Tag Archives: NASA

LEGO unveils largest Ideas set yet: 21309 NASA Apollo Saturn V [News]

After an early tease of 21309 NASA Apollo Saturn V last month, today LEGO has officially taken the wraps off this massive 1:110 scale rocket. First announced last June, the Saturn V will be the largest ever fan-designed LEGO Ideas set with 1,969 pieces, giving even the part count a nod to the year of mankind’s first steps on the moon. The rocket itself stands 39 in. tall (100cm), and consists of all three stages with a full complement of the lunar orbiter, lunar lander, command module with flotation devices, and three astronaut microfigures. The Saturn V will retail for $119.99 USD beginning June 1, the same day as the just-announced 10257 Carousel.

21309 Nasa Apollo Saturn V

21309 Nasa Apollo Saturn V

The Saturn V is the first of two upcoming LEGO Ideas sets based on NASA, with a Women of NASA LEGO set coming later this year or early in 2018.

Click to see all the images of the Saturn V

One tiny leap for mankind

Our first look at the forthcoming LEGO Ideas Saturn V model prompted a bit of discussion amongst the staffers here at The Brothers Brick. A comparison of the portion of the set revealed thus far with schematics of the original rocket suggests the model is going to stand 3 feet tall. That set me thinking — what size would the astronauts be at this scale? Well, once you have a thought like that in your head, what else can you do but get building?

One tiny leap for mankind...

This started with the little figures and went on from there. Once the Saturn V set is released, I plan on building a launch tower to stand alongside it, with these little guys trooping across the gantry to board their ride. We choose to go to the teensy-weensy moon.

Women of NASA is the next LEGO Ideas model [News]

Announced today, the Women of NASA project by Maia Weinstock is the next set in the Ideas line. This project was selected from a group of 11 other ideas that had gathered 10,000 supporters between the months of May and September 2016. Pricing and availability for the Women of NASA set are not yet available.

Read more about the latest LEGO Ideas review

Mission to Space: Official partnership between NASA, LEGO unveiled [News]

LEGO and NASA have announced an official partnership, inviting you to explore space with Mission to Space! This new, interactive program comes after the recently announced Apollo 11 LEGO Ideas set and marks a new chapter in LEGO’s ongoing relationship with NASA.

NASA and LEGO's Mission to Space

Click to read more!

Moon exploration with a LEGO Apollo 15

In 1971, the lunar rover was delivered to the moon as part of the Apollo 15 mission, and used on all subsequent missions. As I have a fond appreciation for “real” space ships, I am delighted to share with you Luis Peña‘s absolutely beautiful lunar lander module, Apollo capsule, and the ever-adorable and oh so fun lunar rover.

Apollo Program

The Apollo capsule is instantly recognizable. The curves convey the shape wonderfully, and I love the properly cramped interior that Luis is able to show. The rover’s colors are so vibrant!

Apollo Program Moon ExplorersApollo ProgramApollo Program Moon Explorers

And if you like LEGO Apollo models, remember that LEGO is currently working on an Apollo 11 set, so you’ll be able to buy your own in the near future.

LEGO announces The Beatles Yellow Submarine and Apollo 11 Saturn V as next LEGO IDEAS models [News]

The LEGO Ideas team has announced the winners of the third 2015 LEGO Ideas Review. Nine sets were up for consideration, and two were selected. These projects will now proceed through a design phase, where LEGO designers will tweak the designs. They will then become available as official LEGO sets.

UPDATE: 21306 LEGO Beatles Yellow Submarine is out now!

The Beatles Yellow Submarine by Kevin Szeto

LEGO IDEAS The Beatles Yellow Submarine

Apollo 11 Saturn V by saabfan and whatsuptoday

LEGO IDEAS Apollo 11 Saturn V

We’ll update you on official pictures and pricing once those become available.

The next round are currently in review, and we expect to hear on those in Fall 2016!

