Curse

Winterclaw · Apr 14, 2010, 01:57 AM // 01:57

Source

Frankly I can't blame him. 40 years ago, the US did all it could to beat Russia to the moon. Now we are paying russia for the privilege of using their rockets to get to the space station (at the cost of 50 million per seat). We are also going to lose a lot of expertise when it comes to building the next generation of rockets as the people working on the current projects are probably going to be fired and seek jobs elsewhere. Everything that they worked on will be stored away and even if it isn't forgotten it will take a long time to get back up to speed.

The real sad thing is we still have 200 billion or so left over from TARP and more than half of last years stimulus package that have been unspent and could easily be repurposed to protect our space programs.

While I know that the US is going to have to cut spending by a lot, I believe the phrase "penny wise, pound heavy" fits here. Maybe if we weren't throwing trillions at bailing out companies that shouldn't have been bailed out we could do a few little things like a space program or and asteroid defense program.

Father of The Son of God · Apr 15, 2010, 06:48 PM // 18:48

Brah Chuck Norris IS our asteroid defense program. Amirite?

(I thought a Chuck Norris joke was pertinent to a thread talking about "how it was 40 years ago")

Sorrowless · Apr 15, 2010, 07:31 PM // 19:31

They're only paying $50million to get to the space station per person?

http://www.adrenalin.com.au/voyage-t...ssia/air/12260
The Russian's are offering a trip to the moon for $100,000,000 oddly enough they haven't reached it yet.

Winterclaw · Apr 15, 2010, 08:28 PM // 20:28

I'm sorry but canceling our space program to bailout russia doesn't sit well with me.

Rocky Raccoon · Apr 15, 2010, 08:36 PM // 20:36

It's not a cancellation but a shift in priorities (Moon vs Mars). The shuttle program was already set to end and the moon project was a multi-billion loss. Buss Aldrin the second man to walk on the moon agrees with the new program, 1 for & 1 against.

MMSDome · Apr 15, 2010, 08:51 PM // 20:51

I am amazed he doesn't just raise taxes to keep the program running.

**cosyfiep** · Apr 15, 2010, 09:02 PM // 21:02

after the moon stuff in the '60's the hype about the moon died down as we had met our goal--I was amazed to see the USA continue the next bunch of missions as it was.

Until there is a real money making reason to head back to the moon, it just aint gonna happen any time soon.....and when it does, it will probably be some private companies that fund it--not the government. (though if you read today's news obama seems to think we will get an american on mars before he dies.....I think he is in for a great big surprise with that one)

Faer · Apr 16, 2010, 12:10 AM // 00:10

We could get one there easily enough; it's getting them back that would be tricky business.

Black Metal · Apr 16, 2010, 01:15 AM // 01:15

Yeah I'm pretty disappointed too. Very poignant, cosy, in stating that we are bailing out Russia at the expense of our own program.

Richard C. Hoagland (enterprisemission.com) seems to think there is a separate secret space program, and that there has been a lot of interest around the world with exploring the dark side and the southern pole of the moon.

Of couse there has been a lot of talk lately of privatizing the space program, but that has its own drawbacks -- the private companies could become like the Weyland-Yutani Corp of Doom 3, or they could sell their technologies to our enemies, rather than everything kept in-house at NASA.

Winterclaw · Apr 16, 2010, 02:13 AM // 02:13

I don't think that a manned mission to mars is going to be feasible until we find a way to significantly shorten the 2 year round trip travel time. Plus you've got to find a way to get a group off of a planet (no launch centers are on mars). And you've got to be able to actually get a craft there more than half the time.

That's one thing I liked about the return to the moon. Even if there is little scientific value for a return mission, it still keeps us in the mode of a more long distance travel than Earth orbit and it would encouraging us to keep developing new technology.