Filed under: iPod Family, Odds and ends, iPod classic
Open the iPod bay doors, HAL: iPod spotted on STS-125 space shuttle mission
What's nicer than to come back into a nice, cozy space shuttle after a hard day fixing the Hubble Space Telescope, taking off your sweaty space suit, and the listening to some tunes on your iPod?
TUAW reader Brandon pointed out a photo (below) from the latest mission that showed Astronauts John Grunsfeld and Andrew Feustel grinning in the shuttle mid-deck after the third extravehicular activity (EVA). Plastered to one wall with Velcro are an iPod and some sort of speaker system.
TUAW reader Brandon pointed out a photo (below) from the latest mission that showed Astronauts John Grunsfeld and Andrew Feustel grinning in the shuttle mid-deck after the third extravehicular activity (EVA). Plastered to one wall with Velcro are an iPod and some sort of speaker system.
A closeup view (below) shows that this appears to be a 4th-generation iPod, either the iPod Photo or iPod Color, with what looks like a Belkin TunePower battery pack. As for the speaker system, I leave that to our readers to let us know what model we may be looking at.
Since Astronaut Mike Massimino used the Hubble Servicing Mission to send the first Twitter messages from space as @astro_mike, we wonder when the first iPod touch or MacBook Air wlll be seen in orbit. This isn't the first time we've seen Apple products in space (for example, last year's STS-123 mission also had an AstroiPod on board), and it most certainly won't be the last.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Didou said 5:36AM on 5-22-2009
"I'm sorry Dave, I'm afraid I can't approve your iPhone application."
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David McDonald said 5:46AM on 5-22-2009
"I can sing a song for you, would you like to hear it?... Daisy, daisy...'
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kizer said 5:52AM on 5-22-2009
The battery pack is nickel metal hydride. Lith-Ion won't properly function in space. All iPods are modified and then approved for "flight" by nasa.
I believe 4th gen is the newest iPod model currently approved.
Contact JPL, they will fill you in with details.
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Eric M said 9:54AM on 5-23-2009
The Hit List is the top item, but BoinxTV is a close second.
Eric M said 9:55AM on 5-23-2009
Lith-Ions work in space, they are just too risky for NASA to fly - they can spontaneously combust, and release horrible vapors into the atmo.
Eric M said 9:57AM on 5-23-2009
Ignore that Hit List comment, Autofill FTL
JohnnyBGoode said 5:59AM on 5-22-2009
The Russian guys up there opened the Eurovision song contest, you could clearly see they had a Windows XP system running. Hope they didn't get any space viruses!
"It looks like you're trying to fix Hubble, would you like some help with that?"
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JohnnyBGoode said 6:02AM on 5-22-2009
I'm sorry, that was the ISS, not the shuttle.
Jozso said 6:04AM on 5-22-2009
Maybe they were pilot-testing the iPod shuttle?
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Jaap said 6:52AM on 5-22-2009
The speakers are Sony.
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Tex said 7:30AM on 5-22-2009
Yep, Sony Active Speaker System SRS-T77. Great speakers, compact, loud, 4 AA batteries or AC. Still have mine and they're wonderful for travel. Mine haven't been this far from home though. :)
Ryan Trevisol said 7:50AM on 5-22-2009
And they're crap. I had the dubious priviledge of hearing them yesterday. Proud to say they weren't mine. *shudder*
project_camel said 7:55AM on 5-22-2009
But, I'm pretty sure that sound cannot travel in space, so why would they need an iPod?
This just further convinces me that all these space photos are rigged, and the whole multi-billion conspiracy on space travel still lives. Where are these dollars really used?
You could also just check the IP he uses when posting those twitter updates. I bet it's someplace in USA. Texas maybe.
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JoshK said 8:01AM on 5-22-2009
Outside of the shuttle where there is no air or immense pressure you're right there's no sound. But inside the shuttle where there is oxygen and a pressurized area sound can travel. How do you think the astronauts speak to each other?
Conspiracy? Why would they keep this whole space thing going? The cold war is over and now US and Russia work together in space (at times). Plus do you know how much space exploration has given you? Or is GPS just a conspiracy and made up as well?
marcman said 8:04AM on 5-22-2009
actually sound doesnt travel in the vacuum of space because there isnt any air to push the sound waves. i'm pretty sure there is oxygen in the capsule or else we are looking at these astronauts final seconds.
G said 8:19AM on 5-22-2009
I see what you did there. But you forgot the smiley.
project_camel said 8:22AM on 5-22-2009
Both of you assume they are in space. They can talk to each other because they are in a studio on earth. Wich is also why most of them still are alive.
GPS satelites do not require humans to be in space.
Proof of my claims:
http://tinyurl.com/6capcy
Craig said 8:24AM on 5-22-2009
project_camel, please, for the sake of commenters like Josh, don't forget to add the /sarcasm tag.
daba said 8:19AM on 5-22-2009
I just wonder if a zune will ever make it into space... probably not.
& is radio transmitting technology allowed in space shuttles (bluetooth, wi-fi, ect.)?
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bruceskelly said 9:42AM on 5-22-2009
Oh-Oh. I think they just voided their warranty. Apple specs say:
"Environmental requirements
Maximum operating altitude: 10,000 feet (3000 m)"
I'm sure the shuttle flies at more than 10,000 ft. :)
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