Astronaut Max

Fantastic! Ok so is the main course still on track for tomorrow??

Jon McNeill on a lesson from @elonmusk that didn't make the book. "Rather than giving all my wealth to a philanthropy, I want to give it to Elon because he's actually going to create jobs." Source: The Knowledge Project Podcast

Standing tall at the edge of the ocean, this stainless steel giant captures the future of deep-space exploration. 🥰 Held steady by the massive launch tower at golden hour, every detail of the vehicle and coastal spaceport gleams under a crisp sky. From the sprawling assembly hangars below to the endless horizon ahead, the scene radiates pure engineering ambition and readiness for liftoff. The next chapter of human spaceflight begins right here on the launchpad. 🚀✨

This is a great story and shows what AI can enable. But let's not forget and take for granted what actually makes this possible: the underlying NASA LiDAR dataset. NASA's G-LiHT (Goddard's LiDAR, Hyperspectral & Thermal) airborne mission is quite a beast. Originally launched for forest ecology and carbon research, the archaeological application is a serendipity (like is usually the case in remote sensing). G-LiHT's campaigns though are only limited to North and Central America. What about a LiDAR map of the world? Obviously easier from satellites - we do have other LiDAR instruments in space: ICESat-2, GEDI (NASA) and Goumang (China). There are a couple of upcoming missions: NASA's EDGE and CASALS, commercial startup NUVIEW and JAXA's MOLI. But, none of them match G-LiHT's data quality - being able to map the forest floor continuously at a 0.5 m resolution (the kind of detail needed to distinguish pyramids, platforms, walls). We have a long way to go before we can achieve G-LiHT level required for this kinda analysis, especially high point density and spatial resolution. There's some hope though - large satellites (like K2) are coming and super heavy-lift launch is here (Starship) could make a spaceborne LiDAR mission a reality, IF we can make a case for it. But for now, a fully global archaeological adventure challenge, powered by AI, will have to wait.

Okay, we're loving these. This vintage Moon Base artwork is such a vibe 🤩

JUST IN: A single nuclear explosion in space could disable 98% of satellites in low Earth orbit within just one week, according to a new scientific study. Researchers at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and Princeton University modeled the effects of a hypothetical 1-megaton nuclear detonation approximately 500 kilometers above Earth. Their findings suggest: > 98% of modeled satellites could be disabled within seven days in the study's central scenario. > Even tripling assumed satellite radiation tolerance would leave approximately 97% disabled within two weeks. > The loss of satellite maneuverability could trigger approximately 20 orbital collisions over the following two years. > Radiation and debris could threaten replacement satellites for years after the initial explosion. The primary danger isn't the immediate blast. Radioactive particles released by the explosion could become trapped in Earth's magnetic field, creating an artificial radiation belt that repeatedly damages satellites as they orbit the planet. The findings highlight the potential vulnerability of commercial satellite networks, military communications and other critical infrastructure in low Earth orbit. The results are based on computer simulations of a specific hypothetical detonation, not an observed event. Full research: arxiv.org/abs/2611.09827

$70M for roughly half the capacity of a Falcon 9. Operators are clearly desperate for more options.