The thin line between success and explosion

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Part 2 sounds like part of Mike Oldfield's "The Space Movie".

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To the regular visitor of internet bulletin boards it is clear that it's an excellent idea your parents get to choose your real name.

“Rocket Porn”

Nothing funny about the Nedalin disaster.

Publiusr, I'm not sure I understand your point. Are you referring to the Soviet test of the R-16 rocket that exploded on the pad killing around a hundred people, including Marshal Mitrofan Nedelin? If not, what were you referring to? If so, what has this to do with the topic?

The DVD being discussed is purely of US rocket launches, and not one of the failures on the DVD involved any loss of life or even, as far as I know, injury of a single person. It is quite acceptable to view huge explosions that destroy only hardware as 'fun'. They really are quite spectacular.

I have the DVD in my collection. Its most revealing section shows that even 1960s US military organisations were producing terrible corporate films! Just watch some of them trying to deliver lines convincingly, or add dramatic visual styles to the delivery of dull information about range and types of missile!

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"The very powerful and the very stupid have one thing in common: They don't alter their views to fit the facts, they alter the facts to fit their views." The Doctor, Doctor Who: The Face of Evil.

Interesting? I hadn't heard of that one, and I'm quite an Oldfield fan. Any more information?

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Ah, the X-17, one of my favorites vehicles from the 1950s.

It was fun watching multi-stage solid rocketry develop through its growing pains. Plus it was a cool-looking rocket.

When Estes components became available for custom models, the X-17 (along with the first generation Viking) was among my first attempts. The main problem was getting the upper stages to ignite, due to the distance between the motors. This was partially solved by using "spark tubes" to capture and direct the booster motor burn-out retro exhaust. The other problem was the strap-on spin-stabilization rockets. This was solved by eliminating the rockets and using fin warping to achieve the required roll.

Of course, with the model, all the motor firings were during the climb phase. Plus no nuclear components were ever carried or detonated, unlike the real X-17. 8)

Another X-17 link

And another

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Indeed so. That was the worst missile/space disaster ever. Very sad.

Actually, the Argus shots were in the Atlantic, not the Pacific. They launched the 1kt nukes into the South Atlantic Anomaly, where the Van Allen belts dip abnormally low. They were testing to see if the belts could be artificially strengthened to the point where they would fry the circuits on an incoming warhead, in effect creating a shield against ICBMs. Of course, no one knew about the relationship between exo-atmospheric nukes and EMPs, back then...

My lone attempt at a two-stage Estes lifted off the pad and immediately started a graceful, spectacular deviation from vertical flight. It jettisoned the first stage just about the time it reached horizontal. By the time the 2nd stage lit, the rocket was in a 30-degree nose-down attitude. In case you're wondering, no, the ground was much too hard for the plastic nose-cone or cardboard body to penetrate it. #-o

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"Transport of the mails, transport of the human voice, transport of flickering pictures - in this century, as in others, our highest accomplishments still have the single aim of bringing men together." St. Exupery

The Mike Oldfield "Space Movie" was put together to mark the 20th annivsery of Apollo 11, its basiclly a series of clips , some from apollo, some exploding rocket porn(!), all cut to Incantations Part 3 - if you get the new (ish) Mike Oldfield compliation DVD "Elements", the whole movie is there as an extra - really its pretty good, with some nice editing oif the images to the music

It became something of a holy grail for Oldfied fans ovber the years , since it appeared only once on UK TV .

Cheers scotsman!

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