Daily science stuff

[Alelou]

Notice, though, that it's exactly the same phenomenon of members of Congress being unwilling to give up any of their pet local projects, no matter what any bipartisan commission recommends. Yet somehow that never stops the same exact members from complaining bitterly about deficit spending (even though the bulk of it came about under their watch).

I really don't know how anyone governs this country. We're like a bunch of whiny twelve-year-olds.

[Kevin Thomas Riley]

^ Well, in this case I am a supporter of "local pet projects" since I think that ultimaltely it's not just about local politics (like bridges to nowhere and whatnot) but about our future, where the human race will go.

[Alelou]

There can be reasonable debates about whether another manned moon program -- which was already having issues with serious underfunding -- is the best way to support the goal of space exploration, especially if we can't afford to do that AND continue the International Space Station. And if the news reports are correct, Obama is not cutting NASA's funding -- he's actually increasing it 5.9 billion.

If the manned moon mission is so much more important than whatever strategy they are announcing tomorrow, perhaps other countries could pitch in some of their tax dollars (maybe they already do -- I don't know). But seriously, maybe it's about time we got a world space agency. The US is fighting two wars and experiencing record unemployment. We can't do everything, especially in this domestic political climate.

[Kevin Thomas Riley]

To be honest, the International Space Station has been something of an impasse, and I'd much rather setting the goal of going to the Moon and Mars and beyond than keeping on not so boldly going nowhere into low Earth orbit, which is what we've been doing since the early seventies.

And I'm all for others, especially ESA, pitching in more, but alas, we're even more non-visionary here across the pond.

[Asso]

I share your thoughts.

[Entilzha]

The reasons there isn't a really multi-national space agency except ESA is because of the technologies used for space exploration, a lot of it has military applications.

[Asso]

True.

[enterprikayak]

To be honest, the International Space Station has been something of an impasse, and I'd much rather setting the goal of going to the Moon and Mars and beyond than keeping on not so boldly going nowhere into low Earth orbit, which is what we've been doing since the early seventies.

But when we *do* go to Mars or the Moon, the things we've learned from our human astro-labrats will be essential.

[Kevin Thomas Riley]

^ Of course. But doing only astro lab stuff in LEO for 38 years!

[enterprikayak]

We're just being really, really.....really.......really.....careful.

[Elessar]

We're just being really, really.....really.......really.....careful.

EK you joked about how we'd all get along -- we get along great remember! We were all in Dallas together! Minus WG and any others, of course

[enterprikayak]

yeah, but I was vomiting the whole time. Even when we were at dinner, I was all, "Oh, excuse me," and I'd waddle to the bathroom and yak up the dinner I had just eaten, and then I'd come back and sit down and eat some more. So that was kind of the subdued me. The regular me? Yeah, likely I'd be the first one hogtied and left out in the rain by the rest o' yous.

[Kevin Thomas Riley]

Well, it's official, although the article is somewhat misleading when it says "new rocket technology research". Uh, NASA is already are developing new rockets (the Ares series) and that's the ones they now want to axe. It makes sense, from a cost perspective if nothing else, to use derivatives of shuttle technology. The world's most reliable rocket, the Soyuz, is still at heart based on the old Soviet R-7 ballistic missile (which also was the world's first ICBM).

I'm keeping my fingers crossed for saner voices in Congress to prevail, even if their motivations might be more homegrown than visionary.

[enterprikayak]

... saner voices in Congress...

now this just makes me giggle.



You may be waitin' on that one a long time, b'y.

[Kevin Thomas Riley]

^ Yeah, I know, the irony is mind-boggling...