Worth The Mission?

My thoughts on whether or not to fly Shuttle, and the cult of
astronaut worship:

http://article.nationalreview.com/?q...UxNjE5MjM1OTE=

Atlantis has a water logged tank, with water running out of the foam.

Several questions?

Werent the tank launching NOW processed at the same time? Any chance
its water logged too? How can a water logged tank be used for a rescue
shuttle?

If more foam damage occurs just how can this be fixed in a month or two
for a rescue shuttle? We have spent billions and over 2.5 years and if
its not fixed whats the miracle 30 day wonder?

Is ISS really up to support 9 people? They should of cut the crew
number to make things easier on ISS in the event of a stranding.

why dont we have some in stock soyuz and progress to get the crew back
in a emergency?

On Thu, 29 Jun 2006 17:01:43 -0400, in a place far, far away,
made the phosphor on my monitor glow in such a way as
to indicate that:

Atlantis has a water logged tank, with water running out of the foam.

Several questions?

Werent the tank launching NOW processed at the same time? Any chance
its water logged too? How can a water logged tank be used for a rescue
shuttle?

If more foam damage occurs just how can this be fixed in a month or two
for a rescue shuttle? We have spent billions and over 2.5 years and if
its not fixed whats the miracle 30 day wonder?

Is ISS really up to support 9 people? They should of cut the crew
number to make things easier on ISS in the event of a stranding.

why dont we have some in stock soyuz and progress to get the crew back
in a emergency?

Geez, I hope someone other than Haller comments on the piece.

"Rand Simberg" wrote in message
...
My thoughts on whether or not to fly Shuttle, and the cult of
astronaut worship:

http://article.nationalreview.com/?q...UxNjE5MjM1OTE=

I think you're on the right track he

What upset people so much about the deaths in Columbia,
I think, was not that they died, but that they died in
such a seemingly trivial yet expensive pursuit. They
weren't exploring the universe-they were boring a multi-
hundred-thousand-mile-long hole in the vacuum a couple
hundred miles above the planet, with children's science-
fair experiments. We were upset because space isn't
important, and we considered the astronauts' lives more
important than the mission. If they had been exploring
another hostile, alien planet, and died, we would have
been saddened, but not shocked - it happens in the
movies all the time.

It happens in history as well. We lost Grissom, White, and Chaffee on the
ground, yet everyone was determined to fix the problems and move foreword
with Apollo. They were heroes, pursuing the goal of landing a man on the
moon in a race with the Soviets.

For some reason, this generation seems to be rediscovering heroes. I'm sure
9/11 was a huge wake up call that helped start this movement. But today,
astronauts are still regarded as heroes, but they certainly seem to lack a
heroic goal. Going round and round in LEO isn't it. Even going back to the
moon isn't it (been there, done that, thirty-seven years ago).

My question is this, is it even possible for NASA to find a truly heroic
goal for our heroic astronauts?

Jeff
--
"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a
little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor
safety"
- B. Franklin, Bartlett's Familiar Quotations (1919)


..

On Fri, 30 Jun 2006 09:39:25 -0400, in a place far, far away, "Jeff
Findley" made the phosphor on my monitor
glow in such a way as to indicate that:

My question is this, is it even possible for NASA to find a truly heroic
goal for our heroic astronauts?

I'm not sure there is (though an expedition to Mars or an asteroid
might suffice). I'm also not sure that we should want to.

I'd rather get people to think about space as a new frontier where all
kinds of pioneers can go, and risk their lives for their own goals and
purposes, rather than as a preserve for heroic government employees.

Geez, I hope someone other than Haller comments on the piece.

How about some comments on the points I raised.

Rand Simberg wrote:
My thoughts on whether or not to fly Shuttle, and the cult of
astronaut worship:

http://article.nationalreview.com/?q...UxNjE5MjM1OTE=


And I *still* think a National Astronaut Cemetery would be a great idea.

Paul

"Rand Simberg" wrote in message
...
On Thu, 29 Jun 2006 17:01:43 -0400, in a place far, far away,
made the phosphor on my monitor glow in such a way as
to indicate that:

Atlantis has a water logged tank, with water running out of the foam.

Several questions?

Werent the tank launching NOW processed at the same time? Any chance
its water logged too? How can a water logged tank be used for a rescue
shuttle?

If more foam damage occurs just how can this be fixed in a month or two
for a rescue shuttle? We have spent billions and over 2.5 years and if
its not fixed whats the miracle 30 day wonder?

Is ISS really up to support 9 people? They should of cut the crew
number to make things easier on ISS in the event of a stranding.

why dont we have some in stock soyuz and progress to get the crew back
in a emergency?

Geez, I hope someone other than Haller comments on the piece.

Especially since he still seems to be raising nothing but questions that
NASA has already considered. That and he still doesn't seem to understand
statistics, engineering, or the scientific method. Boy, am I glad I've
still got him killfiled. :-)

Jeff


..

"Rand Simberg" wrote in message
...
On Fri, 30 Jun 2006 09:39:25 -0400, in a place far, far away, "Jeff
Findley" made the phosphor on my monitor
glow in such a way as to indicate that:

My question is this, is it even possible for NASA to find a truly heroic
goal for our heroic astronauts?

I'm not sure there is (though an expedition to Mars or an asteroid
might suffice). I'm also not sure that we should want to.

I'd rather get people to think about space as a new frontier where all
kinds of pioneers can go, and risk their lives for their own goals and
purposes, rather than as a preserve for heroic government employees.

Today, the heroic image of astronauts is so strong that paying Soyuz
passengers are put down by the media as tourists and their missions are
viewed as stunts rather than "serious" space flights. Perhaps when the
"tourist" space flights outnumber the NASA space flights, the heroic NASA
astronaut image will start to diminish.

Jeff
--
"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a
little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor
safety"
- B. Franklin, Bartlett's Familiar Quotations (1919)


..

h (Rand Simberg) writes:

On Fri, 30 Jun 2006 09:39:25 -0400, in a place far, far away, "Jeff
Findley" made the phosphor on my monitor
glow in such a way as to indicate that:

My question is this, is it even possible for NASA to find a truly heroic
goal for our heroic astronauts?

I'm not sure there is (though an expedition to Mars or an asteroid
might suffice). I'm also not sure that we should want to.

I'd rather get people to think about space as a new frontier where all
kinds of pioneers can go, and risk their lives for their own goals and
purposes, rather than as a preserve for heroic government employees.

Yes. All space-bound and space-based ventures should be tax-free.
If you find a gold asteroid and import it on Earth: tax free!


--
__Pascal Bourguignon__ http://www.informatimago.com/

"You question the worthiness of my code? I should kill you where you
stand!"