Group in an abandoned McDonalds control a space satellite

[davos]

This is one of the cooler things I've come across recently in the news:

 

http://betabeat.com/2014/08/civilians-in-abandoned-mcdonalds-seize-control-of-wandering-space-satellite/

 

 

For the first time in history, an independent crew is taking control of a NASA satellite and running a crowdfunded mission. They’re doing it all from a makeshift mission control center in an abandoned McDonald’s in Mountain View, CA, using old radio parts from eBay and a salvaged flat screen TV.

“If I could come up with another absurd detail, I would,” Keith Cowing, the project’s team lead, told Betabeat.

The ISEE-3 is a disco-era satellite that used to measure space weather like solar wind and radiation, but went out of commission decades ago. Now, a small team led by Mr. Cowing have taken control of the satellite with NASA’s silent blessing.

 

[PandaPancake]

They don't really like science things here. Sorry.

[Anybodyhome]

Mountain View, California.... home of Silicon Valley.

 

I'm not into the nerdness of this, but it is pretty cool.

[R0CKnR0LLA]

the most surprising thing about this story is that there's actually a fast food joint in America that has been abandoned