Tasks on the moon. Astronaut Buzz Aldrin performs the Solar Wind Composition Experiment during Apollo 11, July 1969. This process measured the solar wind outside the Earth’s magnetosphere. The experiment was also conducted on Apollo 12, 14-16.

“The Boy Who Cried Wolf” [AO3]

Pairings: Tenth Doctor & Martha Jones (completely platonic), Tenth Doctor x Rose Tyler (past), The Doctor x The Master (past, toxic)

Words: 111,211

Chapters: 29/29

Rating: Teen for like 90% of it, Mature when it gets to the Year That Never Was starting with Chapter 24

Series? Yes! Third in “The Howling” (series in-progress)

Summary: After losing Rose, the Doctor has to rediscover how and why to carry on, even as his oldest enemies and worst nightmares continue to resurface. Meanwhile, medical student Martha Jones gets a whole lot more than she bargained for when her hospital ends up on the moon. But will she ever get back for her exams?

Notes/Warnings: content warnings available with each chapter, edited trigger-free versions available for certain chapters (linked in chapter notes). As with the rest of the series, not Moffat-friendly, not 50th anniversary compliant. Follows a dark AU twist on Doomsday from my previous work, “Something of the Wolf.” Not a fic for Martha haters, not a fic for TenMartha shippers, not a fic for Rose haters or Donna haters either. Radically alters the dynamic between Ten & Martha to give her different emotional arcs. No unrequited love between them. Will take a deep and intense look at certain moments during the Year That Never Was and the messed up relationship between the Doctor and the Master. Will occasionally AU episodes to try to spare Martha at least a little bit of the misogynoir from canon. Individual work doesn’t really have a happy ending for the Doctor but the series as a whole absolutely will. Certain chapters of this work deal seriously with grief, suicidal ideation, past experiences of intimate partner violence and relationship abuse, Time War traumas, etc. but all are HEAVILY SIGNPOSTED and alternative summaries/excerpts are available.

Selected Review Excerpts:

“I have chills. Jeez louis, Lia, what in the devil? How did you write an incomprehensible concept in a way I could comprehend?”

“I am so utterly *thrilled* that you are doing away with the unrequited romance aspect of Martha's time with the Doctor!”

“*Screams incoherently*”

“I am entertained in a messed up way”

Harrison Schmitt and the rover at Shorty Crater

Panorama created by Andy Saunders

Apollo 14 mission patch.

But how do you know…?

I love conspiracy theories and alternative science. I mean I really love conspiracy theories and alternative science. Whether it is the faked Moon landings, flat Earth, climate change denial, creationism or 9/11 truthers, I am infinitely fascinated by all things outside of the mainstream. I should probably be clear, I do not believe any of these conspiracies or what I would more accurately call…

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Figuring out how to land humans on the moon was a challenge, but the six Apollo crews who achieved this aim encountered another perplexing problem once they arrived: moon dust. The tiny, electrostatically charged particles made of crushed lunar rock clung to every surface, from spacesuits to electronics, and even infiltrated the astronauts’ lungs. Crews tried using a brush or their hands to sweep the sharp, abrasive dust off their spacesuits, but neither method proved very effective.

Now, as NASA once again prepares to send humans to the moon with the Artemis program, researchers at Washington State University say they’ve come up with a promising solution to the dust issue. In laboratory experiments, they effectively removed dust from surfaces using pressurized liquid nitrogen, according to a new paper published in February in the journal Acta Astronautica.

To see whether liquid nitrogen—typically used as coolant—might be up to the task of removing moon dust, the scientists created miniature, replica spacesuits and placed them on Barbie dolls. Then, they coated the suits with volcanic ash from Mount St. Helens and other substances meant to imitate lunar dust. After placing the dolls in a vacuum chamber, they used a sprayer full of pressurized liquid nitrogen to blast away the particles.

In 233 total tests on 26 simulated spacesuits, the pressurized liquid nitrogen removed more than 98 percent of the moon dust substitute. Perhaps even more exciting is that the technique caused little damage to the spacesuits. This is important because “traditional spacesuit cleaning methods, such as brushing and vacuuming, have limited effectiveness and introduce suit fabric abrasion,” the researchers write in the paper.

The mechanism at play is known as the Leidenfrost Effect, in which a liquid droplet hovers over a very hot surface, rather than making contact with it. This happens, for example, when a chef pours cold water into a very hot pan—rather than coating the bottom, the water beads up and skitters across the surface. The researchers say the same thing occurred when they sprayed cold liquid nitrogen onto the warmer spacesuits: The nitrogen encapsulated the dust particles in droplets, then floated away.

This relatively gentle method can be used 75 times without causing damage to the suit, writes Space.com’s Elizabeth Howell. A brush, for comparison, damages a spacesuit with just one use.

Though the initial findings are promising, they represent only a first step toward implementing the technique on future lunar landings. For one, the researchers tested the liquid nitrogen on Earth, which has much stronger gravity than the moon. Astronauts would also face logistical challenges bringing pressured liquid nitrogen aboard a spacecraft.

Even so, NASA is eager to come up with a solution to the moon dust problem and wants to collaborate with partners that might be able to help. In 2019, the space agency launched the Lunar Surface Innovation Initiative to develop new technologies that could support astronauts and vehicles that land on the moon—and dust is one of its key areas of focus. Staff working on the initiative are considering “active and passive mitigation technologies for different exploration systems, like rovers, power systems, spacesuits and other surface hardware exposed to dust,” according to NASA.

NASA engineers have been testing some ideas, including slippery coatings to prevent dust from sticking to surfaces in the first place and electrostatic devices to repel particles. They’re also considering using waves of ultrasonic energy to remove dust. In the end, they may need to use all of these techniques—and then some—to protect the materials astronauts bring to space and finally vanquish their pesky lunar dust foe.

“There’s not going to be one solution,” said Sharon Miller, who is leading NASA’s dust-mitigation efforts, to Wired’s Eric Niiler in 2021. “For every material that you need to have up there, we’ll have to do something different.”

Hey. Why isn’t the moon landing a national holiday in the US. Isn’t that fucked up? Does anyone else think that’s absurd?

And the first private Moon landing. To date, only five national programs had made Moon landings.

CHANDRAYAAN 3 MADE IT

On this, the anniversary of the lunar landing, let us also celebrate the greatest post-mission achievement by a crewman.

I refer, of course, to the time Buzz Aldrin (age 72 at the time) cold-cocked a moon landing conspiracy theorist straight in his smug face after being accused of being a coward, liar, and thief.

Yes, someone was indeed dumb enough to tell a man so unafraid of death that he was willing to go into the void on a fragile explosive rocket, a coward.

Said dumbass was filming this confrontation as some sort of proof of moon fraud, but has instead captured this glorious moment of near-cosmic justice for us to loop for all time.

Aldrin was not charged with any crime. He should have been given another medal for public service.

Parked by the front door. The Lunar Rover sits by Orion, the Lunar Module during Apollo 16, Apr 1972. The crew of John Young, Charlie Duke & Ken Mattingly experienced many glitches on the way to the moon culminating in concerns in the main engine. Mission Control had considered aborted the entire landing until it was decided the issues could be overcome. Still, as a result of these concerns, the mission ended 1 day earlier than planned.

10. 9. 8. 7. 6. 5. 4. 3. 2. 1.

AAAND WE HAVE LIFTOFF!

HAPPY MOON LANDING DAY!!!

Happy Moon Landing Day 🌕🐇

Ben Emlyn-Jones and Rasa Viharii

New HPANWO Voice article: https://hpanwo-voice.blogspot.com/2023/10/ben-emlyn-jones-and-rasa-viharii.html