MOONBASE CENTRAL

Thursday, 3 June 2010

HORSLIPS: THE MAN WHO BIULT AMERICA

Moonbase Jukebox request from reader Mike.

Nice!

Wednesday, 2 June 2010

MAGIC SPACE COINS

I do love these old Magic Space Coins. I've posted the Dyna-Soar coin before but here's a whole set on Ebay on its cool display board. Were they just out in the US?

T DREAMS: MOON BASE STATION T [CUSTOM]

Having finished all my gardening for the evening and come in to recieve some exciting SWORD news, I thought I'd celebrate with a cold beer [I needed one!] and some playing-about with more box art, guaranteed relaxation! I give you Moon Base Station T custom! If only!

NORTHERN SKY

By the late great Nick Drake. One of the most beautiful songs you'll ever hear. My neighbour's played it tonight whist building his shed. Heard it over the hedge and had to play it again on YouTube. Perfect for a summer's evening.

PS. Reader Mike Burrows has pointed out that Nick Drake's sister is Gabrielle Drake of UFO fame! Nice one Mike. Horslips to follow!

Monday, 31 May 2010

FLOWER POWER

The flower motif on this vintage plastic Beach Buggy [Ebay] appeared on a number of Sixties toys including the rear of the Day-f-ran SPACE GLIDER shown below. Anyone know of any more? Where is the motif from? Sixties' Hippydom?

Day-f-ran Glider second from left.

PROJECT SWORD FUTURE DREAMSHOP: THE TITAN LANDER

STAR FEATURES [click]

Having a bit of a laugh Bank Holiday Monday. Here's another gem from the Moonbase Dreamshop of Custom SWORD: the TITAN LANDER. Bringing SWORD bang up to date and beyond, this toy is a replica of the proposed 21st Century NASA landing craft which will descend and float on the methane seas of Saturn's liquid moon, TITAN. The box would be bristling with touch-screen 'star features': mp3 of titanic winds, on-box video of flight and methane voyage, Wii/Video game links and actual real-time webcam link to NASA lander. The toy will feature mystery floating action, working floodlight, mini-lab and revolving web-scope. Inside the box will be a TITANAUT badge. Date of manufacture 2067 (model number TV21).

References: NASA, ESA, Kidsastronomy

MARS 500: THE REAL ZOOM CLUB!

The MARS 500 experiment to simulate flying to and living on Mars has entered it's final and longest stage. According to ESA 'Mars500 is a 520-day simulated mission to Mars. The sealed mockup includes an interplanetary spaceship, a Mars lander and a martian landscape. Housed in Russia’s Institute of Biomedical Problems (IBMP) in Moscow, the modules provide 550 m³ of living space'.For such an exciting event there has been very little in the media I feel. I thought there may have been a web cam set up but I can't find one. The simulation modules shown above [wikipedia] are somewhat dissapointing visually unless the real thing is completely different. For some reason I thought it was in a located in a desert? I much prefer the Valigursky vision of modular living, admitted;ly lunar and not martian, seen below from the wonderful 1960's LIFE Man and Space book. Anybody clued up on Mars 500?

ZOOM CLUB

This Bank Holiday become a member of the illustrious ZOOM CLUB by simply listening to it. From the ground-shaking 70's album IN FOR THE KILL by the one and only Welsh rock-gods BUDGIE, at nearly 10 minutes Zoom Club is one of the best hard rock tracks ever put on vinyl and a feast for your heavy-lovin' ears. Play it loud!