Election Asteroid

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Asteroid 2018VP1 is approximately 6.5 feet in diameter and it is headed towards Earth. It is slated to be withing 300 miles of earth the day before the presidential election in November. NASA‘s Jet Propulsion Laboratory first identified  the asteroid at Palomar Observatory in California in 2018. That explains the 2018 in the name. Perhaps VP stands for Vice President?

The asteroid poses no imminent threat to the earth. Should it enter the atmosphere it would burn up in the atmosphere. The chances of the asteroid actually striking the earth are just 0.41%. But hey this is 2020 them seem like pretty good odds. The orbital graph does not show it hitting the earth. This year’s flyby will be the asteroid’s first close approach to Earth since it was discovered.

Another asteroid will make a close approach on Election Day itself, November 3, 2020. That space rock, dubbed 2020 HF4, is somewhat larger at 26 to 60 feet (8 to 18 m) across, but will remain much, much farther away, about 16 times the distance of the moon. Far more dangerous is asteroid Trump whose orbit if far more unpredictable.

When Donald Trump was asked if he would call on his supporters to stay calm and desist from civil unrest in the immediate aftermath of next month’s election., Trump responded, “I’m urging my supporters to go into the polls and watch very carefully, because that’s what has to happen. I’m urging them to do it.” Since that remake by the president was made, the FBI launched a series of arrests of militia members and others plotting to kidnap the Michigan governor, Gretchen Whitmer, and attack law enforcement.

Don’t let Donald Trump and his minions scare you away from the poles on election day. You will have already survived a near miss from a refrigerator sized piece of cosmic dust.

Curiosity Explores Mars

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Curiosity is a car-sized rover designed to explore the Gale crater on Mars as part of NASA‘s Mars Science Laboratory mission. Curiosity was launched from Cape Canaveral on November 26th, 2011, and landed on Aeolis Palus inside Gale on Mars on August 6th, 2012. The rover has been sending incredible high resolution images back from mars.

Photos from inside the crater suggest that pools of water may have in the crater 3.5 billion years ago. Streams might have laced the crater’s walls, running toward its base. Watch history in fast forward, and you’d see these waterways overflow then dry up, a cycle that probably repeated itself numerous times over millions of years.

Curiosity got her name from a nationwide student contest that attracted more than 9,000 proposals via the Internet and mail. A sixth-grade student from Kansas, 12-year-old Clara Ma from Sunflower Elementary School in Lenexa, Kansas, submitted the winning entry. As her prize, Ma won a trip to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California, where she signed her name directly onto the rover as it was being assembled.

Ma wrote in her winning essay: “Curiosity is an everlasting flame that burns in everyone’s mind. It makes me get out of bed in the morning and wonder what surprises life will throw at me that day. Curiosity is such a powerful force. Without it, we wouldn’t be who we are today. Curiosity is the passion that drives us through our everyday lives. We have become explorers and scientists with our need to ask questions and to wonder.“

The rover is still operational, and as of July 26, 2020, Curiosity has been on the planet Mars for 2834 sols (2911 total Earth days). It is conveniently social distanced from COVID-19 and it’s design will serve as the basis for NASA’s 2021 Perseverance mission which will carry different scientific instruments.

In researching the rover online I found so many images that claimed to be sightings of UFO’s or strange smooth egg shaped rocks. I imagined the rover finding a face mask, perhaps a sign of a time when civilized people tried to survive when microbes and viruses threatened their very existence.

69% of Americans say they wear masks when they leave the house. However when I drive to Crealde to teach each Sunday, I find that 2 2 out of the 25 or so people I see wear masks when out in public. A study out of Hong King shows that COVID-19 transmission rates are cut by 75% when surgical masks are used. The study used surgical mask material draped over hamster cages to conduct the test. The hamsters who were infected had less of the virus in their body than those that had no mask. So cover your freakin’ face. Some humans might not be as smart as hamsters, but despite any pandemic, cock roaches will survive.

ISS Expedition

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This painting was a quick demo for my virtual Elite Illustration students. Today, July 7, 2020 at 12:30pm NASA will be broadcasting a live event with the ISS Expedition 63 In-Flight crew, Commander Chris Cassidy, and fight engineers Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken. They will be interviewed by the New York Times and Fox News.

