Outer Space, man.
April 19, 2012 7:16 AM Subscribe
The wonders of space. This is a stunning black and white video taken from actual Cassini and Huygens mission footage.
Amazing. I've been following this mission for years. When Huygens touched down on Titan was quite a memorable moment. What a cool (ice cold) place that is.
posted by IvoShandor at 7:23 AM on April 19, 2012
posted by IvoShandor at 7:23 AM on April 19, 2012
The thing about space imagery that gets me every time is how vast a gap exists between nothingness and stuff.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 7:33 AM on April 19, 2012
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 7:33 AM on April 19, 2012
Why is the camera so stationary? Does it orbit around to the same spot every day? I suppose I could look it up, but I'm lazy.
posted by fungible at 7:40 AM on April 19, 2012
posted by fungible at 7:40 AM on April 19, 2012
Awesome. I can never get over Saturn's flat-ass rings!
posted by RobotVoodooPower at 7:43 AM on April 19, 2012 [2 favorites]
posted by RobotVoodooPower at 7:43 AM on April 19, 2012 [2 favorites]
I've watched this video a few times this week, and it's breathtaking every time. Love it. The beginning of the video cracks me up, too: THIS VIDEO WAS CREATED WITH ONLY REAL SPACE FOOTAGE.
posted by sc114 at 7:44 AM on April 19, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by sc114 at 7:44 AM on April 19, 2012 [1 favorite]
Cassini is so awesome. Sometimes when I'm stressed, I will just flip through the raw image feed.
posted by vibrotronica at 7:46 AM on April 19, 2012 [2 favorites]
posted by vibrotronica at 7:46 AM on April 19, 2012 [2 favorites]
......oh man.
Yep, crying at my desk about space.
Again.
posted by Narrative Priorities at 8:02 AM on April 19, 2012 [5 favorites]
Yep, crying at my desk about space.
Again.
posted by Narrative Priorities at 8:02 AM on April 19, 2012 [5 favorites]
Beautiful.
Here's some more vimeo Cassini goodness.
posted by A Thousand Baited Hooks at 8:07 AM on April 19, 2012 [1 favorite]
Here's some more vimeo Cassini goodness.
posted by A Thousand Baited Hooks at 8:07 AM on April 19, 2012 [1 favorite]
Space is the place.
-Sun Ra
(This clip should've maybe used some of his music, come to think of it)
posted by flapjax at midnite at 8:08 AM on April 19, 2012 [2 favorites]
-Sun Ra
(This clip should've maybe used some of his music, come to think of it)
posted by flapjax at midnite at 8:08 AM on April 19, 2012 [2 favorites]
And it is, truly, awesome. This stuff is the definition of awesome. If I had time, though, I'd re-score the clip, with some radically different music. That music bugged me. *Tasteful* and utterly banal. The images deserve so much better.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 8:11 AM on April 19, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by flapjax at midnite at 8:11 AM on April 19, 2012 [1 favorite]
Truly stunning. Makes me want to get out there and see these things with my own eyes.
posted by Nick Jordan at 8:13 AM on April 19, 2012
posted by Nick Jordan at 8:13 AM on April 19, 2012
If I had time, though, I'd re-score the clip
That would be too cool for school, Flapjax.
posted by pjern at 8:13 AM on April 19, 2012
That would be too cool for school, Flapjax.
posted by pjern at 8:13 AM on April 19, 2012
....I liked the music.................
posted by Narrative Priorities at 8:16 AM on April 19, 2012
posted by Narrative Priorities at 8:16 AM on April 19, 2012
I ask because I generally try to play some of my preferred music in place of whatever is provided, for space footage. Currently working through some The Caretaker/Leyland Kirby. (And yes, I know I can mute the browser, but really, Vimeo? No mute?)
However. Given that, despite promises made during the 1960s, it is unlikely I'll be touring deep space in person any time soon, the sheer quality and quantity of high resolution imagery available for free consumption truly justifies surviving this long. There will be a time, and it may be soon, when the temptation of trying to create an immersive, projected, HD environment at home for maximal soul transportation will become irresistible.
Or some kind venue could set such a thing up for evenings off-planet. There used to be The London Planetarium: would work so much better now.
posted by Devonian at 8:18 AM on April 19, 2012
However. Given that, despite promises made during the 1960s, it is unlikely I'll be touring deep space in person any time soon, the sheer quality and quantity of high resolution imagery available for free consumption truly justifies surviving this long. There will be a time, and it may be soon, when the temptation of trying to create an immersive, projected, HD environment at home for maximal soul transportation will become irresistible.
Or some kind venue could set such a thing up for evenings off-planet. There used to be The London Planetarium: would work so much better now.
posted by Devonian at 8:18 AM on April 19, 2012
(And Narrative Priorities, it's not that I generally dislike the music - although sometimes, my God, I'd rather hear vacuum. But it's that it can normally be improved. Once you've inhaled Ligeti and Khatchaturian near Jupiter space, it's hard to shake the habit)
posted by Devonian at 8:24 AM on April 19, 2012
posted by Devonian at 8:24 AM on April 19, 2012
The most frustrating part of getting old is knowing you won't be around as humans explore the universe.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 8:26 AM on April 19, 2012 [5 favorites]
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 8:26 AM on April 19, 2012 [5 favorites]
Somewhere in space, this may all be happening right now.
