NEWS - Bush May Announce Return To Moon At Kitty Hawk - Space Daily

h (Rand Simberg) wrote in message . ..
On 30 Oct 2003 14:44:56 -0800, in a place far, far away,
(CL Vancil) made the phosphor on my monitor
glow in such a way as to indicate that:

For those who are a bit cynical and remember Bush the Elder's SEI,
remember that things are different now.

First, Bush the Younger is not his dad.
Second, the liberal Democrats don't run Congress.
Third, Sean O'Keefe runs NASA, not Dick Truly.

Also the plan is not a five hundred billion dollar monstersity, but
contemplates a 7-10% annual increase in NASA's budget, which is
doable.

How can you know that? We haven't even seen a plan. If it costs them
thirteen billion to develop an "orbital space plane" I can't wait to
see the price tag for a lunar mission.

Two reasons:

(1) The 7-10% annual increase in NASA's budget will not cover $500
billion, unless we're talking more decades (centuries?) than anyone is
willing to contemplate.

(2) Congress will not fund a $500 billion dollar return to the Moon
program, any more than it was willing to do a $500 billion dollar Moon
and Mars program.

Mark Whittington wrote:

(2) Congress will not fund a $500 billion dollar return to the Moon
program, any more than it was willing to do a $500 billion dollar Moon
and Mars program.



Hell, for all we know the "Orbital Space Plane" may end up being a
ballistic capsule.

Pat

On or about Fri, 31 Oct 2003 05:43:27 -0600, Pat Flannery
made the sensational claim that:
Hell, for all we know the "Orbital Space Plane" may end up being a
ballistic capsule.

I thought that was already settled. At least I remember Kim Keller saying so,
and that it probably wasn't going to be a completely reusable design. But
we're still going to call it OSP dammit! And I like it that way, it's a gov't
program after all, so it only makes sense that a spaceplane would have no
wings.
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