Full Scale Space Station Model at the new Fry's Electronics Store

I wonder how accurate the full scale Space Station Model is at the new
Fry's Electronics store in Webster, Texas. For those who don't live in the
Houston area, the city of Webster is right next to JSC in Houston. Fry's
Electronics just openned a new store, and hanging from the ceiling is a
full scale model of the Space Station. It includes a Soyuz about to dock
with it, an X-38 already docked to it and a couple X-38s flying around. No
Space Shuttle.

Craig Fink

Craig Fink wrote:
I wonder how accurate the full scale Space Station Model is at the new
Fry's Electronics store in Webster, Texas. For those who don't live in the
Houston area, the city of Webster is right next to JSC in Houston. Fry's
Electronics just openned a new store, and hanging from the ceiling is a
full scale model of the Space Station. It includes a Soyuz about to dock
with it, an X-38 already docked to it and a couple X-38s flying around. No
Space Shuttle.

Craig Fink


If it's got "an X-38 already docked to it and a couple X-38s flying
around", then it isn't very accurate at all...

--
Reed Snellenberger
GPG KeyID: 5A978843
rsnellenberger-at-houston.rr.com

On Thu, 13 Jan 2005 15:02:27 +0000, Reed Snellenberger wrote:

Craig Fink wrote:
I wonder how accurate the full scale Space Station Model is at the new
Fry's Electronics store in Webster, Texas. For those who don't live in the
Houston area, the city of Webster is right next to JSC in Houston. Fry's
Electronics just openned a new store, and hanging from the ceiling is a
full scale model of the Space Station. It includes a Soyuz about to dock
with it, an X-38 already docked to it and a couple X-38s flying around. No
Space Shuttle.

If it's got "an X-38 already docked to it and a couple X-38s flying
around", then it isn't very accurate at all...

Yeah, but the X-38s look "mucho" cool compared to the Soyuz, and that
part of history hasn't been written yet. Maybe, just the designation "X-38"
is wrong.

http://www.dfrc.nasa.gov/Gallery/Pho...6-43737-13.jpg

http://www.dfrc.nasa.gov/Gallery/Pho...l/ECN-1088.jpg

http://www.dfrc.nasa.gov/Gallery/Pho...l/ECN-1289.jpg

http://www.dfrc.nasa.gov/Gallery/Pho...l/ECN-1107.jpg

Craig Fink

On Thu, 13 Jan 2005 15:39:40 +0000, Craig Fink wrote:

On Thu, 13 Jan 2005 15:02:27 +0000, Reed Snellenberger wrote:

Craig Fink wrote:
I wonder how accurate the full scale Space Station Model is at the new
Fry's Electronics store in Webster, Texas. For those who don't live in the
Houston area, the city of Webster is right next to JSC in Houston. Fry's
Electronics just openned a new store, and hanging from the ceiling is a
full scale model of the Space Station. It includes a Soyuz about to dock
with it, an X-38 already docked to it and a couple X-38s flying around. No
Space Shuttle.

If it's got "an X-38 already docked to it and a couple X-38s flying
around", then it isn't very accurate at all...

Yeah, but the X-38s look "mucho" cool compared to the Soyuz, and that
part of history hasn't been written yet. Maybe, just the designation "X-38"
is wrong.

http://www.dfrc.nasa.gov/Gallery/Pho...6-43737-13.jpg

http://www.dfrc.nasa.gov/Gallery/Pho...l/ECN-1088.jpg

http://www.dfrc.nasa.gov/Gallery/Pho...l/ECN-1289.jpg

http://www.dfrc.nasa.gov/Gallery/Pho...l/ECN-1107.jpg

http://www.dfrc.nasa.gov/Gallery/Pho...ll/E-10628.jpg

http://www.scaled.com/projects/tiero...front_left_800


Craig Fink

Craig Fink wrote:
On Thu, 13 Jan 2005 15:02:27 +0000, Reed Snellenberger wrote:


Craig Fink wrote:

I wonder how accurate the full scale Space Station Model is at the new
Fry's Electronics store in Webster, Texas. For those who don't live in the
Houston area, the city of Webster is right next to JSC in Houston. Fry's
Electronics just openned a new store, and hanging from the ceiling is a
full scale model of the Space Station. It includes a Soyuz about to dock
with it, an X-38 already docked to it and a couple X-38s flying around. No
Space Shuttle.


If it's got "an X-38 already docked to it and a couple X-38s flying
around", then it isn't very accurate at all...


Yeah, but the X-38s look "mucho" cool compared to the Soyuz, and that
part of history hasn't been written yet. Maybe, just the designation "X-38"
is wrong.


Sorry, Craig -- I left off the smiley I'd intended to put at the end of
that earlier note...

I always liked the X-38 -- would have liked to see it flown.

Surely that's not a "full-scale" Space Station Model, though -- that'd
be about 360 feet long.

