Posted on 06/08/2009 4:59:01 PM PDT by KevinDavis
Many space enthusiasts embrace the idea that private entrepreneurs can achieve a breakthrough in space access where large government funded efforts have repeatedly failed. This belief remains widespread despite many years of many failures by the private sector. Previous failures include Kistler Aerospace and Rotary Rocket, among many others. Current hopes are pinned on Elon Musk and SpaceX, Richard Branson/Burt Rutan and Virgin Galactic, Jeff Bezos and Blue Origin, and miscellaneous other entrepreneurs and firms. Yet common business practices in modern high technology firms and the historical pattern of major technological inventions and scientific discoveries are in clear conflict, raising serious questions about the probability of success of the current crop of private sector attempts to achieve inexpensive and profitable space access. The rest of this article discusses the differences between common business practices and the pattern of major breakthroughs and suggests some changes to common business practices that may enable private efforts to make the breakthrough probably needed for cheap access to space.
(Excerpt) Read more at thespacereview.com ...
Asteroid mining and manufacturing in space are the direction I would go if I had the power.
I’m sure he will.
We need a company to go up there and collect the trash.
Today's crop of rocket entrepreneurs is mostly self-made men who have some money (not much and not enough) and plenty of passion. IMO, if someone makes it, that would be such a company - entirely driven by a person, not by a board of directors.
Yep. Like that guy from the movie “Aviator”. Forgot the name though.
Hint, his initials where H. H.
Already did — it’s called Apollo. That hardware didn’t build itself... ;’)
At first I was thinking Hugh Hefner, haha. But now I remember. Howard Hughes. Thanks for the hint.
He might try, but most of these guys are pretty tough cookies and have already made their money.
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