NASA picks rocket for return to Moon

Flight International ^ | 08/23/05

[KevinDavis]

NASA has decided to develop a 100t to low-Earth orbit (LEO) in-line heavylift booster using a highly modified external tank and new five segment solid-rocket boosters (SRB), Christopher Shank, special assistant to NASA administrator Michael Griffin, has revealed to Flight International.

Shank says the agency will also develop a crew exploration vehicle (CEV) launcher that will be an in-line SRB with a cryogenic second stage.

These will become the launch vehicles to take the USA back to the Moon from 2015 and beyond. Previously NASA administrator Michael Griffin had only expressed his personal preference for Shuttle derived launch vehicles. The 100t launcher will place lunar mission boosters and other heavy hardware into LEO.

[KevinDavis]

Something NASA should have done MANY YEARS AGO!!!

[KevinDavis]

[Jeff Head]

[in hoc signo vinces]

IMHO...we should have never stopped going to the moon.

[RightWhale]

This is exactly what was being discussed a couple months ago. I believe those on FR who have been following this development have already given their approval. No doubt Griffin lurks on FR and made his choice accordingly.

[RoseofTexas]

Hehehehehe, will they be charging the Govt a million dollars for a hammer, or a mill for a plastic poop bag? Inquiring taxpayer minds want to know? ;0)

[Empireoftheatom48]

Looks pretty cool! Can't they speed it up?

[KevinDavis]

Ditto... It was a big mistake when we stopped going to the moon...

[Knitting A Conundrum]

Put me on your ping list!

[EagleUSA]

Something NASA should have done MANY YEARS AGO!!!

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Amen. Apollo never should have been stopped and it should have evolved...finally!

[festus]

I bet we could just buy some russian craft for 1/10th what we'll spend letting nasa boys produce the same thing.

[IrishCatholic]

I heartily agree. No telling where we would be now. Permanent base on Mars? Mining the asteroids? Station in orbit around Jupiter? Let's cut out the social worker nonsense and get going again.

[Prime Choice]

we should have never stopped going to the moon.

No argument there. Ah, if only Congress had seen it the same way and not cut funding.

[RightWhale]

Can't they speed it up?

They could speed it up a lot. Of course, some white elephants would have to go on the back burner.

[Prime Choice]

Apples and oranges. The Russians are not handicapped by Congressional oversight or environmental regulations.

[SteveMcKing]

I find that time-frame utterly depressing.

The bright side is that the Human Genome Project was to take 30+ years, and a small start-up company, Celera, came along and did it in only 2 years. The taxpayer-funded scientists living off of grants and dinosaur technology fussed and claimed the technique to be flawed and unreliable, when the truth was that some of them couldn't comprehend the basics of statistics and computational biology (or didn't want to).

My point is that the private sector is bound to beat NASA by at least a decade.

[Prime Choice]

Ditto... It was a big mistake when we stopped going to the moon...

Alas, NASA had to appease its masters in Washington.

Pro is the opposite of con. That's why it's called "Congress."

[Prime Choice]

My point is that the private sector is bound to beat NASA by at least a decade.

Considering that they're only now doing what NASA did 40 years ago (with 1960s technology), I find that highly doubtful.

[Empireoftheatom48]

All the money shunted to make work projects and of course for the Children!!

[KevinDavis]

We have spent over a trillion dollars on social welfare programs and what did we get??? Nothing.. Nada.. Zip....