Flying Circuits

@flyingcircuits

Will Work for Launch. Spacecraft troubleshooter at Flying Circuits. Building hardware for the ISS (and beyond!) with BioServe Space Technologies at CU Boulder. Former toymaking elf at Sparkfun Electronics. Friend of parrots and old computers. He/him/ally.

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Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· 25d

NOAA (❤️) runs a smoke prediction model that I like to keep an eye on. I like Pivotal Weather's page but if you search for "HRRR smoke" there are many others. Good luck (to us all)! www.pivotalweather.com/model.php?m=...

A screenshot of pivotal weather's hrrr vertically integrated smoke web page. It shows a representation of the continental US with areas of smoke in various shades from light gray to dark purple. You can clearly see the Canadian wildfires blanketing the northeast states with dense smoke.

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· Jul 4

The Wikipedia page for the Swift Reboot Mission is a roller coaster ride. I hope we get livestreams for the docking (grappling) attempt in a few weeks. Good luck to all the teams! en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swift_r...

The mission patch for Katalyst's Swift Reboot Mission. A representation of the Swift spacecraft is being lassoed by a cowboy riding Pegasus (representing the Pegasus launch vehicle). The Latin phrase for "fortune favors the bold" circles the patch.

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· Jul 4

(Also of interest only to me, is that my subconscious apparently interprets "the car a hit man would drive" as a black classic European convertible. Maybe because they can afford it? 🤷🏻‍♂️)

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· Jul 4

Helping set up a nannycam for an elderly family member (with consent!), and the *extremely* stupid app did have this to offer:

A screenshot from an infuriatingly stupid nannycam product/app we are trying to use to simply monitor an elderly person (with consent). One of the many useless steps, *even for the intended use*, is that you are *required* to enter the subject's name and age (why?). But I did, and it happily responded: Week 4802, (subject) is 92 years and 4 months old." The icing is a decorative icon of alphabet baby blocks. For the record the subject is not there yet.

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· Jul 1

Ran across this lovely (and sexagenarian) Magister at the Santa Fe airport the other day. The owner was nearby and mentioned it was for sale; I did not inquire about the price 💰

Per Wikipedia: The Fouga CM.170 Magister is a 1950s French two-seat jet trainer aircraft that was developed and manufactured by French aircraft manufacturer Établissements Fouga & Cie. Easily recognizable by its V-tail, almost 1,000 have been built in France and under license in West Germany, Israel, and Finland.

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· Jun 22

Indiana Jones considering the weight of a statue he's about to steal, except it's the Steam Machine

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· Jun 20

Freshly-washed Bandit doing his best dragon impersonation

Bandit, the little Senegal parrot, has just been through a shower and a blow dry, both of which he loves despite his tough-guy glowering. His nape feathers are damp and sticking out like the sharp horns on the bony frill of a triceratops. He's holding his wings slightly open which makes him look like a linebacker. All and all pretty intimidating for someone who weighs 150 grams.

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· Jun 19

Does slightly fictional count? 🥰

The red combat seaplane from the 1992 Japanese animated film Porco Rosso. This aircraft is fictional but appears to be a blend between the Savoia S.21 and the Macchi M.33. The aircraft is open cockpit with a single planing hull, a high monoplane wing with fixed outboard pontoons, and a single puller-propeller engine pod above the wing. The film's story takes place in the Italian Mediterranean between world war I and world war II. (And is highly recommended -ed)

At the end of the film we get a brief glance of a modern jet seaplane from the same company that designed the original. It also has a single planing hull, a single high engine, a V-tail, large bubble cockpit, and presumably wingtip dropdown floats ala the PBY.

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· Jun 18

It's taken 40 years, but I think we're finally there:

A title card from Max Headroom: 20 Minutes Into The Future (1985). A brutalist city rises above purple smog. The tallest buildings are owned by TV channels, who control everything in this world. At the bottom of the frame is a title in a blocky computerish font noting the current date: "20 MINUTES INTO THE FUTURE"

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· Jun 18

Ok that's pretty cute!

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· Jun 18

A screenshot of a reddit post stating "it is imperative that the cylinder and the larger object remain unharmed"

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· Jun 16

Just like when I was a kid, the top shelves in my bedroom hold boxed model kits I hope to build in my lifetime. Special effects legend Brian Johnson has smiled down on me for many years from the side of an enormous Eagle transporter kit that I now really need to get to. RIP and thank you sir! 🫡

A stack of cardboard boxes containing large-scale model kits. One is a Space 1999 eagle transporter kit, with a quote on the side from the craft's designer, Brian Johnson:

"It is rare to be a freelance special effects technician and achieve success in the film effects industry. Not always a smooth run but I have worked for some amazing directors and producers. It is rarer still to find the opportunity to design a lasting icon like the eagle transporter from the television production of space 1999. It was designed with a sense of practical durability and modularity as it would be needed for television effects production techniques required of the era. It brings me great joy to know that science fiction fans and modelers still hold my design of the eagle transporter in such high regard. This model kit from MPC offers everyone the opportunity to build their own eagle. Its authentic detail demonstrates years of research in documenting the original miniatures used in the show's production. Wouldn't it have been wonderful to have these kids available during filming?