The SpaceX launch was on May 30, 2020 from Cape Canaveral. This was the first launch of humans in to space from American soil for more than a decade. It took the spacecraft 19 hours to reach the  International Space Station (ISS), 400 kilometers above Earth. Here the crew will remain for one to four months, before they return home.

To help prevent the contraction and spread of any illness, astronauts are held in isolation for 7 days before they launch into space. This is to keep them healthy and to avoid sending pathogens into space. The astronauts were also they were trained on how to detect symptoms and early signs of diseases. Only one launch was ever scrubbed due to an illness.

Elon Musk was overcome with emotion after the launch. His company Tesla was charged with building the rocket that launched the astronauts into space. His adrenaline was pumping. He then got choked up talking about his responsibility to bring the astronauts home safely to there families. Both astronauts have young children. He said, “I’ve spent 18 years working toward this goal, so it’s hard to believe that it’s happened.” Musk said. “This is hopefully the first step on a journey towards civilization on Mars, of life becoming multi planetary, a base on the moon and expanding beyond Earth.”

Space X Scrubbed

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NASA initiated temperature checks and physical distancing at mission control leading up to the planned launch of the space X rocket, which is the first manned space flight in nine years from American soil. A successful launch requires the contributions from dozens of technicians at mission control.  Workers were separated into different rooms as much as possible and plexiglass was installed between work stations.

Extra precautions were taken with the Crew Dragon’s astronauts. Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley. They have been in quarantine since May 13, 2020 to be sure that they do not transport any pathogen or virus into space. As an extra step, both Behnken and Hurley will be tested for Covid-19 twice before they leave for the International Space Station. Anyone interacting with the astronauts before the launch will wear masks and gloves and have their temperature taken. I saw a picture of the astronauts saying good buy to their wives and family. They held their arms up as if in a hug but with a good 10 feet of separation.

Besides protecting the ground crew and astronauts, NASA has a very short list for VIP visitors during the launch. Some members of Congress and of the National Space Council will be in attendance. But they can not bring any staff. Nine years ago over a million people gathered to see the launch but that can not happen during a pandemic. Ivanka Trump wore a face mask to the NASA launch on Thursday a day after her father, Donald Trump, mocked the practice as being “politically correct”.

While NASA took every precaution to keep people safe and encouraged people to stay home to watch the launch on TV, the Brevard County Sheriff, Wayne Ivey had his own ideas. “If NASA is telling people to not come here and watch the launch, that’s on them. I’m telling people what I believe as an American. And so NASA has got their guidelines, and I got mine.” he said.

The CDC has said that traveling bu car, plane or bus increases a persons chance of contracting the virus and spreading it. Crowds gathered on the A. Max Brewer Bridge in Titusville to watch the launch closing it down as they stood shoulder  to shoulder. The photo by Jim Shortt showed very few people wearing face masks.

A recent study from UC Berkeley’s International Computer Science Institute and at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology says that if 80% of Americans wore  masks, then Covid-19 infections wold plummet. The scientists created a computer forecast model called the masksim simulator that allows you to see how an infection spreads under different scenarios. It  is like watching a video game play out as the virus spreads with no one wearing a mask as opposed to 80 % of people wearing a mask. Even home made masks can make a huge difference in controlling the spread of the virus.  Wake up people, wear a mask. Wearing a mask is cool.

For those that want to watch on TV or from home, the launch was rescheduled for today, Saturday May 30, 2020 at 3pm.

Liftoff.

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We sat in the grass with the NASA vehicle assembly building behind us. with fire minute remaining in the countdown for the  OSIRIS-REx Asteroid Sample Return Mission, we stood and moved up to a yellow rope than marked the safest distance from the launch pad. Everyone in the field stood as the system checks began. Fuel systems… GO. Telemetry … GO. Guidance… GO. It seemed like 50 different systems managers had to announce, GO. With all system go, the ground launch sequencer was go for auto sequence start and then the main engine started.

We were next to speakers, so we heard the rocket fire up. Then a few seconds later, a blinding light lifted up from the horizon. The sun was setting behind us, and it helped illuminate the smoke trail a bright orange. Then the sound wave of the rocket hit us. It was deep, resonant and it could be felt rumbling through us. One person described it like the sound of a dentists suction device. It was a picture perfect launch.

