Topic: Space station (ISS)

1-8. Horn to Falkland Islands

Mar 10, 2005 - 0730hrs UTC │ NASA will try to talk to us

0730hrs 10 Mar 2005 UTC 55’54”S 072’56”W Map Ref 112

Would all y’all join us both in wishing Ben and Georgina all the very best for their wedding on Saturday in Oz and for the future. The have been part of the Berrimilla extended family ever since Ben jumped off … Continue reading

1-8. Horn to Falkland Islands

Mar 11, 2005 – 0715hrs UTC

0715hrs 11 Mar 2005 UTC 56’08”S 069’45”W Map Ref 114

86 miles to go and – touch wood – the stage seems to be set. Cold, slightly hazy night, gerzillionsAn awful lot of something: usually stars of stars up there but just a bit fuzzy, series of little rain squalls … Continue reading

1-9. Falklands

Mar 17, 2005 - 2300hrs UTC

2300hrs 17 Mar 2005 UTC 51’41”S 057’49”W Map Ref 123

Stephen (the web bloke):

This update is a compilation of a number of conversations and emails over the few days since Berri reached Port Stanley. Since arriving and clearing customs they boys have been busy reprovisioning, carrying out repairs, further … Continue reading

1-9. Falklands

Mar 18, 2005 - 0125hrs UTC

0125hrs 18 Mar 2005 UTC 51’41”S 057’49”W Map Ref 123

Stanley(the place, not the name)

Alex: The Falklands – fascinating – land of contrasts – chunks of wrecked or modified 19th century sailing ships lying around in heaps, absolutely no facilities for visiting yachties and I was told they try … Continue reading

1-9. Falklands

Mar 18, 2005 - 1730hrs UTC │Port Stanley, Falklands - 1st talk with ISS

international space station

Well, says he, overdoing the understatement, we have just spent half an hour talking to Dr Leroy Chiao, Commander of the International Space Station. A very low tech slow speed operation in the charge of a couple of grizzled and smelly veterans down here linked by similarities on the human scale … Continue reading

1-10. South Atlantic-Going up

Mar 25, 2005 - 1400hrs UTC

1400hrs 25 Mar 2005 UTC Map Ref 124

All times back to GMT. We cleared Customs at 1200, departed the jetty at 1300 escorted by a couple of rigid assault boats and entered the Narrows at 1315. We are not running up the S Atlantic on 040M for a point … Continue reading

1-10. South Atlantic-Going up

Mar 27, 2005 - 0930hrs UTC

Well, all y’all, now that the Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster has had time to work it’s magic and I’m shaking off my cold and feeling a bit more like one of those primitive ape forms from Sydney, here we go again. Brain has been congealed for a couple of days so apologies if some of this is second time around. … Continue reading

1-10. South Atlantic-Going up

Mar 27, 2005 - 2230hrs UTC

It is nice to be in the lee of a wall like the Andes, although today we are in thick mist, with rain and low cloud. No chance to see the ISS, sadly. These are convergence Zone conditions, but softer than across the wall. We are still getting the Chilean weather fax, but it seems the Brazilians may have stopped their service. We have over a knot of current against us, as expected, but there’s no easy way to predict where it will be so we just have to slog into it. We’re both looking forward to getting back above 40S – seems like a long time ago when we crossed going south – Dec 28 or 29,perhaps. … Continue reading

1-10. South Atlantic-Going up

Mar 29, 2005 - 1115hrs UTC

1115hrs 29 Mar 2005 UTC Map Ref 132

I’m having an idle speculation day. It seems to me that Berrimilla and her scruffy crew are a bit like an ant being given a ride in the sunlight on the back of an elephant called NASA. There may be mutual benefit … Continue reading

1-10. South Atlantic-Going up

Mar 29, 2005 – 2000hrs UTC

2000hrs 29 Mar 2005 UTC 46’27”S 050’35”W Map Ref 133

Those of us who thought things would get easier this side of the wall couldn’t have been wronger. Lots of wind this morning, then none and now we’re in a ferocious little storm that we were sort of expecting but … Continue reading

1-10. South Atlantic-Going up

Mar 30, 2005 - 1100hrs UTC │Clench-Inducing Sequences III

1100hrs 30 Mar 2005 UTC Map Ref 136

[ed: Laptop’s working again!]

