Hello Troops,
The Troubadour has been silent for the last few days due to the government shutdown. Our writers, researchers, photographers and imagineers have been laid off. We are down to a skeleton staff consisting of myself and the night custodian. I'm answering the phones and doing my best to manage the extraordinary amount of creativity the Imaginarium produces and distributes daily.
actually, this is parent teacher conference season nationwide and Renaissance Academy is not immune to the bug. I've been tied to my chair for the last little while. My voice is nearly gone and I'm totally out of adjectives used to describe children and their work habits.
The USS Leo Opens at Lakeview Academy
Lakeview Academy in Saratoga Springs has just opened Utah County's 8th functioning starship simulator. The USS Leo did its first mission for the school's kindergarteners on Tuesday. "The kids loved it!" Casey Voeks reported. Casey is the CEO of DSim, the new name for Discovery Space Center. The Lakeview Center is managed by BJ Warner. The Leo is a part of DSim's network of simulators.
I went out to visit the USS Leo on Wednesday and took a few pictures to share with The Troubadours' readers.
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| The Transporter / Waiting Room leading into the USS Leo from the school's main gym |
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| The Transporter Room's main viewer |
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| The front of the bridge |
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| Looking toward the back of the bridge. The door leads to the small hallway which in turn leads to the control room and the waiting room. |
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| A better view of the bridge |
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| Add caption |
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| The Leo's lighting system does normal and red alert |
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| It wouldn't be a simulator without fake smoke |
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| The ship's normal lighting |
The Leo is open to Lakeview students only at the moment. It will open for private missions at the end of October.
I really enjoyed the feel of the Leo's bridge. It reminded me so much of the Voyager, my first ship. I encourage everyone to book your mission on the Leo as soon as you can.
Congratulations to Lakeview Academy and DSim on the opening of the world's newest starship simulator!
Mr. W.
By Mark Daymont
Farpoint Educator
Cygnus spacecraft docked to ISS
CanadArm helps Cygnus dock to ISS.
Orbital Sciences' Cygnus unmanned cargo spacecraft docked with the International Space STation this morning at about 6:44 a.m. MDT. Using the CanaArm robotic arm, ISS Expedition 37 astronauts grabbed the Cygnus as it approached to within 10 meters of the station, then gradually guided the craft to the docking port on the US-built Harmony station module.
Astronaut Karen Nyberg at the docking controls in the ISS Cupola with a great view.
With the spacecraft safely secured, astronauts will perform all required safety checks and pressurizations before opening the hatch on Monday. Once all cargo is unloaded, the craft will eventually be loaded with trash and waste and undocked, deorbited to burn up in the atmosphere during re-entry.
The successful docking of Cygnus today brings the program up to two commercial enterprises, Orbital Sciences and SpaceX, that can be counted on to provide additional supplies to the ISS. That of course means that any future stations or spacecraft in orbit of the Earth could be provided additional supplies on a regular basis, or in an emergency if it's ready. I don't think we're far off from the time when FedEx or UPS or some other delivery company will be using space orbits to make quick deliveries around the world or into space.
Now, if we can just get humans sent into space as cheaply!
You can see more pictures and a detailed description of the docking at NASA Spaceflight.com:
http://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2013/09/cygnus-second-attempt-berth-iss/
The Imaginarium
The Ordinary transformed and untethered becomes Extraordinary
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| Wall art thanks to painter's tape |
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| My instructions to my family.... just in case. |
The Leo looks SO COOL! Very, Very impressed. (I love how the smoke comes out a hole in the pipe so it looks like it was damaged in battle!)
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