APOD: Falcon 9 Launches to Orbit (2010 Jun 08)

[bystander]

Thoughts On Flash, by Steve Jobs.

Flash was originally a Macromedia product. Adobe acquired it when they bought Macromedia. Steve Jobs is just miffed that Adobe bought out Apple's Quicktime competitor. While Apple may use open standards, Apple software is not open. Try to get OS-X for free (w/o pirating it).

[Chris Peterson]

... Flash is ubiquitous; any device or OS worth anything supports it, ...

Thoughts On Flash, by Steve Jobs.

Thank you for making my point.

[Guest]

Spiders From Mars ?

no, it's the Spider/Wasp/insect/arachnid/BUG TO MARS, that's how we're going to invade.

[Bug 9 to outer space]

Ets a Warsp!

[shnotendagga]

It looked like a wasp.

[Mike Ortiz]

This was an amazing leap forward this rocket has a recurring cost per launch @ 45 million as opposed to the 1 billion dollar per launch for previous launches...happy b-day ann

[fidelityrevo]

I think this Falcon 9 launch is a gigantic bailout to a private corporation. It is hideous that the US space program us using its facilities for the benefit of a private venture. And on earth an unemployed person struggles to get an unemployment insurance check. Bailouts for the rich only seems to be the rule.

Manned space missions are an utter waste of money and damaging to the environment. They will undoubtedly make space less and less safe for future uses of space because of all the junk they generate. Spacetravel is incredibly polluting because of the rocket fuel. It should be ILLEGAL to do a private launch. We should also get rid of the space station. It has hardly any scientific value. It is just a showboat for politicians. We need robotic missions for true exploration.

Spacex is obviously well connected politically because it can use government facilities for a launch. The Democratic party is a huge disappointment. From BP to Spacex, they are sold out to corporations, From Iraq to Afganistan from Guantanamo to Bagram they are similar to the Republicans. The Democrats care a bit more about appearances.

[Chris Peterson]

This was an amazing leap forward this rocket has a recurring cost per launch @ 45 million as opposed to the 1 billion dollar per launch for previous launches...happy b-day ann

This cost per launch isn't radically different from other launches by similar vehicles. Your billion dollar value is about what a shuttle launch costs, and you can hardly compare the two in term of capability.

[Mike Ortiz]

fidelityrevo get over it hahaha

[Mike Ortiz]

chris, I see your point and yes the capacities are varying but the advantages of refueling and resupplying as opposed to the prior methods I still believe they are a great step the dragoon will be an interesting addition to the rocket...

[GOLTHAR]

Apparently insect identification is rocket science. It was an arachnid.

An arachnid with wings? Hmmm, I'm not a rocket scientist, but ...

Looks to be a member of hymenoptera, to me.

edit: and actually, probably at least one other smaller insect flying around too. They like the camera.

What about the insect crawling around on the "onboard" camera at about 18:45:55:19? looks spidery.

[geckzilla]

What about the insect crawling around on the "onboard" camera at about 18:45:55:19? looks spidery.

Looks like some kind of debris to me.

[Guest]

Apparently insect identification is rocket science. It was an arachnid.

I thought it was a fly; but I'll take your word for it. [/q
Stick with rocket science gang; that insect was a wasp of the family sphecidae, most likely a Florida hunting wasp (Palmodes dimidiatus).

[rr_carroll]

I stopped the video with the insect showing. It has 6 legs, 2 antennae and long wings. I couldn't see it's mouth well, but it seems consistent with a wasp or dragonfly.

[Wonderr]

stop the video at the point at which the insect Flies in front of the camera and you can clearly see it's a wasp or mud dobber hard to tell with no color. it was almost as big as the Falcon 9.

[National Iniquiter Magazine]

GIANT INSECT ALIEN TRIES TO KIDNAP ROCKET!!!
(It's a Wasp)

[DavidLeodis]

Whatever the insect is it scared the daylights out of me. Maybe the waste matter collected from that alone could power a flight!

[Doum]

Insect usualy have a life of a few days. So now show respect to that probably defunt (mean now dead) insect we saw. R.I.P.

[Funtime]

The linked video of the launch is rather bad in the linked video, it seems to be a recording of a stream.
This video is much better quality.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wP2WbMz4 ... re=related

[NowIsForever]

it was a wasp, like a black one...

Yeah, at T - 3 seconds, and it was traveling backwards...

[rstevenson]

WASPs get all the best gigs.

Rob