Space worlds collide

DesEmery,TheCarborundumChronicles,St.Thomas,ON,Canada — Thu, 22 Feb 2007 02:36:43 GMT

Hi, Alan -- NASA is constrained by virtue of being funded by government. The companies which want to make money by sending customers on the ride of their life are only constrained by the depth of the pockets of their owners. Only multi-millionaires, either as sponsors or customers, need apply. If the government was as serious about space (unlimited) as it is about oil in Iraq (limited) everybody (except Ike's military-industrial complex) would be a beneficiary of NASA's exemplary expertise.

Space worlds collide

Doug Gard — Thu, 22 Feb 2007 13:50:59 GMT

Hypersonic's and air breathing propulsion technology applied in the commercial space market segment would be quantum leap ahead. I hope this comes to be, as it would signal that we are truly at last on the verge of achieving CATS.

Space worlds collide

Wayne, Alamogordo, NM — Thu, 22 Feb 2007 15:32:47 GMT

NASA is not only a dinosaur, it's been fossilized for some time now. Let's face it, the future of space travel and exploration lies in the hands of entrepreneurs who are willing to take a large financial risk for an even higher financial gain. Virgin Galactic is one of the front runners in this area. Space tourism however is only one small aspect in the big picture. Space mining will probably be where the big money can eventually be made. I'm not saying NASA shouldn't be funded and that we shouldn't strive as a country to remain the front-runners in space exploration. If it wasn't for the initial space race, I wonder just how far behind our technology would be compared to where we are now. Hopefully, NASA will fully engage with private industry to stimulate space exploration. And hopefully, private industry will team with the scientific community to develop the new technologies that will be required for space travel and exploration.

Space worlds collide

NIM — Thu, 22 Feb 2007 15:43:46 GMT

Sounds good in theory, it'll be interesting to see how well it functions in practice. If it does well, then perhaps other government ventures could be approached in a similar fashion... say for instance the dilapidated and outdated US highway system... you know something we all actually use on a daily basis...

Space worlds collide

born_7-4 — Thu, 22 Feb 2007 17:16:15 GMT

It sounds to me like NASA is trying to support people doing sensible work while it is forced to waste time and money on Bush's plan to invade Mars. NASA’s only hope to be able to get to our space station when it is completed is that one of these private efforts is successful, quickly. It’s hard to understand planning to go to the moon and Mars when we can't reliably get off the ground to visit the ISS. It’s equally absurd to cut space station funds to support manned trips to the moon when we haven't mastered near earth orbital operations. This far off and expensive goal will be subject to cost overruns and production delays. These factors will make the program an easy target for the inevitable budget cuts leaving NASA crippled and grounded for years.

Space worlds collide

Marcus T. Hodgkins, Houston, Texas — Thu, 22 Feb 2007 17:42:12 GMT

I'm very happy to see NASA's support of private commercial spaceflight. The future of space exploration requires the efforts of both NASA and the private sector. If we are to establish a moon presence we will need all the cooperation mankind can muster. I hope this relationship grows. I hope the spirit of cooperation is well established for the future. Keep up the good work NASA. I would love to work for your success and ours.

Marcus Hodgkins, Houston, Texas

Space worlds collide

Ray, Toronto, ON — Thu, 22 Feb 2007 18:23:32 GMT

NASA will either dwindle alongside its government funding, or start to reap the benefits of commercialization. The choice is an easy one.

Space worlds collide

David, Monroe, LA — Thu, 22 Feb 2007 18:56:19 GMT

If NASA really wanted to evolve they would move more into oversight and dole out a larger percentage of their budget to the private space industry.

Let the private companies continue to run LEO operations (least till the space elevators get up and running) and focus on the bleeding edge of space exploration, but even there they should be far less operations centric and work with those private firms who want to push that envelope.

It would also help if they'd stop being scared of their own shadow, it's space, it's dangerous anyway you look at it. Accept it and move on.

Space worlds collide

Frank, Dallas, TX — Thu, 22 Feb 2007 19:44:29 GMT

I haven't totally sorted through my thoughts on this, but here's a few seeds to be cultivated:

1. Rutan isn't exactly an adult supervisor himself. Before his success in the x-prize with spaceship one, he had a different design, the Roton, of which he said that anyone who looked at it and didn't feel that it would win was "an idiot". He's never retracted the statement, that I know of, despite not winning with it.

2. "We're from the government, and we're here to help". Scary words. Even if well-intentioned, the history of collaborations between government and private enterprise is mixed at best. It usually leads to unecessary bureaucracy, which is the burr in Rutan's saddle. I think maybe Virgin is hoping to inexpensively lease some spacesuits or basic equipment. I doubt they want NASA involvement on things like actual design.

