Space Exploration

[Biopsyman]

what? and get something done? Dear God man, you take a double dose of crazy pills?

Ever heard ofElton John rocket man?

 

[theutvolunteers]

Full disclosure. How much longer until it happens?

 

[MT LeConte]

Yup. glad we don't have unions because it is the same.

My uncle worked for NASA and then later a NASA contractor. They weren't allowed to directly contact other people working on the project. they had to call their handler, explain what was needed (way over their head) that handler then had to request permission to talk to the other companies handler, who was told by the first handler what my uncle wanted. that equally intelligent handler then passed on the information to the second company. but often didn't know who to contact or wouldn't go through the effort of making sure the info got to the correct person. Uncle told me that they often reverted to snail mail (allowed) because it was a more efficient means of communication.

he said most of NASA under some of the administrations had become box checkers who had no real clue about space, engineering or anything to do with the business side of things. they were just there to collect pay checks and complicate his life.

My uncle did end up getting a Silver Snoopy Award, which was a pretty dang big deal for him.

Yet the Mars rovers just keep performing. New Horizons and Cassini worked without a hitch. ISS is still manned and doing science after well over 100,000 orbits. Damn government agencies.

 

[Grand Vol]

Yet the Mars rovers just keep performing. New Horizons and Cassini worked without a hitch. ISS is still manned and doing science after well over 100,000 orbits. Damn government agencies.

NASA, by and large, still holds fairly high esteem in the public view. However, they are not unlike any other government agency that bureaucratic red tape nonsense will eventually take over.

Name one government agency that hasn't happened in.

 

[hog88]

Yet the Mars rovers just keep performing. New Horizons and Cassini worked without a hitch. ISS is still manned and doing science after well over 100,000 orbits. Damn government agencies.

We first landed on the moon almost 48 years ago. NASA hasn't had an accomplishment anywhere near that since.

Let that sink in for a moment.

 

[LouderVol]

Yet the Mars rovers just keep performing. New Horizons and Cassini worked without a hitch. ISS is still manned and doing science after well over 100,000 orbits. Damn government agencies.

maintaining is one thing. and thankfully the people working on the real side of things are passionate about their jobs. its done well in spite of itself. and those probes are just that. NASA hasn't done a whole lot of "new" that would be pushing things.

 

[Grand Vol]

We first landed on the moon almost 48 years ago. NASA hasn't had an accomplishment anywhere near that since.

Let that sink in for a moment.

Blame Nixon...

 

[hog88]

Blame Nixon...

And all Presidents since.

 

[Grand Vol]

And all Presidents since.

To a point, you are correct. I think most Presidents since LBJ gave the space program token glances from time to time with no clear vision of "the next step." Plus, priorities changed with almost every Administration which leads to an unfocused Agency unsure of what the priority is.

NASA needs a clearly defined target that spans multiple Administrations. The problem with going back to the Moon is the fact Bush 43 outlined the same proposal which was done away with when Obama took office. (not a slam against Obama, just the fact he scrapped the next generation lunar program)

But moreover, the goal and vision has to transcend petty politics and have a unified effort on the part of both parties in Congress. The POTUS can sign anything he wants, but ultimately, it's up to Congress to make it happen. Something I seriously doubt will happen in the near future.

 

[hog88]

To a point, you are correct. I think most Presidents since LBJ gave the space program token glances from time to time with no clear vision of "the next step." Plus, priorities changed with almost every Administration which leads to an unfocused Agency unsure of what the priority is.

NASA needs a clearly defined target that spans multiple Administrations. The problem with going back to the Moon is the fact Bush 43 outlined the same proposal which was done away with when Obama took office. (not a slam against Obama, just the fact he scrapped the next generation lunar program)

But moreover, the goal and vision has to transcend petty politics and have a unified effort on the part of both parties in Congress. The POTUS can sign anything he wants, but ultimately, it's up to Congress to make it happen. Something I seriously doubt will happen in the near future.

