It was a wild one in the west

Last night's Sunday night match-up between the Arizona Cardinals and the Seattle Seahawks was the most bizarre game of the NFL season. It was only the third game in the history of the NFL to end in a 6-6 tie. Yes, you read that right a 6-6 tie between the two titans of the west. That the game ended in a tie is not as strangest as how got to that point.

The first quarter of the game set the tempo as Seattle's defense hand their hands full with the Cardinals high powered offense but managed not to break. On the other side of the ball the Arizona defense was making quick work of Seattle's banged up an sluggish offense. The quarter ended with no score but the Cardinals were marching to Seattle's end zone.

The second quarter started with the Cardinals driving down to Seattle's 21 yard line before being stopped. They would attempt a field-goal only to have Seattle's Bobby Wagner hurdle the line to block the kick attempt. After the blocked field-goal Seattle was only able to advance the ball to their own 44 before having to punt the ball back to the Cardinals. Starting at their own 11 yard-line the Cardinals drove down the field and were stopped at Seattle's 28 yard-line. This time the field-goal attempt worked to give the Cardinals a 3-0 lead. After the kick-off the Seahawks were not able to advance the ball very far before punting once again. The Cardinals made their way down the field but were stopped on Seattle's 32 yard-line as time ran out in the half.

The Seattle Seahawks started the second half of the game with a good drive that was stalled with penalties that put them in a hole too big to overcome. The Cardinals put together a great drive only to turn the ball over on downs as the Seahawks stopped them in the red zone. The rest of the third quarter ended up being a back-and-forth slug-fest. The quarter ended with the Cardinals still leading 3-0.

Much of the fourth quarter was again a back-and-forth game with the defenses keeping the to short gains. With just under 5 minutes left in the game the Seahawks blocked a punt at the Carinals 38 yard-line. The Seahawks offense was only able to advance the ball to the 22 before having to settle for a field-goal to tie the game. The last 4 ½ minutes were more back-and-forth play and the game ended tied at 3.

Overtime started with the Cardinals receiving the ball and marching down the field before having to settle for a field-goal. The Seahawks took the ball and marched down the field before being forced to settle for a game tying field-goal. With time still remaining in the overtime quarter the Cardinals once again marched down the field only to have their kicker hit the in a failed field1-goal attempt. The Seahawks then put on their most impressive offensive drive. On a 2^nd & 10 at Arizona's 10 yard-line the Seahawks opted to kick a field-goal only to have Stephen Hauschka hook it wide to the left. The Cardinals took over and ran out the final few seconds for a 6-6 tie.  

Orbital Science makes a triumphant return to space flight

Yesterday, Oct 17, was the first time in almost two years that the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport on Virginia's Wallop Island was the sight of an Orbital Science's Antares rocket. On top of the rocket was a unmanned Cygnus craft filled with more than 2 and a half ton of supplies destined for the ISS (International Space Station). The mission would first for Orbital Science since the October 2014 explosion of an Antares rocket shortly after lift-off.

At 7:45 pm ET (4:45 pm PT) the ground crew on Wallop Island and those watching the live feed were thrilled at the sight of the engines roaring to life. There was cheering as the rocket lifted-off and started its accent. Within seconds much of the northern half of the east coast was able to witness the sight of the rocket as it soared into the stratosphere.

A few minutes after launch the Antares rocket broke into a low Earth orbit where it would separate with the Cygnus craft that would continue on its mission to the ISS. It will take 5 and a days for the Cygnus craft to rendezvous with the ISS where it will then be captured by the stations robotic grappling arm and brought in to dock. Then over the next few weeks the crew of the ISS will unload the 5,000+ pounds of supplies. Once the craft has been unloaded it will then be filled back up with 3,000 pounds of trash before it is released to fall back to Earth.