Ares/Orion on the blocks?

[Allyn Gibson]

President-Elect Obama's transition team has asked NASA what money can be saved if the Ares launcher and the Orion capsule are scaled back:

Obama Team Seeks Data On Possible Changes To Ares, Orion

 

[GodThingFormerly]

TGT

 

[Timo]

If scaled back, the program will still provide the benefit of giving rocket scientists something to do. It probably won't play any meaningful role in space exploration, though - but odds always were that it wouldn't. Time might yet come for such exploration being performed by NASA again, and it's good to give the skilled people occupied and in positions where they can pass on their skills and knowledge.

I wonder how far back Constellation could be scaled and still provide the benefits. Tabletop models would be my personal preference.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[RAMA]

Ugh, I kind of knew this would happen. I understand everyone is looking for short term solutions.

RAMA

 

[Timo]

For the Bush administration that provided the original funding, the whole thing was a short-term solution, nothing more, nothing less. It just wasn't a solution to space exploration.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Neroon]

For the Bush administration that provided the original funding, the whole thing was a short-term solution, nothing more, nothing less. It just wasn't a solution to space exploration.

Timo Saloniemi

If that's true - and I'm not doubting you - what was its goal in the first place?

 

[Timo]

Why, to create the impression that there is a space program, without having to invest the sort of money that a real space program would need. The administration certainly knew it wouldn't be around by the time the program collapsed. Although probably the low-investment mode could have been continued through one post-Bush season of Republican reign.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Neopeius]

Why, to create the impression that there is a space program, without having to invest the sort of money that a real space program would need. The administration certainly knew it wouldn't be around by the time the program collapsed. Although probably the low-investment mode could have been continued through one post-Bush season of Republican reign.

What he said.

And I said this in 2004.

 

[Alpha_Geek]

WASHINGTON — U.S. President-elect Barack Obama's NASA transition team is asking U.S. space agency officials to quantify how much money could be saved by canceling the Ares 1 rocket and scaling back the Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle next year.

No suprise here, 'cuz not all change is good.

WTF do they think they're gonna fly Orion on if they cancel Ares I? Wait for the Ares V development?

 

[John Picard]

I still see no reason for a manned trip to Mars and a return to the moon. I believe in the space program; however, it seems we're spinning our wheels by trying to do too much as once rather than one step at a time.

 

[Neopeius]

WASHINGTON — U.S. President-elect Barack Obama's NASA transition team is asking U.S. space agency officials to quantify how much money could be saved by canceling the Ares 1 rocket and scaling back the Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle next year.

No suprise here, 'cuz not all change is good.

WTF do they think they're gonna fly Orion on if they cancel Ares I? Wait for the Ares V development?

Bingo. The Orion will never fly.

I still see no reason for a manned trip to Mars and a return to the moon. I believe in the space program; however, it seems we're spinning our wheels by trying to do too much as once rather than one step at a time.

What do you propose our next step be?

 

[Alpha_Geek]

I just went back and looked at campaign promises... so much for the additional 2 billion in funding, eh?

 

[Brent]

NASA in fact needs to be scaled up! Scaling back is very bad, they really need a bigger budget.

 

[John Picard]

WASHINGTON — U.S. President-elect Barack Obama's NASA transition team is asking U.S. space agency officials to quantify how much money could be saved by canceling the Ares 1 rocket and scaling back the Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle next year.

No suprise here, 'cuz not all change is good.

WTF do they think they're gonna fly Orion on if they cancel Ares I? Wait for the Ares V development?

Bingo. The Orion will never fly.

I still see no reason for a manned trip to Mars and a return to the moon. I believe in the space program; however, it seems we're spinning our wheels by trying to do too much as once rather than one step at a time.

What do you propose our next step be?

Space probes and continued research on the ISS. Probes can take care of the initial surveys for much less money and less danger to human life. Everyone's so psyched that "ZOMG!!! IT'S THE TWENTY FIRST CENTURY AND WE SHOULD HAVE INTERPLANETARY FLIGHT BY NOW!!!!111!!!"

Gotta learn to walk before you can run, and right now we're still crawling.

 

[Alpha_Geek]

Sorry pal, we've walked before. The footprints prove it.

What we need to do now is learn to jog, and this potential cut will be a major setback.

 

[Brent]

We have the technology right now, here in this day and age, for great exploration of our solar system. We do have the tech to be on the moon, right now, we have the tech for manned missions to Mars. What we lack is the money and budget to do so. It would cost a LOT of money we don't have, and NASA is already operating on shoe strings. Money is the real thing holding us back from space exploration, manned or otherwise.

 

[Meredith]

WASHINGTON — U.S. President-elect Barack Obama's NASA transition team is asking U.S. space agency officials to quantify how much money could be saved by canceling the Ares 1 rocket and scaling back the Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle next year.

No suprise here, 'cuz not all change is good.

WTF do they think they're gonna fly Orion on if they cancel Ares I? Wait for the Ares V development?

Bingo. The Orion will never fly.

I still see no reason for a manned trip to Mars and a return to the moon. I believe in the space program; however, it seems we're spinning our wheels by trying to do too much as once rather than one step at a time.

What do you propose our next step be?

Well they could use the SpaceX rockets to put Ares into orbit....


I say screw Chrysler and Save the space program, I didn't like Dodge stuff anyways...

 

[Allyn Gibson]

What do you propose our next step be?

Space probes and continued research on the ISS.

The problem is, the United States won't have a way to continue with research on the ISS. Once the shuttles are retired (and they're already past the operational lifetimes on major components) in May 2010, the US has no manned spaceflight capacity.

 

[Mr. B]

NASA's budget is a piss in the ocean, cutting it is short-sighted and completely unnecessary.

 

[Dayton3]

We've had the technology to go to Mars safely from thirty years.

A single manned mission to Mars would gather more information than centuries of unmanned probes.