Apollo 11 Lunar landing - 40th aniversary - w/ personal brag

Alan Browne wrote:

Photos by (and of) their modified Hasselblad cameras.
Not immune to flare!


http://www.nytimes.com/packages/html...n-landing-hass
elblad-photos/index.html?ref=science

Nice images, but I watch "The Big Picture" news photo feed 3 times a
week (MWF) and they often have fabulous images. Today they did a
historic "Remembering Apollo 11" set. Excellent stuff at:

http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/200...apollo_11.html

And I got to add a personal touch. I sent this email out to some
personal friends earlier tonight, many of which have known me for the
bulk of the past 40 years.

I have been a software developer for most of the past 37 years, but
started as a physics major in college. I have clipped the portion of
the email that pointed people to this site:

/brag

When looking at it, go to picture 29. See that "Laser Ranging
Retroflector"? That was my first professional job! I designed that
mirror as a Freshman working for NASA at University of Maryland. I was
a physics major back then, and convinced the professor that had the
contract that I was the only student that could accomplish his magic
feat.

This is a specially designed mirror that reflects the light back in the
direction of the incident light even if the mirror is up to 40 degrees
off-center. Think of a normal mirror. Shine a laser at it, and unless
the mirror is dead-straight, the returning light will return at an
angle. With the moon being 250,000 miles away, even the slightest tilt
would mean a normal mirror would bounce the returning beam so wide it
would miss the earth entirely. With my magic design, any telescope on
earth can shine a (very powerful) laser on the moon, and the return beam
will come back right down the throat of the sending telescope.

Using that mirror, they have measured the distance to the moon to within
1 cm (1/2 inch). After the first 30 years of measurements, they found
the moon is actually about 30 feet from where it should be... That fact
has been folded back into string theory and is considered current
evidence to support that gravity is actually an extra-dimensional force.
That in turn, was a significant extra push to get the Large Hadron
Collider project in Europe going, which is hoped will finally prove
multi-dimensions within the next few years.

By the way, there was a science show last year (can't remember which
one...) that actually had the reporters go to an observatory and watch
the measurements being made. The mirror is still in use today.

Not very many of my projects are still in use after 40 years... :-)


/brag?


--
- Burt Johnson
MindStorm, Inc.
http://www.mindstorm-inc.com/software.html

alt.photography- removed

Burt Johnson wrote:

Snipped bits out

By the way, there was a science show last year (can't remember which
one...) that actually had the reporters go to an observatory and watch
the measurements being made. The mirror is still in use today.

Not very many of my projects are still in use after 40 years... :-)


/brag?

This is the best brag I've ever read on usenet. Congratulations!

--
John McWilliams

In article ,
Burt Johnson wrote:

[very cool story snipped]

By the way, there was a science show last year (can't remember which
one...) that actually had the reporters go to an observatory and watch
the measurements being made. The mirror is still in use today.

Not very many of my projects are still in use after 40 years... :-)

The show is _Mythbusters_. The episode was "NASA Moon Landing",
during which they explored various claims by the folks who say the
lunar landings were a hoax. I think it was one of the best episodes
they've ever done. At least in the USA, the Discovery Channel will be
re-airing that episode on Monday, July 20, 2009.

--
Brian Reynolds | "It's just like flying a spaceship.
| You push some buttons and see
http://www.panix.com/~reynolds/ | what happens." -- Zapp Brannigan
NAR# 54438 |

Brian Reynolds wrote:
In article ,
Burt Johnson wrote:
[very cool story snipped]
By the way, there was a science show last year (can't remember which
one...) that actually had the reporters go to an observatory and watch
the measurements being made. The mirror is still in use today.

Not very many of my projects are still in use after 40 years... :-)

The show is _Mythbusters_. The episode was "NASA Moon Landing",
during which they explored various claims by the folks who say the
lunar landings were a hoax. I think it was one of the best episodes
they've ever done. At least in the USA, the Discovery Channel will be
re-airing that episode on Monday, July 20, 2009.

Thanks for the mention. I definitely want to see it, and just sent a web
request for recording it.

It's on at 6 PM PDT, Ch. 278, DirecTV.

OK, noonsio, I might have stock in DTV....

--
John McWilliams

Burt Johnson wrote:
angle. With the moon being 250,000 miles away, even the slightest tilt
would mean a normal mirror would bounce the returning beam so wide it
would miss the earth entirely. With my magic design, any telescope on
earth can shine a (very powerful) laser on the moon, and the return beam
will come back right down the throat of the sending telescope.

Not to diminish the engineering work on a space bound piece of
equipment, however, there is nothing fundamentally amazing (and esp. not
"magic") about a corner reflector array. Not now. Not then.

Brian Reynolds wrote:

In article ,
Burt Johnson wrote:

[very cool story snipped]

By the way, there was a science show last year (can't remember which
one...) that actually had the reporters go to an observatory and watch
the measurements being made. The mirror is still in use today.