OSIRIS-REx separated from its United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket at
8:04 p.m. The solar arrays deployed and are now powering the spacecraft. “With today’s successful launch, the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft embarks on a
journey of exploration to Bennu,” said Dante Lauretta, OSIRIS-REx
principal investigator at the University of Arizona, Tucson. “I couldn’t
be more proud of the team that made this mission a reality, and I can’t
wait to see what we will discover at Bennu.”

In 2018, OSIRIS-REx will approach Bennu – which is the size of a small
mountain – and begin an intricate dance with the asteroid, mapping and
studying Bennu in preparation for sample collection. In July 2020, the
spacecraft will perform a daring maneuver in which its 11-foot arm will
reach out and perform a five-second “high-five” to stir up surface
material, collecting at least 2 ounces (60 grams) of small rocks and
dust in a sample return container. OSIRIS-REx will return the sample to
Earth in September 2023, when it will then be transported to NASA’s
Johnson Space Center in Houston for examination.

OSIRIS REx to intercept asteroid.

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Naomi Butterfield has started working for NASA in Cape Canaveral doing coding. She works in the building right across from the Vehicle Assembly Building (in sketch). She invited some of her Kerouac House friends out to witness the launch of OSIRIS REx. NASA is a sprawling city unto itself. 900 people work in Naomi’s building alone. Long stretches of swamp lined roads separate the different areas. We stopped at the security check point where an armed guard checked Naomi’s badge and waved us through. An armored assault vehicle was parked on the side of the road. The vehicle assembly building was at the end of a long road. It always appeared to be the same size as we approached it. The building is huge. It is one of the largest buildings in the world based on it’s volume. The American flag painted on the building was the largest in the world when added in 1976 as part of United States Bicentennial celebrations. The blue star field  on the America flag is the size of a regulation basketball court. Each star is six feet across.

We drove into a grass field and parked. About 8000 people showed up to watch the launch. The bleachers faced the wrong way. Back in the days of the space shuttle launches, the crowds were much larger. Press occupied a spot at the top of a small hill. We arrived several hours early which gave me time to face the wrong way and sketch the assembling crowd. Naomi and Janna conducted some Kerouac House business and the two teenage boys who had joined us explored.

OSIRIS REx, which is short for the Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security-Regolith Explorer. Try saying that 5 times fast. It is on a 7 year mission to intercept the asteroid Bennu, collect a sample and then return back to earth. The vehicle will not land on the asteroid, instead it will fly next to it, spray nitrogen, and then touch and go to collect the sample of about 2 ounces. This asteroid could revolutionize our view of the beginning of the early solar system. Asteroids like Bennu are remnants from the formation of our solar system
more than 4.5 billion years ago. Scientists suspect that asteroids may
have been a source of the water and organic molecules for the early
Earth and other planetary bodies. That’s right they may have sparked life. An uncontaminated asteroid sample from
a known source would enable precise analyses, providing results far
beyond what can be achieved by spacecraft-based instruments or by
studying meteorites.

The countdown proceeded at a glacial pace, and then there was a 15 minute delay. Regardless, It was nice to sit with friends, and watch the sun set behind the vehicle Assembly building. I finished the sketch with ten minutes remaining in the countdown and I turned East to face the launch pad…

The Rocket Garden

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I went out to the Kennedy Space Center to see what was new on the Space Coast. A building is being constructed to house the retired Space Shuttle Atlantis. The structure is perhaps half built but when finished it should look awesome. The plaque on one of the historic rockets said that the rocket was “Thor-able“.  The Thor-Able was an American expendable launch system and sounding rocket used for a series of re-entry vehicle tests and satellite launches between 1958 and 1960. The rocket garden was of course blazing hot. Luckily one of the support buildings had large plate glass windows that looked out onto the rockets. A flat circular fountain squirted water up periodically to cool any younger more playful space explorers.

