NASA Uses Node.js in Space Suits – Director of Software Engineering Confirms

Misleading title

> Just to be clear Node.js does not run IN a spacesuit. It does however support spacesuit operations, processing, logistics, etc...

(source: https://twitter.com/CollinEstes/status/741994459349417984)

danso 9 years ago |

Important addendum: Node is not for real-time safety-critical systems https://mobile.twitter.com/d4rw1n1s7/status/7430105947862507...

wampler 9 years ago | |

"Not in the way you are probably thinking, but used for ground ops leading to spacewalks, checks and balances obv" - Collin Estes

s_q_b 9 years ago | | |

There's a whole bunch of space system support software that isn't hard scientific code (which is handled by a totally different team), but rather for specific management-related tasks. This code is written in all the web technologies and frameworks one would expect.

Edit: I'm wondering about the downvotes, since I've actually written such software.

udkl 9 years ago | |

lol, someone commented : "A NASA investigation into the death reports that the astronaut was killed by a leak -- not oxygen, but memory."

auganov 9 years ago |

Made me think of Lisp at JPL, one of my favourite software-dev history stories. http://www.flownet.com/gat/jpl-lisp.html

kenOfYugen 9 years ago |

Presentation at EnterpriseJS Austin:

Spacesuits and Node.js - How open source will change NASA

https://vimeo.com/168064722

eggy 9 years ago |

Forth code ran on the Rosetta lander's space qualified, radiation hardened, 16-bit Harris RTX2010 processor. The OS could even be changed via the radio link by writing new code to EEPROM [1].

Let Node try that ;) On second thought...

[1] http://articles.adsabs.harvard.edu//full/2003ESASP.532E..72B...

awinder 9 years ago |

So now we update the saying to "JavaScript is eating the universe", right?

BrutallyHonest 9 years ago |

Why would NASA somehow be invincible to hype?

TechNewb 9 years ago | |

Reverse hype is hype. Node is a high level language that is quite good. It might not be as fast as go or c, but it doesn't need to be to be useful. Don't blame the langue, blame the programmer.

Matthias247 9 years ago | | |

Node is not a language

TechNewb 9 years ago | | |

As in have you ever heard the term, "program in node". If we lived our lives to only technical definitions it would not be a good one.

TechNewb 9 years ago | | |

There is research behind this, not sure why the down vote.

Although considering the comment being replied is a throw away account, I imagine that person is also a moderator who doesn't like debate to their troll comment.

na85 9 years ago | | |

People call the language "node" because they're ashamed to admit they're just writing javascript, since javascript has such a horrid reputation for amateur, poorly-performant bloatware.

TechNewb 9 years ago | | |

This is also just troll. An engineer looks at a tool, as it is. Sometimes a plastic screw may be better than a steel one. Look at any tool as it is, not as a religion.

TechNewb 9 years ago | | |

Linguistics would beg to differ.

textmode 9 years ago | | |

"Don't blame the langue, blame the programmer."

Would you mind repeating this the next time HN front page contains more stories and comments (hype?) about how C language is the cause for poor software quality?

tacos 9 years ago |

It's always nice to feel appreciated, but the validation-seeking pile-on in that Twitter thread is a little awkward.

Reward yourself with a cookie then go read your Github Issues tab, guys...