Brian Johnson
Academy award winner and BAFTA winner and effects designer / director on Space 1999. Designer of the eagle transporter"

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· Jun 14

Great question - it is! Here's this morning's map at the same scale. The overnight surface winds were roughly out of the south so this fits. The sensors measure small particulates so I wonder if it could have been pollen or something like that?

A purpleair air quality map of the Denver area from the morning of 6/14. The red/poor air quality area has moved about 50 miles northeast overnight.

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· Jun 14

Got a smoke warning from my home weather station, so I ran home just in case. Usually it's from someone burning something in the neighborhood, but not this time… Then I see that the whole area has bad AQI, but there's no nearby fires, and we're surrounded by clean air… What is going on?

An AQI (air quality index) graph from my weather station, showing it getting worse over a number of hours, then getting better

An AQI map from a number of purpleair weather stations showing an area of poor air quality in the Boulder/Longmont Colorado area, surrounded by clean air

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· Jun 11

I'm currently taking care of Ollie, who's one of the smartest birds I've ever met. I've heard him say at least 30 things, all in context!

A male eclectus parrot named Ollie. He has a large bright orange bill, a dark green head, beautiful dark eyes, and the rest of him is covered with down because he plucks his feathers due to trauma when he was younger. Despite this he's very personable and extremely smart!

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· Jun 6

Atlantic Explorer open-basket balloon almost there! my.yb.tl/pertwood/?ut...

The Atlantic Explorer balloon approaching France

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· Jun 5

Buckle your seatbelt and put your Clarks on... 👴🏻

A screenshot from an early version of Microsoft Flight Simulator showing an aerial view of (the former) Meigs Field on an island in lake Michigan. There are basically only four colors, sky, grass, water, and concrete. Very few buildings are rendered, the Sears Tower being one of them. I think this was the default home field if I remember correctly...

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· Jun 5

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· Jun 4

But.. but.. that scene includes the greatest bat-gadget reveal in the entire history of Batman!

Fortunately for our hero, the Batcopter is equipped with a full line of Oceanic Repellent Bat Sprays, including Barracuda Repellent, Whale Repellent, Manta Ray Repellent, and Shark Repellent.

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· Jun 3

So say we all!

A jaunty 25-pin rainbow ribbon cable with D-sub connectors crimped to each end, in the traditional box of miscellaneous cables that if you ever get rid of you will immediately need

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· Jun 2

The background of the "always has been" meme

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· Jun 1

Whew, I just got caught up in that ridiculous hailstorm over DEN. Luckily no car damage but not for lack of trying. Totally understand the decision to divert. Safe travels back to Busytown!

A Richard Scarry illustration of an airport, with various animal citizens competently carrying out their jobs.

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· May 31

If AI just died for everyone on the planet, it's because I googled Mr. Blobby. Sorry.

A screenshot of a Google search for Mr. Blobby. The "AI summary" section is doing the "thinking" thing but forever. Sorry folks!

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· May 26

That's right

A snippet of an Amazon ad: at the top, text says "keep shopping for", at the bottom is a picture of a guy in a blue shark costume on a white background

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· May 24

Keanu Reeves from Bill and Ted's excellent adventure, saying "what?"

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· May 22

A scene from Serenity (2005), Captain Reynolds exclaims: did the primary buffer panel just fall off my goram ship for no apparent reason?

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· May 19

No wonder the backyard was suddenly so quiet! (Cooper's? The harlequin back is throwing me off)

A small hawk about 18 in Long perches on a fence post. Its tail has wide radial stripes of dark brown and cream. Its back has a checkerboard pattern of cream and white. It has a fashionable hairdo with a bit of a crest and a serious yellow eye.

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· May 18

Welcome to space NEMO! And ODYSSEY! And Sachi Bio, StemCellEx-H2B, ODYSSEY, MeF1, BEM-CARTS, Auxilium, and ACMs! Good luck and make us proud.

SpaceX Cargo Dragon c209, on its 6th flight, docks with the International Space Station as part of the CRS-34 (Commercial Resupply Services) mission. The capsule is loaded with 6,500 lbs of cargo, including 1800 lbs of scientific experiments including the ones listed in this post.

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· May 15

Parrots will absolutely say things in context, but usually it's eg. "Hello Polly" because that's what they've heard in that context So I'm boarding this cute guy named Ollie, and when I tucked him in he said "Good night Ollie," but then he started saying "GOOD NIGHT MIKE" and I'm a bit freaked out!

Flying Circuits@flyingcircuits· May 13

We weren't planning on having so many projects phase up the way they did, but we've got a LOT of hardware headed upstairs today (weather permitting). The last few months have been 😅 for us engineers and the next few months are going to be 😅 for our ops people, but we made it to the gate. Ad astra!