- Unkle, Psyence Fiction
posted by CosmicRayCharles at 8:27 AM on April 19, 2012 [1 favorite]
- Unkle, Psyence Fiction
posted by CosmicRayCharles at 8:27 AM on April 19, 2012 [1 favorite]
(And yes, I know I can mute the browser, but really, Vimeo? No mute?)
On my browser there's a row of small blue bars near the bottom right corner of the video window, next to the video progress bar. Clicking on the bars then dragging the mouse leftwards should mute it.
posted by A Thousand Baited Hooks at 8:29 AM on April 19, 2012
On my browser there's a row of small blue bars near the bottom right corner of the video window, next to the video progress bar. Clicking on the bars then dragging the mouse leftwards should mute it.
posted by A Thousand Baited Hooks at 8:29 AM on April 19, 2012
The (what I'm guessing to be) gravity trails of the moons on the rings were breathtaking! Thanks for posting this.
posted by dhruva at 8:39 AM on April 19, 2012
posted by dhruva at 8:39 AM on April 19, 2012
Yep, crying at my desk about space
And now, me too.
Stupid space.
posted by CynicalKnight at 8:45 AM on April 19, 2012
And now, me too.
Stupid space.
posted by CynicalKnight at 8:45 AM on April 19, 2012
The most frustrating part of getting old is knowing you won't be around as humans explore the universe.
Short some kind of singularity, the humans who launch exploration vehicles into the universe won't be around when they get where they're going.
posted by dhartung at 9:25 AM on April 19, 2012
Short some kind of singularity, the humans who launch exploration vehicles into the universe won't be around when they get where they're going.
posted by dhartung at 9:25 AM on April 19, 2012
The ripples in the rings behind the moon was amazing.
The bit 35 seconds in, where the camera passed through the rings' orbital plane, messed with my head too. The only place I ever see anything so perfectly flat and thin is computer graphics, so that's how my brain parsed it. I knew that they were effectively two-dimensional, but it's still wild to actually see it. It feels like a glitch in a video game - you fall through the floor and now the light's weird and inverted.
Of course this made me want to go there and see it myself, but I realize that a lot of it is sped up a lot and would be a lot less dynamic in realtime. I still want to go, of course!
I'm a fan of the Cinematic Orchestra, but when I heard this I thought "oh, this song again" not "hey! Cinematic Orchestra!".
I think I'd go with something like this instead.
posted by aubilenon at 9:33 AM on April 19, 2012
The bit 35 seconds in, where the camera passed through the rings' orbital plane, messed with my head too. The only place I ever see anything so perfectly flat and thin is computer graphics, so that's how my brain parsed it. I knew that they were effectively two-dimensional, but it's still wild to actually see it. It feels like a glitch in a video game - you fall through the floor and now the light's weird and inverted.
Of course this made me want to go there and see it myself, but I realize that a lot of it is sped up a lot and would be a lot less dynamic in realtime. I still want to go, of course!
I'm a fan of the Cinematic Orchestra, but when I heard this I thought "oh, this song again" not "hey! Cinematic Orchestra!".
I think I'd go with something like this instead.
posted by aubilenon at 9:33 AM on April 19, 2012
>knowing you won't be around...
>would be a lot less dynamic in realtime...
Easy. Blow your consciousness into machine. Put machine in space. Point machine at target. Turn processor clock way down. Launch. Arrive. Turn processor clock up just enough to show things at a comfortable speed. Pick next destination. Slow clock. Head off. Repeat.
(I have a fictional universe with a lot of these beasts drifting around looking a bit like dandelion seedheads. They have some odd conversations, and hate being sped-up when there's nothing to see. The invention of FTL engines really pissed them off.)
posted by Devonian at 10:01 AM on April 19, 2012 [1 favorite]
>would be a lot less dynamic in realtime...
Easy. Blow your consciousness into machine. Put machine in space. Point machine at target. Turn processor clock way down. Launch. Arrive. Turn processor clock up just enough to show things at a comfortable speed. Pick next destination. Slow clock. Head off. Repeat.
(I have a fictional universe with a lot of these beasts drifting around looking a bit like dandelion seedheads. They have some odd conversations, and hate being sped-up when there's nothing to see. The invention of FTL engines really pissed them off.)
posted by Devonian at 10:01 AM on April 19, 2012 [1 favorite]
I would score it to the tackiest smooth jazz possible solely to ward off the overwhelming ~SPACE FEELINGS.
posted by elizardbits at 10:07 AM on April 19, 2012 [2 favorites]
posted by elizardbits at 10:07 AM on April 19, 2012 [2 favorites]
Gorgeous footage. Fine video editing.
Thanks, pjern.
posted by doctornemo at 10:15 AM on April 19, 2012
Thanks, pjern.
posted by doctornemo at 10:15 AM on April 19, 2012
> The thing about space imagery that gets me every time is how vast a gap exists between nothingness and stuff.
My wife can watch horror movies where people are hacked to bits without blinking an eye, but she was terrified by the scene in Sunshine where one of the characters drifts off into space.
posted by The Card Cheat at 10:33 AM on April 19, 2012
My wife can watch horror movies where people are hacked to bits without blinking an eye, but she was terrified by the scene in Sunshine where one of the characters drifts off into space.
posted by The Card Cheat at 10:33 AM on April 19, 2012
Prolly shouldn't show her this one, then.
posted by elizardbits at 11:07 AM on April 19, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by elizardbits at 11:07 AM on April 19, 2012 [1 favorite]
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posted by Petrot at 7:23 AM on April 19, 2012