stolfi@jumbo.dec.com (Jorge Stolfi) (05/17/88)
Pardon my ignorance, but ...
...does the shuttle pilot actually _drive_ the shuttle?
I.e., does he at some point actually control thrust and ailerons and
whatnots continuously with his hands? Or does he only have to twiddle
a joystick so as to keep the dot centered on the cross? Or does he
have only to push button A when light B goes on, and otherwise watch
the computers do the driving?
National Enquirer mind wants to know...
--Jorge Stolfi
stolfi@src.dec.com, {..decvax,ucbvax,allegra}!decwrl!stolfi
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
`No recrimination,' said Michel. `I do not complain; the trip has
pleased me, the projectile agrees with me; but let us do all that is
humanly possible to do to fall somewhere, even if only on the moon.'
`We ask no better, my worthy Michel,' replied Barbicane, `but
means fail us.''
`We cannot alter the motion of our projectile?'
`No.'
--Verne, _Round the Moon_ (1870)
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::todd@uop.edu (Dr. Nethack) (05/20/88)
In article <13066@jumbo.dec.com>, stolfi@jumbo.dec.com (Jorge Stolfi) writes: > ...does the shuttle pilot actually _drive_ the shuttle? No, he stands in line, and collects unemployment, while watching "Ivan" get the jobs he used to contract for. Some American Dream... huh? "Oh little Sputnik, flying high with made-in-Moscow beep, You tell the world it's a Commie sky and Uncle Sam's asleep" --again ----------------------------------------------------------------------- + uop!todd@uunet.uu.net + + cogent!uop!todd@lll-winken.arpa + + {backbone}!ucbvax!ucdavis!uop!todd + -----------------------------------------------------------------------
Nightstalker@cup.portal.com (05/23/88)
Jorge: To find out what it is that makes the shuttle pilot a pilot (as well as what the others in the missions do), I refer you to a book called The Space Shuttle Operators Manual ($12.95, Ballantine). It not only has a good overview of all he functions of personell onboard the shuttle, but a good overview of t shuttle's controls. It's a very handy book for the shuttle enthusiast. Nightstalker