The space program had a journalistic art program that was founded by James E. Webb around 1958. “The NASA Art Program uses the medium of fine art to document America’s
space program for ‘the expansion of human knowledge of phenomena in the
atmosphere and space…for the benefit of all mankind.” Artists from around the world helped document the race to space. Art work was on display in glass cases. But only a fraction of the artwork was on display. There was artwork upstairs but the staircase was blocked for some unknown reason. A huge wasp buzzed against the window panes in the NASA building I was sketching from. It seemed desperate to get back out to the hot humid air.

Atlantis Lifts Off

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A woman had a blue umbrella open and people in the crowd complained. I chuckled that such a small thing could annoy people at such a historic moment. Loud speakers in Space View Park announced the countdown. I considered jumping in the water to escape the pressing crowd but I had long pants on. I stood on my rickety camping chair to see over the crowd. Space Shuttle Atlantis lifted off from launch pad 39A at 11:29am. A blazing light appeared across the river and billowing exhaust cloud crept outward. Everyone cheered and a digital salute began with everyone raising their cellphones and cameras to take a shot. When the roar of the crowd died down it was eerily quiet. Within seconds the blazing light punched through the clouds and was gone. As people turned to leave, a deafening rumble ripped across the water. It shook my chest. The noise took people by surprise. A father explained to his son that light travels faster than sound.

This launch of Atlantis marked the end of the 30 year Space Shuttle Program. This program launched great observatories, built an International Space Station and taught us how humans can live, work and continually learn in space. Terry and I lingered as the crowd cleared. We decided to let the initial rush of traffic go on without us. Terry suggested I do another sketch. I decided to draw the lemonade vendor as Terry relaxed with a magazine.

Some videographer stuck his camera in my face and started waxing poetic about how the artist was capturing the emotional context of the launch. After the initial ink work was in place, I decided I had to have a lemonade. They were out of sugar but had Sweet & Low. I hesitated but still ordered. After mixing in four packets I took a sip and cringed. Yuck! I traded Terry for a water and we were both content.

We decided to drive south on A1A once I finished the sketch to go to a Mexican restaurant someone suggested I visit. The place offered $1 Margaritas when the two minute countdown began. Driving down side streets I was almost sideswiped by a guy that ignored a stop sign. I gunned my engine and he missed me by inches. I was glad when we found a table in the restaurant and settled in for Margaritas and a delicious Mexican meal.

The TV above the bar showed mission control. A man wrapped up what he was doing at his station and he left. I felt sad knowing the shuttle program was almost over. The whole economy on the coast is about to change as all the NASA staff is laid off. We wondered if beach front property might suddenly become affordable. After dinner we took a blanket and relaxed out by the riverfront across the street. I closed my eyes and napped. I was jolted awake by a gust of wind which pelted me with sand. It began to rain and we ran back to my truck. On the drive back we listened to a book on tape called “Unbroken” by Laura Hillenbrand about World War II POW’s imprisoned by the Japanese. It was a ceaselessly brutal book but it distracted me when we hit traffic which crawled on the Beach line Expressway as we inched back to Orlando. The book is about never giving up and the power of the human spirit. We spent 14 hours or so driving to watch the 40 second launch but it was worth it.

The Final Shuttle Launch

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Terry and I were startled awake by the clock alarm at 4am. We stumbled about getting ready to go to the space coast to see the Launch of Space Shuttle Atlantis. We planned to go to Space View Park which is right across the Saint John’s river directly across from Launch Complex 39. It is as close as you can get to a launch without being in the press section. I drove east on the Beach Line Expressway while Terry snoozed. In the last few miles I asked her to help navigate me to the park. Suddenly there was traffic. Parking spaces were being sold for $20 to $30 dollars. We wandered the back streets until I found a spot on a dead end street next to a dumpster. We walked the five or so blocks to the park. The streets were crowded with families carting their picnic lunches. A homeless man snarled, “Ya’ll look like a bunch of cockroaches lookin‘ for a scrap of bread.” I didn’t see that. People were excited, anticipating a historic launch.

The entrance to Space View Park was packed with news vans. The park was full of tents from people who had camped out overnight. Terry tried to walk straight out to the pier but we reached a point where we could walk no further. We backtracked a bit and I found a cement ledge to sit on and I began my first sketch. A family lounged in their camping chairs. People kept packing in. The woman behind me had a lanyard on that said she was with a tweet-up group. I asked if the tweeters were all together. She said they were scattered throughout the park. Terry forced her way out to the edge of the park overlooking the river to the north.

