tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19394281.post1259264782258261291..comments2023-10-18T08:43:10.620-04:00Comments on The Flame Trench space news and analysis: NASA not as expensive as you thinkC Perezhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13916832810035419167noreply@blogger.comBlogger18125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19394281.post-41076041038434690572009-09-16T23:03:51.043-04:002009-09-16T23:03:51.043-04:00YOUR KIDDING RIGHT?YOUR KIDDING RIGHT?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19394281.post-61452091259411187282009-09-16T06:17:25.733-04:002009-09-16T06:17:25.733-04:00Why not outsource all NASA rocket building an laun...Why not outsource all NASA rocket building an launching to China or India. Jeb Bush out source other Florida gov't jobs it would save a lot of Tax money and make our space program more American. like our other industries the corporate suppliers would make a bigger profit.loutefreenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19394281.post-43901372946534699462009-09-16T05:42:00.979-04:002009-09-16T05:42:00.979-04:00re' Fred Bartleson -
How? You are talki...re' Fred Bartleson -<br /><br /> How? You are talking two/three centuries of technological development, and several thousand orders of magnitude social development. God bless you for having an imagination, anyway.<br /> re' Mars, I'd be more worried about calcium depletion, than radiation, pal.CharlieAnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19394281.post-77060554397076425442009-09-15T15:06:28.603-04:002009-09-15T15:06:28.603-04:00It seems a shame to abandon the space program afte...It seems a shame to abandon the space program after just completing the space station. On the other hand nothing will be gained by going back to the moon. Manned flight to Mars is a dumb idea, since radiation will more than likely kill the travelers. SO-- Why not begin construction of the Starship Enterprise, while studying propulsion, artificial gravity, and radiation shielding etc. The SpaceFred D Bartleson Jrnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19394281.post-63941835900010006582009-09-15T12:59:30.824-04:002009-09-15T12:59:30.824-04:00If you haven't worked at one of the space cent...If you haven't worked at one of the space centers then you can say NOTHING about NASA and how useful they are. You didn't mention the sleeping employees, union strongholds, incompetent workers with old technology, etc, etc.<br /><br />17 billion goes into this "hole" every year. There is no return on the investment. There's the waste.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19394281.post-77165258996150449182009-09-15T07:14:04.922-04:002009-09-15T07:14:04.922-04:00One aspect of the civilian US space programme not ...One aspect of the civilian US space programme not mentioned enough is that it showcases the best of America. I don't want to dwell on US foreign policy, which is part of the reason why the world is so troubled, but the space programme is worth every penny. I hope Obama and his administration take this into account when deciding NASA's new mission.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19394281.post-28052993692242045232009-09-15T06:16:00.370-04:002009-09-15T06:16:00.370-04:00John is The Man!!
Shame that a waterproof TPS w...John is The Man!!<br /><br /> Shame that a waterproof TPS was never invented.<br /> Are the troops at OPF still spraying ScotchGard on the Orbiters before rollout?<br /> There is a classicly funny PAO picure taken prior to STS-1, that shows the Scotch "Gaurd" hard at work. Les Gaver's gang used to have such an eye for cute pictires.CharlieAnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19394281.post-20022039119357120262009-09-15T00:13:27.191-04:002009-09-15T00:13:27.191-04:00I'd like to cmment on the person who said NASA...I'd like to cmment on the person who said NASA can't land the shuttle in the rain and tiles keep falling off. <br /><br />Tha shuttle can land in rain, everytime it passes through a cloud it gets rained on and then lands, now since the craft has no power and is a glider as designed in the 1970's it must have decent climate conditions to land. <br /><br />With only one shot at Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19394281.post-21973131469465723272009-09-14T21:47:43.020-04:002009-09-14T21:47:43.020-04:00I have to agree with Matt. NASA has no credibilit...I have to agree with Matt. NASA has no credibility right now. They have to reinvent the wheel with each new project. The Ares I is just another example of bad decision making. We have existing rockets with better capability than the Ares I and instead of modifying them we have to spend 35 billion to reinvent something new. Ditto with the Mars rovers, two perfectly good rovers exploring MarsAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19394281.post-87016254172411777612009-09-14T17:54:02.901-04:002009-09-14T17:54:02.901-04:00We spend about 0.5 percent of the national budget ...We spend about 0.5 percent of the national budget on NASA. It is very true. They don't even have enough money to paint the walls in some of their buildings. What a shame....Running the space program on their budget is like trying to build a car with three wheels, a lawn mower engine, and a rubber band for the parts. A shame...