Dean traveled to Cape Canaveral for NASA's last three space shuttle launches in order to bear witness to the end of an era. With Dean as our guide to Florida's Space Coast and to the history of NASA, Leaving Orbit takes the measure of what American spaceflight has achieved while reckoning with its earlier witnesses, such as Norman Mailer, Tom Wolfe, and Oriana Fallaci. Along the way, Dean meets NASA workers, astronauts, and space fans, gathering possible answers to the question: What does it mean that a spacefaring nation won't be going to space anymore?

Orbital 2100 is a science fiction setting for Cepheus Engine and other Classic 2D6 SF RPGs. It has realistic (TL 9) feel that is set within our own solar system. The Earth is locked in a Cold War with the people of Luna. Both face off, 400,000 km apart, threatening mutual annihilation whilst they compete to colonise the moons of Jupiter and Saturn. Older colonies such as Mars and Mercury are independent and caught up in this struggle for solar system supremacy. Spacecraft use nuclear thermal rockets and create gravity by spinning pods or centrifuges, this is spaceflight as envisaged today! In keeping with the near-future and hard-science fiction themes, role-playing campaigns focus on real people doing real jobs. The game has rules, technology and advice to allow scenarios based around deep space haulage, asteroid mining, salvage, rescue and exploration. Colour cover, with B&W interior. Claim a free copy of the full colour PDF by contacting Zozer: https: //www.paulelliottbooks.com/contact.html

Regularized equations of motion can improve numerical integration for the propagation of orbits, and simplify the treatment of mission design problems. This monograph discusses standard techniques and recent research in the area. While each scheme is derived analytically, its accuracy is investigated numerically. Algebraic and topological aspects of the formulations are studied, as well as their application to practical scenarios such as spacecraft relative motion and new low-thrust trajectories.

Nuclear-powered Earth-orbital-launch probes can place greater payloads in orbit about Mars than chemical vehicles if reactor power exceeds 50 mw. Suitable reactor powers for this missionARE ABOUT 150, 400, AND 1000 MW FOR 33,000-, 81,000-, AND 200,000-LB VEHICLES, RESPECTIVELY. Whereas a 33,000-lb vehicle requires greater than a 200-day coast, a 145-day coast is feasible for an 81,000-lb vehicle. A hydrogen temperature of 4000 F in the nozzle appears to be a good compromise. Use of a solid-propellant rocket to achieve an orbit about Mars from coast yields no payload advantage. Using optimum firing dates, a 33,000-lb vehicle could orbit an acceptable payload about Mars, and an 81,000-lb vehicle could land freight on Mars. (Author).

Orbital Mechanics for Engineering Students, Second Edition, provides an introduction to the basic concepts of space mechanics. These include vector kinematics in three dimensions; Newton’s laws of motion and gravitation; relative motion; the vector-based solution of the classical two-body problem; derivation of Kepler’s equations; orbits in three dimensions; preliminary orbit determination; and orbital maneuvers. The book also covers relative motion and the two-impulse rendezvous problem; interplanetary mission design using patched conics; rigid-body dynamics used to characterize the attitude of a space vehicle; satellite attitude dynamics; and the characteristics and design of multi-stage launch vehicles. Each chapter begins with an outline of key concepts and concludes with problems that are based on the material covered. This text is written for undergraduates who are studying orbital mechanics for the first time and have completed courses in physics, dynamics, and mathematics, including differential equations and applied linear algebra. Graduate students, researchers, and experienced practitioners will also find useful review materials in the book. NEW: Reorganized and improved discusions of coordinate systems, new discussion on perturbations and quarternions NEW: Increased coverage of attitude dynamics, including new Matlab algorithms and examples in chapter 10 New examples and homework problems

This book is open access and available on www.bloomsburycollections.com. It is funded by Nottingham Trent University. What do we mean when we talk of 'world' literature? What does a global, even a planetary view reveal to us about literature, culture and being? In Orbital Poetics Philip Leonard explores conceptions of the world through the history of writing, theory and culture from an orbital perspective. Starting with literary and theoretical writing on satellites, orbit and terrestrial ground from the ancient world to the 21st century, the book casts a revealing new light on what it means to consider literature and culture on a global scale. Along the way, Leonard draws on a wide range of thinkers, writers and texts: from Dante and Goethe to contemporary electronic literature; Haruki Murakami and Tom McCarthy by way of philosophers and theorists including Agamben, Derrida and Heidegger; as well as astronaut photography and popular culture texts, such as novels by Buzz Aldrin and Tess Gerritsen and Alfonso Cuarón's film Gravity.