Micro-scale LEGO SLS rocket is ready for NASA’s Next Giant Leap

NASA Engineer and LEGO fan Nicholas Mastramico has brought us a most excellent follow up to the shuttle, launch pad, and SLS rocket we featured last week. Nicholas’s microscale version is eye-catching with the great detail he’s packed into such a small model. What makes his version particularly special is his relationship with the rocket: Nicholas is a structural design engineer for NASA, and is currently working on the real SLS rocket.

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This means his micro-SLS has a unique opportunity to stand in the shadows of its ancestors, like the Saturn V rocket pictured here.

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Nicholas says he’s always been a huge sci-fi fan – but it was the early pictures of Mars from Sojourner that truly hooked him on space travel. He decided then he would build rockets for NASA one day, and that goal guided him through school to where he is now. He was recently involved in a test with a weather balloon, for which he provided a passenger. The experiment took the minifig up to 120,000 feet!

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There are more shots of some of the features of the mobile launch platform and payload capsules, as well as an itty-bitty adorable crawler!

Incredible LEGO Space Shuttle, Launchpad and Space Launch System

Space is pretty fantastic. Right now, we space fans have a lot to be excited about with SpaceX’s reusable, landing first stage rocket; Blue Origin’s reusable, landing rocket for space tourism; and the recent achievement on the International Space Station with Bigelow Aerospace’s Bigelow Expandable Activity Module, an experimental expandable space station module.

Lia Chan gives a glorious look into the past at Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39A. This beautiful, beautiful build features the launch platform, crawler transport system, and NASA’s retired workhorse, Space Shuttle Atlantis.

Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39A

Click to see NASA’s future!

3D-printing Martian habitats with a NASA drone

Like many sci-fi, science, and space geeks, the exploration and colonization of Mars has always held a special fascination for me. Shannon Sproule has created a LEGO version of a novel idea — sending a drone to 3D print habitats on Mars. With a realistic color scheme and extensive use of round bricks, including a pair of round 7×7 domes, Shannon has created a plausible construction robot. Here’s hoping NASA is paying attention to innovative ideas like this!

NASA 3D printing robot

The moon landing was faked!

If NASA had done it as well as this version by duo Sean and Steph Mayo, maybe they’d have gotten away with it. Rarely am I a fan of non-LEGO elements added to a creation, but in this case the moon dust really takes this up a notch. The best detail here for me, though, is the brick-built tires (a combination of words which rarely refers to anything good).

Lunar Lego Landing

NASA’s Orion in LEGO

On Dec. 5, 2014, at 7:05 a.m. EST, NASA launched the new crew capsule, Orion, for it’s first experimental flight test on a United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy rocket. The mission was to send Orion 3,600 miles into orbit (for reference, the ISS hangs out at around between 205-270 miles above the Earth) and return to test the new heat shield. Orion went further than any space craft designed for human flight since the Apollo 17 mission. The test flight when perfectly.

Why is this awesome? It’s NASA’s next giant leap. The Orion crew capsule is going to take us back to the moon, to asteroids, and to Mars.

Wesley, your Delta IV Heavy is fantastic and instantly recognizable and an excellent tribute to the historic launch.

Science Fact vs Science Fiction

I admit. I couldn’t decide which of the two I wanted to blog, so I went with both. Ryan (eldeeem) posted two amazing space creations recently, and they demand to be seen.

Let’s to with science fiction first. Ryan posted the latest addition to the Starfighter Telephone game with his contribution, the Nata V.II:

Nata V.II | Open

I just can’t say no to those curves and colors.

For science fact, Ryan’s posted this stunning commission for the University of Colorado Boulder. According to the description, this will be on display mid-September. The build features the Apollo 11 service module, nicknamed Columbia. This module, commanded by Neil Armstrong, brought he and fellow crewmates Michael Collins and Buzz Aldrin to the moon 45 years ago this past July.

Apollo 11 Service Module

So. Here’s the question: Science Fact or Science Fiction? Which is your favorite?