Multidisciplinary scientist at UNAM 🇲🇽: CFD, astrophysics, complexity science. Hobbies: spaceflight, programming, weather, aviation, Linux & FOSS, sci-fi.
Mexico City
Joined January 2010
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Meithan West retweeted
I am hesitant to get ahead of a proper data review, but I understand the space community’s curiosity, especially when imagery can give the impression of a problem.
As you would expect, engineers were eager to inspect the heat shield, starting with diver imagery shortly after splashdown and continuing with the review aboard the ship. No unexpected conditions were observed. I suspect when the images are released, it will be pretty obvious the stark difference between Artemis I and Artemis II head shield performance.
As to the question specifically, the discoloration was not liberated material. The white color observed corresponds to the compression pad area and is consistent with the local geometry, AVCOAT byproducts, and transitional heating environments. We observed this behavior in arc jet testing and expected it in this compression pad area.
We will complete a full data review across all systems, including the thermal protection system, and make the results publicly available.
Meithan West retweeted
Weather satellites were able to see both the Artemis II launch and re-entry.
Space is cool, satellites are cool. It's all cool!!!
Meithan West retweeted
Hi! I’m Rise!
About a week ago, I launched aboard the Artemis II mission with four of my besties. Since then, I have been serving a very important purpose aboard the Orion spacecraft… I float. (And I look cute.)
Today, I am taking over the Artemis social media accounts! -Rise
Meithan West retweeted
Hello, Moon. It’s great to be back.
Here’s a taste of what the Artemis II astronauts photographed during their flight around the Moon. Check out more photos from the mission: nasa.gov/artemis-ii-multimed…
ALT A crescent Earth setting behind the Moon\u2019s horizon. Credit: NASA
ALT Earth setting behind the Moon as seen by the Artemis II crew. Over half the left side of the image is filled by the gray lunar surface, pocked with craters. Credit: NASA
ALT A close view of the Moon. Jagged circles of craters dot the gray surface, fading to dark on the left side of the image. Credit: NASA
ALT A crescent Earth setting behind a hemisphere of the Moon. Credit: NASA
Meithan West retweeted
The reactions of the #Artemis II astronauts to their photos of the Earth and the moon in the same frame are wholesome. Cannot wait to see these in full resolution, but the sneak peeks look amazing!
Meithan West retweeted
Quotes from the dark side:
"We've got lots of stars...there are definitely stars. It's a wicked view..."
"It is absolutely spectacular, surreal...there's no adjective to describe what we're seeing here."
"We can absolutely see the color of Mars. That's awesome."
#ArtemisII
Meithan West retweeted
New record🥇
The Artemis II astronauts are now farther from Earth than humans have ever been! At 1:57 p.m. EDT, they broke the record set by Apollo 13 in 1970.
Their journey around the far side of the Moon today will take them a maximum distance of 252,752 miles from Earth.
Meithan West retweeted
A new "even closer" view of the Moon from #ArtemisII during its flyby on April 6, 2026. The view of the 183-mile-wide Mare Orientale is amazing!
Meithan West retweeted
We’re halfway there.
At the time of posting this, the Artemis II mission is about halfway to the Moon. When the astronauts arrive, they will conduct a lunar flyby and collect scientific observations of the Moon’s surface.
ALT The gray Moon can be seen in the vast distance against the blackness of space. A partial view of the white Orion spacecraft can be glimpsed on the left side of the image. One of its paneled solar array extends into the center bottom of the image. Credit: NASA
Meithan West retweeted
Me he tomado la libertad y el tiempo de colocar el nombre a algunas de las estrellas y constelaciones que aparecen en la ya memorable imagen de la Tierra tomada por la Artemis II.
Efectivamente, el punto brillante es Venus. Una foto para la historia.
Meithan West retweeted
ARTEMIS II AS SEEN BY THE OFFICIAL NASA CESSNA
THIS IS THE BEST LAUNCH VIDEO AND IT ISN'T CLOSE
Meithan West retweeted
Pictured: Orion – 30,000 miles above Earth on the Artemis II mission – separating from the rocket's upper stage.
Anduril now has over 400 telescopes around the globe. Advanced space sensing software provides real-time focal plane processing to identify & track objects. Think Sentry Tower software, but for space.
Meithan West retweeted
If we compare the nightside photo of Earth taken by @astro_reid after TLI (left) with an IR view captured by @eumetsat's Meteosat-12 around the same time (0050 UTC on 3 April) we can see the same cloud and weather patterns over western Africa, eastern Brazil, and the Atlantic.
Meithan West retweeted
A quienes pregunten por qué en esta foto sà se ven estrellas: los astronautas fotografiaron el lado de la Tierra que está de noche (nótese la aurora que denota que el sol está del otro lado, tapado por la Tierra), y, como este lado está oscuro, tuvo que usar un tiempo de exposición de 1/4 segundo (bastante alto) e ISO 51200, muy elevado.
Cuando uno saca fotos de las estrellas, tienes que usar un tiempo de exposición alto para que se vean, pero si vas a sacar una foto del lado iluminado de la Tierra, a juro tienes que usar tienes que usar tiempos de exposición muy cortos, de 1/250 o más, y la cámara ajusta la exposición para sacar la foto de tu objetivo principal (la Tierra), lo que imposibilita que las estrellas se vean.
La foto fue tomada por el astronauta Reid Wiseman usando una cámara Nikon D5, y la foto, con todo y metadatos, se puede descargar a toda resolución en el sitio web de la NASA (dejo el enlace en el siguiente mensaje).
Meithan West retweeted
Boom is supersonic. On Jan. 28, 2025 at 8:31am PST / 16:31 GMT, XB-1 broke the sound barrier.
Chief Test Pilot Tristan “Geppetto” Brandenburg safely and successfully achieved supersonic speed in XB-1, the first civil supersonic jet made in America.
âś…New top speed: Mach 1.122 (652 KTAS)
âś…New max altitude: 35,290 ft.
âś…Flight time: 34 minutes
âś…Airspace: Bell X-1 Supersonic Corridor and the Black Mountain Supersonic Corridor in Mojave, CA
XB-1 demonstrates that Boom has the team, technology, and tools to deliver supersonic commercial travel with Overture, cutting travel times in half.
Congratulations to the Boom team on making aviation history!
Meithan West retweeted
I spent 90 minutes shooting Mars with my 11” telescope… you can see how much it rotated in that time!
If some of our ambitious goals are met, we’ll be sending people here in as soon as 4 years from now.
Humans are meant to be exploring.
Meithan West retweeted
Seven Mach Diamonds.
One Mega Mach Diamond.
New Glenn's First Flight.
📸 - @NASASpaceflight