Re: Space funding (was Re: Hillary needs to quit)

PV wrote:
> fairwater@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 (Derek Lyons) writes:
>> No, most of space exploration technology is "current" because we spent
>> a lot of money discovering the top of the learning curve back in the
>> 60's and 70's.  We can tweak efficiency a few points here and there,
>> but there isn't any magical 'technology' waiting in the wings.
> 
> My. Ass. Well, "magical" is a bad term, but the shuttle is a giant pile
of
> crap. Many people, unfortunately without the funding, could do better
with
> half a brain tied behind their back.
> 
> Actually, calling the shuttle crap isn't entirely fair. It is what it is
> because of the lack of a real job to do for too long. If the ISS was
> started when it should have been, as a followup to skylab in the 80s, it
> probably wouldn't have gotten so many cuts and dumbass redesigns. *

The shuttle CONCEPT was good, the execution badly flawed. They will need 
some sort of truly reusable (not just the crew compartment) lift vehicle 
to ever do spaceflight on a production basis. If STS had followed von 
braun's original horizontal takeoff piggyback concept, rather than being 
forced by budget cuts to reuse Apollo infrastructure, who knows? Maybe 
it would have been able to make powered returns, and the whole heat 
****elding thing would be less of an issue. But, for the time being, the 
cost per lifted pound for expendables is lower than for the 
end-of-lifespan semi-reusables, so I guess that is what we have to go 
with. I think it is im****tant that some sort of manned flights continue. 
The robots and droids are wonderful, and cost-effective, but they still 
can't do all that wetware can, and they simply don't hold public 
interest as well. And that public interest and perceived possibility of 
long-term profit, is the only thing that will keep the blue-sky research 
for a cost-effect way to get into orbit going on. I (sadly) know that it 
won't happen in my lifetime, but I hope someday someone will figure out 
a way to do it, that mere mortals can afford.

Too bad the russians ran out of money before they got their shuttle 
operational. Competition is good for R&D.

--
aem sends...