Did you watch the launch of the SpaceX Dragon capsule on Saturday afternoon? We did. And it was a beautiful thing to see. It was so good to see the USA sending astronauts into space in a capsule made and launched right here at home. We have been out of the space business for too long. It’s good to be back.
I was kind of amused at the look of the Dragon capsule, though. Every time they showed it sitting on top of the rocket on the launch pad, it looked like a cute little ghost wearing a cap at an angle. The shiny stuffed dinosaur/dragon they let loose in the capsule to demonstrate that they had reached zero gravity was pretty cool, too.
On the more serious side, it still amazes me that they can not only recover the first stage rocket, but land it on its feet on the deck of a ship (like the space ships in all those old movies!), and then, reuse it for another mission. That’s the sort of thing we have needed to make a really viable space program. Successfully docking with the ISS was a milestone, also, and was performed seamlessly. Just an awesome job all around: astronauts, SpaceX, and NASA. Just the right positive note we needed this weekend. I am just sorry it kind of got lost in the tragedies that have been playing out in this same time frame. I, for one, am going to concentrate on this spectacular piece of good news.
Here’s a link to a video of the launch, in case you missed it- or just want to watch it again. I have watched it several times and get the same thrill every time it lifts off:
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The Demon’s in the Details, the third story in my urban fantasy series the Yo-Yo Files is now available.
Urban fantasy like the above not your thing? Well, I have science fiction and more traditional fantasy stories available, as well. Look here for all the deets on the above series and the rest of my published stories.
And So On... 