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I don't think we have any active craft capable of recovering it. The space shuttle probably could have done it, but with a cost of about $1.5b per launch, there is no way that would be worth it.

SpaceX's Dragon 2 easily has enough cargo capacity to bring it down (~3 tons vs 0.5 ton), but there's still the question of intercepting, capturing, and securing it in Dragon's cargo bay. That would still cost something north of $100m to recover the lander.


Dragon likely wouldn't be able to get it, unfortunately.

The lander would easily fit into the unpressurized cargo bay (the "trunk"), that is typically used to launch various vacuum-bound payloads alongside pressurized cargo inside the capsule. However, for a return from orbit, the trunk cannot be used - it is not protected by a heat shield, and is ejected before re-entry.

You are correct that the return payload mass of a Dragon would technically allow it. But you'd need to somehow get the captured object _inside_ the capsule, which may be possible via the EVA front hatch for something smaller, but not 1m in diameter like the Venera lander.

Starship should be able to do it, since it is fully protected by heat shielding and returns in one piece, not ejecting any modules in orbit. But that's quite a while from being operational yet.


No, the Space Shuttle could not have done it. It had nowhere near the ΔV that would have been necessary for an intercept and capture. The OMS had only a tiny fuel supply. We're talking about orders of magnitude difference here.


Should have been possible with a dedicated launch. This thing's current orbit is on the same* inclination as the ISS, and at lower altitude.

*(They're both at exactly the minimum inclination, 51°, achievable by a Soviet launch from Baikonur).


Intercept and capture was one of the functional purposes of the shuttle. It was intended to refuel KH-12 recce sats.


Only for a very limited set of orbital parameters.


Most of the benefit of the Shuttle program, and manned spaceflight in general, has come from R and D on the launch process, or from the prestige and bragging rights of being able to launch humans into space. So once they're up there, you're getting your money's worth (or not) no matter what they do, you may as well do something cool like recover a historic satellite.


The Shuttle program was a disaster that consumed NASA's budget and set back manned space flight by a generation.


In space, assuming you're not too far out, heat is abundant. Literally just put the ice in an insulated room with a window facing the sun. If you want to get fancy, use mirrors to focus the sunlight.


This sounds wrong. Firstly, it is generally around -450 degrees F in space (not toward the sun obviously), and to get that asteroid to continuously point toward the sun on one side is probably not gonna happen, and then that "insulated room" built on the asteroid is exorbitantly expensive by itself if it is of any consequential size, and finally, it is impossibly expensive (from energy cost to time cost to equipment cost) to 'mine' that ice from the asteroid. It ain't just sitting out there in cubes... (not to mention there aren't any asteroids hanging out around the Earth anywhere close, so you WILL be far away)


"Any kind of big idea which is spread primarily through video instead of text is immediately suspicious. Could you please send a link to a written version of the main points from any one of those video?"


There is no "right" choice. Both choices immediately end the "game". It's just a short story with two endings.


C’est la vie…


Using what definition of intelligence?


Try OTC reflux medicine like Prilosec (Omeprazole). Works way better than Tums for reflux in my experience.


I have some from Costco and IIUC you need to take it in the morning or something for 2 weeks? Never seemed to do much to me though, especially when I really need it.


This sounds like the same cycle I go through, especially the forgetting part. I've found that cycling caffeine through the week (taking a break on weekends) and just not having too much even during the week can help maintain the productivity, but it also means spending my weekends in a tired daze. I think I just need to commit to not having any caffeine, or if I do, only taking it temporarily before stopping again.


Any mechanism that could switch the magnet on and off would require energy. E.g. you could put a magnet next to it with opposite poles, which would mostly cancel out the magnetic field, but would require a lot of force to push them together, which is work, and thus requires energy.


There are a few games where the point is basically to write a bot to play for you. Off the top of my head are Screeps and Adventure Land


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