Incidentally, there's a nice (but not full-scale) model of the station
in the lobby of the IBM building @ the corner of Bay Area Blvd &
Middlebrook (just past the UofH-CL campus).

--
Reed Snellenberger
GPG KeyID: 5A978843
rsnellenberger-at-houston.rr.com

Craig Fink wrote:
On Thu, 13 Jan 2005 16:05:12 +0000, Reed Snellenberger wrote:

Looks to me that the X-38 and SpaceShipOne are related.

But not as close as some of Spiral variants (and BOR test models)
and the X-38, perhaps.
http://www.buran.ru/images/jpg/model1.jpg
http://www.buran.ru/images/gif/bor4.gif
http://www.buran.ru/htm/molniya.htm

And like SS1, Spiral was to use a variable geometry rentry, though a
rather different technique than SS1.

Craig Fink wrote in
news
On Thu, 13 Jan 2005 16:05:12 +0000, Reed Snellenberger wrote:

Craig Fink wrote:
On Thu, 13 Jan 2005 15:02:27 +0000, Reed Snellenberger wrote:

Craig Fink wrote:

I wonder how accurate the full scale Space Station Model is at the
new Fry's Electronics store in Webster, Texas. For those who don't
live in the Houston area, the city of Webster is right next to JSC
in Houston. Fry's Electronics just opened a new store, and hanging
from the ceiling is a full scale model of the Space Station. It
includes a Soyuz about to dock with it, an X-38 already docked to
it and a couple X-38s flying around. No Space Shuttle.

Surely that's not a "full-scale" Space Station Model, though --
that'd be about 360 feet long.

Yeah, that sounds like a good round number, you haven't been in the
new Fry's Electronics store yet, have you? ;-)

Craig's right, Reed. This model is 1:1 scale - it pretty much floored me
when I walked in the door to find myself staring at the business end of a
life size Soyuz. Fry's is one of those "big-box" superstores with a main
floor the size of a football field, and the ISS model pretty much covers
the whole damn ceiling. The US solar arrays are aligned horizontally along
the ceiling and the modules on the nadir side (FGB2, Node 3) appear to
support the weight of the central line of modules. Only the top third or so
of the FGB2 and Node 3 are there - the rest would be beneath the floor (the
ceiling is high but not *that* high). The other big compromises are that
the main truss has a skinnier cross section than real-life in order to fit
under the ceiling, and that the thermal radiators are missing. Beyond that,
the errors are mainly in detail, like PMA-1 being upside down. There were
other errors of detail I've forgotten since I haven't been there in a few
weeks. But it appears they went to considerable trouble to get the general
scale and layout of the model correct. My hat's off.

Almost as impressive is the outside of the Fry's - it's designed to look
like it was made of space station modules. The store is kinda out in the
boonies along I-45 right now, and not particularly easy to get to, but once
the NASA Parkway bypass is complete, I could see this becoming a tourist
attraction in its own right.
--
JRF

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check "Organization" (I am not assimilated) and
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Jorge R. Frank wrote:

[...]
But it appears they went to considerable trouble to get the general
scale and layout of the model correct. My hat's off.

Almost as impressive is the outside of the Fry's - it's designed to look
like it was made of space station modules. [...]
I could see this becoming a tourist attraction in its own right.

Dang, I'm stuck with one that looks like a warehouse on the outside, and
ancient Rome on the inside...but without the toga party.

I've got to check out 2 others that are "local"; don't remember what El
Segundo is supposed to be, but the Anaheim one has a space theme too...

/dps

--
Using Opera's revolutionary e-mail client: http://www.opera.com/m2/

Jorge R. Frank wrote:
Craig Fink wrote in
news
Surely that's not a "full-scale" Space Station Model, though --
that'd be about 360 feet long.


Yeah, that sounds like a good round number, you haven't been in the
new Fry's Electronics store yet, have you? ;-)


Craig's right, Reed. This model is 1:1 scale - it pretty much floored me
when I walked in the door to find myself staring at the business end of a
life size Soyuz. Fry's is one of those "big-box" superstores with a main
floor the size of a football field, and the ISS model pretty much covers
the whole damn ceiling.

Look for me there... I'll be one of the guys who runs into things
because he's looking up. :-)

--
Reed Snellenberger
GPG KeyID: 5A978843
rsnellenberger-at-houston.rr.com

Reed Snellenberger wrote:

Incidentally, there's a nice (but not full-scale) model of the station
in the lobby of the IBM building @ the corner of Bay Area Blvd &
Middlebrook (just past the UofH-CL campus).

There's also a nice one at the Pete Conrad exhibit here at the Museum
of Flight.

D.
--
Touch-twice life. Eat. Drink. Laugh.

-Resolved: To be more temperate in my postings.
Oct 5th, 2004 JDL