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To: Paul Ross
Perhaps we won't get to some ideal per-launch cost in a bean-counter's imagination,

Without a serious sea-change in launch costs, manned space simply has no point. If all we can ever foresee being able to afford is a couple of dozen people in space at once, then every manned space idea and endeavor should be ended and the money put to much better use.

Really, though, we have the technology to lower launch costs by a factor of 100 or so right now. We don't do it because NASA can't imagine what it would do with the extra capacity and money.

142 posted on 08/02/2005 2:53:34 PM PDT by hopespringseternal (</i>)
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To: hopespringseternal
Really, though, we have the technology to lower launch costs by a factor of 100 or so right now.

I don't think that even mag-lev rail launches off the side of the Rockies quite gets us down to under a million per launch. Amortizing the infrastructure, and re-proofing the man-rating of the space vehicle itself will chew up more than that. Sorry, your math just doesn't add up.

157 posted on 08/04/2005 9:39:42 AM PDT by Paul Ross (Strict Constructionist Definition=Someone who doesn't hallucinate when reading the Constitution)
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