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iPod Sighting Aboard the International Space Station

spaceref.com — iPod spotted in space, goodbye Zune.

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  • GrendelT, on 10/12/2007, -24/+8Awesome.

    First the Russian is doing a publicity act for the golf club company, (http://www.space.com/missionlaunches/061123_eva17.html) I wonder if Apple will toss iPods to all the astronauts now for promotion.
    • jus1haz2, on 10/12/2007, -9/+27He also has a thinkpad
    • GawtMilk, on 10/12/2007, -11/+56Well DUH! This is simply because there is no social in space. Wait until the colonies come, you'll eat your words.
    • foobar5892, on 10/12/2007, -12/+83ZOMG! Astronauts use iPods too, just like regular people! I can't believe it. This will definitely kill the Zune!

      Riiight...
    • Hydraulix, on 10/12/2007, -24/+110This won't kill the Zune. The Zune will kill itself.
    • stupidverizon, on 10/12/2007, -26/+4He doesnt look too well to be honest. Looks like he's sick. And look how thin his arms are.
    • orangekid13, on 10/12/2007, -1/+25"He doesnt look too well to be honest. Looks like he's sick. And look how thin his arms are."

      lets see what your muscles look like after months in space not needing to use them... have you ever heard of space before? no gravity...
      when astronauts get off the space shuttle a lot of them have bad problems with blood pressure and weakness
    • maledei, on 10/12/2007, -3/+11"He also has a thinkpad"

      there are 7 on board the iss. here's a pic: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:TORU_docking_system.jpg

      and the thinkpad wiki article:
      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ThinkPad#Trivia
    • lassel, on 10/12/2007, -4/+30Well maybe the astronaut was "launched" before the Zune was "launched".
    • dkirkham, on 10/12/2007, -8/+2¨As you probably know, they only send the best of the best, i highly doubt that there's anything wrong with him.¨
      Except the fact that he probably needs glasses (adidas case on the desk)

      They could be sunglasses, but I'm certain any windows on there would be heavily photosensitive or tinted to avoid potentially damaging things behind them if/when they face the sun
    • madenosine, on 10/12/2007, -1/+10Apparently, he has a Thinkpad running Windows at that...
    • manageMyRights, on 10/12/2007, -3/+8They also use Windows XP and Internet Explorer on the International Space Station. I noticed this watching a Discovery channel special on the station.
    • marklar69, on 10/12/2007, -5/+3HOLY CRAP look at the lens by his knee!
    • virtualball, on 10/12/2007, -8/+4And by "launch you mean "crash and burn"

      Now am I talking about the Zune or the Spaceship? :P
    • geekgal, on 10/12/2007, -7/+1Newsflash: Ipod is now out of this world!!!!
    • cello, on 10/12/2007, -2/+8Thinkpad spotted in space, goodbye iBook
  • IsangMahal, on 10/12/2007, -2/+51That's a 4th Gen Ipod... not a 5th gen. I should know... I spank my iPod everyday that damn hard drive is acting up.
    • junkmail02, on 10/12/2007, -29/+9wow, and i thought bestiality was sick
    • duxxyuk, on 10/12/2007, -7/+5I second that. although in my case the poor scroll wheel is knackered. Still it makes a stylish portable hard drive.
    • patrickbwells, on 10/12/2007, -4/+23I'm sorry but we cant have any Apple bashing on Digg, you will need to formally retract your statement and issue a new one regarding the high quality of the ipod line. Failure to do so will result in Apple bricking your ipod by remote in the near future.
    • chesterton, on 10/12/2007, -2/+3Yah... it's a 4G... and it has the old-style headphones... man... I need to be less aware of these kinds of details...
  • pmcall221, on 10/12/2007, -7/+21I would have "Magic Carpet Ride" blasting so loud...
    • elnerdo, on 10/12/2007, -6/+3I think that Space Oddity would be far more appropriate.

      "Here, I am sitting in a tin can... Far above the Earth.."
    • chrisdelta, on 10/12/2007, -4/+1Yeah, but then that wouldn't be a reference to Star Trek: First Contact, now would it?
    • greatblackowl, on 10/12/2007, -3/+1Blue Danube for me, a la 2001.
  • StanleyKoolPrik, on 10/12/2007, -25/+19Steve Jobs: Monopolizing Earth...and beyond!
    • MiddleGirth, on 10/12/2007, -38/+7This should be amusing. Explain to the class in what way Steve Jobs is "monopolizing" anything.
    • kicken18, on 10/12/2007, -4/+26oh shut up, and leave him with his joke
    • patrickbwells, on 10/12/2007, -8/+7Okay, monopoly is generally defined as "a market in which there are many buyers but only one seller." The ipod acounts for 87% of the mp3 market. With revenue like that it is impossible for any other company to develop a better, or even comparable product. I think that that is a monopoly.
    • Dominatus, on 10/12/2007, -4/+8Don't even bother, the same people who claim Apple is not a monopoly with the iPod because there are other sellers are the same ones who bring up that Microsoft is a "convicted monopolist" when there are certainly other sellers in that market (including Apple themselves).
    • Markie1006, on 10/12/2007, -4/+6Now I know this is a difficult concept for MS fanboys & apologists to accept, but listen carefully.

