Milo Parker

please follow me over on @bluesky , @ miloparkerr.bsky.social

ARTEMIS II LAUNCH AS SEEN FROM THE TOWER RAHHHHHHHHHH

We see our home planet as a whole, lit up in spectacular blues and browns. A green aurora even lights up the atmosphere. That's us, together, watching as our astronauts make their journey to the Moon.

ARTEMIS II AS SEEN BY THE OFFICIAL NASA CESSNA THIS IS THE BEST LAUNCH VIDEO AND IT ISN'T CLOSE

If you're under 53 years old, you have never once been alive while a human was farther than 250 miles from Earth. Tonight, four astronauts are heading 252,000 miles out. That's a thousand times farther than any person has gone in your lifetime. The 250-mile ceiling is where the International Space Station floats. Every astronaut since December 1972 has been stuck in that zone. Spacewalks, science experiments, cool photos from orbit, sure. But nobody left the neighborhood. The last crew to go farther was Apollo 17. December 1972. Nixon was president. The internet didn't exist. Cell phones were 11 years away. The youngest member of that crew is now 90 years old. The farthest any human has ever been from Earth is 248,655 miles. The Apollo 13 crew set that number in 1970, and they didn't mean to. Their oxygen tank blew up, and the emergency route home took them farther out than anyone before or since. Tonight's crew will break that record on purpose. And the crew itself. Victor Glover becomes the first Black astronaut to leave Earth's neighborhood. Christina Koch becomes the first woman. Jeremy Hansen, a Canadian fighter pilot, becomes the first non-American to do so. When they come home, they'll slam into the atmosphere at 25,000 mph, faster than any human has ever traveled. The Moon's south pole has ice. Water ice, sitting in craters so deep that sunlight hasn't hit them in billions of years. A 2024 NASA study found way more of it than anyone expected. You can split water into hydrogen and oxygen, which gives you rocket fuel, breathable air, and drinking water, all made on the Moon instead of hauled up from Earth. George Sowers at Colorado School of Mines calculated that Moon-made fuel could shave $12 billion off a single trip to Mars. The Moon is a gas station on the road to Mars. NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman announced last week a $20 billion plan to build a permanent base at the South Pole over the next seven years, with landings every six months. China is developing its own lunar lander and spacesuit, aiming for a crewed landing by 2030. The Artemis program has burned through $93 billion so far, and the first actual surface landing is penciled in for 2028. There's a real question of who gets there first this time around. Harrison Schmitt walked on the Moon in December 1972 as part of Apollo 17. He's 90. Asked about it this week, he sounded pretty relaxed. "Mars is attainable," he said. "We're humans. That's what we've always done."

At Once, We Shall Return.

“Dad, we can’t leave the rocket without a .5 together!!” I love these two ladies, and I’m boarding that rocket a very proud father.

Very very very good choice Will never forget when they livestreamed the England game right before the full time whistle blew during the Euros and went straight into Mr Brightside UNREAL 🤩

Like player, like manager. ❤️ 🎨 @livescore

The Amazon rainforest is often referred to as the lungs of the earth thanks to how much oxygen it produces. So please don’t let images like this let you forget that we have already destroyed about 20% of this beautiful forest and those who profit from it are pushing to destroy more.

Another nightmare evening in the fallen city

That one meant a lot to Mikel Arteta ❤️ @arsenal

The President of Finland and the Prime minister of Canada jogging together in Hyde Park, London is . . . . . . ...well just nice.

All of us right now...

😭😭

Until the wheels fall off gaffer. ❤️

"I think they love our players. Every time they talk about our players!" Mikel Arteta hit back following criticism from Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler.

THAT feeling when Reiss Nelson scored. The Emirates Stadium was bouncing. 🫨

Tonight CNN shared this clip honoring Nancy Pelosi’s service. A Republican president, introducing a Democratic Speaker. Respect for the office came before partisanship.

This segment in London 2012 opening ceremony always makes me speechless.