Author Archives: Maureen Carruthers

Mach 30 Reporting In: October 2012

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We dedicate our first weekly hangout each month to catching you up on what is happening at Mach 30.  We do project updates, share where we are stuck, and answer any questions that come up about Mach 30 or our work.

We also broadcast and record that hangout, so even if you can’t join us live, you can still stay in the loop.

If you’d rather not watch the whole meeting, or if you’d like to have easy access to the resources we discuss, you can access the meeting minutes here.

Bonus Video!

In addition to our usual reports hangout, we did a bonus on air hangout in September from the Open Hardware Summit.  If you missed it, you can catch up here.

And here are the videos and pictures previewed in the Open Hardware Summit hangout.

It’s not too late for feedback!

If you have questions or ideas we want to hear them.  Leave a comment below and a Mach 30 board member will answer as soon as we can.

Mach 30 Reporting In: September 2012

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We dedicate our first weekly hangout each month to catching you up on what is happening at Mach 30.  We do project updates, share where we are stuck, and answer any questions that come up about Mach 30 or our work.

We also broadcast and record that hangout, so even if you can’t join us live, you can still stay in the loop.

If you’d rather not watch the whole meeting, or if you’d like to have easy access to the resources we discuss, you can access the meeting minutes here.

It’s not too late for feedback!

If you have questions or ideas we want to hear them.  Leave a comment below and a Mach 30 board member will answer as soon as we can.

Up, Up, and Away: Live(ish) coverage of High Altitude Ballooning

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Today’s the day!

Mach 30 President, J. Simmons and volunteer, Jeremy Wright are in Chicago to begin documenting Open Design Engine‘s first High Altitude Balloon project.

This project is a partnership between Adler Planetarium‘s Far Horizons Project and Albuquerque’s Hackerspace, Quelab.  Adler is providing the design for the balloon, Quelab will build and launch the balloon, and Mach 30 is providing project hosting space on Open Design Engine and project coordination.

As an added bonus, Mach 30 will also be participating in this weekend’s launch.

Watch this space throughout the weekend for new videos, updates and more!

Design Meeting–Live!

You can watch the first design meeting live here–unless the meeting is over, then you should be able to see the video playback.

Photos

A small sample of the photos we took on the trip.

Get Involved!

Tweet your questions and comments about the projects with the hashtag #M30AdlerHAB we’ll answer as quickly as we can.  You can also leave comments below.

For more detailed information about the project as it progresses, watch the project page on ODE, and follow the updates on meeting minutes here.

Introducing the Shepard Test Stand: Mach 30’s first Open Source Spaceflight Project

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by Jeremy Wright, Innovations Technology Solutions, LLC

[Editors Note:  I’ve been asking you to be patient on the hardware front for years now, so believe me when I say words cannot capture how excited I am to introduce you to Jeremy Wright–a new Mach 30 volunteer and major contributor to our very first open source spaceflight hardware project.  Thank you Jeremy for taking us over the breach–and thank you, patient reader, for sticking with us through the “boring” parts.]

Shepard Test Stand Block Diagram

Mach 30’s Shepard Test Stand project has contributors spread over 4 U.S. states and 2 different time zones, so making sure that everyone gets a chance to leave their mark on the project can be a real challenge.  Add to that the fact that we’ll not only be exchanging ideas, but also things like drawings and source code, and the challenge gets even more interesting. This kind of collaboration is possible because of what Mach 30 is doing through the Open Design Engine.

On Shepard, we’ve started this collaborative process in the project’s forums and wiki by working on the why, who, and how questions that will guide us through the rest of the design process. These are seemingly simple questions like:

  • “Why are we building this?”
  • “Who’s going to use this?”
  • “What features does it need to have?”

However, without solid answers to these questions we run the risk, as contributors, of not all pulling in the same direction. As we head deeper into the project, these answers are being turned into a list of requirements that will keep us grounded and focused throughout the life of the project. That way we’re all on the same page, and when we get to the more exciting tasks of building and using the test stand, we’ll have our best shot at hitting the target. These requirements will start to pay off right away by informing the creation of the system block diagram, which is our next step.

If you haven’t yet, swing by opendesignengine.net and look over the Shepard Test Stand project. ODE will be moving into public beta soon, and we’d love to have the help of anyone who’s interested in moving humanity toward a space-faring future.

In short, “ad astra per civitatem” – to the stars through community

Did you miss the party?

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No worries!  We recorded the live event.  You can watch it below:

Guest Panelists

Greg Moran
Vice President, Mach 30 (Special thanks to Ignite New Mexico and their sponsors* for providing video footage of Greg’s presentation.)

James Carlson
Executive Director, School Factory

Ken Walczak
Far Horizons Lab Manager, Adler Planetarium

Twitter

Twitter played an important part of the party, with guests posting questions for the panelists, answering trivia questions, and sharing great links.  Take a look below for highlights, or follow this link for the full history of the conversation.

https://twitter.com/#!/Montsecor/status/190610913273987073
https://twitter.com/#!/hypnagogic/status/190611545494007808
https://twitter.com/#!/Mach_30/status/190619704585498624
https://twitter.com/#!/Mach_30/status/190617067936944128
https://twitter.com/#!/dolyn/status/190615419533533184

Party Sketch Notes

In addition to serving as a panelist, James Carlson “doodled” the party.  Click the image below to see the whole set!

Thanks again to our panelists, volunteers, and everyone who was able to join us on Twitter.  We had a blast!

*Ignite12 New Mexico sponsors include:  Quelab, See Yourself Teaching, UPublic.tv, Sanctuary Sound Studio, One Up Elevated Lounge and Hobby Proz.