      Obtaining a monopoly is not illegal, so even if Apple do have a monopoly on the MP3 player market, there is NOTHING wrong with that.

      The problems start if they begin abusing that position through anti-competitive behavior and unfair business practices.

      Once you have been found GUILTY of anti-competitive behaviour or unfair business practices, your business becomes subject to regulation. This is what MS is suffering from after being found guilty in a court of law.

      "A business with a monopoly over certain products or services may be in violation of antitrust laws if it has abused its dominant position or market power."

      Maybe one day Apple will be sued for anti-competitive behaviour. At that point they too will become subject to regulation, but until then they can enjoy the fruits of their labour.
  • benlundquist, on 10/12/2007, -7/+23So hard drives work in zero gravity?
    • pmcall221, on 10/12/2007, -0/+23If that thing wasn't tied down I'm sure it would spin.
    • Valarauka, on 10/12/2007, -3/+32Well, they work upside-down and sideways, so I don't see weightlessness being a problem....
    • patrickbwells, on 10/12/2007, -7/+17No they don't work. He just brought it with him to look cool. jk.
    • pants428, on 10/12/2007, -2/+8what about the operation of a hard drive has anything to do with gravity?
    • Deuterium, on 10/12/2007, -4/+7Did you pay attention 6th grade science class? The moon goes round the earth, the earth goes round the sun, the solar system goes round the galaxy, the ISS goes round the the earth. Why does that happen??????

      GRAVITY.

      NOT ZERO G!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

      Without gravity the ISS would not orbit the earth. The Space Station is NOT in zero G. The ISS is falling to the earth as we type.

    • Brasky, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1Did you pay attention in college physics? Its not falling to earth...do you even know how orbit works?

      Besides, everything is relative. Us here on earth only know earth's gravity. So in a relative sense, yes they are in ZERO G...
    • Moosehawk, on 10/12/2007, -1/+0It's called geosynchronous.

      And yes, obviously hard drives would work in zero gravity.
  • Valarauka, on 10/12/2007, -2/+18Whoaaa .. check out the lens attached to the Nikon in front of his knees!
    Lots of other droolworthy camera equipment in there too, I see...
    • Molnies, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4Yeah I noticed that as well, but I was kind of surprised that NASA is using Nikon. I thought they were just using Hasselblad cameras, guess that image proved me wrong.
    • pu-z, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Hasselblad was used in extreme conditions as on the moon, I guess they now opt for more standard, mass produced and cheaper equipment. It makes sense, it is also a lot easier to use.
  • DucksofAnaheim, on 10/12/2007, -19/+7Seems Cupertino really is afraid of the long-term impact of the Zune after all. Hence all the FUD on this site.Must be the RDF at work ;)
    RDF(Reality Distortion Field) is the idea that Steve Jobs is able to convince people to believe almost anything with a skillful mix of charm, charisma, slight exaggeration, and clever marketing.
    • kicken18, on 10/12/2007, -11/+4Agreed
    • MacParrot, on 10/12/2007, -1/+9Speaking of FUD. Do you ever post anything other than this diatribe of yours? I see the same thing over and over in each Apple post. Writer's block?
    • OrangeTide, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3He thinks he's so clever that he feels the need to repost his rant until people start listening to him. Too bad his RDF only works on himself.
    • moofer, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2They would have taken a Zune, but they couldn't afford the weight, and all the squrting in orbit could damage the sensitive equipment.
  • tkcom, on 10/12/2007, -13/+8one small step for man, one giant leap for a fruity company
  • 2Deluxe, on 10/12/2007, -12/+13I'm amazed that anyone actually cares.
  • Sirusdv, on 10/12/2007, -9/+20Now that's how you know your product is a hit.
  • astrosmash, on 10/12/2007, -7/+10Like I always say: good enough for NASA, good enough for me.
  • hexdump, on 10/12/2007, -2/+15According to Wikipedia, Swedish astronaut Christer Fugelsang took an iPod filled with ABBA songs with him on Discovery (STS-116), so there have been at least two iPods in orbit.
    • patrickbwells, on 10/12/2007, -4/+3If astronauts listen to ABBA they must be good!
    • williamdyer, on 10/12/2007, -0/+19Just...damn. Imagine being stuck in a tiny can with some swedish dude who hasn't had a shower in weeks singing ABBA tunes with headphones stuck in his ears. Must. Open. Hatch. No. Sound. In. Space.
  • antdude, on 10/12/2007, -2/+9http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/gallery/images/station/crew-14/hires/iss014e08795.jpg for the bigger image (1.2 MB).
    • Afraithe, on 10/12/2007, -4/+4Also note the gigantic Nikon camera+lens located just under the table.
    • MadOtaku, on 10/12/2007, -6/+1I'm such an idiot. I always see "larger image" or "bigger picture" and think "ooh a bigger image, I'l click that one" then I spend five minutes trying to find the interesting part in my small browser window, before just giving up and opening the smaller one :'(

