Rocket Fire

TANGY:  Yesterday, in a super weak-and-nostalgic moment, I actually bought a container of Tang. That's right. Tang. The powdery, sugary orange substance that spacemen love (or hate, especially if you're Buzz Aldrin).

If you were alive and around a television in the '70s, you have to remember this ...

We thought it would be fitting to make some Tang rocket pops (using molds made by a Seattle company, BTW).

Four cups was more than enough for 5 rockets, so the kids drank the leftovers.

By my recollection, the 'best' part of a glass of Tang was the layer of neon orange sludge that had settled on the bottom of your glass. Mmm, the best.

I had to throw one more Tang commercial in. It's retro-riffic - especially the soundtrack!

EINSTEIN SUSPECT?: We were surprised to read a report today that the cargo vessel we watched launch by the European Space Agency to the ISS back on June 5, was eyed as potentially hazardous.

                                                        Image credit: NASA
Named Albert Einstein, the vessel docked with the ISS on Saturday, June 15, but a concern about the possibility of mold on board it delayed astronauts on board the station from opening its hatch.
                           
The "Albert Einstein" approaches the International Space Station's Zvezda service module. Credit: NASA TV

In reading the story, it seems the true nature of the problem might have been more a matter of paperwork and documentation than anything, but still, it was disconcerting, especially knowing the crew was eager to get its hands on the cargo, which included personal clothing and food.                          

Image credit: ESA

FYI, Einstein is scheduled to depart the ISS in late October. By then, it will have been stuffed with trash. It will re-enter Earth's atmosphere and meet a fiery end over the Pacific Ocean.

As I was looking for photos of Einstein (the cargo ship, not the physicist) on NASA's Web site, I came across many other images and stories, including an article with the attention grabbing headline:
 I'm reading up on Einstein. Came across a story on the NASA Web site today with this attention grabbing headline:  "Was Einstein a Space Alien?" 

You had to know I was going to read THAT. Actually, we all listened to it. (You, too, can listen here: http://science1.nasa.gov/media/medialibrary/2005/03/24/23mar_spacealien_resources/story.mp3

SPOILER ALERT: The conclusion of the story was that Einstein as not an alien, but it was a fun point to ponder, nonetheless. And I absolutely loved a quote of Einstein's from the end of the story: "The fairest thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the fundamental emotion that stands at the cradle of true art and true science."

WHERE THERE'S SMOKE: This afternoon I was sitting at my computer and I glanced up and out the window to the east. I saw a puff of whitish smoke. I didn't think much of it initially, as there are railroad tracks at the bottom of our hill, and once in awhile a train will belch out a cloud.

However, this cloud wasn't a belch, it was a billow, and getting bigger. And soon the white changed to gray, and as I studied the gray, I could start to see pieces of debris in it. I have seen a house fire before, and that's what that looks like. And then the explosions started. I grabbed my phone, called 911 and watched the gray turn into a big ol' black tower of smoke. Yikes!

The distant sirens started wailing (from multiple directions), and as they approached a news chopper swooped in. Mercifully, the firefighters knocked the fire down very quickly - within a couple of minutes of arrival, really. The firefighters have it knocked down now, but it was WILD and scary.

And, it was arson - allegedly. A 12 year old was arrested this afternoon in connection with the case. :( The photos in the story linked preceding show you how hard and fast the fire burned.

VOTING IS OPEN: One of CJ's hobbies is thinking and talking about the annual World's Ugliest Dog. It just amuses him to no end. He can debate the comparative ugly factors of past winners Sam, Mugly and so on. This marks the 25th anniversary of the competition, and a celebration is being held in Petaluma, California.

Imagine CJ's delight when I informed him this morning he could actually VOTE this go round. He promptly set about doing so, and carefully weighed the candidates' degrees of, well, ugliness.

Unfortunately, the online voting is not binding and won't determine the actual winner of the title. Apparently you have to be some kind of pedigreed EXPERT to judge an ugly dog. However, I have to think that the Internet winner will at least get some kind of certificate for being the people's choice. ... (In case you're wondering, CJ voted for Squiggy. Personally, I felt Monkey was the clear 'winner.')

JUST DEW IT: Imagine how happy the kids were when a segment of "Unwrapped" was bout their favorite liquid garbage calories, er, I mean soft drink, Mountain Dew.

Specifically, it was about the 'special' blue Dew, called Voltage. The plant they showed pumps out 2 million bottles of said blue Dew every day. Ugh. We learned a 'secret liquid' gives voltage its color, and ginseng gives it a some 'zing.' They also add a 'secret formula' of some sort. Hmm, funny, they didn't mention the brominated vegetable oil Mountain Dew is famous for. The article on Snopes.com about this ingredient is interesting reading, to say the least. (Note to self: Don't drink 8 liters of pop a day.)