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19394281.post-9724564051644745392009-09-14T15:32:59.535-04:002009-09-14T15:32:59.535-04:00Regarding the 11:32 AM anon, your 'facts' ...Regarding the 11:32 AM anon, your 'facts' are wrong. <br />1)It's not that NASA can't launch/land in bad weather but for safety's sake they choose not to. Spaceflight is a dangerous undertaking, and any risk that they can buy down they do.<br />2)The 'glue on tiles' are very efficient and work just fine. The 'chunks' that fall off are pieces of foam Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19394281.post-1174654777802671732009-09-14T15:15:20.268-04:002009-09-14T15:15:20.268-04:00The key to more funding for NASA is credibility. I...The key to more funding for NASA is credibility. It's been decades since they last finished a project without blowing the budget or de-scoping the requirements. What they really needed right now was an Ares I on track for its first flight in 2011. When the Vision for Space Exploration was announced back in 2004, NASA was given yet another chance to do something great in outer space. Yet they Matt Wronkiewiczhttp://matt.wronkiewicz.netnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19394281.post-66891534092760881182009-09-14T14:29:00.186-04:002009-09-14T14:29:00.186-04:00Yes, the comments about landing in the rain and gl...Yes, the comments about landing in the rain and glue-on tiles show a real lack of knowledge about the shuttle and the technologies involved. Unfortunately, most people would rather remain ignorant and spout uninformed drivel than to actually go and find out what the Space Program has done for them, and the truly amazing technological advancements that have been made and that have in turn become Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19394281.post-42754271631436291412009-09-14T12:17:39.084-04:002009-09-14T12:17:39.084-04:00I hadn't realized the size of the budget in th...I hadn't realized the size of the budget in the 60s - over ten times what NASA now gets as a fraction of our national budget!!<br /><br /> I like the comments from the first anon...I think you got the cost/return inverted, but I think you're right on the magnitude. <br /><br />It might be an interesting bit to put some other numbers up there. Say, how much U.S. citizens spend each year Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19394281.post-14604051963911527782009-09-14T11:51:11.769-04:002009-09-14T11:51:11.769-04:00Very cool shot of pad 39B.Very cool shot of pad 39B.Todd Halvorsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00786024847977866951noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19394281.post-40083583394703191532009-09-14T11:42:34.636-04:002009-09-14T11:42:34.636-04:00Great Column John...Good points Rick. oh and lets ...Great Column John...Good points Rick. oh and lets not forget the 750 billion dollars (not to mention young lives) so far on the war in Iraq!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19394281.post-24469769041406980402009-09-14T11:32:47.314-04:002009-09-14T11:32:47.314-04:00Even after all these years NASA still has not figu...Even after all these years NASA still has not figured out how to launch and/or land a shuttle in the rain and the best thay can come up with for heat shields are glue-on tiles, and chunks keep falling off every time they launch. Considering these factors, I think the idea that they are who manned space exploration is dependant on dooms the whole idea from the start.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19394281.post-22366843322316529502009-09-14T09:32:03.049-04:002009-09-14T09:32:03.049-04:00Great Column, John. Perhaps you could make a coup...Great Column, John. Perhaps you could make a couple of extra points in your future colums:<br />1. Out of the billions in NASA's budget, NOT ONE CENT is spent in space. All of the money is spent here on earth. <br />2. I believe NASA has something like a 7:1 ratio on cost/return on the money it spends.<br />3. The economic benefits of NASA affect the entire planet, not just the US.<br />4. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com