      still thanks to people like you for posting them, if the image is good I download your version.
  • Sector7g, on 10/12/2007, -10/+460,000,000 + 5G units sold, and NASA employee's have money so this comes as no surprise.
  • max420, on 10/12/2007, -1/+29I think its amusing that everyone is making such a big deal out of this. If I was an astronaut and was going to spend months on a space station orbiting the earth, I would bring my iPod with me too.
    • astrosmash, on 10/12/2007, -10/+4So would I.
    • Avisto, on 10/12/2007, -5/+28The difference being you're not actually an astronaut.
    • kicken18, on 10/12/2007, -3/+13well obviously that's why we sit on Digg all day commenting on being an astronaut
    • naio21, on 10/12/2007, -7/+1In fact you are being astro..... turfer!
    • tobyvoss, on 10/12/2007, -8/+0no, you would be an astro..... turd!
  • testdrivemedia, on 10/12/2007, -21/+12I struggle to understand how an astronaut using an ipod in space means "goodbye zune"? Personally, i think the zune is great, and totally enjoy it. I can't wait for the second gen zune. And don't for one second think Microsoft won't make another one.
    • eirikkk, on 10/12/2007, -7/+24"I can't wait for the second gen zune. "

      I think that sums up your experiences with the Zune.
    • kicken18, on 10/12/2007, -4/+10Well, I agree with what he is saying, the first couple of gen ipods where utter *****, with battery problems and firmwear (remember the ipod mini) that was BAD. so I think his comment is pretty valid.
    • Balanced, on 10/12/2007, -4/+7My first generation iPod was a refurb that looked like it had been through some sort of shoot-out when I received it. It then survived a couple years of me working out with it and taking it places until the drive eventually failed, probably from being dropped one to many times.

      The 1st generation iPods were pretty neat.
    • elsagacious, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0My 1st gen iPod still works fine. I just got a 2nd gen nano, so I don't use it as much anymore, but even the battery life isn't so bad. And the 1st gen was just about indestructible. I dropped that thing so many times and have never had a problem.
  • thefreshbeats, on 10/12/2007, -1/+16I bets he's using p2p on that laptop also... they can be up there for years... you need new music every once in awhile :)
    • jacksim, on 10/12/2007, -8/+5Ah, I was thinking pr0n
    • foobar5892, on 10/12/2007, -3/+12I wonder what the WiFi connection is like up there.
    • Portside, on 10/12/2007, -3/+9This is an interesting point actually. Do they have internet access on the space station? I don't see why they couldn't.
    • kicken18, on 10/12/2007, -6/+2Thinking about it, isn't the connection to the satellites to mars etc pretty poor. I seam to remember a story on the satellite on that Saturn moon (someone will know the name of it) and it takes a damn long time to get the images because the connection wasn't that great. I mean for space its OK, but in terms what broadband that we are used to this age its poor.

      Edit: Titan, thats the one
    • foobar5892, on 10/12/2007, -7/+1I imagine the signal would be quite poor.
    • ccanni1028, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1Everyone makes jokes of "downloading the internet", but that's basically what NASA does. Every few days they send all of the updated websites up to ISS.
    • mdmadph, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1Sweet Jesus, imagine playing CS with 50000 ping....
  • Portside, on 10/12/2007, -8/+16Some guy on a website spots an astronaut using an ipod, and its "goodbye Zune" ?

