Space Map International!

Occasionally, I'll think up a theme for the month. This isn't one of those months. Or, we could just consider this "daily random information because I’m so bummed about Discovery being scrubbed five times" month.

Next time, I'll go for something catchier.

But, one theme I have continued as time allowed is my Space Map! I started with NASA facilities, added Space Museums, later added Space Crafts... and then I thought I would pick up again with international space sites.

You'll notice I said "I thought" ... as opposed to "I succeeded." Turns out, there are far, far more space agencies and branches than I ever dreamed! I thought I knew an awful lot about the overall space industry… perhaps because I can rattle off all 18 member countries of the European Space Agency at cocktail parties. (I can also say the alphabet backwards unreasonably fast. Even after a few drinks.)

At any rate… did you know that the Japanese Space Agency alone has 21 space centers, research institutes, manufacturing sites and launch complexes in five different countries? I sure didn't. And Russia now has over 30 sites. Wow. (For those keeping score, NASA has 25.)

So, I'm going to take this in stages. This past weekend, I map-marked the headquarters sites of the European Space Agency, founded in 1975. This entity now includes the space programs of Austria, Belgium, Britain, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands (Holland), Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland.

I'm working on some of the other international sites now. Around Christmas, I should have the whole "world of space" on there. What a learning odyssey this has been! The overall space industry really snuck up on me, and is much larger than we all probably think!


Interesting tidbits:
1. Check out the Swedish Space Institute (67.84° N, 20.41° E)... it is the northernmost space post I've found thus far, and a real snow-covered treat!

2. Note that three of the sites on the HTML page are not countries but rather the continent "Europe" – and these comprise the European Mission Control, Astronaut training site and general Astronomy office of the ESA.

3. The main launching space port of the ESA is, interestingly, located in South America! See if you can find it.

Discovering Discovery

Shuttle Discovery! Yay, Launch Day for Shuttle Discovery! Oh wait, nope... scrubbed for the fourth time.

All the technical issues appear to have been handled, but no one can do anything about the rain.


Such is the nature of launches. I know two people who had to drive back to South Carolina today to get back to work, and are so sad they will miss it, but couldn't hang out in Florida any longer.

I know a couple more Floridians who plan to drive up each time there is a chance she might launch. There are a lot of very dedicated enthusiasts on the "Space Coast" right now, hoping the rain clears up quickly!

Will there be more interest from classrooms or news channels as everyone figures out we only have a few launches left??

New NASA Shirts

Okay, I admit it, I'm just killing time now until Shuttle Discovery launches. Postponed for the third time now, but who's counting?

"This is part of the business, you fly when you're ready and you don't if you're not. And we're not ready to go." - Launch Director Michael Leinbach

Inspiration eludes me in times of elongated WAITING, so today I'll just share some photographs. The following is the "fall line" of shirts now available at the NASA space centers. These are compliments of the Space Trader near Johnson Space Center in Houston!

NASA Since 1958: Actually, It IS Rocket Science

Size Matters. Just Ask Pluto.

Escape Velocity: You Can't Leave Home Without It

NASA: Failure Is Not An Option

And in what will come as a supreme shock to precisely NO ONE, I bought the Velocity one. :) Visit a NASA center near you to get yours! They have all the same sentiments on coffee mugs, shot glasses, key chains, pins... and yes, Christmas ornaments now.

Fingers crossed for Shuttle Discovery tomorrow afternoon!

Space Television

I had planned to discuss the final launch of Shuttle Discovery today, of course, but the launch has been postponed two days running. Not unusual, and weather may not cooperate once the technical issues are solved. SSDD, as they say! Shuttle Countdown 101 is due to begin soon, however, so stay tuned!

I'd hate to be the one
who has to change this sign...

So, while Discovery undergoes checks and repairs, I thought I'd mention all the ways one might watch the last shuttle launches... and that turned into a marathon of research about all available space television. (And by the way, WHY is there no general Space Channel?)

I've mentioned TWIS many times, and almost everyone I know keeps up with their episodes, though unfortunately host Miles O'Brien and his producer David Waters announced that this labor of space love provided no real revenue stream, so they are now on hiatus. What a terrible loss! Though even without the video streams, one can keep track of launches at their Space Flight Now tracking page.

For those undergoing withdrawal, here are some other space programming resources!

SpaceVidCast
"Making Space Commonplace": Space news and social media covering all things space flight, space news, space shuttle, NASA, ESA and more!

ESA Television
European Space Agency programming, and broadcast schedule.

ASTROSpace NOW
Astronomy & space exploration news as they happen. Click the "LIVE" tab.

SpaceLaunch News
Aerospace Journalist Charles Atkeison gives complete multimedia coverage of World space launches & missions from Cape Canaveral.

NASA Television
NASA Television (NTV) is a resource designed to provide real-time coverage of agency activities and missions, and their programming schedule is posted daily.


I am a huge fan of NASA TV because you can watch it just about anywhere, and I tend to leave it on for hours and hours and hours. I keep wondering when they will cave, and turn to quick-cut editing and celebrities, but so far, the science and behind-the-scenes reality has remained prominent.

I remember reading an article quite awhile ago where a journalist declared… Ground Control to NASA TV: Liven Up! He began by saying that "typical shows feature live coverage of space-station activity, shuttle launches, news conferences, wrap-ups of space news, and educational programs about such topics as asteroids..." He bemoaned the stretches of silence and tried to make us think these programs were somehow bad things.

Sorry, but with every other available channel catering to the lowest common denominator of target demographics, I'll take this broadcasting gem anytime.

FACT: NASA TV was founded as "NASA Select" in 1981 to provide mission coverage for NASA's internal personnel, not for public consumption. The fact that we can tune in anytime to see what's going on is truly icing on the agency cake. There are no advertisements, and no scandalous clawing at "edgy" plot lines to gain viewers because NASA genuinely does not care how many or who watches their programming – they do not even bother to harvest Nielsen ratings data.

Will they change someday, to be glossier, faster, more chic? It appears some people hope so, butt I say give the money to the Mars program and leave NASA TV the way it is!