NASA: Shuttle may be reborn as rocket

Florida Today ^ | 1.27.04 | Florida Today

[ambrose]

CAPE CANAVERAL -- NASA's shuttle, or some variation of its components, could play a role in President Bush's plan to send astronauts back to the moon.

The president this month directed NASA to retire the three remaining shuttles by 2010 and begin flying the replacement Crew Exploration Vehicle by 2014.

[ambrose]

ping.

[farmfriend]

bttt

[Kakaze]

I don't think this is anything new. Sounds like a re-presentation of the "Shuttle - C" concept that has been around for as long as I can remeber.

[11B3]

Makes sense. But why is it that we are going to take so long going back to the moon? Pretty unambitious time schedule if you ask me.

[Fledermaus]

Without a shuttle, are we going to work on something else to use to repair satellites in space, or is the cost low enough for companies just to send up new ones?

[Coyoteman]

The imminent end of the shuttle program has worried some of the 14,000 Brevard County workers at Kennedy Space Center.

I bet it has. But not worried enough to get out of the way and let it get done right!

[cyborg]

All this talk of Mars when the moon is only 240,000 miles away.

[ambrose]

I agree... and in fact, it is far enough off into the future that a future Rat president could kill the project, even if Bush is re-elected in '04.

I am hoping that President Bush will accelerate the timetables after he is re-elected.

[SAJ]

Yawn. Anything to keep their own bureaucracy alive.

If one wants engineering successes, then one turns the project OVER to the engineers, and management only worries about acquiring competent engineers. Perhaps this situation obtained at NASA at some time in history, but it most CERTAINLY does not obtain now.

Defund this clownish organisation, Mr. Bush.

[longtermmemmory]

actually this is a resurection of an old proposal. You replace the shuttle with wings to a wingless tube with engins attached to the booster rocket. It was to get building materials into orbit. Waste not, want not.

[narby]

What a wuss project.

If Bush had any real kahones, he'd build a runway to orbit vehicle. There are three or four great ideas on the drawing boards (I'm tired of describing them).

But, if he did that, Bill Gates would just buy one, and then where would NASA be????

[Kakaze]

" If Bush had any real kahones, he'd build a runway to orbit vehicle "

I'm with you there!

We need the vehicle and there are alot of people trying to build them....Burt Rutan comes to mind.

[KellyAdmirer]

I'm sure NASA could come up with a cheaper heavy-payload alternative. We had one 30 years ago, after all. Oh wait, this is NASA, after all.

[ambrose]

JPL seems to have its act together...

[thoughtomator]

You could get 10 new satellites in space for the cost of a single shuttle mission.

Let's face it, the shuttle is a dead project and needs to be put to rest, and so is the ISS that was created solely to give the shuttle a destination. Together, they do nothing of use proportionate to the expense.

It's time we updated to modern technology. I bet we can do a LOT better now, in 2004, than we can with this 20-year-old tech.

[DeepDish]

The president this month directed NASA to retire the three remaining shuttles by 2010 and begin flying the replacement Crew Exploration Vehicle by 2014.

Just what do they plan to use to service the space station during the 4 year gap?

[ambrose]

It is an "International" Space Station. The Russkies have rocket ships.

[prisoner6]

We're outsourcing to the Baikonur Cosmodrome...

prisoner6

[narby]

I really like the idea of building an air breathing airplane that has a kerosene/LOX engine in the tail. Takes off on a runway with a cargo of LOX and a bit of JP4. Hit's a tanker just like a regular F-18 at alititude and gets enough JP4 to feed the rocket up to mach 10 or so. Climbs to around 300k feet, and dumps out an upper stage during its 45 seconds in space.

Fly it every day for the cost of an international 747 flight.

Don't spend much money on the orbital hardware. After all, if it fails, just send up another one.

Space flight can be so cheap, if it just wasn't for the government.