NASA Offers "Apollo on Steroids" to Return to Moon REUTERS
NASA Says Moon Rocket Will Cost $104 Billion ASSOCIATED PRESS
Posted on 09/19/2005 9:23:52 PM PDT by neverdem
WASHINGTON, Sept. 19 - Combining an old concept, existing equipment and new ideas, NASA gave shape on Monday to President Bush's promise to send humans back to the Moon by the end of the next decade.
Michael D. Griffin, the agency's new administrator, detailed a $104 billion plan that he said would get astronauts to the Moon by 2018, serve as a steppingstone to Mars and beyond, and stay within NASA's existing budget.
The plan would use a new spacecraft similar to the Apollo command capsule of the original Moon program, and new rockets made up largely of components from the space shuttle program.
"It is very Apollo-like," Dr. Griffin said, "but bigger. Think of it as Apollo on steroids."
The plan drew a mixture of praise and criticism from lawmakers and space experts. [News analysis, Page A15.]
The chairman of the House Science Committee, Representative Sherwood Boehlert, Republican of New York, said it appeared to be "the safest, least expensive and most efficient way" of moving forward in space exploration, but added that current cost overruns in other NASA programs might make it hard to develop the new vehicle on schedule.
The outlines of the plan had been disclosed informally over the last two months by NASA officials and space experts. But Dr. Griffin's announcement laid out a timetable and a budget, putting flesh on the bones of a proposal that Mr. Bush announced in January 2004 but had never described in detail.
Dr. Griffin said that after adjusting for inflation, the program would cost just 55 percent of what it cost to put a dozen men on the lunar surface from 1969 to 1972.
The pay-as-you-go plan, approved by the White House last week, would stay within NASA's $16-billion-a-year budget through a combination of retiring the space shuttle,...
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
NASA Offers "Apollo on Steroids" to Return to Moon REUTERS
NASA Says Moon Rocket Will Cost $104 Billion ASSOCIATED PRESS
We won't get moving on this until the Chineese are half way there.
What the hell for???
For the adventure and the discovery. For those who aren't inspired by a rejuvenated space program, there will always be reruns of "American Idol."
American Idol doesn't cost us $100,000,000,000.
My money is on the chinese getting there with a lot of dead "Sinonauts" (or whatever they're called). We'll probably beat them though.
The "American Idol" comment was gratuitous and inane- but also pretty funny. I think the value of going or not going depends on what we do on the moon. If we're hitting golf balls and picking up nice rocks its a waste. If we getting ready to build a more permanent base - Get the High Ground, amoung other things- then it worth it.
Agreed.
If we are going back just to upstage the Chineese, then it falls in the "been there, done that, bought the tee-shirt" category.
If there are valid, and valuable, mission objectives to be accomplished, then I can support it.
Gotta get there once before you can return. (Everyone, I have my tin foil hat on)
The answer is, they were all mistakes. Every single thing NASA did since Apollo was a mistake. I find it incredible that NASA spent thirty years wasting time and money for what - for nothing.
The big question is, well, is this just another mistake? I think not, or rather, I hope not. But the only reason I think that is because finally, after thirty wasted years, NASA is simply continuing where it left off in 1973 - as it should have done all along.
It was meant to be insulting.
Since I don't watch American Idol, or any other mass market media pap, I wasn't insulted.
You'll just have to try harder next time.
Kucinich: Space Cadet
I just have one question,,,how come it has taken us this long to plan on going to the moon again?
I am really looking for someone to please convince me that we did go in the first place,,,,,help please,,,i just don't believe it for the life of me
This is moronic...why are we going back to the moon? If you wanna do something, shoot for Mars.
The CEV is completely uninspiring.
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