When I joined Terry, I could see that the bridge over the river was packed with people. Every square inch of shoreline was also packed with people. In Space View park everyone sat facing the launch pad which was visible to the eye if you knew where to look. I sat facing the crowd and started a second sketch. There were still several hours until the launch. A young couple played cards. Others read or looked at their cell phones. Some slept. There was no Internet or texting since the cell tower couldn’t handle all the signals. People were left having to engage in conversations and other analog forms of diversion. A man right behind Terry talked endlessly in a monotone about the boring minutia of his job to his buddy. Terry had to read aloud to concentrate on her book. We had some apples to munch on and some humus. I was content, being able to sketch people up close and personal.

A father and son were casting a net, fishing in the river beside us. The water was just up to their knees. Soon other people waded out into the water. A crowd formed. Even photographers set up their tripods in the rivers muddy bottom waiting for the launch…

Discovery Launch

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The Space Shuttle Discovery was scheduled to launch at 4:55pm. I had approval to get a press pass thanks to the artists at McRae Art Studios. The launch had been scrubbed so many times that the McRae Artists were unable to go. I couldn’t let this opportunity pass me by. I drove out to Kennedy Space Center alone. This was going to be one of the final launches in the dying shuttle program. I thought I was giving myself plenty of time to drive out to the space coast when I left at noon. I was wrong. 50 became a gridlocked parking lot about halfway out to the coast. The hour drive became two and then three. Others were driving out to see the launch, who knew. The most agonizing wait was on the causeway over the Indian River. Finally I got to a security officer who asked for my paperwork. He waved me through. Suddenly there were wide open roads. I was now in the Kennedy Space Center. I knew where the press accreditation building was since I had been there before.

This time the building was open. Inside two elderly women were busy getting ready to leave. One woman looked at my paperwork and said, “Cutting it kind of close, aren’t we?” She printed up my pass and gave me a map to the press parking lot. I arrived on site with an hour to spare before launch. Just enough time for a sketch if I got to work immediately. I was tempted by all the news crews but with only one sketch I had to catch the launch pad. I was drawn to the huge rusty countdown clock. This thing was like 5 feet tall and 15 feet wide. I considered sketching it but I was standing in the blazing sun. It was hot. Instead I walked behind the clock and I sat down in its shadow. Ahhh… Nice and cool. I began to sketch all the photographers with their cameras aimed out across the water. The launch pad was visible on the horizon. I was surprised when someone said my name. He knew of my blog. He asked me if I thought it was ok for him to stand on a rusty box that jutted out from the back of the clock. I’m no expert, so I said, “Fine with me.” From his elevated perch he pointed out that Bill Nye the Science Guy was watching the launch. Seems he is always in character since he was wearing his signature bow tie. There was also a Japanese fellow in a blue astronauts jumpsuit talking to a Japanese news crew.

I finished the sketch with minutes to go before the launch. I sent out a couple of tweets and Facebook pics since I couldn’t sit idle. Then I started a second sketch where I planned to place the huge vertical plume. Then I heard people shouting and clapping. A large white billowing cloud silently issued from the launch pad. Then the blazing yellow light hit me. It was as bright as the sun. Then the sound rumbled across the water and struck me full force. It was a deep powerful, guttural sound that made my chest vibrate. I have stood next to huge concert speakers and they don’t come close to the force of this sound wave. The plume rose quickly into the sky and I quickly sketched its gesture. A soldier in a camouflage uniform stood in front of me. People continued to clap and scream as the brilliant light diminished. The setting sun illuminated the shifting rockets trail with it’s golden light. It was a perfect day for Space Shuttle Discovery’s final launch, and a fitting tribute to this space crafts long career.

The drive home was a nightmare. I used the GPS to keep looking for alternate routes then I just settled in and relaxed with the window down as I crawled home on the Beachway going 10 miles an hour. I had just witnessed one of man’s greatest achievements, the traffic didn’t matter. I listened to the sounds of crickets and other night life. I flipped the radio on for the long, long drive home. It was midnight when I pulled into my driveway. Exhausted I dropped into bed and drifted to sleep.