Not very many of my projects are still in use after 40 years... :-)

The show is _Mythbusters_. The episode was "NASA Moon Landing",
during which they explored various claims by the folks who say the
lunar landings were a hoax. I think it was one of the best episodes
they've ever done. At least in the USA, the Discovery Channel will be
re-airing that episode on Monday, July 20, 2009.

I thought that was it, but my wife and I couldn't remember why they
would be going to the telescope, so I opted with just saying "a science
show."

I do remember the episode now that you mention it.

--
- Burt Johnson
MindStorm, Inc.
http://www.mindstorm-inc.com/software.html

Alan Browne wrote:

Burt Johnson wrote:
angle. With the moon being 250,000 miles away, even the slightest tilt
would mean a normal mirror would bounce the returning beam so wide it
would miss the earth entirely. With my magic design, any telescope on
earth can shine a (very powerful) laser on the moon, and the return beam
will come back right down the throat of the sending telescope.

Not to diminish the engineering work on a space bound piece of
equipment, however, there is nothing fundamentally amazing (and esp. not
"magic") about a corner reflector array. Not now. Not then.

There was lots of magic involved to an 18 y/o freshman that had just
landed his first professional job (I worked my way through college,
since my parents were dead broke).

And not 1 in 10 people I mention this too have any idea how it could
possibly be done.

piffle. I bet you don't even believe in Santa Claus or the Easter
Bunny...

'magic' was clearly used here in the romantic sense. Sorry you don't
have any imagination. Life must be miserable to be like that.

--
- Burt Johnson
MindStorm, Inc.
http://www.mindstorm-inc.com/software.html

"Burt Johnson" wrote in message
...

There was lots of magic involved to an 18 y/o freshman that had just
landed his first professional job (I worked my way through college,
since my parents were dead broke).

I thought what you said was amazing. I didn't have a clue that it could be
done let alone how to do it.

I knew Browne could be a patronising **** but ****ing hell. Dissing someone
for that then bragging in the next breath about hiring expensive lenses?

What an autistic ****.

--
Charles E Hardwidge

Burt Johnson wrote:
Alan Browne wrote:

Burt Johnson wrote:
angle. With the moon being 250,000 miles away, even the slightest tilt
would mean a normal mirror would bounce the returning beam so wide it
would miss the earth entirely. With my magic design, any telescope on
earth can shine a (very powerful) laser on the moon, and the return beam
will come back right down the throat of the sending telescope.
Not to diminish the engineering work on a space bound piece of
equipment, however, there is nothing fundamentally amazing (and esp. not
"magic") about a corner reflector array. Not now. Not then.

There was lots of magic involved to an 18 y/o freshman that had just
landed his first professional job (I worked my way through college,
since my parents were dead broke).

And not 1 in 10 people I mention this too have any idea how it could
possibly be done.

I doubt it's 1 in 30.

piffle. I bet you don't even believe in Santa Claus or the Easter
Bunny...

.... just what the hell! ... you don't mean to say ... ?


'magic' was clearly used here in the romantic sense. Sorry you don't
have any imagination. Life must be miserable to be like that.

I have tons of imagination. Experience too.

When I saw what you wrote I immediately thought of radar corners,
something of which I have more than a passing knowledge. I was sure I
had seen the same for lasers as well and a few seconds Googling
confirmed that. I would see a lot of challenges in making such a
reflector for the moon, but I wouldn't apply any of the superlatives
that you did.

You maintain great bragging rights in any case.

My father was asked by NASA to bid on (as it happens a radar based)
system for the Apollo lander. For the weight budget, he (and others at
the co.) considered it too risky - another firm won by default. So he
missed out on the chance for those bragging rights.

On Thu, 16 Jul 2009 18:11:40 -0700, (Burt
Johnson) wrote:

Alan Browne wrote:

Burt Johnson wrote:
angle. With the moon being 250,000 miles away, even the slightest tilt
would mean a normal mirror would bounce the returning beam so wide it
would miss the earth entirely. With my magic design, any telescope on
earth can shine a (very powerful) laser on the moon, and the return beam
will come back right down the throat of the sending telescope.

Not to diminish the engineering work on a space bound piece of
equipment, however, there is nothing fundamentally amazing (and esp. not
"magic") about a corner reflector array. Not now. Not then.

There was lots of magic involved to an 18 y/o freshman that had just
landed his first professional job (I worked my way through college,
since my parents were dead broke).

And not 1 in 10 people I mention this too have any idea how it could
possibly be done.

piffle. I bet you don't even believe in Santa Claus or the Easter
Bunny...

'magic' was clearly used here in the romantic sense. Sorry you don't
have any imagination. Life must be miserable to be like that.



Eric Stevens