3. NASA isn't a dinosaur, and won't be until there is a private company that does the same things it does, cheaper, faster, and more reliably. The post office is a dinosaur compared to UPS and Fed Ex (and email!) for example. NASA is no post office, and I pray it never comes to that. Not because I don't want private industry to succeed, but because at the point where private industry has mastered near-Earth space, NASA can then concentrate on the moon, mars, and deep space missions. NASA ought to be able to continuously re-invent itself to stay a few steps ahead of private industry - its got a heck of a head start.

Space worlds collide

Brian Brown, Vancouver British Columbia — Fri, 23 Feb 2007 00:37:35 GMT

Is there now a computer that beats humans in chess? I could not imagine that this is possible.

I am keenly watching for the next mission to Mars whether it is manned or unmanned. Just the photographs affirm my belief in God.

Space worlds collide

Chris, Hagerstown, MD — Fri, 23 Feb 2007 02:02:13 GMT

Why doesn't NASA just cut to the chase and let any company that wants to explore space and its financially infinite possibilities, share its expertise? If a company pays US Taxes, there should be no need for contracts to work with NASA.

Space worlds collide

Anonymous — Fri, 23 Feb 2007 06:57:01 GMT

NASA announced Wednesday that it has entered into an agreement with Virgin Galactic to explore various opportunities for collaboration in the design of spacesuits, heat shields, and more.  While the new memorandum of understanding does

Space worlds collide

Adrasteia, Sydney — Fri, 23 Feb 2007 09:33:15 GMT

You're mistaken. Rutan most certainly won with Roton, Hudson payed cash.

Space worlds collide

Alan Sheets, Loveland CO — Fri, 23 Feb 2007 16:36:19 GMT

NASA is neither a dinosaur, nor really guilty of many of the other accusations that have been heaped against it. NASA is the government-funded front runner in many technologies, as as such wasn't designed to put profit over funtionality.

What gets me is that, while bashing NASA, many of these indies rely on the technology NASA comes up with, and distributes free of charge in most cases.

Space worlds collide

Ferris Valyn — Fri, 23 Feb 2007 18:16:33 GMT

Frank,

Concerning Roton - That wasn't actually Rutan's - Rutan was involved as a sub-contractor, but that was really Gary Hudson's project. So, if you wanna blame someone for that project, talk to Gary Hudson. In fact, its rather ironic that they were competing with each other for the X Prize when Scaled built the ATV.

Space worlds collide

JC, Fairbanks, AK — Sat, 24 Feb 2007 01:13:48 GMT

The Burt Rutan’s and Bob Zubrin’s of the world would LOVE to tap into NASA’s (already very limited) resources for their own ends. To them, everyone who doesn’t see things their way is an idiot. Derision (like “NaySay”, and “No Adult Supervision Apparent”) is simply one tactic of their campaigns to convince voters to force NASA to hand over taxpayer money to them. Space entrepreneurs using their own money? Fine. Using MY money? No Way! Anybody out there remember why the LandSat dataset has about a year-and-a-half hole in it? Yeah that's right, a bunch of money-grubbers got their paws on it.

One of the most strident complaints of guys like these is that NASA is unimaginative, but what do *they* have to offer? The whole business of access to space via rocketry is tired “old-think”. It will NEVER yield what *I* would consider ‘C(heap) A(ccess) T(o) S(pace) (say, the cost of an airline ticket). Even if it did we would have another problem: the environmental effects of a few dozen launches a year are not large (though non-zero), but I bet the effects of hundreds or thousands would be! Rockets are still an extremely dangerous mode of transportation, they are LOADED with explosive and poisonous chemicals (a couple years ago the Russians instantly converted a few acres of Kazakh Steppe into a Superfund site with a failed rocket . . .). And who would want to live anywhere near a spaceport, and put up with rocket roars, and sonic booms all the time?

If NASA is going to seriously fund ANY private research, it should be development of really original ideas, not old-think. There are already a number of good new ideas that include things like balloons, electromagnet propulsion and ‘space elevators’. *These* are the way to “CATS”, not rockets. When discoveries DO come from NASA funded research they need to insist on STEEP royalties; that money is partly mine, and I don’t like NASA (or any other agency) simply giving away for a song, discoveries and inventions worth billions upon billions of $$ made on MY dime. (NIH is particularly egregious at this)

As far as NASA being a dinosaur, I hope people consider that claim next time they look at the Cassini website or see a Hubble image. Think Rutan has any interest in doing things like that? No. He’s interested in making Money, not contributing to human knowledge. If he proposes to take tax money, he ought to be prepared to give me a ride to space. Is he? Space trips for everyone? Well, no, only for billionaires, not ‘thousand-aires’ like me..

PS. Virgin Galactic is a remarkably presumptuous title for a company that hasn’t even launched thing one into even low-earth orbit….. “Galactic”? Really?….try “Sub-orbital”, Sir Richard.