I agree. It takes so long to get a new project off the ground that once a target is identified (like a maned mission to Mars) it should be untouchable by the following administrations.

 

[marcusluvsvols]

We first landed on the moon almost 48 years ago. NASA hasn't had an accomplishment anywhere near that since.

Let that sink in for a moment.

This. All day this. And i am pro NASA, bigtime...problem is 1 president wants to go to mars, sets that into super slow motion...next president scraps all that, wants to grow monkees on the moon,sets that into super slow motion, next pres scraps that, wants to........

Billions if not trillions since the moon landing. Dont even have working space shuttles anymore to ferry US men and women to the ISS...have accomplished nothing really except the Hubble telescope. Yeah, we flew a few rockets past other planets..yada yada yada...no closer to a base on the moon or a manned mission to Mars than we were on 1.1.1970. Sad really.

I think Musk will get to Mars before the USA does. Again, sad really.

 

[MT LeConte]

maintaining is one thing. and thankfully the people working on the real side of things are passionate about their jobs. its done well in spite of itself. and those probes are just that. NASA hasn't done a whole lot of "new" that would be pushing things.

Over half of what NASA is doing you don't see because it is done for the military and defense department. And it's a helluva lot more than just launching spy satellites (think X-37B, particle beam weapons and believe it or not tractor beams) No, I don't know specifics but I do have a friend who for years was Deputy Director of NASAs Advanced Concepts Office. He is now Chief Scientist of NASAs Solar Sail Project. For some reason NASA refers to him as Solar Sail's Chief Investigator. Bet you did't know we're sending a probe to an asteroid in 2018 using a solar sail and sunlight for propulsion. It will be accelerated to over 63,000 MPH relative to the Sun. It is expected that in the not too distant future it will be the fastest mode of transportation to the outer planets. Unless you are really interested and keep up you probably also don't know that we've already tested and used solar sails in Earth orbit.

You can Google around and find info on it.

(Certain weapons are prohibited in space by treaty but developing technology is not.)

.

 

[LouderVol]

Over half of what NASA is doing you don't see because it is done for the military and defense department. And it's a helluva lot more than just launching spy satellites (think X-37B, particle beam weapons and believe it or not tractor beams) No, I don't know specifics but I do have a friend who for years was Deputy Director of NASAs Advanced Concepts Office. He is now Chief Scientist of NASAs Solar Sail Project. For some reason NASA refers to him as Solar Sail's Chief Investigator. Bet you did't know we're sending a probe to an asteroid in 2018 using a solar sail and sunlight for propulsion. It will be accelerated to over 63,000 MPH relative to the Sun. It is expected that in the not too distant future it will be the fastest mode of transportation to the outer planets. Unless you are really interested and keep up you probably also don't know that we've already tested and used solar sails in Earth orbit.

You can Google around and find info on it.

(Certain weapons are prohibited in space by treaty but developing technology is not.)

.

solar sails, another happy little accident of NASA. First got real consideration after the deployment of the full set of solar panels on the ISS had a noticeable impact on its orbit.

solar sails are simply outdated at this point and have a relative limited scope (close to a star), while still depending on other sources of fuel for tight maneuvering or any vector changes outside the realm of a star. braking will also be an issue.

if you want the future look at the EmDrive stuff. that still has me hot and bothered.

 

[SpaceCoastVol]

Good, we should have already been on Mars.

Why? The moon is full of He3 which would provide tons of 'free' energy. A much more worthwhile project.

That being said, SpacEx is on the right track. This was yesterday. If you don't want to watch the whole thing, skip forward to about 7:30.

SpaceX CRS-13: Falcon 9 launch & landing, 15 December 2017 - YouTube

But I think Bezos is moving the right direction as well. Blue Origin is building a huge new assembly facility near KSC. Not sure when they plan to start production and launches though, but here is something to whet your appetite as well. Skip forward to about 7 minutes for the really cool stuff. At about 7:20 you can hear the twin sonic booms. We hear those here when SpacEx is returning theirs (Also used to hear them when the shuttle came back)

Wow! Blue Origin Launches Capsule and Rocket, Lands Both Again | Video - YouTube

 

[Grand Vol]

Oh wait...