    Please. They take all sorts of ***** up there with them, and none of it becomes an instant must-have item because some guy sitting in a tin can in space happens to have taken on up on the shuttle with him.
    • thatgirlismine, on 10/12/2007, -3/+16Obviously you've never heard of Tang.
    • Jadath, on 10/12/2007, -3/+17You're right, this is the kind of ***** people digg. New MacOS? Goodbye Microsoft. New KDE? Goodbye Gnome. Astronaut playing Golf in space? Goodbye Football.

      Btw... the Zune wasn't even OUT yet when Thomas Reiter went up there. If I was Microsoft, I would sponsor all astronauts now.
  • orangekid13, on 10/12/2007, -5/+4and a thinkpad... i have one of those!
    screw you dell, ibm is still the computer nasa chooses to send out there
  • GenXXX, on 10/12/2007, -7/+6'Pods in Spaaaaaace...
  • firemillen2, on 10/12/2007, -15/+10why the ***** is the title "good bye Zune"?? typical douchebag iFanboys love to suck each others' dicks.

    here's a fact: iMac sales worldwide...and that's on Earth...2 ***** PERCENT.

    SO ***** YOU IFANBOYS.
    • MacParrot, on 10/12/2007, -9/+2Wow, more screaming from fire. Can't say what iMac sales are worldwide, but if you add that 2% to the Mac's 2%, that's 4%. They just doubled their worldwide marketshare and its all because of firemillen! Thanks buddy!
    • naio21, on 10/12/2007, -6/+4Almost nothing doubled still is almost nothing.

      crApple sucks.
    • DeleteForever, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1@firemill:

      Relax, dork. It's just a computer.
  • Salival, on 10/12/2007, -9/+3I also spoted some wires. Ill digg that.
  • Picard102, on 10/12/2007, -7/+30OMG Nikon lens on the space station, goodbye Canon!
    OMG Adidas case on the space station, goodbye Nike!
    OMG IBM laptop on the space station, goodbye Dell!

    What a bunch of fanboy BS.
    • GawtMilk, on 10/12/2007, -4/+7Don't forget the Fujinon (division of Fujifilm) lens, far right, the Sony TV top left, the Kenwood radio center right, the white person center frame.

      Goodbye world :'(
  • Jugalator, on 10/12/2007, -3/+9"iPod spotted in space, goodbye Zune."

    Really... I like the iPod, but how old is this story submitter?
    • flag564, on 10/12/2007, -4/+4judging from the stupidity of the subject and the fact that enough people submitted it to get to the front page. He has to be the average age of an Apple poster.


      About 16.
    • Quix, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4"He has to be the average age of an Apple poster. About 16."

      Which by my math is about 4 years older than flag564, based on his traditionally juvenile and witless comments...
    • ericesque, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1OH SNAP!

      some quick wit by Quix
  • patrickbwells, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5If you examine the picture closely you can see dozens of brand names in the lab. I guess the days of NASA designing everything from scratch are over. I watched the IMAX ISS film and they were using a Makita cordless drill to assemble modules!
    • DrivinWest, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3True (see my post below). NASA has always preferred COTS equipment as it's far less expensive than reinventing the wheel e.g. they need to use hand tools aboard ISS so they use Snap-On rather than dumping a huge amount of money into custom made tools which do the exact same thing.

      Custom made tools are required for spacewalks, however. The tools have to be able to endure the outside environment as well as be manipulated by big bulky gloves. All of those tools are purpose designed.
  • reticulate, on 10/12/2007, -6/+14Ugh.

    There should be a 'dugg down for fanboy *****' option.
    • patrickbwells, on 10/12/2007, -12/+3Well, there isn't...but I can digg you down for cursing!!!!
  • sparkrainfir, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7Editors Note: "...you will see a 5th generation iPod attached to a Belkin external battery pack on the equipment rack directly in front of Thomas Reiter."


    the iPod in the picture is a 4th gen.
  • insomniac8400, on 10/12/2007, -3/+13Ladies and gentlemen, what we've seen speaks for itself. The spacecraft has apparently been taken over -- 'conquered' if you will -- by a master race of MP3 players. It's difficult to tell from this vantage point whether they will consume the captive earth men or merely enslave them. One thing is for certain: there is no stopping them; the iPods will soon be here. And I for one welcome our new iPod overlords.

  • N1XUK, on 10/12/2007, -3/+3Is that the most expensive iPod in the world? I mean with shipping alone thats like.....

    (searches wikipedia for hamburger being sent into space cost and cross-references with weight of ipod)
  • jferrari, on 10/12/2007, -3/+2So, they spend billions on developing component's that can withstand space flight, and build satellites in super clean static free environments - then they find they can just fly up regular ipods and laptops and they still work?
    • DrivinWest, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3That's a very silly thing to say.

