Hello, Astro!

space stars milkyway

An astronaut cannot be suspended in space and not have God in his mind and his heart.

Yuri Gagarin

Countdown to the Stars

T-minus 15 seconds. Guidance is internal.

12, 11, 10, 9,

Ignition Sequence Start.

6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, 0.

All engine running.

And Lift-Off! We have a Lift-Off! 32 minutes past the hour. Lift-Off on Apollo 11! Tower Clear!

The Apollo 11 Saturn V space vehicle lifted off with Astronauts Neil A. Armstrong, Michael Collins and Edwin E. Aldrin Jr. at 9:32 a.m. EDT July 16, 1969, from Kennedy Space Center's Launch Complex 39A. Rocket Launch
Eloy - Inside
© Inside (Eloy album), Roberto Patelli

Space Missions Comparison Table

MissionLaunch DateDestinationOutcome
Sputnik 11957-10-04Low Earth OrbitSuccess
Apollo 111969-07-16MoonSuccess
Voyager 11977-09-05InterstellarActive
Artemis I2022-11-16Lunar OrbitUncrewed Test

Orbital Mechanics Formula

To stay in stable circular orbit, an object must have velocity:

v=GMr v = \sqrt{\frac{GM}{r}}

Where:

  • GG — gravitational constant,
  • MM — mass of the central body,
  • rr — radius of orbit.

Simple Orbital Velocity Calculator

import math

def orbital_velocity(mass_central_body, radius_orbit):
    G = 6.67430e-11
    return math.sqrt(G * mass_central_body / radius_orbit)


earth_mass = 5.972e24
earth_radius = 6371e3
altitude = 400e3

velocity = orbital_velocity(earth_mass, earth_radius + altitude)
print(f"Orbital velocity at 400km altitude: {velocity:.2f} m/s")

Explore More

  • AstroBin — Astrophotography platform
  • APOD — Astronomy Picture of the Day

Keep Looking Up

Whether it’s the whisper of distant quasars or the silent arcs of satellites, the cosmos continues to inspire wonder, exploration, and unity. Stay curious.

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