I thought "if it ain't Boeing, I ain't going"?

 

[omaha_vol]

I wouldn't be upset if NASA were the most important part of our government. We've already managed to ruin this planet, so I'd really like for us to find a way off of it. Maybe I'm just a big nerd.

Lol, what a drama queen. You're silly if you think this planet is ruined.

 

[omaha_vol]

Why? The moon is full of He3 which would provide tons of 'free' energy. A much more worthwhile project.

That being said, SpacEx is on the right track. This was yesterday. If you don't want to watch the whole thing, skip forward to about 7:30.

SpaceX CRS-13: Falcon 9 launch & landing, 15 December 2017 - YouTube

But I think Bezos is moving the right direction as well. Blue Origin is building a huge new assembly facility near KSC. Not sure when they plan to start production and launches though, but here is something to whet your appetite as well. Skip forward to about 7 minutes for the really cool stuff. At about 7:20 you can hear the twin sonic booms. We hear those here when SpacEx is returning theirs (Also used to hear them when the shuttle came back)

Wow! Blue Origin Launches Capsule and Rocket, Lands Both Again | Video - YouTube

If a private company does this, we should be all for it

 

[omaha_vol]

This. All day this. And i am pro NASA, bigtime...problem is 1 president wants to go to mars, sets that into super slow motion...next president scraps all that, wants to grow monkees on the moon,sets that into super slow motion, next pres scraps that, wants to........

Billions if not trillions since the moon landing. Dont even have working space shuttles anymore to ferry US men and women to the ISS...have accomplished nothing really except the Hubble telescope. Yeah, we flew a few rockets past other planets..yada yada yada...no closer to a base on the moon or a manned mission to Mars than we were on 1.1.1970. Sad really.

I think Musk will get to Mars before the USA does. Again, sad really.

The money waste is sad.

 

[SpaceCoastVol]

Oh wait...

I thought "if it ain't Boeing, I ain't going"?

I changed my mind.

 

[SpaceCoastVol]

If a private company does this, we should be all for it

Except that from what I hear around these parts, Elon Musk is the king of government subsidies. Don't think for one minute that PayPal is paying for his fantasies all by itself.

 

[Grand Vol]

It was a lofty goal of some at least.

Ex-Prize: Google's $30 Million Moon Race Ends with No Winner

It's official: The $30 million Google Lunar X Prize is no more.

"After close consultation with our five finalist Google Lunar X Prize teams over the past several months, we have concluded that no team will make a launch attempt to reach the moon by the March 31, 2018, deadline," X Prize founder and chairman Peter Diamandis said in a joint statement today (Jan. 23) with Marcus Shingles, the organization's CEO.

"This literal 'moonshot' is hard, and while we did expect a winner by now, due to the difficulties of fundraising, technical and regulatory challenges, the grand prize of the $30M Google Lunar X Prize will go unclaimed," they added.

The acknowledgement confirms news broken yesterday by CNBC.

The Google Lunar X Prize (GLXP) was announced in 2007, with the stated aim of encouraging commercial spaceflight and exploration. The contest challenged privately funded teams to put a robotic spacecraft on the moon, move the craft 1,640 feet (500 meters), and have it beam high-definition photos and video back to Earth.

 

[LouderVol]

It was a lofty goal of some at least.

Ex-Prize: Google's $30 Million Moon Race Ends with No Winner

kinda thought Musk would have gone for it. seeing as how he can already get into space. not that the cash would do that much for him but the publicity would be killer for whoever did it.

 

[Grand Vol]

kinda thought Musk would have gone for it. seeing as how he can already get into space. not that the cash would do that much for him but the publicity would be killer for whoever did it.

He has bigger goals.

Primarily at the moment is getting the Falcon Heavy on its maiden flight.

 

[golfballs]

NASA's Parker Solar Probe will touch the sun - The Washington Post

 

[golfballs]

Pretty cool