I’ve been in some pretty bad storms but I think that was the worst bashing so far and quite clench inducing. Went down to about 990hp, so well out from the centre, up to 50kts very early – … Continue reading

1-10. South Atlantic-Going up

Mar 31, 2005 - 1230hrs UTC

Leroy Chiao called us from the ISS around midnight to say he could see a light but as we didn’t have ours on, it can’t have been us. We sent him a white flare anyway but I think he was way past by then. … Continue reading

1-11. South Atlantic-26°S

Apr 04, 2005 - 0345hrs UTC

0345hrs 04 Apr 2005 UTC Map Ref 145

We spoke to LeroyLeroy ChiaoLeroy Chiao: International Space Station Commander, Expedition 10, at time Berrimilla first made contact. Bio here.: International Space Station Commander, Expedition 10, at time Berrimilla first made contact. Bio here. [ed: Commander of the International Space Station – … Continue reading

1-11. South Atlantic-26°S

Apr 04, 2005 - 0530hrs UTC │Rough Rough - as opposed to Just Rough

0530hrs 04 Apr 2005 UTC Map Ref 146

An intensely frustrating few days, mostly spent watching Montevideo not going past. And for all you members of the great unwashed, our silence is perhaps covered by my alltime favourite song title – “When the phone don’t ring, babe, you’ll know it’s … Continue reading

1-11. South Atlantic-26°S

Apr 04, 2005 – 2300hrs UTC

More idle nonsense. How many of you set off on a journey to somewhere new knowing exactly how to get there? Say from Randwick to Liverpool (in Sydney, for our foreign guest…) or from Chatswood to Burrumbuttock? (Look it up…) I was thinking about mud maps – mental plots – when I was describing our track for NASA to pass on to Leroy. He’s an astronaut and a pilot and it’s really very easy to do – we’re tracking parallel to the South American coast about five hundred miles out at about 5 knots, starting from Stanley on Saturday at noon. … Continue reading

1-11. South Atlantic-26°S

Apr 05, 2005 - 2214hrs UTC

We finally cracked part of the rendezvous – we saw the ISS high and clear about 10 minutes ago for the first time since all this started – huge thrill – but we’d already decided it was too chancy with cloud moving over to risk wasting a flare so … Continue reading

1-11. South Atlantic-26°S

Apr 15, 2005 - 1130hrs UTC

1130hrs 15 Apr 2005 UTC Map Ref 167

And still here, in a very uncomfortable headbutt into a 30kt North easter which is due to blow for at least two more days. Very frustrating. The tradesBands of NW and SW winds either side of the equator that blow with more … Continue reading

1-12. 26°S-Nose Brazil

Apr 16, 2005 – 1700hrs UTC

1700hrs 16 Apr 2005 UTC Map Ref 170Map Ref 170

Here we still are, part IV or whatever. Not a lot has changed except that the wind has dropped to 25 and we’ve got some sail up again. General conditions much the same but at least the boat is a … Continue reading

1-12. 26°S-Nose Brazil

Apr 18, 2005 - 11hrs UTC

Plus ca change, plus c’est la meme chose…Still in our shed in Fox Studios, Malcom – there’s a bus shelter just outside the gate – and I forgot to add yaw into the gyrating cockpit – up to 60 degrees either side of intended course, perhaps, over the shorter period. To humour the unbelievers, we’re now off the Disneyland Space Mountain roller coaster and Pirates of the Caribbean rides and on a slowly rolling calm sea with no wind, lightning to the south, lovely moon. Chatty updates back on the agenda. … Continue reading

1-12. 26°S-Nose Brazil

Apr 26, 2005 - 1240hrs UTC

1240hrs 26 Apr 2005 UTC Map Ref 184

Relevant Sunday Times crossword clue clue for all y’all, courtesy of my sister: “Howling wind that delights the shopkeeper” 7,5. A pity ours isn’t! I will post the answer if anyone is driven mad by it.

Panic last night – HFHigh Frequency … Continue reading

1-12. 26°S-Nose Brazil

Apr 28, 2005 – 1200hrs UTC

1200hrs 28 Apr 2005 UTC Map Ref 188

It’s beginning to look just a teensy bit promising – we may just be on our bikes and on the way but with this particular ExaminerShe who asks awkward questions of the crew and tests them with difficult tasks., ain’t nothing … Continue reading

1-13. Across the Equator

May 05, 2005 - 1100hrs UTC

1100hrs 05 May 2005 UTC Map Ref 202

Spectacular ISSInternational Space Station pass this morning. Came up right on time and passed almost directly overhead from NW to SE. Very bright when overhead – it’s a huge conglomeration of modules and solar panels so there’s probably a couple of … Continue reading

1-21. Equator to Left Turn

Sep 19, 2005 - 2315hrs UTC

2315hrs 19 Sep 2005 UTC 00’22”N 026’12”W Ref 376

Some idle rumination – nothing whatever to do with the price of fish, but interesting.

Think Hippopotami – lumbering ungainly beasts with ill fitting folded skin (perhaps someone can find Kipling’s story – better still, Jack Nicholson reading it?) and prone … Continue reading

Oct 05, 2005 - 2100hrs │Two Old Farts and a Spaceman...

Two Old Farts and a Spaceman… The Berrimilla shirt signed by Dr Leroy Chiao, the Commander of the NASA ISS 10 Mission, and Pete and me will be auctioned on Lord Howe Island after the Lord Howe Race at the end of this month. The proceeds will be treated as a tax deductible donation to … Continue reading