      The temperature, humidity and pressure controlled cabin of the ISS is filled with COTS (Commercial Off The Shelf) hardware from IBM Thinkpads to DVD players to WLAN routers to Sony TVs to Nikon digital SLR cameras, etc., etc., etc. These items undergo a certification that ensures that they can operate safely after being subjected to launch vibration and acceleration. That's it. In principal, almost anything that works at standard temperature and pressure on Earth will also work in a space vehicle that was designed to maintain a shirtsleeve work environment.

      Anything that can't be bought and certified for its intended use is designed and certified either in-house or by an established contractor. For example, anything that needs to be able to deal with the massive temperature fluctuation in space is purpose built. Same goes for computer hardware that can't be adequately shielded from radiation.
  • jamble, on 10/12/2007, -3/+7The quality of submissions to Digg sometimes makes me think this whole social news thing will never work.
  • naio21, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8Buried as lame for the "goodbye Zune" of the description.

    Godammit, try to praise your gadgets without bashing Microsoft for a change, you Apple whores! :-P
  • network23, on 10/12/2007, -6/+1How cool is that? Connected to his own batterypack.

    Digg, digg, digg!

    - - - - -

    Other and smaller engines: http://engine.net/
  • wassim2k, on 10/12/2007, -3/+5I don't know what any of that has to do with the Zune, or is that just you being you?
  • Space_Balls, on 10/12/2007, -4/+1So has anyone come up yet with the market statistics of MP3 players in space? Apparently there has been at least one more confirmed iPod aboard STS 116. Any other know sightings/confirmations of MP3 players. Does apple guarantee they work up there? Does their tech support extend to space?
  • xshaisu, on 10/12/2007, -4/+1Lens covers not needed?
  • ArnoldTPants, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5Astronaut wears white shirt. Goodbye black shirts!!!! I'm a stupid fanboy!!!!!!!!!!
  • booboofitzroy, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1I think someone left Thus Spake Zarathustra on repeat again.
  • WackyT, on 10/12/2007, -1/+9And an IBM laptop. Goodbye Macbook.
  • yonas, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1Look at all the camera lenses he has! Note especially the huge one under his desk. Geez.
    • blueskydiver76, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1he is obviously compensating...
  • domusvita, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3"Open the iPod bay door, HAL."
  • SirBotchness, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Yea cause this guy's preference in mp3 players has everything to do with the zune.
  • Eth4n, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Why does everyone bash on the Zune? It's made by the xbox 360 guys so it's going to get decent backing. The world really does need a new, well designed music player to compete with Apple's one track mind and extreme cost bs. I know... everyone loves the iPod, I even have one, but it doesn't do half the stuff I'd like it to and the other half you have to buy an accessory for.
  • flipmeat, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Who wants to compute the cost of lobbing that iPod into orbit? Or the cost per song? :-) Also, if you are holding that iPod in zero-G, when the HD spins up, you would start to rotate the opposite direction. Needs more Nano & Shuffle.
    • Deuterium, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1The ISS is NOT in zero G. It orbits the earth. Unless NASA is using some Apple fairy dust the reason the station doesn't fling itself into deep space is the interaction of the mass of the station and the mass of the earth, or more simply, the gravitational pull of earth, thus no zero G, sorry.
    • Maurs, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1It is zero G insofar as it is relative free fall. Obviously it is impossible to ever escape gravitational interaction, no matter where you are, but when people talk about "zero G" this is exactly what they are referring to.
  • Aslan72, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1If he downloads stuff from the iTMS, I wonder what the speed is and really if he's 200 miles above the earth is it really *down*loading? :)
  • GrayV, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Some sort of "thanks to our sponsors" shot isn't it? You've got Apple, IBM, Sony, Kenwood, Nikon and Fujinon, without claiming that his trousers are sporting Adidas' new horizontal tri-stripe design...

    I can't believe Kenwood really make anything that has any place in space. Other than a their version of Soda Stream which is ideal for making carbonated sugar drinks that make you puke, anywhere.
  • MaceSoul, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Yeah, forget for the moment that the entire US space program runs on a Windows backbone - including the space station.
  • mandarin, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Who cares?
    If you saw the same product held by Paris Hilton, what would you think?
  • cramd, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1This just in ----- Bill Gates says Zune will be part of next Mars Rover. In fact it will be the next Mars Rover.
  • tidal, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I hope he doesn/t keep that ipod up there long. Zero Gs does very bad things to hard drives. When I worked on SpaceStation they were replacing hard drives alot.
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