No, you made a metaphor which I countered. You then asked what the mission was, I responded. Now you're talking about a 7 to 1 return on investment that I've never heard of. The mission today is about the safety of future missions.
If your argument is that private business should fund all space flight, then do it. Step up and challenge the government with alternative space travel. Put it out of business. So far, Burt Rutan and a few other admirable entrepreneurs are on that track. Invest in them.
That is true.. We should invest either in Spacedev, Spacex, or Blue Orgin...
OK fine. The mission today is about the safety of future missions. I'm sorry if I got you confused with others who have replied to me, asserting that Nasa returns 7 dollars for every one invested and that for proof of this I should "go outside and look around".
As for private investment, it is typically daunting to raise money when the government is your competition because they have no cost of capital restrictions in their work.
Showers are beginning to develop west of the launch pad, which weather forecasters had expected.
The inspection team is responsible for checking Discovery and the launch pad one last time prior to liftoff. The 8-person team is comprised of engineers and safety officials from NASA, United Space Alliance and tank-builder Lockheed Martin. At the conclusion of their two-hour tour-of-duty, the team will have walked up and down the entire fixed service structure and mobile launcher platform.
The team is on the lookout for any abnormal ice or frost build-up on the vehicle and integrity of the external tank foam insulation.
The team uses a portable infrared scanner that gathers temperature measurements on the surface area of the shuttle and can spot leaks. The scanner will be used to obtain temperature data on the external tank, solid rocket boosters, space shuttle orbiter, main engines and launch pad structures. The scanner can also spot leaks of the cryogenic propellants, and due to its ability to detect distinct temperature differences, can spot any dangerous hydrogen fuel that is burning. The team member also is responsible for photo documentation.